God Daughter

A/N: Don't own CM. Wouldn't mind having Rossi, Morgan, Reid and Hotch in my personal harem (a girl can dream, can't she?) This may or may not one day have the rest of this story. Rossi and Strauss refuse to tell me anymore, at this point in time. They have been tight lipped for a while now, so I doubt this will change but if it ever does, their faithful scribe, will write it down.

Stop by the forum You Give Me Fever. Leave a request on the forum and maybe someone will see it and write it. LOL, why did that just conjure up and image in my head of Strauss and Rossi competing in a Hopscotch contest against Morgan and Garcia. Lord knows what would happen if Reid, JJ and Prentiss got involved. I wonder what these characters would do if they were dealing with the Corona situation? I know they are necessary personnel, but could you imagine if they were forced to stay away from Quantico and take time off for this? Whom do you think would crack first: Strauss, Rossi, Hotch or Reid? Yep these are going on the forum too, feel free to write any of these.

God Daughter

Ugg. It's Strauss. I wonder what she could possibly want.

What have you done now? It must be seriously major if she bypassed a chance to rake me over the coals first and called you directly.

I could always send her straight to voicemail, I wouldn't want to deny you the pleasure of dealing with her.

Answer the phone Dave before I un-holster my gun.

You wouldn't dare.

If I am going to be summoned before the Queen's throne and beheaded, I might as well do something to make it worth it.

Some best friend you are Dave grumbled for angrily swiping the answer button on his touchscreen.

"Rossi, he snarled into the phone. Before she could even get a word in, he said, "What do you want Strauss. In case it slipped your mind, I am in the middle of searching for a serial killer! Couldn't whatever grievous error you imagine I have committed have waited until we were in the same city again.

"David"

That one word was all she could manage to get past her clogged throat but it was more than enough to have Rossi mentally sitting up and paying attention before he quickly moved away for the privacy he knew this conversation would demand. He knew this time of day, that Erin Strauss, would be at Quantico, toiling away in her office. Another thing he knew was that something had to be horrifically wrong, as Erin Strauss never and he meant never cried at work. Oh, she could be affected by a case as much as anyone else and while most of the time got to her on a level much deeper than anyone would ever know, she would never shed a tear, while at work. She knew it would make her seem to vulnerable and to weak, in the good old boys' network, that she fought tooth and nail to gain a place in and would permanently derail her plans to one day be the first female Director of the FBI. Rossi also knew she was at the office as the woman was at the office this time off day, six days a week, Monday through Saturday and occasionally on Sunday.

As he sat down on an empty bus stop bench, his mind was whirling a thousand miles a minute trying to figure out what could possibly be going on that would have her calling him in this condition. His first thoughts were that something had happened to one of her kids but if that were the case, she would be calling her ex-husband, not him. The two of them hadn't had the kind of relationship where they allowed themselves to lean on each other in many a year. Dave could hear her trying to pull herself together enough to tell him what was going on, on the other end of the line but before he could coax it out of her, his phone beeped with another incoming call.

Rossi was still on duty and he knew he was always required to answer his workphone, but there was nothing on this side of heaven that would or could make him turn away Erin Strauss when she was this distraught. That was another thing that struck him strange. Strauss was calling him on his personal line, not his work line, so this was something that was definitely not Bureau related.

"Battito del mio cuore" Rossi whispered into the phone. He hadn't planned to use the name; it had just been his heart's natural reaction to hearing her being so upset and knowing he was too far to pull her in his arms and comfort her. He hoped and prayed hearing him calling her the old pet name he hadn't used with her in years would shock her just enough to focus on what it was she called to tell him. His heart was shattering more with each passing second, hearing the heartbreaking anguish in her sobs.

"Tell me what is wrong. What happened? Talk to me Erin. How can I help, if I don't know what is wrong … and right now sweetheart, I am about two seconds from dropping this case and jumping on the next thing smoking back to Quantico, if you don't finally tell me what has you this distraught? Now I know you don't want that. Just think of all the extra paperwork you would have to submit to the director to explain why your senior agent went AWOL on your watch", he jested hoping that he could get her to focused on being so angry with hiim that she would be less upset about whatever was wrong and would finally tell him the problem.

"It's Millie", David.

Those three words had his heart now thumping so hard if felt like it was trying to beat its way out of his chest.

"What about her Erin? Is she okay? She has to be okay. By all that is Holy, please tell me she is okay!" Rossi fired off his statements in a staccato rhythm, in his concern about the one physical link he and Erin shared, their God Daughter, Millie.

"She… she was in a serious car accident. "Ryan was in the car with her" she stated referring to Millie's two-month-old son "but the hospital has assured me that Miraculously he was unhurt".

Rossi was able to breathe again, as his heart had just skipped a beat, at hearing the newborn was in the car, when the accident occurred, with how upset Erin was, he was scared to death that she was going to say the baby didn't make it. As soon as he felt the relief from knowing that the child was fine, the other shoe dropped in his mind as he realized that Erin hadn't said that Millie was okay. He didn't want to hear her say it and his mind was screaming at him that she couldn't be dead but with Erin once again struggling for words, it was almost impossible to keep his mind from going to that dark place. He had to know, but for the life of him, as much as he dealt with death every day in his job, the words wouldn't pass his lips. David Rossi was nothing but practical, so he knew in his head, it didn't make sense, but at this moment, his heart was telling him that as long as no one said it, she couldn't be dead.

Strauss seemed to have found her voice, as he heard her say, "It's bad David. A semi driver lost control on the icy roads and jackknifed, it spun her car around several times, knocked her across the median, into incoming traffic where another semi, in the far lane, hit her driver's side door, head on, knocking her back across traffic, where thankfully no one was coming. The car finally came to a stop on the median. The paramedics had to peel the car apart with the Jaws of Life to get her out". Here she took a few, more, deep shuddering breaths before she was able to continue. "According to them, she was unconscious the whole time and they were surprised that she was still breathing when they finally were able to get to her. David, they had to Med flight her to DC General and they say that she never regained consciousness. She had already been in surgery for half an hour before they called me. They had to wait until the police arrived with her belongings to find out her identity. Luckily, it's the same hospital where Ryan was born, so they had her medical records, allergies, blood type and next of kin on file and that is how they called me. She said she was going to call you next as your name was listed under mine as next of kin, but somehow, I was coherent enough to tell her you were in the field and I would be able to get a hold of you quicker than she would as I knew II could always call Agent Hotchner or someone on the team to leave a message that it was urgent that you call me and then head back to Quantico immediately. I didn't want you to hear this kind of news from anyone else but me David".

Even if he hadn't been an expert profiler, David Rossi had known Erin Strauss too long not to know when she was keeping something from him. As bad as the news she had shared with him was, he knew that there was still something else, something worse, that she was still not telling him.

"Erin Strauss, I have known you a long time. What is it, you don't want to tell me"?

"Just hurry back David. The only thing I know for sure is that Millie is in extremely critical condition. I am on my way to the hospital as soon as I hang up from you. I still have to call the director, but I will do that from the hospital".

What she wasn't saying was more telling than what she was saying. If Erin Michelle Strauss was one thing, she was blunt and the fact that she was hedging her statements, combined with the knowledge that she wasn't going to take time to call the director, told him that she was worried about their goddaughter, living long enough for her to get there. He was so sure of it; he'd bet the Rossi mansion on him being right. Another thing Dave knew was that Erin was in no condition to drive. From the sound of her voice, he could tell she had gotten it together enough to leave the office, but she was barely holding on.

"Promise me, you won't get behind the wheel right now. Get Anderson or someone to drive you, even if you have to have to call a car. In fact, if you want, I will send a car for you. I know you want to get to the hospital in a hurry, but it will do no one any good if you have an accident along the way. Promise me please, Bella, I can't worry about you too, right now".

"I will if you do the same. It goes both ways you know" Strauss responded as she picked her purse up out of her bottom drawer and relocked it.

Promises made, they ended the conversation. As Rossi stood up and turned around, he noticed Hotch looking at him with concern. Dave quickly made his way back over. Aaron started to say that the others had made it back and he had sent them on to the diner, as they had been outside shooting the breeze while waiting for the others, who had called to say they were a couple minutes away, to get back so they could all head out to lunch together when Strauss had called, but the look on his friend's face, sealed his lips.

"Aaron, I need to head back to DC, immediately".

"I'll drive you to the hotel and the airport, you can explain on the way," Hotch stated as he pulled the SUV's keys out of his pocket and headed to the driver's door, opening it and getting behind the wheel. He had known David Rossi for many years, and he'd never walked away during a case as long as he had known him. Heck the man didn't even like to take vacations. Couple that with the fact that it was urgent enough for their Section Chief herself to call him… no whatever it was, Aaron Hotchner, knew it couldn't be good.

"As Rossi got in and fastened his seatbelt, he looked at his old friend and said, "Thanks Hotch, I really appreciate the ride but skip the hotel, I need to head straight to the airport".

"What about your things?" Hotch questioned him.

"If I could impose on you or one of the others to pack them up and bring them back home with you, I would greatly appreciate it. I um don't know how long I will be gone, so you can just leave them in my office, and I will get them next time I am in. Speaking of which, I am going to need some time off. I hate to do this to you in the middle of a case but if things are as serious as they seem, I need to be there until um" he Rossi swallowed hard, "well until we know um…" Hotch knew he needed to keep his eyes on the road but he couldn't help glancing over at Dave quickly.

"Until we know, one way or the other" Dave finished as he took his linen handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped his eyes.

Hotch wanted to know what he could do to comfort his best friend, but first he had to find out what was going on. He asked as delicately as he could, not wanting to cause Dave anymore pain.

When Dave told him, what had happened to Millie, Hotch's heart went out to his friend. They were still about twenty minutes away from the nearest airport that would take him into DC and Hotch suggested Rossi call Garcia and ask her to look into booking a flight for him that would get him there as fast as possible. Rossi saw the wisdom in this and complied, knowing their Computer Queen could search all the flights at once and find him the one getting him there the quickest. If she couldn't find him one nonstop leaving not long after he arrived at the airport, he would tell her to charter a plane.

Aaron knew how important Millie was in Dave's life, just from the way he spoke about her over the years. Hotch and Dave had arrived at the airport but there was still some time before Dave could board the plane, so Hotch chose to keep him company while he waited. They luckily had been able to breeze through security and were now sitting in the private members lounge, a perk of Rossi's Black card. Rossi decided to tell Hotch the story of how he came to be Millie's Godfather…

"After my son James died, I didn't want any more children. It was only after my best friend Mel met the love of his life, they married and had a child, that I started to even consider the possibility of fatherhood, again".

Mel's wife Kristina insisted that Rossi, who she considered to be a part of the family, was as involved in the pregnancy as possible. He politely listened to the happy couple talk about how excited they were about the pregnancy, he dutifully looked at the Sonogram pictures, even though he couldn't tell what in God's creation he was looking at but he was just humoring his friends, that was until one day, everyone was sitting around on the sofa watching a movie on tv and all of a sudden, the baby kicked for the first time. Kristina grabbed her husband's hand and placed it on the exact spot on her belly and as soon as she did, he was rewarded with a kick. Her best friend who was sitting on the other side of Kristina, between her and Rossi got all excited and couldn't wait to experience the baby kick also. Sure enough, the baby kicked her hand and she smiled the most beauteous smile, David Rossi had ever seen on a woman. Rossi was all caught up in that smile when he felt his hand being grabbed as Kristin. Mel said, "Dave, you have got to feel this too".

Mel looked at his buddy with the biggest grin and said, I tell you man, it is amazing, I have never felt anything like it. Not wanting to relive painful memories of the first time he felt his late son kick, Rossi went to move his had but it was like he and the baby had a special connection because as soon as his hand touched the spot the baby kicked. Sight unseen, David Rossi was wrapped around that baby's little finger from that moment on.

Rossi had told Hotch, that as usual when the evening was over, he being a gentleman offered to walk the best friend to her car. Something compelled him to ask the young lady out to coffee. He swore up and down to Hotch, that he wasn't, in his own words, 'trying to make time with her' that he was just on a natural high from the evening, it was still fairly early and he didn't want the night to end. Dave said they talked and had a great time, even discovered they had a lot in common. So much in fact, that they started dating. He said Mel and Kristina were thrilled and a few months after, they started double dating, Kristina finally confessed that she had been matchmaking all along. The scotch had been flowing when Dave was telling Aaron this story so he shared a little bit more than he might have otherwise, but he never spoke the woman's name. Of course, this made Hotch even more curious, especially after Rossi confessed that he and the woman were hot and heavy for over two years before they stupidly threw all of their hopes and dreams away for their jobs.

Now Hotch was really intrigued knowing that there had almost been another Mrs. Rossi and from the sounds of Dave's feelings for this woman still, there might not have been a divorce if he had actually married this one. Hotch started not to, as he could see that Rossi was still hung up on this woman but something inside him, he would never admit to being nosy, just wouldn't let him, let it be so he asked Dave what he really wanted to know. "Hey Dave, after the two of you broke up, did you ever see this woman again"?

"You mean besides at Mel and Kristina's funeral?" Rossi questioned. The pain of that loss with so many others had lessoned over the years, but it still caused a slight twinge in his heart, although he didn't allow himself to dwell on it.

"Sorry Dave, I didn't know they had passed away," Aaron utter out a sincere apology,

"It's okay Aaron, you had no way of knowing and besides it was a long time ago, but yes to answer question, I see the woman all the time, I have for years, considering we work together every day".

Hotch hadn't expected Rossi to say that. He now knew that the woman who still owned a large part of David Rossi's heart worked at Quantico. Even though they had an agreement not to profile each other, the wheels in his head started spinning. With Dave's reputation at the agency, it could be a number of women but from all the women Rossi was rumored to have been with at the Bureau, Aaron had never got the sense that Dave was even remotely serious about any of them. He knew the relationship was before he met Dave but if she still worked at Quantico, Hotch thought that as a profiler trained to observe behavior, he would at least have some inkling of who she was.

Rossi couldn't help but chuckle, as he had looked over at Hotch when he got quiet and from the look of intense concentration on the junior profiler's face, he could tell he was racking his brain trying to guess who the woman is.

"Don't hurt yourself Hotch. You will never guess who the woman is as she is the last person you would consider" Rossi teased.

"Can't be because the last person I would consider would be Erin Strauss and I know even you, wouldn't go there" stated Hotch confidently.

"Rossi just raised his eyebrows are him, smirked, lifted his glass of scotch and saluted Hotch"

The End (for now)

Battito del mio cuore means Beat of my heart search?q=how+do+I+say+beat+of+my+heart+in+Italian&oq=how+do+I+say+beat+of+my+heart+in+Italian&gs_l=psy-ab.3...46561.49750.0.50..1428.15j1.16.0...0...1.1. -ab..0.3.346... 5qy0ero