DISCLAIMER: I do not own the characters from Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (Dick Wolf). All other characters are mine.

Chapter 2

Mercy General Hospital - New York City, New York

Operating Room

Dr. Keller finished the surgery and gave her prophylactic to help prevent any infection. The nurse gives the woman medication to start waking her. She replaced the anesthetic for oxygen. The nurse checked Angela's abdominal patch from the surgery. She inserts a needle into the woman's arm to start a morphine drip for her pain. An intern pushed the gurney out of the operating room.

Angela's ICU Room

The intern moves Angela into an ICU room. He makes sure she was settled, and checked the IV, then leaves the room. He walked into Olivia's room where he saw she's sleeping. He walked up to her. "Excuse me, ma'am? Are you the family of Angela Peterson?" He gently shook her arm.

Olivia woke up and wiped her cheeks. "Yes. Yes, I am," she lied about being family knowing; only she is just a close friend of hers.

"You can go in and see her when you feel up to it. She's in the ICU just down the hallway from you, room 102," the intern tells her.

"Thank you so much," Olivia said to him tiredly and in pain. She pulled off the tube connected to her arm, taking her oxygen mask off and got up. She noticed the bandages on her shoulder and side.

She grabbed the bags of evidence and took off the hospital gown she had on. She put her clothes back on, and noticed her shirt had blood on it, and she groaned a little as she put her shirt back on. Then she walked slowly out of her room and down the hallway, and into the ICU room that Angela was.

Olivia walked to Angela's bedside and looked at her. She gently placed her hand on her hand, and whispered to her: "Hey Angela I'm here now." When she saw the horrible bruises again and swollen face and eyes. "I'm so sorry this happened to you."

Angela heard a voice and slowly blinked trying to open her eyes. She saw Olivia and let out a relaxed sigh knowing she's safe with Olivia. "Liv it hurts so much. Please get Robert," she groaned with each pain she felt. Suddenly she became sick and turned her head as she coughed hard, hurting her stomach more each time she coughed. Finally, she throws up into the container next to her pillow.

"Angela don't worry. I will find him and put the son-of-a-bitch in jail, I promise you!" Olivia told her as she carefully moved some of her long hair away from her eyes. Olivia's cell phone suddenly rang startling her. She picked it up, "Benson," she said in a choked up voice.

"Hey, Liv. I'm surprised you are up this early. I was just going to leave a message." he pauses a moment, hearing Olivia's voice sounds different. He hears small groans in her voice thinking there is something wrong as she answered. "Liv? Are you okay? What is wrong? Your voice sounds funny." Elliot said with increasing concern.

"I'm…I'm okay, Elliot" Olivia dodged his questions since she doesn't want Elliot to worry about her. "What's up?"

"Are you sure you are okay? I just wanted to call to see if you wanted to go bowling with the kids and me later this afternoon. You know it's Saturday, are family day today. I know I'm asking this at 4:30 a.m., but if you, change your mind we will be at the bowling alley around noon time, just come over okay?" Elliot asked her.

Olivia smiled a little knowing that would have been fun, but she looked at Angela and shook her head. She knew she couldn't leave her friend. "Elliot, I can't really. I have things to take care of today." She suddenly yawned knowing she is lying to her other best friend, but can't let him know just now. "Please tell Kathy and the kids thank you for the offer, maybe another time."

"Okay Liv, just take care of yourself, but if you change your mind remember you are always welcome! You are family to us you know that" Elliot told her.

"Thanks, Elliot. Yes, I know that thank you," she smiled slightly. She put her hand on her friend's hand knowing how much Olivia needed her in her life and how much Angela needs me, too, "Take care, Elliot." She hangs up her cell phone and put it back in her pocket.

Angela stirred a little. Her eyes slowly tried to blink open as much as they could even from her swollen eyes. She noticed Olivia and attempted to speak to her. "Liv, I... I'm sorry...," She realized that she is keeping Olivia from spending time with her other friends, Brian and her son Jake and feels even worse.

Olivia remembered what Jake told her earlier last night. She smiled a little as Angela shook her head. "Angela don't worry. Don't be sorry please, none of this is your fault. It's not your fault at all. After all these years of knowing me, did you ever think I would not be here for you at any time?" Olivia told her.

Angela is hurting so much from the beating she took from Robert, but she tried to sit up despite the pain all over her body. She can't pull herself up. "Liv, please you…you don't have to stay with me, and you have a life. I can't take that from you."

"Yes, but you need someone to be with you. I will ask Nick and Amanda to look for Robert, so I can be here with you, okay?" She saw her trying to sit up. "Hey, be careful! We don't want you to pull your stitches out, let me help you." She stood up and gently helped her up by putting another pillow behind her.

"Liv, you don't have to be here with me. Your family needs you." Angela said with a grimace of pain on her face.

"And besides, you love my gentle way I can be there for someone. You have seen me with Brian's kid Danny. Just think of me as a mother figure," she laughed and shook her head, "Did I just say that?" Olivia groaned a little after laughing as she held her side.

Angela tried to laugh, but it hurt to laugh. She holds her chest with a grimace on her face. "Ow! Oh please Liv, don't make me laugh."

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to make you hurt" She smiled trying not to let her know she's hurting as well. She reached for some water and put a straw in it for her, "Here, take some water, your lips look dry, it will help."

Angela took a sip of the water, then laid her head back on the pillow again. "Yes of course I do. Thank you Liv, for helping me. I just do not want to be a burden on you. That's not what I wanted to do. I don't need someone by my side 24/7. I can call my parents, or you can for me. At some point, I will have to tell them I was beaten and raped by who they thought was going to be my husband." She sighed and shook her head. "I just can't seem to find a man that doesn't go psycho on me."

Olivia sighed and looked at her, "Hey! You have never been a burden to me, you're a part of my family, and you know me all too well. I have told you things I would never tell anyone else. You have been my best friend since college. I told you how much I hated my mother for her drinking all the time. Until you told me never to push her away no matter what. I would regret it if I did that. Now, she has been gone for almost 15 years, and it was because of you that I was able to forgive her before she died. Are you sure, you want to call your parents now? You should wait until most of your bruises are healed. They would worry too much if they come now."

Angela heard what Olivia had said to her and wished she had called Olivia before about Robert stalking her. She looked at her; as much as she could with her swollen eyes. "Liv. All this is my fault I should have called you eight months ago when he first started abusing me. I knew I should have. I...I wouldn't be here now in this position."

"Hey come on, I told you nothing about rape is your fault or abuse!" Olivia told her, "I can't tell you how many times I have told that to rape victims over the last 16 years now."

The nurse came into the room with a rape kit and camera. "Sargent Benson, I'm here for the rape kit. Are you ready Ms. Peterson?"

Olivia stood up, looked at Angela, and noticed how nervous she was, "Yes, I'd like to help out, too, please. Angela is a close friend, and I think she'd feel more comfortable if I was here to help."

Angela looked at Olivia and sighed heavily, "Yes, I would feel better, though this is extremely embarrassing to go through this. I wouldn't want anyone else, but you Liv."

Olivia gave a smile at her trying to keep her pain to herself. She reached over to pick up the camera. "Okay let's get started and get this over with. Let me know if you want to stop if you do not feel good okay?

Angela just nods at her.

"Okay, I will take pictures first," Olivia pulled the bed sheet off Angela's legs and lifted her gown just enough to see the bruises on her inner thighs. It was clear that Angela was not comfortable. "If you need to, just close your eyes. I will do this quickly."

Angela closed her eyes and tried very hard to be patient feeling embarrassed and so vulnerable.

Olivia looked into the camera, leaned down, and took two different angles of the bruises. She lifted the hospital gown more to show her abdomen where the stitches were showing bright red from her surgery. She pulled her hospital gown back down and clicked the camera again for the bruises that are on both of her upper arms. The bruise on her neck, and her swollen face. "Okay, we got the pictures now. Are you feeling all right?" she asked Angela.

"Yes, I'm fine, just hurting like hell, but I'm okay. I just feel like I did something wrong, and I deserved all this," Angela said covering her eyes as tears ran down her cheeks.

"Okay, Ang stop that! Ang, I love you like a sister, we have been like sisters ever since college! You should know by now after all these years that I would do everything I could to be by your side when you needed me. I know you would do the same for me!"

Angela sighed looking at Olivia. "I love you too Liv! And yes I would. You're just like a big sister to me, too. But you know me so well. I am such a sensitive person; I always think I did something wrong for a man to hurt me like this." She said wiping her tears from her cheeks.

"You know you did nothing wrong. No woman deserves to be raped no matter what the case," Olivia told her. "It's that son-of-a-bitch Robert's fault. He was the one that cheated on you; you had every right to leave him. Don't do this to yourself." She looked over at the nurse, then back to Angela, "Okay the nurse wants to do the procedure for the rape kit now, are you ready?"

Angela sighed, as she grabbed onto Olivia's hand. She needed the comfort from her friend and just nodded a 'yes' to Olivia.

"You'll be okay, just squeeze my hand," Olivia said comforting her.

Then Angela had a thought and looked up at Olivia. "Liv, I'm 45 years old. I've been pre-menopausal for the last two years now, I will not get pregnant, right? I can't, I'm too old to have a baby," Angela said remembering how much of him he put inside her. "Olivia, I felt so much of his...you know...stuff inside of me! It made me feel so sick and disgusted!" Angela cried.

Olivia's eyes widen a little hearing that. "Well, I should hope not. I'm sure nothing will happen. Don't think about Robert right now, think of yourself," she looked at the nurse, "Okay are we ready?"

The nurse nodded as she lifted the bed sheet off of the patient. She helped the patient to raise her knees up and placed her feet into the stirrups.

Angela closed her eyes. She shivered. She held onto Olivia's hand tightly. Even before the nurse began. Knowing it will be uncomfortable and a lot of pressure.

Olivia gently reassured Angela with a squeeze of her hand.

The nurse begins to comb the pubic hair to collect any loose hair, and places them in a small container and puts it into a small bag. Then starts to pull out ten pubic hairs with the head of the hair intact.

Angela winced at each pull the nurse takes, hoping this nurse doesn't take forever to do this as she again squeezes Olivia's hand.

Olivia tried to comfort her as much as she could and continued to hold her hand as she sits next to her as she let her maternal side kick in.

The nurse used a saline solution and gently swabbed inside her and put it in another container. She grabbed two more queue-tips and gently swabbed inside. She smeared them onto a glass slide together, then looked up at Olivia. "Can you take a swab inside her mouth for me, Sargeant?" She handed her two cotton swabs.

Olivia nodded at the nurse. She takes them and looks at Angela, "Now you know this won't hurt, open up," she says to her with a slight smile.

Angela opened her mouth for Olivia. She swabbed for saliva on both sides of her mouth with the two cotton tips. She took a piece of filter paper disk and folded it, and placed it on Angela's tongue and saturates it with her saliva. She handed them back to the nurse. "I can get under her fingernails, and hair from her head."

The nurse nodded and gave Olivia the container. Olivia let go of her hand for just a moment and took some hair from the back of her head, the front, and both sides and placed them into the hair container.

Angela is so numb to feel even Olivia plucking hair from her head.

Olivia took Angela's hand and gently removes any dirt and skin from under each fingernail and placed it into a container. She looked at Angela, noticing the tears running down her cheeks. It looks as if she is trying not to remember what happened to her last night.

Olivia finished her other hand and gave the nurse everything. She took her hand once again. "Hey, please don't torture yourself. You'll be okay. Do you know why?" Angela still is looking away from her. "Well, because you are a survivor, you got through it." Olivia ran her thumb just under Angela's eyes to wipe her tears away and sighed a little.

The nurse took two cotton swabs at the same time, and collects the dried secretions from her inner thighs and legs, then looked at Olivia. "Sargeant, I need your help, I need to swab her..." She is not sure she should say it aloud, knowing it will make Angela more anxious and nervous. "She needs to lay on her side."

"Okay," she looked at Angela, "You'll be okay. I'm here remember?" Olivia told her.

Angela gave in. Even though she hated every minute of this, but understands completely knowing this is a procedure that has to be taken care of now.

Olivia gently pulled Angela onto her side and sat next to her once again taking her hand and whispered to her, "It will be alright, you'll be okay I promise, I will take care of you. Just look at me, okay? Squeeze my hand if you need to - if it hurts."

The nurse looked up at the Sargent and nodded at her, as she then gently inserts them as she swabs the internal canal of her rectum.

Angela jumped slightly feeling the pressure of the cotton swab. It hurt; as tears run down her cheeks, wishing this never happened to her.

Olivia sighed just hoping to help her friend get through this.

"I'm finished with the rape kit, Sergeant. The only thing left is a urine and blood sample," the nurse tells Olivia.

Angela laid back down almost feeling helpless and so exhausted all over again.

Olivia looked at the nurse, "That will determine if she contracted gonorrhea, chlamydia and syphilis right?"

The nurse just nods, "Yes, it's. I will be back in a while for that," she gave a small smile. "I will let her rest for now. You can stay with her if you would like. If you want, we can bring a cot in if you should decide you need some sleep."

"Yes. Thank you." Olivia replied.

A few minutes later, an intern came in with a cot and fixed it up for the woman. "Is there anything else you might need? There is a pillow in the closet and a blanket if you should need one."

"For now, I'm fine, thank you very much," Olivia said to the intern.

The intern smiled and nodded at her and left the room.

Olivia continued to sit next to Angela by her bedside watching over her. "Do you want me to call Heather for you? I'm sure she would want to know her mother is in the hospital." Olivia asked concerned.

"Yes, I guess so. However, it's too early to call her. She's still sleeping. Wait until later when I know she's awake." Angela answered back.

"Okay, but you shouldn't wait too long to call her, she would want to know why her mother isn't there so early in the morning," Olivia told her as she moved a little in her chair and grimaced in pain as she held her side.

Angela just nodded, feeling so tired. She noticed Olivia's face. "Liv, is something wrong?"

Olivia shook her head. "I'm all right. Don't worry about me."

Angela looked up at Olivia shaking her head. "Too late sister! I always worry about you, being a cop and everything. I'm so sorry I dragged you into this Liv. You have a life, and I don't want to take that away from you, especially with Jake. I've noticed he's been asking Heather out a lot more lately."

Olivia knows all too well about Jake, especially what he had told her last night. "Yes, I realize that. Jake loves Heather and Heather loves Jake. I'm just glad they see each other. It keeps them busy. I just wish his dad, and I can do more things together with him. He asked me about that just last night. I just told him it was because of our jobs being cops. I wish we had a different life for him." Olivia explained to Angela.

"I'm sorry Liv. Yes, I'm glad they are doing things together. I can see Heather's face when Jake comes over; she just lights up every time." Angela said thinking about her daughter now. Angela closed her eyes for a moment. Her body hurts everywhere. Suddenly she realized something and looked over at Olivia. "Oh, my gosh Olivia…"

"What? What is wrong? Olivia asked her concerned.

"I just realized my daughter cannot know about this! Please! Don't call her! Angela continued to panic looking at Olivia. "Please don't call her!"

"Okay! Okay! Calm down now. Are you sure? Don't you want her to know about this? She loves you so much, and this would be something she would want to know about," Olivia told her.

Angela shook her head 'no'. "You don't understand Liv."

The nurse came back in the room with a syringe and a urine cup, "Last step Ms. Peterson. Time to get some blood and urine," She told her as she started to get the syringe ready to draw blood from her.

Angela looked at the nurse then to Olivia. She offered the nurse her arm. "Liv, please just do this for me. Please. I will tell her when I feel it's the right time."

"Hey you know I love that kid as if she were my daughter. She even calls me Aunt Liv. I can't just not say anything to her. What if she asks me where you are?" Olivia asked her.

The nurse placed a tourniquet on Angela's upper arm. She tapped her arm to find a good one making sure there is enough dilation to use the vein. She dabbed a cotton ball with alcohol and used a circular motion to the place for the needle. She let it dry for about ten seconds, and looked at the patient. "Okay, I'm going to insert the needle now."

Angela flinched a little as the needle went into her arm. Then she relaxed. She looked back to Olivia. "I just can't tell her what happened to me. It will ruin her. Just to recognize her that her mother was raped. It will kill her," Angela said, "She's too young to hear about what Robert did to me. Please, if you love Heather like you say you do, please don't say anything to her about this."

The nurse filled up several tubes of blood, and then took the tourniquet from around her arm, and finished up. "If you want, Ms. Peterson, you can use the bathroom instead of the bed pan, it might be easier. It's your choice."

"I think I can. Thank you. I should take care of it now." Angela looked to Olivia, "Will you help me to get to the bathroom?"

"Yes, of course, I'll help you," Olivia answered and helped her out of the bed, and walked her carefully to the bathroom.

"Thanks, Liv, I can do the rest," Angela said smiling. "I'm not too bad off," trying to make light of her situation. She closed the door for privacy. Angela does her business, as she put it into the small tube that she was given with the cup. She grimaced as she stood up from the toilet with pain. She is careful to wash her hands, and dry them before she entered her room.

Olivia helped Angela to walk back to her bed. She carefully helped her back into her bed and pulled the blanket over Angela. She knows her daughter should learn about her mother, but also doesn't want to betray her friend's confidence. "Okay, I won't, but would you, at least, call her yourself to just talk to her. She needs to hear your voice telling her everything is okay."

"Liv, she will hear something in my voice, I can't. Heather will know something's wrong, believe me! She's very smart," She moved to sit up and grimaces again in pain. "Besides, Heather hated it when I was dating Robert. She heard how he treated me towards the end before I found out he cheated on me. I can't tell her this. It will crush her."

Olivia sighed, "Okay! Okay, well just let me know if you change your mind. I have to make a call to Nick to see if he and Amanda found Robert yet, to arrest him. Will you be okay for now without me?"

"Yes Liv, I will be okay. Just find that bastard, and kick his ass for me," she said looking at Olivia.

"You bet. If I could, I would castrate him with a rusty steak knife! Then he'd never be able to rape again," Olivia smiled slightly at her comment and chuckled a little. "I'll be back later; I need to go home and change my clothes. It won't take me more than an hour." She leaned down to Angela and gave her a gentle hug.

Angela chuckled at Olivia's comment and hugged her back in return. "Thanks Liv…I'm glad you are on my side."

"Me too," Olivia smiled, "See you soon." Olivia walked out of Angela's hospital room and into the hallway. She took her cell phone out and started walking down the hall. She contacted the station.

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