It was almost three in the afternoon when Andy returned to the hospital. He had taken in two meetings and slept for a few hours, so he was beginning to feel more like his old self. He was surprised and a bit panicked to find Provenza sitting out in the hall down from Sharon's room. "Why are you still here? Did something happen? Is she okay?" Andy asked in a panic.

"Calm down, calm down. She's okay. I actually just got back; she doesn't even know I'm here. I wanted to talk to you for a minute actually."

"Okay, but make it quick. I don't want her to be alone for too long."

"Listen Andy, she has been alone all afternoon. I left before lunch and she asked Rusty not to come."

Andy turned and started toward her room, but Louie stopped him. "Wait, just hear me out. She needed some time to herself. She has a lot to sort out and work thru. She's been thru hell these past two days. And in typical Raydor fashion, she's more worried about you and Rusty than she is herself."

"Did she say that?" Andy asked sitting down in the nearest chair.

"She did. We… We actually had a nice talk this morning. Look, I know you will be patient with her Andy, but just give her some space if she needs it. This is all new to her, you know, not being in control and having someone to look after her. She's been thru hell."

"Did she tell you the details of…"

"No, she didn't and I did not ask. Eventually, she is going to have to give her statement but as of right now no one is in any hurry for her to have to do that."

"Well, that's good. I was a little worried that the higher ups would want that to happen sooner than later," Andy said shaking his head.

"Oh, before I go," Provenza reached into his pocket, "Mike sent her new cellphone. I thought she may want it." Taking the phone from his partner, Andy gave him a pat on the shoulder and made is way down the hall to Sharon's room.

Andy stood in the door way watching her. Surprisingly, she was sitting in the chair next to the bed, one blanket covering her legs and another wrapped around her shoulders. All the IV's had been removed, he noticed as well. His breath caught in his throat as he stood there and watched her. She looked so fragile, yet so strikingly beautiful despite the messy hair and bruises. As he continued to watch her, the depth of his love and the grief over seeing her so broken weighed heavy on his heart. They both were right, he did blame himself. He had spoken about it at his meeting this afternoon. He cried about it as he lay alone in his bed trying to sleep. His need for her to feel safe and loved consumed him. And as if on cue she slowly turned and looked toward the door, her eyes immediately getting bright the moment she realized it was him. "Hey," she said her voice barely more than a whisper. "I missed you, I'm so glad you're back."

He came around the edge of the bed and kneeled down in front of her, gently caressing her cheek, "Missed you too. I'm surprised to see you out of bed."

She leaned into his hand, her eyes never leaving his, "I was going crazy in that bed…"

He smiled softly, "Still, you don't need to overdo it sweetheart."

Frowning at him, "Andy, I…"

"I brought you something to change into," he said interrupting her. From the small duffle he was carrying, he pulled out one of his old LAPD sweatshirts and a pair of black and white polka dotted pajama bottoms he had picked up on his way back to the hospital. "I didn't have a key to your condo and Rusty was in class, so I had to improvise," he said grinning.

"You did great and remind me to fix that key issue," she said gently touching his hand. "Andy, she said looking down. Will you help me get changed?"

He stood and helped her remove the blanket from her shoulders. The bruising on her arms and around her neck was darker and more pronounced than what he remembered from this morning. He could even make out hand prints on both her upper arms. When he lifted the blanket covering her legs, he held his breath trying not to react. Her beautiful, long, toned legs, the legs he has spent years admiring were severely bruised. There was a long scrape running down the side of her left calf. Her right ankle and foot were swollen and blackish blue with a circular rope burn around the ankle.

She leaned forward and he reached around to untie the hospital gown. As the gown fell from her shoulders into her lap, Andy couldn't contain the gasp that came from his lips. "My god, Sharon!" there were so many more bruises and scratch marks covering her chest and abdomen. Her side and lower back were red and bruised where she must have been repeatedly kicked.

She reached down and tried to cover herself again with the gown, looking away from him. He felt the hot tears building behind his eyes and he hated himself for falling apart in front of her. She is so strong and I am so weak, he thought.

"Andy…Andy, look at me she whispered, as he kneeled back down and put his head in her lap. He looked up, tears flowing from both their eyes. "Andy," she whispered again. "All of this… All of this will fade and I will be ok… We will be ok."

"I know…but...Sharon…I" he choked, not really even knowing what he wanted to say. They sat there like that for a few minutes, his head resting in her lap while she clutched the gown to her chest with her injured wrist and gently stroked his silver hair with her other hand.

After several minutes, he lifts his head and stands. He reaches up and gently wipes away the tears from her cheeks. Carefully, he takes the old, soft sweatshirt and pulls it over her head, helping her to get her hand thru the sleeve. The warmth of the shirt feels good to her and it smells like him. She tucks her chin and nose into the neck of the shirt, deeply inhaling his scent. He kneels back down and places her legs thru the pajama bottoms. Asking if she can stand, he leans into her for support. She places her good arm around his neck, and he gently lifts her, while pulling the pajamas up with his other hand. He eases her back down in the chair, noticing the pained expression across her face. She slowly breathes out, holding his hand in hers for a few moments.

Later, as he helps her to the bathroom he notices her limp is more pronounced than it was this morning and she has a severe bout of dizziness on their way back. He ends up carrying her back from the bathroom to the bed. She lays there for a few minutes with her eyes closed as he gets her foot elevated. He then rings the nurse for an icepack, hoping that will help with the swelling.

"Oh, I forgot. I have a surprise for you. Mike got your new phone all setup. He was able to transfer everything from your old one," Andy said, pulling the phone from his pocket and handing it to her.

She took the phone from him for a brief second, and then handed it right back to him. "You can hang on to it for me. I… I…really don't feel like talking to anyone."

"Sure…Ok…If that's what you want?" he asks with concern etched in his face.

"What I really want is to go home. Andy, I really need to go home. I can't relax here and I need to make sure Rusty is ok." Her voice becoming panicked, "And I really need to shower, I… need… I need…to feel clean…I need to wash hi…"

She was going to say him, Andy thought suddenly, his chest constricting. Coming to his feet, he gently sat on the edge of the bed, "Sharon, you need to calm down. We can ask the doctor when he comes in, but I really don't think…" His words interrupted by the ringing of her phone.

Pulling the phone from his pocket, he looks at the display and sees that it is Ricky. He turns the phone to her and she sits there starring, making no effort to take the phone from him. "Hey Ricky," he answers not taking his eyes off Sharon. "Oh, and Emily too…No, no she's not asleep, her phone was just in my pocket. Hang on one minute." He gently places the phone in her good hand smiling with encouragement.

After what seems like eternity to Andy, she finally lifts the phone to her ear. "Hey Ricky, Hey Emily…No, I'm fine really. Just a little banged up, but fine. Oh, Emily, honey…don't cry." Andy gently rubs her knee as she continues to talk, her eyes never leaving his. "You've talked to Rusty…Yes…Good…Really, I'm fine…ok…Yes, Andy is here…Ok…I love you both," handing the phone back to Andy, "They want to talk with you."

Taking the phone from Sharon, Andy stands from the bed and walks over to the window, "Hey…yeah…no, she's ok…just banged up like she said…hopefully tomorrow…don't worry, I'll be with her…she'll be fine…yes I know…Ok…I will…ok…bye."

He turns back to the bed and realizes that Sharon has turned away from him crying. He gently sits back down on the bed and cups her chin to get her to look at him. "Hey…I know that was hard, but they needed to hear your voice. They needed to hear it from you that you're okay."

She slowly looks up at him, the tears still falling, "Am I…ok…I mean… Andy… I'm not…sure myself…I feel…I feel like…I'm going crazy…I just need…I need to go home…I need you to take me home…Please Andy…Please take me home."

Andy holds her, rocking her gently until her tears slow down, his heart breaking with each tear. He gently pulls away from her and gets out of the bed, his eyes never leaving hers. "Where are you going?"

"To find the doctor and see what I can do to take you home tonight."

She reaches up and gently touches his cheek, "thank you."

Andy found Dr. Granger at the nurses' station. They discussed Sharon's physical injuries and the amazing progress she has made in such a short period of time. Andy told him of her desire to go home as soon as possible and his concern about the overwhelming anxiety she's having that seems to have grown from this morning. Andy was shocked to learn that she had also refused the anti-anxiety medicine the Doctor prescribed. Dr. Granger weighed the pros and cons of letting Sharon go home and agreed with Andy that emotionally, it would probably be for the best but physically, he wasn't sure. He gave Andy a few minutes alone with Sharon to discuss the idea of taking the medication before joining them in her room with his final decision.