Erin shook her head as she looked at the email she had received from Agent Prentiss. She knew that something had to be truly wrong for the woman to be reaching out to her, since it seemed like she had figured out the agenda that Erin had hired her to fill, even though she had been trying to keep things tightly under control. Perhaps the call to her shortly after the team had arrived in Houston had been a little much, but given the fact that Aaron had not taken her up on her request to at least have Doctor Reid speak with a therapist, and she could see that he was spiraling out of control, even as he tried to appear normal. And if she could see that, when she didn't even work with the young man in a day to day basis, then she knew that Jason and Aaron could see the same thing.

Letting out a deep sigh, she opened the email and quickly read through the terse text, knowing that it must have taken a lot for Agent Prentiss to even think about mentioning that she was having issues with Doctor Reid's behavior. There wasn't a good solution to the issue, and she shook her head as she picked up her office phone and dialed home, knowing that David should be up in the study, finalizing the last edits on his book before it would be turned over to the publishers to head to the next step of publication. "Is everything okay, Erin?"

"No hello, David?"

"Not when you call me from your work line early in the day. That has almost always meant that you're experiencing some issue at work that you can't work out on your own. So, what is wrong?"

"I think that Doctor Reid has a problem, and I don't know if it's with alcohol or drugs, but it is starting to effect his work, and I don't know how to address the issue. I've already raised my concerns with Aaron, since Jason won't listen to me even on a good day, and he rebuffed me. And I tried to have Agent Prentiss keep an eye out on Doctor Reid by calling her to say as much when they arrived in Houston, but she told me she would do no such thing, that spying was not what she was hired to do. And before you even say it, David, I know. She has a valid point. But the Director is breathing down my neck about this issue, since I'm not the only one who has noticed the problem. And I know that no one on his team is going to breathe a word of it to anyone else, since they know that might bring scrutiny to them, and that is the last thing that Jason wants, and Aaron follows his lead, even though he is the SAC. And I'm just so frustrated, David."

She raked one hand through her hair, and let out a deep sigh, listening to him chuckle a little on the other end of the line. "I can tell that you're trying not to roll your eyes at me, stellina. But I get why you're frustrated, and wanted break the tension a little. Would you like me to call Hotch and have a small discussion with him?"

"No, that will just make things worse, because he'll believe that I'm trying to interfere more than I am, even though I'd love to get Jason away from Alpha team. It's becoming clearer to me that he is just squashing all the talent that's on that team, and things are getting too sloppy for my liking. But until he does something that I can suspend him for, my hands are tied, since he has seniority and some powerful people on his side."

"Then you are in a bit of a conundrum, aren't you?"

"Hence, why I called you. I just need to talk it out with you, and hope that you can give me some advice so that I can avoid a larger mess in the future." Erin leaned back in her chair and stared up at the ceiling. "I just can't seem to find a way out of this quagmire."

"Because there really isn't a way out of this, Erin, not without accruing more ire with Hotch and Jason. You might need to be the heavy and get IAB involved, but that should be your last option. IAB can break a person's career, because that is a stigma that sticks with a person if word gets out."

She sighed once more, nodding a little at his words as she rubbed her stomach absently. "I know, David, which is why I've been trying to get Aaron to move before it has to come to that. So, do you think that I should call Agent Prentiss or email her back?"

"I would email her, since that's how she chose to reach out to you. Just, be mindful of your words that you write, since they can be used against you if they're taken the wrong way." He paused and she drew in a short breath to respond when he spoke once more. "And Erin? I love you, and will support you no matter what decision you make regarding Doctor Reid and IAB. I'll make us something delicious for supper, since Alan has the kids this week, and we can be a little more adventurous."

"If by that, you mean morels, then yes, please. I will see you tonight. I love you so much." Erin listened to him kiss into the phone and replied with the same gesture before hanging up and turning back to her computer.

Thank you for reaching out to me with your concerns, Agent Prentiss. As I had mentioned in our earlier phone conversation, I, too, am concerned about Doctor Reid and how he is handling returning to his job following what happened to him. I understand that he wants to dive right back into work, feeling like it will make everything better. However, your concerns are shared by others, and you need to impress it upon Agent Hotchner or Agent Gideon that unless they address the issue, there could be greater consequences for everyone involved, not just Doctor Reid. If you have any further concerns, do not hesitate to reach out to me once more, and we will discuss them at length.

She read her words back a few times, making certain that there was nothing that could come back to haunt her before sending it off, making certain to BCC Director Shepperd, so that he was aware that she was trying to take care of the situation before it devolved even further. With that done, she began to focus on the rest of the work that she had to do, trying not to think about how Agent Prentiss would react to her email. Just when she was about to start reviewing the last case that the Red Cell team had been on, her cell phone buzzed, and she picked it up from her desk to see that David had texted her a new picture of himself and Elise. A pang of longing stabbed her heart as she thought about being home with her family, knowing that Elise was growing too quickly, and so was Jack.

Smiling sadly, she forwarded the picture to Haley, knowing that she liked to be kept abreast of what was happening with Elise. Erin wondered if she had told Aaron that they were texting back and forth, but decided that she didn't really care, since it was nice to be able to tell Elise bits and pieces about her half-brother, and knowing that Haley was doing the same for Jack. She's getting so big! Let me guess, she's trying to walk? The smile on her face became happier as she tapped out a reply, finding the distraction welcome as her thoughts turned to Doctor Reid and the situation that he was currently going through.