Fallen
(Chapter Two: Trapped)
The bathroom door opened and Elliot raised his eyes to see Olivia standing in front of him. She wore an extravagant ball gown, black over one shoulder and white over the other, the material blending perfectly together into the flowing skirt. Her hair was swept up, her makeup was flawless and each of her dangly diamond earrings could bring enough at auction to feed a small country.
"Take off your shirt," she demanded as she sat a stack of clean towels and dry clothes on the toilet lid.
Elliot sat up and stared at her as he unbuttoned his shirt.
"Olivia, what is going on here? Are you in trouble?"
"I have things under control. But if you keep meddling around her you are going to screw this all up and get us both killed. You never should have come here, Elliot."
"We hadn't heard any news from you in over three months. The DE…."
Olivia covered his mouth with her hand to stop his words as she leaned back into the opened bathroom door and looked over her shoulder.
"You need something ma'am?" The man at the door asked.
"I can handle this. I'm just cleaning up the wound. I wouldn't want him to die on us," she remarked with a sarcastic smile as she pushed the bathroom door shut.
"Are you crazy?" She whispered staring at him. "Do you want to be maimed and murdered and scattered in little pieces all over the East River? You talk about…..you know who. It just isn't safe."
"We didn't even know if you were still alive," Elliot whispered. "I had to find out if you were okay. This was the only way."
"I'm fine," she snapped as she exhaled deeply. "This was really stupid," she said as she poured antiseptic onto on of the towels and dabbed it over the bullet wound.
"We agree there," he laughed. "You shooting me…..horrible idea."
"The bullet went all the way through. It lodged in the shower wall. So, as long as we keep it clean, you will be just fine. I'm talking about you coming here. They expect me to kill you. Any idea how I am going to fake my way out of that one?"
"If you are in over your head then we should call in help."
"How?" She asked staring at him as her eyes filled with tears.
"What about the agent they already had inside?"
Olivia shook her head and as tears rolled down both of her cheeks.
"They made him," she whispered. "A couple of months after I came in. I watched them cut his throat. Then Nick had some of the guys go out and dump the body."
"You have been in alone all of this time?"
"I have it under control," she said again as she wiped away her tears.
"You have it under control? What do you do for him, Olivia?"
She looked up at him in disbelief.
"I don't see a man like Nicolai Deltorro dating a woman for nine months without getting something from her. You're sleeping with him, aren't you?"
Olivia couldn't bring herself to answer him. But Elliot could tell by the look on her face that not only was it true, but she was ashamed of it.
"God, Liv. We have to get out of here. We both, have to get out of here."
"I'm not leaving," she said softly.
"Olivia?"
"I have invested too much, now. I have lost too much of myself to walk away without closing the case," she whispered in tears once more. "I can't quit until it is over. Until Deltorro and his men are put behind bars where they belong. Because if I do….and they don't get him and put him away…..then I did it all for nothing. There is no way out for me. So, I'm not leaving."
Elliot wiped her tears softly from her cheeks with a bit of tissue.
"Olivia….God, just be careful. I think we have both seen what these men are capable of."
She nodded, but still refused to look him in the eye.
"I have to go," she said clearing her throat. "I'm late for dinner and we have guests. I am leaving the anesthetic here and a stack of clean towels in the linen closet. I asked them to put some clean clothes in the armoire. You should shower and clean that up put on some dry clothes and get some rest. Vinny is outside the door," she said pushing the bathroom door open to look at the man, "so don't try anything stupid. He will shoot you without hesitation. I will have the chef prepare you a tray, you should eat something. I will bring you something for the pain. I suggest you take this time to think about the information I asked you for. We will continue this conversation in the morning. But you should really start cooperating, because the only thing standing between you and Vinny, is me."
Elliot watched as she stood up and made her way to the door.
"Watch him. If he gives you any trouble, find me before you hurt him. Nobody makes a move on him without my say so."
"Yes ma'am."
"Thank you, Vinny."
Olivia made her way back up the stairs to the upper deck to join Nick and their guests for dinner.
"There's my girl," Nick said hooking his arm around her waist and kissing her.
He was always showing her off like a prized possession to all of his business associates. Olivia tried to avoid being involved in his business arrangements. She had seen far more than she ever wanted to. She had gathered enough evidence to put the entire group away in the first month she was in on this operation, but since she lost her one link to the outside world, she had no way of passing along the information the DEA needed to take them down. For now, it was a waiting game. One Olivia was growing very tired of playing.
