A wide yawn split Erin's lips as she continued to flip through the television channels, trying to find something that would lull her back to sleep when she heard a familiar voice speak. It took her a few channels to realise what she had heard, and she hurriedly clicked back until she was on ZNN once more. What she saw stole her breath away, and she shook her head as all thoughts of exhaustion fled as she stared at Aaron, addressing the crowd of local reporters. Trying not to disturb Elise, Erin leaned forward and grabbed her phone off the coffee table, unplugging it from the charger so that she could bring it to her ear after she had dialed David.
"Just what does Aaron think he's playing at?" she hissed as quietly as she possibly could, stroking Elise's hair with her free hand. "If Elise weren't ill, I would be speaking louder, so you have her to thank for your eardrums."
"I take it that this is being broadcast nationwide?"
"No, David, I just actively watch all the local news outlets of the cities that you have cases in." Being quiet certainly didn't keep the sarcasm from her tone, and she listened to him chuckle a little as she waited for him to reply.
"This unsub is escalating and looking for targets with a higher value," he started to protest, and she could hear the others in the team approach, knowing that her time was limited.
"Yes, well, he also has two children that he needs to think about before putting himself at risk. Just like you have four children who you need to think about. Make certain that you catch the unsub before anyone else gets hurt."
"Yes, Erin. I love you. Give Elise two extra kisses for us and try to get back to sleep. Thank God it's the weekend."
"I will. I love you, too." She ended the call and sighed deeply, dropping the phone into her robe pocket before carefully lifting Elise up in her arms and carrying her upstairs to their room, settling her in the middle of the bed before shrugging out of her robe and draping it over the footboard before grabbing her phone and setting it on the table next to the bed before climbing into bed and curling her body around Elise's and stroked her hair again as she tried to soothe herself back to sleep. She always hated when her children were ill, and she only hoped that after Elise had thrown up, she was now starting to feel better, even though she was still running a temperature.
"At least we can sleep until we want, Leelee," she whispered before kissing the back of Elise's head and closing her eyes, her favorite song on her lips as she tried to calm her heart enough to get back to sleep, images of Aaron and David in danger invading her dreams as she slipped back into a fitful rest. The next thing she was aware of, someone was joining her in the bed, and she blinked her eyes open to see Tabitha settling in, her hair a wild mess of elflocks. "Baby, what time is it?" she croaked out, pulling Elise closer to her chest as she slept on.
"A little after ten. Karen and Bruce have already had breakfast and are working on their homework, but I didn't have any, and I'm still tired. Can we sleep a little longer?"
Erin nodded as she carefully sat up against the headboard, reaching out to ruffle her daughter's hair. "Feel free to do just that. It is a little too late in the morning for me to try to get more sleep. But if you'll watch Elise for a moment, I'm going to grab a book and come back here and spend the day reading in bed."
Tabitha gave her a small smile as she cuddled in close to her baby sister, and Erin let out a small sigh as she slipped out of the bed and first stopped in the bathroom, taking care of her needs before washing her hands and heading downstairs to the study, unsurprised to find her two older children in there, studiously bent over open books. "We're spending a lazy Saturday in bed, since Elise is not feeling well, still. When you're finished with your work, feel free to join me in our bedroom." Karen nodded absently as she wrote something down on the notebook next to her while Bruce looked up and gave her a small smile. She went over to the bookcase and chose an easy book to read, one that wouldn't require much concentration, before leaving her children in peace and heading back upstairs.
Elise was awake and watching Tabitha, who had managed to fall asleep in the short time that she was downstairs. "Mama, sick."
"I know you're sick, Leelee. Are you feeling any better?" Her daughter shook her head as tears began to roll down her cheeks, and Erin felt her lower lip tremble a little as she climbed back into bed, setting the book aside as she allowed Elise to crawl into her lap. Rocking her back and forth, Erin hummed lightly in an effort to soothe her baby. "Don't worry, we can just stay here and cuddle the whole day, if that makes you feel better."
"Otay, Mama." Elise snuggled in closer to her chest, her little hand opening and closing against her chest as she attempted to self soothe. Once more, her daughter quickly fell asleep, becoming heavy against her chest as she gently adjusted how she was holding her in order to be able to read her book. It didn't take her long to become engrossed in her story, and Erin was startled to feel the bed dip beneath new weight some time later. Glancing up from her page, she saw that Bruce had joined them, one of the Ben Bova books that he loved so much in his hands.
"Karen's making sandwiches for us all. And before you protest about me not helping her, I asked, and she shooed me up here, saying it was faster to do it all herself." He spoke quietly, trying not to wake either Tabitha or Elise as he made himself comfortable at the foot of the bed. "You're looking a little pale, too, Mom."
"It's the weird sleep and worry. I can't afford to catch sick," she said offhandedly as she smiled at him. "I hope that David doesn't mind us eating in here, since we don't usually do that."
"Stellina, if it makes your life easier, I won't mind a thing."
Looking up, she saw her fiancé standing in the doorway, a soft grin on his face. "You're home."
"I am. Hotch wanted to stop by to see Elise before he went home, but I told him that it would probably be better if he came by after church tomorrow." Nodding, Erin gestured towards the bed, and he nodded as he found a free patch of space on the massive bed. "Is she feeling any better?"
"A little, I think. She's not quite as warm as she was earlier. And she hasn't thrown up again, so we have that going for us. If she's still not feeling better by the morning, I probably will stay home with her. Though Aaron is more than welcome to visit, still." David nodded and then Karen was entering, carrying a tray with plates of sandwiches for them all. "Karen, you should have let Bruce help you."
"I know, but I wanted to get this done quickly, and I had a mission. He can make supper, though."
"Hey!" he protested as Karen passed around the plates, leaving Tabitha's on the tray and setting it on the dresser before plopping down on the mattress next to Bruce and taking a huge bite out of her sandwich as she smirked at him. "I should have known that there was an ulterior motive there."
"Hey, we can make supper for our family together," David said. "Two hands will make it go all the easier." That seemed to put Bruce in a better mood, and he nodded as they all began to eat, and Erin felt her heart melt a little as she looked around at her family, so happy that they had come together so well.