Back at the lab, people were in one of two camps. They were either incredibly concerned about Lindsay's well being or they were displeased by the fact that Lindsay had put herself in danger by exploring a secondary scene without the proper backup. Most people belonged to the first camp and Mac belonged to the second.

Lindsay had a large bump on her head and had, as Danny had predicted, taken a good kick to the area just between her ribs and her stomach, thankfully doing no other damage than leaving her tender and sore.

Lindsay had been called into Mac's office upon returning to the lab. After Stella finished mothering her, Lindsay walked into Mac's office and shut the door. Danny, not wanting to be anywhere near the conversation going on in Mac's office, went to log in and process the evidence.

"Where's Lindsay?" The door to the trace lab had swung open and through it walked Flack. He stared at Danny, waiting for a reply. Danny had only been working on the evidence for about 20 minutes. He found it interesting that in that short amount of time, Flack had already heard about what had happened at the crime scene and made it over to the lab.

"You know, contrary to popular belief… Lindsay and I aren't married. I don't keep up with her every movement." Danny said in jest. When Danny heard a sound come out of Flack that resembled a growl, he began thinking that a smart remark might not have been the best way to answer.

"Yeah, you've really proved that, huh?" Flack shot back.

This got Danny's attention. He looked up from his evidence and threw his hands up in defense. Danny could sense the mix of anger and concern radiating from his body.

"Whoa, Flack…calm down. I don't know where she is, okay? I think she's in Mac's office. And that's not someplace I'd want to be right now, you know?" Danny said.

"What happened today, Danny?" Flack's abrupt anger had dissipated a little, but Danny could still feel it there beneath the surface.

"She went off on her own and didn't take any backup. The suspect was down in the same alley. He saw his chance to get away and from what I can tell threw her up against a dumpster and then gave her a swift kick to the gut to keep her down. I heard the commotion and we all ran down to find her laying in the alley and the guy running away. Lindsay's lucky she isn't hurt more, if you ask me." Danny explained.

"Okay." Flack said more quietly, rubbing one of his hands across the back of his neck. "Thanks. I've got work to do."

Flack turned to leave the trace lab and had opened the door to walk out when Danny's voice stopped him.

"Flack. You know, if you're that concerned about Lindsay…why don't you ask her out? It would be a lot easier on the rest of us." Danny shouted at Flack.

Flack had a mock look of annoyance on his face and turned around to wave Danny and his idea off. Walking down the hall Flack just caught a glimpse of Lindsay in the elevator as the doors closed. He jogged down the hall and turned sharply at the elevator, choosing instead to take the stairs. Flack assumed that Lindsay's meeting with Mac had concluded and that she had been sent home for the day. Flack knew that if he were Mac, that's what he would do.

Exiting the stairwell and building, Flack just saw Lindsay walk around the corner. He jogged to catch up with her.

"Monroe!" Flack shouted, but she didn't turn around. "Hey, Lindsay!" Flack tried again. This time Lindsay stopped, but didn't turn around to look at Flack. Flack caught up with her and put his hand on her shoulder. Turning around, Lindsay sighed and faced Flack with an annoyed look.

"What, Flack?" She demanded.

"What the hell? I run after you to make sure you're okay and you're mad at me?" Flack asked. He was incensed by the treatment he was getting from Lindsay. She had some nerve putting herself at risk and the reputation of the department on the line and then acting as if everything else were the problem.

"Sorry." Lindsay's body seemed to slump in defeat as she talked. "I've had a rough day and I just want to go home."

Flack could have left it there and wished her a safe evening, but Lindsay's attitude had gotten him thinking. It seemed to Flack that she didn't take her safety seriously. Lindsay could have been seriously hurt today, and the more Flack pictured things in his mind the angrier he became.

"What the hell were you thinking today?" Flack demanded.

His tone took Lindsay by surprise. She had expected Mac to reprimand her, but she hadn't been expecting this from Flack. Lindsay turned, trying to walk away and ignore his demand. Flack reached out and grabbed her arm, spinning her back around to face him.

"That guy had killed two women already and you gave him the perfect opportunity to do the same to you…" Flack continued. His voice continued to get louder and more malicious as he continued to picture Lindsay laying on the ground earlier in the day.

"Stop it, please." Lindsay pleaded. She had been beating herself up for this all day and was now more than embarrassed that Flack was berating her for it in public. Lindsay looked down at the sidewalk, hoping that if she looked at the small pebble in front of her long enough that Flack would leave her alone. "I wasn't thinking. Can you please let it go?"

"Damn right you weren't thinking. Are you an idiot or something? You take back up with you. Everyone knows that." Flack practically yelled. He knew that it wasn't completely her fault, but the thought of Lindsay being hurt and him not being able to do anything about it fueled his anger.

Anger seethed through Lindsay's body as she listened to Flack's tirade. Just as quickly as her anger had flared up, Lindsay yanked her arm away from Flack, wincing a little as she moved her bruised muscles, and began to walk dejectedly away.

"You're not going to ignore me, Lindsay." Flack said, jogging up beside her. "How many times have you seen victims laying in the same position that Danny found you in today? Huh? That could have been you! What did you…"

Flack stopped talking as Lindsay turned around sharply to face him, their bodies and faces only inches apart.

"What do you want me to say, Flack?" Lindsay was yelling now, but Flack couldn't hear anger in her voice, he could only hear the mixture of fear and disappointment. "What do you want from me? Please…stop yelling at me. I'm sorry."

Lindsay's voice had dissipated into a hoarse whisper. She looked around, looking anywhere but at Flack's questioning eyes. Had she looked at him, Lindsay would have seen that his eyes had no traces of anger, just care and concern.

"I'm sorry." Flack said, gently pulling Lindsay closer to him using one arm. "I shouldn't have yelled. But I was worried. I want to make sure this doesn't happen again."

Lindsay didn't say anything; she just nodded her head and sniffled a bit.

"I bet Mac was pretty hard on you, huh?" Flack asked sympathetically. Lindsay nodded and turned half of her mouth up into a smile.

"Come on." Flack said, tugging Lindsay in the direction of the parking lot. "I'll take you home. Go home, get some rest and then Danny will take us out for a beer. What do you say?"

Lindsay looked at Flack, finally seeing through the emotions that she had heard and seeing the concern and anxiety etched across his face.

"Sure. And thanks…for caring enough to yell." Lindsay said with a smile.

Lindsay knew that there was probably nothing that she could do to make Flack feel better about what had happened other than to let him take her home. Lindsay and Flack walked towards Flack's car, each appreciating the other's presence and safety.