After another lifetime (and I'm so sorry because this time it was all about school) here's a new chapter of this fanfic! Yay! Again, I must thank y'all for the reviews! I never thought I'd get so many nice reviews about this piece and it makes my day reading them! The chapter 3 is not quite what I expected it to be, but it didn't change the plot I created so no major problems lol
This chapter is not beta'd so, I'm sorry for typos or any wrong stuff you might find! I'm trying to find a beta, but it's not an easy job :p
Hope you enjoy it!
Small pairs of arms and legs enveloped the Unit Chief, nuzzling the crook of her neck. The warmness draped her sleepy figure and reminded Emily of why she had engaged in that deathly chase.
She brushed her lips to the curtain of raven-hair as she felt that piece of them stiffen then flutter her doe eyes open. In those gleaming irises, the mother saw a sad reflection of her own longing, her sweetest memories which were reduced to mere remembrances.
When Hotch agreed with her bold idea of living miles away and only putting the band together during vacation, holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, among some other needy moments, he never anticipated such disastrous situation. That's what she presumed, at least. They never expected running away to save one another, though both Hotchners knew they'd do anything in their power for so.
It was dangerous for the four of them. Emily questioned his decision in her mind countless times, considering Peter Lewis was one hell of a hacker to even put down Garcia's systems. If Penelope could unseal the encrypted files, so could that rat faced son of a bitch. And there lived the fear.
Maybe he should have taken his girls with him and Jack. Witness protection would be hard on their family, that was one thing for sure, but all of them would be safe. Together. But maybe he thought bringing them with him would make clear to Lewis that he could affect him by harming them. Witsec would become a desperate – constant - attempt to flee from his hands. Relentless and with an enormous potential to break them apart.
Therefore, they remained so close but still so far from building the true unity they always dreamed of. Both Aaron and Emily never signed up for this war when they said their vows so quietly at that small chapel in the outskirts of Vienna. Never.
Her chest heaved in a painful sigh while her fingers traced the length of Rosie Hotchner's strands. They were falling right above her shoulders, silky and with gentle curves that had to be perfectly untangled every single morning. Just like her mother's.
"Mornin', mama" a tiny yawn followed her first sentence, the slight British accent never failed to entertain the whole gang.
"Morning, peanut" wide brown eyes stared at the girlish dimples on display "Did you have good dreams?"
"Yup" the little girl nodded unsubtly as she snuggled closer to her mother's worn out body "Papa'n you was playin' with me'n Jack"
"Oh…" Emily held the overflow of feelings at bay, after all, she had to be strong for the both of them, it was her uttermost oath and likely the only one she would be capable to keep.
"Wher's my papa? I miss him" her inquiry torn the mother of one to pieces, much due her knowledge that it was a long time coming.
Although Rosie had spent just a bit more than five hours stateside, the little girl was smart enough to realize something was oddly off about her mother, their usual routine there and the uncommon sensation of a hotel room around her. Her papa and her big brother were not there to pick her up in the airport – which, also, was not the one her mama would usually choose to their arrival -, put aside the presence of her nanny whole through it and the way Emily was dressed like she had just came back from work.
"He's travelling" she cooed the three years-old with her arms wrapped tight round her, hiding the truth from herself and from the world "But he'll be back soon and we'll have those chocolate chip muffins he always bakes for you"
"I love muffins!"
The brunette mother achieved her aim to distract the younger Hotchner as she went on and on, implacable on the subject through shower, breakfast, even on the way to Quantico. Cate had almost to beg her to stop when they reached the garage, always with the prettiest of the smiles and the kindest of the manners. Of course that was a matter of facts, since the nanny had been very well recommended by the great Ambassador Prentiss herself.
Her mind plundered again those hazy recollections that often popped up into her mind. It was almost like she could watch the scene in front of her eyes, hooding her attention from the brutal reality.
"I bet she knows more about our daughter than I do" he had offered sheepishly in their honeymoon, less than two years ago "C'mon, if you let this girl raise her full time, we'll have a dictionary of twenty languages"
"And what's the problem with that?" the brunette left her isolation inside the toilet, wearing the fanciest black dress she had brought with her "You said you think my French is a turn on"
"It is, but you are my wife and she's my daughter", Emily approached him with a skeptical look – though gleeful from the word he just uttered - as she maneuvered to perfectly knot his bowtie.
"Here comes the Alpha Hotch to the surface" she muttered within the short period of an exaggerated eye roll "Let's make a deal, if you stop complaining about Cate, I swear to God I scream to you in all the languages I know"
He cocked an eyebrow and she drank in the sight of his lips forming a sly grin with the fantasies filling his mind. She loved playing and he loved her, nothing more, nothing less, "I should have pointed you more often for hostage negotiations"
"Says the man who wrote a book about it" she patted his chest twice before withdrawing the touch in order to grab her matching clutch "C'mon Mr Hotchner, the Ambassador waits at all expenses paid" she chuckled and pressed her lips to his mouth in a chaste kiss.
"Right after you, Mrs Hotchner", she thought about complaining – she was not used to title, not yet - but his wide smile elicited her own dimples to flash towards his statement.
"Emily, are you alright?" the feminine voice, painted in all the colors of the most British of the accents, brought her back to the present instant in which she had just parked to seal her fate with her other family.
"Yes, thank you" she whispered "I'll go first, then I'll text you so you can meet us at the briefing room"
With a nod, the three women left the car and followed their paths. Emily couldn't deny the twist in her guts when she considered a possible anger towards the news she was about to give them. She had lied once, but she did that to protect them from the darkest moment of her life. Yet, things were absolutely different this time. She had lied because she had not even a bit of courage to admit how deeply she loved him, how profoundly she depended on their family and relied on his strength to maintain the natural flow of her life.
Also, she didn't want to be questioned or pressured to come back to the team, to fill the void she had left permanently and, most of all, she wanted to nurture their relationship in peace and silence, with no crazy unsubs targeting her or Rosie or Aaron or Jack for the singular fact that they were happy together.
The elevator dinged open for her entry, and Emily watched the doors close with the unique sensation that the walls of her plans had just crumbled to dust.
If you can, please, take a minute to tell me what you think! I'd love to hear from you!
Also, next chapter we'll have the whole team discovering about them, tell me what you think it will be their reactions *wink*