Sharon looked at the two simple keys that rested in her palm. She had investigated enough murders to know the standard procedures that involved processing a crime scene, but it still surprised her to receive the keys to Lauren and Rainie's house from Provenza.

At Provenza's request, she had arrived with Rainie at the PAB so that he could interview Rainie. It was almost an impossible task since both Rainie's will to get out of bed that morning and her willingness to recall the day of the murder were nonexistent. Sharon tried to be as sensitive as possible to her daughter's emotional pain and reiterated her statement's importance, hoping to give Rainie a sense of purpose, but to no avail. As soon as the interview was over, Rainie escaped from the murder room and disappeared from Sharon's sight.

Provenza had motioned towards her office, where they went to have a discussion. The team found a match to the DNA from Rainie and Lauren's kitchen, and it turned out that the suspect had sustained an almost fatal gunshot wound while trying to break into another house in the same neighborhood. He was hovering between life and death, and at this moment, Sharon felt nothing but a hope that he would not live to stand a trial. Rainie didn't need to become a witness again or to relive the painful memories.

At the end of their conversation, Provenza notified Sharon that the team had finished processing the evidence at the house and handed Sharon the keys. As far as he was concerned, Rainie could return there if she wished, but Sharon wasn't sure if that was what her daughter wanted. Everything was still very raw.

Their conversation was cut short when Chief Mason knocked on the door. Provenza, always suspicious of the top brass, gave the younger man a skeptical look but left Sharon's office to let them talk.

"I know you're not back to work yet, Commander, but there's something I need to discuss with you," the chief started.

Sharon motioned for him to sit, and he pulled a chair and sat in front of her.

"Normally, I'd ask you into my office for something like this, but I wanted to make sure I'll catch you before you left," he said.

Sharon nodded, awaiting what the chief had to say.

"There's an opportunity opening up at the LAPD," the chief said. "We are looking at different candidates, and I feel that you'll be a perfect fit. I'd hate for you to miss the chance just because of everything that's going on in your life right now."

At almost seventy, Sharon had given up the idea of advancing further in the ranks. Her promotion to Commander a few years ago seemed to be the top she could achieve at the LAPD, and Sharon was perfectly content with her job.

"Do you remember how a few years back, when we both ran for the Assistant Chief position, you had this incredible idea about promoting talent from within the force?"

Sharon nodded. That was an idea she pitched at her interview, but it didn't seem to impress anyone at the time. When she shared it with Mason, shortly after he was chosen for the position, he found the idea alluring, but the idea could not be pushed forward due to budget constraints.

"Well, it's been several years, and I finally managed to convince the Police Committee that your idea is brilliant, so as you've proposed in the past, we are setting up a new unit. I want you to submit an application to lead it."

Sharon's eyes widened. She had not expected that after all those years, she'd still be considered for new positions. She listened to the chief explaining all about the Leadership Unit. As the head of this unit, Sharon would be in charge of creating accelerated promotion routes for officers and making it possible for marginalized talents to achieve leadership roles in the force. When she first thought of this idea, a few years back, Sharon remembered her conversation with Chief Johnson about how women could progress their careers in the force. Now here was an opportunity for Sharon to progress and to help other women do the same.

"I'm flattered, but I'll have to think about it," Sharon said.

"Sure, you have until next Thursday to submit your application."

After he left her office, Sharon sat and pondered the idea of a promotion. There wasn't much for her to think about because she was interested in the position, but she wanted to consult with Andy first. A few minutes later, she pushed her chair back and went out of her office to look for Rainie.

"Where did Rainie go?" Sharon asked Provenza when she couldn't stop her daughter.

He shrugged but turned towards the rest of the team and hollered, "Did anyone see where Ms. Bauer-Flynn went?"

"I believe that she was heading towards the emergency stairs," Tao informed them.

Since the Major Crimes Division was located on the 9th out of 10 floors in PAB, Sharon assumed Rainie had gone upstairs. She had an idea where her daughter could have gone. After confirming with Provenza that he didn't need her for anything else, Sharon took the elevator to the 10th floor. She went through a door that led to the large balcony where Rainie often had lunch when she had her security detail nearly a decade earlier. She was right. Rainie was the only one there at this time of day, and she was leaning against the railing and staring at the Downtown LA skyline.

"I thought I might find you here," Sharon said as she approached her daughter.

She could hear Rainie sniffling.

"It's been a while since you spent time here," Sharon said. "Remember how you used to run away from your security detail and hide up here?"

Sharon noticed that Rainie was clutching something in her hand. When she neared her daughter, she could see it was Lauren's pregnancy test. She assumed Rainie would be taking it everywhere in the near future.

"You did great in there, sweetie. And we're very close to catching the person who did it." Sharon informed her.

"I don't care," Rainie said.

"I do. I think bringing justice to Lauren will—"

"How will catching this person help Lauren, huh?" Rainie turned around to face Sharon. "Will it bring her back? Will it bring our child back? Will it erase the sight of her lying in a pool of blood on the floor from my mind?"

The anger that reflected in Rainie's eyes scared Sharon. She knew it was a normal reaction to grief, but this – such fury – was new.

"No, it won't do any of that," Sharon said calmly. "But it will ensure that he doesn't do to anyone else what he did to Lauren."

"Is he going to get a deal?" Rainie asked. "Because I want to watch them fry that son of a bitch."

"He was shot, and it's likely that he won't survive. And if it's any consolation, I am happy that he is suffering. I also want to see him pay for what he's done," Sharon said.

The fire in Rainie's eyes died down. It was as if all the energy left her at once, and she collapsed into Sharon's arms and began to sob.

Sharon stroked her daughter's coppery hair and felt tears flowing down her face as well. There was nothing she could say or do to alleviate her daughter's pain or her own. All she could do was hold Rainie close and make sure she knew that she was not alone in the world.

-TBC-