By the time that they arrived, a mobile command center had already rolled up, and she made a beeline for it, knowing that that would be where she found Aaron. Sure enough, he was talking to Agent Jareau's partner along with other members of the local police department. Giving him a smooth nod, she slipped easily into the circle and allowed the talk to catch her up on what had happened during their drive there. Once there was a break in the talk, Aaron turned his focus on her, and she licked her lips as she tried to find the right words to say that wouldn't set her off crying. "Jessica has the girls?"
"Yes. She's taking them over to her parents' home later on, along with the older children, if they want to go. She said that Beth's with Jack?"
He nodded before glancing around, as if to make certain that no one was paying attention to them. Then he was giving her a quick hug, and they both drew in a deep breath in tandem. "This is going to be a bad case, Erin. I can feel it in my bones."
"I have that same feeling. I should probably head into the mobile command unit and check in with Penelope, to see if she's worked up anything that can help us with the negotiations. You're going to lead those, right?"
"I think I'm going to have Dave take the lead on this case. These are the Face Card Bandits, after all, and he can probably work up a rapport with the leader, since she seems to respond well to a certain type of man." Erin chuckled beneath her breath as she nodded, knowing that Aaron had a point there. "Oh, and be easy on Garcia. She doesn't handle this sort of thing well, and I don't want her to crack under pressure, since we need her expertise here."
"I will," she replied as she left the group, reaching out to stroke David's arm as she passed him, heading inside the modified mobile home that housed all their equipment. Penelope was seated in front of a bank of screens, and Erin looked to see what was there, noticing that they had somehow managed to access real time video feed access inside the bank. "What can you tell me about inside that bank?" she asked as she curled her hands around the back of the chair the younger woman was sitting in.
"There are too many blindspots for my liking? I have every single camera up on my monitors currently, but I feel like I need more eyes in there. The one unsub that Will shot is not doing well, and from what I've seen over the years, I know that that will lead to bad things happening. At least you were able to change."
Looking down, Erin saw that Penelope was indeed still in her costume from earlier, though she had taken off her wig and put on a vest. "We were already home when the call came in, so we took a few minutes to change. What I was wearing was…inappropriate for the situation."
"I've never seen you in jeans before. You have a great ass."
Erin let out a shocked laugh as she shook her head. "I'm sorry?"
"No, I'm sorry. I lose my filter when I'm keyed up like this, and since Will's involved, that means Jayje is not handling things well, and I just have this really heavy feeling in the pit of my stomach that says this case is not going to end well. But I'm glad that you're in here with me. You can help keep me somewhat sane. Please?"
She slipped one hand off the chair back to close around Penelope's shoulder, offering her what little comfort she could. "I will do my best, but even my mind is a bit divided here."
"Oh, your children! Who has them?"
"Jess is bringing them over her parents', actually, which will be good for them. They love Poppy."
"Haley's father lets them call him that?" she asked a bit incredulously, turning so that she could look at Erin as they talked.
Nodding, she gave the woman a little shrug, keeping one eye on the monitors as she spoke. "He was actually the one who came up with the nickname. My girls are so blessed to have such a huge family that loves them."
"They are. Can, can we have a little bit of girl talk before we have to get serious again?"
"As long as you turn back around and watch the screens while we do so. I want to keep watch over everything."
"Of course." Penelope gave her a tremulous smile before taking quick hold of her hand, squeezing it a few times before turning back around and then starting to speak once more. "Earlier this morning, I was so mad at Kevin, so mad, but now, knowing that he's back at the BAU, working with Reid on this case from a different angle, all I can be is worried. And I hate being conflicted like this. I hate knowing that he still has a part of my heart, even though I was basically the one to end the relationship. I just don't want to live with regrets, you know? How do I move on from this?"
"By confronting your emotions head on and acknowledging that you are going to be all right in the end. After this situation, once everything is all right, then you can start moving forward. I have faith that you'll know where to draw your personal boundaries, and that you'll be able to work amicably with Mister Lynch in the future."
Penelope glanced up at Erin before reaching back and taking hold of her hand, squeezing softly. "So, basically, I need to look to you and Hotch for how to navigate how to be better people after a tense period of time?"
"I suppose that you could look at it that way, yes." Erin gave her a warm smile before squeezing Penelope's hand in return, trying to let her know that she was glad that she had made the connection that she had nebulously trying to make. "I think that, when this is over, we should host a party at the house. Because we're going to need something to celebrate."
"I like the sound of that," Penelope replied as she turned her focus back onto the screens. "I just hate looking at this situation, you know? I don't understand why people are so awful. I've dealt with this job for nine years now, and it still seems like the unsubs find even lower bars to reach."
"There seems to have been an uptick in how vile these people are becoming. I wonder, sometimes, if it has to do with the fact that their exploits are more publicized, thanks to the internet and the constant news cycle. If we could somehow shift the focus of the stories from the unsub to the victim, I think that would do a lot to solve so many problems. These assholes just want attention, and we keep giving it to them, year after year."
Penelope nodded a little, a smirk spreading across her lips. "I don't think I've ever heard you swear like that while on the job. Usually, that position is filled by your husband."
"How did you know that we got married?" Erin asked, her thumb immediately starting to worry the slim gold band on her left hand.
"I was running the pool for when you were going to finally take the plunge, and when Hotch backed out of the running, I knew that it had happened already. Way to spoil it, and make certain that Anderson won the pot! He'll never let me live that down, since I was supposed to be the spoiler."
Erin let out a little chuckle as she shrugged. "I just realized that I wanted to get it done with before something happened to one of us. And we've been together for so long that it just didn't make any sense to stay unmarried any longer." Penelope nodded, letting out a little huff of breath as she turned her attention back to the screens, searching for something, anything, that could get them out of this situation quicker, and Erin focused her attention there, too, wanting to be able to go home soon and hold her children tightly to her chest. This time, the unsubs wouldn't get away with hurting their family, she would make certain of that, even if it took everything in her being.
