usattorney | hate to talk like this;

Kevin finds Luke in his office, staring dead at the wall instead of going home. "I heard they let him out," he says quietly because that's all he has to say.

"Yeah," Luke replies. His voice is equally stunted. "That's what she wanted, so that's what happened."

They both know that Kyle Seaton's release is the exact opposite of what Luke wanted. Luke wanted to keep him behind bars for the next five years. In fact, Luke's fury when he'd originally learned everything Seaton had gotten away with had made him want to lock him up for a whole lot more and throw away the key. The fact that he'd hurt Janet twice only made him want to kill him.

"But it's not what you wanted," Kevin corrects needlessly and Luke laughs bitterly because that's how obvious the statement is.

"It doesn't matter what I wanted. It matters what Janet wanted," he emphasizes. "I don't get to decide what she's okay with. And if you're asking me if I'm going to pull any shit, I'm going to respect her decision." Not wanting to disrespect Janet is the only real reason he's not going back to the Correctional Treatment Facility to see Seaton released. He also doesn't want to commit a crime, but it's very tempting to make sure the other man knows she has other people on her side who don't share her sense of mercy. Just like Luke will always want to hurt her father.

But he's getting better at controlling his vengeful reactions for Janet's sake. He doesn't get to dole out vengeance for her or tell her what to feel anymore. He can only make his opinions known and be ready to fight if she asks for it. That's been a major change for Luke, who's always wanted to win, especially when it involves someone he cares about. But he's come to realize that doing so was taking their agency and they're the ones who decide if it's worth the battle. In this case, Janet decided it wasn't worth prolonging the war, that it was better to focus on peace.

"You want to go someplace and talk about it?" Kevin offers. "Or not talk about it. Whatever you need."

Luke has no idea what he needs. "You've got the Joiner case?" he asks instead, knowing what Michael and Janet have been working on all week. When Kevin affirms that he's taking that one himself, he replies, "Just keep an eye on her for me. Make sure she's doing okay. She's still scared of him."

"I'll let you know." Kevin doesn't hesitate to agree. Aside from Luke being his best friend, Janet is a friend of his too, even if they don't work together even half as often. They both know she won't want to talk about it, almost certainly won't ask for help, but they'll be there for her anyway. She would do the same for them and a whole lot more if they were the ones facing down an old enemy. "Are you going to be okay?" he asks Luke, as worried about him as Luke is about Janet.

Luke just laughs again. "I have absolutely no idea," he admits.