A/N Thank you to everyone for your continued interest and support! I'm sorry it has taken me so long to update, but unfortunately, the real world does not appreciate my Rookie Blue obsession! I probably will not get the next chapter up before Wednesday, either. But I hope you enjoy this latest chapter and it will be enough to tide you over. xoxoxo mustlovecat

Disclaimer: I still do not own anything related to Rookie Blue, ABC or GlobalTv.

Andy jumped slightly at the sound of the doorbell. She shook her head, chastising herself for her skittishness and headed to the front door, hesitating for a moment before opening it. She was hardly prepared for the man she found standing there on the doorstep in front of her. From the way Sam had described him, she had been expecting Jason Donner to be older, a cop from her father's generation. Instead, the detective, who nearly towered over her, was definitely younger than her boyfriend. He was wearing a well-cut Italian suit, had short, black hair and icy grey-blue eyes. And as if anticipating her wariness, he was already holding up his badge. "Detective Donner?"

He nodded. He looked her over, taking in her small frame buried beneath a grey Toronto Police Services hoodie that definitely wasn't hers and an old pair of jeans, her beautiful face battered and bruised. Only years of seeing victims gave him the ability to school his expression instead of cringing at the injuries that obviously must be painful. "Sorry we're meeting under these circumstances, Officer McNally."

"Andy, please. C'mon in." She stepped aside and ushered him into the house, leading him down the hallway and into the living room. "Can I get you something? A cup of coffee or –"

"Oh, no. Thanks. I won't take up much of your time. How're you feeling?"

She shrugged. She gestured for him to have a seat in the armchair, and as she sat down on the couch, she replied, "I've been better. But it helps knowing Cassie Valens is going to be okay."

"Yeah, yeah, she's lucky. So are you," he said pointedly. "You took a hell of a chance."

She rolled her eyes a little. "So I've been told."

Donner smirked at that. "Your staff sergeant or the boyfriend?"

She laughed softly. "Both. My staff sergeant was a little nicer about it."

"Well, fact of the matter is, you saved Ms Valens' life, and your bravery should be commended. And I also know you've already given a pretty detailed statement, so I'm not going to waste your time making you relive the whole thing. I just have a couple questions that might help my investigation into these homicides. Do you mind?"

"No, it's fine. I don't know if I can help, but I'll try," Andy said willingly. "But can you tell me what makes you think he might be good for these murders?"

"Yeah, Cormier's fingerprints matched those we lifted off a gun used in two homicides."

Andy raised her eyebrows. "That's pretty damning. Why aren't you charging him?"

"Because they're latent prints. There's a smudged set on top we can't match. Of course, that doesn't mean he didn't do it and somebody else didn't just touch the gun after, but it's not enough when that's all we've got. Reasonable doubt."

"You never take anything to court unless you know you'll get a conviction," she said quietly.

"What's that?"

Andy's face coloured. "It's just – Your reputation kind of precedes you."

Jason chuckled. "I won't ask."

"Sorry, go ahead. Ask whatever it is you need to ask."

He reached into his inside suit jacket pocket and pulled out his memo book, flipping through the pages. He went over just a couple sections of her statement seeking some clarification. However, as Andy first suggested, she was of little help for Donner's current investigation.

"I'm sorry I couldn't give you anything else," she apologized as she escorted him to the door a while later.

"I wasn't really expecting much. But I don't believe in leaving any stone unturned," he explained.

"Yeah, I heard that, too."

He just shook his head with a grin. "TPS is just like high school, isn't it? No secrets."

Andy nodded. He had no idea that she was already anticipating that statement to prove itself true over the next few days now that word about her relationship with Sam was out. "Yeah, something like that."

"Listen, Andy, if you think of anything else, please give me a call. Doesn't matter how insignificant it might be. It sounds like the case against Cormier for the assaults on Cassie and you is pretty solid. But it wouldn't break my heart to put this guy away for a couple life sentences as well."

"I'd be more than happy to see that happen, believe me. I'll let you know if I remember anything more." She worried her lip a moment before asking, "Do you know what time the bail hearing is in the morning?"

"If you're asking because you want to go, my advice is not to. It's a five minute hearing, and being there isn't going to get you anything."

"I just think if I'm there –"

"Andy, the guy's not talking, which means there won't be a guilty plea. And there's no way the Crown Attorney is about to offer him a deal when the bastard assaulted a police officer. So the only question will be whether or not he'll be able to post bail. If he gets out, you'll be notified. But don't put yourself through something you don't have to for no reason, all right? Take care of yourself, and tell that boyfriend of yours to lay off giving you a hard time and ante up on the TLC. The Department's lucky to have you."

"Thanks," she said softly.

He nodded. "I'll be in touch. Bye now." He opened the door and let himself out.

Andy closed and locked the door behind him. Having glanced at the clock before ushering Jason out, she did not re-set the alarm, knowing Sam would probably be home soon.

She headed into the kitchen, and though she hated taking medication, she choked down another dose of the pain killers the doctor has prescribed. The cut over her eye and the bruising over her cheekbone were throbbing, and her arms ached. She felt pathetic for letting some cuts and bruises get to her this way, even with the ER resident's voice in her head telling her that her injuries were far from minor.

She curled up on the couch and flipped on the local news to kill some time until Sam got home. However, fifteen minutes later, she was fast asleep.

Having changed into his street clothes, Sam headed out of the locker room and down the corridor, crossing through the squad room and stopping at his desk just long enough to pick up a couple cards that had been dropped off for Andy. As he resumed his path for the exit, he found himself on the verge of whistling, but he quickly restrained himself.

"So you're the one I have to thank for Callaghan being a total ass today," Jerry quipped as he fell into step beside his best friend.

Sam shook his head with a roll of his eyes.

"So it's true, huh? You and McNally finally got together?"

"Yep." Sam pushed open the door to the personnel entrance and stepped out into the late afternoon sunshine. Once out of the precinct, he stopped and turned to Barber. "I'm sorry if you or any of the other D's are paying for Luke's bad mood, and I know he's a friend of yours...But I'm not going to apologize for how I feel about Andy or for what happened between us. Besides, we both know that if Callaghan's bein' an ass, it's because he's pissed off at me, not because he's all broken up about losing her. It's not like he's been torn up for the past five weeks. Hell, if he'd paid half as much attention to her while they were together as he is now to his bruised ego, maybe things would be different."

"I doubt that. You two were kind of inevitable."

Sam smirked. "I like to think so,"

"C'mon, we both know that I was the one who burned you, not McNally. But you let me off the hook way too easy. The Sam I've known all these years wouldn't have done that unless, deep down, you were actually grateful."

"I'm not sorry about the way things turned out. Though I'd be a lot happier if Anton Hill was behind bars."

"He'll get there. People get what's coming to them." Jerry's expression sobered then. "How's Andy doing?"

At that Sam furrowed his brow. "A lot of cuts and bruises. Nothing that won't heal with some time. But what I wouldn't give to do the same to William Cormier..."

"I hear you. I mean, if it had been Traci...But I guess the question is, what's more important: getting revenge, or doing whatever you can to make sure you don't make things worse for McNally?"

"He could've killed her, Jer," Sam said, nearly choking on the words.

"But he didn't. That's what you've got to hold onto, Sammy. We've both spent enough time on the job to see what can happen when you let the rage take over everything else."

Sam nodded, taking a deep breath.

"I heard Donner's picked up the case. He's a good detective. If there's something there, he'll find it, and he'll make it stick."

"Do you know anything about these murders he's trying to link Cormier to?"

"No. But I can make a phone call; see what I can find out."

Sam shook his head. "No, that's all right. Jason and I go back a ways. I'll catch up with him at some point. Right now, all I care about is the bastard going down for laying a hand on Andy."

"They've got him on the assaults, Sammy. You've got nothing to worry about there."

Sam glanced at his watch. "I gotta get going. I promised Andy I'd pick up take-out from Everest, and Queen West's going to be a nightmare at this hour."

"Let me know if you want me to do any digging into this other case."

"Will do. Thanks, buddy. I'll see ya later."

Forty-five minutes later, Sam pulled his truck into his driveway. He juggled the take-out and his duffle bag as he unlocked the front door and let himself into the house, all ready to disarm the alarm system. He furrowed his brow at the discovery that Andy had not set it. He kicked off his shoes and hung up his jacket then moved through the house, ready to chastise her for the alarm, but instead found himself stopping in his tracks as he laid eyes on his girlfriend, sound asleep on the couch in the living room. He took dinner into the kitchen and set it on the counter, then returned to Andy's side, crouching down beside the chesterfield and running a hand through her hair.

Andy stirred but did not wake up.

Sam leaned over and kissed her forehead gently, then looked her over. He couldn't see her arms since she was buried under one of his hoodies, but the cut over her eye was a little red around the stitches, the bruises on her face a dark purple now. And for the first time, he noticed the shape of the bruising on her neck. He held out his large hand as if to wrap it around her throat and quickly concluded the bruises were in the shape of a handprint. He felt sickened by the realization that the son-of-a-bitch had tried to strangle her. "Jesus, Andy," he muttered.

At the sound of his voice, Andy let herself be pulled from sleep and she stretched as she opened her eyes. She smiled to find Sam crouched down beside her. "Hmm. Hi."

Sam did his best to abandon his anger and offered a half-hearted smile in return. "Hey. How're you feeling?"

"Everything hurts," she admitted.

"You take the meds?"

"Why do you think I'm sleeping at six-thirty?" she retorted with a grin. "Did you bring me food? Because I'm starving."

"I knew it. You're just using me for the take-out," he quipped.

"You kidding? I'm using you for your body." She met his lips in a quick kiss then eased herself up off the couch and headed into the kitchen.

Left in her wake, Sam grinned with a shake of his head. He finally straightened up and followed her. When he saw her wince as she reached for some plates, he quickened his steps. "Hey, hey, I got it."

Andy knit her eyebrows together in frustration. "Who knew a bunch of bruises could hurt so much?"

Sam retrieved a couple of plates and set them on the table, then looked at his girlfriend. "Can I see?"

A little reluctantly, knowing it was going to set him off again, she pulled off the sweatshirt. In just a tank top, he was able to get a good look at the bruises that lined her arms, and the ones he had noticed on her neck stood out even more. Andy chewed on her lip, appraising him as he looked her over. When she noticed his jaw tighten, she stepped closer. "I am so hungry. Please tell me you got the platter with the chow mein," she said, doing her best to distract him.

Sam knew that the last thing she needed was him getting all angry again, so he nodded. "Yeah. Whatever my girl asks for..."

"Hmm, I'll remember that."

He flashed her a suggestive smirk, then finished setting the table.

They ate in silence for a while, until finally Andy said, "You were right."

"You'll have to be more specific, sweetheart. I'm always right," he teased.

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, get over yourself! I meant about Jason Donner. He's a nice guy. Easy to talk to."

"Yeah, he is. He give you any insight into the other case?"

Andy filled him on what little she knew, stabbing at her food with her fork in irritation as she explained that there was no concrete proof at this point to put William Cormier away for murder.

"Well, whatever happens with Jason's case, Cormier's going down for what he did to you, and that's all that matters."

"What he did to me and Cassie," she reminded him.

"'Course."

Andy hesitated for a moment, knowing she was going to feed his ego even more with what she was about to say. However, she finally sighed. "I'm not going to the bail hearing tomorrow."

Sam quirked his eyebrow. "Not that I'm unhappy, but you were pretty damn adamant last night. What changed your mind?"

"Jason pretty much argued everything you had. I guess it finally sunk in."

"I'm trying to ignore the fact that you listened to Jason Donner but fought me on it for like an hour last night."

Andy laughed. "You almost sound jealous."

"I'm not jealous, McNally," he argued.

"Good, because you will never have any reason to be. And for the record, I probably would have backed down if you'd tried to talk me out of it again. I'm just a little stubborn sometimes."

"A little, huh?" he snorted.

"Look who's talking."

"Yeah, well, two strong-willed people...There's gonna be lots of fireworks." His lips curled in lopsided grin then. "And lots of make-up sex."