ANNOUNCEMENT: I have started a new forum titled Law Enforcement TV Fanatics. It is for any TV show fanfics in this genre. It has writing prompts, a place for people to find and add character back stories to help writers and places to link your favorite stories. I've started with what I know best: Bones & Criminal Minds. But I'm looking for moderators to help with NCIS, Castle, and many more of the law enforcement shows out there. The forum has a thread for that moderator search. I'd be honored if you took a quick look. Even if you are a part of other forums, I'm hoping it won't conflict with them. That's not my intent. I just wanted to offer something different without being restricted to one show. You can find the link at the top of my profile page.
~oOo~
Disclaimer: Criminal Minds and its affiliated characters do not belong to me. I mean no copyright infringement.
Author's Notes: Most of this chapter is fluff despite the title. Beth does not exist in this story. This has been posted less than 24 hours from the last chapter, so if it doesn't make sense, you may want to check to see if you've read chapter 9. I still have a few chapters to go. I will be trying very hard to have it done by New Year's.
Responses to your reviews are at the end
Holiday of Angels
Chapter 10: An Unexpected Lead
From chapter 9:
"What are you thinking?" Rossi asked Hotch who was in deep thought.
"It still doesn't fit. Not only is the driver supposed to have a partner for safety reasons, the second victim didn't ride the bus. Ryan's father is one of our suspects, but once again, he would be accompanied by the driver and the second victim still wouldn't fit the scenario."
"Our profile doesn't explain a team," said Prentiss.
"Okay, well," began Hotch. "We have Morgan and Reid on the bus this evening. When the two of you get back, let's meet and see if we can work through what we have with the new information. For now, let's join the youth group."
~oOo~
The rest of BAU team headed back to their hotel. While riding up the elevator, Hotch looked at Emily with a peculiar smile.
"What?" she asked.
"We have time to get in a run."
"Now? It's dark outside."
Hotch shrugged. "We can run up and down the stairs."
"You're kidding!"
Rossi and J.J. were highly amused looking back and forth between their teammates and each other.
"I'm pretty sure that I'm not in shape enough for stairs in this tall building."
"We can always use the hallways in between levels if they're clear," offered Hotch.
Emily stared at him in disbelief.
"We do have about an hour until Morgan and Reid return," J.J. interrupted.
"Thanks for the help." Emily gave her friend a mock glare.
"Come on. You can stop when you need to. But I'm in training and have to work out everyday. You'd help keep me from training alone for at least part of the time."
Emily looked at him as she speculated her choices. "Fine, but if I need to stop, you can't beg me to continue."
"Scout's Honor," said Hotch.
She half snorted and half laughed. "Meet you in the hallway between our rooms in…" She looked down at her watch. "Maybe 15 minutes?"
"You're on. Fifteen minutes," he said while unsuccessfully hiding a smirk.
When Hotch and Rossi were in the room with the door closed, Rossi started teasing him. "You needed company for working out? Do you have a work out partner at home?" he asked with a smirk.
"Shut up, Dave."
Rossi laughed at him as he grabbed his running clothes and entered the bathroom.
~oOo~
When Dave had his running shoes on and got up to leave, Rossi followed him.
"Where are you going?" he asked suspiciously.
"Oh, I'm not about to miss this," le laughed. "I plan on watching your progress from the stairwell."
Hotch shook his head at how ridiculous his friend was acting, but when they reached the hallway, J.J. was standing next to Emily who was stretching her legs. Hotch liked the view she was giving him.
"Don't tell me you're going to be watching, too?" asked Hotch looking somewhat annoyed.
"You, too?" asked Emily with an eyebrow raised when she spotted Rossi. "What are you going to do? Judge us and give scores or just plain make jokes?"
Rossi let out a boisterous laugh and J.J. grinned.
"Just stay quiet and keep your opinions to yourself," warned Hotch as he started stretching as well.
"What kind of stretch is that?" asked Rossi as he watched Hotch.
"A very important one. Let me see you do it." challenge Hotch.
"Not a chance in hell will I do those kinds of contortions to my body." Then he added as he had a second thought, "Well maybe the exception would be in bed."
Hotch and Emily groaned and J.J. looked surprised and embarrassed.
"Are you ready to get away from these clowns?" Hotch asked Emily.
"Ready when you are."
~oOo~
Hotch and Emily first ran down the stairs to the first floor to get their heart rates up and then the real work began. For the first couple of floors, she was able to stay with him. She would fall a little behind on the stairs and then catch up again as they ran down a hallway. In one of the hallways, they almost ran down a small group of women and Hotch and Emily apologized profusely. One of the women called out to Emily who slowed down to let Hotch get through the narrowed hallway. "Honey, don't worry about us. You're the lucky one. Your guy is hot!"
Emily didn't have time to correct her assumption as she tried to catch up with Hotch. She finally did so at the next set of stairs, but her thigh muscles were starting to burn and she slowed down a bit. Emily realized there was one very good reason for falling behind Hotch as he ran up a flight of stairs. She got a great look at his glutes as they flexed. And she was amazed at the muscle tone in his legs.
Hotch turned around at the next landing. "Need a water break, Em?"
"Em?" she thought to herself. That was different. "That'd be great."
Let's check our heart rates first." He touched his pulse and watched the second hand on his watch.
Emily realized that's why Hotch didn't wear a digital watch. When he was done, Hotch unhooked the small water bottles from some device that was attached to him and handed one to her. Each of them was hot and sweaty, but Hotch still thought Emily looked beautiful to him.
"I haven't heard any heckling from the peanut gallery in awhile. I wonder what's up with Rossi and J.J." said Hotch.
~oOo~
When Hotch's phone went to voice mail, Garcia called J.J.
Rossi and J.J. had been having fun talking about anything and everything between jokes about Hotch and Emily when J.J. heard the faint buzzing noise of her phone. "It's Garcia," she told Rossi in surprise.
"Garcia, are you still in your office?"
"Of course, I am gumdrop. If you are all working, I should be, too. And I found something disturbing."
"O-kay…" J.J. waited for her to continue.
"Are you anywhere near our super-agent?"
"You mean, Rossi?"
Of course, that got his attention. "Whatever it is you think I did, Penelope," he said loudly enough for her to hear, "I didn't do it."
J.J. rolled her eyes at him.
"Oh God, J.J. What do we do?" asked Garcia in a near panic and close to tears.
"Garcia, what's going on?" she asked sternly trying to get her out of her panic.
Now Rossi looked as concerned as J.J. did. "Put it on speaker, Jen," he said without expecting an argument.
"Is it just the two of you?" asked Garcia.
"Yes. Morgan & Reid are out in the field and Hotch and Emily are running up and down the stairs."
"Running up and down the stairs? Why would they do that? Does our friend want to kill our boss man before she gets him in bed?"
"Garcia!" cried J.J.
"Oh! I just created a virus of massive proportions! If I lived in my computer, I would be one very sick goddess. Pretend I didn't say that. Why can't I learn to think before I talk?"
"It's part of your charm, Kitten." Rossi was no longer in shock and now couldn't help but laugh. "Oh, this is good gossip." He groaned. "I just sounded like a girl."
"It's only gossip if you share that information with anyone else. So, keep that Italian mouth shut," squealed Garcia.
"For that, I will. But there are a whole lot of other things I like to use my mouth for."
"Oh, super-agent, don't tease me like that. You know the agent I'm waiting for is a chocolate God of Thunder," Garcia teased.
J.J. covered her face with the palms of her hands. She wished her friend would keep the sexual innuendos to herself and Morgan. "Can we get back to the reason you called?"
Garcia sobered immediately. "Yes, my lamb. But I need you to be sitting down somewhere private."
Rossi and J.J. looked at each other quizzically. They chose to go into Rossi and Hotch's hotel room.
"Okay, I didn't find any suicides in the area exactly like your victims. But," she hesitated. "I did find an assisted suicide."
J.J. watched Rossi's face go blank and he was staring at the wall.
"What happened, Garcia?"
"Well, according to the newspaper article, Thomas Bailey, 33, was being treated for depression after he lost his job and his family walked away from him and moved in with a friend. A year later, his ex-wife sent her kids to a local church one day on a bus for an outreach program and when they returned, her children found their mother dead. She had overdosed."
J.J. let out a big sigh and started massaging her temples.
"There's more sweetie. Thomas Bailey wasn't able to take custody of his children because the courts deemed him as an unfit parent. He stopped taking his meds and convinced a friend to help him end his life. That was six weeks ago."
"If we can connect him, or the person who assisted in the suicide, to one of our suspects, then we found our trigger," said J.J.
"It doesn't say who assisted Thomas Bailey." Garcia had tears running down her cheeks and her nose was stuffy. J.J. could hear her blow her nose in the distance.
Rossi finally spoke up. "Did this guy or his family have any ties to Grace Community Church?"
Just then Hotch entered the room and quickly realized that something wasn't right. He stuck his head into the hall and called for Emily. Hotch turned back to look at Rossi and J.J. "What happened?"
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