"As you can tell, this house has set empty for a while," Morgan told Hotch and Lynn as he led the way into the foyer of a two-story, colonial-style house. "The previous owner passed away and the estate has been tied up in probate."
"How old is it?" Hotch asked as he looked around.
"Almost 30 years," Morgan replied. "Not old enough for my interests but recent enough that it doesn't need a whole lot of updating. Although, you will probably want to upgrade the kitchen and the bathrooms. And, as you can tell, it has been well maintained."
"This is an area we would be interested in living in," Hotch commented as he began slowly walking through the rooms looking around.
"There is a city bus stop on the corner," Morgan pointed out. "I would assume Lynn doesn't drive and I know that Jack doesn't have a driver's license - Yet." He grinned mischievously at the boy who was trailing along behind the adults.
"Yeah, about that, Dad," Jack began.
"One thing at a time," Hotch told him. "Right now, we need to find a place to live and then we can move on to other issues. How many bedrooms and are they all upstairs?"
"Three bedrooms, plus the owner's suite," Morgan led the way towards the staircase. "Plus, the study on this floor could be used as a bedroom if necessary."
"What are the utility bills like?" was the next question. "And the property taxes?"
~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~
"Okay, we have four bedrooms, a two car garage, and a fairly large fenced in backyard," Hotch was summarizing the specifics of the house. "As well as a nice sized family room with a fireplace, and a finished basement. And, it appears to be in move-in condition."
He turned to Lynn. "What do you think, Honey?" he asked her.
"All this room!" she looked around amazed. "Just for us? And what about furniture?"
"It's smaller than Jeremiah's house," Hotch pointed out. "And, don't worry, you'll get used to it. As for furniture, apparently mine is still in storage so we have something to start with and we can go from there."
"Each of the kids will have their own bedroom," he continued. "Although they will have to share a bathroom."
"I can't stay here!" Jack burst out. "Even if I do have a room of my own. I live with Aunt Jessica!" He stared defiantly at his father.
"I know," Hotch told him. "I'm not planning on you moving right away. Your school and your friends and your soccer team are all close to Jessica's place. But, you'll need a room here for when you come to stay on the weekends. Plus, we can move your old bedroom furniture in here. There is plenty of room for it."
"Okay," Jack grumbled. "But I'm not staying here permanently."
"So, you are interested in the house?" Morgan asked with a grin.
"If the price is right," Hotch clarified. "Why don't you have the owner get in touch with Jeremiah? We'll see what the two of them can negotiate."
~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~
"Jessica." Hotch's sister-in-law was waiting in the lobby of the hotel when they returned. "This is a surprise."
"I'm here to get Jack," her tone left no room for argument. "It's time he came home."
"He is going to have to pack up his things," Hotch told her. "Why don't you come upstairs with us while he does that?"
"I'll wait here," Jessica declared as she sat down in one of the lobby's chairs.
"Jack, don't be too long," she instructed.
"I won't, Aunt Jessica," Jack replied as he headed towards the elevators.
"There are some things we need to discuss." Hotch remained standing, looking down at his sister-in-law. "And this might not be the best place to do that."
"I don't see why not," Jessica declared. "Anything you want to say to me you can say right here."
"Alright," Hotch said as he sat down on the chair next to her. "If that's what you want."
He looked over at his wife. "Lynn, why don't you and Jacob go up to the room with Jack? Make sure he gets everything. I'll be up shortly."
"Okay. Let's go, Sweetie." Lynn took Jacob's hand and led him over to where Jack was waiting for the elevator.
"Obedient little twit, isn't she?" Jessica observed snidely. "Not like my sister at all."
"Right now she's scared," Hotch said thoughtfully as he watched Lynn and the children get on the elevator. "Give her another week or two and she'll be back to her feisty self – Ready to take on the world."
"Now," he turned to his sister-in-law. "I assume you have your accounting of Jack's expenses with you?"
"No," was the defiant reply. "Why should I tell you how I spend my money?"
"Because it is Jack's money we are talking about here," was the reply. "And it needs to be accounted for. And, because I would like to know why you found it necessary to empty out his bank accounts, as well as mine while I was gone. Were you in financial difficulty of some sort?"
"I wanted to buy the townhouse," Jessica told him. "As if that is any of your business. Jack and I needed a place to live and I had the rather mistaken idea that you might want a nice place to come back to when you returned. Obviously I was wrong."
"Well, if Jack's money helped pay for the townhouse, his name should be on the deed," Hotch observed. "Is it?"
"That is none of your business," Jessica burst out. "And where is he? We need to get going." She looked around frantically.
"There is also the issue of my things which I understand you have in storage," Hotch continued. "I would like to get them back."
"I have been paying the storage fees on that unit for the past three years," Jessica declared. "So all that stuff is now mine."
"You have no use for it and I do," Hotch pointed out. "So, why don't you figure out how much you spent in fees and I'll reimburse you and take possession?"
"Why?" Jessica asked. "So you and your whore can sit on my sister's furniture?"
"All that furniture was bought after Hailey died," Hotch reminded her. "As you know, I sold everything in the house and Jack and I started over new in the apartment. I would like my things – our things - back."
"Now," he continued. "I am willing to negotiate a deal on regaining my possessions as well as on how much money needs to be put back into Jack's college fund. If you will call Mr. Lawrence, the Hotchner family lawyer, and set up an appointment, I will meet you in his office and he can help us negotiate a settlement."
"And why should I do that?" Jessica stood up. "Here comes Jack. I think we will be going now." She gestured for the boy, who had just gotten off the elevator, to hurry over to where the adults were standing.
"Because if you don't I will sue you," Hotch calmly told her. "And, I promise you, I will win. Think about it, do you really want this to end up in court?"
"Now, Jack," he turned to speak with his son. "Before you leave with your Aunt Jessica, I want to tell you something. I am going to be speaking with the people at the FBI tomorrow morning and I will be telling them that I want to return to being a field agent. I know I'll have to undergo a lot of testing and retraining and even then I might not qualify. But I am going to try."
"That's Great!" Jack cheered. "My father is going to be helping people again!"
"Aaron, you aren't serious?" Jessica gasped. "You're considering going back in the field?"
"If they are willing to have me," Hotch replied. "I still have a lot to give and I think that my recent experiences have helped to give me a better understanding of people."
"My Dad, the Super Hero!"