Erin had had misgivings about sending the team to Canada, since they had a specific team that dealt with international incidents involving American citizens, but Aaron had pointed out the fact that that team was currently embroiled in a case in Japan, and this case needed their attention immediately, and Erin had found that she had to agree with his assessment. Still, she had a bad feeling about this case from the beginning, and it looked like that feeling wasn't going to leave any time soon. And the fact that she hadn't told David, or anyone else besides Aaron, that she was once more pregnant hung over her head like the sword of Damocles.

Letting out a long breath, Erin tried to calm the roiling in her stomach, but found it was a losing battle. Pushing away from her desk, she tried to walk as smoothly as possible past Helen's desk, giving her a small nod as she left the office and made her way to the bathroom, thankfully able to get to an open cubicle before the urge to throw up grew too great to hold back. Falling to her knees, Erin lost the contents of her stomach into the bowl of the toilet, her throat burning from the bile that chased its way up her throat. She couldn't hold in her tears, letting them stream down her cheeks as she continued to be sick for far longer than she had thought possible.

Finally, she was finished, and she laid her head down on her arm, ignoring her misgivings about how many germs she was potentially breathing in as she struggled to just find her sense of equilibrium. With a shaky hand, she reached out and flushed the toilet as she pushed herself to her feet and made her way out to the sinks. "Are you okay, ma'am?"

Erin quickly turned her head to see that Penelope was washing her hands slowly, giving her a concerned look. "I'll be fine, Ms. Garcia."

She cocked her head to one side, as if she didn't quite believe Erin, and Erin struggled not to let any emotion show on her face. "I think that you're trying to give me the brush off. There's no one in here, so you can tell me the truth."

Erin shook her head before turning on the faucet and catching a little water in her hand, rinsing out her mouth a few times as she took care not to get anything on her blouse. "There's nothing that I can say for another four to five weeks. And I need to tell David first. Do I make myself clear?" She knew that she was being a bit harsh, but she also was wrestling with the very real possibility that she could still lose this pregnancy before it became viable. Penelope's eyes widened a little as she looked down at her torso before meeting her eyes once more. "Penelope?"

"I completely understand. May, may I walk with you back to your office?"

Erin gave her a small nod before drying her hands and heading towards the door, knowing that Penelope would follow her, wanting answers about things she wasn't ready to talk about. "Hello, Penny," Helen said as they came back into the office, and Erin gave her assistant a small smile as she went through the door into her inner office and heading over to her table, knowing that Penelope would want to sit and talk for a little bit, and not wanting to let her get too close.

"All right, I know that you don't want to spill anything, but do Helen and I have to start looking out for you again? Will this be like Elise's time?"

Erin let out a long breath as she shrugged. "I think that it will most likely be that way, yes. If things continue down the right path." Blinking a little, she looked over Penelope's shoulder at the wall, trying to focus on a happy thought so as not to cry. "Now, how are you handing the case?"

"It's so weird, and I just feel like I'm spinning my wheels. From all that the team has called me, though, they also feel the same way. Is there anything that I can do to help you out right now?"

She shook her head as she let her shoulders slump a little. "No. I have a doctor's appointment to get to later this afternoon, so I should get back to work so that I have a clean slate when I leave."

"All right. But if you do need anything, anything at all, my door is open to you." Penelope reached across the table and took hold of her hand, squeezing firmly as she looked into her eyes. "Last time, I wasn't kind, I wasn't nice. This time, God willing, it will be different."

Erin's smile wobbled a little as she nodded, getting up from the table and heading over to her desk. "I will definitely keep that in mind, Penelope. Thank you. Now, we should get back to our work, yes?"

Penelope nodded as she headed towards the door. "Rossi loves you so much, I just wanted to let you know. Your name comes up so often, but I don't think that he realizes it. It's really sweet, and I hope that Kevin and I can grow into that sort of love." Then she gave her a small wink before slipping out of the office, closing the door behind her. Erin shook her head as she turned back to her work and got down to business. Still, it had been nice to hear that David talked about her when he was in the field, that he thought about her. A part of her heart had known that that was the case, but to have it confirmed by an outside source was wonderful.

"It's almost lunchtime, Erin. Did you want me to get you something to eat?"

Erin looked up from her computer and checked her watch, seeing that it had indeed gotten that late. "No, I'm actually heading out in about fifteen minutes to go to the doctor. Don't worry, everything is fine, this is just a routine appointment. But I will be out of the office for the rest of the day, so hold all my calls until the morning, unless it is extremely important."

"Of course, Erin," Helen responded, giving her a searching look. Erin just smiled placidly at her as she turned back to her work and focused on finishing this report before she had to head out for the afternoon. A part of her was upset that she had allowed Penelope to know about her condition before she told David, and she hoped beyond hope that the younger woman would keep this under wraps until she reached that twelve week milestone.

"Oh, little one, I know that you're in there, growing. I can tell by the way that my clothes are starting to fit oddly. But I need you to want to stay, now that I know about you." She kept her voice hushed and low as she rubbed her torso absently. A part of her knew that this pregnancy would be even more difficult than Elise's, since she was three years older, and shouldn't have ended up pregnant. It was a miracle that she had ended up pregnant with Elise, for it to happen again was just begging Fate to intervene and send her a disastrous result this time. God willing, though, that wouldn't happen, and she would eventually have a fifth child to love, and to complete her family.