Personal Life

The house was empty and quiet when he unlocked the front door and disabled the alarm. The silence was nothing that Aaron hadn't expected, Jack was over at Jessica's and Spencer was still deployed. He was rather looking forward to the quiet after the past few days. The case had been hard, abductions always were. The team had been working around the clock and now all he wanted was to rest. He was desperate for a shower, a scotch, and time alone. He dropped his bag and briefcase by the door, toed off his shoes, and was already loosening his tie by the time he had reached the stairs. He made his way upstairs, as quickly as his tired and aching body could move. He went directly to the master bath and turned the shower on to start warming up while he continued to strip. By the time he had removed his suit and gotten a pair of comfortable sweats from the drawer, the bathroom was starting to fill with steam. He gratefully stepped into the pounding hot water and let himself relax.

He took a long, leisurely shower, relishing the peace and quiet along with the restorative effects of the hot water. By the time the water was starting to cool down he felt almost normal. He was also feeling rather peckish and decided that cooking would take too much effort. Delivery pizza would pair perfectly with the scotch that was waiting for him downstairs. He called the local pizza place while he was getting dressed. The restaurant was very close and he knew it wouldn't take long for delivery. He made his way downstairs relatively quickly to get everything else arranged before the pizza arrived. He grabbed napkins and a bottle of water from the kitchen and put them on the coffee table in the living room before he poured himself a very generous drink. Sipping it, he perused the DVD collection and was in the process of putting one into the player when the doorbell rang. Aaron abandoned the DVD player and set his drink on the table before grabbing his wallet from the bowl by the door. He opened the door, cash in hand, to be greeted by the last thing he expected to see.

Instead of the lanky teenage boy from a few blocks over with pizza in hand, there were two military officers and a woman in a suit standing on his porch. All three of them had serious expressions on their faces, the woman appeared to have been crying. In an instant, Aaron knew what had happened. He remembered that weekend so long ago, when he had joined Spencer for training on what to expect while deployed. The topic had been glossed over during the day but he could remember later that night Spencer telling him about how the next of kin were notified of casualties, of deaths. The Navy would send a team to the next of kin to make the notification. The team would be an officer, a chaplain, and if available, a case manager. Even with his limited knowledge of uniforms and insignia, these people could be nothing other than a casualty notification team. There was no other reason for any military members to be on the Hotchner-Reid doorstep at 7 PM on a Thursday night.

"No. You aren't, you can't be, no... Not Spencer, please, God, not Spencer," Aaron cried out, leaning heavily on the door. In that moment he was not the self-assured and confident FBI Supervisory Special Agent, he was the loving spouse of a deployed sailor who was having his worst nightmare come to life.

"Sir, I am LT Westbrook, this is Chaplain Moore, and Case Manager Amy Black. I am with the National Capital Region Casualty Assistance Office. Are you Aaron Hotchner? Husband to one Lieutenant Spencer Reid?" The younger man spoke first in a gentle tone, interrupting Aaron's pleading. When Aaron managed a short nod in response to the questions, he continued. "May we please come in? We need to speak with you regarding LT Reid."

Aaron took a step back, to let them into the house, mechanically leading them into the living room and sitting down heavily on the sofa. He was too scared and stunned to remember the manners that had been all but beaten into him as a child. Without thinking, he grabbed the glass of scotch from the table and took a large swallow, gasping as it burned its way down his throat. No one said anything as he did that. The burn of the alcohol seemed to wake Aaron from the shock and he looked at the three individuals who had closed the door behind them and followed him into the room. The chaplain had taken a seat on the couch next to him and the woman sat on the edge of a chair. The only one still standing was the young officer. When he saw that Aaron was focusing again, he took a step towards him and knelt down on one knee saying, "On behalf of the Secretary of the Navy, I regret to inform you that your husband was injured in the line of duty. He sustained serious injuries when his convoy encountered an IED during a routine mission in Iraq. Since the encounter he has been transported to Landstuhl Regional Medical Clinic in anticipation of his return to the states."

Only part of what the lieutenant said registered in Aaron's mind, "Injured? He, he's not dead? He's injured?" Hope was creeping into his voice as he looked between the three individuals. "He's not dead?"

The chaplain smiled at Aaron as he answered, "The last notification we had from Germany was that he was very seriously injured but in stable condition following surgery. Ms Black will be working with you with regards to benefits and what happens next for both of you."

"Was there anyone else that we should notify of LT Reid's injuries? Is there someone we can call to be with you? Is there anyone you would like to inform? " LT Westbrook questioned gently.

"Just, just Jessica. She is my sister in law and has our son right now. She will need to keep him until I get things organized. I'll need to call the Bureau. They need to know," Hotch answered numbly. His body was practically shaking with relief but he was still focused on the fact that Spencer was hurt. "What happened? Will he be ok? What kind of injuries?"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Hotchner, we don't have that information at this time. Am I correct in assuming that Jessica is LT Reid's sister? We can send a notification team to her in that event," the case manager spoke for the first time.

He shook his head quickly, "No, no, she is my sister in law from a previous marriage. My ex-wife died several years ago but Jessica has stayed close to us. We can call. She can keep Jack with her, she is used to watching him on short notice. I can always call her again when I have more information."

She nodded, "That is fine. We will handle this how you want to do so. Unfortunately, we won't be able to get you to Germany to see LT Reid. You are free to travel there yourself but you need to be aware that you would not have the same base access and privileges that you have here."

"I have no privileges, our marriage isn't recognized by the Navy. Just, please, I need to see Spencer," he pleaded, his usually sharp eyes glittering with unshed tears. The pain and difficulty of his words punctuated by his posture as the proud man's shoulders curled in self-protectively.

This was far from the first call that Amy Black had done, but it was the first for a married gay couple. It broke her heart that all of the resources and help that she had at her disposal for heterosexual couples were inaccessible for this poor man. There was no difference as far as she was concerned, this man's spouse was alone and injured in Germany and he deserved the right to go to him just as much as any other spouse. It wasn't up to her though. She did have friends over there though and perhaps they could set up a video conference at a minimum. With an internal sigh and a promise to herself to do as much as she could she replied, "I can make no promises, but I will see what I can do to get you to at least talk with him as soon as possible."

The smile and relief that came to Aaron's face was a sight she would never forget.