Chapter 27

Sofia had spent all afternoon in the local jail. Earlier in the day a gang who was working with stolen car parts had been arrested so all the involved police officers had spent most of the day to get all the suspects statements. So she was happily ignorant to that was going on ad Berkley. The minute she stepped outside Leo bleeped her from his car.

"Hey what's up, Leo?"

"Get in Sofia, I'll explain on the way" he told her through the open window.

"Leo, what's going on?" Sofia asked again as she got into the car.

Leo turned to her as she moved to buckle her seatbelt. "It's Sara; some young boy has taken her hostage."

Sofia's jaw dropped as realization hit her, "but she's alright?"

"I don't know much someone reported in about some shooting, but the radio has been kept very silent" he confessed quickly.

Fear seemed to grip the Detective along her entire body, encasing her until she could scarcely eek out a response, "this can't be happening" she said, nervous and scared. "Leo I can't lose her!"

"I know sweetie, but we still don't know if anything has happen to her" he replied softly.

They arrived at Berkley; they got out of the car and walked toward the building, but came to a full stop as they heard to young women talking.

"I really hope she's going to make it, she's the best teacher I ever have had."

"Yeah, I like her too, did you see her?"

"Yeah, I was standing over there, when the paramedic rolled her out to the ambulance, and I tell you she didn't look good, I don't even think she was awake" the young woman replied bleary.

Leo just in time got his arm around Sofia or she would have fallen to the ground.

"Easy now can you walk?"

Sofia nodded.

"Okay, let's get back to the car and get to the hospital" Leo inferred.

They walked in and over to the counter where a nurse was setting.

"Hello, where can we find Sara Sidle?" Leo asked quickly, trying to smile.

"Hello and you are?"

Leo stared at her a beat and then answered her, "this is her partner, and I'm her brother."

The nurse looked up, "yeah, I can see that, she's in trauma room three, you can go down there and wait outside until the doctor comes and talk to you."

"Thanks." As they walked down the hallway Sofia looked at Leo, "you have done this siblings thing before haven't you?"

"Yes" Leo confirmed, "especially when we were younger. A lot of clothes stores often offered sibling's discount, so…" he shrugged.

"And you are a police man" Sofia said interrupting him, her eyes steely locked on Leo's.

Leo fought hard not to roll his eyes, "it wasn't like we lied or anything, no one ever asked."

After waiting for two minutes for the doctor Sofia got impatient and was pacing around, "where the hell is he? Why doesn't anyone tell us anything?"

"Sofia calm down, I'm sure he'll be here as soon as he can" Leo assured her.

Sofia crossed her arms, "calm down? Oh Leo, this is very calm, but I want someone to tell me what the hell is going on with Sara, I want someone to tell me that she is okay."

A young doctor knocked on the door softly to get Sofia's attention, "I have no doubt in my mind that you are Sofia. Sara is fine, she is asking for you, and boy does she have the same temper as you."

Relief began to flood Sofia's body. Her stomach loosened and she managed to exhale, "she's fine?"

"Yes, she has lost a lot of blood, but except for that she's fine" the doctor clarified. "Well at least fine enough to yell at me from the moment they brought her in" he said with a chortle.

Leo and Sofia both lit up in a big smile, "can we see her?"

"Sure, come with me."

Sofia flew over by the bed and wrapped her arms around Sara, "god you scared me. Are you alright, sweetie?"

Sara smiled at her, "yes I'm fine, the bullet only grazed my upper arm."

Leo winked at her, "hi sis."

"Hi Leo" Sara snickered, "will you please call Brian and let him know I'm fine?"

Both Sofia and Leo sighed, relieved, when they heard Sara's voice, "sure sweetie" Leo replied.

"Sofia will you please talk with the doctor and explain that it's okay for me to go home, he won't discharge me" Sara complained.

"Honey, don't you think it would be better if you stayed until tomorrow?" Sofia asked hesitantly.

"No" Sara exclaimed.

Sofia gave her a kiss on the forehead "No?"

"No, I think it would be better if I was home with you," Sara caught Sofia's lips and slowly let her tongue teasingly slide around Sofia's.

Lips still attached," hon, you're playing dirty."

Sara smiled into the kiss, "no, I just wanna go home, babe."

Sofia pulled away and sighed, "Okay sweetie, I'll talk to him."

Sofia left and came back. "Sweetie, I can bring you home when they are through filling you up with blood."

"Thanks babe" Sara said warmly. "Sof, will you please do me another favor?"

"Sure sweetie, what do you need?"

Sara locked eyes with her, "I need for you to go back and make sure that they don't place Marco in a prison cell with any adults."

"Sara, I'm sure they know not to do that, I'm not leaving you!" Sofia argued half-heartedly.

"Sof please, I'm not going anywhere for the next couple of hours anyway, please baby, for me? I don't trust anyone else down there, please."

Sofia gently kissed her; "you do know that sometimes you're impossible?"

"Maybe, but I love you" Sara sighed, closing her eyes.

Sofia tilted her head and smiled, "oh, you're good baby, I love you too, now stay out of trouble and I'll come pick you up in a little while."

"Okay," Sara muttered drifting into sleep.

Sofia turned and looked at Leo; "can you give me a ride?"

"Sure, let's go."

They arrived at the precinct and went inside and over to the policeman standing at the counter.

"Hey James, the young boy from Berkley do you know where he is?"

"Hey Curtis, yeah, I think his down in one of the cells, child service couldn't pick him up before tomorrow."

"But he is in a cell by himself?"

"Um… No, I don't think so; we didn't have a free one."

Leo's eyes widened, "have you put a sixteen year old boy into a cell filled with adults?"

"I think so, but it isn't my case, you need to talk to the Captain" he retorted, defensively.

Sofia and Leo found the Captain. "Is it true that you have put the Berkley boy into a cell with adults?" Sofia asked hotly.

The captain pressed his lips together and inhaled deeply through his nose. "Yes! I don't like it but we don't have anywhere else to put him, oh, and his name is Marco."

Sofia gazed at Leo; "Sara is going to rip this department apart if he stays there."

"Yeah, I know" Leo said emphatically.

"If it's Ms. Sidle you're talking about then she already threatened to sue us" the captain replied, annoyed.

They looked at the Captain, "why?"

The captain stared at them for several long seconds, "because it was one of the guys from Swat Team that shot her!"

"Come again, what?" Leo exclaimed, his jaw dropping slightly.

The Captain explained the whole thing. "Look, I really don't want to have her breathing down my neck. Is it possible for you two to drive the boy to one of child services houses? I don't have anyone else who can do it right now."

Leo and Sofia looked at each other before Leo nodded, "yeah, we'll drive him."

"Okay, I'll have the boy brought up and finds out where to bring him," the Captain said before walking into his office.

Leo looked at Sofia, "I swear sometimes Sara scares the hell out of me! It's like she has a six sense of knowing things in advance."

Sofia raised her eyebrows, "yeah, know that you mean, why you think I went down here tonight?"

They went on their way Leo looked into the rear view mirror and saw a very sad looking boy. "Are you alright, Marco?"

The boy shook his head, "no, I'm not."

Sofia looked at him, "did anything happen in the cell?"

"No, I wasn't in there very long."

Leo frowned, "then what?"

Marco looked down on his hands resting in his lap, "I almost got a teacher killed today, and I don't know how I'm supposed to live with that."

Sofia and Leo looked at each other, "she didn't die Marco she is going to be fine."

Marco cleared his throat "maybe, but it's still my fault, and she got shot saving my life."

"What do you mean, Marco?"

"She jumped me and tackled me to the floor when they started shooting, that's how she got shot, she even got the gun ´cause I dropped it in the fall, and still she stayed in the room with me instead of going to the hospital" the boy explained.

"Did you get the gun back?" Sofia asked, confused.

"Yes and no, she emptied the gun and gave it back to me before putting the bullets in her pocket, she said that way we were depending on each other, and then she asked me if I still wanted to talk."

Leo blinked and considered, "didn't she know she had gotten shot?"

"Sure, she made me cut her sleeve and help her put a bandage on the wound. Then someone called and she got really pissed, she threatened to sue someone," Marco answered back quickly, his voice low, "and then she ordered pizza."

Sofia couldn't help but chuckled a little, "that's sounds like Sara alright. Listen Marco, we just left the hospital and Sara is fine, actually she's the one who sent us back to check up on you."

For the first time Marco looked up, "it was?"

"Yes it was, I think she likes you" Sofia informed him.

"Yeah, I like her too, she even got Professor Goldsmith into the room and made her promise that I could stay in school."

Leo grinned, "I bet she did, school has always been important to Sara."

They arrived at the house and Sofia walked him to the door, "look Marco, I don't know what to tell you but my advice is, just take one day at the time and things will get better."

"I'll try" Marco said simply to Sofia's relief. "If you see Sara, will you tell her that I'm sorry?"

Sofia considered his question. "No, she already knows that, what about I just say, hi?"

Marco smiled, "okay, and thank you for driving me."

"You're welcome, take care now okay?" Sofia said, giving him an encouraging smile.

Marco nodded and opened the front door, "yeah, bye."

Sofia got back into the car, "I really want to hate that boy for what he put Sara through, but…" She rubbed her forehead and sighed.

"Yeah, I know what you mean, and I think Sara saw it too, or she wouldn't have stayed with him. Do you have a car somewhere or shall I drive the two of you home?"

"If you'll just drive me back to the station my car is parked there."

Sofia went by the hospital and picked Sara up, when they got home Sofia persuaded Sara to go to bed and it didn't take long before she was sleeping. Sofia got a bite to eat and a shower before she went to bed as well. Sofia was brutally wakened the next morning by Sara who was shaking her.

"Sof, wake up we goner be late!"

Sofia sat up pretty confused, "huh? Hon? Late for what?"

"Work! You know the thing we go too almost every day.., Sofia wake up."

Sofia threw herself back on the bed, "sweetie, you're not going today."

"I'm not?" Sara was thinking, "It's not the weekend, Sof, have I forgot something?"

Sofia made a sound somewhere between a sigh and a laugh and pulled Sara down to her, "yes, you have baby, you got shot yesterday."

Sara let Sofia draw her down next to her, "silly head I do remember that, but I need for you to drive me, since my car is still at Berkley."

Sofia opened her eyes, "honey, what you need is to stay home and relax."

Sara tried to get up by Sofia didn't let go, "Sof, really I'm fine."

"Of course you are, but I promised the doctor that you would stay home today, it was either what or he wouldn't let you go" Sofia answered, loosening her arm so she could straighten.

"You didn't mention that last night" Sara said slightly muffled by the blonde's shoulder.

Sofia narrowed her eyes and pouted, "I didn't… jeeze… wonder why?"

"I think you know me to well" Sara said, eyes crinkling in pleasure.

"Mmm-hmm… so, want to go back to sleep?"

Sara nestled up against Sofia, "okay."

Sara went back to school the next day. Marco was let off easy especially thanks to Sara, he had to stay at the childcare institution for six month, but if he could stay out of trouble in that time, he could go back home and live with his mother.

It took some work but Sara was finally approved to be Marcos guardian. The school board approved Professor Goldsmith's recommendation of letting the boy stay in school.

Brad was found guilty in child abuse and sent two years to prison; afterwards he would be extradited to Texas, where he was wanted for the same thing.

Summer came along and so did vacation. The women spent a week in the High Sierra region where they rented a summer house at Lake Huntington with Greg and Andrea. Brian and Jodie came by and spent a couple of days with them. Sofia only had a two weeks' vacation, so the other week they just spent at home.

Tbc…