Author's Note: I'm so, so sorry it's been so long! This chapter was such a challenge for me to write, which is ironic, because it's incredibly simplistic when you read it. But it used to have a lot more in it that I decided to move around in the story to fit what I wanted to do with it better. I hope it flows better now that I moved everything. *Fingers crossed* But, as you can see, the rating has been changed to M, as the majority of the votes I got in the comments and PMs were to change the rating. So up it goes. I think that's all I have to say about this, so... read, review, and enjoy! Hope it's satisfactory for the incredibly long time it took me to get it to you!
Andy was walking back to the apartment after school. So far, her job as a counselor had gotten her no where when it came to finding out about the double homicide and the couple of kids that were there and at the break in. But she had been congratulated by a number of kids for dating the newest member of the Mickey Cobras. Apparently that was the biggest gang in this part of town, and all the kids knew about it.
"Miss Anderson!" She had been going by that name but acting like herself since they started the undercover mission. It made the cover more convincing if she didn't make much up. She turned to find one of her students standing behind her. "Miss Anderson, someone's in trouble in there!" She pointed to an empty store front. Andy's police instincts kicked in. She wasn't about to let someone die just so she could protect her identity. She wasn't one to focus only on the greater good.
Andy glanced behind her as she rushed over to the store front, but couldn't see the girl standing there anymore. She narrowed her eyes and slowed her pace in her approach of the empty store. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up. Something didn't feel right. Maybe the girl was just too cool to care about the outcome of the person in trouble, but there was something off about the whole situation. She gently pushed the door open and paused, waiting to see if something explosive was about to happen. After a moment, she deemed the building safe enough to enter.
"Hello?" Andy said, still stepping slowly and carefully as she entered the building. There was no response. Frowning again, she moved further inside. "Is anyone here?" Again, no response. Turning around, she dashed for the door, but found it shut. Andy heard a crackling noise behind her, and fear weighed her heart down as she turned around to see a fire blazing to life behind her. "Shit, shit, shit, shit!"
Panicked, she dug her cell phone out of her pocket and simultaneously tugged on the door frantically. "C'mon, dammit, pick up, pick up!" Andy spun around and faced the fire, frustrated. While it was blazing, it didn't appear to be threatening her current position or the structural integrity of the building. Yet again, something about it seemed off. But she was unable to contemplate it, because Sam picked up the phone. "Andy, I'm kind of in the middle of something."
"Yeah, Sam, so am I! I'm stuck in a fucking burning building!" Andy snapped, annoyed at Sam's response to her call.
"What? Stay there, I'll send someone to get you!" Sam's voice was suddenly concerned and worried. Andy rolled her eyes. Of course he was concerned now.
"Don't bother, Sam, I don't think it's that bad yet. But could you and Nick come?"
"What do you mean, it's not bad yet? You said you're in a burning building. How is that not bad?" Sam sounded confused, stressed, and annoyed all at once. A trick only he seemed to be able to accomplish.
"It doesn't look like the fire is close to making the building fall. And it's not anywhere near me. I think I'm going to be okay for a little while."
"Hang on, Andy, I'm coming. Don't let go of your phone, I'll call you back in just a minute. Stay safe and I… hope you're okay." The line went dead. Andy pulled the phone away from her ear, staring at it in awe. It sounded as though he had almost said he loved her. How was that possible? He'd spent the past few months showing her just how much he didn't care about here, and now he claimed he loved her? What was up with that? And what was going on with the fire? Why was it abnormal?
Those questions and more swirled around Andy's mind, making it hard to focus. She shook her head, trying to decide where to go. The fire hadn't gotten any larger since she had talked to Sam, but the door wasn't unlocking either, so her situation wasn't really getting nay better. Sighing, Andy leaned her head back against the door and waited for Sam to call her back.
"Let's go," Sam burst into the cover apartment and grabbed his leather jacket off the back of the chair. Nick stared up at him in confusion from his reclined position on the couch. "What?"
Sam rolled his eyes and turned to face Nick, annoyed. "Because, Nick, Andy is currently stuck in a burning building. So forgive me if I don't turn around and explain the whole situation to you in detail while she inhales smoke."
Nick bolted up from the couch and tore his jacket off the wall. "We're leaving."
"Yes, we are." Sam slammed the door shut behind them as they stormed down the stairs. Both of them were feeling the urgency, but Nick was also feeling hurt. When she was in real, true danger, Andy had called Sam. Not him. And they were supposed to be the couple in the house. He had fought for her, but when it came time for her to fight for him, she called Sam. They seemed to be going backwards in their relationship. Nick wasn't sure how much more of this he was willing to take.
But now was not the time for him to think of that. He could think of it later, when he could hold Andy in his arms, and know she was safe from a fire he had no control over. At least when they were out on routine calls and ops, she could take care of herself against people that wanted to harm her. But stuck in a burning building with no gun, no bulletproof vest, with no amount of psychology, profiling, or hostage negotiation skills at her disposal, she was essentially helpless. And it was his job, as a soldier, as a cop, and as her boyfriend to keep her safe when she couldn't do it herself.
"Where is she?" Nick inquired as they hopped into the truck parked outside the apartment building.
"The GPS on her phone said she was in the old building on Wilshire Avenue." Sam pulled out onto the road and sped toward the building Andy was trapped in.
"What are we doing once we get there?"
Sam shook his head. "I'm not sure. Andy said she didn't think the fire was very threatening on the phone, but I was going to call her back. Will you dial?"
Nick nodded wordlessly and pulled out Sam's phone, quickly punching the redial button and putting it on speaker. It was strange, the only time he was okay with taking orders from Sam was when Andy's life was on the line. It made sense, but for some reason it shocked him at the realization. After a moment of the dial tone, Andy answered the call. "Yeah, Sam, what's going on?"
"Andy? It's Nick. Are you alright?" Nick's face was tight with worry.
"Nick! Yeah, I'm doing okay." She coughed a little through the line. "The smoke is starting to build up in here, but the fire hasn't really 's something weird going on." She coughed again.
"What is it?" Sam asked. "Andy, what's the weird thing going on?"
"I'm not sure," she coughed out. "I think there's something in here that someone wants me to see. This fire isn't big enough yet for it to be really dangerous. I can't figure out why someone would set a fire that's not big enough to kill someone or take down the building. It doesn't make any sense. There has to be more to it."
Sam and Nick glanced at each other while Andy coughed again over the line. "Okay, Andy," Sam said. "Cover your mouth and nose with your shirt and breathe through there. That should keep out most of the smoke." Nick nodded. Sam glanced at his profile before continuing. "And I want you to look through that building and find what you can before anything happens. See if you can find what you think they want you to see." He tapped the 'end call' button before Nick could turn to him in outrage.
"What the hell are you doing?" Nick yelled. "You want her to go exploring in a burning building! What are you thinking, telling her to do that?"
"This is what Andy does, Nick," Sam said calmly. "She finishes things. And if this can help us solve the case, we need that information. Andy knows that. And we'll be there. She's gonna be okay, Nick. And when we get her back, I get to debrief her and then she's… all yours."
Nick watched Sam as he drove, trying to gauge his mood. Maybe he had only imagined it, but he could have sworn he heard a hesitation in Sam's voice. Was he making a play on Andy again? Was Andy going to fight for him? Nick sat back, uncomfortable and overwhelmed by emotions he wasn't used to feeling.
"Luke?" Traci's voice shook as she stepped into Luke's office at 15 Division. Luke turned his head to see Traci, her hands shaking as she held a piece of paper. She leaned against the doorframe, her face pale and her lips bloodless. He immediately sat upright at his desk.
"Traci, what's wrong?" Luke walked over and brought her into his arms, comforting her. "Trace, did someone try to hurt you?"
Traci shook her head frantically. She nodded at the paper in her hands. "It's… it's this again."
Luke glanced down and saw it was the same handwriting as the previous death threat: Jerry's handwriting.
Traci shook her head and spoke for the first time. "It's not just… that…. Read it." Luke looked down and read the words off the page: 'Clearly, you didn't understand my last note. I must now take a step up. Back off this case, or watch your son lower six feet under ground like your lover'. He tightened his arms and brought her even closer to him. "Aw, honey. You don't deserve this."
Traci sniffled and laughed slightly. "Really? I thought I did."
Luke shook his head. "You know, Traci, this is the first time I've seen you cry."
She smiled. "I'm sorry. I'm normally not like this."
"Cops have feelings, too. It's okay to breakdown every once in a while. And he's threatening your son. Anyone would get emotional about that." Traci looked up at Luke.
"You're the best damn boss I've ever had." She shook her head. "You're like my brother, and it's kind of awesome to work for your brother."
"Well, as your brother, it's my job to make sure you stay safe. And in this case, that means keeping Leo safe, too. And your mother. They're both going into protective custody tonight. If this guy's gonna get his hands on them or you, they're gonna have to go through me." He tipped her chin up so she was looking into his eyes. "And I'm not going to make that an easy feat. I promise you, both of them are going to be safe, if I have to beat the guy to a bloody pulp myself."
She smiled. "You're sweet. You're gonna make some lucky girl really happy one day."
"Yeah, well, I almost did." Traci shook her head. "You messed that one up because of a stupid mistake. You don't really make stupid mistakes anymore."
"You have a lot of faith in me, don't you?" Luke looked at her with raised eyebrows. In a way, he had a stronger connection with Traci than with anyone else. But she was right, she felt more like a younger sister than a love connection. And he was still confused about his feelings for Andy, which made his feelings about other people more muddled in comparison.
"You deserve a lot of faith." Traci shrugged and pulled away from him, sniffling. "Thank you. For this. It makes me feel a lot better, knowing Leo and my mother will be safe. And it makes focusing on the case much easier."
Luke nodded as Traci walked out of his office, leaving the second death threat behind on his desk.
Thirty minutes later, Oliver, Marlo, Chris, Dov, Gail, and Chloe were banging down the door to the now blazing building Andy had been trapped came billowing out, and Nick and Sam were the first ones rushing in to find Andy. She came out at them, covered in soot and ashes, her face darkened almost beyond recognition.
"Andy!" Sam yelled, and he watched her go flying into Nick for a hard, steady embraced. He shut his mouth and turned away, feeling like an intruder into their personal moment together. Maybe it wasn't him, but she was happy with someone. And it was good that she found someone like Nick, who would love her and protect her the way she deserved to be loved and protected.
He approached the uniformed officers. "You guys make a sweep of the building. Andy said she thought something might be in here. I want to know if there is something here we need to know about. It's your job to find it. Go." They nodded, probably sensing his bad mood. Clearly, his plan to make everything up to Andy by saving her had backfired. Maybe some big gesture wasn't what was going to do it. But whatever it was that would do it for her, he obviously wasn't the guy it should come from.
"Sam!" Like a fool, he turned like a dog at her beck and call. He might not be what she wanted, but she was sure as hell what he wanted.
"What do you need, Andy?" It felt like she was the only one who could drag the tender feelings out of him that Andy managed to. He was a big bad, tough detective, but he was in love with her. And Shakespeare had it right: "I love thee so, that, maugre all thy pride, nor wit nor reason can my passion hide."
"I did see something in there, but they aren't gonna find it." He furrowed his brows and watched her in confusion. "Why won't they find it?"
"It burned. But Sam…" She trailed off. "There were papers in there."
"Papers?" He shook his head. "It's a store, of course there are papers in there. It's a paper business."
"No, Sam, I mean…" She glanced around and lowered her voice. "Papers. About us, about the op, about Jerry's death. There was everything in there, and it all burned."
He drew back, confused and highly concerned. If there were papers about police activity, it meant someone had figured out there was a rat in the community. It was only a matter of time before they figured out who it was. And once they did, they were in deep shit. "Is that all you saw?"
"There was one more thing." How could there be any more? "There was a Post-It note. Sam… it said 'You've been made'." His eyes widened in horror. Oh, this was so much worse than they thought it was.
Luke paced his office. So much had happened that day. it almost seemed like the death threats against Traci were a completely different case than the fire and everything Sam, Nick, and Andy had been experiencing in the undercover op. It didn't make any sense, because they'd already uncovered the link between the two. So either they were dealing with a copycat on Traci's end, or this case was more complex than he thought.
A knock sounded on his door, and he looked up to see Traci standing there. "Hey, sorry if I interrupted something. I just wanted to let you know Leo and my mother are here now."
Luke smiled tightly. "Good, I'm glad."
She smirked. "Yeah, you look it."
He rolled his eyes. "There's so much going on, Trace, I'm not sure how I'm supposed to feel."
"About what?" He shot her a heavy look, and she nodded. "Ah. Back on Andy, are we?"
"I don't know what to do, Trace," he said, shrugging. "I'm not sure how I feel about her."
She smirked again. "I am." He turned to her with a confused expression on his face. "You still love her."
Luke shook his head. "Damn it, I think you're right. Why? Why her?"
"I don't think you ever stopped loving her. I think you had something with her you haven't been able to find with anyone else. And it makes her special to you. Nothing can replace that."
He shook his head, smiling. "You're so smart, Trace. What would I do without you? You make me realize things about myself I never would have figured out alone."