Ch. 15: That’s What I Do
Fandom: Criminal Minds // Pairing: Spencer Reid x OFC
[Story Masterlist] // [Aitana’s Masterlist]
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"Thanks," Aitana said politely and went back to the files.
Penelope was about to say something else, primarily to start a conversation but she figured now wasn't the time. She counted her lucky stars that Aitana hadn't completely shut her out after learning who really read her journal. Things were going slow in terms of rebuilding their friendship but Penelope wasn't going to give up anytime soon.
Aitana put her pen down on the desk and rose from her seat. She wasn't surprised that Penelope was still waiting for her. She grabbed the file on her desk and left the office with Penelope, making a direct line for the conference room.
"So...do you have any plans for the weekend?" Penelope thought to ask on the way.
Aitana knew the trick and she would commend Penelope for doing it so cautiously. She heard firsthand from Morgan how over-the-top Penelope Garcia could be. He also pointed out the restraint Penelope had when it came to their tetchy relationship. Aitana knew it; she saw it. She just wasn't entirely ready to fully forgive Penelope yet.
But never let it be said that she wasn't polite.
"As of right now, yes," she answered just as they were coming into the conference room where another conversation was going on.
"...little more commercialized in the 1950s with trick-or-treat, and today it rivals only Christmas in terms of popularity!" Spencer was excitedly explaining to Emily and Rossi.
"All I asked was what he was doing this weekend," Emily mumbled to the others, her eyes wide from all the information Spencer had spewed in the short span of 2 minutes.
Spencer nodded, not quite getting that Emily wanted him to stop. "I'm toying with the notion of either going to the Edgar Allan Poe Shadow Puppet T or the reenactment of the 19th century Phantasmagoria."
"I don't want to know," Rossi resolved with a shake of his head.
"Phanta...phantaph…" Aitana cocked her head to the side. "Can I just say 'Phantom of the Opera'? I actually know that one."
Spencer grinned at the opportunity to explain even more. "Phantasmagorias are these amazing pre-cinema projected ghost shows invented in France, where the showman attempted to spook the audience using science magic. And it just so happens that I have an extra ticket." Of course as soon as he replayed his last sentence and realized how that sounded—a direct ask for a date—he stammered to clarify what he meant. "I-I mean that for everyone, n-n-not just…" He weakly gestured towards Aitana who, thankfully, didn't seem to think anything more of it. He did, however, notice Emily's and Morgan's smirks. He would be hearing about this, he was sure.
"I'm actually going to try and celebrate Halloween this year too," Aitana said, even revealing a bit of giddiness too. "I haven't really done it since I got out of Witness and now that Elia and I are talking again...we're hosting a little Halloween party. Everyone here is invited, of course."
"I don't mean to rain on the parade—" Morgan started, "—but you should know that this job might get in the way of plans like those."
"I know," Aitana nodded. "But I think that planning it and wanting it is a big step for my case. Last year, I literally locked myself in my room. This year, if all goes well, I will be Alice in Wonderland."
"Aww, that would be adorable," gushed Penelope. That one, she couldn't hold in and Aitana knew it when the woman clapped a hand over her mouth and ducked her head. That was just her personality.
Aitana smiled lightly and moved around to hand over the copies of the case they would be discussing soon. As she handed the last copy, Hotch strode in and started the meeting.
"We're going to Detroit," he announced as he flicked the screen on. They were met with some photographs of charred corpses.
"It's Halloween weekend," Spencer said with the touch of natural disappointment. Morgan then glanced at Aitana to remind her of his warning. Yeah, now she understood.
"Arson investigators have noticed a 3-year trend in the days leading up to Halloween," Hotch explained. "Devil's Night. This unsub is killing only these 3 days out of the year."
"He's burning his victims alive," Aitana made a weak gesture towards the charred corpses. No one should be seeing that in the morning...or at any time actually. "He's abducting seemingly random people and dumping their bodies in abandoned parts of town. He struck again last night."
"Yeah. Tony Torrell, 40," Penelope switched pictures on the screen to show the man she spoke about. "He lives in the suburbs, but he was found 20 miles away in the Rivertown District. He's attacking the city at its most vulnerable time."
"What does he do during the rest of the year?" asked Spencer.
"He's dormant," Hotch said.
That didn't strike as reasonable. "You know, arsonists are typically white males between 17 and 25 who can't stay away from fire," remarked Spencer.
"Yeah, they're addicted to it and there's no rehab," Morgan added. "And they target dwellings, not people."
Penelope had tried following along with their profiling lingo and she was fairly sure that she'd gotten it right. "So you're saying he burns his victims alive but he's not an arsonist?"
Morgan nodded. "Fire is simply his weapon."
"And Devil's Night gives him the perfect cover to kill," Hotch said.
"Then we've got 48 hours before he disappears again," Emily realized based off the current timeline they had.
Morgan flipped through the file to skim the previous victim's information. "Well, his last victim was athletic. He wouldn't be easy to subdue. The offender must be just as strong or might have an upper hand if he's younger."
"Which begs the question of how he transports his victims across the city and gets them inside buildings without being noticed?" Aitana swayed her head as she considered possible ideas. None of them were easy to go with. The fact is during Halloween and the days leading up to it, no one was watching anything.
~0~
Once Aitana made herself comfortable on the long couch of the jet, she started going through the files again. "At the risk of sounding like an idiot, I thought Devil's Night was Halloween Eve…" Thankfully, no one took her words to heart.
Spencer was more than happy to get to explain again. "The moniker "Devil's Night" is somewhat deceiving. In Detroit, it's actually a 3-day citywide cultural phenomenon, complete with masks, chaos, and costumes."
"Say that 3 times fast," Rossi said, making Aitana chuckle.
"Sounds like Mardi Gras," Emily said.
"Vandals and amateur arsonists literally set hundreds of fires. Who burns their own city?" Morgan shook his head. It could've been their own home, for God's sake.
"It started as pranks in the 1930s but escalated in the 1970s with disenfranchised youth," said Spencer.
"Well, given today's economy, it must be a free-for-all," Rossi remarked. "They've got record-breaking unemployment and foreclosures, leaving a lot of displaced, desperate people."
"And every single one of these victims suffered unimaginable pain," Aitana crinkled her nose the further she read.
"I'm sure that's what gets him off, watching them burn," Morgan said. "It gives him power and control. The top of the whodunit list is first responders. Firefighters, arson investigators, cops, and paramedics. Civil servants with a hero complex."
"All of whom will be helping us," Hotch reminded them. It wouldn't be an easy task scoping out the needle in the haystack.
"This guy's angry…" Emily went through more pictures of the victims.
"Aren't they all?" Aitana looked up from her own copy. "I mean…I know I'm still raw but any guy—any person—who does things like these has to be furious. Question is what they're angry about."
"Extreme anger usually manifests from a quick temper, but this guy's patient," Spencer noted. It wasn't something they typically saw.
"I'm gonna ask Garcia to notify us the minute that someone's reported missing," Hotch resolved. It was better to have some clues before they did anything else.
"Burns 3 people annually. It's like his Christmas," Rossi said. "And the rest of the year he just plans- targeting his victims and then choosing the buildings he wants to kill them in."
"There's a flaw in his plan," Hotch said, earning the curious looks from the team. "We know about it."
~0~
Aitana made herself scarce from the team as soon as they got to the Detroit precinct to get her information about the popularity of the Unsub. She was trying her best to be a good liaison out in the field. She often felt like she wasn't doing enough, or at least not what JJ would've done. She hoped this would fade with time. When she returned to the conference room, only Spencer was in. He was surrounded by the victims' files.
"I hope I wasn't wrong but I told them we weren't doing anything with the press for now." She fiddled with her fingers until she caught herself and forced her hands on her sides. "I figured since the unsub only kills 3 days out of the year, giving him the popularity of the press wouldn't be the best idea."
"That was a good call," Spencer nodded, unknowingly delivering the assurance Aitana needed to hear.
"Yeah? You think Hotch would agree?"
"Yes, don't worry."
Aitana blew some air out then awkwardly smiled. "I promise that I'll eventually stop asking questions like these. I just need to get the hang of this job."
"Still having trouble, then?"
Aitana nodded. "I have never had this much trouble working before Witness. I'm afraid it's never going to stop."
"It will."
"I know you're super-duper smart but how can you be sure about this one?"
"Because you've already proven that you can get better."
Aitana scrunched her face in confusion. "No, hold on," she pulled a chair to sit down, "You're going to have to explain that one. What did the doctor see that I missed? Besides everything, of course."
Spencer smiled at her. She often said things like that and it just made him smile. He imagined that before Witness, she had been a breezy kind of person. She was probably cheerful—not that she wasn't right now but given her situation, she was naturally less cheery—and lively. She definitely gave the vibe that she'd been lively before Witness.
"You're talking to Elia again," he told her. "You didn't do that anymore, remember?"
"Okay so me talking to my best friend again means that I'm on the right track?"
"In a way," nodded Spencer. "You don't have to be better all at once. First, you didn't work and now you do. Then you decided to talk to Elia again. Those are good steps."
Aitana leaned back in her chair to consider his points. "You're right," she eventually agreed. "Thanks, I needed that."
For a moment there, Spencer didn't know what to do with himself. No one really ever took his words with actual consideration, much less thank him genuinely for saying them in the first place. "Uh, you're...welcome…"
"You should be a therapist on the side," Aitana joked as she pushed her chair in to go over the files.
"For now, I think I'll stay with what I have," Spencer said. He slid a few files over to her to go over. "You just need to try to stop asking for reassurance. If you think it's right, follow through."
Aitana nodded. "I'll try."
Soon after, Hotch and Rossi returned from the morgue. They gathered at the table with the other two and went over the victims' files as well.
"The first time I looked at these victims on the map, none of it made sense. 7 different victims, various ages, sex, and ethnicity," Spencer started, prompting the others to stop and listen. "The first victim...often tells us the most. That would be Tommy Proctor."
Rossi picked up that specific file and saw various pages attached in the back. "Well, his rap sheet is longer than the Nile. It looks like he's always walked on the dark side."
"The first kill inspired him."
"What's different about it?" asked Hotch.
"Two things. First of all, his body wasn't found for days. He was buried deep in the building. That often tells us that they know each other. Not to mention it took many botched attempts to burn them."
"Was he stupid enough to think you could easily burn a human body?" Aitana crinkled her nose. She couldn't imagine what that first victim went through.
"Or it's overkill," said Rossi. "He wanted Proctor to suffer the most."
"Which definitely makes it personal," Hotch nodded.
"If he knew the first victim, it's a good chance he knew them all. We just have to find out how," Spencer said.
"Oh, oh, I can do that," Aitana raised her two index fingers in the air. "I'll call the latest victim's wife. That's what I do ri…" she trailed off when she met Spencer's gaze. He reminded her of what they spoke about earlier. "That's what I do," Aitana said with newfound reassurance. "That's what I do."
Spencer smiled. His smile widened when he heard her mumbling that to herself on her way out. She was trying which was what counted.
~0~
Aitana was prepared as much as she could be for the preliminary interview with the victim's wife. It was agreed that she would start it while Rossi took note of the woman's behavior from outside. He would then conduct the full interview. Aitana thought it was much better than throwing her into a first full interview. Baby steps. She was definitely okay with baby steps.
She took in a breath before entering the room where the woman would be waiting. "Hi, how are you doing?"
The wife was, naturally, shaken up. "Uh...I'm fine. Uh, I'm here to see Agent Rossi."
"Yes, of course, he's going to be with you in just a few minutes," Aitana came to the empty chair in front of the woman. "I'm Agent Serrano."
"Oh, I'm Kiersten Torrell. Uh...my husband Tony was killed last night."
"Yes, I'm very sorry about that. May I sit down?"
"Oh, yeah. Are-are you working on his case?"
"I am, we are."
Kiersten noticed the fine in Aitana's hand. "Is there a picture of him in your folder? I want to see him."
As new as she was, Aitana knew that was a huge no. She couldn't imagine how Kierston would react to seeing her husband's charred corpse. "Kiersten, uh, your husband was very badly burned. I don't think that's a good idea."
Confusion flashed across Kierston's eyes. "What do you mean, he was burnt?"
No one's told her. Aitana wished Rossi would've warned her about that. It would've been nice to be prepared. Maybe that was the point. Baby steps included small challenges that she had to overcome. "Umm, I'm so sorry but...the person who did this uses fire as a weapon."
That confusion turned into realization real quick. "Was Tony set on fire alive?"
"We...we're not sure…"
Kierston brought her hand to her mouth. "Oh, my God. Oh, my God, this can't be happening. Ohh…" Aitana hated the tears that were springing in the woman's eyes. "Next week was our anniversary."
"I'm really sorry," Aitana said. She racked her head for anything more useful to say but she was almost sure that there was nothing better to say. She'd been on the other side when one of her grandfathers passed away. All the 'I'm sorry's' were nice to hear because it meant support from others, but it didn't stop the pain that came with death.
"Are you married?" Kierston asked her,l as she tried to clean up her tears.
"No, I'm not," Aitana shook her head. "I can't imagine what you're going through. But everything you tell us can help us find the person who did this to Tony. I know this is hard, but I want you to try to remember that when you're talking to Agent Rossi."
Kierston nodded fervently. "Mm-hmm."
"Okay, he'll be right in," Aitana rose from her seat. She felt like she was leaving awkwardly and wondered if that was something she would need to work on too. When she stepped out, she met with Rossi who'd been attentively paying attention from the window. "You could've mentioned that she didn't know how her husband died."
"Baby steps," Rossi said, making her smile.
Confirmed. Aitana sighed and handed him the file. "I guess I should pay attention now?"
"That would be a good idea." Rossi plucked the file from her hand and went for the door.
Aitana couldn't help but smile to herself. She made her way to the window and paid very close attention.
~0~
Rossi and Aitana returned from the interview and Rossi relayed everything that Kierston had told him to the team. The only one who seemed to take the news negatively was the Captain of the precinct, Garner.
"You make him sound like he's Freddy Krueger or something!" he exclaimed.
"No, but I do think he's severely burned," Rossi clarified. The way Kierston described the possible Unsub left no other alternative.
"It explains why he chooses this time of the year," Spencer added. "He doesn't have to hide his scars."
"What about his victims?" Garner demanded. Nothing was making sense.
"He's punishing them for wronging him," Hotch said, but it wasn't the answer Garner expected.
"Wronging him? What about his second victim?" He grabbed the only female victim's picture amongst the pile on the table. "Have you looked at Josephine Davis' life? She was the nicest woman in the world. How did she wrong this guy?"
"It doesn't have to make sense to us, just the Unsub," Aitana said quietly. She didn't want to go back and forth with Garner. She understood his disbelief and if she'd been on the other side, she would probably be acting like him too.
"He's had interactions with all of his victims, some more personal than others," Emily said.
"So he's acting out of revenge," Garner resolved. "Kiersten and Tony didn't even speak to him."
"Maybe not that night, but at some point in the past," Morgan said to make him really grasp the picture.
"Now, wait a minute," Rossi said once something stood out from the victims files. "Josephine was abducted from her husband. Tony was abducted from his wife."
"You think these couples represent the happiness he covets?" Emily wondered.
"Or something he lost," Morgan added the other possibility. "He's a young guy with a deformity. Major insecurities come with that. A trauma like that would be devastating for him and anyone in his life."
"Is anyone else bothered by his choice of weapon?" Aitana stuck a fingernail between her teeth as she skimmed those particular lines. "Isn't it rare for an arsonist to be a burn victim themself?"
"It's less than 3.5%," Spencer didn't fail to make the exact calculation for them.
"This guy's not an arsonist. He's a serial killer who uses fire," Morgan reminded them. "And that choice of weapon tells us that he's aggressive, driven, and destructive, just like fire itself."
"But why would someone so controlling choose the most unpredictable weapon?" Garner inquired.
"This juxtaposition tells us there's more going on with him than we realize," Emily told him. "He's probably experienced some kind of loss these past few years that started him down this path."
"We should look at accidents where couples were burned," Hotch decided after listening to them. "Focusing on ones where gasoline was the accelerant."
A moment later, Morgan felt his phone buzzing in his pocket.
"Right, so, he's not an arsonist but the places that this guy's picking…" Aitana began, "Based on what Emily and Rossi said, could those places be related to whatever accident happened to him?"
"Leaving his victims in the heart of Rivertown, in the center of these buildings themselves, may be subconscious on his part, but it says that this affected his very core," Emily basically confirmed Aitana's suspicions.
"All right, hold on. Somebody else has just been abducted," Morgan said after reading the text Penelope sent him.
"How do we know this is our guy?" Garner asked just in a chance that this wasn't yet another victim doomed to be burned.
Unfortunately, it was.
"Because his daughter said a monster took her daddy away."
In a short moment, they had Penelope on speaker for the whole room to listen in. "The victim's name is Christopher Edwards. He's 35. He lives in the suburbs. Birmingham."
"How far is that from the Rivertown District?" Hotch turned to Garner.
"Not more than 40 minutes."
Hotch nodded. "He might already be inside. Let's lock it down."
"We'll trap him," Garner was the first one to head for the door.
"I'll go with you," Hotch called and soon had Emily with him as well. "Garcia, have Detroit P. D. set up roadblocks!"
"Got it!" Penelope dutifully exclaimed then hung up.
"The rest of you, try to weed out the identity of the unsub," Hotch said before he was gone.
Aitana was pretty sure that somehow they got the harder task.
~ 0 ~
Aitana had felt her phone buzz a couple times in her pocket while she was getting some coffee. She nicked her phone out without checking the ID. "Serrano," she promptly answered.
"Hey! It's Garcia—you probably already knew that…" Penelope awkwardly paused, that wasn't how she envisioned the phone call going.
"Did you find something new, Garcia?" Aitana focused on putting the creamer into the coffee.
"Um, just the last known address of Kaman…"
"Great, you can text it right? My hands are a bit full right now."
"Of course, sure."
"Great, bye." Aitana was about to pull her phone from her ear when Penelope anxiously called her to wait.
"I was just, um, you said you were going to be Alice in Wonderland for Halloween?"
"Yup, that's the plan."
"If you...need some blue bows...I have some, if you want." For all the talking she usually did, Penelope couldn't find the right ones to say.
Aitana sighed. She recognized the attempts Penelope often made to get back in her good Grace's. "I don't think I'll need them, thanks."
"Well, if you change your mind, let me know. I know you're having a party with your family so…"
"Not with the family...not anymore," Aitana stuck the lid on her coffee cup.
"What?" Penelope blinked. "Not...not anymore? Did something happen?" For a moment she wondered if Aitana didn't want to be around her family again. Last time she heard, Aitana was trying to mend her relationship with her parents.
For that reason, Aitana decided to explain. She didn't want Penelope believing things that weren't true. "No, not really. They're just flying out to Mexico for Día de los Muertos. We always do that but since I took this job…"
Penelope understood then. "You can't go. Sorry."
"That's actually one thing you don't have to apologize for," Aitana remarked. "They're flying out so...it'll just be me and Elia."
"O-okay." Penelope felt the incessant urge to apologize again.
"Gotta go," Aitana promptly said then hung up.
~0~
The slow night of little clues suddenly turned into the very opposite. The team knew exactly who they were searching for: Kaman Scott. They discovered the links between the victims and since they were all for exacting revenge, they were sure there had to be one more person on that list—the most important person to Kaman.
"Ma'am, are you sure we shouldn't address the press at all?" The Sergeant of the precinct was trailing after Aitana down the bullpen.
From the conference room, Rossi and Spencer were watching it with the exact same amusement.
"Shouldn't we try to help her?" Spencer did ask after a moment of feeling guilty.
"Baby steps," was all Rossi had to say. Besides that, a phone call drew their attention away anyways.
"Captain Garner called to inform us that the suspect is on the loose," the Sergeant was still saying and because Aitana didn't want him to follow her into the conference room, she turned around to meet him.
"I heard," she assured him. "But I've done my thinking and if he's as devolving as I think he is, it's best not to give him the spotlight." Because according to Emily and Morgan, there was no one in the address Penelope gave them for Kaman's home.
"But what about the people? Don't they have a right to know?"
"Of course but if I go out and tell them there's an unsub who's ready to burn down anything at this point, do you really think it'll keep order on the streets?" Aitana folded her arms over her chest. "I'll also go ahead and remind you it's pre-Halloween."
The Sergeant began to deflate. "I guess…"
"The last thing I want is for someone to get in the unsub's way and become a potential victim. So, in conclusion, we're leaving the press out of it." Aitana smiled a tight-lipped smile then turned to continue on her way for the conference room. She was two steps away when both Rossi and Spencer walked out. "What's happened?"
"Another victim," Rossi said and led the way.
The victim, just like all the others, turned out to have ties with Kaman. The location, however, was a bit odd. He'd been running around the street, getting mauled over by the cars in the process, until one car struck him and forced him to the ground. They were slightly lucky in that Kaman had left behind his trusty van. And it was 'slightly lucky' because…
"This is in terrible condition," remarked Aitana after getting sight of the front side. The seats were nearly torn and she wouldn't be surprised if the driving wheel snapped off with a hard turn.
"Come look in the back," called Spencer.
She came around to see what he and Rossi were staring at. "Ah, lovely...there's a cage." Kaman must have thrown his victims into the cage like dogs and locked them up while he drove around the city.
"Chris Edwards fired Kaman from the diner 7 months ago," Hotch started briefing the trio joined him by the ambulance. "Anything in the van?"
"Welding equipment, cans of gasoline…" Rossi listed.
"And a cage," Spencer said the lucky words that got Garner moving his team to the spot.
"Without his car, he's going to lie in wait until he can't anymore," Hotch said, his face falling grim. "Then he's gonna lash out again."
~ 0 ~
Indeed Kaman would lash out. Penelope was quick to come in with the much needed information to connect the dots. Hotch and Garner would take the lead to the next victim's home, the once girlfriend of Kaman. The rest would follow in the cars behind.
"Sorry. I keep trying the Anderson house, but the line's busy," Penelope was connected to everyone on the drive to the victim's home.
"Not surprising," Emily said from the passenger's seat. "He must already be there."
"Garcia, have any fires been reported in the area?" they heard Hotch through the other SUV.
"Negative, but medics and fire suppression are on the way."
"Good. Tell them to stand by."
"Roger that. Um, guys, there's one more thing I gotta tell you."
Everyone picked up on Penelope's reluctance.
"Now's a good time as ever, baby girl," Morgan said. The others in the car felt the increase of speed he put on the pedal.
"Tracy had a son," Penelope eventually said. She sounded breathless, probably still in shock from her discovery.
"Kaman doesn't know that, he might burn his own son." Aitana then wished for Morgan to pick up the speed on that pedal.
'Your man wants everyone to hold their position.' Garner's voice filled the communications line. 'We need a single rifle. I say again, all units, hold your position.'
Morgan stopped the car at a safe distance from the lucky home. For a moment, everyone was silent.
"Hotch is going inside," Rossi said what they were all thinking. If a little boy was involved, there was no way Hotch wouldn't attempt to go into that house.
"And he's on his own," Morgan muttered.
"Hotch won't do anything to spin him," Spencer said, hoping to quell their nerves.
"It's not Kaman I'm worried about," Rossi admitted. "This isn't his first time at the dance. We gotta trust him on this."
Aitana knew that she could trust in Hotch, but the nerves didn't die so quickly. Maybe it was the lack of time she'd known him—which was very plausible—or maybe it was the mere thought of a child in danger of getting burned. Either one seemed right. She was so deep in her thoughts that she didn't hear the first time they gave the all-clear. They arrested Kaman and managed to keep everyone else safe, including the little boy.
~0~
"Is there ever a point where you can get used to this type of stuff?" Aitana would ask later on the trip home. Her eyes flickered to Hotch sitting opposite of her. "You have a son, don't you?"
Hotch nodded. "You don't necessarily get used to it but...you learn to live with it. The key is to focus on the important things."
"And what would that be?" Aitana waited for anyone to respond. She would love to get different perspectives.
"The people you manage to save, first of all," Emily was the first to answer. "That always helps."
"Save someone, you save their life, you give the world a person that might not have made it because of you," Morgan added, and a good point too. Aitana smiled lightly.
"It also makes you appreciate your own life a bit more," Rossi said, smiling himself. "The little things, especially."
Aitana chuckled. "It might be ironic from me, though. It's no secret that my life isn't exactly put together at the moment." She let her head turn in Spencer's direction, sharing a knowing look with him. He definitely knew something about that. "Still, you guys are right. Oh, and you know what, Rossi? I can appreciate something this weekend: I get to celebrate Halloween for the first time in a long time."
"There you go, kid," Rossi pointed at her.
"Yeah, that means Pretty Boy can even go see that spooky ghost show too," Morgan shot Spencer a teasing smirk.
"It's not a ghost show!" Spencer frowned, completely missing the tease. "And I'm not sure what I'm doing, I haven't decided."
"What about you?" Emily asked Aitana while the other two bickered with each other. "You and Elia are still hosting?"
"Sort of," shrugged Aitana. "My family managed to get earlier plane tickets to Mexico for Día de los Muertos. It's a whole tradition, we always went each year for those days. Be with the family, make altars…" She sighed. "But this year I told them my job is on-call and I couldn't go. It's fine," she added quickly before anyone could say anything. "It's better that I'm not going. I don't think I'm ready to be around so many people. I have a big family."
"Baby steps," reminded Rossi, making her chuckle.
"Yeah," she nodded.
~0~
When Aitana heard the knock on her open office door and saw Penelope, she made a move to get out of there quicker. "Just leave the files on the desk, please."
"Actually, I come bearing gifts," Penelope stepped inside and pulled her arms from behind her back.
Aitana looked up from her things to find Penelope holding a box...a pastry box. "Penelope, I don't mean to be rude but you really shouldn't have."
"I know you said that you weren't going to Mexico with your family for Día de Los Muertos and I felt really bad about that—"
Aitana swung her bag over her shoulder and moved around the desk. "Well, you shouldn't have. I didn't mean for it to be a pity story. I'm okay that they're gone."
"But it's an important celebration," Penelope said. "My stepfather was Hispanic and he showed my brother and I some of the altars that his family used to make. One of the best things that we would get was, um, Pan de Muerto?"
Aitana's eyes dropped to the box in Penelope's hands in realization. "Oh Penelope…"
"I know the recipes vary by region and I don't know where your family's from but this is the best bread I could find on a short notice. They say it's really good," Penelope all but swore on her life that what she said was true. "And it's fresh."
"When did you buy this?" Aitana shook her head with a sigh then walked up to Penelope. Even with the enclosed box, she could still smell the sweet bread inside.
"Earlier," Penelope's eyes darted everywhere but Aitana's figure. She was overly nervous. "I thought maybe you and Elia might want to eat it."
Aitana sighed heavily. She brought a few fingers to rub her forehead. "Penelope Garcia you make it really hard…"
Penelope dressed the big mistake she must have made. "Sorry, sorry, I just thought it would be nice and maybe a way to feel close to your family while they're gone."
Aitana nodded. "You make it really hard to stay angry with you," she finally got her sentence out.
Penelope blinked in surprise. "What?"
Aitana smiled slightly. "Spencer made it easier because he didn't talk to me, much less give me gifts. That's not to say that I expect gifts every time we have a fall-out. This—" she waved at the box, "—is a really thoughtful gift, thank you."
Penelope's lips curled into a wide smile. "You're very welcome! And while I have you in a good mood, I need to apologize again. I should've never touched that journal. I shouldn't have read it."
Aitana motioned her to stop talking. "You know what? Maybe it's best to just leave that in the past. I've been finding ways to move on from Witness and I think this journal's a part of that. I need to stop spending time on that. Thinking about it isn't going to help me anymore. I just want to move on now."
"Okay," Penelope nodded. "You'll never hear about it from my lips again."
Aitana thanked her. "You know, Elia and I can't possibly finish this bread by ourselves. Do you think you can help us there?"
Penelope raised an eyebrow at her. "Are you...are you inviting me?"
Aitana chuckled. "Like I said, my family is gone so Elia and I aren't really having a party. She called me and told me that she bought a bag of candy for trick-or-treaters instead. If you want...you can come and we can have a little get-together ourselves? Maybe pass out some candy to trick-or-treaters too?"
Penelope's face lit up to match that of a jack o' lantern. "I would love to!"
"Great, I'll wait for you then."
"Yeah, yeah, I'll be quick! I just have to get my stuff!" Penelope deposited the pastry box into Aitana's hands and hurried for the door. Aitana laughed and followed behind. "I will be quick, I promise! Be right back!" She nearly sprinted down the bullpen, ignoring Spencer's and Emily's questioning calls.
"What's she so excited about?" Emily asked before noticing the box Aitana carried. "And what's that?"
"Umm, Penelope knows about my family being gone for the weekend and she got me Day of the Dead bread," Aitana shifted the box in her arms.
"So are you two okay, then?" Spencer asked her, already smiling at the prospect.
Aitana nodded. "Yeah, I just feel bad about this…"
"If you feel bad, feel free to hand the bread over," Emily extended her hands for the box.
Aitana chuckled. "No, um, she was really sweet and went out to buy the freshest bread she could find on short notice…"
"But…?" Spencer motioned her to finish what she clearly was reluctant to.
Aitana smiled with full guilt. "My parents own a bakery— a panadería—so I already have bread waiting for me at home."
Emily laughed. "Oh, Garcia…"
"Yeah, I won't tell her about this until after we finish the bread."
Spencer was thoughtful for a moment, tilting his head. "Wait a minute, is that where you got my donut the other day?" Aitana nodded at him. "I wondered where you got one so fresh at such a late hour."
"I called in a favor," she shrugged. "My parents don't really make those, they're not very popular there." She might as well have said something catastrophic.
"What!? Those are the best donuts!" Spencer huffed.
"Not in that neighborhood!"
"Those are some questionable tastes, then!"
Aitana rolled her eyes. "Oh calm down, I'll hook you up later."
"I'm ready!" Penelope came rushing back in with her things. "You didn't change your mind, did you?"
"Of course not," Aitana said.
"C'mon! We've got to get in costume! And I have your bows, Alice!"
"You came prepared with a costume?" Aitana's eyes widened a bit.
"With this job, you have to be. Now c'mon!" Penelope waved quickly at Emily and Spencer then motioned Aitana to get going.
"Happy Halloween," Aitana barely had time to say to the pair before Penelope called again.
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