A/N: Sorry for the delay once again, but thanks to all of you for your ever lasting patience! Please keep the reviews coming and I hope you enjoy the most recent instalment.

Chapter 4 – The Gun-down

Kerry Vincent kept level eyes across the group that had found themselves assembling in front of her. As the Superintendant, she had the role of addressing the media and today was the day that the media wanted to hear the full report on Miguel Venture's assault on Melbourne. Careful hands placing a piece of paper on a small podium set up in front of her, Superintendant Vincent shot Lawson a hesitant gaze. The Senior Sergeant was out of uniform. He was suited up in a well fitting suit that made him look much smarter than his TR gear did. Clearing her throat, the Superintendant crossed her gaze back to the gathered crowd. The wind blew through her hair and the sun glistened on her face. It was undoubtedly a good day to give an outdoor address to the media. However, it was the guilt that was weighing on Kerry's chest that made her wary as to beginning her speech. A slip up on the part of the police force had Miguel Venture's likely release as a result of being a co-operative individual had reporters swarming for the latest on the situation. TR was wondering how in the world someone like Venture could get off, and hence, the public who were the first and foremost primary threat had just as much concern.

"The current situation with Mr. Venture is not for public consumption." Kerry began.

Lawson rolled his eyes; the once Inspector was sounding more and more like a politician and less and less like a cop with every day that went by. Discretely placing his index finger onto his comm., Lawson offered "What are you? The Prime Minister of bloody Australia?"

It was clear that Kerry picked the humour from the words shot her way as she couldn't help but allow a smile to attempt to tug at the corner of her mouth. Her warning gaze lingered quickly to Lawson though, warning him that if he tried to throw her off again; she'd make sure he was tending to some tedious, irritating duties – not including guarding Kerry herself. Head turning back to face the crowd, Kerry leaned forward and scanned the paper in front of her opening her mouth to speak. Nothing came. A loud, echoing sound of a gunshot rang through the general area and the sound of an impacting bullet forced Lawson into protective mode. Kerry was in motion falling to the floor and Lawson ran quickly towards the podium, "Shots fired! I repeat shots fired! Kerry's been hit!"

ONE HOUR EARLIER….

"Steven; this is Senior Sergeant Lawson Blake. He's been assigned for my protection." Kerry addressed to the Commissioner in a steady voice. Though it was her quick addition that caught Lawson off guard. "Not that I need it."

Lawson's stirring and somewhat dismissive gaze shot toward Kerry, but his respecting gaze flashed back over to the Commissioner. Offering him a greeting nod, Lawson followed Kerry into the mans office and took a seat on the guests side of his desk.

"Senior Sergeant Blake. You were heading the team that went under ground on New Years Eve, correct?" Commissioner Hoff-Bauer piped.

"That's right." Lawson confirmed.

"Great work. You saved quite a few people that day." Steven nodded truthfully.

Lawson's mind was clearly on Dom though. He didn't care how many people he'd saved; he'd lost a member of his team, but more than that, a member of his family. But needless to say, Lawson was the good-cop; always respecting his superiors and being obedient.

"Yeah." He responded half heartedly, more than a tinge of sadness and regret in his words than anything else.

The Commissioner offered Lawson an uncertain look and then shifted his sight back to Kerry who'd been looking on at Lawson in a similar fashion. "Anyway, Kerry. You're going to have to give the public address to the media shitheads. They wanna' know about Venture's situation…. But we can't deal them in on too much info. Brief them; hold as much information as you can back and then get the bloody hell out of there. Once media has even the slightest essence of this shit it's going to be all over the news – and you're gonna' be the first person they ambush for their 'exclusive fix'." The commissioner plotted along, scratching the stubble on his face casually. This just wasn't a good idea. Lawson felt uneasy putting Kerry out there so exposed with the threats on her, but who was he to argue with the Commissioner. The guy was the big boss; he called the shots.

THIRTY MINUTES EARLIER….

"Kerry…. Put on a vest. Give me some peace of mind for god-sake." Lawson shot forcefully as he turned the car onto the final run towards the media conference. The whole car ride to the event, Lawson had a feeling that things weren't going to go to plan. That things were going to turn completely sour and the media were going to get a whole lot more than they bargained for; the potential death of a police Superintendant even.

"Lawson. This is a media conference. They're armed with cameras and mic's; they're not going to kill me." She put plainly, "Besides… vests really make you look fat in these suits." She spoke, signalling down to her attire. A smile tugged at her lips and Lawson simply shook his head.

"Kerry…. If something happens; it's on me. Put on a bloody vest or I'm not taking you to this conference." He pushed forcefully, "I don't give two shits if it costs me my job. I'm not taking you in without a vest." The seriousness on Lawson's features was almost frightening. He was looking more so at the Superintendant that sat next to him in the car now than he was on the road that was eventually going to pass under the car up ahead.

There was a long pause. Kerry's eyes lingered on the Senior Sergeant; trying to pick whether he'd stay true to his word or not; but eventually, the silence faltered.

"Yeah. You're right. Look, when we get there, I'll put one on." She surrendered with a sigh.

Lawson offered the woman a thankful look. For once the stubborn woman was listening to some reason and not trying to stomp over everything and anything she found in her way of looking like the top dog.

NOW….

"Shots fired! I repeat shots fired! Kerry's been hit!"

Lawson felt his heart pounding in his chest and it almost felt as though he was going to crack a rib with the essence of complete and utter panic that had struck him with one powerful punch. His eyes scanned for a sign of a shooter, and immediately, he caught sight of a man wearing a balaclava on top of a nearby building making for a clean get away.

"Tend to her!" Lawson signalled over to Kerry, looking over at uniforms as he passed them by with an effort filled run. The sound of his shoes crashing against the solid floor beneath him made Lawson push himself harder. There was too big of a gap between the sound of one step and the other. He wasn't going to be responsible for the death of another teammate – and furthermore – he wasn't going to allow the shooter to escape if worst came to worst. They'd pay the exact same price. Charging toward the building in which the shooter was atop of, Lawson raced around the corner and jumped onto the outside emergency ladder and began making his way up. His unlevel breathing proved to make foot placement and hand movement difficult, but eventually, he found himself at the top. The shooter was hooking himself up to a rappel line, back turned away from the Senior Sergeant. Placing his hand on the glock that was sitting easily at his side, Lawson drew it slowly and moved his firearm in front of him, locking his eyes over the sight.

"Police don't move!" the Senior Sergeant called, "Step away from the edge, unhook yourself and get on the ground. Do it now!" Lawson demanded with a powerful, ringing tone. The suspect didn't respond, his hands still fiddling with the clip at his front. Lawson was readying to shoot. The sounds around him blocked out, and all vision around the target blurred. Bringing in the suspect ahead was the only think on Senior Sergeant Blake's mind. But in one split second, Lawson lost concentration. Dropping his aim just slightly, he recalled Kerry. She'd been hit and he hadn't even checked if she had a pulse. Was she bleeding? Has the bullet ripped past her vest? Had she even put a vest on like she said should would? Was she alive?

The questions raced through his mind and by the time Lawson's mind was in its rightful place, the suspect was hooked up and ready to repel – with one specific difference; he had a gun drawn. Hearing the sound of the bullet discharging and the shell hitting the floor, Lawson felt the impact of the bullet hitting his torso and he fell back onto the ground. His eyes flashed from light to dark and then, before he knew it, he felt blood oozing from the back of his head and his mind going blank.

It had only taken half an hour for news crews to have their stories up and running, broadcasted all over the networks they respectively belonged to. Tactical response had all been called back to base by Charlie and the team were huddled around the big screens that were usually displaying the locations of the TR vehicles. Leon's narrowed eyes traced the name of the reporter at the bottom of the screen and the story that was located just above her name; 'Two police officers shot during public address'. The Intel officer felt his stomach pull tight and for a moment, he felt as if he was going to lose his last meal all over the keyboard that rested uselessly in front of him. The worst thing was, Leon couldn't have warned Lawson or Kerry of what was about to happen – because seeming as though Charlie palmed off the case to uniforms – all TR resources were taken out of the case; except for Lawson himself. The room was silent and finally, the newsroom crossed to the scene of the shooting where a tall, young, blonde woman was standing with a microphone pressed just under her chin.

"Kathleen, I'm here at the site of the shooting of Superintendant Kerry Vincent. The Superintendant was rushed to hospital several moments ago with major bruising to her chest. Police say that if Superintendant Vincent weren't wearing a bulletproof vest she would've been killed instantly as a result of the high calibre bullet that was directed at her."

The reporters voice made everyone crowded around the screens fill with fear. Was Kerry going to be alright? It seemed as though the bullet hadn't cause any major, death causing injuries but she'd been severely hurt; that was undeniable. Though, even with the stresses of Kerry's situation – there was another question dawning on two specific members of TR. Josh and Shannon exchanged panic filled looks and immediately after, Shannon raced forward. "What about, Lawson? Where's Lawson?" she tried to keep her breath calm and collected but her words rushed out of her lips without any composure. "Is he alright? Charlie – where's Lawson!" Shannon raced to her superior for some sort of comfort. She needed answers and she needed them now. The news officials hadn't supplied TR with anything they didn't already know. One of their bosses was definitely fired upon – but the other – he was unaccounted for. Pulling her hands across her face and back through her hair, Shannon felt tears swelling behind her eyes. Trauma filled her innards and she wanted to scream – she wanted to scream out for Lawson; to ask him to come back to base and to just take her home. Take her home and hold her. Turning quickly once she felt the tears becoming too much for her eyelids to bare, Shannon raced for the hallway and hastily paced towards the exit of the base. Josh's eyes followed her but he knew there was nothing he could do. It was his job to counsel Lawson if the roles had been reversed and Shannon were unaccounted for. He was nowhere near close enough to Shannon to ever try and set her mind at rest. Stella shot Josh a look that spoke more than words. She was almost asking him to let her go early so she could just hold Shannon and make everything okay; at least for a while. With a unchallenged nod, Josh agreed, "Go." He said simply. Charlie didn't even try to speak up and just merely looked on as Stella vanished after Shannon and the rest of the team looked on at each other, stunned.

"Go home, guys." Josh spoke in his emotionless drawl; his feelings of pure heartache being suppressed perfectly. "There's nothin' for us to do here for the rest of today. Not in this mindset." Josh shooed, and watched as the remainder of the team departed reluctantly.

Charlie's eyes tracked along once more, and this time it seemed almost as if he wanted to challenge Josh's orders. But he didn't. He held back. For the first time since he'd arrived, Charlie was actually showing some human traits; compassion and empathy.

"How about a thanks, Josh?" Charlie shot, allowing his eyes to settle for the first time.

"For what?" Josh tracked carefully, looking as though he'd missed something.

"I didn't challenge you this time. I let them go home." Charlie shrugged; a sense of stirring in his words. Even when doing something decent, the guy had to prove that he was in charge and he could've stopped everything Josh had offered his mates.

"How about a 'you're lucky.' 'Cause if you challenged it, I'd've smashed ya' head in." a forcefully and sincere blast came from Josh; his words no louder than he usually spoke – but possessing ten times as much meaning. Who did Charlie think he was? Telling a team, completely and utterly gutted by the news of their superiors and friends to stay on duty and work was plain cold and gutless. Sergeant Joshua had no problem putting a dickhead in his place and losing his job for it. If you're going to go out, go out swinging.

Stella and Shannon had made their way back to Shan's place. They were sitting in a briefly lit room, a bottle of vodka between the two of them. Sitting opposite one another on the floor, backs leaning on the sofas, the two girls found comfort in their time alone. Stella had managed to calm Shannon down with her words of wisdom and comfort; words that Lawson had taught her to plot together.

"He's gonna' be alright, Shan." Stella reiterated. "He's unaccounted for. So what? It's not unlike Lawson to be a stubborn asshole and leave us all in the dark." She chuckled with a playful jab into Shannon's knee.

The Sergeant smiled back, a tinge of sadness still wearing it down.

"Stell', I've just got a feeling. A feeling I can't shake." Shannon confessed, feeling her words weighing down on her throat. She didn't want to say them, but she knew, once they were out, she'd feel one hundred times lighter. "What if he's dead? What if he went after the shooter and got shot and they just haven't found his body yet?" her voice cracked and the tears began to swell behind her eyes again. "I shouldn't have let him go. Shit…."

"No." Stella interjected quickly, leaning forward and placing her vodka bottle onto the floor, only to put her hands on either of Shannon's knees in a 'I'm here' kind of way. "No matter what happens; this isn't your fault." Stella spoke slowly, making sure her words sunk in with a certainty.

"Stell'… he was talking about how guilty he felt about Dom…. How he couldn't let anything like that happen again. Putting him in a situation where it was him or one of his friends; it was a death sentence. I didn't stop him from walking into a situation that was only going to lead to getting him killed!" Shannon blurted, the tears streaming down her cheeks.

Even with the words Lawson had given her, Stella could never prepare herself for this. Lawson may have taught her a lot of things – but dealing with his death and helping members of the team deal; this wasn't one of those things.

Josh's mind was racing. His best mate's life may have been in the balance and he couldn't do a single thing to help him. Hand resting on the glass of whiskey that sat before him on the pubs counter, Josh took a mouthful of the fiery liquid and swallowed it, expressing the sensation of the liquid as it passed down his throat over his features. Josh wasn't the type of guy to have a deep and meaningful conversation with the other members of his team. It was one of the many ways he and Lawson were very much the same. They both liked to swim in their own thoughts; pondering and thinking on the 'what if's' and the possible outcomes of situations at hand. Unlike Lawson however, Josh didn't vent his sadness through frustration. He held it in and kept a firm hold on it for the most part. That was of course until the fuse burnt out and he punched on with someone, just because it felt good. Finishing the final mouthful of his drink, Josh slammed the glass onto the bar and raised his hand slowly, "Another here." He put, pushing a bill across the bar and taking his drink once it'd been served up. If someone had killed Lawson – or even harmed him – there was going to be hell to pay. Not Kerry, not Charlie not even the damn Commissioner would stop the fury that Sergeant Brendan Joshua was going to unleash on the assholes that put TR through this.