Chapter 14: A Promise of Protection
The elevator seems to take a lifetime to reach the seventh floor of the hospital. Fitz and Olivia stand quietly waiting for the doors to open and for the real nightmare of this whole situation to begin. As the doors finally slide open they both step into the quiet corridor and search out Mimi's room, 752. As it turns out, she is in a corner room that has a beautiful view of the lush grounds of the hospital. Not that she can appreciate it at the moment.
As they approach her door, Fitz tightens his grip on Olivia's hand. She returns a reassuring squeeze, although on the inside she is two seconds away from a full panic attack. They enter the quiet room and both gasp softly at the sight before them. Fitz drops Olivia's hand and rushes to Mimi's bedside.
No image he has conjured up in his head could prepare him for what he sees. One side of her face is covered with a giant bandage. Her exposed cheek is a network of hideous purple and yellow bruises. A breathing tube sticks out of her swollen lips. Her slender arms, which lay atop the thin hospital blanket, show bruising in what appears to be the shape of fingerprints and bandages cover both of her tiny wrists. Her right leg is raised off of the bed in a sling. A large compression cast encases her foot.
His eyes travel back up to the face of the woman who has been a mother to him for longer than he can remember and he bursts into tears. Her face is so still and pale. If it were not for the steady gentle rise and fall of her chest under the covers one would assume she was dead.
He gently lifts her hand from the bed and holds it between his own.
"I'm here now Mimi. I'm home," he whispers gently to her as the tears continue to pour down his face.
Olivia stands stock still where Fitz left her. Unable to push away her own fear and guilt to move forward and provide comfort and support to Fitz. It is only when she hears him breakdown into uncontrollable sobs that her love for him overrides her fear and she propels herself forward to comfort him. She encircles his waist with her arms and holds him as tight as she can. Her eyes take in Mimi's battered body and Olivia's tears join Fitz's as they hover over her.
A gentle knock at the door breaks them from their mourning.
"Mr. Grant? I'm Doctor Wilton. I've been attending to Miss Graham since she was admitted."
Fitz releases Mimi's hand and wipes away his tears before turning to see a young dark hair female doctor standing in the doorway. Olivia removes her arms from around Fitz's waist and wipes away her own tears before turning as well. They both reach for the other's hand as the doctor makes her way further into the room.
"How is she doing?" Fitz asks the doctor.
"Honestly, better than I would have expected for a woman her age," Dr. Wilton states pointedly.
Fitz and Olivia look at her with a measure of shock on their faces.
"Look, my philosophy in dealing with patients is to be as truthful as possible. I don't sugarcoat things to make it go down easier. In my experience, when patients and families knows what is at stake, they tend to work harder at overcoming whatever they face. Miss Graham is definitely a fighter. She proved that by even surviving what she went through."
"I will agree with you there Dr. Wilton. Mimi is a fighter," Fitz says with affection. "So tell us, what is she fighting against? What are her injuries?"
"Well starting with the least, she has several bruises, cuts and abrasions on her extremities; arms, wrists, hands, legs. The bandage on her face covers two large gashes on her cheek. Upon examination we retrieved two large and several small pieces of glass from the cut. The plastic surgeon on call came in to take a look at the wounds and sew her up. He determined that she shouldn't have any scarring from the cuts."
Dr. Wilton pauses to let what she told them so far sink in. She gives them a second to gather their thoughts before she delves into the more gruesome of Mimi's injuries.
"Her right ankle is broken. It will need to be reset and put in a hard cast. We will do that once she is a little stronger. She hit her head in the fall . . . ."
"What fall?" Fitz asks, confusion racing across his face.
"Have you not spoken to the police?" Fitz shakes his head no.
Dr. Wilton takes a step closer to the couple and reaches out and lightly touches Fitz on the arm, "Mr. Grant, Miss Graham was found by the EMTs unconscious on the floor and tied to a kitchen chair. From what they can determine she was beaten while tied to the chair before she was forcibly slammed to the ground where she hit her head and suffered the broken ankle. Upon her arrival at the hospital, we performed a CAT scan and detected some swelling on her brain. She was in and out of consciousness during our initial examination, but we decided to put her into a medically induced coma to allow her body time to rest and heal. She is scheduled for another CAT scan later this evening to see if the swelling has reduced any."
The thought of Mimi enduring such horrors under the roof of their home make Fitz physically ill. He rushes past the doctor to the restroom where he violently vomits into the toilet. Olivia is immediately at his side. She drops to her knees beside him and begins to rub soothing circles on his back until his retching ceases. Fitz tries to stand up, but his legs are too weak. He sits with his knees drawn up, his forehead rests on top of them and his back against the cool tile wall.
Olivia stands and flushes the toilet. She grabs a clean washcloth from a stack on the bathroom counter as she turns on the cold water tap. After soaking and wringing the cloth out, she gently applies it to the back of Fitz's neck. She repeats the process twice more before he finally lifts his head up. His blue eyes are dull and rimmed with red and his face is pale. Olivia touches his face gently with her palm so that he will focus on her face.
One look at Olivia and the floodgates open. He grabs her waist tightly and buries his face into her stomach. His uncontrollable sobs bouncing off the walls of the tiny bathroom. She strokes his hair as he cries. She doesn't say a word. What can she say? Can she promise that Mimi will be okay? Can she honestly tell him everything is going to be alright? But she needs to say something. She needs to give him something to hold on to.
"We'll get through this," she whispers into his hair. "I love you. I'm right here with you and we will get through this."
After a few minutes his sobs quiet down but his grip on Olivia never loosens. A gentle throat clearing from the doorway gets their attention.
A nurse, holding a tray, stands at the threshold of the bathroom.
"Dr. Wilton asked me to drop this off for you. She will be back later this evening after Miss Graham's CAT scan results come in," she says as she extends the tray towards them.
Olivia removes herself from Fitz's hold and stands so she can take the tray from the nurse.
Before turning and leaving the room, the nurse says, "If you need anything at all just press the call button."
Olivia nods and turns back towards Fitz. She places the tray containing two cups of ice water, several packages of saltine crackers, a plastic wrapped toothbrush and a travel size tube of toothpaste on the bathroom counter.
"Fitz do you want to freshen up a little," she asks him.
He responds with a weak nod before pushing himself off the floor. He doesn't look at his reflection in the mirror as he washes his hands and then brushes his teeth. He avoids taking any crackers but gladly downs the two cups of ice water. He can all be hear his parched scratchy throat cheering at the ice cold relief.
Fitz walks slowly back into room and directly to Mimi's bedside. Olivia crosses the room and brings over a chair for him to sit in. Once he settles, Mimi's tiny hand in his, Olivia takes a sit on the small love seat on the other side of the room. She watches him watch over Mimi with a heavy heart. They sit quietly until one of the technicians come in to take Mimi down for her CAT scan. After the bed is wheeled out of the room, Fitz joins Olivia on the love seat. He lays his head on her shoulder and sighs.
"Are you hungry?" Olivia inquires after a few minutes of silence.
"Not really," he murmurs in response.
His eyes drift closed. The stress of the day finally catching up with him.
KNOCK. KNOCK.
The hard rapping on the door snaps him out of his light slumber.
"Mr. Grant?" a deep male voice calls from the doorway.
Fitz looks up and sees a pudgy, slightly balding man standing at the threshold.
"Yes," he replies.
"I'm Detective Hopewell, we spoke earlier. Is now a good time to talk?" His tone is almost robotic.
Fitz raises his head from Olivia's shoulder. Rubbing his hands over his face and releasing a deep sigh, he nods his head.
"Why don't I go down to the cafeteria and get you something to eat while you speak with the detective," Olivia suggests.
"Livvie, please stay," Fitz pleads quietly.
"Why don't we all go down to the cafeteria? I could use a cup of coffee," Detective Hopewell says.
A few minutes later the couple is seated at a corner table in the mainly deserted cafeteria. Olivia nibbles at her club sandwich while Fitz reluctantly eats the chicken and rice soup she picked up for him. Detective Hopewell joins them few moments later with his coffee.
"Do you have any leads on the person who did this?" Fitz asks as soon as the Detective sits down.
"Unfortunately, we don't at this time," he responds with little emotion.
"Why the hell not! A 78 year old woman is attacked in her home and there are no suspects, no clues! What is this guy the invisible man or something?!" Fitz scoffs as he pushes his bowl of soup away from him.
"Fitz, please calm down. Getting upset won't help Mimi," Olivia coaxes as she strokes his hand gently.
Detective Hopewell watches as Fitz calms down.
"Mr. Grant we are doing the best we can. Unfortunately, your house only has one surveillance camera at the gate. It shows a dark SUV with heavily tinted windows going in and out, but there was no angle that gave us a shot of the driver or the plates." He pauses, "May I ask why your home doesn't have more surveillance cameras?"
Fitz's face flushes with anger. He slams his fists on the table causing the silverware to clatter.
"Are you intimating something here?" he voice icy cold.
"I just find it quite unusual that someone in your position and of your wealth would not have a highly sophisticated security system on his home," Detective Hopewell says in an accusatory tone.
It is only by the grace of god and Olivia's firm hold on his forearm that Fitz doesn't launch himself across the table and pummel the detective.
"I have lived in that house nearly all my life. We have NEVER had surveillance cameras. We NEVER had any cause to," Fitz replies angrily.
"Yes I am wealthy and relatively famous for my work, but people rarely recognize me. Hell, I walk down the street and no one blinks an eye!"
"Well it looks like all of that has changed," the detective answers sarcastically trying to get a rise out of Fitz.
It works. Fitz's anger flares up. His face turns hard and his entire body tenses up. His hands are clenched into fists on top of the table. If looks could kill, Detective Hopewell would be a corpse on the opposite side of the table. Olivia strokes his arm, silently begging him to calm down before he does something he will regret.
"Fitz," she says quietly as she looks up at him.
Here voice sounds far away, but it is enough of a distraction for Fitz to pull his attention from the crass detective. He turns his head and looks down at Olivia.
She looks at him and slightly shakes her head no. Her eyes tell him everything else he needs to know: Keep your cool. Don't let this man get to you. It's not your fault.
Fitz unclenches his fists and his body begins to relax. Olivia leans into him a little more. Hoping that their closeness will continue to keep Fitz calm. All the while Detective Hopewell watches the couple's interaction with interest. To the trained eye, Fitz's anger and sorrow ring genuine and true. Mentally, Detective Hopewell scratches him off the list of suspects.
Detective Hopewell continues his inquiry as if Fitz was not about to beat him to a pulp. "Do you know of anyone who might want to hurt you or Miss Graham?"
"No . . ." Fitz says in a voice that is much calmer than he feels.
"My husband, Edison Davis," Olivia replies. Fitz snaps his head around to look at her.
"Livvie, no."
"Yes, Fitz," she says with pleading eyes.
Detective Hopewell waits as they stare at one another. Finally Fitz gives a slight nod and they both turn back to face the detective.
"I recently left my husband," she starts off quietly. "I left practically everything behind and hopped on the first plane I could get out of Atlanta. I met Fitz on that plane and well we have been together ever since. When we heard about Mimi being attacked, my gut reaction was that Edison had something to do with it."
"I take it you don't agree with her Mr. Grant," the detective asks after catching a small eye roll from Fitz.
"I just find it hard to believe that he could have tracked her down to my house. She has only used cash since she left. She didn't have her cell phone and she hasn't used her passport and any other sort of identification to rent a hotel room or car. For all intents and purposes she has vanished. Even if he managed to track her down to the flight she was on, how in the world could he connect her to me? We just met on the plane. Until then we were complete strangers."
"You'd be surprised at what highly motivated people will do Mr. Grant. Mrs. Davis, give me your husband's contact information and I'll check up on him and his recent activities."
As Olivia provides the information, Fitz's cell phone rings.
"It's Quinn. I need to get this," he says getting up from the table and walking a few feet away before he presses the accept button.
"Hey Quinn, what's going on?"
"God you sound horrible. Is Miss Naomi okay?"
"She's pretty banged up. But the doctors are hopeful. What's going on there?"
"It's still raining like cats and dogs. It's supposed to clear up tomorrow afternoon sometime. How soon do you think you will be back?"
"God Quinn, I don't know," he says in a slightly raised voice. "I can't think about this right now."
"Look, I know this is hard for you. I love Miss Naomi too, but you know the studio is going to pitch a bitch of a fit if this movie gets pushed back."
"I'll handle the studio," Fitz states firmly.
"How? You can barely talk to me without wanting to bite my head off. You're tired and stressed, I get it. How about we stay for the next few days and scout locations. If you can't join us in, let's say five days, we will come home."
"Sounds good Quinn. Sorry for snapping at you," he says apologetically.
"Hey that's why you pay me the big bucks. Now go take care of Miss Naomi and I'll take care of saving your ass with the studio," she says with a chuckle.
"I'm going to fire you one day," he warns.
"Not a chance. I'm the only one who will put up with you. Seriously, take care and call me if you need anything."
"Thanks Quinn. Bye."
"Bye."
Fitz returns to the table to find only Olivia sitting there.
"What happened to the detective?" Fitz asks as he sits across from her.
"He got a call and had to go. He said he would check back with you in a day or two. Is everything okay with Quinn?"
"Yeah she just wanted to know what was going on and when would I be back. She's going to run point on things for the next few days over there and then we will revisit the thought of me going back over."
Olivia reaches her hand out across the table towards Fitz. He immediately interlocks their fingers and gives her hand a gentle squeeze.
"Fitz I'm sorry if my mentioning Edison to the detective upset you. I know you don't think that it is possible, but I just have a strange feeling about him and this whole mess."
"Livvie," he sighs deeply, "I can't fault you for believing the way you do. You obviously know him a lot better than I do. I guess it wouldn't hurt for the detective to check him out."
"Thank you for that," she replies. "And don't take what the detective said about you not having an alarm system to heart. I know nothing means more to you than protecting the ones you love. He's just exploring all the angles. That's his job."
"I know that, but it doesn't mean I have to like what he implied."
"Come on, let's go back upstairs and see if Mimi is back in her room. Maybe the doctor will have an update on her condition.
He acknowledges her request with a nod and releases her hand. They clear the trash from the table and exit the cafeteria.
A few minutes later they enter Mimi's room to find Diego standing in the empty room staring out the window. He turns to face them as they enter.
"Diego, so good to see you," Fitz says as the two men walk towards each other and meet in the center of the room and embrace.
"I am so sorry. This is all my fault," Diego exclaims as he holds onto Fitz.
Fitz pushes back from Diego and looks at his tear stained face, "Man this wasn't your fault. It was whoever the son of a bitch was that hurt her."
"But it was my guy that left the gate open. They would have never gotten to her if Carl had remembered to close the gate. I fired his ass the minute I found out. And I wouldn't blame you if you fired my company."
"Diego, man, that wasn't necessary. Carl is a good man. I'm sure it was just an oversight on his part," Fitz tries to reason.
"He was talking to his bookie on the phone instead of locking up. That put Miss Naomi in the hospital. It is unacceptable," his voice breaks with emotion.
"I'm not going to tell you have to run your business, you have to do what you think is best. I don't hold what happened to her against you or Carl. You're family and I know that if you could have protected her you would have. I just want the head of the bastard that did this to her."
"Thanks Fitz," Diego says as he visibly relaxes his stance. "Tell me what's going on with Miss Naomi. The nurses wouldn't tell me anything."
Before Fitz can answer, Mimi is wheeled back into the room by two patient technicians. They take a few minutes to reconnect Mimi to the in-room monitors and take her vital signs.
"How is she doing?" Fitz asks the closest tech to him.
"Her vitals look good. I don't know the results of her scan, but the doctor will be around later this evening to give you an update," the tech responds.
Shortly after, both techs leave the room leaving Fitz, Olivia and Diego to the sounds of the monitors beeping and whirling around Mimi's bed.
The hours drag by like the Friday before Christmas break. It seems like every time Fitz looks at his watch or the clock on the wall, the hands have barely moved. The wait begins to grate on his nerves and he begins pacing the room, running his fingers savagely through his hair with each stride he takes. Olivia and Diego share the little love seat and watch quietly as Fitz paces. Just when he thinks he has reached his wits end, the doctor enters the room.
"Dr. Wilton, what can you tell us? How is she? Is she going to recover?" Fitz's questions tumble out of his mouth one after the other.
Olivia stands up from the love seat and walks over to stand at his side. She wraps her arms around his waist for support and in an effort to calm him down.
The doctor takes in the stressed look on Fitz's face and his frazzled hair and feels nothing but sympathy for the man.
"Mr. Grant, I will answer all of your questions. Why don't you sit down while I take a quick look at Miss Graham's latest vitals?"
Reluctantly Fitz does as she asks and takes a seat on the chair next to Mimi's bed. Olivia, wanting to stay physically connected to him, sits on his knee.
After a few minutes the doctor turns her attention to Fitz. "Before I begin, is it okay to speak in front of this gentleman?" she nods her head towards Diego.
"Yes, please just tell us what is going on," Fitz urges.
"Well her vitals are good. Her scans indicate a small decrease in the swelling of her brain, but not enough to take her out of the medically induced coma. It will probably be another day or two before we can make that move. Right now we are going to keep doing what we have been doing. I'll schedule another scan for tomorrow evening and then we will progress from there."
"Is she going to survive this?" he asks as he reaches out to touch Mimi's hand.
"I can't give any guarantees Mr. Grant, but I will say that the odds are in her favor of making a full recovery. A lot is going to depend on her inner strength and will to survive."
"She's a fighter. She'll come back to us," he says thickly as tears spill from his red rimmed eyes. Olivia strokes his hair and whispers quietly to him using all of her willpower to keep herself from crying.
Dr. Wilton looks at the worn out couple and makes a slightly unorthodox decision.
"My recommendation right now is that you two go and get some rest." She throws up her hand to stop Fitz from balking at her suggestion. "The best thing for her right now is peace and quiet. There is nothing you can physically do for her right now and sitting here day and night isn't going to make her wake up or get better any sooner. You need to be rested and ready for when she does wake up. She is going to need you the most then."
"But I want to stay with her," Fitz says.
"I know, but I'm saying no. Go eat, take a shower and get some sleep. I will even write you a prescription for a mild sleeping pill if you want," she says as she take a pen and pad out of her jacket pocket and scribbles furiously from a few moments before ripping off the top page and handing it to Fitz.
"I need both of you to get out of here and take care of yourselves. If anything happens overnight, I will make sure someone contacts you. But my orders are for you to leave this room and not come back here again until noon tomorrow."
"She's right Fitz. We should go get some rest. We want to be at our best when Mimi wakes up," Olivia coaxes as she runs her fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck. "Please Fitz. We are both exhausted."
One look into Olivia's tired brown eyes and he knows that the doctor is right. He pats Olivia's leg as an indication to stand up.
"You promise to call if anything changes?" he asks the doctor as he stands up from the chair.
"Of course," she replies as she hands him the prescription.
After giving Mimi a brief kiss on the forehead and whispered promises of returning tomorrow Fitz, Olivia and Diego leave her room. On the elevator ride down, Fitz checks his email to see what hotel Quinn has booked for them.
"She's got us at the Marriott on Wilshire," Fitz says as he puts his phone away.
"I can drive you guys over if you like. My truck is parked right out front," Diego suggests.
Olivia and Fitz exchange a glance.
"Could you pick us up at the emergency entrance out back?" Fitz asks. "We want to avoid the cameras out front."
"Yeah, sure. I will meet you out back."
The elevator doors open and they part ways. A few minutes later Fitz and Olivia get into Diego's truck and they are whisked away unnoticed by the media.
Arriving at the hotel a short time later, they thank Diego for the ride and promise to let him know what is going on with Mimi.
They quietly check in and are shown to their room. Neither are very hungry and opt to shower separately, each needing some private time to collect their thoughts. Fitz, having showered first, lies on the bed reading emails on his phone.
KNOCK KNOCK
He places his phone on the night stand, tightens the belt on the plush hotel robe and gets up from the bed to answer the door. A bellman greets him as he opens the door. He has several packages stacked up on his luggage rack. Fitz opens the door wider to allow the bellman to enter. After the young man places the packages on the coffee table, Fitz grabs his wallet from the night stand and pulls out a couple of bills as a tip. Alone again, Fitz rummages through the packages to find more new clothing for both of them.
"What's all that?" Olivia asks as she enters the room wrapped in only a towel.
"More clothes."
"That Quinn is definitely a keeper," Olivia says with a small smile.
"That she is," Fitz replies. "There are probably some pajamas in here for the both of us," he says as he rummages through a couple of bags.
"No pajamas," Olivia says as she drops her towel and climbs into the bed naked. "I want to feel your skin against me tonight."
Fitz stops his search for pajamas and returns to the bed. He takes off his robe and throws it on the end of the bed. He climbs under the covers before reaching over and turning out the light. Olivia scoots over to snuggle up against him. Her head laying directly over his heart. She throws a leg over his and wraps her arm across he stomach. He encircles her body with his arms and lets out a contented sigh.
"Thank you for being here with me Livvie. I don't know how I would be able to handle this if you weren't here."
"You never have to thank me Fitz. I love you. My place is right here with you."
They lay in each other's arms emotionally drained and physically tired. Before long they both fall asleep.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
The sound of his cell phone ringing wakes Edison from his drug and food induced sleep. He grabs it and tries to focus his eyes on the caller id screen. He notices it is a local number that is calling him. He doesn't know anyone in California he thinks at first.
"Maybe it's Olivia," his inner voice says.
"Don't answer it," another voice says, "it could be trouble."
Before he can decide what to do, the phone stops ringing and a few moments later the chime sounds to indicate he has a voicemail. He unlocks the phone and presses the voicemail icon.
"Mr. Davis," a deep voice says on the recording, "this is Detective Hopewell from the Los Angeles Police Department. Please give me a call at . . . ."
Edison hangs up the phone before the message can continue.
"Shit, how did he find me? What does he want? What does he know?" his mind races with these and other questions.
Before he can even begin to think about the call calmly, his phone rings again. This time the number is from Atlanta. It's Mike Taylor calling.
He takes a deep breath to soothe his frazzled nerves before pushing the accept button.
"Mike what's up?"
"We've got a major problem," he begins nervously. "Our lawyers just told me that your email proxy is not valid. We need the notarized original."
"Shit!" Edison yells as he hops up from the bed.
Edison begins to pace the room. He can hear Mike take a few shaky breaths on the other end of the line.
"What else Mike? What aren't you telling me?"
"Apparently Hollis found out about the invalid proxy. He is trying to move up the vote to tomorrow."
"How did he find out?" Edison roars.
"I don't know. But I do know if you or your proxy are not here tomorrow, we are going to lose this company to Hollis Doyle."
"That can't happen! I won't let it! You need to find some way to stop him!" Edison yells.
"Look, Edison, I have tried every angle on this thing. Nothing short of you going missing is going to stop this vote."
So caught up in his own thoughts, Edison almost misses what Mike says until his inner voice calls out to him.
"You could go missing. Maybe you could even frame Olivia or her new boy toy for your disappearance," the voice wickedly suggests.
"Mike here's what I need you to do. Hang up and call me right back. Leave a message that you need to speak with me. Don't tell anyone that we actually spoke and definitely don't tell anyone that you told me anything about the proxy or about what would need to happen to stop the vote."
"Edison, what . . ."
"No questions Mike. Just do what I say and we should come out of this thing okay."
Before Mike can answer, Edison ends the call. Picking up his burner phone he calls Charlie.
"Hey Boss," Charlie answers in his usual greeting.
"Charlie, I need you to do me a couple of favors. First, I need you to access my cell phone records and delete a call from Mike Taylor to me that happened just a few minutes ago. You should see two calls from him, only delete the first one. Then go into the company phone records and delete the corresponding call from our records."
"Okay Chief, what else?"
"I need to disappear for a while, but I need to make it look like I didn't do it on my own or on purpose."
"You trying to frame the Missus for your disappearance?"
"Maybe."
"I'll need a couple of days to work it out."
"I don't have a couple of days. I need to disappear now!"
"Well I can make that happen, but I can't frame her for it."
"Do whatever you need. Just make it happen and fast. I'll need a place to hide out and some new identification."
"Alright give me a couple of hours and I'll call you back."
True to his word, two hours later Charlie calls Edison back. He gives Edison an address and contact name of the person who can help him disappear. Charlie tells Edison that his contact, Arnold, is on stand by and ready to move whenever Edison is. The plan is for it to look like Edison was kidnapped by gang members for ransom. His rental car will be abandoned in a rough part of town. His wallet, empty of everything but his drivers' license and some of his blood will be found in his rental car. Upon further investigation, the police will find that a large withdrawal was made from Edison's account at a nearby ATM. Video evidence will show Edison being forced to make the withdrawal by a masked gunman. Meanwhile, Edison will be holed up in a little place outside the city limits completely stocked with the essentials, even a healthy supply of his little white pills.
"That's great Charlie. Now make sure you or one of your contacts monitors the LAPD radio calls. Once the car has been found, leak to the press both in Atlanta and LA about my disappearance."
"I'm on it. Anything else?"
"No that's it for now. I'll call to check in tomorrow."
Ending the call, Edison does a quick search on his computer for night clubs. Finding the perfect one, he writes the address down the note pad on the bedside table. Leaving it behind as a clue for the police to find. He takes only his wallet, computer and little white pills with him as he leaves the hotel room. He makes sure to speak to the concierge and the parking attendant before he leaves the hotel property. He wants people to remember he was there. As he tips the parking attendant generously, he casually mentions where he is going. The attendant cautions him to be careful because where is he going is notoriously known as gang territory. Edison reassures him that he will be careful before slipping behind the wheel and driving off.
An hour later, Edison pulls up in front of a dilapidated bar. A large bald black man stands in the doorway. Edison rolls down the passenger side window.
"Are you Arnold?" he calls out through the open window.
"Yeah, you Edison?" the man responds as he pushes his hefty body from the doorframe.
"Yeah."
"Well come on then. Let's get started," Arnold motions with one of his beefy hands.
Edison turns off the car and gets out. As he rounds the back end of the vehicle, Arnold punches him in the gut and then once in the jaw. Edison falls to the ground moaning and groaning with blood trickling from his mouth. Arnold whips a switchblade out of his pocket and grabs Edison's right hand. He cuts him across the palm. It begins to bleed profusely. Arnold picks Edison up like a rag doll and open the back door of the vehicle. He takes Edison's bleeding hand and smears it several places in the back seat.
Once satisfied with his work, Arnold places Edison on the back seat. He pats him down and finds his cell phone and car keys in his pocket. Arnold picks Edison up once again and carries his limp body into the bar. He nods at a slender light skinned man in the corner before tossing him Edison's keys and personal cell phone.
The slender man catches the phone and keys and heads out the door.
When Edison comes to sometime later, his head and hand hurt like hell. He slowly sits up from the cot he was placed on and looks around the room. He raises his hand to his tender jaw and notices that it has been bandaged. A glass of water and his bottle of white pills on a little table next to him catches his eye and he gladly indulges in both.
"Sorry about sucker punching you like that," Arnold says from the doorway. "I wasn't sure if you would willingly let me hit you and you need to look roughed up for the ATM video."
"Yeah whatever," Edison says dismissively. "Let's just get on with this."
They walk out the backdoor of the bar and get into a beat up Cadillac. A few minutes later that pull into the far corner of a bank parking lot, well out of camera range.
"We're going to walk really casual like up to the ATM," Arnold explains. "Once we get into camera range, I'm going to be a little rough with you. We have to make it look authentic."
"Sure, whatever, let's go," Edison replies. He wants nothing more at this point that to take a couple of pills and go to sleep.
They get out of the car and walk slowly towards the ATM. Arnold waits until they are just a few feet away from the ATM before he pulls on a hooded sweatshirt, hiding his face from the camera. They make a scene of Edison being forced to withdraw cash from the machine and then being dragged away.
Back in the car, Edison hands over the cash to Arnold who tucks it into his pocket before starting the car and driving away. Sometime later, Edison feels someone shaking him. He opens his eyes to find that they are parked in front of a tiny wooden house at the end of a long tree lined driveway.
"Everything you need is inside. There is a car in the garage you can use. It has clean plates, so no one is looking for it. If you need me, call Charlie," Arnold says as he hands Edison a set of keys.
Edison gets out of the car and slowly walks up to the front door. Before he can even get the key in the lock, Arnold is turning his car around and driving away.
Inside, the small house is neat and tidy. It has two small bedrooms, a bathroom, kitchen and small living room. The cabinets and refrigerator are filled with food. The kitchen counter holds several bottles of his "medicine" as well as a couple bottles each of vodka, scotch and gin.
Grabbing a bottle of vodka, Edison twists off the top and takes two healthy swigs before plunking it back down on the counter. He opens one of the pill bottles and takes out three pills and pops them in his mouth. He staggers to the first bedroom and falls face first onto the bed. He falls asleep almost instantly.
When he wakes the next morning the world will think he has been kidnapped.
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Fitz wakes to the sound of his phone ringing. He sits straight up in bed, nearly knocking Olivia to the floor with his sudden movement, his heart pounding as he looks at the unfamiliar number on the caller display.
"Who is it?" Olivia says just as wide awake and startled as Fitz.
"I don't recognize the number," he says before pressing the accept button. "Hello?"
Olivia can barely hear the voice on the other end of the call, but she can see Fitz's demeanor change in an instant. He suddenly looks around, left to right, scanning the room for something. His eyes lock on what he is looking for and he hops out of bed and retrieves the remote from atop the television. He presses several buttons before he finally lands on a local news station.
BREAKING NEWS:
"Reports are coming in that an Atlanta businessman, Edison Davis, has been reported kidnapped in the Franklin Heights area of Los Angeles. We are unsure at this moment what Mr. Davis was doing in the area, but an anonymous source in the LA Police Department has told us that there is video evidence of a beaten Davis being forced to withdraw money from an ATM.
Davis is not the first person to be kidnapped in this area of the city. Last year, twelve people were abducted and held for ransom allegedly by the 19th Street gang. Of those twelve, eight were returned to their families alive. We will update more on this story as details become available.
With the phone still pressed to his ear, Fitz turns to face a wide eyed Olivia sitting straight up in the bed. Fear houses every aspect of her beautiful face.
"Of course Detective. We are at the Marriott on Wilshire in room 562," Fitz says into the phone. "See you in 30 minutes."
Hanging up the phone Fitz walks back to the bed and sits down next to Olivia. He reaches out and pulls her into his embrace. She is trembling.
"I told you he was here," she whispers into his chest.
"I shouldn't have dismissed you. I promise I won't do it again. Let's get dressed, Detective Hopewell is coming by to ask us some questions."
She looks up at Fitz with such fear and trepidation in her eyes, "I don't care what that news report says, he is out there and he is coming for me."
Fitz steels himself against the anger he feels towards Edison. He doesn't want to direct his anger at Olivia, especially now when she appears to be so fragile.
"Listen to me Livvie," he says as soothingly as he can, "I failed to protect Mimi from harm and I will have to live with that feeling for the rest of my life. But I promise you right here right now, even if I have to kill Edison with my bare hands he will never get near enough to you to hurt you. Not ever again. I will protect you," he states firmly.
Her body continues to tremble against his. He holds her closer than he ever thought he could. He feels her hot tears against his bare chest and that only deepens his resolve to keep her from harm. He gently coaxes her from the bed and leads her into the bathroom to freshen up.
He catches his disheveled reflection in the mirror and realizes that he has to be the man that both Livvie and Mimi need him to be right now. He can no longer give into his sorrow and grief over Mimi's situation. He has to suit up to protect his family. To protect those he loves.
His sad blue eyes are quickly replaced by blue eyes filled with determination and an anger solely focused on Edison Davis.
"I will protect what is mine," he thinks to himself. "Even to the death, I will protect what is mine."
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A/N: Sorry for the delay. Life sucks sometimes. I won't go on my rant about the Fall Finale. I have done that enough on Twitter. But I will say that I am not sure if I am going to continue to watch the show. It seems such a waste of perfectly good characters and chemistry to keep them on this back and forth bit that the writers and the creator seem to love so much.
The entire episode (5x09) felt rushed and thrown together. When did Liv get pregnant? Why did she have such resentment for life in the White House? How long had she been there? So many gaping holes and not enough answers or back story.
Don't get me started on Jake and Rowan. Really Jake! I thought you were going to put a bullet between his eyes the next time you saw him but you willingly go in the house with him. Oh yeah, after HUCK let him go! WHAT! I want this B613 crap gone and my Olitz back! Scandal is supposed to be a political drama with heavy doses of sex, not some spy drama!
(So much for not going on my rant)
Anyway, I will continue to write as long as my muses continue to speak. I have spent lots of time since the finale reading my favorite fanfic stories to help keep my Olitz heart beating.
Thank you for those who reached out to me and to those who continue to enjoy my stories. I am not a doctor, lawyer or gang member. Please forgive any errors in any of these areas of my story.
Until next time . . . .