They were running late Monday morning as Erin had had to change after a late bout of morning sickness. Aaron held the door to the bullpen, he could see JJ answer the phone, a frown on her face. Putting his hand on the small of Erin's back, he guided her over to the other woman.
"Hotch, have you seen Penelope or Dave this morning on your way up?" Reid asked, looking concerned.
"No, they're not here?" he asked, pulling Erin closer to his side. Suddenly, her hinky feeling was now his.
"No, and they haven't dropped Irene off at daycare, either," Reid replied.
"I'm sorry, what?" JJ asked, obvious distress in her voice. Every head turned to look at her and Erin dug her hand into Aaron's shirt, burying her head in his chest. "Okay, what hospital? All right, we'll be there as soon as we can." JJ hung up the phone, her eyes wet with tears. "There's been an accident," she managed to gasp out before fainting and falling into Reid's arms.
"Quick, get her up to Aaron's office. Anderson, will you bring up some smelling salts? They should be in one of the first aid kits." The young man nodded at Erin and she led the others up to the office. "Jennifer, wake up," she said as Morgan laid her on the sofa. Anderson came up moments later and handed over the tube of salts to Aaron.
Breaking them open under JJ's nose, he watched the other woman blink and struggle to it up. "Careful, JJ, you've just woke up from fainting. Who were you talking to on the phone?"
"Sergeant Craymer with the DC police. There's been a horrible car accident. Penelope and Dave's car was t-boned by another car. They've been airlifted to Saint Vincent's and there's no further word on their condition."
"And Irene?" Erin asked, holding rightly to Aaron's hand.
"She's okay. But we should get to the hospital. They'll need us." JJ stood, wobbling slightly before finding her footing. As they hurried down to the parking lot, JJ tossed Aaron a set of keys to one of the SUVs. Erin got in the passenger seat and the others piled in. Aaron took off, lights going, and pushed the SUV to go as fast as safely possible.
About halfway there, his phone rang and Erin dug it out of his pocket, answering it. "Hello? Yes, we're on our way. What? Is he in protective custody yet? Make certain the minute he comes out of surgery he's cuffed to his bed. Show him no mercy." Erin hung up and balled her fists to her mouth.
"What is it, Buttercup?" Morgan asked kindly, reaching up to rub her shoulder.
"One of you is going to have to hold me back when we get to the hospital. I will kill the bastard if I set eyes on him."
"Who, Erin?" Emily aside, adding her hand to Erin's arm.
"Kevin Lynch. He's the one that caused the accident."
"I thought you fired him last March? Why wait until now to do something?" Morgan asked, sighing deeply as he met Aaron's eye in the rearview mirror.
"I have no idea, Derek. I'd thought he'd gone elsewhere looking for work." Erin sighed and pulled out her own cell phone. Aaron heard her take a deep breath and knew she was about to cry.
"What is it, Buttercup?" he asked.
"She texted me just before it happened. Irene finally fits into her three to six month clothes. She sent a picture of them to me." Erin cried then, breaking down at last. "I don't know what I'll do if I lose her, Aaron. She's my closest friend."
"We won't lose her, Erin. She's a fighter. Think about when she was shot. A lesser woman would have been dead after a wound like that, and she survived." Morgan pulled out a handkerchief and passed it up to Aaron's wife. She daubed at her eyes and then blew her nose.
"And Dave won't leave his daughter without a father. He loves that little girl way too much to die," Reid piped up from the back, and Aaron nodded. "We've all survived something horrible in this group of people, things that should have destroyed us. Yet we made it through to the other side. Don't give up on them just yet."
"You're quite right, Doctor Reid." Erin curled her hand around her stomach and Aaron drove a little more quickly. He pulled into the emergency room parking lot and parked in the first spot he found. He came around to the passenger side of the SUV and helped Erin out, wrapping an arm around her waist. They led the way inside, and he and Erin went up to the desk.
"Excuse me, we're the family of Penelope and David Rossi."
The woman looked up from her computer. "One moment, please." She tapped away on her keyboard and then looked back up at them. "You'll need to head up to the OR waiting room, I'll write down the directions for you. By chance, are you Aaron and Erin Hotchner?"
"Yes," Erin replied softly, squeezing his hand tightly.
"Would you come with me, please? I have someone who's waiting for you." Erin let go of him and went into the back where the young woman was. A few moments later, they returned, and Irene was cradled in his wife's arms.
"We're her guardians, love." Erin came up to his side and he slipped his arm back around her waist.
He nodded and motioned to the rest of the team. JJ took the diaper bag form Erin and they all trooped up to the pace where they'd need to wait. Irene began to fuss a little and Erin paced with her around the small room. The infant began to root around Erin's breast and he took the bag from JJ, looking for the cooler he knew would have her bottle.
"Thank you, honey."
"So, when are you guys due?" Emily asked, trying to break the silence.
"I'm not sure to an exact day, but I'd assume late September or early October." Erin sat next to Emily and they fell into a hushed conversation as the others watched the clock. An hour passed, and then two, and finally a doctor came into the room.
"Penelope Rossi?" Aaron nodded and went to the woman's side. "She had a rough go for a while, but once we removed her spleen, her vitals perked up. I don't know if she'll wake up today, but she's well on her way to recovery. Most likely, she'll be in here about a week."
"And when can we go see her?"
"I'd say in about an hour or so. But only one or two at a time."
"Thank you. And could you tell me any news on Penny's husband, David? He's supposed to be in surgery as well."
"I wasn't part of the team that was working on him, sir. I do know they were still working on him when we wheeled his wife into her recovery room. His doctor will come out like I did and speak with you when he's out of the surgical room." Aaron nodded as the woman turned and left.
He rejoined his wife and she leaned against him. Irene was fast asleep, her bottle in Emily's hand. "Well?"
"One or two of us can see her in about ninety minutes. But the doctor said she'll pull through."
"Wonderful." A police officer entered the room and JJ went up to him, talking lowly for a few minutes.
"Kevin's in protective custody now. The doctor's repaired his broken femur, and he's going to have an armed guard for the moment. They're charging him with two counts of attempted murder, along with driving while intoxicated. They've found evidence in his car to suggest that this was premeditated."
Erin burst into tears, and he slowly stroked her arm. "Shh, sweetheart, Penny's going to be okay. They have the bastard in custody."
"I know, Aaron. It's just, my nerves are so frayed right now. Please, don't let me go."
"Never, my love." She sighed and he looked around the room. Emily was leaning on Morgan, quietly crying, and JJ stared at the clock while Reid fidgeted absently. Movement in the doorway caught Aaron's eye and he looked up. Ashley was there, leaning heavily against the jamb.
"My doctor let me come down here. The accident is all over the news, but they're not saying anything about how they're doing. Have you heard anything?"
Reid sprang up and helped her over to sit on a couch with him. "Penelope's out of surgery, and she going to be fine. We're still waiting to hear about Dave."
"Would you mind if I waited with you?" They all shook their heads and Ashley relaxed into Reid. "Is that Irene? I haven't had the chance to meet her, but I've been following Penelope's blog. It's brought me up to speed on all that happened during my coma."
"Would you like to hold her?" Erin asked, standing. Ashely nodded and Aaron watched his wife tenderly hand the baby over. Taking a seat next to Ashely. Erin smiled at him and he smiled back. Suddenly, he knew what to say to her.
"Erin?"
"Yes?"
"I know what to say that will change you."
"And that would be?" She focused her gaze on him and everything else melted away as he lost himself in her eyes.
"You are loved."
She laughed. "So, now you're ripping off Josh Groban?"
"No, I'm serious. Penelope loves you. Jack loves you. And most important of all, I love you. Since you've surrounded yourself with love, you've become love." Ignoring the others, he went and knelt in front of her, touching her stomach. "And when our child is born, they'll love you, too."
Erin leaned forward and kissed him sweetly. "I love you, my Aaron."
A doctor and a nurse came in and went over to them. While the nurse sat and talked to Erin, the doctor led Aaron over to the door. "Mister Rossi is out of surgery now, though he'll have a tough road ahead of him. His femur was shattered and we had to put in three pins to hold it in place. He also has a few fractured ribs and one punctured his lung. We've reinflated it, but he's going to be on a ventilator until tomorrow morning."
"But he's going to be all right?"
"Eventually, yes. It's not going to be an easy road for him. Unfortunately, you won't be able to see him until tomorrow afternoon." Aaron nodded and the man left.
"Honey, I'm going to go see Penelope now. The nurse is going to help us out with a milk bank for Irene. She's in room 4216." She kissed him and then took the diaper bag from JJ before leaving with Irene in her arms.
Aaron turned and addressed the others. "All right, Erin's going to be here with Penelope. We should get back to work." The others nodded and stood up. He watched Ashley hug Reid, a loving smile on her lips. Reid kissed her cheek and she left the room to go back to her own.
As Aaron drove back to the bullpen, he found himself sighing. He needed to listen to Erin more often. Looking at his team, his family, in the rearview mirror, he knew this would only bind them closer together.