There was something strange about waving to each member of the Red Cell team as they sat outside her home every day that David was out in the field. Tonight, Sam was on duty, and Erin paused at the end of the drive and got out of her car, gesturing for the man to come over. Sam's face relaxed into a wide grin as he stepped out of the car and fairly swaggered over to her side. "Good evening, ma'am."

"Sam, you know that outside the office, you are free to call me by my name." He shrugged a little before turning to look down the street. "Has there been any sign of John at all today?"

"No, Erin. I think that you're right, he's not going to show up at the house while Dave's in the field. Isn't that when most of the replicated cases occur?"

She nodded. "I know, he does that because there aren't eyes readily available to be on him when the team is out in the field. When they're home, they can focus on catching him. Or, at least, they could before the Senate subcommittee decided that this wasn't worth pursuing. It's like he knew exactly which time to go dormant in order to make it so that we couldn't track him down. He was trained in the BSU, after all, so he knows what our playbook consists of."

Sam nodded a little as he reached out to touch her shoulder. "That's what makes this so difficult. But you've been so strong this long, I know that you'll have it in you to make it to the finish line, and catch him. Until that day comes, though, we're going to make certain that you're protected."

Erin let out a long breath as she nodded in response. "I'm glad that I have so many people in my life who are willing to step up and remind me that I am worth protecting." Sighing, she gave a brief smile before looking at the door of her home. "Did you want to come in for a little while?"

"No, I'm good. Jessica had one of your children bring out a few sandwiches for me to eat later, and my thermoses are full of coffee. But if I do need anything, I'll text you before coming up to the house."

"Okay," she replied softly before reaching out and squeezing his hand tightly. "Thank you for your willingness to do this for my family."

"And for you." She pursed her lips as she shrugged. "Yes. Now go in and give those beautiful babies of yours lots of love." Erin drew in a deep breath through her nose before stepping away from him and getting back in her car, heading into the garage and turning the car off before making her way into the house. She could hear the happy chatter of her children as she entered the kitchen, and it was so easy to allow a smile to spread across her lips as she closed the garage door and went into the other room.

"Mommy!" Catherine called out as she raced over to her side. Erin easily picked her up, cuddling her close as she looked at what Jessica and Karen were cooking for supper. "We're having fish!"

"Is that what smells so good?" she asked as she kissed Catherine's cheek before setting her down on the counter. Elise nodded as she turned on the stool she was sitting on to look at Erin, a wide grin on her lips. "And how was school today, sweetheart?" she asked as she leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to her daughter's forehead.

"It was good! Jack and I are reading the same book, even though we have different teachers, and I am liking it much more than he is. Oh! Aunt Jessica said that you got a letter in the mail today, but you're not going to get it until after we've eaten and we've gone to bed. Even Jack gets to spend the night!"

That was when Erin knew that the letter had most likely come from John, and she looked over to see both Jessica and Karen stiffen a little. "Hmm, I think that I should take a look at that letter now, so that after supper, Auntie Jessica and I can just settle down to talk. Wouldn't you agree, Jessie?"

"I can't say that I do, but I know that you won't leave it be until I give in, so I'll let you know that the letter is by my purse on the counter."

Erin nodded slowly as she went over to Jessica's purse, picking up the fairly innocuous looking envelope and turning it over and over in her hands. By now, she was quite familiar with John's handwriting, and she let out a long breath as she broke the seal on the letter and pulled out the single sheet of paper inside the envelope. She glanced over what was written there, seeing that the letter was probably the shortest that she had received from him, and she leaned against the countertop as she started at the beginning of the letter.

Erin,

By now, you should know that you'll never get one up on me. I will always have the upper hand, and you will never know just who is working with me or if anyone is working with me. But it is good to see you becoming more and more paranoid as the days go by and you're not allowed to officially look for me. That alone should tell you that I am more than likely inside the building at least a few times. Your hair is looking so nice these days. Oh, and you'll have to give my regards to Samiel the next time you see him. It's rather sweet that the Red Cell team has chosen to ignore direct orders to protect you. It's just a shame that that won't be enough to keep you safe, in the end. And just know that I could anonymously tell Director Sheppard just what you're doing, and then where would you be? That might almost be the best course of action, to slowly take away all the things that you love, until the only thing left to do is finish what George Foyet started and take your life. Until we meet again in person, remember that I'll haunt your nightmares.

John

Erin shuddered as she folded the paper and shoved it back into the envelope. Now that his words were in her mind, she wished that she had listened to Jessica and not opened it until after supper, but there was no way she could go back in time and make the smarter decision. Looking up, she saw that Jessica was watching her, a sad smile on her lips, and Erin nodded a little. In a heartbeat, Jessica was at her side, hooking an arm around her waist as they took a few moments to just breathe. "It will be all right," Jessica whispered in her ear, and Erin blinked a few times, not really knowing how to respond to that. While she would have loved to agree with Jessica right off the bat, she knew that the way John was subtly threatening her, mentioning having seen her at work, meant that those words were just a mere platitude. John was going to stop at nothing in his quest to destroy her, and she knew that she had to be prepared for the worst to happen, and make these moments with her family and friends count for all their worth.