CHAPTER 2
It was early evening and all the guests from Jack's party had left except for the team and Will. They had stayed to help clean up and for dinner.
Due to Emily's careful planning all week, the party preparation had gone off without any major problems. Jack had a great time setting up with his dad. It had been the first thing he told members of the team as each of them arrived. He, along with Henry, had a great time playing the other children from preschool invited to the party.
As soon as they had arrived at the party both Reid and Rossi had come over and assured Emily that they were OK knowing their brunette former teammate was worried after hearing they were injured.
While the other adults were busy downstairs after dinner, Hotch was in the upstairs playroom helping Jack and Henry build a tower with wooden blocks. This was a special treat where they could built a high block tower since Natalie and Henry's younger sister Caitlin were being entertained downstairs. Usually the towers needed to stay low over fears that falling wooden blocks would accidentally hit the infants.
The boys laughed as the tower fell over again and Hotch wasn't sure what they were finding the most fun- building the tower or knocking it over.
As they started to rebuild the tower again, Will walked into the room and over to Hotch before saying. "Aaron, Emily may need you downstairs."
Jumping up, he asked worriedly, "What happened?"
"A car from the Diplomatic Security Service just pulled up in front of the house." Will paused and took a deep breath before continuing, "Emily got pale when Alex pointed it out. She said she's fine but…" Will stopped as they both knew the concern.
It was no secret among the team that Emily and her mother had had a difficult relationship for years. After Emily started dating and later married Hotch, it had further deteriorated. If history was any indication, having the Ambassador show up, particularly unexpectedly, was guaranteed to be a stressful experience.
Hotch sighed and shook his head not sure why the Ambassador would chose to show up on Jack's birthday when she had been refusing to acknowledge him as Emily's adopted son. "Yeah. I'll go down. Can you stay with them?"
"Of course." Will replied before he walked over and sat on the floor with the boys to oversee their construction of the bigliest tower in the whole wide world according to Jack and Henry.
Hotch quickly headed down the hall and started down the stairs. He was about halfway down when the doorbell rang. Reaching the bottom of the stairs, he nodded to JJ who was at the door. She stepped away and Aaron opened the door to 2 men in dark suits.
"Can I help you?" Hotch said to the men after he opened the door.
"Yes, we are Agents Hickman and Thomas, DSS. We need to speak to Emily Prentiss." The taller of the 2 men said gesturing to himself and his partner before they showed Hotch their badges.
"Come in please." Hotch said as he stepped aside allowing the 2 men in the foyer area inside the house. After he closed the door, he noticed that entire team had moved into the foyer area close to where it bordered the kitchen.
Emily was standing between Dave and JJ. Taking a deep breath and then sighing, Emily stepped forward toward the 2 men and shook their hands before moving to stand next to her husband. "I'm Emily Prentiss Hotchner. I'm assuming you are here with a message from my mother, Ambassador Prentiss."
"Not quite, Mrs Hotchner. Could we speak privately?" Agent Hickman asked, looking at the assembled group.
Emily shook her head before saying. "It's Agent Prentiss, FBI. This is my husband, Agent Hotchner. Everyone else here is a close friend. Anything that you have to say, can be said in front of them."
The 2 DSS agents looked at each other trading uncomfortable looks. After a minute, Agent Hickman stated. "We would prefer to speak to you privately but since it is your wish to have your husband and friends present. A few hours ago, your mother and stepfather were being driven to an event in Boston. Their vehicle was hit at high speed by a drunk driver. I regret to inform you that she was pronounced at the scene along with driver. Your stepfather and the security officer traveling with them were taken to the hospital." Emily tilted her head and looked at the DSS agents in front of her then over to Aaron and then back to the Agents.
"She died, ma'am." The other DSS agent, Agent Thomas stated. Emily took a deep breath and pulled up every ounce of her diplomatic training that had been ingrained in her since her childhood. Looking back at the agents she replied. "I understand. Thank you for coming by to inform me in person."
The 2 agents nodded their heads and turned towards the door, "Yes ma'am. We're sorry for your loss." Aaron walked over to front door with the agents. Before they left both shook his hand and gave condolences.
Turning back around, Aaron immediately noticed that his wife was no longer standing where she had been a few seconds earlier. He dropped his head when he heard heavy footsteps on the back stairs. Everyone in the room cringed when they heard a door slam hard enough upstairs that it rattled pictures on the wall.
"Do you want us to stay, Aaron?" Dave asked after a couple of minutes.
"Thanks for the offer but I don't think so." Hotch answered knowing that Emily needed some space to process the news.
"I feel like we should do something." Reid said.
"What can we do Hotch?" Morgan asked while pacing into the kitchen
Hotch looked at sad faces of their closest friends. He knew their offers to help were sincere. He took a deep breath before saying. "There are few things that would really help."
"Name them." JJ stated confidently with the rest of the team standing next to her.
"Dave, can you brief Strauss? Take our team completely off rotation. Let her know we are both going to be out of the office for a few days." Dave nodded and Hotch turned to the other side of the room.
"Blake, can you take over Emily's role of 1st contact for the BAU? Have the operator make the switch." Blake agreed immediately having taken on this role during Emily's maternity leave.
Another role that Emily had been given as leader of her team was to do intake for any and all cases that the BAU was being asked to consult. She reviewed each case and then determined its urgency and what team it would be passed onto based on the specifics of the case and which team was available if being on site was necessary.
"Derek, I need you to make yourself available to travel with Cooper's team. Greene was shot on their last case and isn't cleared to even travel with their team. With our team completely off rotation, they may need to take a case and I don't want them to have to go into the field short-handed." Derek quickly agreed and said he would let Cooper know.
"JJ, 2 new training profilers are suppose to start on Emily's team on Monday. Can you get them oriented and then started with some basic consults? Make sure they are included in the daily conferencing with our team." She nodded quickly accepting the role. Having worked on Emily's team when she first finished the profiling courses and throughout her pregnancy with Caitlin, JJ knew the organization of her best friend's team.
"Reid and Garcia, on Monday, work with Walker to go through all of their cases. Separate out the more basic consults to pass off to JJ for the training profilers. Walker should keep enough to work on, keep enough for Greene, and then distribute the rest among the all of the teams." They both nodded.
Hotch looked at his team. "Any questions?" When everyone shook their heads, he answered, "OK, thanks everyone."
JJ walked over to him and put her hand on his arm. He turned and looked at her as she quietly asked. "Hotch, will you let Will and I take the kids, at least for tonight? Emily is going to need you."
He looked at the worry on JJ's face and knew she was right and that the kids would be in good hands. He nodded and said, "That would be great, JJ. Thank you."
"I'll go up and tell Will." Reid said anxious for something to do that would help Emily.
"Thanks Spence." said JJ as he quickly ran up the front stairs towards the playroom.
Garcia started up the stairs behind him before turning around and saying, "I'll go pack bags for Jackster and Rainbow."
Hotch looked up and smiled at the team's eccentric tech goddess, "Thanks Penelope."
Dave walked over and placed his hand on Hotch's shoulder. "Aaron, go be with her. We'll take of things down here. We'll keep both teams running too. And if either of you need anything, call. I'll check in with you tomorrow."
Hotch looked at his longtime friend and smiled at Dave's sincerity, knowing he meant every word he just said. He nodded before saying, "Thanks Dave. I'm just going to say a quick goodnight to the kids."
They both turned quickly as they heard scampering on the stairs before Dave walked away towards the family room. Hotch subconsciously winced, hoping that Jack won't fall in his rush to get down the stairs as he had done a couple weeks earlier.
When Jack came into view, Hotch smiled to see that Jack was not only holding onto the railing as was a household rule but also to Reid's hand. Will was a few steps behind, carrying Henry.
As Jack reached the bottom of the stairs, he jumped off the last step and ran excitedly over to his father and hugged his legs. Leaning over Hotch picked him up and rustled his light brown hair. Jack bounced in his arm and said excitedly, "Daddy, Daddy, Unca 'encer said me and Nat'lee are having a sleep'ver at Henry's house."
Hotch smiled at his son's enthusiasm and quickly answered. "That's right, Buddy. Can you be a good boy for Uncle Will and Aunt JJ?" Jack looked his father in the eyes while enthusiastically nodding his head.
"He always is." JJ said quietly as she walked back into the room holding Caitlin. She came over and stopped, standing behind Jack. Dave came up beside her holding Natalie who had her head resting on Dave's shoulder as he rubbed her back.
Jack looked around the room before saying, "I need to say goodnight to Mommy." Not seeing his mother, he tried to wiggle out of Hotch's arms. Hotch tightened his hold on his son before answering, "Not now Buddy. She isn't feeling well. If you want, you can give me an extra kiss and I'll give it to her when I go up to check on her."
Jack turned back to look at his father with a very serious look on his face. "She slammeded the door really really hard. We aren't 'pose to slammeded doors. Mommy said so." Jack was nodding his head as he finished.
"She'll be OK Buddy. I'll talk to her about the door." Hotch replied as he sighed before shaking his head.
Hotch and Emily had become very strict about the no slamming doors rule after a scary occurance months early. JJ and Henry were over visiting while Hotch and Will were out for an extended bike ride. A disagreement over toys had resulted in an angry Jack storming out of the upstairs playroom with Henry closely behind him.
Before Emily and JJ who were both heavily pregnant at the time could catch up with them, they heard Jack's bedroom door slam shut followed a few seconds later by Henry sobbing loudly. Both mothers were panicked when they reached Henry and in the course of checking him over for injuries found out that Henry was crying not because the door hit him but because Jack had shut him out of his room.
Hotch and Will returned to the house to a teary and subdued Jack sitting on the timeout step. After Will, JJ and Henry left, Hotch and Emily talked to him about what had happened and that slamming doors wasn't OK. They both worked with him in the next few weeks on other things he could try if he was upset that would not get him a timeout.
And while Jack wasn't slamming doors as much, it was an ongoing issue. That was until a time he did it a couple of weeks after Natalie was born. Natalie had been colicky and was not sleeping well and therefore Emily wasn't sleeping well. Having finally gotten the newborn to sleep and with Aaron home to supervise Jack, Emily went to her room to take a nap.
The door to Jack's room slamming woke her up followed a few seconds later by a crying baby. Exhausted, Emily heard Aaron put Jack in time out after going to comfort their now crying infant.
Emily decided enough was enough. She left her room and walked down to the garage where they keep the tools. Taking a screwdriver and rubber mallet, she went back upstairs and while Jack looked on in horror as she popped the door off its hinges before safely securing the door in a guest bedroom closet. She then returned the tools to their proper place before returning to her room. All without saying a word.
Later that day, Emily sat down with Jack and explained that she took that door away to help him remember that slamming it was not OK. That he or someone else could get really hurt and she knew that he would feel really sad if he accidentally hurt someone. Once Jack got his door back 2 weeks later, he had been cautious when closing it so his mother wouldn't take it away again.
"Is she going to have a timeout?" Jack asked innocently.
Hotch shook his head and tried to ignore the soft chuckles from the team behind him. "That's not something for you to worry about, Jack." Hotch answered before putting Jack back on the floor. As soon as his feet touched the ground, he ran over to where Will was helping Henry put on his coat.
Hotch turned back around as he heard clacking on the stairs to see Garcia making her way back down with the travel bags they used for the kids. After handing off the bags to Reid, she said. "Hotch I got their bags complete with Jackster's bear and Rainbow's blanket."
Hotch couldn't help himself from smiling at the nicknames she had given his kids. "Thanks Penelope."
Garcia gave him a small smile before saying. "No problem, sir. Just take good care of my girl."
Hotch nodded. "I will. Let me give Natalie a hug before you go." He then reach out to take a very sleepy Natalie from Dave.
Noticing that she was dressed in a Winnie the Pooh sleeper which indicated to him that Emily had started her bedtime routine he asked, "Did Emily get the chance to feed her?"
JJ, who had just handed Caitlin to Garcia after putting Caitlin's coat on answered, "Yes, Emily had just finished burping her when DSS arrived. We still have some of her milk on our freezer so we are set."
It was times like this that Hotch was grateful that they were such close friends in JJ and Will that the mothers kept frozen breastmilk at each other's houses.
As she was talking JJ had slipped one and then the other of Natalie's arms into her coat while Hotch held her. With both arms in, he turned her around so JJ could zip it up. After placing another kiss on her forehead, he handed her to JJ.
Noticing that it was time to go, Garcia said, "OK, Jack, say goodnight to your dad. Let's go get you and Henry in the car." Jack, who now had his coat and shoes, turned smiling to his dad and waved goodbye. He walked out the door holding Garcia's hand as she carried a tired Henry. Will followed with Caitlin and then Reid went out next with the bags. JJ was the last one out still holding Natalie.
After the kids left, Hotch headed upstairs while Derek, Dave and Alex worked on cleaning up from the party and dinner. Reid came back in once he put the bags in the car and helped secure the kids into their carseats in JJ and Will's car. Garcia was going with the LaMontagnes' to help with the kids for the night.
As Hotch reached their bedroom door, he stopped and took a deep breath. Slowly opening the door, he entered the darkened room and closed the door behind him. Looking across the room, he noticed his wife lying on their bed, facing away from him. Climbing on the bed, he moved over next to Emily. Concerned when she tensed up as he put his arms around her, he pulled her back flush against his chest. He was relieved when she relaxed back into him and interlaced her fingers with his. It was several minutes before she said anything and even then, it was barely louder than a whisper.
"It's too late."
"Too late for what sweetheart?" He replied confusedly.
"To be a good daughter. To be the daughter she wanted."