A Series of Unfortunate Events

Chapter 23

There was silence from both lieutenants next to her until Provenza let out a huff. "Oh, I'm not taking credit for the drawings." Louie pointed accusingly at his partner, "Those were your flying monkey's drawings, not mine!"

"Hey, it wasn't just me! You added the broom and Julio added the house!" Andy sputtered. Embarrassed even though he knew Sharon knew he had been the instigator, he still felt bad about it.

She patted the side of his leg to calm him. Then Sharon giggled and snort-laughed, "Lieutenant, Louie you can't have it both ways," Sharon said with glee.

He was confused, "What do you mean?"

Sharon corrected him, "Glenda the Good Witch didn't have flying monkeys."

"Oh well. Yeah, I suppose you're right." Provenza tapped his leg. Not being able to think of a comeback, he changed the subject. "That knee and your ankle are going to need attention and since I'm pretty sure you've had your fill of hospitals I'll have Patrice take care of it back at the Three Palms. Is that okay, Commander?"

"It's more than okay, Louie. Thank you." As they bantered back and forth, Colleen and the other residents surrounded Sharon and asked permission to hug her. She smiled and nodded then hugged each of them back with a really special hug for Colleen. "Thanks for helping me get out of here," Sharon said.

At the same time, the group of six people with Colleen said, "Thanks for helping us get rid of the Wicked Witch." They all laughed.

"I'm sorry, Miss Isa… I mean Sharon. I didn't mean to make you hurt yourself. I was just trying to make it look real. You know, Colleen told us we needed to make it seem like we were mad at you. Like we hated you for rocking our boat. I wanted Cora to believe it was it was all real. The way you were holding the tray, I wasn't sure you would be able to aim it the right way, so I tripped you for real, not pretend. I guess I did it too well. Does it hurt very much?" Molly asked uneasily.

"Yes I know, Molly and I forgive you. I'd be lying if I said it didn't hurt. It hurts a great deal, but it will heal," Sharon said, trying to ease the girl's guilt.

Molly nodded sadly. "I'll miss you, goodbye." She hugged Sharon and ran. There were tears in her eyes.

After Molly left, Liza came over and bent down to hug her. "Goodbye, dear. I'm really sorry you won't be around to see the children grow up, but as you said you have several of your own. Take good care of them. They grow up so, fast don't they? Now, I have to look for Joey he's hiding here somewhere," said Liza vaguely and wandered away.

Sharon's eyes teared up as she watched the poor grieving mother looking for her lost babies. She shook her head. Then her attention was pulled away as David hugged her awkwardly and repeated what she had said to Cora the night before in her ear. Not calling her that, but letting her know he had heard her and was impressed, even amused. Then he ducked his head, wiggled his fingers as if he was playing the piano and left hurriedly. A few seconds later they could hear the piano playing Für Elise. Sharon's eyes got huge as she realized what exactly she had said to the woman. Her face got beet red and she ducked her own head. Paul didn't say anything to Sharon directly and he didn't hug her, but he could be heard muttering something about the Rose of Sharon and the Bible. He then reached out and shook her fingers with his, using only his index finger and thumb. Victor was led over by Colleen and he did hug Sharon. "You take care, young lady. You did good. You gave us our lives back, such as they are, and you got your back as well. You got your name back too. That's a win-win if you ask me."

Sharon offered him a genuine smile. "Me too, Victor, me too! I just carried out my part. Colleen was the real mastermind behind the plan."

Not willing to take. all the credit Colleen said, "Miss Sharon, you were the cornerstone of that plan. If it hadn't been for you and your team showing up like they did, my plan would have fallen flat."

"Thank you for that."

Sara was the last. At first, she stood there hands in her pockets looking over Sharon's head. "Well, I guess this is goodbye. It's funny, I haven't really known you that long. Only two days, not even really. If you consider how much time you were knocked out from the drugs they kept pumping you with every time you sassed the Witch, Old Iron Tits back!" Sharon peered at her as if she were one of her children. It wasn't quite as effective without her glasses. "What?! You called her that first!" She said laughing.

"Hmmm! Um, I admit I may have said it but I was under duress and confess that I had no idea what came out of my mouth that night until now. You know what, go ahead and call her whatever you like she was that and much much worse. Anyway, you were saying?" Sharon had tilted her head and pressed her lips together which meant she was uncomfortable with the way the conversation was going.

"I was going to say that even though we didn't know each other long, you took the time to tell me something I will carry with me forever. Life is temporary, dead is forever. No one has ever said anything quite like that to me. At least not in those words. Thank you. It made me decide to stop trying to end it all and start trying to find meaning in my life. Something to be happy about." Sharon blinked back tears and waved Sara closer so she could hug her. Sara hugged her back.

Sharon leaned out of the hug and told her, "You do that and once you decide what you are interested in doing, write to me and let me know. When you finally get out of here, come visit me at my work, the LAPD at the PAB and we'll work towards finding you a way to accomplish it. I'll set you up with people I know that can help you"

"Thank you, Sharon." Sara wiggled her fingers in a wave and all but ran away.

Liza came back carrying Sharon's glasses and her inhaler. "Oh good, you haven't left yet, I was looking for Joey and Marie and I found these. I think they may belong to you. That Old Witch that used to live in there had them. She had Joey and Marie too that woman, Old Iron Tits was such a bitch! She was always stealing my babies. I'm glad she's gone!"

Everybody chuckled at her repetition of Sharon's moniker for Cora, well except Sharon who was mortified that that had come out of her mouth. She placed her face in her hands and shook her head. Andy bent down and whispered, "Are you okay?"

She nodded, "mmmmhmmm, just feeling embarrassed, I guess. I can't believe I said that!"

Andy tried not to let out a laugh as he said, "neither can I, you hardly ever curse, let alone call people names. You must have been incensed."

"I was! It was the day I saw Rusty from the window. I kept banging on the window and yelling to get his attention. Just as he looked up, Augustus grabbed me and pulled me from the window. I was sooo angry, I could barely see straight! I tried to stomp on his instep and pull him over my shoulder, but I didn't have the right shoes or the strength. Then I looked at her and she was standing there in that 1950s version of a nurse's uniform her breasts were so large and pointy she looked like she had cones beneath it. She was smirking at me and I swear I wanted to tear her to pieces! I opened my mouth and well that came out. It was something Jack used to call me when he wasn't getting his way with me." Andy didn't like to hear what Jack had put Sharon though, it only proceeded to raise his blood pressure. Though she had been mentally abused by both, Sharon stayed on the subject matter of Cora. "I guess it seemed appropriate at the time, but it sure was embarrassing to hear it repeated."

"Well, it was definitely, an interesting moniker for her. It would have been amusing if the situation hadn't had me chewing nails. I was so over the moon happy to hear your voice, but I was worried too. Your voice is usually so strong, but it sounded low and tremulous to me, especially after you fell. I wanted to march in there and swoop you up and carry you out the minute I heard it. Of course, Provenza and Morris wouldn't let me and I knew you would want to be part of the takedown and after all, she put you through, you deserved to be part of that takedown."

Sharon hugged him and gave him a grateful smile. "Thank you for not swooping in and rescuing me. Not only did I want and deserve to be part of that takedown, I needed to rescue myself. I've been feeling so old, and sick, and weak and out of control of what was happening to me lately. I was losing faith in my own abilities. I needed to feel myself again."

He placed his hand on hers, "and, do you?"

"I'm getting there. Not there yet, but I'm getting there." She squeezed Andy's hand grateful for the touch to someone that cared for her, not someone that was trying to torment her. "How did you know I was here? I wasn't really sure whether Rusty was able to tell it was me."

"Rusty had time to see you before Augustus pulled you away and he recognized you. He started yelling and I went over to him. He was so excited he could barely get out the words to tell me. He said… 'she alive! I saw her she's was at the window banging and yelling. I looked up and I saw her. Mom is alive, Andy!' That was the first real sign that we had, that you being alive wasn't just false hope, but reality. Then there were the texts from two different people saying almost the same thing." Sharon frowned at him wanting him to explain. "The one said, look for your wife, Commander Sharon Raydor in the psych ward on the fourth floor. That was it. The second one said, your wife Sharon Raydor is on the 4th floor in the Psychiatric Ward of this hospital. Make sure to have a warrant, backup and beware of Cora Hartley. She's a witch who makes the Wicked Witch of the west look like Glenda the Good Witch, and she has a vendetta against your wife."

"Of course, it took awhile to get warrants and coordinate everything and everybody. I thought I was going out of my mind, worrying about what was happening to you, about Rusty and how he was dealing with everything. He was freaked out that we couldn't just barge in right then and there and the baby needed me to focus on her." Andy let out a sigh over all that had been happening. "Thank God, Dr. Joe showed up to help with Rusty. Patrice and Provenza arrived to help with the baby. They've been a big help."

Sharon felt herself deflating like a balloon that lost its air. "Andy, can we go home, please? I'm so tired."

He reached down and started to lift her. "Andy, you shouldn't carry me! Your heart!"

"Since my heart attack, I've bench pressed weights heavier than you. Sharon, I can carry you. Let me, please." Andy needed to help her in the ways that he could.

Sharon sighed, she was worried for him but didn't want to emasculate him. "Okay, but please don't drop me. I hurt all over if I get too heavy just let Julio take me please?"

"Alright. I won't drop you, I promise." Andy asked, "Now do you want me to take you home to the condo or home to the suite at the Three Palms?"

She thought for a minute, "humm, has Be… the baby's things been released?"

Andy shook his head slowly, "Not yet, or at least not that I know of. I haven't exactly been focused on that."

Sharon decided, "Well then, I guess if Grace will have us back, we'll go to The Three Palms, but isn't our suite a crime scene?"

"She put us on the other side of the house in an even bigger suite. Even moved our stuff for us. Rusty and the baby are there now with Patrice and Dr. Joe." Before picking her up he wrapped his arms around her and held her to him. Andy didn't care where they went as long as Sharon as with him. He didn't plan on letting her out of his sight for a long time.

TBC...

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