Fortitude

Chapter: 3

The various siren lights illuminated her tearstained face almost eerily. She sat in the back of the ambulance and waited for the paramedic to finish his evaluation. Her mind was racing. The adrenaline rush was tapering off and she was left with all these emotions she didn't quite know what to do with. She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned toward the warmth. "How are you holding up, ma'am?" Agent Morgan asked.

"I'm a little shaken." she admitted freely. "But I'm still here."

Morgan gently squeezed her shoulder in support. "Is there anything I can get you?"

"No." she replied. "As soon as I'm cleared I'm heading back to New York."

He nodded. "We're here for you, I hope you know that."

Erin smiled briefly. "I do now." she replied. "Thank you, Morgan."

"Anytime." his smile was truly something to behold. Even Erin had to admit it. "Can I just tell you how impressed I am by you? You were a total badass with Curtis. During this whole thing."

"Once upon a time I was a field agent." she told him. "Not in the BAU but nevertheless."

"Maybe when all of this is over you can join us in the field from time to time." he suggested. "And not just as an overseer either."

"Thank you for the invitation." she said. "But I'm thinking after all this early retirement is looking pretty damn good."

Morgan shook his head. "Definitely not an option." he told her. "After everything Curtis has put this team through you can't let him win. Not like this."

"You're very sweet, Derek." her voice was soft and sincere. "But I believe this may have been one battle too many."

"I know you feel that way now, in this moment, but things change. Feelings change." he replied, softly. "Now isn't the time to make any sort of decision. Let things calm down first. Normalcy has to set back in."

"I'm not sure I know what that is anymore."

Morgan took her hand in his. "You will." he promised her. "You and Dave will figure this out together."

Erin sighed, heavily. "Oh, I certainly hope so."

/

The doctors explained to Erin that they were going to slowly bring David out of his sedation. That he would be in and out a few times before he was fully awake and aware of his surroundings. Agent Jareau experienced this twice before Erin arrived. David blinked rapidly. His eyes struggled to adjust to even the faintest light. "Ugh." he groaned. "What happened?"

Erin was quickly at his side. "You're going to be fine." her voice was warm and soft and so full of love and promise. She finally felt her lungs inflating again.

"Of course I am." he smiled up at her. "You're here."

His smile melted her heart. A smile she wasn't sure she would ever see again. Tears started to well up in her eyes. "I was so scared, David."

"Hey, hey." he reached up to wipe away her fallen tears. "No crying, baby." he soothed her. "Takes a little more than being drugged by an unsub to take out David Rossi."

"I'm glad to see that this hasn't spoiled your ego."

"Never." he smiled at her. "Besides I have much better things planned for us than letting it all end now."

"Planned?" she questioned.

David nodded. "Things kind of got ruined last night but I think it's safe to say you're stuck with me. Especially after this."

"I don't know if I would use the word stuck."

"I love you so much." he told her. "So very much."

Erin smiled. He had said those words to her many, many, times but now they sounded different. They felt different. "I love you, too."

"I want to spend the rest of my life with you." he told her. "I want a wedding. A big one. And a month long honeymoon. I want you to have my last name. No hyphenation. Just Rossi."

She took his hand in hers and kissed the palm of his hand. "David it's been a helluva night…"

"Yeah and not in the way I had planned."

Erin cocked her head to the side. "What do you mean planned?"

"I was going to purpose." he said, softly. "I have the ring at the hotel. And it's not tacky either. Very elegant and classy. Just like you."

"You really were going to purpose?"

David nodded. "Don't tell me you didn't see this coming?"

"I…I didn't."

"Still in shock, I see." he teased. "I don't think I've ever witnessed Erin Strauss speechless."

"Shocked is not the word I would use, David." she replied. "Surprised maybe but not shocked."

"I want to give you a proper proposal."

"I didn't know there was such thing as a proper proposal."

His took her left hand in his, his thumb rubbing over her bare ring finger. "You deserve better than a hospital bed plea."

"We both know David Rossi doesn't plead."

"That's beside the point." he smirked adorably. "I want to do something special. Something memorable."

Erin closed the space between them, her lips ever so lightly meeting his. "I'm sure whatever you had in mind will be perfect."

"I aim to please."

"And you never disappoint." she smiled. "At least you haven't yet." her smile faded as she remembered the events that landed them in this situation. "You should rest."

David immediately noticed the shift in her emotions. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." she gave a quick smile. "I just don't want to wear you out."

"No." he shook his head. "It's more than that."

"I'm just tired."

"What happened, Erin?"

She shook her head, closing her eyes to hold I the tears. "Not now, David." she whispered. "Please not now."

His heart felt like it would pound right out of his chest. "Did he hurt you?"

Tears glistened in those green eyes. Tears that made him want to put his fist through the wall. "Erin?"

She lifted her eyes to look at him. "Not in the way you think." she replied. "I almost lost you. I don't think I've ever been so scared in my entire life."

"It's okay now." he tried his best to assure her. "Everything is going to be okay. It may take some time but everything is going to be fine."

Erin nodded. "The team wants to see you." she sailed into another subject. "They've all been in to see you before the doctor eased up on your sedation."

David gently squeezed her hand in his. "Have you eaten?" he asked. "Have you slept?"

She simply shook her head.

"You need to get something to eat." he told her. "And then you need to get some sleep. I'll be fine. Reid or Morgan can stay here with me. Have Alex or Hotch take you back to the hotel."

/

"How are you feeling, old man?" Hotch asked from the end of the hospital bed. "Gave us all a pretty good scare."

David reclined the bed forward. "Who are you calling old?"

He took a seat in the chair across from the bed. "I'm just glad you're okay." he told him. "It didn't look good there for a while."

"I'm tougher than the Replicator thought."

Aaron nodded. "Curtis." he told him. "The Replicator case is now closed."

"I'm glad I could be of assistance."

"I've never seen Erin more determined." he told him. "She was hell-bent on seeing this through to the very end."

David smiled. "That's my girl." he was practically beaming with pride. "She's much more than a figurehead."

"I know that." he replied. "I've always known that."

There is was again. That silence. That lingering silence. Unspoken words thickly hanging in the air. "I feel like I'm being left out of the loop here." he said. "Just tell me what happened."

Aaron exhaled heavily. He wasn't quite sure where to start. "John Curtis was in the FBI. He was involved in the Amerithrax case. He was after Erin the entire time. She was the one who put the pieces together and she was the one who went after him."

"What do you mean went after him?"

"I mean with a vest and a service weapon." his voice was become lower than usual. "Erin…she…she shot him. Killed him. I barely got us out of the cellar before it exploded."

David's head was spinning trying to take in all the information. Trying to process the words that just came out of his superior's mouth. "You were with her."

"I heard the shot and ran toward the sound." Aaron told him. "Curtis was dead, but Erin wanted to make sure. I told her it was over, and that he was dead. But it was like she needed that final confirmation. Everything just happened so fast. I just wanted to get her out of there."

"She didn't tell me any of this."

"Erin's exhausted." he reasoned. "And she's focusing on you. On making sure you're okay."

He nodded. "I want her to be okay, too."

"Then rest up." he suggested. "She was terrified of losing you and she pushed the limits because of it. Once the adrenaline dies down she'll relax enough to tell you everything."

"I need you to look after her." David told him. "Make sure she eats and sleeps."

"I'll take her back to the hotel myself."

to be continued….