Chapter 25

As Olivia walked down the next street over, she noticed Sam sitting on his porch. Sam was Jessie and Pete's youngest boy. Her senses immediately went on alert. She didn't like Pete. She'd expressed her worries to Deanna and Reg repeatedly but they had disregarded her warnings. Which she thought was amusing in a bad way-they said they valued her opinions since she had worked for the FBI and had done some profiling work but they completely ignored her when she told them Pete had the signs of being abusive to his family. Deanna kept emphasizing Pete was the town's only doctor. Which Olivia had argued about repeatedly-if he abused his family what was to prevent him from abusing patients? In Olivia's experience, the longer an abuser went without reprimand or some type of sanctions against his actions, the worse he or she would become. The abuse would become more severe and more open.

Olivia had been watching Pete for pretty much the entire time he'd been in the town. She hadn't been able to actually catch him in the act of yelling or hitting his wife or kids. And she knew better than to try and question Jessie or the boys-they were afraid of Pete and wouldn't say anything against him. So she'd been watching as best she could. And she'd already decided that when and if she ever caught him, he was going to get the shit beat out of him. Somebody needed to teach him a damn lesson. The logical part of her knew that she shouldn't do that-he should be jailed and formally held accountable for his actions. But the emotional side of her didn't care what anybody else thought or wanted-Pete was a miserable bully and the world was different now and people like Pete needed to be dealt with harshly and quickly.

Her pulse quickened as she approached Sam and saw he was crying. "Hey, Sam. Anything I can help with?" And she sank down quietly on the step below him. Sam shook his head, a look of overwhelming sadness and helplessness on his face. Olivia clenched her jaw angrily. That asshole. Whatever was going on Sam knew about it and was outside here all alone.

Olivia stood decisively and stepped up onto the porch and approached the door. "Don't" Sam cried out anxiously. "Dad don't want anybody bothering him when he and mom are…..talking," he stammered out. I bet, Olivia thought.

She turned and knocked loudly and firmly on the door. She could faintly hear someone, probably Jessie, crying inside. Then she heard loud footsteps approaching the door, Pete probably stomping around in a temper she thought. She stepped back a bit and braced herself for whatever he might do.

The door flung open and Pete stood there disheveled, blood spots on his shirt, his fist looked red and a bit swollen. She could smell the alcohol coming off him in waves. "What the fuck do ya want?" he snarled.

Olivia felt her temper getting the best of her. She needed to keep her mind clear if she was going to take care of Pete in a way that would force Deanna to take some action against him. "I saw Sam on your steps and he looked upset. I wondered if there was anything I could do to help," she said, forcing herself to keep her voice calm and low.

"Why don't you just trot on home, you nosy bitch. No one asked for you to stop by here. No one needs your help," and Pete slammed the door shut. Or would have if Olivia hadn't inserted her booted foot into the doorway. She kicked the door back, causing Pete to stumble backward and fall against a table in the hallway.

Olivia stepped into the hallway and peering toward the living room saw Jessie sitting in a chair crying, her face red and swollen. "Jessie, do me a favor and step on out onto the porch with your son Sam please," Olivia said in her best FBI don't fuck around with me voice. And it worked. Jessie responded automatically to the authority in Olivia's voice and stood and headed to the front door.

"Jessie, get your ass back in there, we aren't finished talking yet," Pete yelled and Jessie halted indecisively, cowering in the doorway of the hall to the door.

Olivia looked at Pete, disgust clearly on her face. "You're wrong there Pete. Your talk with Jessie is done. Your ass is going to jail, and you're staying there until I can convince Deanna how to handle this. I don't give a fuck if you're the last doctor in the world, that doesn't give you free reign to beat on your family. Christ knows what else you've been up to," Olivia spat out. She grabbed Jessie and pushed her toward the doorway, keeping an eye on Pete.

Pete lunged toward Jessie and Olivia knocked him back and then kicked him in the gut. He went down moaning. Jessie ran out the door and pulled Sam with her to the lawn. "Go get Rick and Michonne," Olivia yelled out the door toward Jessie.

She turned back to Pete, and watched him try to get back onto his feet. She kept just out of his reach. "You bitch, who the fuck are you to tell me what to do," he growled, still trying to get his breath and regain his feet.

"Just shut up Pete. You weak, pathetic piece of shit," Olivia said quietly. Her anger had quickly evaporated once Jessie was out of the house. Now all she felt was disgust as she watched Pete wobbling and stumbling trying to regain his footing. Jessie could have just pushed the asshole down and locked him out of the house or in a room or anything…..as drunk as he was it would have taken very little to throw him off balance. She shook her head, amazed as always at how women rarely tried to defend themselves even in circumstances where they could easily do so.

Olivia had tried to talk Deanna into having self defense classes for the entire town, not just shooting but fighting and defensive moves for everyone. Basic stuff that all of them should know. But Deanna had put her off, insisting they were all safe, no need for any classes like that. She was going to insist when she talked to Deanna that they have those classes. If Jessie had known even some of that she would've been able to defend herself and her boys from that asshole she was married to.

Pete staggered to his feet and took a step toward her. Out of sheer meanness Olivia quickly kicked his feet out from under him again and then kicked him as hard as she could in his side. She then grabbed his hair and leaning over whispered in his ear. "If you have any goddam sense in that head of yours, you'll lie here and keep still until Rick and Michonne get here you sorry fuck," she hissed. Then she stepped back over to the doorway to wait for Rick and Michonne.