Disclaimer: See Part One

Note: Once again thanks for all of the great reviews and sorry this chapter took a whole week to get up, next one's already in the editing stages, so it shouldn't take so long…Also this takes place the night before the events in Sacrifice.

Gillian stood in front of the mirror trying for the third time to steady her hand, just long enough to get at least a little mascara on her eyelashes. She'd put on the rest of her makeup, but she just couldn't seem to get the last of it in place.

"Screw it," she said to herself, throwing the tube back in the bag and going back over to the suitcase on the bed. Gillian pulled out the one outfit in the bag and held it up, dark and blue, kind of like her mood. Digging out the matching shoes, Gillian was once again thankful she kept a packed bag in her trunk in case of emergencies and that she'd packed something that didn't wrinkle.

Putting the dress on the dressing hook, Gillian slipped off the complimentary hotel robe and was reaching back up for the dress when she noticed the discoloration on her wrist. She held it closer to her eyes making sure it really was what she thought it was, a small bruise. Gently, she ran her finger over purple blemish about the size of a thumb, her mind flashing back to just twelve hours before, when her life as she knew it ceased to exist.

Twelve Hours Ago....

Dinner had been quiet and the ride home even quieter. They'd talked about Alec's upcoming trip and the trip they were planning on taking when he got back, two weeks in Italy, a kind of second honeymoon. But it had been apparent all throughout dinner and even now that they were home, that something was bothering Alec.

He was putting his jewelry and wallet in his drawer when Gillian walked into the bedroom and stopped, watching him for the briefest of moments. She crossed and came up behind him, putting her arms around him and pressing her face into his back.

"Want to tell me what's wrong?" she asked her voice muffled, immediately feeling him stiffen as soon as the words were said.

"Do you really want to know?" he asked, unbuttoning his shirt, looking at her through the dresser mirror.

Gillian stepped around and leaned against the dresser looking up at her husband. "Of course."

Alec stared at her for a minute as if deciding what to tell her, "I think it's time you left The Lightman Group. Any agency in town would give you just about anything you wanted or you could even start your own firm."

Gillian just stared at him waiting for the punch line to the joke, but she could tell from the look on his face that he was serious.

"I helped start The Lightman Group," she defended, taking off her jacket and laying it on the bed. "I can't just leave it."

"Or you can't leave him?" Alec accused, turning to look at her.

"Is that what this is about?"she retorted.

"Any other man would have had a problem before now," he said, hands controlled in front of him still very aware of what she did for a living.

"You don't trust me?" she asked gently, more hurt than anything.

"I don't trust him," Alec said, pointing at a nonexistent Cal Lightman. "I told him, asked him to be more considerate of our marriage, and I come in a see you in his arms."

Now angry, Gillian replied, "We were dancing, blowing off steam, something you've seen us do on more than one occasion, and what the hell do you mean you asked him to be "considerate of our marriage"?"

"I told him he's too close," Alec said. "Sometimes I feel like he's just as big a part of this marriage as you and I, and I certainly didn't agree to marry Cal Lightman, Gillian."

"He's my partner," Gillian answered. "And he's been a damn good friend for a long time."

"You may think he's just a friend, Gillian," Alec accused. "But I've seen the way he looks at you."

Gillian digested Alec's last comment. How does he look at me? she thought.

"And don't think I'm the only one that's noticed. I've shared enough conversations with his ex wife to know that she wasn't exactly thrilled with the nature of the relationship between the two of you either," Alec continued, his voice now officially raised to shouting level.

"I know what you're saying and it's not true. Our friendship had nothing to do with their divorce. Cal and I are friends and colleagues, that's all we've ever been," Gillian said, matching Alec decibel for decibel.

"Ask him," Alec spat, his forehead tense and his mouth pulled into a tight line.

"Ask him what?" she yelled, her hands in the air.

"Ask him if he wants to sleep with you?" Alec said, not yelling, just accusing. "You know when he's telling the truth."

"What do you want from me?" Gillian yelled, searching his eyes, for the answer.

"I told you, I want you to quit," Alec admitted. "

Gillian shook her head like she was trying to get all of those five words to fit but it wasn't working. "This is my career, what I've worked so hard for; you'd ask me to give all of that up because you feel so threatened by Cal?"

"I can't take anymore, Gillian, work, home, Sophie, him," Alec said. "It's too much and you know just as well as I do, it's falling apart."

"And you think me leaving The Lightman Group will fix all of that?" she said sadly.

"No, but it's a start," Alec said coldly.

Gillian studied him for a minute, a tear rolling down her cheek, wondering how she would react if he reached out for her, if he told her he didn't mean it and that they could go back to the way they had been .

"You're wrong, Alec," she said calmly. "That's not the start of something better, that's the end, because when you ask me to give up something this important to me because of your insecurities, there's really nothing more I can do for you."

Gillian started to walk past him, she needed air and truth be told a large bottle of tequila, but he grabbed her wrist and pulled so that she would have to look at him.

"You may think this is all about me and my insecurities, but you need to take a good look at yourself in this, Gillian. This is more about you than you think. Take a good long look in the mirror," he said finally letting go.

Twelve Hours later…

Gillian had put the dress on and finished her hair, now all she needed was her work bag and she could abandon the hotel room for more familiar territory, her office. Picking up the bag and the key card, Gillian took one last look in the mirror and prayed for a light day at work before finally leaving her new temporary home.