It had been a quiet day, for the most part. For Sharon, quiet meant no problems from Major Crimes and that damned Chief Johnson. Sharon was counting her blessings and was relieved to have a quiet night at home ahead of her.
After a relaxing soak in the bath, she had curled up on the couch with a glass of wine, a blanket, and a book. Despite the fact that the excitement in the book was increasing, she found her eyes drifting shut. The obnoxious ringing of her phone woke her barely an hour later. She rubbed at her eyes and let her book fall to the ground as she rushed to the kitchen in search of her phone. Without her glasses, she answered it blindly.
"Captain Raydor? It's Lieutenant Flynn. Yeah, this is your lucky day."
Sharon pinched the bridge of her nose as she listened to the lieutenant give a brief description of what had happened and gave her the address. She tried to ignore how her heart jumped into her throat and how her hands had a visible tremble to them. Someone had tried to kill him; he could be a pain in her neck, but she still loved him. She wanted to reassure him, make sure he was really okay, but his formal words told her they would be handling this as professionals, not significant others.
She hurriedly dressed, haphazardly brushed her hair back, and applied makeup before she found her glasses in her purse. She was out of her condo is a flurry, taking the empty hallways and elevator to the parking garage almost at a sprint. As she drove, she went over the scene in her mind. Her mind couldn't get over the initial fact that someone had stabbed Andy. The idea of going to a crime scene to see his dead body turned her stomach, but she tried not to focus on that picture.
She finally arrived at the church, the parking lot already a mess with black and whites and an ambulance. She threw her car into park and marched straight over to the open doors of the ambulance where she found Flynn fighting with the paramedics. Relief suddenly overwhelmed her to see him as his usual self.
"I'm not going anywhere until I give my statement." His back was to her and she could see bloodstains everywhere. She didn't get queasy at crime scenes, but she could feel her stomach give a light turn.
"Let them do their job, Lieutenant." She reached out for him, needing to touch him while trying to seem professional. He turned around to face her and she withheld a cringe—his front looked worse than his back.
"Yeah, right after I do mine." He grimaced and her eyes roamed over his bloody shirt. He was a mess and she wondered how he was this coherent as the paramedics lowered him back onto the stretcher.
"Okay, hurry up," she mumbled. It was almost a relief that he had his wits about him more than she did.
"He used this." He handed the bagged knife over and she took it gingerly, silently urging him to speak faster. "My attacker. White, six feet, asshole. I discharged my weapon-" He continued speaking as she handed the weapon off to another officer and spun back around to him. "—so you're gonna want my gun. Here, take it." She helped him remove the magazine from his weapon and automatically handed it over. Her instincts kept telling her to keep her eyes on him and the uneasiness in her stomach wouldn't go away. "There's one in the chamber, six in the mag, and two in that son of a bitch. I double tapped, so he couldn't have gone far. He ran off over…" He suddenly trailed off and fell forward.
Sharon immediately caught him and helped push him back to the gurney, a shocked gasp slipping from her lips. A nagging voice in her head told her she should have sent him straight to the hospital and followed later for his statement. She took a small and reluctant step back as the paramedics situated the gurney in the ambulance, her hand coming to rest on the paramedic's back briefly. She stared at the now-unconsciousness lieutenant and the queasiness became almost overwhelming for a moment before she was able to slip behind her captain's mask.
"He better wake up." Her voice came out steadier than she thought it would and her hand didn't tremble as she pointed at the man in question. With the tone of her voice, she knew no one would question her motives for what she said. As much as she wanted to follow him and make sure he was okay, she knew she had a job to do. "Need that, thank you."
She took the flashlight from an officer she passed and started following the trail of blood until they disappeared. Unless their suspect had suddenly stopped bleeding, someone had picked him up. She pulled out her phone and glanced around as the call connected.
"This is Captain Sharon Raydor. I need to put out a hospital alert for southern California."
Only when she was sure the operator understood the severity of the situation did she end the call and slip the flashlight into her coat pocket. She looked around at the scene, her eyes falling on the mess the fight had caused in the parking lot. Glass was everywhere and she understood where some of his injuries had some from. The knowledge only made her feel worse.
With Flynn's statement and weapon confiscated, there was little left for her to do. She made sure she had all the information from her detectives before she turned the scene over to them and headed for her car. She wanted to follow the ambulance to the hospital and she almost took the turn away from her condo. As she yawned, she realized she wouldn't have much of a chance of seeing him so soon after arriving at the hospital, so she continued on her way home, her earlier exhaustion kicking in.
As she stepped through the door of her condo, it registered just how quickly she had left hours earlier. The lights were all on, her book was open on the floor, and her half-finished wine was still on the table. She considered cleaning up, but decided to turn the lights off and retreat to her room instead. She shut the door out of habit—though a decade and a half of living alone should have created new ones—and quickly stripped, her clothes falling to a pile on the floor. She slipped into her nightgown and straight into bed, barely stopping to leave her glasses on the nightstand. She was exhausted, but her mind wouldn't let the images of Andy out of her head as she stared up at the dark ceiling.
She fell asleep a little after three and her alarm clock went off far too early two hours later. Though she wanted little more than to enjoy the warmth of her bed, she got up and immediately went for a cup of tea. It gradually woke her up further as she got ready and prepared for what was likely to be a long and messy day. At least she would have time to stop by LAPD before she paid a visit to Flynn's hospital room, knowing she had to time everything right so his team didn't think her visit was anything other than that of an investigating officer.
She had the bagged evidence surprisingly quickly and was surprised to find Provenza and Chief Johnson in Andy's room when she arrived. Johnson was in a horrifying shade of pink that Sharon did everything to ignore. Instead, she planned on perfect cordiality toward Johnson and Major Crimes.
"You should see the other guy." She didn't bother with a greeting as she walked in, one hand in her pocket and the other clutching the evidence. Johnson whirled around and Provenza's grumpy expression barely changed. Though she didn't let it show, Sharon was relieved to see Andy awake and alert. It quelled the nausea she had felt rising all morning.
"Oh, Captain Raydor. Have you found Lieutenant Flynn's assailant?" Johnson had genuine concern in her voice and Sharon glanced down at the evidence in her hands. It wouldn't do for the three officers to know about the fear she had felt the previous night.
"Well, hospital alert didn't show anyone, but a crime broadcast found a white male shot in the chest off the side of the road in San Bernardino. We ID'd him as Bobby Harris." She handed the folder to Johnson and continued while the younger woman perused the file on their possible assailant.
"Never heard of him." Andy sounded as confused as she pulled her phone from her pocket, her fingers loosely curling around it as she watched Johnson.
"Alright, misdemeanor car theft. Got out on probation three weeks ago," Chief Johnson murmured as she flicked through the pages.
Sharon flipped through her phone for a moment as she spoke. "I had a detective in San Bernardino email me his photo." She offered the phone to Johnson who immediately turned and showed the picture to Andy.
"Is this the man who attacked you?"
Sharon reached for her phone before Andy could get a response out. "Oh, I should mention that if you positively ID the victim, then this case becomes mine right now." She fiddled with her phone as she spoke, her eyes glancing between Johnson and Andy to make sure they understood her point. She continued with barely a pause for a breath. "On the other hand, if you don't recognize this man, then this case would be investigated by Major Crimes. So, bearing all of that in mind, is this the man who tried to kill you?" She shook her head a little as she turned the screen toward Andy again, her nose wrinkling a little.
There was a pause as Flynn stared at the screen. Sharon conveniently ignored the slight head shake both Provenza and Johnson provided him before he turned his gaze back to her. They knew each other well enough that he understood her subtle cues.
"It is hard to say. It all happened so fast." He raised an eyebrow as he gave the most unconvincing answer possible, but all Sharon needed was for him to say it. She still cringed a little, wishing he could have managed a better answer.
"Very good." She nodded her head slightly and shuffled her hold on her phone and the evidence. "Uh, you will be needing this. This is the knife from the crime scene." She handed the bags to Johnson and offered a small smile. "Good luck, Chief." None of them had questioned her motives thus far and she hoped she was in the clear with her own investigation now.
"Thank you. So much, Captain Raydor." Sharon felt Johnson's eyes on her and she spun and started from the room. She paused for the briefest of moments in the doorway, fighting the urge to look back at Andy.
She resolved to return as soon as she could, knowing Andy's team would be hard at work trying to find his attacker. She would be clear to really see how he was doing. She almost passed Detective Gabriel in the hallway before his identity registered in her occupied mind.
She flashed him a brief smile and nodded slightly. "Hello." She kept walking and he made no move to follow her; she knew he'd tattle to Johnson about her. Lost in thought, the captain made her way out of the hospital.
She finally managed to return that evening after another exhausting day, confident Major Crimes was either at work or their respective homes. She held tightly to his bag of clothes and toiletries as she walked to his room, quietly stepping inside and shutting the door behind her. Andy looked up and smiled tiredly.
"You made it back," he murmured. HIs pain was evident in his voice and she winced in sympathy.
"Of course I did." She smiled and set his bag aside, leaning over him to press a very gentle kiss to his forehead. "I wouldn't let you spend another night alone here."
"You don't have to stay the night, Sharon. I'm getting out in the morning."
She started to sit in the chair by his bed, but stopped and looked at him. "You're what? There's no way your doctor cleared you."
"No, but staying here won't do me any good. Especially when there's so much I can be doing at work." He shrugged and immediately winced.
"Andy, that's an awful idea." She reached out and gently curled her fingers around his arm, trying to find an uninjured part. "You need to stay here."
"No, I need to be at work. Look, I've already talked this over with my doctor. She hated it more than you do, but I've agreed to be discharged in the morning against medical advice. I'd appreciate a ride to work…"
She shook her head and sighed, pulling her hand back to rest her head in it. "I'll give you a ride, honey. I'm not heartless." She couldn't help a small smile at that, knowing full well that's what the rest of Major Crimes thought. "I'm just worried about you."
"I know, I'm sorry. If I didn't think I need to be there as much as I do, I would stay. I promise to get some rest tomorrow night and it's not like I'll be in the field." He reached for her hand and gently laced their fingers together.
"You better not be." She gave him hardened glare and he looked down, offering a squeeze of her hand.
"I won't. I don't imagine Chief would let me." He returned his gaze to her face, trying to smile reassuringly but only wincing.
"Well…" She let that thought trail off and squeezed his hand back. "I'll still stay the night here. After I drop you off at work, I'll run home to shower and change before heading in."
"Are you sure?"
"I'm positive." She leaned forward to kiss his hand, wishing she could lay with him. "I love you, now rest."
"I love you too, Sharon." He ran his thumb over her lips and smiled before he let his eyes fall shut.
She shifted her chair closer and let her heels slip of her feet, her head settling against the bed by his hand. He shifted carefully to use his other hand to run through her hair, gently massaging her scalp. His left hand remained lightly held in hers, and he continued rubbing her head until he heard her breathing even out and she fell asleep.