Coda to 7x06 - "Animal Control." 'cause, really, this confrontation demanded to be written.

Disclaimer: The Shield of a product of Shawn Ryan's mind. Yea.

After the failed set up, Vic and Ronnie drove back to Lem's death site. Ronnie arrived first and killed the engine. The brunette's hands gripped the steering wheel tightly, the leather creaking under the strain. Ronnie took several deep breaths to control his anger, swallowing hard occasionally as he waited three minutes for Vic to pull up beside him. Satisfied that he wasn't about to blow up, Ronnie opened the door and stepped out of his vehicle.

Walking around the front of his car, he approached the driver's side of Vic's SUV. He snapped his fingers absently, gesturing for Vic to step outside as well. When the older man did, Ronnie said, "follow me."

Ronnie led Vic across the empty space of the abandoned lot, twenty feet from their vehicles and stopped a few feet from the memorial plaque that the Strike Team made for Lem. "What the hell happened tonight?" Ronnie demanded.

Vic sighed, knowing what Ronnie was speaking about – Vic's second thoughts about setting Shane up for assassination. "I don't know, man," he confessed, running his hands across the top of his head.

"You don't know?" Ronnie echoed, disbelief in his tone. He shook his head, laughing incredulously. Standing straighter, Ronnie looked Vic in the eye and demanded, "having second thoughts about this?"

"No," Vic said instantly, but he was looking uneasy.

Ronnie scoffed. "No? You wanted to call Shane in the middle of the goddamn meeting to warn him!" He snapped, glaring into Vic's eyes. "We spent all that time trying to cover our asses from all angles and get revenge for Lem! Hell, you were the one who suggested it!"

"God, Ronnie, I know!" Vic snarled, turning away from Ronnie and his accusations. He really didn't know what he was doing anymore. Everything had gone to shit right before his eyes. It used to be so simple only a few short years ago. Black and white – "us" and "them." Suddenly "us" became "them," black meshed with white and Vic was left with an entire fucking greyscale across his life.

"No, Vic," Ronnie disagreed, grabbing Vic by the shoulder and forcing the bald man to face him. "No, you don't know. Yea, we don't have to worry about the Armenians right now, but we still have one glaringly obvious problem – Shane!" He tossed his free hand out to his side, indicating Lem's memorial plaque. "Two years ago, when Lem was killed, you vowed to us on this same goddamn spot that you would find the person responsible for Lem's murder and we were going to kill him. You swore it again on his grave. Vic, you looked me in the eye only a few hours ago and said we were going to make good on that vow." He released Vic and stepped away from him, scoffing in disgust.

Vic wiped his hand over his mouth without thinking, his eyes zeroed in on the plaque just feet from him. His mind was a blur of memories of Lem and a deep feeling of guilt weighed on his soul. He shook his head and ground out in a strained, desperate voice, "God!"

"God's not going to help us," Ronnie said softly, staring at the name on the plaque as well. "Neither is the law. Only us. Vic, we owe this to Lem... Lem, who was going to prison to protect us. Lem, who trusted us. Lem, who valued our lives over his own. Lem, who was so much better than us. Lem, who—" He cut himself off as his voice broke under the strain of suppressed grief and rage. Ronnie was silent for a few moments before he continued. "Vic, could you honestly say you would have done the same as Lem? Would you have damned yourself to save us? 'Cause, honestly, I wouldn't have."

No. The answer was no. Vic had contemplated that very question for over two years. Would he have made the same choices as Lem? No, he probably wouldn't have. He wasn't as kind as Lem. His conscience didn't rear its ugly head as often as Lem's did. Lem couldn't have lived with the knowledge that he had betrayed his friends, but Vic probably could have.

And the knowledge of that fact killed him.

Instead of answering, Vic remained silent. The two detectives just peered down at the engraving on Lem's memorial plaque. After nearly five minutes of silence – both for their thoughts and for respect for Lem – Ronnie sighed. "I'm not going to be satisfied until Shane's six feet under," he said in a resolute voice. The finality of that statement sent chills down Vic's spine. The past three, four, five years had dramatically changed Ronnie and Vic was wary that he was walking down the same path as Shane. He turned away from Ronnie.

"Earlier, you said that you weren't Shane and you're right," Ronnie continued. "You're not – you don't kill your friends. But Shane stopped being a friend and became an enemy the second he dropped that grenade in Lem's lap." Ronnie shook his head, scratching the scars on the left side of his face absently. "Now he's just a traitor who killed one of our own."

"Do you really think Lem would want revenge?" Vic asked, rubbing his head in desperation.

Ronnie stilled before stepping in front of Vic. He looked Vic in the eye and confessed quietly, "The ME said Lem was alive for at least a minute after the grenade detonated."

The older man went cold. He hadn't known this – he couldn't bear to read the medical examiners report. Now Vic wished he did; he wouldn't have gotten cold feet. "Christ," he whispered.

"Yea. So, if he was conscious after, he probably realized that it was Shane who killed him. So, yes, Vic," Ronnie breathed, not breaking eye contact with Vic, "I think Lem would have wanted revenge."

Vic broke eye contact with Ronnie first, but Ronnie's words had gotten through. He swallowed hard and nodded. "You're right. You're right, Ronnie. We need to do this. We'll never get past this, all this shit, without ending Shane. Put the end to all of our problems and finally give Lem the peace he deserves."

Ronnie remained quiet, still staring at Vic with an unreadable expression on his face. Finally, he nodded. "Glad to see we're back on the same page."

Without another word, both men returned to their vehicles after giving Lem's memorial plaque one last respectful glance and drove away.

I dunno, I feel like I made Ronnie too aggressive and Vic too passive, but I can see this happening, especially after Vic's chickening out near the end of the set up and Ronnie's disbelieving stares. I kinda like to think Ronnie's grown a backbone within the last couple seasons. Anyway, The Shield needs to expand its fandom. Long live the Strike Team! (Even if one bit it and another is a friggin' Judas.)