Sharon sat between Andy's legs and reclining against his chest as Margaret and Patrice got everything ready to start the IV. Seeing Sharon tense, with her emotions all over the place was new to Andy and he wondered if something happen to her as a child to make her dislike needles so. They had spoken in general about it over dinner, one night they got on the topic of fear and he teased her that Darth Raydor wasn't scared of anything and that is when she admitted that she didn't like needles. She didn't go any further and he didn't push. Pushing Sharon was something he really never wanted to have to do; especially after all she had been through with Jack. As Patrice got ready to insert the catheter needle into the back of Sharon's hand, Andy encouraged her to close her eyes and relax against him. She held his hand tightly and did as he asked. She focused on the sound of his voice and the IV was in and the drip was going before Sharon even realized it. "Thank you Patrice, I barely felt a thing."

Sharon sat up so Andy could move from behind her and off the bed. He carefully arranged the pillows so that she would be sitting up enough to eat and helped her scoot back unto them. Gavin came in carrying a small plate of food and a glass of iced tea. "I thought I would sit with our girl for a little while, I think the Lieutenant has some things he needs to talk over with you Andy."

Andy cocked an eyebrow towards Gavin, "You are the only person I know that she would let get away with calling her, our girl."

"Oh, he's not going to get away with it," Sharon smirked. "I'm just too tired to deal with him right now, but I will remember. And one day when he least expects it… Now go on talk to Louie before he gets too grumpy; we all know how impatient he is. I'll be fine and Gavin will make sure I eat enough. Trust me; he has a little Darth in him when it comes to being a bossy caretaker." Andy cupped her chin and placed a kiss to her forehead before nodding at Gavin as he left the bedroom.

Andy found Louie, Patrice and Margaret sitting around his dining table. Patrice jumped up, "Andy have a seat, let me get you something to eat. I brought several things that I think you will like."

Andy shook his head, "No that's okay, I'm not really…"

"Sit!" Patrice pointed her finger at him.

Andy knew there was no point in arguing so he took the chair across from Louie, "Gavin said you wanted to talk to me."

"Yeah, I talked to Tao a little while ago. Simmons is under protective custody at County Hospital. He…hmm…well" Provenza glanced over to Margaret and then Patrice who was just sitting a plate in front of Andy. "The damage to his groin area was so severe that the doctor felt it necessary to remove both his…umm…testicles."

Andy looked down for a minute and stared at the plate in front of him trying to control the feeling bubbling up inside of him. He dared a glance at Provenza and the grin on the Louie's face sent him over the edge and he couldn't suppress the laughter inside of him any longer. "It's not funny, I know it's not funny but,"

"Remind you never to piss her off." Louie finished for Andy.

"Oh, god! Well, at least the bastard got what he deserved." Margaret laid a hand on Andy's arm as his laughter died all too quickly. He dropped his head into his hands, "She thought he had hurt Emily. He had her convinced…Her one and only focus was to get out of there and find Emily. I can only imagine what that felt like, what she went through. I'm sorry…I'm really sorry"

Andy stood abruptly, not eating any of the food on his plate and walked over to the patio doors. Opening them, he stepped outside into the cool night air. Patrice nodded slightly at Provenza as he followed his friend outside. The two men stood for a moment shoulder to shoulder as they gazed into the dark backyard. "You're not going to fall apart on me, are you? Provenza finally asked.

"No. I'm fine."

"Yeah, sure…fine…Do you need to go find a meeting? We can handle everything here while you duck out for a little while."

Andy turned and even in the dark, Louie could see the anger blazed in his eyes, "No…Damn-it Louie, I'm not going to start drinking. Funnily enough, I don't even have that urge. What I really want to do is beat the shit out of someone. Anyone really, you think Julio would go a round or two with me?"

Louie shrugged his shoulders, "Maybe, if it would really make you feel better. But then the two of you would have to deal with the Captain and I don't see that ending well for you. Julio is her favorite now, well besides Buzz but he doesn't really count."

Andy sat heavily against step railing while Provenza sat in the nearby Adirondack chair. "I feel like I've failed her already."

"Why, none of this was your fault. And you know as well as I do, she does not want nor need a guard dog or a knight in shining armor."

"I know. She said something similar to me earlier. I just feel so helpless…I asked her what happen in there and at first she didn't want to talk about it, but she knew she needed to get it out. She said...the bastard never taped her mouth shut like he did with his other victims. He wanted to hear her talk to him, he even told her what he wanted her to say to him, the sick jerk. It was her voice that drew him here and her voice that distracted him enough so that she could bring her hands forward and break the son of bitch's nose with the palms of her bound hands. After that she was able to get him good with her knee and once he was on the ground all she could do was kick the shit out him. I still don't know how she handled that tape with her hands bound in front of her. She's really something, a force to be reckoned with I guess you could say."

"Andy, she's strong and determined, but we both already knew that."

Andy turned slightly, to get a better look at Louie, "Do you ever feel bad about the way we treated her back when…she was in FID. You know, I said some really horrible things about her behind her back, hell even to her face. I wish that I could just take it all back but I can't and now…"

Provenza interrupted, slightly irritated, "What's got you even thinking about that? The past is the past. The Captain doesn't hold any of that against us. It was a different time. We didn't know her back then. We couldn't see who she really was...All we saw as the ice queen or wicked witch. I don't understand why you are bringing this up now! I'm beginning to think you really are an idiot."

"Oh, I'm an idiot alright…" Before Andy could finish, Patrice opened up the patio door.

"I know you boys are having fun out here, but you both need to eat and Rusty just got home so I thought maybe you could join him."

"Yes, dear; we're coming." Provenza called, as he looked over at Flynn's grinning face. "What are you grinning about?"

"She's got your number. Yes, dear? I don't think I have ever heard you say that." Andy laughed as he stood.

"Maybe I've finally learned something, you idiot."

Rusty was already sitting at the table with a huge plate of food in front of him when Andy and Provenza joined him.

"You get Ricky and Emily off okay?" Andy asked.

"Yeah, don't tell Mom but Emily cried the whole entire way to the airport. I don't understand why she didn't stay if she was so upset about leaving. And then Jack called Ricky while we were all still in the car, apparently he found out about what happen to Sharon. I couldn't hear what was said exactly, but Ricky was pissed after their phone call and that just made Emily cry even more." Rusty looked up at Gavin who had just walked in carrying a half empty plate, "Dude, I don't think I'm ever going to get the hang of this sibling thing."

Gavin sat down at the table next to Andy, "Trust me Rusty, you are doing just fine. The Raydor duo is a lot to handle. I think you are holding your own quite nicely."

"Couldn't get her to eat it all?" Andy asked as he glanced at the plate Gavin placed on the table.

"No but almost half is better than nothing, I suppose. Rusty, why don't you go back and visit with your Mom for a few minutes after you finish your dinner. I know she doesn't want to go to sleep without saying goodnight. Then Margaret can give her the medicine she needs and we can all give you some peace and quiet until tomorrow."

"I'm done." Rusty said as he stood and took his plate into the kitchen. "Thanks Patrice that was really delicious, Ricky will be sorry he missed it."

"Glad you enjoyed it Rusty."

"I just checked and the drip is almost finished." Margaret announced as she walked back into the living room. "By the time Rusty says goodnight we will be ready to finish up. Andy, we'll need you to help us."

Andy nodded as he looked to Louie. "I'm glad Patrice is here. She's been a big help tonight. I didn't even think about the fact that she and Margaret might know each other."

"Andy," Rusty's voice interrupted them from the hall. "She needs you."

Andy hurried down the hall to find Sharon sitting on the edge of the bed. "I'm sorry, I need to go to the bathroom but I can't with this damn thing," rolling her eyes at the IV.

"It's okay." Andy reached up and untied the bag from the bed post, "I'll hold it above your head while you go." Andy held her by the waist with one hand and held the bag with the other as they maneuvered into the bathroom and then back to the bed.

Margaret and Patrice were waiting for them when they returned. Sharon sat on the side of the bed, her face buried in Andy's chest while Patrice removed the IV needle and placed gauze and tape over her hand. Margaret then asked Sharon to lean over the side of the bed so she could give her the first of two injections. Andy sat on the edge of the bed as Sharon leaned into him, her hands on his shoulders and her face buried in the crook of his neck. He whispered to Sharon as he watched Margaret about to insert the first needle. Sharon jumped slightly and Andy could feel her hot tears begin to roll down his neck. "Just one more sweetheart, you're doing fine." He whispered as his hands drew small circles on her upper back.

The second injection was over in a matter of seconds and Andy pulled Sharon into his lap. She looked up at him her face still damp with fresh tears, "I'm sorry." She whispered into his neck. "I hate… acting like this. I just can't seem to control my emotions…"

Patrice and Margaret nodded to Andy and quietly slipped out of the room to give them a few minutes alone. "Hey…Hey now you listen to me." Andy interrupted as he slowly continued to draw circles on her upper back. "You have nothing to be sorry for. Look, you're exhausted, you're hurt and you're a little scared. You're human, Sharon. You have to be able to let go sometimes and nothing makes me more proud than to know that you trust me enough to let me be here for you." Andy gently shifted on the bed and moved Sharon back against the pillows. "Now let's get you settled in here so you can finally get some rest."

"You're going to stay with me?"

"Sweetheart, I'm not going anywhere. As you said earlier, all I want to do is curl up in this big bed with you." Leaning over Andy gently kissed Sharon's forehead. "You'll be okay while I show our company out?" Sharon smiled, nodding her head as she settled deeper into the covers.

A/N One more update before the weekend. Thanks again for all the reviews, favorites and follows. Have a great weekend all! Next week is busy for me, so updates may be a little slow.