DISCLAIMER: I do not own these characters, except for Matthew and Moxie. The rest of them belong to James Duff and the Major Crimes franchise.
A/N: Thanks again for the great reviews on this story. This is going to be the last chapter of this story, but I am writing another story as we speak that will pick about a week after this one leaves off. Thanks again!
Chapter 10
"So, the reason we didn't recognize Chase Weston when he was in the bank was because we never actually met him before" Andy said to Mike and Provenza as they sat next to each other at Mike's desk. "That's right! We only met Eric, his brother" Mike added. "Yes, who is still missing, disappeared, on the run, whatever you want to call it" Provenza muttered to them. Andy gave him a look and then continued looking at Mike's computer screen. "But why weren't we notified that this Chase guy was back in the area of LA?" Andy asked. "The BOLO was only if they crossed the international border" Amy explained.
Provenza looked around the room. "So, you would think Eric would show up since his brother was killed in a LAPD operation?" he asked Andy and Mike as he watched Julio and Amy shuffle some paperwork. "Hard to say, we don't really know where he's been or if he even knows what happened," Andy said with a concerned look on his face. "I wouldn't worry about it, guys. It's not like he's going to come after us" Mike said to them. "Besides, we had a similar case on Badge just recently and" Mike started but Andy didn't let him finish.
"Really Mike? You want to talk about your show right now? And what do you mean, don't worry about it? This is the guy that had all of the C4 in his basement when we searched his house! The same guy that blew up the lockers at Union Station downtown!" Andy said in a frustrated tone, almost yelling. "Alright, alright, that's enough Flynn!" Provenza was angry as he pointed at him with his finger. "Sorry" Andy muttered as he moved back over to his desk and sat down there. He hated when Mike brought up his TV show, and he knew it would only raise his blood pressure if he thought about it.
"Too bad we just can't ask him where his brother is, sir" Julio chimed in to the conversation. "Yeah, it's a little late for that I'm afraid" Provenza said as he walked back to his desk and sat down. Truth was they didn't know where Eric Weston had gone to. They didn't know why Chase Weston would show up of all places, robbing a bank with former inmates from a prison he didn't attend.
Sharon had missed the conversation that was had earlier because she was in Assistant Chief Mason's office. When she had returned to the Murder Room, things were uncomfortably silent. She looked around the office at everyone there. Mike was looking down at his hands as he was fidgeting with them. Amy was pretending to be reading something at her desk. Julio played with his pencil. Provenza was staring over at Andy. And when Sharon glanced at Andy, he was sitting at his desk staring at a blank computer screen.
"Alright, what did I miss here?" Sharon said questioning her team but no one answered her. She looked around the room again. Still no one answered her. She was getting frustrated as she crossed her arms. "Okay, Buzz tell me what happened while I was gone" Sharon demanded. Buzz looked up from his desk. "Uh, me Commander?" Buzz asked as he glanced at Provenza and Mike. Sharon gave her best Darth look at him and he complied.
"The Lieutenants were discussing Chase Weston and his brother, Eric, from our previous open case" Buzz stated to Sharon as she stood there in the middle of the room. "And?" Sharon asked as she wanted Buzz to continue. Buzz just looked at her like he was a deer in headlights. He felt uncomfortable telling her the rest and hoped that someone else would chime in. Buzz opened his mouth slightly to say something else but luckily for him, Provenza chimed in.
"Ah, Commander, we were just discussing something from that case which brought up an argument but it's been taken care of, I assure you" Provenza said to Sharon as he stared at Andy. Andy scoffed at Provenza's explanation. Sharon looked at Provenza. "Alright, Lieutenant" she said and then turned around and headed to her office, but she went to the door that was closest to Andy's desk and as she passed him, she briefly touched his arm. Andy looked up at her and then watched her go into her office.
The rest of the day flew by quickly and before the team knew it, it was already close to quitting time. Provenza got up from his desk and walked over to Sharon's office. He stood there and knocked on her door listening for her to say "Come in" before he actually walked in her office. "Ah, Commander. I was wondering if we were good to start calling it a day," Provenza asked her. Sharon looked up from her paperwork and placed her pen down on top of it. "Sure Lieutenant, but only after you tell me what really was going on earlier today in the office" she said to him.
This caught Provenza off guard and he started to stammer. "Um, like I said earlier, we had a discussion that turned into an argument, but the team is fine, nothing to worry about" Provenza said as he tried to reassure Sharon. "Who got into the argument, Lieutenant?" Sharon asked point blankly. Provenza paused for a moment as he looked down at his feet. "It's really nothing, Commander. And it's certainly not going to affect the team. We were all just kidding around with one another" Provenza explained to her.
It was Sharon's turn to pause for a moment as she watched Provenza stand in front of her desk. "Okay, I trust that you handled it and everything is good, is that right?" Sharon said, asking Provenza. "Uh, yes Captain, I mean Commander, sorry, old habit" Provenza said. "Fine, Lieutenant, are we any closer to figuring out why Chase Weston was involved in this group?" Sharon asked him. "No, we are not closer than we were this morning" he answered her. "We are trying to figure out why he was involved with this group that he has no specific ties to and we are also trying to figure out where Eric Weston is hiding" he added as he leaned against the chair he was standing in front of.
"That is the mystery we have here, isn't it" Sharon said as she glanced around the office. "Have a good night, Lieutenant" she told Provenza. "Good night Commander" Provenza said to her as he quickly left her office and informed the rest of the team they could go home. Andy stood up and walked over to Mike's desk as he was packing up his bag. "Hey Mike, I, uh, I'm sorry for my outburst earlier" Andy said apologizing to him. "Don't worry about it, Andy. See you guys tomorrow" he said as he walked out of the office. Andy glanced at Provenza and then he walked back to his desk to wait for Sharon.
Sharon came out of her office about fifteen minutes later and leaned up on the corner of Andy's desk. "Is everything okay?" she asked him as she ran her hand down his left shoulder and arm. He looked up at her. "Yes" he said as he relaxed his features, and continued to look at her at his desk. The way the sunlight was shining into the office gave her an almost angelic look. Andy smiled a big, wide grin. "How was your meeting with Mason?" he asked her as he relaxed as her hands were making their way up to his hair.
Sharon was getting a little carried away in the office but there was no one there to hide from and besides, she saw how tense Andy was earlier. She was just happy that he could relax, even if it was for a couple of minutes before they left to pick up Matthew from school. "My meeting was fine. He just wanted to know how I was doing after Saturday. He also asked about you, and how you were doing" Sharon answered. "He did?" shocked that Mason would even care about him. Sharon, yes, but him, he was too much of a liability for Mason to worry about.
"I know it may come as a shock to you, Andy Flynn, but there are other people here besides the team and myself that actually care about you" Sharon informed him as she stood up and grabbed her bag. "Are you ready to go?" she asked him. He stood up and smiled at her again. "Yes, my lady" he said to her as he held out his hand for her to take. They walked out of the Murder Room feeling good about the day.
They were in the elevator alone as they rode down to the parking garage. "So, do you want to tell me what happened in the office today?" Sharon asked Andy quietly as they stood there in the elevator. "Oh, um, me, Provenza, and Mike were all discussing that Chase Weston guy and then his brother, Eric, was brought up. Mike said something stupid and I took exception to it. Provenza yelled at me and I went back to my desk, that's it" Andy explained as the elevator doors opened to the parking garage.
"What did Mike say that you took exception to?" Sharon asked as they made their way to their car. Andy let out a breath before he spoke. "He said we shouldn't worry about Eric and I reminded him about all that C4 that guy had in his house, and how he blew up part of Union Station" Andy said as he unlocked their car and held the door open for Sharon to get in. "That's it?" she inquired as she sat in the passenger seat. "Well, no, he may have mentioned something about his stupid show Badge, as well," Andy quickly said the last part and closed Sharon's door before he could hear what she had to say.
He knew that wasn't a smart move he just made as he was going to get an earful as soon as he stepped inside the driver's seat. He hesitated and then slowly slipped in the driver's seat and quickly glanced over at Sharon. Sharon was watching him the whole time and Andy then looked at the steering wheel. "Go ahead and say it, Sharon," Andy said to her before he started the car. "What do you want me to say?" she asked him. Andy sighed before he spoke. "That I shouldn't let some horrible TV show bother me." Sharon laughed and then reached over to caress his face. "See, I don't need to say anything if you already know," she said. Andy started the car and drove to Matthew's school.
Sharon held Andy's right hand the whole time over to Matthew's school. Holding his hand brought a sense of calm to her and she always grabbed it whenever they were driving together. As Andy drove to the school, Sharon caressed her thumb over the top of his hand which brought a smile to his face.
As they pulled up to the school, Andy found a parking spot and parked the car. There were other parents or guardians picking up their kids as Sharon and Andy made their way inside the school building. Sharon walked over to where the after school care pickup was located. "Oh, hello Mrs. Flynn!" one of the after school care teachers said to Sharon. "Hi, here to pick up Matthew," Sharon said to her as she looked around the room at the children but she didn't see Matthew there. "Matthew is with the Principal and school nurse right now," the teacher said. "What?" Sharon looked startled and turned around to walk back to where Andy was standing.
"What's going on?" he asked Sharon as she approached him. "Matthew's with the school nurse and the Principal" Sharon said as she walked quickly over to where the school office was down the hall from them. Andy caught up to her. "Why weren't we notified if something happened to him?" Andy asked as they stepped inside the office. "Ah, Mr. and Mrs. Flynn, I was just getting ready to call you," the school nurse said to them. "What happened?" Sharon asked her. "Well, about two minutes ago, Matthew complained that his arm was itching him and the teacher brought him to me to take a look at a mark on his arm," the nurse explained as they walked to where Matthew was sitting.
Matthew waved to both of them as he saw them enter the smaller room. "It looks like a bee sting to me. I gave him some ice to put on it," the nurse said as Andy walked over to Matthew. "Hey buddy, you got stung?" Andy asked him. "I guess so, I don't even remember it happening. We were playing outside a couple of minutes ago and then when the teacher called us in, my arm started to itch," Matthew said as he shrugged his shoulders while still holding the ice pack on his arm.
"Do you know if he's allergic to bee stings, Mrs. Flynn?" the nurse asked Sharon. Sharon glanced over at Andy and Matthew and then turned back to the nurse. "Not that we're aware of" she said, and started to panic. 'What if he is allergic?' she thought to himself. "I don't see any signs of an immediate allergic reaction either and if he was allergic to them, we have epi-pens here in the office just in case," the nurse said, reassuring Sharon.
"Just keep an eye on him and you might want to stop and get Benadryl or an anti-itch cream to put on it. There was no stinger visible," the nurse stated as she watched Sharon walk over to where Matthew and Andy were. "Thank you," Sharon said as she turned to the nurse and then focused back on Matthew. She rubbed his head and Matthew gave her a small smile. "Ready to go?" she asked him and he nodded.
Matthew hopped off of the table he was sitting on and made his way back to the classroom, but before he did, he thanked the nurse for helping him. "My pleasure Matthew, I hope you feel better!" the nurse said to him and then finished what she was doing. Andy and Sharon walked behind Matthew as he went into the after school care area to pick up his backpack. He was still holding the ice pack to his arm as he brought out his backpack. "Here, let me get that," Andy said as he reached for Matthew's backpack to carry.
The three of them walked back to the car. Sharon had her arm around Matthew. "Besides the itching, how are you feeling?" she asked them as they walked. Matthew shrugged his shoulders. "May I see your arm?" she asked him as she took the ice pack from him when they got to the car. She bent down and looked at the sting closely. It was red with a little dot in the middle from where the stinger went in. "I'm sorry you got stung, sweetie," Sharon said to him as Andy unlocked the doors.
Matthew climbed into the backseat and Sharon made sure his seatbelt was secured. She then closed his door and looked at Andy who was standing right next to her. "Any thoughts with dinner?" he asked her. "We should have some anti-itch cream at home for him to use, I can call our favorite Italian place and we could pick it up on the way home?" Sharon suggested. "Sounds good," Andy said as he held her door open for her and the closed it once she got inside the car.
Sharon pulled out her phone and placed the order for the food while Andy drove them over to pick Moxie up next. On their way over, through the traffic on the streets of LA, Sharon decided that she would inform Matthew about their pending trip to Disneyland this weekend. "So, Matthew, your father and I were wondering if you would like to go to Disneyland this weekend with Avery and Colin, Nicole, Dean, and us, of course," Sharon said to him.
Matthew's head perked up when he heard the word Disneyland. "Disneyland?" he asked. "Yes, sweetie," Sharon said as she glanced at Andy. "Tommy was just saying last week how he had a good time there with his family, they stayed at some hotel right outside the entrance to the park, and he got to go on all the rides there!" Matthew sounded excited the way he was describing the park. "But what if you have to work?" he asked them. "Well, we have the weekend off right now, pending no other cases come to us," Sharon said to him as Andy pulled into the parking lot of the doggie day care place.
"Would we spend the night there?" he asked them. "Yes, we would be staying at a hotel there on their property," Sharon explained as Andy got out of the car. Matthew was still holding the ice pack to his arm, even though the ice was melting and getting water all over his school pants. "What about Moxie?" he asked her. "Well, we could ask Rusty to watch him again," Sharon answered. "Colin and Avery are going?" he asked. "Yes, they are," Sharon said. "Okay!" Matthew said excitedly.
Andy then opened the back door and Moxie jumped in the car. He was wagging his tail as Matthew was petting him with his hand, forgetting about the ice pack he was supposed to be holding against his arm. "Everything good?" Andy asked Sharon as he got into the car. "Yes, let's go pick up the food now," she smiled and Andy drove off towards the restaurant.
By the time they finally got home, after picking up the food, it was closer to 7 o'clock. Sharon carried the food in to the house and placed the containers on top of the counter on the island. Matthew carried in the ice pack baggie that was now, mostly water than ice. "Here you go," he said to Sharon, and tried to hand her the ice pack as she turned around. "Oh, honey, place that in the kitchen sink!" she told him and Matthew walked over to the sink and plopped the bag inside. He then took the kitchen towel that was laying out and dried his arm off. He accidentally rubbed the bee sting too roughly and yelled out. "Ouch!" Sharon heard and then rushed over to Matthew by the sink.
"What happened?" she asked him. "I rubbed the sting and now it hurts more," Matthew cried. "Oh, sweetie, let me see that," Sharon said and tried to soothe him with her gentle touch on his arm. After looking at it, she walked over to where they kept the first aid kit and took out Neosporin and placed some cream on the sting area. "This should help the pain," she said to him. "Ahh!" Matthew cried but then noticed that it was getting better.
Sharon looked at Matthew's face and wiped the tears that were on his cheek. "Go wash your hands and get ready for dinner," she told him as she put the first aid kit away. Matthew ran into the bathroom and washed his hands. Andy then came inside the house, carrying Sharon's bag and Matthew's backpack. Moxie followed him inside the kitchen. Andy placed Matthew's backpack by the sliding glass door and then placed Sharon's bag at the end of the counter.
Sharon was getting down some plates for them to use for dinner and Andy opened the containers that were on the counter. Matthew then came back into the kitchen and sat down at the table. Sharon fixed him a plate and brought it over to him. "Is your arm feeling better?" she asked him as she set down his plate in front of him. Matthew nodded and started to eat his food.
"Rusty pulled up after you guys were already in the house. I asked him if he wanted dinner, he was welcome to join us. He said he would be down in a little bit," Andy said to Sharon as he made his own plate from the food they got. "Hmm, well we have plenty of food here for everyone," Sharon said as she placed some salad on her plate. Andy and Sharon then joined Matthew at the table.
Rusty came by about ten minutes later and joined them for dinner. He talked about what his day was like today as Andrea and him were in court this morning for one of her cases. "It's really interesting to watch her speak to the jury. It's no wonder she's won a lot of cases for the DA," Rusty said as he ate spaghetti. "I'm glad you are enjoying that internship with her," Sharon told him as she finished her food. They sat around and talked some more as Andy cleaned up the kitchen and went to go feed Moxie.
"Rusty, guess what happened today at school," Matthew said to him. "Oh, I don't know?" Rusty replied. Matthew then showed his arm to Rusty and pointed at the bee sting. "I got stung by a bee!" Matthew said, almost in a proud manner. "Ohh, that looks like it hurts!" Rusty said to him as he glanced over at Sharon. "It did, but Mommy put some cream on it and it doesn't hurt anymore," Matthew told Rusty.
Sharon got up from the table and took the plates over to the sink. "Do you have homework, Matthew?" Sharon asked him as she placed the plates in the sink. "No, I did my homework at after school care," Matthew answered. "Did Mommy tell you that her and Daddy are taking me to Disneyland this weekend?" Matthew said to Rusty as they sat at the table. "No, they did not tell me. That sounds like fun!" Rusty said to him. "Yes, Avery and Colin and Nicole and Dean are also going," Matthew said.
Rusty looked at Sharon. "We'll only be gone for one night, that's if we don't catch a case by then, although we do have the weekend off," Sharon explained to Rusty as Matthew left the table to go see what Moxie was doing. "What are you going to do with the dog?" Rusty asked her. "Well, we were wondering if you could watch him that night and then during the day on Sunday," Sharon asked him. "Yeah, I could do that," Rusty said. "Besides, it might help me take my mind off of Gus and his restaurant," Rusty added.
Sharon sat back down at the table next to Rusty. "So, how are you doing on that front?" she asked him. "I don't know," Rusty said and then Andy and Matthew came back from the mud room. "Alright, the dog is all fed and Matthew helped," Andy said as he picked up Matthew's backpack and looked through it as he leaned up against the counter. "I did all my homework, Dad," Matthew said to Andy but Andy pulled out his take home folder anyway. "Good, I'm just going to look at your folder for a minute," Andy said to him. Sharon and him agreed that every night, one of them would look at his take home folder to make sure that he was keeping up with the homework and to see if he had brought any papers home for them to sign.
A half hour later, Matthew was upstairs with Andy and he got ready for bed. "How's your sting bite?" Andy asked him. "It's okay," Matthew said as he brushed his teeth. "Can I play in my room until Mommy comes up?" Matthew asked Andy as they walked back to his room. "Sure buddy," Andy said and then Matthew ran into his room to play. Andy walked over to the stairs and leaned over the railing a little. "Sharon?" he called out.
Sharon was sitting at her desk in the den when she heard Andy call out her name. "Yes?" she answered as she rolled her chair to the doorway. "Are you coming up soon?" he asked her as he was leaning on the banister upstairs. "Yes, I'll be up in a couple of minutes," Sharon replied and the rolled her chair back over to her desk. Andy shook his head as he went into their bedroom. "While she is down there, I just want to make sure it's still hidden" he said to himself as he went into one of his drawers in the dresser and pulled out a long jewelry box from way in the back.
Andy opened the jewelry box and inside, he saw the necklace he had bought her with all of her children's birthstones on it, including Matthew's. "She's going to love it," he said to no one in particular and then placed the box back inside the drawer. Then he got ready for bed.
After he did, he walked back over to Matthew's room and found Matthew sound asleep on his bed, on top of the covers, with Moxie sleeping by his side. He didn't want to disturb either one of them so he took a blanket from Matthew's closet and placed it over him, and tucked him in for the night. He then turned off the overhead light, leaving just the lamp on by his bed and closed the door behind him.
Sharon was coming up the stairs as he left Matthew's room. "Is he sleeping?" she asked him. "Yes, out like a light," Andy said to her and she peeked inside his room. She then joined Andy in their room and got herself ready for bed. Andy was sitting on their bed when Sharon came out of their bathroom wearing her pajamas.
"Is it weird that I'm excited for our trip to Disneyland?" he said to her as she joined him on the bed. "Hmm, no. I'm actually looking forward to it as well. I haven't been there in so long, it will be nice to see the looks on the kids' faces when they see everything there," she said to him as she pulled back the covers.
Sharon settled in front of Andy as they both laid on their sides. Sharon had a worried look on her face. "Is everything okay?" Andy whispered to her. Sharon hummed. "Yes, I was just thinking about something, that's all," she answered him as they faced each other. He leaned over and kissed her. "Don't let this case keep you up, it's closed," he whispered to her as if he could read her mind. She hadn't thought about the Weston brothers since before Christmas, and thought that was the last time they would be seeing either one of them, but when Mike identified the fourth robber as Eric's brother, Chase, that brought the old case back to the forefront.
She laid there facing Andy as he held her in bed. He caressed her face as she looked at him. "I love you, Sharon," he whispered to her. "I love you too, Andy," she answered him. They had a rough couple of days but were able to work through it and conquer the demons that tried to derail them. Now they were moving forward together and had something to look forward to the following weekend as they both drifted off to sleep.
The End