DISCLAIMER: I do not own these characters, except for Matthew and Moxie. The rest of them belong to James Duff and the Major Crimes franchise.

Chapter 14

Sharon sat on a chair in the waiting area while Andy went with Sergeant Staples. Provenza sat down next to her. "Captain, I sent Julio, Amy, and Buzz to Missy's apartment, they are meeting SIS there to conduct a search" Provenza stated to Sharon. "Okay" Sharon said back to him as she leaned back in her chair. Provenza looked at her. "Are you sure you don't want to head back, Captain? You and I both know how long FID could take in this matter, perhaps you could go back to the office with Mike and I'll wait for Flynn" Provenza said gently to her. Sharon shook her head no, and winced while she did that. Provenza let her be as they waited for Andy to be finished with Sergeant Staples. Julio called Provenza's cell phone and he answered it as he sat next to Sharon. "Yes Julio" he said.

"Sir, we are here at Missy's apartment and there's some crazy stuff here" Julio said to Provenza over the phone as he looked back at the wall that was covered with photos. "There's evidence here that Missy was following the Captain, sir" he added. "Is Buzz filming all of it?" Provenza said as he looked at Sharon. "Yes sir" Julio said. "Oh, and we found another note that she wrote, but never sent out" Julio stated to Provenza. "Okay, collect everything there and bring it back to the office" Provenza said to him. "Yes sir" Julio said as he hung up. "She was pretty sick" Julio said to Amy who was placing all the photos into an evidence bag. "I think that's just the tip of it" Amy said back to him as Buzz was still filming the room.

"Okay, Lieutenant, I just have a few questions on the shooting incident" Sergeant Staples said to Andy as he moved some papers around. "I heard Lieutenant Tao and Detective Sanchez's accounts of the shooting and now I need to hear yours since you were the officer that shot Missy Braxton" Sergeant Staples said. "When did you first encounter Missy?" he asked Andy. Andy flashed back to when he opened the bathroom door and saw Sharon with a knife at her throat. "I had called out to the Captain, asking her if she was alright inside the bathroom and she said no" Andy started to tell him before the Sergeant interrupted him. "Do you make it a habit of standing outside bathrooms, Lieutenant?" he asked Andy. "When there's a threat to my Captain, yes." Andy said as he was slightly agitated. "Go on" Staples said to him. "I opened the door and saw Missy standing behind Sharon holding a knife to her throat. I immediately drew my weapon and pointed it at Missy, telling her to drop her weapon" Andy said to Staples. "And what did she do at this point?" Staples asked him. "She kept holding Sharon and the knife to her throat as she started to move them forwards out of the bathroom. She said that her and Sharon were going to have a talk" Andy said to him. "A talk about what?" Staples asked. "Bill Croelick, a suspect from previous incidents" Andy said back to him. "At this point as you were talking to Missy, did anyone else come to assist you?" Staples asked. "I yelled towards the office door for someone to help and Mike and Julio came out of the office and were on site" Andy said back to Staples.

"Then what happened?" Staples asked him. "We moved further into the hallway, which was clear. I asked Julio or Mike if they had a shot. Julio said yes and Missy turned her along with Sharon towards Julio. The shot opened up for me so I took it" Andy said to him. Staples was writing this all down on his notepad. Sharon's face flashed in Andy's mind right before he shot Missy. "Lieutenant?" Staples said trying to get Andy's attention. "Lieutenant?" he said again. Andy looked at Staples. "I'm sorry, what where you asking?" Andy said to him. "Was shooting her your only option?" Staples asked him. "Yes, I tried giving her commands but she wasn't complying, she had a knife pressed up into the Captain's throat, and I wasn't going to risk harm to the Captain any more than she already had so, yes, shooting Missy was the only option" Andy said to Staples. "Was the knife pressed up into the Captain's throat or your wife's throat?" Staples added one more question. "Both" Andy answered him and then leaned back against the chair. "Are we done here, because I really need to get back to the Captain and head back to the office" Andy asked him. Staples looked at Andy and then at his notes. "Yes, thank you for your cooperation, Lieutenant. You know the drill, you need to meet with Behavioral Sciences before you can return to active duty. And, you will get your weapon back as soon as we are done with the investigation" Staples said to Andy as they both stood up. Staples held out his hand to shake Andy's hand. Andy hesitated but shook his hand.

Andy returned back to where Sharon, Provenza, and Mike were waiting. "How did it go?" Sharon asked Andy. Andy looked back at where Staples still was at the table and then looked at Sharon. "Fine" he said back to her. "Are you ready to go?" Andy asked her. She nodded her head and all four of them left the hospital. Sharon and Andy sat in the back seat of the car that Provenza and Mike were in. Sharon leaned her head on Andy's shoulder as Provenza drove them back to the PAB. "When we get back, why don't I take you home, you can relax there and" Andy started to say to Sharon before she interrupted him. "No, I want to know what exactly happened, and about the detail that was mentioned earlier by Chief Howard" Sharon said to him.

They arrived back at the office. Sharon headed into her office and closed the door behind her leaving Andy wondering if she was going to shut him out. Andy then made his way towards his desk and picked up his phone to call Behavioral Sciences and made an appointment with them. Chief Howard walked into the Murder Room and headed for Sharon's office. He stopped at Andy's desk. "Good work Lieutenant. You kept things in control. It could have been a lot worse" Howard said to Andy. Andy looked back at the Chief and nodded. He was tired of that saying 'it could have been a lot worse'. Of course he knew that! Sharon could have been killed by that crazy Missy. He wanted to say that but instead, he just nodded and the Chief walked into Sharon's office.

"Captain, how are you feeling?" Chief Howard asked her as he sat down in front of her desk. "Lucky to be alive" Sharon quietly said to him. "What can I do for you Chief?" Sharon asked him. "Is your team back from Missy's apartment?" Chief Howard said. "No, I believe they are still there. Lieutenant Provenza knows more about that" Sharon said to him. "I am going to sit down and have a meeting with Lieutenant Cooper to discuss where the break down on the surveillance occurred" Chief Howard said to her. Sharon looked across her desk at him. "You were hurt under my watch and I am going to find out what exactly happened" he continued to say to her. "I don't want this to be dragged into an inquiry. People slip their tails all the time, you know that Chief" Sharon said back to him. "I just want to move forward. Thanksgiving is on Thursday and we are moving to the new house tomorrow" Sharon started to say to him as she looked up and saw Julio, Amy, and Buzz return along with Lieutenant Cooper.

Sharon got up from her seat and headed towards the door. "Anything else, Chief?" she said back to him as he was still sitting. "I am glad that you are okay, Sharon" Chief Howard said as he got up and followed her out of her office. Sharon joined Andy and the others at Julio's desk where they gathered to see all of the evidence that was brought in from Missy's apartment. "Ma'am, this Missy was watching you for a couple of days" Julio said to her as he handed some photos to Sharon. They were of her, Matthew, and Andy at the park they took Matthew to. That brought a chill to Sharon's spine. Sharon cleared her throat. "Did you find anything else, Detective?" she asked Julio. "Yes, this letter that she never sent out" Julio said as he handed her the letter. Andy was looking at the pictures and then saw all of the prescription bottles in Missy's name that Amy started placing on the desk. "All of these were her prescription medications?" Andy asked. "Yep, all in her name" Amy said back to him.

Sharon looked at the letter and placed her hand on her mouth as she couldn't believe the words she was reading. In Missy's mind, she thought Sharon posed a threat to her and Bill's happiness so she had to get rid of Sharon. She couldn't have another LAPD officer bring Bill's good name and drag it in the ground, according to the letter. Andy looked at Sharon. He could tell she was shaking trying to read that letter and stood up by her and laid his hand on her arm, reassuring her. Sharon shook her head as she handed the letter to Andy and then walked back to her office. Andy watched her and then read the letter himself. He looked up at Provenza and handed the letter to him. Provenza read it, looked back at Andy, and then sat down. This particular letter was more graphic than the ones that Croelick had brought them the other day.

Meanwhile, Lieutenant Cooper saw Sharon go back into her office and he knocked on her door. "Come in" she said clearing her throat. "Sorry to bother you Captain, but I just wanted to apologize for the slip this morning" Cooper said to her. "We had her at her apartment early this morning, and then she must have slipped out back" Cooper added. "It happens, Lieutenant" Sharon said back to him. He could tell Sharon was still a little bit shaken up and decided that it was best to leave her office. He nodded at Sharon and then left, heading out to where Chief Howard was at. "I heard you wanted to see me" Cooper said to Chief Howard. "Yes, let's go to my office" Chief Howard said to him and then they walked out of the Murder Room.

An hour later, Andy knocked on her office door. "Come in" Sharon said in a quiet voice. Andy walked in and closed the door behind him. He walked over to where she was sitting at her desk and leaned up on it. He held out his hand and she took it in hers. "How are you doing?" he asked her. "I'm okay, Andy" she said to him. "When are you seeing Behavioral Sciences?" she asked him. He glanced at his watch. "In about an hour" he answered her. "I just wanted to check on you before I went" Andy said to her as he looked down at her sitting at her desk. "I'm fine, really" she said. He gave her a worried look. "Sharon, that letter contained threats and those pictures, as much as I hate to say this, I guess Croelick was right, she was at the park watching us" Andy said to her in a soft voice. She looked at him for a while. She was also concerned about him. "Are you going to go to a meeting tonight?" Sharon asked him quietly. "Yes, but I want to make sure I get you and everyone else home and safe before I go to one tonight" Andy said to her.

The hour had come and Andy found himself standing outside the Behavioral Sciences office. He hated seeing them but it was mandatory after an officer involved shooting in order to be released back to duty. He walked in and told the person at the desk he had an appointment. She told him to take a seat and they would be with him shortly. Andy waited and was looking at all the picture frames on the wall, it looked like they were from an art gallery. The counselor came out and called Andy's name. He followed her into a smaller office and had a seat in there. "So, Lieutenant, I understand you were involved in a shooting earlier this morning" she said to him. "Yes" Andy said. "Tell me about it" she said to him. Andy looked back at the counselor and took a deep breath.

"My division had caught a case last week about arson fires. We investigated them and it brought back an arsonist from my past, Croelick. He decided to show up at the PAB one day and somehow we thought he was involved. It turned out it was his crazy ex-girlfriend and we arrested her for the arson. I thought everything would settle down, but it picked up. My Captain's building had a small fire started in her basement and we suspected Croelick for it and decided to look into it further" Andy started to say as the counselor listened to him talk. "Anyways long story short, turns out this Missy Braxton was the one that was going after the Captain" Andy said to her. "The Captain, Lieutenant, who happens to be your wife" she said to him. He looked up at her sitting across from him. "Yes, she's my wife. What does that have to do with anything?" Andy said back to her. "It's a fact, Lieutenant, that's all" she said. "I had placed a detail on her to follow and track her every move but something happened this morning and she slipped through the detail and came into the PAB. The Captain informed me that she was going to use the bathroom and I went with her and stood outside due to the threatening letters Croelick brought to our attention" Andy said as he had a flashback to this morning.

"I knocked on the door because I was wondering what was taking so long and asked her if everything was alright. Sharon said no and then I opened the door to see Missy standing there with a knife to the Captain's throat so I drew my weapon and pointed it at Missy. I gave her verbal commands to drop the weapon and to let the Captain go but she wasn't listening and the knife kept digging further into Sharon's neck. I called for help hoping one of the guys would hear me in our office and then when they came out, we moved further into the hallway, which was clear. I asked Julio or Mike if they had a shot. Julio said yes and Missy turned herself along with Sharon towards Julio. The shot opened up for me so I took it" Andy said to her. "You referred to the Captain as Sharon three times, Lieutenant" she started to say to him. "Yeah, so" he said as he shrugged his shoulders. "I just want to be sure that you are not affected by this shooting Lieutenant. I mean, essentially your wife was held hostage in front of you. You shot the person who was holding your wife. I needed you to differentiate between the Captain and your wife, Sharon" she said to him. "Watching a loved one being in danger is a difficult thing to do, and you had to do it not once, but three times in the past couple of months" she continued. Andy looked at her with a confused look on his face. "Dwight Darnell shooting, the Philip Stroh incident, and now Missy Braxton shooting" she said back to Andy. Andy stared at her. "It can be very difficult and can mess with a lot in our heads" she concluded to him. Andy nodded back to her.

An hour later, Andy walked back into the Murder Room, cleared by Behavioral Sciences but still waiting for FID. There was no one in the office at that moment. Andy made his way over to the video room where he saw Sharon there sitting down at the table. Everyone else was there as well. Buzz was setting up the camera footage from this morning of the PAB lobby to see how Missy was able to walk right in, so to speak. Andy came in and sat next to Sharon. Sharon gave him a look and Andy nodded and gave her a smile. Everyone then turned their attention to the screens in front of them and watched the video footage. "Okay, that's Missy walking in with a group of people" Julio pointed out to them as they watched it. "If everyone has to go through the metal detector to get through, then how was Missy able to bring a knife in?" Amy asked the group. "Captain, Missy gets in line here and then look what happens. She goes through but nothing goes off and she walks over to the directory board" Buzz said. "So where did she get the knife from?" Andy said. The footage then shows Missy heading into an elevator. She steps out on their floor and looks around. She pulls out the knife she used on Sharon. Someone comes down the hallway and they see Missy duck into the bathroom.

"So, when Missy stepped out of the elevator she proceeds to the hallway where our office is but then is spooked by someone walking down the hallway and ducks into the bathroom" Provenza said. "Where I encounter her a couple of minutes later" Sharon added. "So, she was able to somehow get the knife through security" Sharon said as she looked back at the screen. "Chief Howard informed me earlier that he is going to be inquiring as to how this happened. Buzz I would like for you to give this footage to him so that he can proceed. Thank you everyone" Sharon said as she got up and proceed down the hallway back to her office. Andy stood up and wanted to follow Sharon but Provenza stopped and asked him about his meeting with the shrink. "So, how did it go?" he asked him. "Fine, just waiting to be cleared by FID now" Andy said and then continued to walk towards Sharon's office.

Andy joined Sharon just as she walked through her office door. He followed her in and sat down in one of the chairs in front of her desk. "So, Behavioral Sciences cleared you?" she asked him as she looked at some papers on her desk. "Yes, they did. I'm just waiting for your friends down at FID to do the same" Andy said to her. "Look, Sharon, I" Andy said but was interrupted by Sharon. "I was thinking that we should head home. Matthew is going to be released from school soon and it would be nice to pick him up on time" Sharon said to Andy. Andy was going to suggest the same thing but Sharon had beaten him to the punch. "I was going to suggest that" Andy said to her and smiled. "We need to tell our kids too Sharon, both Rusty and Matthew are going to see your bandage there and ask questions" he added. "I know, I just want to be cautious with Matthew when we tell him" she said. Sharon's phone rang and she answered it. "Yes Sergeant, he's right here" she said as she handed the phone to Andy. "It's Staples" she said to him. Andy spoke into the phone and nodded to whatever Staples was telling him. "Thank you" he said as he hung up. "They cleared me" he said to Sharon. "He said that he will be up here in about ten minutes, so after that we can go" Andy said to her. "Can you tell Lieutenant Provenza what we are going to do" Sharon asked Andy. "Sure" Andy said, nodded back to her and then stood up. He was still worried about her but was glad she suggested leaving early.

Andy spoke to Provenza that they were leaving and he was taking Sharon home. "It's about time" Provenza said to him as he glanced back at Sharon's office. Sergeant Staples came in and handed Andy his gun back. Sharon told the team to have a good night and not to stay too late working paperwork. "Remember, both Andy and I are off tomorrow for the move. I expect you to call me if anything comes up, Lieutenant" Sharon said to Provenza. Sharon then turned to everyone. "I expect all of you to come over to our new house for Thanksgiving, you don't have to stay long but it would be nice to see all of you" Sharon said and then her and Andy left. "What's up, sir?" Julio said to Provenza as he looked at the Lieutenant who's face turned with worry. "I'm just worried about the Captain, but don't tell anyone I said that" Provenza said as he pointed at Julio.

They made their way down to their car and headed over to Matthew's school. As they drove over to the school, Andy glanced over at Sharon who placed her hand on top of his on the gear shift. Andy smiled. "If you want to talk about the shooting, we can Sharon" Andy said to her as the car turned the corner. Sharon took a deep breath and thought about what Andy had said. "You didn't hesitate" Sharon said quietly. They pulled up to a red light. Andy looked at her but Sharon kept looking forward. "You didn't hesitate when you shot her. What was going through your mind?" Sharon said to him. Andy looked back at the road as the light turned green and continued to drive. "I wasn't going to lose you" Andy answered Sharon. "If I couldn't get her to drop her weapon and let go of you, I knew I would have to take her out" he added. They pulled up to the school and parked behind all of the other cars that were waiting.

Sharon shifted in her seat and turned her body towards him. He faced her and placed his hand on her cheek. "What was going through your mind, Sharon?" Andy quietly asked her. She looked into his brown eyes. "I was scared. We've been given so much, I knew it couldn't end right there" Sharon said to him. She leaned further in to him and kissed him. "You saved my life. You keep saving my life" Sharon whispered to him as they pulled apart. "You're worth saving" Andy said as he smiled at her. Just then, the school doors opened and the children started to come outside. Sharon turned around to open the car door and then stepped out of the car and walked closer to the door so Matthew could see her. Sharon had called the school to let them know that Matthew wouldn't be needing after school care. Matthew walked out of school and saw Sharon standing by their car. He had a big smile on his face as he came up to her. "Hi!" Matthew said as he walked up to her and gave her a hug. "Hi sweetie, how was school?" Sharon asked him. "Better, we learned about a new animal today, about Thanksgiving. And I asked my teacher if I could write about you and Andy and she said yes" Matthew said as they walked towards the car where Andy was at. "Well, that's good" Sharon said to him as they opened the car door. "And did you know there is no school for three days?" Matthew added as he climbed into his seat. "Hi Matthew" Andy said to the kid as he watched him climb in. "Hi Andy" Matthew said back to him.

Andy then drove over to pick Moxie up from the Doggie Day Care place and Moxie walked out and jumped in the car. "So what animal did you learn about today?" Sharon asked Matthew as Andy got back in the car. "The turkey" Matthew said as he petted Moxie. They headed back home to the condo. "Do you have work tomorrow?" Matthew asked them. "No, sweetie, Andy and I are both off tomorrow because we are moving into the new house tomorrow" Sharon said to him as they got out of the car and headed towards the elevator. "Ah, I get my own room tomorrow!" Matthew said to them excitedly. They all stepped in the elevator and headed up to the 11th floor. As they approached the condo door, they noticed a note in a white envelope attached to the door. Andy looked over at Sharon who was busy with Matthew at the moment. Sharon noticed Andy looking at the door and she stopped too. Andy pulled the envelope off of the door and then looked at Sharon. Sharon stopped Matthew and pulled him with her to the side while Andy opened the front door. Andy went inside with Moxie and checked out their place, it was clear. Then he went back to the front door and Sharon and Matthew came inside. Sharon looked at Andy who closed the door. Matthew and Moxie ran off to the living room. "Is that what I think it is?" Sharon asked Andy quietly. He opened the letter and started to read it. "Son of a" Andy mumbled but caught his words before he said anything in front of Matthew.

The letter was from Croelick. It read: Dear Sharon, I told you Missy had a few loose ends and that she wanted to hurt you. I was sorry to hear what had happened this morning at your office. I'm also sorry you had to get hurt. Luckily, Andy saved the day. Good ole Andy, never leaving your side. Well, it's time for me to head back. Don't miss me. Bill. "You know what? I'm tired of Croelick ruining our evenings" Sharon said to Andy as she grabbed the letter and ripped it up. She then proceeded to the kitchen and threw the letter away. Andy followed her and started to make dinner for everyone.

The evening proved to be a quiet one and Sharon needed that. Rusty came home and had dinner with them, then he went out to the library to work on some school project he had. After Sharon and Andy had cleaned up the kitchen from dinner, Andy left to attend his meeting. That left Sharon and Matthew at the condo. "Do you have any homework, Matthew?" Sharon asked him as she sat on the couch with him. Moxie was lying on the blanket on the floor. "No, we did it all in school today" Matthew answered her. "Well, that's good to hear" Sharon said to him. Matthew looked at Sharon and noticed her bandage on her neck. "What happened here?" Matthew said as he pointed to the bandage. Sharon debated earlier on whether or not to let Matthew know what had happened. She wasn't sure how he would take it. "I was injured on the job this morning" she told Matthew. "Oh, no!" Matthew said to her. "What happened?" Matthew said to her. "I got cut and Andy stepped in and rescued me" Sharon said back to him.

Two hours later when Andy came home, he saw Sharon and Matthew on the couch. Matthew was asleep and he had tucked himself into Sharon's side. Sharon was listening to some classical music. Andy walked over to her on the couch and bent down to kiss her. "How was your meeting?" she asked him. "Good" he said as he looked at Matthew. "He's been out for an hour now" Sharon said. "Can I blame him? He's got the best place right now, cuddled next to you" Andy said to Sharon and kissed her on her lips. She smiled at him. "I'll tell you what. Let me take Matthew and put him to bed and then I'll take his spot on the couch, you don't even have to move, honey" Andy said to Sharon as he went over to wake Matthew up. Andy and Matthew walked back to where Rusty's room was and he tucked Matthew in bed. "You rescued Sharon today" Matthew said to Andy as he gave a big yawn. Andy looked back at him. "Yes, I did" Andy said back to Mathew. "You're really brave Andy" Matthew said as he saluted him and then fell asleep. Andy smiled and then headed out of the room, closing the door behind him. He then made his way back to Sharon and the couch and settled nicely into Sharon's side. Sharon was stroking Andy's hair with her hand and Andy laid up against Sharon's side.

Andy was starting to get tired as he lay there on the couch enjoying Sharon's touch. "Before we both fall asleep out here on the couch, let's get up and go to bed" Andy whispered in Sharon's ear. Andy got up and took Sharon by her hand. They went towards their bedroom and Moxie followed them. Moxie went to go sleep with Matthew and Sharon and Andy headed in to their room. Sharon took off her bandage on her arm and redressed it with a new, fresh gauze. Andy looked at her neck, put some ointment on it that they had gotten from the doctor, and re-covered it with a new bandage. They both got ready for bed and then settled down nicely with one another on the bed. Andy held Sharon close to him. "I love you" Andy said to Sharon. "I love you too" Sharon smiled saying to Andy. "Tomorrow's a big day for us, especially you" Andy said to Sharon as she was falling asleep. "Hmm, moving day" she said to him, smiling. "Get some sleep" he whispered in her ear. He felt her starting to relax and he did the same.

TBC