Sharon's got a major choice to make. How will she choose? Or, should I say, Whom? Dun dun dunnn...
Here we go!
Sharon arrived to work around 8 o'clock. She couldn't stop thinking about that letter Sharlene showed her yesterday. She had to get to the bottom of this situation, especially since she needed closure for Andrea's sake. There was no winning in this situation. Should she investigate Sharlene's claims? If she does and Sharlene was telling the truth, how would this affect her relationship with Andrea? How would this change her feelings towards her ex? But if she doesn't investigate, there is the not knowing that would drive her crazy. Sharon decided to just bite the bullet and review the case file down in Robbery/Homicide. Instead of heading to Major Crimes, she made a beeline to Robbery/Homicide to finally disclose the truth. Hopefully, she wouldn't be opening Pandora's box.
"Good morning Sergeant," she greeted the officer in charge of filing.
"Good morning Captain. How can I help you?"
"I just need to check up on an old case."
"Do you have the case number?"
"No, but I can give you a name. James Wilkins."
"Okay Captain. Let me get the files and if you could just sign here-"
"-I'll sign when you turn the files over Sergeant."
"Uh, yes Ma'am."
It took about ten minutes for the officer to return. Sharon wasn't surprised at the large, densely packed box in the officer's arms.
"Where would you like me to take this Ma'am?" he asked as she signed the logbook.
"You can place it on the table right there. I won't be long, thank you."
"Yes Ma'am."
"This was the moment of truth. Sharon read Wilkins' file. He was a really really bad guy. It irked her when she started feeling sorry for Sharlene, who had to deal with such a criminal. Why did she still care about her? She shook her thoughts out of her mind then focused again on the documents. All she needed was the names of the officers in charge of the case. Hopefully they were still on the force. Great! Sharon thought when she found the their names. She closed the file and placed it back in the large box. She walked back to the counter and signed out, letting the officer know she was done. After thanking him again, she began her quest to locate Lieutenants Romano and Andrews, who, luckily still worked in Robbery/Homicide.
It didn't take long to spot Andrews; his physique hadn't changed even after all those years, still very handsome. He was always one of the few that respected her work in FID. They even had casual conversations over coffee a couple times. Sharon walked over to his desk praying that he would have all the answers she needed.
"Lieutenant Andrews! Good morning."
"Captain Raydor! Wow, it's good to see you!" Andrews, being the gentleman as always, stood up and shook her hand.
"No need for the formalities, Lieutenant. It's been so long since we spoke. What, three years?"
Andrews chuckled. "Yeah, about that. How are you? Are you here on a social visit?"
"I'm good, actually. But I'm afraid I'm not here on a social call. I need to ask you about an old case you worked on. Hopefully you could help me."
"Sure. You can ask me anything." Sharon sighed. Her mind was telling her just leave things alone, but her heart…
"It's about the Wilkins case."
"Ah. I'm not surprised."
"Why is that?" Sharon shifted closer in her seat.
"I-well- recently I ran into one of his many prosecutors." His lips turned up into an almost non-existent smirk. "I think you might know her."
"Yes. Sharlene told me she ran into some officers from her prosecution days. She also told me some other things about the case. I'm here to verify her claims."
"After all these years, you two are still talking about that dreadful case? I thought she would have wanted to forget about that."
"Why? What happened?"
"Oh, nothing completely out of the ordinary. It was just really hard on everyone involved, especially your DDA. She was still learning the ropes and they just threw her in with the big sharks. I voiced my concerns, but I was a sergeant back then so no one cared to listen, but I saw how stressed she was." Sharon felt a mass in her throat. Was she really that blind back then? She knew it was a big case but she never realized Sharlene was struggling. How could she not have seen that?
"Lieutenant, were there threats to her life or anything like that?"
"None reported, Captain. But," Andrews paused as if he just realized something, "we got reports from DDAs proceeding DDA Porter that Scooter's little mob sent threats about their families. Wait. Was your DDA threatened? We never thought to look deeply into why she left but," Andrews trailed off as if waiting for Sharon to intervene at any time now. But Sharon was at a loss for words. At this exact moment she hated herself for not being there when Sharlene needed her most. She didn't protect her partner like she promised and instead, pushed her completely away. What kind of person was she?
Carefully observing a now pale Sharon close her eyes, Andrews knew the answer to his question. He had no idea; none of them did back then. Hindsight is a real bitch.
"I didn't understand why she specifically asked about Wilkins when she visited but now I know why. She was running for her life. That's why she resigned."
"No," Sharon finally spoke. Andrews looked puzzled but let her continue. "She wasn't running for her life. She was running to protect my son… and me." A single tear escaped Sharon's eyes. "She ran for me." Andrews gently squeezed Sharon's shoulder while they sat in silence for a little while. Andrews eventually broke the silence.
"For what it's worth, Sharon, Sharlene did what she thought was best to protect you and your son. And it might have been the right choice."
"Why is that?"
"One of our DDAs who was threatened, his entire family was executed. Even though we had the note, we could never pin it on Wilkins because there were no fingerprints and-well you know how it goes. Plus, he had the best lawyers on his payroll. So DDA Porter probably saved your life and your son's." Sharon was completely lost. She couldn't deal with this. What could she possibly say to Sharlene? The woman who loved her enough to give up everything she worked so hard for. How was she to repay her?
"Sharon, are you alright?"
"I'm fine. I just, I'll be fine. Thank you, for sharing this with me."
"It's no problem, Captain. And, I'm sorry."
"Thank you." Sharon wiped another stray tear from her cheeks and left.
It was only a matter of time before she had to face Sharlene. When she saw the name on her caller ID, she took a deep breath before answering the call.
"Sharlene."
"Hi. Um, are you at work already?"
"Yes. I uh- we need to talk. Are you free right now?"
"I am. I plan on working from my hotel suite today. You can come over and tell me whatever is on your mind."
"I don't want to meet in your hotel room, Sharlene."
"I have an office here too Sharon. No need to panic."
"Fine, fine. Give me twenty minutes."
_
Sharlene opened the door for Sharon. Sharlene was a sight to behold wearing a high-waist snug, black pencil skirt. As Sharon's eyes moved upwards, her eyes lingered but for a second on the deep V neckline of her tailored denim jacket. It didn't look like she was wearing a top under the jacket. Maybe it was a bad idea to be there, Sharon thought to herself.
"Come on in, Sharon." They moved through the spacious great room and stopped at a large office desk.
"Take a seat." Sharlene offered.
"Thank you, but I don't have much time. I just came to let you know that I looked into the-uh- the-"
"-Sharon," Sharlene interrupted. She stood up and rounded her desk to stand in front of her with tears in her eyes. "I should have never said anything. I should have just stayed the hell out of your life. Why can't I just forget about you?"
"Sharlene, I'm the one who should be sorry. I was supposed to protect you. I should have known. I should ha-" Before Sharon knew what was happening, Sharlene's plush lips were pushing forcefully against hers and hands were gripping tightly at her waist. She felt a tear moisten her check, which wasn't hers. Before Sharon could get over the shock of what was happening, Sharlene pulled away. They both stared at each other, neither of them saying anything; the only sounds were of Sharlene's near-silent sobs. Eventually, Sharon broke the trance; she had to get out of there. She stood up and sighed, finally letting her tears run down her face.
"I am so sorry Sharlene. If I could change things I would. I need you to know that. Lieutenant Andrews told me everything. He even told me that you probably saved Ricky's and my life by leaving."
"Sharon, I should have told you. I should have reported it."
"You were scared. You didn't want to lose us."
"But I still did. I lost you. I lost my wife." Sharlene let go of all her inhibitions and wept. She couldn't control her tears anymore. Years of pent up sadness and anger and hurt had finally been set free. She was finally given the opportunity to reveal this secret to Sharon.
Sharon moved closer to the crying woman in front of her and held her; her own tears pouring down her face. They remained like this until Sharlene's sobs grew quieter. Sharon hummed silently with her eyes closed, swaying them slightly as Sharlene calmed down, but before she knew it, Sharlene's fingers were unbuttoning her blouse. It didn't register at first; it felt so good, so familiar, her hands caressing Sharon's breasts. Sharlene led then towards the desk, with Sharon's back now pressed against the hardwood. As she felt warm lips on her neck, Sharon snapped back to her senses and pushed Sharlene slightly away at the waist.
"Stop, just stop. I need to get back to work."
"Please, Sharon. Don't run away."
"I wasn't the one who ran away." Sharon looked at Sharlene in horror. Did she just say that? "I'm sorry. I'm just so angry that this all happened."
"No. You're right. I ran away. But I want to make it right with you. I need closure."
"This is not how to get closure Sharlene. We shouldn't be doing this."
"I need to feel you again Shar, even if it's for the last time. I need this." She ran her hands up Sharon's arms, applying that right amount of pressure she knew always made Sharon break her resolve a little. "Just this last time. Please. It's your call."
Oh boy! This should be interesting. Anything can happen at this point. It makes me wonder if Sharon's love for Andrea is enough to outweigh all the history she had with Sharlene plus the guilt she now feels for what her Ex did for her and her son. I can't wait!