A/N: I know I say this every chapter but I am genuinely so thankful for all the reviews! I do keep your suggestions in mind when writing but it might take a while before I implement them into the storyline

operose: (adj.) involving or displaying a lot of effort.

Henry awoke around 2:30AM and looked around to find the cause. His wife was still next to him but squirmed around in her sleep. He refrained from waking her up because he knew if he woke her up from every nightmare, she would hardly get any sleep.

Though, this decision broke his heart. He didn't want to see her suffer like this.

Elizabeth let out a soft whimper, her eyelids twitching beneath the weight of whatever dream she was stuck in.

She felt a hand touch her face, and if she had any strength, she would flinch away from it, but it was a wonder that she was even slightly conscious.

She wasn't, though. Not really.

Everything was slipping away from her, and then-

Then it's all gone.

The following time she regained consciousness, they had blinded her again which she realized after several failed attempts to clear her darkened vision. They failed because she found her wrists cuffed above her and she realized she was laying in the bed.

"Elizabeth," She heard one of the guards say. Then a hand was sliding over her body. She knew they had blinded her to keep her afraid of what was coming.

It could be anything.

She shuddered violently at the thought of this, at the memories of searing pain and tearing skin and the rough feel of hands holding her down.

"You can't ignore me forever." The man said, his hand moving to touch Elizabeth's cheek, fingernails digging in. "I will break you."

When Elizabeth came awake up with a somewhat violent start, the first thing that she tried to do is ensure that she still had her vision. She turned on her nightlight and though the harsh light burned her eyes, she allowed herself a breath of relief.

Next, she realized she wasn't the only one who was awake. She found a worried and clearly flustered Henry next to her.

"You okay?" He asked, the lines around his eyes deep and worried.

It was late in the night, and he looked exhausted and like he was just about dead on his feet, but Elizabeth knew that he was doing the only thing he knew how to do; he was protecting the people that were his family. For now, that just meant watching over her.

"It was just a dream," She replied shakily, licking her lips and then swallowing almost convulsively against her dry throat. She blinked several times and allowed the room to come into focus. Already, the nightmare was fading, and she was coming back to reality slowly.

"Do you remember what it was about?"

"Did I say anything in my sleep?" She hedged.

"Just now or before? You've had a couple nightmares tonight, I think."

"Either," Elizabeth said thoughtfully.

"You said-" Henry swallowed hard and turned to properly face her. "You said 'you can't break me'."

"I see."

"Babe, can I please hold you?" His plea was desperate, and she rolled over and turned off the light. He sighed as he figured she once again shut him out.

That was until he felt her head on his chest and he maneuvered his hand under her neck and placed a protective hand on her back.

Her arm slowly made its way across his stomach until she held a tight grip on his shirt.

So much of her felt weak for needing him so close and she thought about ensuring him that she's fine, but then she would have to leave his embrace. The safety of his arms. She chose herself for once and stayed put in his grip.

Henry's worry for her kept him up most of the night. As he felt himself slipping away, and finally getting some rest, Elizabeth shot up once again.

She let out a whimper and flinched - not away from Henry, but rather away from the screaming ghosts in her own shattered mind - and suddenly her hands were trembling so fiercely. She suddenly jerked back like she had been struck and it was almost violent enough to shake Henry, but he found a way to hold on tighter.

"Please come back to me. I need you." He pleaded.

There was a long moment and then he saw her blink. It was clear that she was fighting her way back, but still was not enough to get there.

"You're okay. You're home and safe. The kids and I are okay." He struggled to hold her squirming body tight, but he didn't give up. The words seemed to have the right effect because she calmed down and stopped fighting his grip.

"Henry?"

"I'm here. I'm not going anywhere, I promise." He placed a kiss on top of her head- somewhere in her hair- and started rubbing circles on her back.

"I'm sorry." She was on the verge of spilling the tears that were prickling in her eyes. "I'm sorry for fighting with you last night."

"You have nothing to be sorry for." He promised her. It was a relief they had talked about it because it was something that bothered him.

"He needed me to give up completely; to surrender myself completely." She whispered, and Henry adjusted his grip on her. He hadn't expected her to talk about it.

"Did you?" His tone was gentle and careful, making sure not to trigger another fight.

"I never begged him to do anything. I told him to stop playing games." She left out the part where she was almost certain if she had surrendered, his enjoyment would probably have been over, and she would not be laying here right now.

"You never stopped fighting."

"No," she replied, her voice suddenly quiet. "I did not."

"Something inside of you wasn't willing to surrender; you escaped and came back to us."

"I know it's selfish, but I'm glad to know you didn't start dating as soon as I was gone."

"Well the kids promised not to tell, but there have been three new Mrs. Mccords." He teased, and he was glad to hear her laugh.

"What happened to them?" She played along.

"They weren't you." He then sighed. "Babe, it's not selfish and I've told you before, I could never move on from you."

She released herself from his grip and rolled over to her side to turn the light on. Next, she moved back to him and placed a hand on his cheek. She gently kissed him and popped her head on her arm.

"You want to know what the worst part was?" Henry's voice broke and she noticed tears in his eyes. "I got to see what my life would be like without you. Please promise me that you will never leave me again. That we will grow old together and be with each other for the rest of our lives."

She could imagine how much he missed her. She had missed him too. The only difference was, she knew he was still alive. He had spent a year mourning her. Thinking he lost her.

"I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I never want to have to miss you as much as the last year."

"Go to sleep. I'll be right here if you need me." He promised her, and she surprised him by laying in his embrace again.

The following morning, Henry was the first one to be awake and found her still curled up in his arms. She looked peaceful in her sleep, for once. Not wanting to disturb that, he carefully slipped out of her grip and walked downstairs.

He found Will in the kitchen making eggs while Jason and Stevie sat at the breakfast table.

"Good morning." He said, and he got three replies in return. "Thanks for helping out."

"No problem." Will told him. "You want some eggs?"

"Thanks." He accepted the plate from his brother-in-law.

"So, uncle Will, what time is your flight?" Stevie asked, and Will now took place on the table as well.

"It's at five, so I need to leave here around lunch time."

"Then I guess we should say goodbye before I leave." Stevie finished her tea and pulled her uncle in for a hug. "Thanks for being here."

"I'll be back soon." He promised, and Stevie kissed her dad on the cheek.

"Bye dad."

"Bye." And with that Stevie was out the door.

"Can I see if mom's awake before I leave?" Jason asked and rushed upstairs when he saw his dad nod.

He carefully approached his parent's bedroom and peeked around the corner. He found his mother sitting on his dad's side of the bed, staring into the bathroom.

From the looks of it, she had attempted to get dressed, but was now sitting in her sweater and one leg into the pants. He wondered if he should give her some privacy to finish, but from the looks of it, she was too busy staring at something only she could see.

Before he made himself known, he held back a gasp when he noticed the bruised ankle his mother had. It had always been covered by sweatpants and fluffy socks.

Shaking the horrible images his mind came up with away, he knocked on the door. He saw his mother's eyes snap his way and they softened when she realized it was her son. Quickly, she finished getting dressed and Jason walked in.

"I just wanted to see if you were up before I go to school." Jason hesitantly sat on the bed and kept a respectful distance between the two of them.

Elizabeth wasn't having any of it and moved over to be closer to him. "Are you okay?"

"Does it hurt?" He blurted out and she raised an eyebrow in confusion, so he clarified. "Your ankle."

"No." She bit her lip. She wanted to protect her son, but she also knew he could see straight through her answer. "Sometimes."

"Is there more?"

"Jason." She sighed, and he nodded knowingly.

"Right. I'm too young to handle it."

"No." She put her arm around his shoulders. "You're too innocent. Jase, you can't un-know or un-see certain things."

"Just tell me. How bad is it?"

"Not at all bad. What you saw it probably the worst." She lied. She knew her metal scarring was the worst but that was something she was determent to protect her kids from. They didn't need to know that.

"I love you, mom." His arms now circled around her and she sighed as she felt herself relax in his embrace.

"I love you too." She let go and nudged him off the bed. "Now get to school."

"I can stay h-" He tried but she shook her head.

"Nope. Nice try. You're going to school. I'll still be here when you get back."

"Okay. Bye." He glanced back at his mother one last time before he left the room.

"How is she?" Will asked as soon as his nephew was upstairs.

"It was a long night." Henry sighed. "Quite a few nightmares."

"They will subside." Will promised him. He knew from experience the first few months were the hardest. And then came the anniversaries.

"I know. I just hate seeing her like this."

"Me too." Will let a silence fall as he sipped his coffee before continuing. "I'm sorry about yesterday. I know you're just trying to help."

"It's okay. None of us know what to do here." Henry wished someone could guide him. Or at least let him know he was handling things right and they were going in the right direction.

"Have you asked her if she wanted to see someone?"

"Not yet, but I was planning to."

"Good luck." He knew his sister well. She wasn't one for therapy. She didn't like talking about her feelings or showing weakness.

"Hey dad, I'm leaving." Jason walked downstairs with his bag on one shoulder. He said goodbye to his uncle before rushing out the door.

Elizabeth had spent the morning catching up with Will. Henry got some work done and gave the two siblings some time alone. They rarely ever saw each other and after the past year, they deserved a moment together.

What had surprised him, though, was the expression on his wife's face this morning. She looked like she was in pain somewhere, and not the mental kind. He was aware she'd previously had broken ribs and her throwing up could not be very helpful. He could imagine they would start to hurt again and moving would not improve that.

Then there was the bruised ankle. She had covered it up for the most part, and the swelling had gone down, but it was obvious every time she got dressed and fabric would touch it, it hurt. The bruises on the rest of her body were starting to fade and he was glad there would be at least one reminder less.

He figured he would talk to her about after Will left. There was so much they still needed to talk about, but he didn't want to push her. Or overwhelm her.

"Henry?" He heard Will yell through the house and he rushed to the kitchen. He slowed his pace when he found Elizabeth alright and unhurt, still sitting at the breakfast table. "I'm leaving."

"Alright. Thanks for coming." He pulled him in for a quick hug and watched as Elizabeth rose from her seat. The wince from getting up showed him she was in more pain than she let on, but he was just glad Will didn't notice.

"Call me when you get to London. I love you." She wrapped her arms around her and he held his sister tight.

"I love you too. Just get better and I promise I'll come over again soon."

She watched as her brother walked out and held on to Henry's hand. He gave it a squeeze for support and as soon as the door closed, she turned to him.

"We can do this, right?"

"What do you mean?" He was confused as to what she meant.

Elizabeth bit her lip and shifted her eyes to the door for a moment before they flickered back to him.

"This. Us. Me."

"Of course we can. I'm going to be by your side ever step of the way."

"But what if things never return to normal?"

He placed both hands on her shoulders and looked at her. "Stop thinking about 'what if'. But if that happens, we will adapt, okay?"

She nodded unconvincingly before resting her head on his chest. His arms circled around her and he held her in a loose grip.

"I forgot, but I had Stevie buy something for you yesterday." Henry guided her to the kitchen and she grabbed the counter for support while Henry grabbed a box. She looked at it curiously and watched as he opened it.

"All our numbers are already in there. This way you don't need my phone to text Ali." Henry handed her the phone and she gratefully accepted it. He always thought about everything.

"Thank you."

As she turned it on she saw the background of the lock screen was a selfie of her three kids. As soon as she unlocked it she saw the background of her phone was a picture of the five of them.

"We'll always be by your side." Henry promised her. She shook her head and looked up at him.

He didn't feel like he could possibly love her more than he did.

It was a terrifying word. Love . It was huge and insignificant and it was the biggest riddle for a man, but that was it. To love someone was a big responsibility. Hold a heart in his hands, which would be easy to crush and knock down.

Elizabeth had promised herself that she would take care of her family. When she was younger, she promised that if someone was brave enough to give her their heart, she would protect it because he gave it of his own free will, it was something special.

She knew how much her parents loved and adored her. However, losing her parents at such a young age had left an ache in her heart that Henry had managed to fill when they first got together.

What she felt was more than mere gratitude and deeper than affection and attention. She loved him. More than she could ever begin to describe.

That was love.

Between Henry and her. With the beautiful family they had created.

TBC