Rusty woke up with a start. He looked at the time. 12:30. Since Sharon took him in, he'd been going to bed early. At first, he scoffed at the 10:30 bedtime, but between school and his responsibilities around the condo, he was more than ready to sleep by the time 10:30 rolled around. Plus, he couldn't deny how nice it felt in the warm, clean bed. He didn't know much about linens, but he could tell he was sleeping on the "good stuff."

He shook his head, trying to figure out why he'd woken up. It wasn't a nightmare; he'd remember that. Then he heard it. A low moan. Sharon.

He acted without thought. Ending up in Sharon's room with no memory of walking there. She was in a fitful sleep. Talking to someone or someones. "Don't you touch him," she said. It was her "Captain Raydor" voice-not the one she used on her team-he'd only heard her sound like that when she talked to the Donor the last time.

Rusty approached the bed. He tentatively reached out his hand and touched her head. "Sharon."

That did the trick. Her eyes opened, and she looked right at him. "You're okay," she said.

He nodded. "No one can get me. Not when I'm with you."

She sat up. "It was awful."

He turned on the bedside lamp and held her hand. "Dunn?"

She nodded. "And Stroh." She gripped his hand tighter.

"Hey, Sharon. I can handle that guy. And you know I can take Dunn." He smiled so she could see he was alright; they were alright.

"I know you can, but you shouldn't have to."

"I heard you yelling at them. That would send most sane people running."

She rolled her eyes. "I think sane is the operative word in this case."

"Did you have your gun out?"

She nodded.

"A real one and not a beanbag gun?"

"Real."

"Then we have nothing to worry about. You'd take 'em both between the eyes."

"And have my first officer involved shooting."

He shrugged. "Eh. I think it would be pretty clear in our case."

"You do, huh?" She tried to look harsh, but there was a grin spreading. "On what legal grounds?"

He shook his head. "I'll leave the legal stuff to you and Hobbs. All I know is the entire department would be happy to see Stroh in a body bag, and the guys wouldn't mind seeing Dunn in one either."

"You know why, right?"

"Stroh tried to kill Brenda."

"Yes, but what about Dunn?"

"Because of what he did to me." He looked down slightly. The feelings threatening to overwhelm him. He didn't like crying in front of people, but it wasn't so bad when Sharon saw it.

"Because you're family, Rusty. And our family sticks together." She patted his hand, before releasing it. "What happened to lights out at 10:30?"

He rolled his eyes. "I was trying to sleep. You woke me up."

"Well get on back to bed, then. We have a big day tomorrow."

"Yes, Sharon." He walked to her door and stopped, looking at her. "I love you too, by the way."

She smiled. "Good night, honey."

He smiled all the way back to his room. They would be fine.