WARNING - this chapter contains descriptions of violence some readers may find traumatic.

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Her bedroom was pitch black when the noise woke her, something between a whimper and the cry of a wounded animal. She reached for the light switch, nothing. Shit. The ice storm of that evening had taken its toll, the power was out again. The awful keening repeated from the other side of the bed. She reached for the electric lantern on the floor. Clicking it on, she found Gail, fully dressed in her uniform, lying ridged on the other side of the bed, her hands clenched into white knuckled fists at her sides. Although Holly hadn't been expecting her, they had been sharing a bed so often lately that Holly hadn't even stirred when Gail arrived. She had given Gail a key and an open invitation, but never expected the first time she used it would be like this. This was alarming! Gail whimpered, screamed a wordless howl, and shouted "NO!" her eyes open, and blankly staring into space.

Holly touched her arm gently and spoke in a soothing voice, "Gail, Honey, wake up, you're safe…"

"Don't touch me you freak!" Gail cried out, "No! No, no, no, no, no!" She chanted as she scooted backwards as fast as she could, and ended up falling off the bed.

"Oh my God! Gail! Are you ok?" Holly panicked, jumped off the bed, and rushed around the other side. Gail was wedged in the corner between the bureau and the wall, hands gripping the air in front of her like a gun.

"Don't come any closer or I'll shoot!" Gail yelled, looking past Holly with a vacant stare.

Holly crouched down, placing her hands on Gail's cheeks.

"Gail, it's me. Wake up!" She pleaded

"I warned you!" Gail snarled "I don't want to have to kill you. I don't. I don't. I don't want to die! I don't want to die!" She was crying now.

"Come on Gail!" Holly prayed shaking her by the shoulders

"I don't want…" Gail's eyes focused "Oh my God! Holly!" She gasped launching herself into Holly's arms, burying her face into Holly's neck with a sob.

"It's ok Baby, it's ok.. you're here now, you're safe.." Holly comforted. Gail sobbed uncontrollably as Holly pulled her onto her lap and held her tighter. She waited. Gail's sobs turned to whimpers, her whimpers into sighs as her body began to relax into Holly's embrace.

"What happened?" Holly whispered, pulling back slightly to look at Gail.

"He was here! He was here!" Gail rambled in a panicky tone, "And I was strapped to his table, like the ones you have at the lab, and I felt him put the needle in my arm, and the I couldn't move. All of my other senses were heightened, but I couldn't move, I couldn't even make a sound."

Holly pulled her protectively closer.

"And then he was on top of me, pulling up my skirt, unzipping his nasty wool pants, calling me dirty names, and I couldn't move. I couldn't even whisper."

Holly froze with horror as she listened, her heart beating in her mouth.

"It hurt so much when he pushed himself inside of me, " Gail continued "And then he wrapped his hands around my throat, and I was sure he was going to kill me as he raped me. But then he heard a noise upstairs, and he just got off me and left. And that's when he killed Jerry." Gail's face was dry eyed and bleak.

Holly looked at her with worried, searching eyes, a murderous, protective rage coursing through her veins.

"Have you talked to anybody about this? I don't remember reading about him raping you in the report."

"Just you." Gail said in a quiet, trusting voice. "Wait… wait… You read the report?" she demanded.

"Yes." Holly admitted, "I did Jerry's autopsy, because I was new and I didn't know him."

"Oh." Gail looked disturbed.

"You didn't know that?" Holly asked

"No."

The lights flickered on. Gail looked small and pale in her rumpled uniform.

"So, " Holly tried again "You never reported that he raped you?"

"Holly, I'm a police officer, I have to work with these people every day," Gail stated, "Do you know how that would effect my ability to do my job? It's not like he isn't in jail for the rest of his life without that."

Holly sighed and sagged. "Come on," she said "Let's go back to bed."

"Ok." Gail looked spent. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry…"

"For what?" Holly asked, leading Gail to sit on the edge of the bed, where she let Holly undress her like a child.

"I'm sorry I put you through this." Gail sighed, "I'm sorry for not telling you sooner. "

"Don't be. It's ok." Holly replied firmly.

As they climbed under the covers, Holly held Gail tightly, wanting to be able to protect her forever.

Gail finally spoke in a hushed voice, "Thank you. I started having nightmares again about a week ago; but this one was so real!"

"That's when you shot that kid, isn't it?" Holly asked

"Yeah, yeah it was." Gail admitted, emotionally spent, the heaviness of sleep began to descend. She yawned.

The door bell rang.

"What the…" Holly exclaimed, as she and Gail sat up with a jolt.

Minutes later there was a pounding on the door.

"Police! Open the door or we're coming in!" a male voice called, followed by more pounding.

"Just a minute." Holly replied, pulling on her robe.

"Shit." Gail muttered, and hid under the blankets.

Holly opened the door to find a fresh-faced Rookie she had never seen before. He was leaning on her door jam with his hand on his gun.

"We have received a complaint of a loud domestic disturbance at this address." He took a step forward. "Due to the nature of this complaint I am going to have to check out your premesis, please step aside. He continued forward with his cop swagger.

"I can't let you do that. I'm fine." Holly blocked his path.

"I need to search your apartment." He said roughly pushing past her, "Or I could just arrest you now." He radioed in "Fifteen oh four requesting back-up."

"You are making a huge mistake." Holly warned as Gail appeared in the bedroom doorway wearing yoga pants, her uniform shirt, and an icy glare.

"I don't know who you are," she snarled, "But if you ever threaten her again, I will make sure that you are writing parking tickets for the rest of your life."

Just as he was about to reply, Nick appeared in the doorway. "What's going on…" He froze mid-sentence.

"Great. Just great." Gail sighed "Hi Nick!" she said with a dangerous smile.

"Gail?" Nick stuttered. "W-what are you doing here?"

His eyes growing wider as he looked from Gail to Holly, and back to Gail. She just arched her eyebrows at him.

"Sorry about the noise." Holly interjected.

"I had a nightmare, ok?" Gail said, voice dripping with hostility

"What?...You guys… You two… you.. what… Gail are you ok?" Nick stammered

" I have an early shift tomorrow, so can we please get back to bed?" Gale glared at him.

"Um, sure… uh sorry, " Nick said sheepishly, backing out the door. "Come on Thompson, let's go."

"Don't forget to close the door on your way out." Gail continued frostily.

The minute they were gone Holly heard Gail start to laugh. She turned to find Gail clutching her ribs, leaning heavily against the bedroom door jam, doubled over with laughter.

"Oh my God! " Gail gasped, "I guess Nick had to find out about us sometime."