Only one more chapter after this one, guys.

"I'm no wiser than the fool I was before"

-Paolo Nutini, Last Request

Sam cradled Annie's lifeless body against his chest, not wanting to let her go. Doing so would be like admitting defeat. She couldn't be dead. It was her first day on the job. She'd got so much to live for; so much to learn.

"You bastard." Sam shouted at Chatsworth, who, despite being shot in the leg, was being handcuffed and led away by the armed police. "You better hope they put someone else on your case, because if it's me, I'm going to bloody kill you."

"Go ahead. Pigs like you won't last long in prison, anyway."

Sam was about to retort when Kate's hand squeezed his shoulder gently. "Don't. He's not worth it."

"He fucking killed her."

"I know, Sam, I know."

"What am I going to do? I was supposed to be looking after her. Now...now this." Sam turned to face Kate. "What do I do now?"

"We carry on. We have to."

Tears poured down Sam's face. He wasn't the crying type; usually all his emotions could be channelled through running and sweating it out; or failing that, shouting. "How?"

"I don't know, but we'll find a way." Kate crouched down next to Sam, her own face damp too. She put one hand on top of his. "That's what she would have wanted."

Sam nodded. "Why, though? Why her? He could have turned on any one of us. Why Annie?"

"I don't know. Like you said, it could have been any of us. It's not your fault, Sam."

Leaving Annie's head on his lap, Sam reached out his arms and hugged Kate, burying his head into her shoulder. "It just seems like such a waste of a life."

They sat there for a while, both mourning their fallen colleague until the ambulance crew arrived.

"It's too late," Sam said quietly as one of the paramedics crouched down to check for Annie's pulse.

The paramedic nodded. "I'm sorry."

The rest of the morning passed in a blur. Annie's body was taken away, while uniformed police from the local station arrived to question Sam and Kate. They were eventually dropped back at their station, where they stood in the entrance.

"What do I say to them?" Sam asked.

Kate slipped her hand into his and squeezed it tightly. "You'll find the words. You always do."

Sam nodded. Hands trembling, he made his way up the stairs, using the banister to keep him upright. Kate followed, he knew partly because otherwise he couldn't have done it. She was the only one he had now; Maya had betrayed him and Annie was- he couldn't bring himself to think about it.

He pushed open the door to the office and just stood there, scanning round to see how many of his team were there.

Maya was the first to approach him. "Sam, I-"

Sam held up his hand to silence her. "Don't," he said quietly, his voice nearly breaking. He picked up a stapler from the edge of the nearest desk and banged it a couple of times. The hubbub in the office died down and all attention turned to Sam.

He stared for a minute, until Kate whispered in his ear. "Go on. You've got to do this."

Sam took a deep breath. "I-I don't know how many of you met DC Annie Cartwright this morning. We went to investigate a tip-off about where Billy Chatsworth could be hiding. We found him. Unfortunately, he had a gun and shot Annie."

There were a series of murmurings throughout the department.

"Is she alright?" one of the DCs asked.

Sam shook his head. "Sh-she didn't make it."

Stunned gasps filled the office. Nobody seemed to know quite what to say until Hunt stood up at the back of the office, clapping slowly as he walked towards Sam.

"Well done Tyler, you've got us all well and truly had. Only fault is that it's not April 1st."

Sam stared at him. "Do you really think I'd joke about a colleague being killed? I'm not as sick-minded as you."

"True. I mean, if you were joking, why pretend the new girl's dead? Why not say it was Maya instead? After all, you've got a reason for it with her."

"You shut up about Maya." Sam grabbed Hunt's collar and shoved him up against the wall. "Annie's dead and you're a fucking bastard. Get the hell out of my office. Chatsworth's probably down in the cells; go and speak to him. He's the one who killed her. If you don't believe me maybe you'll believe him."

Hunt pushed Sam away. "I'm the bastard? I'm sorry, who's the one who was shagging the new girl on Saturday night behind your girlfriend's back? Oh yeah, she's not your girlfriend any more."

Sam saw red. He punched Hunt in the face, drawing blood from his nose. Hunt pushed him back, sending him sprawling over the nearest desk. The two grappled, fists and abuse flying with no regard for the rest of the department.

"Stop it!" Maya's voice broke into Sam's consciousness and he felt someone pull him off of Hunt. He turned slightly, crumpling into the arms of whoever was holding him. Maya.

"I couldn't stop him," Sam whispered as he clung to Maya's chest. Tears mixed with blood on his face, both soaking into the female detective's shoulder. "He's a psychopath."

"Who are we talking about here, Hunt or Chatsworth?"

Sam forced a small smile at this. He'd forgotten how quickly Maya could start cheering him up when it all got too much. "I don't know. Both."

Maya let out a chuckle. "Come on, I'll get your face cleaned up."

"I'm fine, honestly."

"No, you're not. And I'm not taking no for an answer right now." Maya turned to Kate, who was sweeping up some broken china from a mug that had been knocked over in the fight. "You're in charge."

Kate stared up at her. "What? But-"

"There's no other senior officers in at the moment, so I'm delegating. Someone sort Hunt out; I'm pretty sure the Super won't want bloodstains everywhere." Maya looped her arm through Sam's and marched him out of the department. She opened the door to the disabled toilet and practically forced him inside.

"You're beginning to make a habit of taking guys to this toilet."

Maya glared at Sam. "Is now really the right time to have this argument? Shut up and pinch your nose, there's blood everywhere."

Sam did as he was told, taking a seat on the toilet lid and catching sight of himself in the mirror as he did so. He was a mess; blood was pouring out of his nose and had stained the top half of his shirt. There was other blood on him as well. Annie's.

Maya wrapped a wad of toilet paper around her hand and dampened it in the sink before using it to wipe Sam's face. He winced as it stung against one of his cuts.

"Stop being a wimp."

Sam sat motionless for a while, just allowing Maya to clean his face. He closed his eyes, trying to relax.

"Sam! Sam!"

"Annie?"

"Sam, you've got to help me go home."

"I'm trying. I promise you, I will help you get back."

"But you're not. You're letting me stay here because you want me to. Let me go, Sam."

"I can't."

"You've got to let me go. You said you'd help me go home. This is the time."

Sam jolted forward, headbutting Maya in the stomach. "No! Now's not your time to go!" He slumped onto the floor, head buried between his knees. "Now isn't your time. It can't be, you've only just got here."

"Sam." Maya crouched down beside him, wrapping her arms around him and making soothing circular motions on his back. "Listen to me. I mean it, Sammy. Look at me. Look at my face."

Sam raised his head slightly, his eyes fixing on Maya's.

"Whatever happened today, it wasn't your fault. Don't go blaming yourself, because I know you, and that's what you're probably going to do. I want to be there for you, if you'll let me. This is going to be tough, but I know you're strong enough to get through this."

Sam rested his head on Maya's shoulders. "Thanks," he whispered. "And I don't want us to end up hating each other."

Maya smiled, holding Sam tight. "Neither do I. Now, are you ready to go out there and face the department again?"

"As ready as I'll ever be."