As promised, here is a more reasonably timed update! Thank you for all the support so far and a big thank you to my beta leahloahla for her help. I could not do this without her! Without further ado, here is another chapter!
The team was finally sitting down for dinner. Rossi and Hotch sat at either end of the table while the rest of the group took the spaces between them. Emily had Addison on one side of her and JJ on the other. They passed dishes around the table in a circle; a basket of garlic bread, followed by a few other Italian dishes, made their way to each person as they helped themselves. Chatter filled the room as conversations broke out amongst the group.
As JJ passed the basket to Emily she said softly, "Is this really happening? Are you back for good this time?"
"I want to say yes but frankly I don't know. I really hope this one sticks," Emily replied with a genuine smile then she took a slice of bread from the basket and continued to hand it along.
"I hope so too." JJ returned an unconvinced smile. She still wasn't ready to accept that Emily was really back for good but she desperately wanted to believe her friend.
Once everyone's plates were full, the small talk had settled and they started eating.
After a few minutes, Hotch looked across the table at Emily. "We never filled your position. If you want it, it's yours," he offered before taking a bite of pasta off his fork.
Emily looked around the table at her friend's hopeful eyes and sighed. "There's a lot going on right now and I need to figure out how this is going to work before I come looking for my old job back."
Hotch nodded understandingly. "You're always welcome."
"Maybe you could do some consulting on local cases. That way you wouldn't have to travel," Spencer suggested. Like Garcia, he too was fond of the idea of having the team back together.
"That could be arranged," Hotch agreed but he looked to Emily for her approval.
Emily slowly and hesitantly nodded. "I'll have to think about it."
Rossi cleared his throat after a moment of silence lapsed between the group. "Enough talk about work. I have a bottle of champagne that needs to be popped."
He got up from his seat and took a pre-chilled bottle of champagne off the counter. He returned to the table and handed it to Emily so that she could do the honors. She gratefully accepted it and began untwisting the metal fastener.
"You're pulling out all the stops," she said as she popped the cork. She then started filling glasses and handing them around the table.
"It's not every day the whole family is together," Rossi replied with a wink and a smile.
They had nearly finished the main course of their dinner. Their plates were now—for the most part—empty and those who were still eating had since helped themselves to seconds. Glasses were being refilled and all were feeling relaxed, except Addison and Emily. Even though Emily was two glasses deep she still felt the pressure of what needed to be said. Addison didn't have the luxury of alcohol to help soothe her anxiety so she sat quietly with her head down and pushed the last of her food around her plate with her fork. She had enjoyed her meal and she knew that playing with her food was impolite but she needed a distraction.
Emily removed her napkin from her lap and wiped the corners of her mouth before placing it on her plate. Rossi began gathering plates and offering coffee and tea as he did so. There was dessert coming—white chocolate cheesecake with a raspberry puree—for anyone who still had room.
Once Emily's plate was gone she pushed her chair back and excused herself from the table. This went virtually unnoticed to everyone besides Addison. She had not been left alone with Emily's friend yet this evening. She quickly jumped up from her seat and swiftly caught up to Emily as she headed down a hallway off the kitchen.
"Where are you going?" Addison asked urgently, causing Emily's eyebrows to shoot up. Emily knew that Addison was on edge and she didn't blame her for reacting this way.
"I'm just going to the restroom. You can go sit down." Emily's confused look softened into a reassuring smile as she spoke. Emily was about to walk away when she noticed that Addison was still lingering in the hallway.
"It's okay, I'll be right back," Emily assured her but still Addison stayed put.
"I want to go home. I was nice and I made small talk but I don't want to do this anymore. I'm tired," Addison lied. That was a legitimate reason for any teenager and she prayed that Emily would be understanding. Truthfully, Emily's friends had been nice to her and under other circumstances she may have been more willing to get to know them but all she could think about was that Emily was going to tell them the truth.
Emily swallowed hard and closed her eyes as she shook her head. "We just finished dinner and I still need to talk to them," Emily replied seriously. She was starting to pick up on Addison's deception.
"Please don't tell them. It's not going to help. I promise I will give them a chance but it's too soon," Addison pleaded genuinely as her breathing started to hasten.
Emily leaned down so that she was at Addison's eye level. She placed her hand on the young girl's arm and slowly rubbed up and down, trying to calm her. "Why are you so upset? This is a good thing. It's nice to have people looking out for you," Emily said softly trying to reason with Addison.
What should have helped ease Addison's anxiety only made her more upset. She wasn't used to having other people call the shots and she valued her privacy. Nothing about this dinner made her comfortable.
"You're going to make every aspect of my life open for dissection to a bunch of strangers," Addison yelled as she whipped her arm from Emily's grasp. "Arrête de me toucher! Je déteste être touché," she added as she took a few steps back.
Emily had been so focused on Addison that she didn't notice JJ standing at the end of the hall. The yelling has caught her attention.
"Is everything okay?" she asked, catching both sets of wide eyes.
Emily quickly composed herself. "Yeah of course. I need to talk to you guys," she said before shooting Addison a serious look and heading back to the kitchen.
"Emily!" Addison whined helplessly as she chased after her. There was nothing she could say to change Emily's mind.
"Addie, it's okay," Emily assured her one last time as she approached the group.
Everyone was once again gathered around the kitchen counter sipping coffee and picking away at their desserts.
"Addie, awe that is so cute," Garcia squeaked and Addison gave her an unimpressed look. For the first time this evening, Addison did not try to maintain her gentle and innocent facade.
Garcia immediately halted her excitement and looked at Addison apologetically.
"I need to use the restroom. I'm gonna be sick," Addison said and with that she darted back down the hall, leaving the team's worried gazes to fall on Emily.
"She's a sweet kid and she means well. She's just having a hard time right now," Emily said. She hesitated about going after Addison because this was her chance to tell them what was going on. Besides, she could tell that Addison needed some space right now. She was clearly overwhelmed.
"I'm sure the move isn't easy for her," Hotch added.
"It's not but it had to be done and she understands," Emily explained as she approached the counter.
"Should you go help her?" Garcia asked when she noticed that Emily had no intention of leaving the kitchen.
"I'll check on her in a minute," Emily said with a sincere smile as she rested her clasped hands on the countertop. She was doing all she could not to pick at her nails.
"What's going on? You said on the phone that you would explain everything but you haven't said much," JJ said.
"I'm getting to it. I just needed her out of the room so I could talk to you," Emily replied with another glance behind her to make sure Addison was gone.
"Go on," JJ said shortly, pressing for Emily to cut to the chase.
Emily exhaled loudly. "I didn't exactly adopt Addison—I mean I did, but the circumstances are... unique. She needs protection because her father was a wanted man; a lot of people were looking for him and when he died they moved on to her," Emily stammered. She had thought long and hard about what she would say and she felt prepared but now that it was time to explain she struggled to find the words.
"Why would someone go after a child? They can't possibly believe that she's involved in whatever her father was doing," Garcia said in a frantic and saddened tone.
"She's not but he had a lot of secrets. After she got shot…" Emily began but she was cut off.
"Someone shot her?!" Derek yelled in disbelief, he could feel his blood boiling with rage.
Emily was caught off guard by this reaction. Kids were a soft spot for all of them but he hardly knew Addison.
Emily swallowed hard and tilted her head to the side. "Yeah, a few weeks ago, that's why she's living with me. We... well not we, but Interpol, faked her death and Clyde gave me the option to walk away if I took her with me. He set everything up—her new alias and the house—that was all out of my control. But I chose to come back home, and from here on out I get to handle it as I see fit, as long as I keep her safe. I also have to find out if she knows anything about her father that might be a reason for someone to hurt her."
Addison was standing in front of the mirror staring at her reflection. She didn't recognize herself anymore. She didn't cry, she just stared and the more she stared, the more she hated what she saw. This was a mistake coming to the United States. She was a disease, everything she touched turned to darkness but she didn't want to put these people through that pain. Emily had been kind to her, she could tell that everything Emily had done was out of genuine concern. Emily cared about her and Addison knew that that was only going to cause problems.
Addison knew what she had to do. She needed to leave before she got anyone else hurt.
She had time. Emily would need several minutes to explain Addison's story to the group so by the time she'd finish Addison would be gone. She knew how to disappear.
She unlocked the window and pushed it open to see outside. She carefully considered her plan. The window opened into the backyard of the house so the chances of catching someone's attention was slim. The yard was lined with trees, although she had no idea how far the forest stretched or how large the property was. She had run through the woods barefoot before and the soles of her feet were conditioned to walk on rough surfaces.
She poked her head out the window and looked down to estimate the distance. The drop was not far—only a story and a half—she could make it. The trouble would be lifting herself up and out the window with only one good arm. She could take her sling off and use both arms but she'd risk ripping her stitches. But her ribs weren't completely healed yet so she'd probably reinjure them when she hit the ground. If she was going to be able to get away she couldn't be more injured than she already was.
The window was not going to work.
She closed the window and sank to the floor. This was hopeless.
She started considering other options. She couldn't run out the front door because she would be seen and most likely chased after. When she was coming in, she noticed patio doors off the kitchen. It would be hard to get past a team of profilers but it was her only other option. The rest of her plan—running into the woods—would still work if she could get outside.
She was willing to try. She stood up, brushed her skirt off and walked to the door. She pressed her ear against it to listen. She could not make out the conversation but she could tell that Emily was talking.
This was as good a time as any to try and escape. She was about to open the door when she heard a man's booming voice. If she remembered correctly, it was Derek.
She slowly turned the knob to unlatch the door and gingerly pushed the door open so as not to alert anyone of her presence. She stood in the doorway and listened for a second; Emily was talking again.
Addison tiptoed down the hallway, praying the floor wouldn't creak. She stopped at the end of the hall and pressed her back to the wall to listen in, trying to time her escape.
"Does she know?" Rossi asked and Addison could tell that he was genuinely concerned.
There was a pause. She suspected that Emily was trying to come up with an explanation that wouldn't give too much away.
"Everything except the fact that I'm supposed to be collecting intel. I'm not too proud to be spying on a teenager but what choice do I have? She needed my help and I needed to leave. We're helping each other," Emily said and Addison's head began to spin.
This was why she didn't trust people and why she had always felt that Emily was hiding something. She gritted her teeth. She was furious but not at Emily. She was kicking herself for letting her guard down.
This was her chance to leave, she needed to take it. She started to sneak towards the patio doors but suddenly she stopped, feeling like she no longer owed them the safety of her leaving. Emily hasn't truly been concerned about her wellbeing, so why should Addison be concerned for Emily's? She turned around and retreated back to the bathroom to consider her options again.
Emily finally settled into a seat now that she had covered the most difficult part of the conversation. Rossi handed her a mug with green tea as she sat down.
"Why didn't you tell us that you didn't like your job? You always seemed so happy to be in London," Spencer asked, looking at Emily with sad eyes. He hated to hear that she was unhappy.
"I was at first, but it got lonely." She sighed, letting her head drop. She couldn't bear to see the disappointment in his eyes.
Derek walked up behind her and wrapped his arm around his former partner's shoulders for support. Emily smiled at his touch and he urged her to continue.
"After I came out of hiding, I felt like I didn't know who I was anymore. I thought that a fresh start would help me find myself but I was wrong. I took this team for granted and I'm sorry for leaving," she said apologetically. She wished that she had not left because they were the only people who ever truly accepted her. They knew everything and still, they stood by her and for that, she would be forever thankful.
Everyone was offering Emily sympathetic smiles. JJ, however, let her smile fade quickly as her mind drifted back to Addison's situation.
"How much danger is she in? What should we expect?" JJ said seriously. She wasn't ready for the team to face another Doyle incident; they had been through enough.
"Hopefully nothing," Emily said trying to muster up a convincingly reassuring look. "We've changed her appearance and her name. We made sure that anyone who would have been looking for her knew she was dead and we moved her far away from all of it. Now I just need to make sure that people believe that she's my daughter."
"If you give us her whole backstory we'll help keep it up," Hotch said. His expression was blank but Emily could tell that he was formulating plans in his head.
"Are you sure?" Emily asked. She didn't want to burden them but she was worried about doing this alone. She wanted her team in her life again but that meant they would be in Addison's as well.
"Of course, what is family for?" Rossi said, getting nods of agreement from everyone in the room.
Derek, who was still holding Emily, squeezed a little bit harder to get her attention. "You have to promise that if you get yourself into trouble you'll let us help you this time. No more running away." He stared at her, dead in the eyes as he spoke.
"I promise," Emily assured him as she blinked away tears.
"She must be so scared. I can't imagine what she's going through," Garcia empathized. She remembered how terrified she was when James Colby Baylor wanted her dead and she was a grown-up. Addison was just a teenager and Penelope assumed that she did not understand the gravity of this situation.
"She's strong and surprisingly resilient considering everything that has happened. She has nothing to worry about. I won't let anyone hurt her," Emily says firmly, partly reminding herself what she had committed to. If only Addison knew the lengths that Emily would go to protect her.
JJ reached across the counter to take Emily's hand. "Neither will we. She's part of the family now too," she said and she squeezed Emily's hand softly as they exchanged thankful smiles.
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