A/N: I have some comments that need to be addressed before we get to the chapter, sorry.

Guest: "I'm glad Sharon is finally getting an ounce of autonomy, but this is like a Lifetime movie. Sharon, the police officer, doesn't know what to do, so Daddy sweeps in? With Andy waiting in the wings to do her ass-kicking for her? And her mother! Sharon is standing there showing her injuries from being raped, and she's just "now, now, let's not be hasty about divorce"?" If you don't like my story, don't read it. In the chapter, it's stated that Sharon's parents wanted to come down, even though she told them not to. Wouldn't you do the same if your child was in that situation? Andy waiting to kick some ass… tell me that isn't 100% in character for Andy Flynn. He'd fight anyone, any day, for any reason. Finally, we know that religion is very important to Sharon, so it's logical to assume it's important to her parents as well. I wrote that dialogue because for someone in Sharon's position (mother with two young children, high-demand job, male dominated career, and abusive husband) divorce has the potential to cause far more problems than separating or being estranged.

Guest: "Um, actually, Emily's older than Ricky. **eye roll**" I know this. Duff couldn't keep the birth order of the children straight so why should I have to? It makes more sense for Emily to be younger anyway, seeing as she and Ricky both refer to Rusty as "Little Brother". If she had a little brother growing up, why is it Rusty's nickname and not Ricky's? It just made more sense to make her older, in my opinion.

Guest: "This is utterly ridiculous. With Sharon and Jack still being amicable on Major Crimes, there's no way he was abusive. Drunk, gambling, and maybe adulterous, but not abusive. Why does almost every fanfic that mentions Jack insist upon making Sharon look stupid for ever being with him? He obviously did her wrong, but he had to have had some good qualities at some time for her to ever be with him." This is ridiculous? Then don't read it. Frankly, if you think this is bad it only gets worse. The point of fanfics is for each of us to express our opinions about the show, and that's exactly what I'm doing. Personally, being from an abusive household, it's completely possible that Jack was abusive despite his relationship with Sharon we see on the show (which I wouldn't classify as amicable). I believe it's very possible there could have been an abuse element to their relationship, but Sharon remains civil because Jack is the father of her children and because she has some good memories of Jack that she holds onto, which is touched on much later in the story. Similarly, that episode of The Closer where one of the officers is being abused and Sharon steps in, I get an abuse vibe from that. I feel like her need to protect and defend Allie at all costs, as well as some of the dialogue exchanged points to Sharon being abused at some point in her life.

I'm sorry this author's note has been so long, but these comments upset me and I felt I needed to respond to them. I've spent over a year drafting, writing, and editing this story, and having it so blatantly disrespected feels like a punch in the stomach. Maybe this story isn't for everyone, maybe there are things you don't agree with—that's fine. I'm just asking that if you dislike my story, don't leave me a hate comment. It takes far less effort to close the tab than it does to log into ffn and write a nasty comment. To those of you who've been supporting my story from the get go, thank you so much. It means the world to me.

~Sarah

~oOo~

Sharon's eyes instinctively shoot open when she feels a hand on her cheek.

"Good morning, Cinnamon Stick." Betty says calmingly as she continues to massage Sharon's cheek.

"I asked you to stop calling me that." She yawns as she runs a hand through the red hair that her mother is referring to, "I'm not a child anymore."

"Well, last time I checked you're still my child." Betty grins, "Come on, your father made breakfast."

"Wait," Sharon sits up and carefully touches her cheek, "how bad is it?" She asks as she glances away from her mother in embarrassment.

"It's nothing a little concealer won't fix." Betty pouts slightly as she pushes her walker towards the door, "Do you want help covering it up?"

"No. I've got it." Sharon shakes her head as she gets out of bed, "But I could use your help with something else." When Betty looks to Sharon in question she continues, "I want photographs of this. For court."

"You're right." Betty nods in agreement, "Let me help you with that." She takes the camera from Sharon, pressing the shutter as she photographs each set of bruises that mark her daughter. The bright red one on her cheek, the dark, snaking fingers on her wrist, and finally the thumb prints on her hips. Each time Betty takes a photo Sharon looks away in embarrassment, despite her mother's calming words. "You're my brave girl, my strong, courageous, beautiful girl." She says as she takes the photos, "No matter what he told you."

"Thank you." Sharon breathes out quietly so as to keep her voice from breaking, "Thank you, Mom."

"Of course, sweetie." Betty responds as she reaches out and hugs her daughter, "Would you still like breakfast?"

"I would." Sharon nods in response as she releases her mother from the embrace, "Are the kids up yet? I'm going to have to explain to them what's going to happen in the coming months." She breathes out with disappointment as she applies concealer to her cheek.

"Dad got them up." Betty responds as she comes to sit on the bed so that she can rest her legs, "You know this isn't your fault, don't you?"

Sharon lets out a deep breath, her shoulders momentarily slumping forward before she goes back to her task, "It's going to be so hard for them to believe this. It's happened so often before; he'd leave and I'd be sure he was never coming back. I'd sit them down and tell them that even though their father loved them, that he couldn't be with us. Because he was sick, or visiting family, or whatever else. But sooner or later he'd come back and I could see the joy on their faces, and it just breaks my heart to know they'll be waiting for him to walk through that door just like he did every other time."

"Well," Betty lets out a deep breath, "you have to go about this conversation a different way then."

"You're right." Sharon closes her makeup compact before turning back to her mother, "The things that happened completely change the situation, and they need to be aware of that."

"Shay," she looks to her daughter through narrowed eyes, "you better not tell those kids what happened between you and Jackson."

"No." Sharon shakes her head as she sits next to her mother on the edge of the bed, "No, I didn't mean that. I mean I'm going to explain to them that they won't see him anymore, and that we'll be living in different houses."

"There's my smart girl." Betty smiles fondly as she squeezes Sharon's hand, "Come on, let's go to breakfast."

~oOo~

"Nicole was almost at the end and she went down a chute!" Emily laughs as they eat breakfast, "Ricky won, but Nicole should have."

"Nu-uh." Ricky argues, "Nicole lost and I won."

"But she would've won."

"Okay kids, that's enough." Conrad interjects in hopes of preventing an all-out argument.

"It sounds like you all had fun." Sharon smiles, glad they had enjoyed themselves the previous evening, "We'll have to do it again sometime."

"Yeah!" Emily agrees as she picks up her glass with two small hands and takes a sip of milk, "Then you can be with your friends too!"

"Emily Anne," Sharon sighs, "what have I told you about this?"

"But Mom," Emily grumbles, "Nicky's mom said you're friends."

"Right." Sharon nods awkwardly, no doubt raising the suspicion of her parents, "I'm friends with Nicky's parents."

"Mom?" Ricky says quietly and Sharon gratefully diverts her attention to her eldest child.

"What is it, Honey?"

"Is Dad still sick?" He asks innocently.

Conrad and Betty each offer Sharon a small, encouraging smile as she lets out a deep breath and runs a hand through her hair, "He's not, baby. But we need to have a conversation about him. Can you two be big kids for me?"

Ricky and Emily both nod, the latter appearing on the verge of tears as she often did with matters regarding her father. Sharon takes a deep breath and glances down at her hands before focusing back on her children, "Your Dad and I are going to start living in different houses," she explains, searching their features for a reaction, "and I know we've had conversations like this before, but he won't be coming here anymore. I know that as your parents we're," Sharon lets out a deep breath and idly toys with her fingers, "we're supposed to love each other and love the two of you, but we couldn't do both. So we decided that you deserve to grow up happy with one of us rather than sad with the two of us. Do you understand what I'm saying?" She asks softly.

"But…" Emily says quietly, her voice breaking, "he's our dad."

"I know, sweet pea." Sharon pouts and reaches across the table to squeeze her daughter's small hand, "And I know this is going to be hard for the two of you, but this is what's best for us, as a family." She emphasises the last word.

"Can we see him again?" Ricky asks, surprisingly looking almost as sad as his sister.

"We'll see." Sharon nods, "Not for a while yet though, I'm sorry." She offers her son a small frown.

"Why not?"

"Because you're mother said so, that's why." Conrad interjects as he picks up everyone's dishes, "Ricky, Emily, go get dressed." He instructs as he goes to the kitchen and begins rinsing off the dishes.

"Yes, Grumpy!" Both children exclaim before running to their bedrooms.

Sharon lets out a deep breath and presses the heels of her hands against her eyes, leaning her elbows on the table as she does so.

"That could've gone worse." Betty says as she calmingly rubs Sharon's back, "I'm proud of you, Shay."

Sharon lets out another deep breath, but this time because of the litany of nicknames her parents constantly referred to her by. It was sweet and endearing, but she also found it nerve-wracking, especially during moments like these.

"They're going to want to see him." Sharon mumbles through her hands, "And they have a right to, but I don't trust him."

"Then don't let them. You're the responsible one." Conrad states plainly as he returns to his seat and extends his arms on the table, "You're the one that takes care of those kids, not him. I think your words have a little more pull than his."

"Thank you." Sharon uncovers her face and offers her father a watery smile when she hears two sets of small feet running down the hallway. Both children stop when they see her, face pale, eyes red, and cheeks marked with tears.

"Momma, it's okay." Emily runs over and hugs her, "I'm sure Daddy still loves you."

"Yeah." Sharon says quietly as she attempts to push back her tears, "I'm sure you're right, baby."

Sharon feels her father glance in her direction before he clears his throat and says, "Alright, who wants to go to the park?"

Both Emily and Ricky look to him excitedly before grabbing their coats and heading for the door.

~oOo~

"Really?" Miranda questions with a yawn, rolling over in the bed so that she is facing Andy, "You didn't find anything out?"

He runs a hand through his hair and lets out a deep breath. It felt wrong not telling Mandy, but he had made a promise. "No. I didn't."

"So, now what?" She asks, blinking a few times as her eyes adjust to the pale light filtering through the window, "How can we help her if we have no proof that something's wrong?"

Andy looks to his wife, his gaze falling to her lips before he leans in and kisses her, distracting her from a conversation he couldn't be having.

"Andy, I'm serious." She says quietly, her fingertips grazing his cheek once he breaks the kiss, "I can't just sit here knowing she could be in danger, and neither should you. You're a cop, aren't you even bothered by this?"

"Yes." He pecks her lips again, hoping she'd drop the topic, "I am." He kisses her between words as he continues to speak, "And I will take care of it when I go to work tomorrow. But for now," he grins as he kisses her more strongly, "I can think of better ways for us to use our time."

~oOo~

"You're allowed to be emotional during a time like this." Betty says quietly, both she and Sharon sitting on a park bench and watching Conrad and the children crawl around the jungle-gym, "There's no shame in it."

"Now is not the time or the place." Sharon responds, her voice monotone and her eyes fixed forward, the wind gently tossing her auburn hair.

"Have you gone to confession lately?" Betty questions in return, "That will help."

"No, I…" Sharon stutters, momentarily taken aback by her mother's question, "I haven't gone to mass in quite some time either." She admits as she hangs her head.

"He could help you through this," Betty tries softly as she squeezes Sharon's hand, "granted you seek His wisdom."

"Mom, more than anything I need something tangible right now. I need someone I can really talk to and get answers from. I need answers right now, not introspection." She says the last sentence quietly, not surprised to find a mortified look on her mother's face.

"Sharon Renee," Betty looks to her daughter in disbelief, "why would you say something like that? You were raised better than that, taught to believe in more than this."

"But this is too serious, Mom," she says, frustration evident on her face, "I need someone who can help me deal with this now;" Sharon lets out a deep breath before continuing, "I can't sit around waiting for the answers to be shown to me. I need to learn how to cope with this ."

"Shay," her mother lets out a deep sigh and squeezes Sharon's hand again, "I am in no way trying to lessen what you went through; Of course what Jack did to you was terribly wrong, otherwise your father and I wouldn't have come down here. We just want to help you, Shay, and He can too."

Sharon lets out a deep breath and processes her mother's words. She was raised a Catholic, raised to believe in the sanctity of marriage. But what was she supposed to do when leaving Jack would scandalise her work at the LAPD?

"I'll think about it." She says before pushing herself off of the bench and going over to her father and children.

"Momma, watch this!" Emily exclaims as she grabs onto the monkey bars, hooking her ankles through the following one and hanging upside down, "Look!"

Sharon momentarily panics as she quickly wraps her arms around her daughter in fear of her falling, "Are you trying to hurt yourself?!" She asks worriedly once Emily is back on the ground, "Emily Anne!"

"I'm sorry, Momma." The young girl says quietly as she looks down at her faded pink sneakers, "I wasn't trying to scare you."

"Oh, Pumpkin, it's okay." Sharon grunts as she picks Emily up and sits her on her hip, "I just don't want you to get a booboo, okay, Baby?"

"Mhm." Emily nods as she plays with a strand of Sharon's hair, "You need to see what Grumpy and Ricky built."

"Where are they?" Sharon questions frantically, now realising that they had both walked away during the commotion.

Emily points to the edge of the forest and Sharon lets out a relieved breath, grateful to see her father waving her over.

"What are you doing?" She asks curiously when she comes to the edge of the forest, "Where's Ricky?"

"Hi, Mom!" She hears her son's voice but can't seem to find him, "Mom, I'm over here!"

"Dad," Sharon glares at Conrad, "what is going on?"

"We built a fort." Conrad grins proudly, "He won't ever want to leave now."

Sharon lets out a puff of air and rolls her eyes before taking a deep breath and letting out a high-pitched whistle. "Richard, I suggest you come out now." She says, watching as a comical grin works its way across her father's face, "Don't make me whistle again."

"Okay." Ricky says defeatedly, and Sharon almost jumps when she sees a pile of leaves a few feet away start to move, her son's dark hair popping out of the brush, "You're no fun, Mom."

"I know." Sharon smirks, watching as he works his way out of the leaves, "That's my job."

"Come look at our fort!" Ricky exclaims, a pout still on his face at being drawn out of his hiding spot, "Mom!"

"Okay, okay." Sharon laughs, trying her best to navigate between the wet leaves, rocks, and sticks while still balancing Emily on her hip.

"I think you've got an architect on your hands." Conrad grins happily, standing next to his grandson at their fort.

"Grumpy and I built it out of sticks and then we covered it in leaves so nobody could see it!" Ricky explains excitedly, "I'm totally gonna win at hide and seek now!"

"You will." Sharon grins down at her son and ruffles his hair much to his dismay, "How about we stop on the way home and get ice cream?" She asks, watching with enjoyment as both Emily and Ricky's faces light up.

"Please, Momma!" Emily responds first, her fingers still tangled in Sharon's hair.

"Dad," Sharon turns to Conrad, "what time are you and Mom planning on leaving?"

"I think we can stay for ice cream." He smiles, "What do you think, Ricky?"

"Please stay, Grumpy!" He begs, latching onto Conrad's leg as they all walk back towards Betty.

"Well I guess if the boss says we stay, we stay." Conrad chuckles as he and Sharon load the kids in the car and start towards the ice cream parlour.