Lia walked into the hospital room with a sense of calm. She hadn't felt this at ease since before her mother had disappeared. "Hey, Mom," she said to Emily's sleeping form. She pulled up a chair and grasped her mother's hand as she began to cry again. J.J. went to find some coffee to give the mother and daughter some alone time. "I missed you. So much. Don't leave me like that again, okay? Your shoes are too big for me to fill. The team needs you. I need you. So you can't do that again. God, mom, I love you so much. My life is good because you're in it. You've given me the best household to grow up in that I could ask for. You've loved me every second of every day for longer than I can remember. Thank you, Mommy." As Lia finishes saying all the things she was thinking about from the moment she realized her mother was missing, Emily begins to stir.
"Lia?"
"Hi! Do you want some water? Here, let me help." As Emily leans up to get a drink of water, she winces at the abdominal pain. She remembers most of the torture, but she was surprised at the reminder.
"Thank you, hon. I missed you, baby." Emily begins to cry out of pure relief about seeing her daughter.
"I missed you too, Mommy." Lia starts to cry too. She goes to gently hug her mother. Emily smells a familiar smell on her daughter, but she can't place it. She doesn't worry about it because she can't think of much other than the fact that she finally has her daughter in her arms.
"I am so glad you guys found me. I knew you would. I didn't doubt that for one moment. But, I did question how injured I'd be when you guys showed up." With a teasing grin, Emily relaxed back into the pillows. She had never felt so tired. Not even after she had Lia.
"I'll let you sleep, and I'll be here when you wake up. The whole team will. Even… even my dad." Scared for how her mother would react to that revelation, Lia braced herself.
Emily's heart rate increased as she looked up at her daughter, completely shocked. With the coldest tone she had ever used with her daughter, Emily questions, "Emilia Grace Prentiss. What did you do?"
Taking a deep breath and fidgeting in her seat, Lia replies, "Mom, I needed help. We weren't making progress. The whole team was getting frustrated. I knew the only person who could predict your actions, the only person that could find you, was the man who just so happened to contribute to my conception. But, Mom, he's so nice. He seriously helped me all the way through. He saw things no one else did. He was there for me the whole time, even when I berated him for abandoning you—"
"Lia, you did what? You had NO right. None. At all. My choice to keep your father out of your life was best for all of us. If he was here, he was here out of pure obligation. Not because he cared about me, or you for that matter. He's not who he seems like, babe. I kept you from him to keep you safe. I'm grateful you found me, but you should've found another way."
"Are you seriously trying to tell me I made the wrong decision? Mom, he saved your life. Without him, you wouldn't be alive, don't you understand that? He held my hand and distracted me in the waiting room. He listened to all of my stories about me, about you, about us. He was there when you couldn't be. I'm not going to apologize. He's the reason you're even laying here in front of me, heart beating, breathing, talking."
Sighing, Emily wipes the tears from her eyes. She started crying after the shock wore off. Part of her knew Hotch wouldn't behave any differently than Lia described. "Lia, you have to understand—"
"No, Mom. I have to go. I'll be back in the morning." Trying to hold in her tears, Lia leaves the room and dials the newest number in her phone.
"Lia? Are you okay? Is your mom okay?"
"Yeah, Hotch. We're okay. I just.. God, I messed up. I mentioned off hand that you helped with the case and she, uh, well, she flipped, for lack of a better term. I ran out of the hospital. I don't want to stay in our house alone tonight though. Being at the crime scene freaked me out too much. Do you have a guest room?"
After a slight pause to collect his thoughts, Hotch responds "I'm sorry. I bet it was a lot for her to handle, though. Yeah I understand not wanting to go home. I'll get my guest room ready, and I'll text you the address." Hotch was worried about Lia, and he was suddenly mad at Emily. He had to see her.