Chapter 4

"I occur with Dr. Petrovsky. All of you did an excellent job tonight. Thank you." Chief Strauss said. "I know you faced a very tough situation. And the first report I received from SSA Sanchez was extremely positive in your handling of the situation. Go home. There's nothing more to do here tonight." Looking at Hotch and Cait, she added, "You two will keep me in the loop?"

"Absolutely ma'am; we'll text all of you after we see Dave," Hotch said. "However, Dr. Petrovsky and Chief Strauss are right. There's nothing more you can do tonight and you need a break. And you still need to get back to the BAU to get your own vehicles. We'll text you before you get home."

"And I don't expect to see any of you in the office until noon," Strauss said, adding a smile. "I don't think I need to make that an order."

The team all smiled. "No ma'am," Reid said.

"Hotch," JJ got out.

"Jayje, like Aaron said we'll let you know. Since he will be just coming out of the anesthesia, I'm sure he'll only get about ten words out, all complaining that he wants to go home," Cait said with a smile as she rubbed Garcia's shoulder. The team, as well as Strauss, said their good-byes and left.

Aaron and Cait were alone in the waiting room. Knowing her husband as well as she did, Cait just merely pulled him into her arms, nestling her head in his neck and shoulder. She rubbed his back in a deep hug. She knew she had to get him settled. And Cait also knew the next words that would come out of his mouth.

"Damn Doc, I don't want to go through that again." Cait just held him. They spent the time taking comfort in the closeness that a husband and wife share. They were finally interrupted by a nurse in surgical scrubs.

"Agent Hotchner; Dr. Barkley? Agent Rossi is waking. I'll take you in." Aaron and Cait pulled out their embrace and followed her to the recovery room. Dave was hooked up to the usual machines and IV's given his condition. Cait noticed he was also receiving a pint of blood as well. She looked at the nurse. "Dr. Petrovsky wants to move things along. He's only ordered the one pint to get him on the road to recovery." Cait nodded her agreement.

"Do you mind if I look at his chart?"

"Not at all Doctor." Cait pulled it out and skimmed through it. She pulled the blanket off of Dave's right foot and looked at his toes. Aaron sent her a silent question. She just smiled and covered his foot. She and Aaron moved to each side of the bed.

Dave groggily opened his eyes. The lights in the room were very soft. He blinked a couple of times as Cait took his right hand and squeezed it, while Hotch gently touched his left shoulder. Dave rolled his head to the right and looked at Cait. "Now I know that I've died. Because I'm lookin' at an angel," he croaked out.

"Dave, you can't die because there would be a maelstrom in the universe between God and Satan as to who would get you," Cait said as she rubbed his shoulder with her other hand and smiled. "You need to rest. We just stopped in to check on you."

"I'm going to be OK?"

"Dave, Cait just told you. Neither one of the big boys wants you."

Dave smiled slightly and then looked at Cait. "My throat feels like I'm in hell."

"Well some would say that's Lucifer playing with you to give you a taste of hell fire, but they put a breathing tube in you for the surgery. I'm sure you just need some water but you can't right now. You're still under the influence of the anesthesia. But I'll mention it to the nurses." She rubbed a finger across his graying temple of hair. "Dave, just go back to sleep. That's what you need most."

Dave shut his eyes and took a deep breath. "You two will be here?"

"Always Dave; get some rest. Cait and I are going to do the same," Hotch said as he gave Dave's bicep a rub. "We'll be here in the morning when you're awake."

"The boys," Dave barely creaked out.

"Matt was still up when JJ called me. He's holding down the fort. Mike and Jack are sleeping. They don't need to know until they get up." Cait squeezed his hand a little tighter and rubbed his shoulder to get him to relax. "Dave, please go to sleep. Rest is the biggest thing you need right now."

"Dave you heard my wife. And you don't win any more arguments with her than I do."

Rossi slightly smiled as Cait rubbed his chest to get him to sleep. His eyes began to droop shut. She placed a kiss on his temple. "See you in the morning," she whispered.

As Dave started to breathe that of a person going to sleep, Cait and Aaron left the room. They stopped at the nurse's station. Cait looked at the two there. "Do you have our contact numbers?" The one nurse pulled up the information on her computer screen and shook her head. Cait and Aaron gave them all their numbers, both for home and their cells. "And he's already complaining about his throat," Cait added.

"We'll take of it Dr. Barkley," the nurse with the security badge name "Jennifer" said. "Mykela and I are on until seven this morning. Dr. Petrovsky has ordered some pain meds once the anesthesia wears off. He'll be out for the rest of the night and probably until mid-morning but we'll give him a little crushed ice to help with his throat. We'll take good care of him."

Aaron smiled. "We don't doubt that. Please, just keep us in the loop."

"Absolutely Agent Hotchner."

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