Do you want to play? - A Criminal Minds fanfic

Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The girls looked at their mother with expectation. Grace knew it couldn't be good if the police was there.

"Something happened to Sergio." She started, but paused to take in the girls' reactions.

"Where is he, mama?" Grace asked innocently, but she could spot the glassy eyes and quivering lip.

"He's gone, baby." Emily sighed, trying her best to hold back another round of tears.

"No, mama. What you mean gone?" Grace sucked in her lip to stop it from shaking.

"He went with the angels. To heaven." Emily explained sadly. She knew how much Grace had loved Sergio. Being an only child for five years Sergio had been the only one she could play with.

Grace got down from the chair and ran to embrace her mother, who sat them both down on the floor, letting her youngest cry quietly on her shoulder.

"Is she with Esther's mom and dad." She sniffled and showed her tearstained face to her mother.

Emily looked up to Esther to see what she was thinking, an impossible case, before looking down to Grace again.

"Yes, Esther's parents will take care of him for us." Emily said, stroking her daughter's back soothingly.

"But why, mama? Why did he have to go?"

Emily worked her brain for an answer to a question she had asked herself. "God only lends us to the world and Sergio was so special that he had to go back early."

Grace looked at her mother, a bit happier, somewhat content with that answer. She wiped her tears and stood up.

"Will we get another cat?" She asked, pleadingly.

"I don't know, sweetie. We'll have to discuss that when daddy comes home."

Grace's face shone up again, the previous traumas forgotten. Emily hadn't said no to a new pet and that was enough to make the five year old happy again.

"Now let's eat some pancakes." Emily said and put one on each plate, pouring some maple syrup on them. She watched happily as the two girls started eating.

She glanced to the detectives that were just finishing up. Emily walked to the door as they were ready to go out.

"If you see or hear anything call us." One of them said and handed her a card with a number on that she knew she would never use.

She made sure to lock the door after the men and took a deep breath before walking back to the girls who were ready for a second round of pancakes.

Emily looked at the clock. Grace would have to go to school in just a few hours. She had been so happy the day she moved from Pre-K to kindergarten, finally feeling like a big girl. And she really was. Grace liked to do most things on her own. Getting dressed, tying her shoes, brushing her teeth, clearing the table, buckling her seatbelt and putting the right channel on the TV on.

Emily smiled when that same daughter grabbed a napkin to wipe her face before carrying her plate to the counter. She put it down slowly and then put the utensils in the dishwasher. She continued to place the plate there too before running off.

"Hey, what's the rush?" Emily yelled after her.

"Need to go stinky." Grace yelled back as she bolted up the stairs to go to her bathroom.

Emily chuckled softly and smiled to her other daughter. "I have to register you for a school. I was thinking of going today to have it done, but now this with Sergio..."

"I wanna go today." Esther interrupted Emily. "I want to start studying again."

"Okay then. We'll go when we've dropped Gracie off. You'll be going to the same school."

Esther smiled as she too put her dirty plate away and walked slowly up the stairs.

Breaking the news about Sergio had been easier than she thought, but she still didn't know what Esther thought about it. The girl was pretty guarded, not letting out too many emotions. Just like Emily had been taught. Hopefully she would be able to break through Esther's shell, no matter how long it took.

It was two hours later when Emily and Esther found themselves in the principal's office at the same school Grace went to. Everything went the way Emily had hoped for, since she already had a kid in that school, and Esther could start on next monday.

When they got out of the school Emily turned her phone back on and saw 7 missed calls. Shit, Morgan must've been worried sick coming home to an empty house. She pressed down number one on her phone which would make her call Morgan immediately. He picked up after one signal.

"Emily, why the hell did you turn your phone off?" Morgan said, angrily.

"Calm down, honey. I was in a meeting with the principal of Grace's school to get Esther in. I didn't think when I turned it off." Emily said, apologetically.

Morgan sighed. "I'm sorry to blow up like that. I just got so worried when you weren't at home and it went straight to voicemail. With all that's going on with Sergio and the stalker I..."

"Whoa, hold on! What do you mean..." Emily lowered her voice to a whisper so that Esther wouldn't hear. "...stalker?"

" I did a lot of thinking on the plane and this sounds logical."

"No it doesn't." Emily shot back quickly. "Only one thing happened and that doesn't mean that..."

"There was no forced entrance, Emily. I called the detectives as soon as I'd gotten of the plane. Someone had to have copied your key or gotten access to it somehow."

Emily was quiet for a second to register what he'd just said before she answered. "We'll talk about this later tonight. We're on our way home now."

Morgan's voice was much softer now. "So I'm finally going to meet her?"

"Yes, you are." Emily smiled.

"Did you explain about Sergio?" He asked more seriously.

"Yes I did." Emily said shortly.

"Okay, good. Sorry you had to do that. I'll see you soon, babe. Love you."

"Love you too. Bye."

They hung up and Emily put her focus on the driving. She glanced in the rearview mirror ever so often to look at Esther who was sitting quietly in the backseat.

Another ten minutes past before they pulled up the driveway. Esther quickly unbuckled her seatbelt and got out of the car. Emily had known that Esther wanted to meet Morgan so it didn't surprise her how quick she was.

She had to hurry to catch up with the young girl so she could unlock the door and let her in.

Derek Morgan was pacing the kitchen when they came inside, but stopped as she saw Emily. And most importantly, their daughter. Just like everybody else he thought that Esther looked just like Emily.

"Daddy!" Esther smiled and flung her arms around Morgan's neck.

"I am so happy to meet you, Esther." He said kindly. "I hope Emily and Grace have taken care of you so far."

"They have been very nice." Esther said with a smile.

"I'm sorry for everything you've had to go through and now Sergio too." Morgan said, stroking the little girls cheek.

"I liked the cat." Esther sad sadly, surprising Emily with the emotion in her voice. "I wish he would come back to live."

Morgan didn't know what to say so he embraced the girl again, feeling how she held on to him. His heart broke for her.

He pushed her gently away from him to get a good look at his new daughter. "What would you like to do today?"

Esther seemed to think for a moment before answering with a smile. "Do you wanna play?"