A/N: For the people still following this story: thanks so much. I know I'm not updating as much as I did with my other stories, but I promise I'll finish this story!
XX
The next day went by eventless. Andy got along with Oliver pretty well and Oliver hadn't mentioned anything to Sam about her anymore. Oliver stayed up during the night again while Sam and Andy both tried to get some sleep.
Somehow Sam ended up in the bed next to Andy again. They were talking and just before Andy drifted off she asked him to stay with her, so Sam stayed. He didn't want to admit it, but he didn't mind at all. Sleeping next to her felt like the most normal thing in the world.
Andy woke up in a sweat. Before she was fully awake she knew she was having another nightmare. Because she was aware of it she managed to keep herself as calm as possible. She didn't even wake up Sam, so she knew that the nightmares were becoming less intense.
Her head still pounded after she woke up though, so she carefully slipped out of bed. She tiptoed around the bed, careful not to wake Sam. When she was in the hallway she closed the bedroom door again and walked downstairs.
Before she could leave the stairs Oliver was next to her with his gun in his hand. ''Sorry,'' he apologized. ''Heard a noise.''
''It's just me,'' Andy said. ''Sorry, I wasn't thinking.''
''It's fine,'' Oliver promised. ''Can't sleep?''
Andy shrugged and made her way to the living room. She sat down on the couch and pushed her knees up to her chin. ''It's so quiet here,'' she mused out loud. ''No wonder every little noise makes you alert.''
For a moment Oliver just took her in. He probably knew more about Andy than she was aware of. Tommy always talked proudly about his little girl, only she wasn't so little anymore. Oliver knew she was a grown woman now, but still she looked fragile and young.
''Want something to drink?'' he asked her. ''I'm going to grab some water.''
''Glass of water would be nice,'' Andy told him. She took the remote control and changed the channel. When Oliver returned she was watching the latest news. ''God, people are horrible. Who does something like that?'' Andy wondered while she watched the news anchor talk about a double murder.
Oliver didn't respond, he just hummed and took another sip of his drink. ''You holding up okay?'' he wondered. ''Any reason you can't sleep? Sammy snoring?''
He saw Andy's eyes widen for a moment, but she quickly composed herself. ''Just can't sleep,'' she quickly answered. ''You know, strange bed, a lot has happened.''
''You're right,'' Oliver agreed. He didn't want to bring up sleeping arrangements. If Sam said that he knew what he was doing, Oliver had to trust him. With any other colleague Oliver might press harder, but he knew that Sam respected woman too much to cross any boundaries. ''Whenever Zoe can't sleep she usually drinks some tea with honey. According to her it's like a magic trick.''
''That so?'' Andy questioned. She wasn't too confident that it would work. ''I'm good just watching TV for now. I'll probably get tired eventually. Besides, I can sleep in till noon and nobody cares, so.''
''That's not totally true,'' Oliver said. ''Sam told me something about a lake you want to find. He seemed pretty excited about it.''
The look on his face told Andy that Sam told Oliver all about their walk gone wrong. ''We weren't even gone for that long,'' Andy complained. ''He's just being such a big baby about it. He should go camping, get to know a little bit more about nature.''
''Sam and tents don't mix,'' Oliver replied.
''I could've guessed that,'' Andy laughed. ''It's a shame. Camping is so relaxing. Just looking at the stars and enjoy the quiet scenery.''
''I should take my girls when they're a little bit older,'' Oliver agreed. ''Might be nice.''
''It is,'' Andy agreed. ''My dad used to take me every summer. Just the two of us, spending some time together. Mom never wanted to go, always said that he was treating me as if I was a boy. She hated that.''
Just by looking at her Oliver could tell that she wasn't a girly girl. He could imagine her being a tomboy from a young age. ''I think Tommy knew what he was doing.''
''He did,'' Andy said. ''She just didn't see it.'' She let her eyes drop for a moment and fingered the label on her water bottle.
''It's her loss Andy,'' Oliver calmly said. ''Even if she was having trouble with Tommy, she missed out on something really great.''
With a quick shrug Andy brushed it off. ''Who knows,'' she said. ''I was a teenager, got into some trouble. She hated every second of that.''
''Believe me,'' Oliver replied. ''My girls can get into all the trouble in the world, I'd still walk through fire for them. It wasn't your fault. You're supposed to love your kids unconditionally. You don't just walk away when things get though.''
Andy smiled sadly and nodded. ''I guess you're right,'' she agreed. ''Sometimes I just wonder what would've happened if she would've stuck around.''
''With Tommy?'' Oliver questioned.
''With both of us,'' Andy clarified. ''I know everybody knows about his problems. Especially around the division. He tried to keep it a secret, but he wasn't exactly subtle about it.''
Oliver nodded. He was surprised that Andy talked so freely about the situation. Of course she knew that he already knew everything he told her. ''At least he's trying now. He's got you to thank for that.''
With a proud smile Andy shook her head. ''He's doing it by himself.''
''But he's doing it for you,'' Oliver answered. ''You should be proud of yourself. I know he is of you.'' For a moment Oliver just watched Andy smile. Then he noticed the dark circles under her eyes. ''How about some tea with honey? If it won't do the trick at least you tried. I'll make you some.''
''Yeah, it can't hurt to try,'' Andy agreed.
XX
Surprisingly enough the tea actually did do the trick. After drinking it Andy went upstairs again and within ten minutes she was asleep. When she woke that morning Sam had already left the bed, but his side was still warm, so Andy guessed he didn't leave the bed too long ago.
When she got downstairs she only found Sam. ''Oliver gone to bed already?'' Andy wondered.
''Yeah, he was pretty tired,'' Sam explained. ''Nothing interesting happened, so that's usually tiring.''
''But it's a good thing, right?'' Andy smiled. ''I mean, I agree that this is boring, but at least it's safe.''
''That it is,'' Sam agreed. ''You want some?'' he asked as he held up a plate with breakfast. ''Oliver made it, so not sure how it tastes.''
''I'm sure it's fine,'' Andy replied. ''You should have a little more faith in him. He's great.'' When she first met Oliver she hadn't been too sure of him, but now she knew that he was a really good guy. Someone who deserved to wear a badge. At first Andy figured that he was one of those doughnut eating lazy cops, but she knew better now. Her dad had always been fond of him.
''Hey,'' Sam complained. ''That guy is one of my closest friends. I trust him with my life. I just don't trust him in the kitchen.''
Andy chuckled and grabbed the plate anyway. ''It's breakfast. Kind of hard to mess up. Besides, we can't all be chefs like you. And you should be happy he did this. He could've let you make your own.''
''Zoe spoils him too much,'' Sam went on. ''I don't think he cooked a meal since he married her. The only thing he ever makes for himself is toast.''
Andy put a piece in her mouth and chewed. ''Who cares, I like toast,'' she said with her mouth full. ''This isn't too bad.''
Sam took a bite too and shrugged. ''Guess we won't get food poisoning from a piece of toast.''
After breakfast Andy did the dishes. When she was done she showered and got dressed for the day. The routine was already beginning to get old. She was bored as hell, but didn't want to complain. She knew that Sam and Oliver were bored as well and they didn't complain either.
When it was time for lunch Andy quickly made a few sandwiches. Just after they finished eating Oliver joined the land of the living. Andy made him a few sandwiches too and Sam cleaned up after he finished.
The rest of the day was spend just hanging around the house. As weird as the situation was, they had a pretty good routine going on.
After another few hours of hanging around Andy suggested they played a round of poker. Both of the guys seemed to be a little surprised that she knew how to play, but went along with it. After two games, both won by Andy, she stretched her back and rubbed her temples.
''Headache?'' Sam guessed.
''Just a little,'' Andy replied. ''Let's play another hand.''
''Why don't you lie down for a moment,'' Oliver suggested. ''Might be good to try and catch up on some sleep.''
''Maybe,'' Andy hesitated. She really was tired and her head was bothering her more than it had done before. ''I just don't want to sleep too long, or else I won't sleep tonight.''
''Just lie down ,'' Sam suggested. ''It's half past ten. Wouldn't be the end of the world to check in early for a change.''
With a quick nod Andy agreed. She stood up and walked towards the stairs. Sam followed her to make sure that everything was still in check. When he found out that everything was fine he returned to Oliver.
''She okay?'' Oliver asked. ''She was up a big part of the night.''
''Nightmares,'' Sam explained. ''I guess it's just a lot, knowing there's a prize on her head. At first she was trying to shrug it off, but now she knows that someone from the inside is involved. I guess that makes it more real.''
Oliver shook his head and bit on the inside of his cheek. ''Son of a bitch,'' he complained. ''I looked it up, at least 15 cops were hurt while trying to take down Kite. None of the accusations ever stick.''
Of course Sam knew why Oliver got so mad. Someone hurting their colleagues was always bad, but the fact that Kite actually had someone on the inside was enough to make their blood boil.
''They're going to catch him, IA is all over it. You can't pull of stuff like this for years and not leave some evidence.''
''Wouldn't be the first time,'' Oliver complained. ''You remember that investigation at 27th?''
Sam nodded and put down his cards. Everybody knew about a dirty detective from 27th division. They found enough to fire him, but not enough to prosecute him. Everybody knew that he was involved in a lot more than he admitted, but since there was no evidence IA didn't have a leg to stand on.
''It's a disgrace to the badge, that what it is,'' Oliver went on. ''Picking money over people's lives, people's families.
Of course Sam completely agreed with Oliver. Loyalty was the base of their friendship and both of them knew it. ''Just hope Tommy won't get back to his old habits if this thing takes too long.''
''He seemed to be handling everything okay, just really worried about Andy.'' Oliver took a sip of his drink and sighed. ''You know the risks of this job the moment they give you the badge. You just don't think somebody will go after your family.''
There wasn't much to say, so Sam just stayed silent. After a minute he raised his finger to Oliver and got out of the chair. ''You hear that?'' he whispered.
Both took their gun as a reflex and headed towards the sound. Systematically they searched the entire house, but found nothing.
When they reached the living room again, Sam dropped his gun on the table. ''Am I going crazy or did I definitely hear something?''
''Heard it too,'' Oliver agreed. He walked towards the window and looked outside. ''Maybe it was coming from outside?'' He kept looking, but didn't see anything out of the ordinary. ''Call it in?''
''And say we might have heard something?'' Sam asked. ''Could've been an animal for all we know.''
''Something feels off,'' Oliver continued. ''I just can't put my finger on it.''
As much as Sam agreed, they really didn't have anything to call in. Just to be sure Sam called to the station to ask if there was any new information. There were no new developments though, so there was not much they could do but wait.
Another hour past by without anything happening. Sam checked on Andy, but she was in a deep sleep. Both of the men started to believe that their imagination was playing tricks on them.
''Why don't you go get some sleep?'' Sam suggested after a while. ''I'll take the night.''
Oliver looked outside again and then turned to Sam. ''I think I'll stay up for a while,'' he said. ''See if everything stays quiet.''
Neither of them said anything, but by looking at the other both men knew that their gut feeling said that something was off. ''Okay,'' Sam agreed. He checked all the doors, but nothing had changed.
After a while Oliver called out Sam's name. Sam rushed to the window and peered outside ''Someone's outside,'' Oliver said. ''I saw a flashlight.''
''You sure?'' Sam asked.
''Positive,'' Oliver answered. ''There is definitely someone there.''
Immediately Sam took his gun out of the waistband of his jeans. ''We should wait it out,'' he said. ''We don't know who it is, might be someone lost.''
The chances of that being true were slim to none. Nobody lost would walk away as soon as they saw a house. Besides, most people wouldn't go out hiking late at night.
Without thinking about it Sam took his cell phone and called to the station again. He told them what he knew and even though it wasn't much, backup was send their way.
''Wake up McNally?'' Oliver asked.
''Not yet,'' Sam answered. ''We don't know anything yet and I don't want to spook her for nothing. Let's wait until back up is here.''
Before Sam finished his sentence Oliver's facial expression changed. ''You smell that?'' he asked as he started to walk towards the staircase. What they found there stopped Sam's heart for a second.
There was a lot of smoke in the hallway. Sam didn't hesitate and immediately ran towards the stairs. He saw there was a fire upstairs, but that didn't stop him from going there. At the academy they learned some basics for how to handle a fire, so Sam knew what he could and couldn't do.
''McNally,'' he yelled. ''McNally,'' he tried again.
There was no answer and it was nearly impossible to reach the bedroom. ''Oliver, see if you can get to the bedroom from the outside,'' Sam yelled. He used a jacket to stop the flames, but the progress he made went to slow for his liking.
''McNally!'' he tried one more time. ''Come on.''
Without anything to protect himself Sam burned his arm while trying to reach the bedroom. He couldn't care less about the burns though, he just needed to get Andy out of there.
He was too busy to think about how the fire started, but he knew Andy didn't stand a chance if the fire started in the bedroom. Pushing those thoughts to the side, Sam continued his journey upstairs. He did his best to cover his mouth as much as possible, trying to stop the smoke from knocking him out.
After what felt like hours, Sam finally made his way to the bedroom. ''Andy,'' he yelled as soon as he saw her. Thankfully the fire hadn't started in the bedroom, but the room was covered in smoke. ''Andy, wake up,'' Sam yelled.
Slowly Andy's eyes fluttered open. She seemed to be disorientated and wasn't responding the way Sam would like. ''McNally, we gotta move,'' Sam said, not wasting any time.
Looking behind him, Sam saw that they had no other option but jump out of the window. With the last powers he had in him he managed to open the window. He knew that the new oxygen in the house would only make the fire worse, but he saw no other option.
''You've got to jump McNally,'' Sam said.
He saw how Andy shook her head, but he didn't give her any time to over think it. He helped Andy up and watched as she jumped forwards. Without wasting any more time, Sam followed her.
Somehow Sam managed to land without hurting himself. He saw that Andy didn't have the same luck. Her leg was bended in a very uncomfortable way and he didn't need a doctor to tell him it was broken.
''Oliver,'' Sam yelled. ''Shaw, where are you?''
As soon as he saw Oliver running out of the house Sam closed his eyes for a second. He was thanking God or whoever was upstairs that all of them made it out. Both of the guys made their way towards Andy. She was trying to move, but Oliver quickly got behind her and pulled her down. ''McNally, you got to lie back,'' he said. ''Back up will arrive.''
''No,'' Andy said while shaking her head.
''McNally,'' Sam stopped her. ''Stop talking. Just try to breathe. Take slow breaths, okay? Can you do that for me?''
While Sam tried to get Andy to listen, Oliver called to put a rush on the backup. He told them they needed medics and a fire truck as well.
Backup arrived ten minutes later, but there was not much they could do besides canvas the area. It took another ten minutes for the medics and the hose monkeys to arrive. The safe house was too deserted for them to arrive any sooner.
Everybody's first priority was Andy, she took the majority of the smoke inhalation and there was her leg to worry about. When one of the uniformed officers offered to ride to the hospital with Andy, Sam protested. ''She's not going without one of us,'' he said while gesturing between himself and Oliver.
''Sir,'' the EMT protested. ''A second ambulance will arrive in a few minutes, they'll take you. You both need to get checked out as well.''
''She's in protective custody,'' Sam clarified. ''She only goes if my colleague or me is with her.''
The EMT looked at her colleague and shrugged. ''It's your own responsibility. I think you should get checked out first.''
''I'll risk it,'' Sam replied. He signed to Oliver that he was riding with Andy.
Oliver knew it wasn't a good idea, but sending someone they didn't know with Andy wasn't a good idea either. He gave Sam a quick nod of understanding and turned back to his colleagues.
XX
When they were in the hospital everything went way too slow for Sam's liking. A nurse was attending to his burns, but all he wanted was to see how Oliver and Andy were doing.
He knew he had to give a statement and get yelled at by Tommy, something he wasn't looking forward to. He still didn't get how the fire started. Of course it couldn't be a simple coincidence, but Sam didn't get how anybody would be able to start a fire on the first floor.
What he also didn't get was why they choice a fire. There were a lot more effective ways to kill a person.
Even though Andy and Oliver were alive when he last saw them, he knew smoke inhalation could be dangerous for hours after it had happened. The nurse yelled at him about that when he refused to let someone take a look at him.
Noelle was now with Andy, so that was one less thing to worry about. Sam still had to meet the first person that would be able to get past Williams.
When the curtain that surrounded his bed moved, Sam's head snapped up. ''You're not looking as pretty as you used to?'' Jerry greeted him. ''Some nasty burns I understand.''
''Sir,'' the nurse said. ''The curtains were closed for a reason.''
''It's okay,'' Sam promised. ''I know him.'' He turned towards Jerry and raised eyebrow. ''Any word on McNally and Shaw?''
''Just saw Oliver. They're keeping him for observation. Probably will be able to go home in the morning. And McNally's kid is in surgery.''
''Surgery?'' Sam asked. ''What for?''
''Not sure,'' Jerry answered. ''They won't tell us anything until McNally is here.''
''He isn't here yet?'' Sam asked surprised. He figured that Tommy would've jumped in the car the second he heard his daughter was heard.
''They're taking precautions. Won't let Tommy wander around alone. This is the second time someone tried to kill his daughter and failed. Higher ups are afraid that whoever is behind this might get a little frustrated and take it out on Tommy.''
''Still no lead on who is behind all of this?''
''Nobody told you?'' Jerry wondered. He grabbed a chair and sat down next to the small bed. ''There's a list with seven names from seven different divisions. Apparently they're all on Kite's payroll.''
Sam whistled and laid back down. ''Evidence?''
''They're working on it. I heard they caught two guys near the house you were staying. IA is hoping they'll talk'' Jerry noticed the grimace on Sam's face. ''It's just a matter of time now. The ball will start rolling.''
''Let's hope so,'' Sam answered. He closed his eyes and nearly drifted off until the nurse made a move that made him curse out loud.
''Sorry,'' she apologized. ''But I'm done now. Do you want any painkillers or is it bearable?''
''I'll live,'' Sam answered. He sat up again and looked at his arm. It was covered in a bandage. ''I probably won't be allowed to leave either, am I?''
''Observation for inhalation trauma,'' the nurse told him. ''Doctor wants you here for at least twelve hours. Monitor your vitals and check for any other signs of damage.''
Sam wasn't too happy about that, but he knew she was just doing her job. ''Okay,'' he agreed. ''Do you have any information about the girl I got here with? Andy McNally?''
''You know we're not allowed to give out personal information,'' the nurse told him apologetic. ''I'm sure someone will update you as soon as possible.''
''Wouldn't be too sure of that,'' Sam muttered under his breath. He was pretty sure Tommy wouldn't talk to him ever again. He trusted him with Andy and Sam felt like he failed to protect her. He made her jump out of a window which caused a broken leg. Sam didn't think Tommy would be able to forget about that, ever.
The nurse cleaned up around him and then left to get a wheelchair. ''I can walk,'' Sam argued. ''Nothing wrong with my legs.'' He stood up and stretched his legs to make a point.
The nurse rolled her eyes, but didn't make any comments. ''Whatever you want,'' she replied. ''I'll take you to your room.''
After a short walk she pointed towards a door. Sam walked through it and found Oliver sitting on one of the two beds. ''Sammy,'' Oliver smiled. ''They told me I would get a roommate.''
''You're okay?'' Sam asked.
''Perfectly fine,'' Oliver answered. ''But nobody will let me go home. Already send Jerry to get us something to eat. How's that arm of yours?''
''Nothing that won't heal,'' Sam answered. ''You heard anything about Andy?''
''Jerry said she was in surgery, but I don't have any specifics,'' Oliver said. ''My guess is that they're fixing that leg of hers. Didn't look to good.''
Sam sat down on the bed and shook his head. ''I practically shoved her out of the window.''
''You didn't have much of a choice,'' Oliver told him. ''I'm sure everybody knows that.''
''How the hell did they manage to start a fire there?'' Sam wondered out loud. ''We checked the house multiple times. There was nobody there. And why the hell did they choose to start a fire. They could've known that we would find out before it killed her.''
''I have no idea,'' Oliver honestly answered. ''I guess we should just be thankful they didn't think it through. Could have been a lot worse.''
Sam swallowed and laid down. ''You don't know that,'' he said. ''We don't know how she is.''
XX
Twenty minutes later Tommy walked into their room. Sam saw that Frank and someone out of uniform were with him, but they waited outside the room.
As soon as they saw the detective Sam and Oliver got off their beds. ''Tommy,'' Sam said. ''How is Andy?''
''She'll be fine,'' Tommy answered. ''She had surgery on her leg, minor procedure. Will probably run around again in six weeks.''
Sam let out a breath and closed his eyes. He had been more worried than he cared to admit. Somehow Andy managed to get under his skin in a way nobody ever did before. ''I'm so sorry, I don't know how any of this happened. We checked the house over and over again and there wasn't anything off.''
Tommy took a step forward and placed a hand on Sam's shoulder. ''I don't blame you son,'' he said. ''I'm thankful even. Not everybody would have had the guts to run towards the fire to get her out.''
''It's our jobs,'' Sam brushed it off. ''We were there to protect her, so we did what we had to do.''
''Still,'' Tommy replied. ''You two did it. I just wanted to thank you, I'll go see if Andy's awake now.''
''Tell her we said hi. And that we're glad she's okay,'' Oliver told Tommy. ''We'll stop by after she got some rest.''
As soon as Tommy left, Sam took a deep breath. He had been pretty anxious about Tommy's reaction, but apparently he didn't have anything to worry about.
Just another minute later a nurse walked in. Behind her was a man in a suit, someone Sam didn't recognize. The nurse didn't look to happy, but Sam didn't know what to make of that.
''Gentleman,'' the man greeted them. ''Apparently nobody here realised it's not a good idea to put two witnesses in the same room.'' The tone in his voice was a just as cold as the fake smile on his face. ''But I would like to speak to the two of you, separately. Officer Swarek, if you'd come with me?''
Sam glared at Oliver, but followed the guy anyway. He got grilled about how it was possible that a civilian guarded by two officers nearly died anyway. Sam didn't have many answers, but took everything that the guy had to say.
After he was done with Sam, Oliver got his turn. He didn't get treated any differently than Sam.
''Well, that guy was a treat,'' Oliver said after he returned to their room. ''You think we're on his list?''
''Don't think so,'' Sam answered. ''Just feeling us out. If we were involved we wouldn't have gotten her out of there. They know that.''
''True,'' Oliver answered. ''Jerry still not back? I'm hungry.''
XX
Next up: Sam visits Andy.