He should have gone with her. He knows it the moment the elevator doors close on their backs. He hadn't been blind to Morgan's reaction. Actually, more than just Morgan's reaction. Since Metro had specifically requested him, it had made sense, at the time, to send Emily and Morgan to work out whatever idiotic thing had him looking at Emily like he'd never seen her before. Now, he's not so sure Morgan won't send her running.

Dave claps him on the shoulder. "They're going to be fine."

"Of course they are."

"And yet, you're worried."

Hotch isn't wholly sure how to explain it, isn't totally sure he could even if he did understand. Some of it is blatant fear because it is suddenly so, so clear that she could just disappear. It's not about means or motive now, but the indisputable evidence that there are huge pieces of her skill set that hadn't even been aware of.

"He's angry," is what he eventually settles on.

"They all are."

Hotch barely pivots to arch an eyebrow Dave's way. He shrugs.

"We all know she has a dark side. And we all have secrets."

They do. No matter how long they've all worked together, they all have something they're holding back. Morgan's past, Reid's father, JJ's sister… Gideon. Even Hotch can admit it's not the worst thing he's hurt.

"But."

Hotch looks over, fully this time.

"She was never perfect."

Not to Dave. Not to Hotch, and Dave knows this. To Reid? To Garcia? To Morgan? Things fall into place when he looks at it that way.

"You think she's going to run."

"She has the skills," Hotch points out, deceptively calm. "We'd never know."

"If she were planning on running, she would have done it by now."

"You sound so sure."

"You're not?"

Hotch crosses his arms, looks back across the gathering officers and agents in the bullpen, at Anderson coordinating the newcomers and at his team still clustered in the conference room. "No."

The silence says Dave needs a minute, more than, really. It's been a long time since Hotch has expressed anything less than unwavering faith in Emily, in her commitment to the BAU , to the work they do, the laws they uphold and the values they hold dear.

"She wouldn't abandon us."

"No," Hotch agrees, because that's not the question here. "She's sure Doyle won't play by the rules."

It's a given, actually. A correct assumption given the way Emily had sounded on the phone to Tsia, the look on her face as she realized she'd inadvertently sent the other woman to her death. Dave's shrug and rueful look tells Hotch that he doesn't doubt it either.

"She'd see it as protection, as a way to avoid asking us to do anything we aren't ready for."

Anything illegal. Anything that would compromise their integrity. Just because he's ready, just because he's done it before – and because he's more and more convinced there isn't much he wouldn't do for Emily – doesn't mean the rest of the team is prepared to colour outside the lines like that.

"Aaron. You know as well as I do there isn't a thing in this world the team would not do for each other."

He does. He really does. "That's the problem."

He doesn't need to see Dave's face to know Dave gets it. It helps that they both know Emily hasn't been entirely forthcoming with them, that there are details she's holding back.

"We can't let her run," Hotch says finally. "We have to make sure she doesn't run from us."

"From us?" Dave asks in that damn perceptive tone. "Or from you?"

Hotch wants to keep his face impassive. It doesn't matter. This is Dave. He does manage to keep his shoulders from slumping as he says, "Exactly."

Because they're the same damn thing.

I'm terrible at responding. August was insane and September isn't turning out to be much better. I'm endlessly sorry.

I do appreciate it. More than I have words for, both the patience and the feedback. So thank you, thank you, thank you.