Linda stared at the hole in the windshield. Her heart was still going a mile a minute, and it took every fiber of her being not to cry. She had to be strong for her boys; she shuttered at the thought that they could've been killed by a bullet.
"He left some blood at the scene, which means I got his DNA now," Danny explained as they drove home. "It's gonna make it real easy to catch this son of a bitch. I notified every hospital in the city. Any gunshot wound shows up anywhere in the city, in any of the five boroughs, and I am the first call they're gonna make. Odds are, a guy like that is in the system, you know? My money says he gets popped tomorrow, and if he does-"
"Danny. Danny." Linda tried to get his attention as he rambled.
"I'm gonna pop him real good, too. Don't worry, babe."
"Just stop."
"Don't worry."
"Just stop talking."
"I promise you I'm gonna get him."
"Stop talking."
"What do you mean, stop talking?"
"Just stop talking, please. Just... stop." She felt her shield fading away. She only needed it for two more minutes, then she could crumble.
"What's wrong?"
"What's wrong? What's wrong, he asks. In case you haven't noticed, we were just shot at. I don't know about you, but there's a ton of things wrong with that scenario!"
"Linda, I'll fi-"
"Just stop."
Linda stared at the wall that night, biting her lip. It was one in the morning, the kids were asleep, Danny was asleep... she should be too. But she couldn't stop seeing the flash; she couldn't stop thinking how close the bullet got; how close she was to losing one of her boys. She let out a shaky breath, clutching her fists. Her bottom lip quivered, and the tears started slipping out. She slipped out of bed and into the en-suite, not wanting to wake Danny.
Linda leaned against the far wall, her eyes scrunched tight. Her body shook with sobs as she sunk to the cool tile, clutching her knees to her chest.
Danny rolled over, intending to pull his scared wife close. When his arm was met with cold sheets, he sat up. He looked towards the bathroom; there was no light seeping through the crack between the door and the floor. He frowned in confusion, got out of bed, and walked to the door. His heart broke when he heard a shattered sob.
Linda's cries were so loud, she didn't hear the door open. She didn't register her husband kneeling in front of her. She felt a hand on her arm, and she practically launched herself into his arms.
Danny held Linda tightly, rocking her back and forth. He stroked her hair, "Shh, it's okay."
"It's not okay!" She sobbed out, clinging to him.
"What?"
"It's n-not o-okay!"
"Of course it's okay. I'm gonna catch the perp, it'll be alright, I promise."
She mumbled something into his shoulder, her sobs becoming heavier with each shaky breath.
"Yes, I can promise that. Everything's going to be okay."
Linda shook her head, arguing through her sobs. Her sobs slowly subsided with each kiss to her head, with each whisper in her ear.
"There," Danny looked down at her, "feel better?"
"No."
"Me neither... Come on, let's go back to bed." He stood up and easily helped her up. Looping an arm around her waist, he led her to their bed. As he expected, she snuggled close to him, her head on his heart. "I love you."
"I love you more."
"I love you most." He kissed her lips, vowing to never let anything like what they had witnessed happen again. Deep down, he knew he couldn't keep that promise, but he was going to do everything in his power to keep Linda, Jack, and Sean in a safe, protective dome.
