Disclaimer: The almighty Shonda Rhimes owns Grey's Anatomy, not me. I just own the DVD's :)

A/N: Okay well this idea popped into my head after reading several stories that revolved around the same subject, rape. It's a sensitive topic so please don't read this if it effects you in any way.


Monday morning. The day that Meredith and Derek couldn't wait for and the day Carly wish never would happened. She didn't want to face Thatcher and she didn't want everyone in that court room to hear what he did to her.

"Carly, today is the day," Meredith whispered in her ear as she woke her up. Carly's eyes opened tiredly. She hadn't really slept much that night, the nightmare's were coming more often.

"Yeah," Carly murmured as Meredith helped her up. She got in the shower, got dressed, and allowed her Mom to help with her hair so it would look okay to go up on the stand.

"You okay?" Meredith asked as she combed Carly's hair and put it half up and half down before slipping a blue ribbon in her pony tail. She didn't answer. "Nervous huh?" Carly nodded.

"Yeah," she whispered. Meredith turned Carly to face her.

"They have so much evidence sweetie," Meredith told her. "And your whole family is there for you."

"I know," Carly murmured. Meredith kissed her forehead gently before standing up, Carly right behind her.

"ARE YOU TWO ALMOST DONE!" Derek called up the stairs. "WE HAVE TO BE AT THE COURTHOUSE AT 9:30. IT IS CURRENTLY 8:45." Meredith laughed.

"We are coming now Derek," she said. Giving Carly's hand a quick squeeze before walking down the stairs together.

"Hey Carly," Derek greeted. "Are you ready for today?"

"Do I have to answer that?" she asked. Derek sighed and kissed her forehead gently. "Come on, let's go. We don't want to be late."

"Okay," Meredith said as Derek grabbed his keys off the shelf and they got into the car. On the ferry they all went to the upper deck. Carly however, just stood looking out over the water silently. She sighed and began playing with her hair.

"Are you okay?" Derek asked standing beside her.

"Daddy," Carly murmured. "I don't want to look at him. I don't want to hear him. I just want it to be over."

"Well it is almost over baby," Derek pointed out.

"It never will be," Carly told him. "I'll always remember what he did to me. I will always remember his voice. I will always remember that it was my own grandfather who did this to me." Derek wrapped his arm around her and pulled Carly in close.

"You'll be okay, we will all be okay," Derek whispered. Carly leaned her head on her chest.

"I know," she whispered back and watched as the storm clouds opened and it started pouring. Luckily the ferry had docked so the Shepherd's went to the lower deck, found their car, and drove off to the court house. As soon as they arrived Carly spotted Julie Reynolds in the lobby and walked over towards her.

"Hello Carly," she said smiling warmly. "And Mr. and Mrs. Shepherd."

"Hey," Carly breathed.

"Are you okay?" Julie asked.

"Nervous," Carly murmured. "That's all."

"Well you have a right to be," Julie reassured her. "Come on, follow me." She lead them to a small room that was near the court room where the trial will be taking place. "This is where you are to wait until it is your turn to testify."

"Okay," Carly nodded sitting down.

"I'm sorry but any witnesses must be in here alone once the trial starts," Julie said. "That means your parents can't stay." Carly breathed in deeply and looked up at Meredith and Derek.

"We'll see you after," Meredith promised and kissed her forehead. Derek did the same. "I love you."

"Bye," Carly whispered as they left.

"Okay Carly, you shouldn't have to wait long. The trial is set to start at 10. You are the first witness so the bailiff will be in here soon, okay?" Julie said.

"Okay," Carly murmured and looked down as she left the room. Outside Derek and Meredith were hesitant to enter the court room.

"Derek I am worried," Meredith told him.

"Meredith, Carly will be fine, I am sure of it," Derek reassured.

"But she is so nervous and..." Meredith began until she saw Izzie, Alex, Maddie, George, Callie, Addison, Mark, Lexie, and Miranda entering through the door.

"Hey Mer!" Izzie called as they all walked up to her.

"Hey," Meredith said. "What are you guys doing here?"

"Carly is our niece," Miranda answered.

"We have to and want to be there for her," Mark finished.

"Thank you so much," Derek said. "Carly's really nervous. It would be good to have some friendly and familiar faces out there."

"Where is she?" Addison asked.

"In that room," Meredith pointed to the room with the closed blinds. "All witnesses have to be in there once the trial starts."

"Oh then Addison, we have to go in there," Izzie said.

"What?" Derek asked.

"Why?" Meredith said simultaneously.

"Oh, the ADA is calling me to present the medical evidence," Addison explained.

"And I was the one who dropped Carly off and found her first, I am also called," Izzie said.

"Oh, okay," Meredith nodded.

"I am just glad someone will be in there with her while we wait for the trial to start," Derek added.

"Well we better get in there," Izzie said and turned to walk towards the room.

"And we better go get seats," Mark told them as they left.


When her Aunt Addie and Aunt Izzie walked into the room Carly breathed a sigh of relief.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"We were called to stand witness," Addison explained as Izzie hugged Carly tightly.

"For what?" Carly asked as she hugged Addison.

"Well I dropped you off and Addie collected the medical evidence," Izzie explained. Julie reentered the room and began to explain everything that will happen to all of them.

"So are all of you ready?" she asked. Izzie and Addie nodded strongly while Carly barely moved. "Carly, are you okay?"

"Yeah," she said trying to sound convincing.

"Will you be okay? Because you have to be okay," Julie persisted. "You are the most..."

"I know," Carly said. "I'll be fine."

"Okay, so I'll see you in the court room," Julie said and shut the door.

"Are you really okay Carly?" Addison asked concerned.

"It's what I have to do, right?" Carly whispered.

"You'll be fine," Izzie reassured. "We are all..."

"We?" Carly questioned.

"Everyone is here for you Carly. Your parents, Uncle Alex, Uncle Mark, Uncle George, Aunt Cristina, Aunt Lexie, Aunt Miranda, and even Madison," Izzie explained.

"Great," she muttered.

"What Carly?" Addison asked.

"I don't want to have to explain it in front of all of them. It's bad enough I have to tell it to strangers and my parents," Carly muttered.

"They all want to be there for you, and us too," Addison told her.

"I know but it's so humiliating and..." she was cut off as the door opened.

"Carly Shepherd," a uniformed man said. "You have been called to testify."


Carly didn't remember a time that she was so nervous. As she followed the bailiff towards the courtroom Carly's heart was pounding in her chest. Her mind was going over all of the notes Julie had gone over with her. Her stomach felt nauseous. When she stepped into the court room and sucked in a breath as she saw the back of Thatcher's head. He didn't turn around like most people did when they heard the door open. Carly felt so many eyes on her as she walked down the aisle towards the judge, her shaking hands playing with the fabric of her skirt. Once she was sworn in Carly took a seat to the left of the judge.

She heard Julie begin to walk towards her but her eyes went to her family. Just as Izzie and Addison had said they were all there for her. But at the moment she couldn't meet any of their gazes. She was only 13 years old and she had to testify against her grandfather for raping her.

"Could you state your name for the record?" Julie asked.

"Carly Elise Shepherd," Carly said calmly although inside was a different story. She felt another pair of eyes on her and she knew they were Thatcher's.

"Your in middle school, right?" Julie asked.

"Yes," Carly answered.

"And were you excited for summer to finally be starting?"

"Yes, my parents and I always start off the summer by going camping for a weekend, just the three of us."

"What were you doing on the night of June 18th of this year?" she asked.

"I was going into the hospital."

"And why were you?"

"Because my parents work there." Carly's gaze shifted to her parents momentarily. They gave her an encouraging smile before she looked back at Julie.

"Were you alone?"

"No, well not at first. My Aunt Izzie dropped me off at the back and then left. I went into the hospital through the back entrance because it was really busy in the front. There was an accident or something.

"Did you go right into the hospital?"

"No, I was supposed to but I turned around because I dropped my cell phone."

"Did you find your cell phone?"

"Eventually, it was on the ground."

"What happened next Carly," Julie asked calmly coming closer.

"I-I I was turning to going back when... when someone came up from behind me."

"And what did he do?" Julie urged.

"He put his hand over my mouth and held onto my shoulder's tightly," Carly answered her voice shaking slightly.

"And what next," she continued.

"Hey sweetie," he slurred. "You and me are gonna have a little fun tonight."

"I... I tried to call for help but he... he threatened me and held a knife to my throat," Carly breathed. She looked up at Julie who nodded for her to continue. "So I wouldn't talk he shoved a rope down my throat before knocking me down and kicking me repeatedly."

"Did anyone see you?"

"No... there was a shadow near the back entrance so he hauled me off to an alley way around the bar," Carly explained. "There he sprained my ankle before immobilizing me by smashing my head on the concrete several times after I tried to see his face." Carly bit her lip. "I got really dizzy and I thought I was going to black out but he kept shaking me and kicking me awake."

"If you look at me, you die," he hissed and slammed her head towards the concrete. Carly heard a crack as pain shot through her entire body this time and she let out a muffled scream. He repeated this action a few more times until Carly lie there shaking violently in fear. A smile crossed his lips as she saw her moment of vulnerability.

"He said that if I looked at him again, he'd kill me," Carly cried. "I was so scared I just closed my eyes, but I could still feel everything going on around me. I wished so much that I didn't have the rope on my mouth, people were walking feet from me and if I could just scream..."

"People were near you, but you were in the alleyway alone with him," Julie led on.

"Yes," Carly nodded.

"Were you still struggling?" Julie asked.

"N-No," Carly stuttered. "I... I was too scared... and... and it hurt to move." A few tears ran down her cheeks.

"Do you need to take a break?" Julie asked but Carly shook her head no. "Okay, so then what happened?"

"He... he took my clothes off and then..." Carly broke off. "He took of his pants."

"And then what Carly?" Julie said sympathetically.

"He raped me," Carly said her voice shaking slightly. "Repeatedly, ev-everytime I thought he was done, it would start all over again." Tears leaked out of her eyes as a murmur of sympathy passed through everyone in the courtroom making Carly angry. "I just kept thinking if I kept my phone home or in my pocket, none of this would have ever happened."

"Nothing that happened is your fault Carly," Julie said confidently. "Only one person is at fault. Do you see that person in the court room today."

"Yes," Carly nodded, more tears running down her face. He looked directly at Thatcher, causing a shiver to run down her spine. "Him, Thatcher Grey." She pointed directly at him with a shaky finger.

"That is all," Julie said nodding to the judge and turning back to her seat.

"Will the defense question the witness?" the judge asked. The attorney did not answer, he just got up and began walking towards Carly who gulped nervously.

"Carly, it is obvious you have gone through a terrible ordeal," he said curtly. "But I have a question for you... Have you ever seen my client Thatcher before the night of your attack?"

"No," Carly answered nervously.

"Did you see his face in the media after his arrest," the attorney asked.

"Objection," Julie said. "Relevance?"

"Overruled," the judge said then turned to Carly. "You may answer the question."

"Yes I have," Carly answered in a small voice.

"Is it possible that you chose Mr. Grey because you knew it was him whom they arrested," the attorney asked.

"Objection!" Julie repeated standing up this time. "Leading."

"Rephrase your question counselor," the judge said. He nodded.

"Is it possible that you saw Mr. Grey's face or number before making your selection," the lawyer continued.

"I only heard his voice," Carly answered more tears falling down her cheeks.

"Have you heard his voice before?" he asked.

"Yes," Carly nodded. "The night of my attack. The voice I heard when I was being raped." The counselor began to look displeased and opened his mouth to counter. But he was cut off by Thatcher.

"You little shit!" he exclaimed. Carly flinched. "I gave you what you wanted! She wanted it! She was asking for it! She's a whore and a LIAR!" There was then a lot of commotion going on in the court room.

"Counselor control your client!" the judge barked.

"Thatcher," he hissed as Thatcher began struggling behind the table. Derek stood up, his fist clenched. Alex and Mark's faces turned red with anger. Meredith grabbed Derek's arm.

"Not now Derek," she whispered urgently and he sat down in defeat knowing she was right. He turned to look at Carly up on the stand. She was shaking, vulnerable, crying, and terrified. The judge turned to her and sighed when he saw her condition.

"You may step down now sweetie," he said sweetly. Carly nodded, got down quickly and walked past Thatcher who was smiling at her with an evil glint in his eye. "We will take a brief twenty minute recess! Then we can continue with the prosecutions witnesses."

Once the bailiff allowed Carly towards the benches Derek and Meredith stood immediately. She ran into their arms openly sobbing as they stroked her hair gently.

"You did great sweetheart," Meredith soothed.

"We are so proud of you," Derek added. Once she was calmed down ten minutes later they took her outside into the lobby where several people were waiting. Julie approached them first.

"Carly, you did excellent," she congratulated. "His tactics were very poor and probably hurt the case more then helped. The worst is over now." Carly smiled weakly. "I want to warn you about what will come though. It is obvious that he is not afraid of hurting you and plays hard ball. Just be ready."

"I will," Carly nodded calmly.

"It was not smart of his to attack you like that. You had the jury's sympathy so let's just hope we can keep it," Julie said and nodded dismissively before walking away. Carly slowly walked towards where her parents were standing with her family.

"You did great kiddo," Mark said and Carly eyed him as he used the term kiddo. "Oh you know what I meant." Lexie hugged her.

"I am still so sorry and Molly is too," she whispered in her ear.

"How would you have known Aunt Lexie," Carly sighed. Carly's eyes traveled to Madison's.

"Hey," she whispered.

"Hey," Carly said back relieved she sounded strong again.

"Are you okay?"

"I will be, thanks for being here."

"I wouldn't have missed it Carly." Carly smiled as they announced that the break was about to be over. Carly followed everyone back into the courtroom and took a seat between Meredith and Derek more confidently. She watched as Thatcher was brought back into the room, looking at her, and as Julie stood up opening her notes again.

"The prosecution calls Isobel Stevens." Within a few minutes Carly watched as her Aunt Izzie took her place up on the stand after swearing in. It was much less nerve wracking for her. She just had to tell the truth of what she saw and found.

"Isobel Stevens, but your friends call you Izzie," Julie said.

"Yes," Izzie said.

"Can you please tell us your relationship with Carly?" Julie asked.

"She is my god-daughter and my niece."

"Is she actually related to you."

"No, I am just one of her mother's best friends."

"Were you with her at all the day of her attack?"

"Yes, I went over her house with my own kids, invited her over for dinner, and dropped her off at the hospital."

"Where did you drop her off?"

"At the back, where she requested."

"And did you see anything when you left?"

"No. Just Carly getting into the hospital." Izzie met Carly's gaze and Carly smiled weakly.

"And how did you find out she was missing?"

"Her parents called me and my husband Alex. We immediately rushed over to search."

"Did you find anything that night?"

"No. All of the blood that led us to her the next day was hidden by the night."

"And you found her the next morning also."

"Yes. Me, my husband, and our friends Addison and Mark followed the blood trail around the Emerald City Bar that was left behind. At the end of the trail we found Carly..." Izzie trailed off.

"What was her condition when you found her?" Julie asked.

"She was initially unconscious but she soon woke up very disoriented and terrified. We then took her to Seattle Grace."

"And were you also there when the tape was uncovered?" Julie asked.

"Yes," Izzie nodded.

"Exhibit A," Julie said walking towards the TV. "This had evidence on it that links Thatcher Grey directly to the crime." Carly found her cheek turning red with embarrassment as the tape began to play.


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