Disclaimer: Criminal Minds and its affiliated characters do not belong to me. I mean no copyright infringement.

Author's Notes: This is a short chapter finishing up the case. However, it does end with some fluff. I think there will be 3 more chapters after this one and maybe an epilogue. Translation: It will be at least 3 more chapters, but it's more likely to be more. It always happens like that for me. I think of a new scene to add and it keeps growing longer even though the original outline never changes.

Responses to your reviews are at the end.

Holiday of Angels

Chapter 14: The Unsub

When Rossi, Emily and J.J. arrived with the bagels and doughnuts, the team gathered around the table with Ryan to talk to him. They hoped to get a little more information from him after what Morgan and Reid learned from their interrogations the night before. Morgan wanted the boy to be comfortable in an informal setting and enjoying breakfast together seemed to be the way to do it despite the number of people. He'd already spent an abnormal amount of time with the group already that they didn't think it would be a problem. Morgan and Reid sat at one end of the table with him.

Reid started the questioning while most of the others looked busy with their own conversations. "Ryan, do you remember a neighbor by the name of Thomas Bailey?"

"Mr. Bailey?" Ryan asked with surprise. "Yeah, I remember him. He used to eat dinner with us a lot. Dad said he was lonely."

"You said he used to eat dinner with you a lot. Does he still come over sometimes?" Reid continued not letting on that they knew of his death.

"No."

"Why not?" Reid asked gently.

"Dad said that he had to move. He finally got a job. It was far away so he couldn't come over anymore."

"Does he ever call?" asked Morgan.

"Hmm. No. I don't know."

"When he stopped coming over, is that when you started going to church and inviting kids to have lunch with you?"

"Yeah," said Ryan.

"Your dad seems like he must be a generous guy taking care of other people even though he's busy," said Reid trying to take a different approach of questioning.

"Yeah, I guess."

"Did he ever talk to you about kids from church? Maybe he was worried about them?" Reid continued.

He shrugged his shoulders. "Not really. Accept…"

"Accept when…" encouraged Reid.

"Accept when we are on the bus with just our bus driver, Jaden."

"Do all the kids call the bus driver by just his first name instead of Mr. Gibson?" asked Morgan. Past experience had him concerned about the personal relationships the bus driver may have been forming with the teens.

Ryan smiled. "Yeah, Jaden is always cool like that."

"It must make you feel special and maybe a little more respected by an adult being that cool," said Reid.

Ryan shrugged his shoulders again. "I guess so. He doesn't judge us and likes to hear about what we do and like. He's just cool. Everyone likes him."

"What about the kids who don't ride the bus?" asked Morgan.

Ryan thought about it for a few moments. "I guess they do. He once invited us to a basketball game at Troy High School to watch Toby play. He got permission from Pastor Mike to use the bus."

That perked up some ears from around the table.

"Wow," said Reid. "Did you get to go?"

"No." Ryan sounded and looked annoyed. "Dad said I wasn't old enough to be hanging out at high school games."

Morgan chuckled. "That sounds like a dad with rules."

Hotch slipped out of the room to talk to the detective and tell him he wanted Jaden Gibson brought back for more questioning. The rest of the team joined in on their talk with Ryan on lighter topics about school.

~oOo~

By that evening, the team was on the jet and heading back to Quantico.

"So how do you think the youth group will handle the news that their bus driver was the angel of death?" asked J.J.

"I talked with the pastors before we left," answered Hotch. "It was difficult for them to hear and understand. But they'll figure it out. They're already meeting and discussing ways to present it to the kids before they tell the rest of the congregation."

"Won't they see it in the news first?" asked Prentiss.

J.J. still dealt with the press on occasion and felt drawn to do it again with the sensitive nature of the case. "I was able to get the local news stations and papers to wait until after Sunday services to air and print the story."

"All of them agreed to that? Wow. I guess I'm surprised. Must be the holiday spirit," said Prentiss.

"I imagine the church will suffer for awhile in the wake of the news. All men are fallible, but church's seem to suffer after something like that happens to one of their members. But it will probably be a relief to the parents of the children who died. They won't have to suffer from the stigmatization suicide brings," offered Rossi.

"I feel for the Adams family. They've spent a lot of years at Grace Community Church. Part of them wants to go to a different church because of the bad memories. Part of them struggles to go at all because their faith has been shaken. And still they know they need to keep things as routine and stable as possible for their whole family to heal," explained J.J. as she remembered what her parents had gone through when her sister ended her own life. Prentiss leaned over and gave her a quick hug.

"So, what will happen to Ryan, his baby sister and their dad?" asked Morgan.

Prentiss and Rossi helped with that before they left Detroit Metro. "Rossi and I paid a visit to Child Protective Services this afternoon because Ryan confessed that his father leaves them alone at night."

"A social worker will be assigned to investigate," added Rossi.

"When I talked to the pastors today, they said that they would be visiting a family in the congregation who are licensed foster parents in hopes that they'll be able to help. They were planning to visit them this evening," said Hotch.

Prentiss shook her head in sorrow. "That church has a lot to handle right now. And it's Christmas."

"Actually, I can't think of a better time," interjected Rossi. "People are very generous and forgiving this time of year."

"That's true," said Prentiss feeling a little less stressed.

An hour later, they were leaving the jet and looking forward to sleeping in their own beds.

"I don't want to hear of anybody coming back to the BAU until Monday," Hotch informed them as they stepped off of the elevator.

"Does that apply to you, too?" asked Morgan. He planned to stay and help Hotch with the final paper work for the case like he had been doing for a couple of years now. He sincerely hoped their leader would stay away and spend as much time with Jack as possible. He needed the break as much as the rest of them if not more so.

"Of course," answered Hotch not looking at all convincing as far as Morgan was concerned.

"Is it another tempered suggestion?" asked Rossi.

"No. It's an order. However," Hotch's stoic expression changed to one of amusement. "It is a tempered suggestion that everyone meet at my place Saturday afternoon to get a tree and decorate it. I'll provide the food."

"Seriously?" asked Morgan. "I was hoping you were joking, man."

"Oh, sugar, I know you're not really seriously annoyed like you'd like us to believe. It's an extra chance to spend time with your baby girl goddess before you leave for Chicago," purred Garcia who had just met the team in the bull pen.

"Don't you know it, Sweetness," he grinned and tweaked her nose.

Prentiss groaned and rolled her eyes. Hotch's lips formed the slightest smile when he noticed her reaction. Sometimes, they were just too sappy with each other for her liking. She wished that the two would finally get together and sedate all the sexual tension between them. Then maybe they could spare the rest of them from their constant flirting and foreplay. Although, she wasn't sure what that would do to Reid. He soaked up all the attention that he could get from his best friend and that was sure to diminish once Morgan and Garcia gave in to their desires. She wondered if she should play matchmaker for Reid and set him up with a few blind dates. She could make that her New Year's Resolution.

Hotch walked over leaned close to speak softly. "What's got you so happy and amused all of a sudden?"

"Oh nothing," she replied. "I'm just thinking about New Year's resolutions."

"Really?" asked Hotch rhetorically. "Care to share."

"Not a chance!" she followed with a laugh.

That was the second time in one day she had him wondering what was going on in that beautiful mind of hers. And he was determined to find out. All he needed was a plan.

THANKS FOR REVIEWING! I LOVE READING THEM!

They keep me motivated!

In the next chapter, it's time to start getting ready for Christmas!

p95000 – Hotch and Emily will get a chance to talk about what happened when they shared a bed. ;) I'm glad you liked Rossi and J.J. helping out Emily. I've been watching the 2nd half of season six again and decided she needed to know those things and I didn't think they were things Hotch would share although he will confess to other feelings and ease any doubts she may still have in future chapters. I loved it when in "Lauren" he threatened Clyde if anything happened to her.

O – Great timing for your review of simply "more!" *u* I actually had the chapter finished shortly before you posted it.

Daisyangel – I have to agree… Jack is adorable! Thank you so much for leaving a review and letting me know that you are enjoying this story.