The Clarion Hotel – Morning –

Artemis followed his old friend Charles into the dining area of the large suite. Lydia was lost in her doting over Hank and hardly noticed that he'd arrived. He needed to update his clients on the case and so, Lydia had eagerly invited him for breakfast. Watching her holding Hank and kissing him as she rocked him in her arms sent a pang of jealousy through his body. He'd already lost so much time with him and his plans for the little toddler's future sadly did not include his two friends.

"Have a seat my friend; as you can see Lydia is a little preoccupied," Charles joked.

Artemis forced a smile and took the seat across from the older woman. He took a small amount of joy as Hank fussed and squirmed. It was obvious that it had been a while since she'd cared for a baby; luckily the couple had taken his suggestion and hired a nanny who was scheduled to arrive at any moment. Artemis had never raised a child; he and his wife had been unsuccessful in having children; it was all he could do to keep himself from yanking the child from Lydia's arms.

Artemis made himself a hefty plate of the food that had been delivered from room service just before his arrival and the three spent the next minutes dining on waffles, cheese omelets, sausage, and bacon along with orange juice and hot coffee.

"Thank you both for inviting me to breakfast. I wanted to bring you up to speed on this case."

"Of course, yes," Charles responded. "We appreciate everything you've done and for acting so swiftly! I mean look at my wife, I haven't seen her this happy in a long time."

"Savannah never mentioned Derek having a drug problem! I can't imagine what could have happened to this precious baby," Lydia started. "This is the last thing I ever expected from him."

"Well, Derek is surrounded by people who have helped him to cover up his shortcomings only this time it could have had dire consequences for little Hank," said Artemis. "I'm going to make sure he never gets near this little baby boy again."

Lydia and Charles exchanged quick glances; they'd never seen their friend express any extreme emotions in the past; especially for a child. They'd named him Savannah's godfather when she was a baby and as far as they knew she was the only child he'd ever seemed remotely interested in and except for expensive birthday and Christmas presents, Artemis was uninvolved. Still, the couple had an important request for the lawyer, one that they'd only asked once before.

"There's another reason we wanted you here old friend," Charles began hesitantly.

"Sure, what is it?"

"Lydia and I were wondering if...when we get permanent custody of our grandson..."

Artemis noticed the nervousness in his friend suddenly.

"'What is it, Charles?"

"Lydia and I would like you to be Hank's godfather."

Artemis Maker looked into the hopeful eyes of Charles and Lydia Hayes and as they waited for his response, everything seemed to slow down around him. His heartbeat slowed and grew cold and hard. The only thing that did not change was the silly grin that was ever so slight on his face. Artemis was a lot of things, and he'd done a lot of things in his pursuit to grab all that he believed life had owed him. He was a scoundrel, a man who had gained wealth and respect for being the best at his craft; a man willing to do whatever it took to win. What he couldn't win by conventional means he'd lie, cheat, even kill to get. Now his oldest friends were asking him to be the godfather to Hank the child who was more than their late daughter's son. How could he? How could they? Before he parted his lips to answer, he looked at the two-year-old who had finally stopped fussing. Hank looked at him as if the two were the only ones at the table that knew the truth.

Artemis, who never cried or showed emotion publicly, blinked away the moisture in his eyes and exhaled smiling.

"Of course, I'd be honored!"

Like the others, Emily suspected Artemis Maker was in the middle of Derek's well-timed problems. Neither of them believed in coincidence and the fact that Savannah's parents were still in town after losing in court was no coincidence either. She'd been a profiler too long to not know that people were capable of anything. Attorney Maker had built his career on his dirty deeds and on his good days he walked a fine line between right and wrong.

Emily had followed her target into the posh upscale hotel and got comfortable in the business of the lobby. After an hour or so, the elevator pinged; Artemis stepped out and walked toward the exit. While he waited for his car to be brought around, Em got in her car parked nearby and waited. If she were right, his next stop would lead her to his accomplices.

Potomac General Hospital –

Penelope watched as Derek got dressed; He'd been quiet since learning that he'd been suspended earlier. She knew him and knowing him she knew he wouldn't rest until he saw his son and then had him back permanently.

"I know what you're thinking, Handsome and I'm asking you to rethink this. Let me and the team handle this!"

"You and the team are on a case! You and the team have been ordered to stay away from me and this mess! I don't want anyone of you jeopardizing yourselves over me, Garcia!"

"Then you probably don't want to know that Emily is in town."

"Prentiss, why?"

"Because when you mess with one of us, you mess with all of us!"

"But she's supposed to be in London? This is crazy!"

"No Derek, this is family!"

Emily followed Artemis to a busy park nearby making sure to stay out of sight. She watched him get out of his car and take a seat on a bench near several groups of older men playing chess. After several minutes, two men approached him, one taking a seat on his left, the other man standing behind the bench. She took several pictures of the men who seemed to be having a serious conversation. Then Artemis slyly passed an envelope to the man seated next to him. The three shook hands and headed out of the park in opposite directions.

Just as Emily started her engine, a dark-haired woman stepped from the shadows and the two locked eyes, nodded, and smiled. Hotch and Dave weren't the only ones with friends, and she had placed a few phone calls of her own. It was good to see her again even though the others may feel differently if they knew that she had made it back even before she'd arrived. Nonetheless, the fact remained they were still a part of a dysfunctional but loyal family. Sharing one last glance and nod, Emily pulled into traffic.

"Welcome home Elle; welcome home."