A/N: Sean continues preparing for his transition to Mayor only to find out others have different plans for him.

*Sean's POV*

The sun had finally risen, and Sean was still at the precinct, running on very little sleep. When he had received the call that Bonaparte had been found dead, Sean couldn't believe he had almost forgotten about that. Sean played his part, pretending to have no knowledge, asking how he died. Whoever had found him seemed to believe he had died of natural causes. He gave the caller permission to call for assistance. The body was picked up very quickly, thankfully before any of the children saw it. Following that, Sean had a nerve-wracking call to advise those higher up that Bonaparte was dead, of apparently natural causes. There was, of course, disbelief about that being true. Surely the great Conrad Bonaparte didn't meet his demise via natural causes. No doubt someone would be on their way to Portland soon to verify.

As luck would have it, the surveillance system at the North Precinct had gone down around the time Nick had been picked up. Meaning, there was no footage of the person or persons responsible for the massacre. There was also surprisingly little evidence that would aid in catching whoever was responsible. Still, knowing that people would turn to him for answers, Sean continued to act as if he were vested in the investigation. His only interest was in finding someone to shift the blame on to.

There was still no sign of his brother-in-law. No doubt he'd gone into hiding. Sean wasn't sure how he could get the message to him that he wasn't trying to kill him or arrest him. Hank and Wu were here, but there was no way in hell they would believe him. Neither would any of the others. Sean wasn't even certain his wife would believe him at this point. Not that he could blame her. And it wasn't as if he wanted to admit what had occurred the night before.

Sean was in his office when he received an unexpected visitor. "Jeremiah. Well, this is a surprise."

The man was looking at him, a serious expression on his face. "We need to talk."

Sean nodded. "Yeah, of course, come on in." Sean told him. "Something about the campaign?"

Jeremiah had stepped further into his office by that point, turning to face Sean. "No, I don't want to talk about the campaign." He said his tone frustrated. "Shut the door."

Sean wondered what this could possibly be about. "Alright." Sean said as he moved to close the door. "What's the problem?"

"Rachel Wood."

Sean paused. Ah yes, the woman his daughter had killed. By this point Sean knew Rachel's body had been found. Hank and Wu were working on the case. "Yes. Rachel's death is a great loss. I assure you; it is being investigated."

Jeremiah scoffed. "Your officers are investigating? That's like a fox guarding the henhouse."

Sean frowned. "I'm not sure I know what you mean."

"You were having an affair with her. And then you killed her to cover it up."

Sean shook his head. "I was not having an affair with Rachel." Sean insisted. "We worked together. Nothing more."

Jeremiah shook his head. "That's not what Rachel insinuated."

Sean sighed pinching the bridge of his nose. "I am aware of Rachel's attraction to me; however, I assure you it was one sided."

"If you weren't sleeping with her, then why were you at her house so late last night?" Jeremiah asked. Sean froze. It certainly wouldn't be a good look, having someone witness him at Rachel's house the night of her murder. "I saw you go into her house. When I went in after you left, she was dead. I found her body."

"Look, I didn't kill Rachel."

Sean's denial seemed to fuel Jeremiah's anger. "I loved her. And you killed her." Jeremiah let out an angry laugh. "And now your precinct is the one investigating her murder."

Sean couldn't help but feel a little pity for the man. However, he was aware that his accusations, if made public, may not end well for Sean. "What do you want?"

"Justice."

"And you will get that, once my officers track down the real killer."

Jeremiah shook his head. "You are unbelievable. Still denying it."

The man was starting to annoy him. "And how do you expect to get justice if you don't trust the system?"

Jeremiah straightened up, his expression changing. "Why don't you think about how much it'll cost to keep my mouth shut? You got 24 hours before this city knows what a great family man you are. And, out of respect for Lorelei, because she is a good woman, I'll tell her before I tell the media."

Sean clenched his jaw, any pity he had for the man disappearing at the mention of his wife. Despite Sean knowing that none of Jeremiah's accusations were true, he didn't want his wife to experience anymore distress than she already was. Sean glared at the man as he left his office. He needed to do something about him before he started flapping his gums.

Less than an hour later, Sean was speaking with a prospective candidate who would be taking over his position as Captain. "As you know, the new Captain of this precinct will be reporting directly to the mayor's office." Sean explained to Lieutenant Grossante.

"I understand." Grossante said. "It would be an honour to succeed you, sir."

"Yes, I know. Before I announce my decision, you're gonna have to prove your loyalty." Sean told him, quickly glancing out the windows before leaning forward, his voice dropping. "And not just to the mayor's office…but to me."

A smirk crossed Grossante's face as he also leaned forward. "I'm ready anytime…sir."

"What are you doing here?"

Sean was standing at the door of Jeremiah Rogers apartment. He wanted to deal with this as quickly as possible. "I have what you asked for." Sean said, holding the briefcase up, allowing Jeremiah to see it through the peephole of his door.

"How much?"

Sean sighed. "If you want it, open the door."

A moment later the door was opened, revealing Jeremiah with a gun in hand. Sean stepped inside. "I guess you don't trust me." He commented as Jeremiah closed the door behind him.

Jeremiah moved to stand opposite Sean, gun directed towards him. "Show me the money."

Sean opened the briefcase and turned it around, allowing Jeremiah to look at it. His eyes widened slightly before his gaze returned to Sean. "Now, how do I know you'll stop threatening me."

"You killed the woman I love. You don't deserve an answer to that question."

"I did not kill Rachel." Sean said, trying to keep calm.

Jeremiah scoffed. "If you're innocent, then wouldn't have paid."

"Oh, I'm not paying." Sean said, slamming the briefcase closed. "You are."

Jeremiah frowned as Sean's gaze lingered at something behind him. Jeremiah barely had a chance to look behind him before Grossante grabbed the man, slicing his throat from behind. Jeremiah breaths turned to gurgles as he fell to his knees, his gaze still on Sean. For a moment, Sean was taken back to Meisner's death, and the action Sean had taken to hasten it. Sean was brought back as Jeremiah's body hit the floor with a thud.

Grossante woged back as his gaze fell on Sean. "Sorry about the blood sir." He said, referring to the streak of blood that had hit Sean's shirt.

Sean smirked at him. "It'll wash out." Grossante returned the smirk. "Congratulations on your promotion…Captain." Briefcase of money in hand, Sean headed for the door. "And when you're done cleaning up, come meet me back at the precinct."

Grossante nodded. "Thank you for the opportunity, sir."

Sean returned to the mansion to change his shirt. As he entered the bedroom, he found Adalind and Lorelei talking. His wife was laying down, a heat pillow resting on her forehead while Adalind was sitting beside her. Both women looked surprised to see him. "Why are you home?" Adalind asked.

"I need a shirt." Sean told her as he removed his jacket. "Are you alright, mon amour?"

"Yeah. Just a bit of a headache." Lorelei replied. "The heat pillow is helping though."

Adalind frowned as she looked closely at his shirt. "Is that blood?"

"It's not important." He told her.

Lorelei sat up, removing the heat pillow. "Are you hurt?" She asked concerned.

"No." He assured her. Accepting his answer, Lorelei laid back down, returning the heat pillow to its position.

Adalind looked suspicious. "What happened?"

"Well, someone thought I killed Rachel." He answered as he unbuttoned the bloody shirt. "Thought it'd be worth a lot of money not to say anything."

"So, that's not your blood." Adalind slowly asked.

Sean scoffed. "Blackmail is risky business." Sean answered as he headed towards the closet.

"You know. I think I see some blood in your hair." Adalind told him

Sean frowned. "Where?" He asked, lightly patting his head.

"Maybe you should take a shower." Adalind suggested "You don't want the girls to see blood in your hair…or anyone else either."

Sean sighed. He needed to get back to precinct, but she was right. It wouldn't be a good look if anyone were to see blood on his person. Dropping the bloodied shirt on the chair, he changed direction and headed to the bathroom. After washing himself thoroughly, just to make sure there was no blood left behind, he stared getting ready to go out again.

"Now that you're here, why don't you just stay home?" Adalind suggested as he combing his hair.

"I gotta get back to the office."

"Why? We can make dinner."

Sean shook his head as he finished up in the bathroom. "Can't." Sean told her.

Adalind sighed, glancing at Lorelei. It looked as if his beloved had fallen asleep. Good, she needed it. "Come on Sean. You've barely been home. You should spend some time with your family."

Sean didn't need that reminder or the guilt trip. He was aware he hadn't been able to spend as much time with his family lately. But once he took office, he would be able to do that. "I understand." Sean told her as he grabbed another jacket from the closet. "Just not tonight."

"Well, there are things we need to talk about."

"Like what?" Sean asked, pulling the jacket on as he started making his way towards the door.

"Well, Diana for one." Adalind said walking beside him.

Sean looked at her. "Diana? Why, did she kill somebody else?"

Adalind looked frustrated. "No, Sean. She hasn't killed anybody else, but she has other issues."

Sean was getting frustrated himself. The mother of his eldest was so much more needy than his wife. Lorelei understood his job meant he couldn't be as involved in the parenting decisions as they'd both like. If there was something that needed to be discussed and he had to leave, she typically waited until later on when he could devote time and attention the issue. "Can we just talk about this later?" Sean asked continuing his journey to the door.

"You want to put off talking about your own daughter? I mean, what kind of father are you?" Adalind hissed angrily, glancing at Lorelei to make sure she didn't wake her.

Sean sighed in frustration. "Ok, all right, what?" He asked stopping and turning to face the blonde.

He must have surprised Adalind, as she appeared lost for words for a moment. "Well, her education, for one."

Sean stared at her, inwardly rolling his eyes. "Her education?" He asked, waiting for Adalind to elaborate. "What about it? I mean, she's getting an education from you and Lorelei."

"I'm working again. And in a few weeks, Lorelei is gonna have four children demanding her attention. It's not fair to put Diana's education solely on her."

Sean sighed. That was true. Even with the addition of nanny's, it was going to be hard on his wife. "I mean, maybe it's time we send Diana to school."

"Ok. But where?"

"I don't know. Just pick a place. Whatever you and Lorelei decide, is fine by me."

Adalind glared at him. "Ok. One, just because Diana has two mom's, doesn't mean you get to flake out on parenting decisions. And two, this is Diana. It's not going to be that easy to 'pick a place'." Adalind said. "What if she gets into a fight with a kid on a playground, or what if one of her teachers give her a time-out? I mean, that might be a forever time-out for the teacher."

"Well, we'll just have to explain to her that there are certain boundaries, all right? We'll work it out." Sean said before trying to move past her to get to the door.

Adalind moved to stand in front of him again. "No, I mean, she – she can't go to a public school. She can't go to a private school. We certainly can't homeschool her any longer."

Sean sighed in frustration. "Can we deal with this later?" He asked her. This really was a conversation that they could have at a later time. When Lorelei was awake and could chime in. She probably had some ideas now that they had started integrating Diana into the world.

"But, if she doesn't go to school, she won't have any friends." Adalind said looking panicked. "I mean, she'll have no sleepovers, no playdates. She'll have zero social skills. How are we going to deal with it?"

"Ok, all right, I get it. Ok." Sean told her. He glanced at his watch before looking back at Adalind. "I guess I can be a little late. What's on your mind?"

Adalind looked surprised that he had agreed to discuss this now. "Uh, well, a lot of stuff."

Sean sighed; Adalind had been prattling on for the better part of fifteen minutes. "Alright, look, maybe I haven't given Diana's education a lot of thought." He admitted. "But considering everything that's been going on recently? I mean, look, her education is just as important to me as it is to you and Lorelei." He said as he stood up from the armchair, he had seated himself in. "But right now, I have to go."

As he headed towards the door, Adalind ran around the front of him. "You don't know how happy that makes me to hear you say that." She said, wrapping her arms around him in a hug. Sean was surprised at the sudden show of affection, especially coming from Adalind.

Sean gently untangled himself. "Adalind, please, I have to go."

"I know you have to go." She said loudly. "And that is why it is so amazing that you stayed here to talk about our daughter. You are an amazing father."

Sean nodded, inwardly rolling his eyes at her antics. "Ok, yeah, I just –." Sean trailed off as he heard his own voice coming from the TV. He turned to look at it.

"Citizens of Portland. It is with great sadness that I stand before you tonight. Now, I wish to say that I am profoundly grateful to the people of this wonderful city…"

"What the hell." Sean hissed as he grabbed the remote to turn up the volume. It may have looked like him on the screen but that was not him.

"For electing me as their mayor. But it has become apparent that the recent attack on the North Precinct will require my full attention. And I am therefore, abdicating the mayorship."

Sean felt white hot rage at those words. "What!" He shouted.

"I cannot, in good conscience, leave the police department at its time of greatest need."

"When did you record this?" Adalind asked.

"I didn't record this!" Sean angrily said. "It's live!"

"The recent manhunt for Detective Nick Burkhardt was actually an undercover investigation staged to bring the real killer to justice." Sean glared at the screen. There was never a manhunt for Nick. But at least he knew who was responsible for this. And there would be hell to pay. "And now, since this is an ongoing investigation, I cannot further comment but I would like to thank Detective Burkhardt for his exemplary work and congratulate him on a job well done."

"No, no, no, no, no, no!" Sean yelled, throwing the remote on the ground so hard it broke. "No!" Sean spun around to look at Adalind who was cowering against the wall, slowly sliding herself along it. No doubt heading towards his wife to use her as a human shield. "If I find out that you had anything to do with this…"

"What the hell is going on?"

Sean's head wiped around the source of the voice. Lorelei was sitting up on the bed woken by his yelling. "Ask your friend." Sean said in a low voice. He glared at Adalind one last time before leaving. He may not be working with Black Claw anymore, but he'd had every intention of retaining the mayorship. He needed to try and fix this mess.

A/N: It took me longer than expected to write that last portion. I keep laughing at Nick singing himself praises as Renard.