A/N: Woaaah… last chapter was the most reviewed chapter I have ever gotten since I started writing. Thank you all so very much. I know you're all on pins and needles waiting to see what happens next. Hope I don't disappoint. Enjoy!

TRIGGER WARNING (I'll keep this up here since there's a few recollection of what happened in the last chapter.)


When a lion is asleep you let him, unless you want to awaken his wrath.

Fitz was experiencing fitful rests ever since his surgery. It was already uncomfortable sleeping with a sling on his left arm, but even more so bothersome that his cellphone kept incessantly vibrating on his nightstand. Between feeling too tired and uncomfortable he didn't have the courage to get up and answer it. However, when the buzzing sounded for the umpteenth time he slowly got up and sat upright. Grabbing the smartphone, he looked at the screen to see that he had quite a number of missed calls. Immediately, his body grew cold. What is wrong? Something is wrong – he was assured of. But what is it? He quickly unlocked his phone to see who was calling him. He grew more anxious when he saw most of the phone calls were from Abby, Stephen, Chief Beene and some of the other men at the firehouse, and not from Olivia. What the fuck is going on? He frowned at the phone.

He was so afraid to call anyone because he didn't want to hear something bad had happened to Liv. He was in denial. Terrified to even listen to the twenty something voicemails left on his phone. He was being a coward and he knew it. He took a deep breath trying to settle his frantically beating heart. He felt it in his gut that something was wrong. Why was everyone calling me if it wasn't? Oh, God. I don't think I can handle it. Whatever it is.

His mind was reeling while he tapped on the message icon.

Abby: Fitz, come down to Weiss right now!

Abby: Something happened to Liv.

Stephen: Dude I'm sorry. Come down to Weiss. Liv needs you!

Randy: Fitz you need to come down to Weiss! Liv was attacked at the firehouse.

The second Fitz read the last message he immediately stood to his feet. The last message moved him from a state of denial to action. He was running on pure adrenaline as he tried to put on a hoodie over his T-shirt and then swapping out his pajamas bottom for sweatpants. After that he slipped his feet into a pair of loafers, grabbed his truck keys and rushed out of the house. He was in such a rush that he forgot his cellphone on the bed and didn't bother to return for it.

Fitz knew that he was not supposed to be driving with one hand, but what was he supposed to do in that moment? He navigated the streets with his right arm as fast as he could in pursuit of the hospital while praying to God that nothing was seriously wrong with Liv. He didn't want to think about death because to him that wasn't an option. She didn't get to die and leave him. Not now. Not now at all!

One car unexpectedly cut Fitz off, causing him to slam on his brakes. The nervous energy coursing through his body coupled by anger was enough to set his hand on his car horn. He pressed on it long and hard letting the driver know that he pissed him the fuck off.

"FUCK!" Fitz let out, along with his incessant honking. Eventually he stopped when he needed to continue along his way.


After circling the overcrowded parking lot for five minutes he finally found a parking spot. To say that he was nervous, upset, agitated and everything in between was a huge understatement. Fitz took huge breaths before he walked through the emergency doors. This was it. This is where I'll know what's wrong. No more denials. No more hiding. Something is wrong.

Fitz' eyes widen when he saw the entire firehouse 51 occupying the entire waiting room area. Right then and there he felt his knees grow weak. What if she died? Water immediately sprang to his eyes at the thought.

"Oh, thank God you're here!" Abby exclaimed, rushing over to Fitz. She looked like she'd been crying all night. She gave him a tight hug before stepping out of his embrace. By her statement everyone noticed him in the room. Some got up and patted him on the back while some gave him a look that he wasn't quite familiar with.

"What's going on? Where's, Liv?" Fitz asked, looking around the room since no one was readily divulging that piece of information. Chief Beene and Stephen then walked into the waiting room and his eyes immediately fell on them.

"Come with me, Lt. Grant," Chief Been said right away, and he followed him and Stephen down the corridor to an empty conference looking room.

The minute they entered the room, Fitz immediately asked, "Where is Olivia?"

"Fitz, what we are about to tell you, please… find a way to keep calm. I'm angry right now but we all need to remain calm to handle this situation above the law." Cyrus said seriously.

Fitz nodded weakly. "Is she…is…she de…?" He wasn't even able to phrase his question.

"No she's not dead. She is however unconscious. Both her and Harrison are. Tonight, a very unfortunate thing happened at our firehouse. One of our own caused self-destruction. Moreover so, he attempted to do one of the worst crimes known to mankind. Fitz, I'm sorry, I'm deeply sorry for allowing such a callous, heartless, cruel man to fill your space while you're absent. And – "

Fitz interrupted Cyrus then, "WHAT DID WARD DO? Fitz asked, more like demanded.

"We have reasons to believe that Ward tried to rape Olivia."

"WHAAAAAT!" Fitz bellowed.

"At this time the nurses ruled out rape because there was no evidence that he did. But, as of right now they are several injuries inflicted on her body." Cyrus quickly said.

"WHAT THE FUCK?! HOW DID THIS HAPPEN? WHY WASN'T ANYONE WITH HER? WHERE IS FUCKING WARD?" Fitz swung his head wildly between the two men who were responsible for keeping their workers in a safe and healthy environment.

"Fitz, I assure you that if either of us knew how much of a scum Ward was, we wouldn't have let this happen." Cyrus said somberly.

"I don't want to fucking hear it! FUCK FUCK!" Fitz started shaking uncontrollably. The anger boiling inside of him threatened to explode violently.

"Fitz, calm down," Stephen spoke for the first time. He watched as all the veins in Fitz's forehead became evident. He was rightfully pissed, but he didn't want to see him get hurt or do something dumb in the process.

Before Fitz could reply to Stephen one of the firefighters knocked on the door and alerted Chief Beene that the Fire Chief was there. Because the incident occurred at the fire station the firehouse was on an emergency locked down, and the district Fire Chief that oversees the entire city was alerted. Cyrus excused himself, leaving Stephen and Fitz to themselves.

"Where is Ward?" Fitz asked in a low, death tone when Cyrus was no longer in the room.

"I took care of him, Fitz."

"Did you? Did you? I FUCKING ASKED YOU TO WATCH HIM! AND WHAT HAPPENED? MY FUCKING GIRLFRIEND IS UNCONSCIOUS! IF THAT'S HOW YOU TAKE CARE OF A JOB THEN NO FUCKING THANKS!" Fitz barked in his face. He was so upset that he almost punched him in the face with his right hand.

"Fitz calm down!" Stephen stated in a firm voice. He knew that he was upset but he didn't take kindly to him yelling in his face. "I'm sorry mate, I'm really sorry but you have to calm down."

"How could this happen? How could this happen to my Livvie?" Fitz' mood immediately shifted from upset to sad. Whenever he thought of Eric his blood boiled in his veins but when he thought of Liv his entire body grew cold.

"I don't know man. It just happened out of the blue. He's on the second floor undergoing treatments because I fucked him up pretty badly. Fitz, where are you going?!" Stephen yelled when he saw Fitz opened the door while he was still talking. Instead of answering his question he watched him exit the door.

Stephen knew that he needed to go stop his friend before he made matters worst but he didn't have the heart to. He believed that the scum deserved to be beaten until he could no longer breathe. But the small sense of rationality surfaced to the top and he rushed out of the door after him. Seeing his quick strides at the end of the hall had Stephen running after him. He had to push his body very fast since Fitz walked like a man on a mission. He was a man on a mission. Finally caught up to him he grabbed his friend by his un-sling bicep to halt his movements.

"He's not worth it," Stephen panted out of breath.

"Let me go!" Fitz barked, wiggling his arm out of his grip, as he began to climb the stairs two at a time.

"Fitz! He's going to pay for this! Don't go up there and do something stupid. Liv needs you when she wakes up." Fitz ignored his words and continued his journey. Stephen followed him and this time he forcefully pushed his body into the nearby wall.

"Stephen, get the fuck off of me! You've done nothing but stood in my way tonight! Since that coward and fucker decided to take advantage of my girlfriend I'm going to get my justice! Olivia's justice! Justice is in my hands! So if you're not here to support me, I suggest you move the fuck out of my way!"

"Fitz, you can't go up there. He's under guard. Please listen to me! He's going to fucking pay for this! Liv needs you. She needs to see your face when she wakes up and you can't be in fucking jail when she does. YOU HEAR ME?"

Fitz knew that he was making sense. He was so outraged that he didn't want to make sense. He wanted to lash out on everyone like a madman. He wanted to untame the beast in him and allow it to go free. But then he saw Olivia's peacefully beautiful face beckoning him to be strong. It wasn't until that moment that he realized that all of his energy was focused on seeking revenge on Ward that he neglected to seek the proper care of his girlfriend.

The weight and the impact of what was happening hit him. It hit him so hard that it brought him to his knees. A strong man, a mighty man, on his knees, sobbing over the pain he was feeling for the love of his life. Fitz didn't know what to do in that moment. He wanted to kill Ward for doing this. He wanted to string him up by the neck and hang him until his tongue hanged out of his mouth. So distraught and heavyhearted he didn't realize that Stephen had taken to the floor with him. Comforting him, supporting him.


She can feel the cold metal on her bare backside after her underwear was roughly pulled off of her body. She was powerless; she wasn't strong enough to fight off his advances. The roughness of his dry thrust inside of her most treasured part inflicted bitter pain. His rough hands on her hips held her in place as he violated her body over and over. He didn't care that she was crying and begging him to stop. He was enjoying it; he enjoyed the pain he was capable of causing. And now she felt like she was sinking in an ocean. Her life was no longer hers. The power that she once held over her body was taken away. She no longer felt in control. She was a woman desecrated. Sinking…sinking…slowly sinking to the bottom of the sea. No more love that consumed her heart. She wasn't meant to be happy; she was meant to wear the pain inflicted by others. This was her destiny. But she didn't want such a destiny. No! She wanted to be free. She wanted to be loved. She was loved. An incredible man loved her. These were the thoughts/dreams of an unconscious Olivia as she fought her way out the abyss. A fight that left her exhausted and emotionally drained. In the end she won when her eyes opened in a sliver to see the curious faces of whom she assumed were of nurses and doctors.


It had been over four hours since Fitz broke down on the stairs. Now, he was seated in the waiting room in the farthest corner. With his right hand protectively hugging his midsection his bloodshot eyes moved with each nurse or doctor that passed by. So far he'd learned that Olivia was still unconscious. The nurses and doctors were positive that she wasn't raped but she suffered swelling to her head and face from the fall. She had no broken bones but the concussion had them worried. The plan was to monitor her brain activity over the next 24 hours. They were hoping that she would awake within that time frame, even though no one knew when she was actually going to wake up. Harrison hadn't woken up either and they were hoping the same for him. Fitz just couldn't understand how Ward could do something like that. It wasn't enough to cause pain on one person he had to do so on both of them.

He looked around the overfilled waiting room to see that none of the firefighters had left. They were all keeping vigilant watch; they were a family and they believed that no one should be left behind. The sense of commodore touched Fitz' heart, refilling his eyes with tears. He wasn't alone. Liv wasn't alone. Harrison wasn't alone. There was an entire body of support waiting for them to get better. And the thought made Fitz breathe lighter, easier... He knew that going forward things would never be the same again. They would all be affected by this situation.

"Mr. Grant?" A middle aged African American woman, dressed in a white lab coat called, as she entered the waiting room.

Fitz cleared his throat before he said, "That's me."

"I have someone who would like to see you. Good news, Ms. Pope is awake and her recent CT scan shows that the swelling of her brain is reducing and there's no internal bleeding." Before she was even finished Fitz stood to his feet and made his way to the doctor. All he heard was 'Ms. Pope is awake.'

Everyone except Fitz collaboratively breathed a sigh of relief. He could only do so when he saw her in the flesh. Fitz followed the doctor out of the room and down the corridor until they approached the room that he assumed held the love of his life.

"Before we enter this room, please brace yourself. She may not look like the Olivia you know because her face is swollen and there are bruise marks around her neck and arms but I can assure you that eventually it will fade away. Emotionally… that's a different story," the doctor said sadly.

Fitz took several shallow breaths as he prepared himself for what was to be seen on the other side of the door. Either ways he was happy that she was awake. He gave the doctor a brief nod and he she opened the door for him to walk through.

His legs carried him inside of the room, his mind not fully conscious of what was going on. Here it was, in full living proof – his Livvie was truly assaulted. It was no longer a story that was told to him but an actual reality. At first she didn't notice him enter the room because her gaze was up at the ceiling. But from the closed door she looked over and saw them. He immediately felt his body grow heavy and cold at the sight of her swollen face. His eyes quickly moved onto the rest of her body; her head was wrapped in a bandage and her body was covered with a hospital gown. The doctor urged him to move closer but he wasn't sure that his body could carry him. But it did carry him as he moved closer to her. Eyebrows knitted together Fitz tried to not break down in front of her. Coming to a stop by her side their eyes never wavered from each other.

With a hesitant right hand he brought it to her right cheek and touched her gently, afraid of causing her more pain. He stared into the soul of the woman he loved more than life itself. Her lips quivered from the unshed tears she kept at bay. The incessantly beeping heart rate monitor in the background was a constant reminder of her fighting heart. He ached deeply for her. His voice hoarse as he said, "baby, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." His words were the final catalyst that opened the floodgates of tears. They clung to each other and wept.


"I didn't touch, Olivia. I swear… I walked into the locker room and saw her and that Wright guy making out. They didn't expect to be caught. And since Olivia is with Lt. Grant she told Harrison to do something and we got in a scuffle. I hit him over the head, yes. But it was in self-defense. Then Olivia started hitting me and I was trying to stop her and she accidentally fell backwards and hit her head. I didn't do that intentionally." Eric Ward explained to Fire Chief Rogers, Chief Beene and Detective Joseph. All three men were in the room interviewing him.

Cyrus looked at the pathetic liar and knew that he was lying through his teeth. There was no way he was buying that Olivia and Harrison were having an affair behind Fitz' back.

"So why is there finger marks on her neck and arms?" Cyrus asked.

"I don't know. She probably likes the kinky sex. She looks like that type of girl." Eric Ward almost smirked. That was it! That was enough rubbish Cyrus could take and he advanced to him and plastered a slap across his face. Cyrus prided himself in being a cool and collective guy but he was out of it tonight. One of his own was hurt on the job by the hands of someone who was supposed to uphold the integrity of the job and personal ethics. He truly couldn't sit down and take this.

"Chief Beene, that's enough! You're going to have to stand outside if you cannot act objective." Fire Chief Rogers reprimanded. "Now leave!" He pointed towards the door.

"You got to be fucking kidding me, Rogers? You actually buy the bullshit this wicked man is saying? Fucking kidding me!"

Fire Chief Rogers looked over to Detective Joseph and signaled him to remove Cyrus from the room. Cyrus didn't wait to be removed before storming out of the room, slamming the door in the process. After he left, Chief Roger looked over to Eric with stormy grey eyes.

"Dad, I can explain. She was taunting me, dad. I couldn't help myself."

"This is the fucking fifth time! FIFTH TIME I HAVE TO CLEAN UP YOUR MESS! WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU? DON'T YOU KNOW WHAT CONSENT IS? ARE YOU SO LAME THAT YOU CAN'T GET A WOMAN TO WILLINGLY SLEEP WITH YOU? FUCK, ERIC!"

Detective Joseph stood to the side as father and son went at it. This was what happened every time he was called to clean up their mess. It was easy, really easy because no one besides him knew that Eric was his bastard child, his bastard child who basically manipulates him to do his bidding. It was ridiculous, really ridiculous… But he didn't care enough what they did, because the off the books pay was great.

"Dad! Don't speak to me like that! I fucked up, ok. Big whoop! No one would ever believe that bitch over me! There's no evidence. None whatsoever. So they can't pin this shit on me." Eric said with no remorse whatsoever.

Detective Joseph spoke up, "he's right. As long as it's his words against hers then no one would believe her."

Chief Rogers looked at both of them, shook his head and walked out of the room.


Olivia hadn't stopped crying despite Fitz' best effort of trying to console her – his heart crumbling further inside of his chest. He had stopped crying a while back and was now sitting on the chair that one of the nurses had brought for him. He held onto her as best as he could from a seated position. The others wanted to come visit her but she didn't want to see anyone besides him, which he understood.

They stayed like this for another thirty minutes before Olivia pulled back with bloodshot eyes and runny nose. She looked at him and whispered, "I was so scared, Fitz. He hurt me. He tried to…"

"You don't have to say it, baby," Fitz interrupted her. "He's going to pay for what he did to you. What he did to Harrison."

"Where is Harrison?" Olivia quickly asked.

"He's still unconscious."

Olivia began crying again. "This is all my fault, I should've never went into that room by myself," she hiccupped.

"NO! No it wasn't your fault. You had a right to be there. You had a right to be there by yourself and feel safe. He violated your space. He violated…" Fitz trailed, feeling choked up.

Fitz held onto her hand squeezing it for dear life. He didn't know how they could get through this. Will this break them or make them stronger?


Two hours later Fitz found himself in the same conference room that chief Beene and Stephen had led him to earlier. Olivia was fast asleep, worn out by all of the crying she did.

Both men were too exhausted to stand so they sat across from each other.

"What are the charges he's facing?" Fitz asked. This was why he wanted to talk to him, right?

"None."

"Come again?" Fitz sat up.

"None. There are no charges. He's claiming self-defense."

"How the fuck is he claiming self-defense? That doesn't make sense!"

Cyrus took a deep breath before he replied, "he's claiming that he walked in on Olivia and Harrison and they attacked him, hence why he defended himself. I know its bullshit Fitz but there's no evidence so far that could criminalize him. Especially, since Stephen also assaulted him."

"WOW!" Fitz stood to his feet. "WOW!" He exclaimed louder. "This is getting better and better!" He shouted sarcastically. "HE ALMOST RAPED MY GIRLFRIEND AND HE GETS TO WALK FREE! UN-FUCKING-BELEIVABLE! WELCOME TO FUCKING AMERICA! THIS IS JUSTICE PEOPLE!"

Cyrus ignored his satire. "We're working all angles, and right now since Harrison is still unconscious we do not have his statement and Olivia is too distraught to even replay what happened. As of right now we have nothing we can pin him to. Stephen only saw him with the piece of wood over their unconscious bodies. He didn't know what happened before. We're going to pin him for this. I promise you as long as I breathe he will not get off for what he did. He's going to pay. If the law won't do it, then the streets will." Cyrus said the last part quietly. He was a man of many means. You crossed him and it was hell to pay. He grew up tough, literally fought his way out of the streets. He may be a respected Fire Chief, but he had many uncannily characteristics that were always brewing at surface level.

Fitz stared at Cyrus with new eyes; he'd never witnessed this side of his Chief. It both thrilled and terrified him.

"Go home and get some rest, Fitz. It's already morning." Cyrus urged the young man. He knew that he had to be tired. Between dealing with the situation and his own personal recovery he had to be tired.

"No I can't leave Liv here!" Fitz snapped. He didn't want to leave her.

"What good will you be if you're unrested? She needs you at your best. Go home and rest up, Lt. Grant." Cyrus spoke in an authoritative voice.

Fitz shook his head no. He was feeling restless, but he believed that it had every thing to do with the situation and not the fact that he'd been awake for over 7 hours. He was tired but he didn't want to go home. He needed to stay close by her side.

"That's an order, Grant. Go home." Cyrus said evenly when he wasn't budging.

Fitz opened and closed his mouth before finally conceding. He nodded his head before exiting the door. He made his way to Olivia's room where a freshly dressed Abby was by her bedside. Olivia was still asleep so she simply sat there and watched her friend. Fitz breathed lighter knowing that she would have someone there while he left to go take care of himself. He moved wordlessly to the bedside and planted a chaste kiss on her lips before he turned to Abby and thanked her.


The ride home was a sad, dreary one. It was like he was in a black and white silent film going through the motions. Only the rhythmical beating of his heart reminded him that he was alive. He felt cold on the inside, this was what happened when someone you love experienced pain. It hurt beyond words; there was no accurate explanation for it. And he knew that if it hurts him so much, how much more was it hurting Olivia? The thought made his body shivered.

Ten minutes later he pulled into his driveway. How did he make it home accident free? Only God knew. With a heavy sigh he exited his truck and climbed the few stairs to the front door. The first thing he did when he got inside was head to the kitchen to drink a glass of iced water. His throat and mouth was very dry from all the crying he did. After he drank the water he made his way up to his bedroom, which was more like their room. It was a little over a month since Olivia was staying with him, every night he was given the opportunity to snuggle up beside her and he loved it.

Plopping his bottom unceremoniously onto the bed Fitz came into the sharp contact of his phone against his tailbone.

"Shit!" he exclaimed, pulling the phone from underneath his body. Holding onto the phone he decided to delete the messages and missed calls that was on it. He didn't want any remnants of the bad news as a constant reminder of what happened last night. He spent the next five minutes deleting missed calls, messages, and voicemails. His fingers stopped the swiping action when he saw that he had a three minutes long voicemail from Olivia around twelve. He wondered what other cutesy message she left for him since it was a normal pattern whenever she left him a voicemail, without hesitation he clicked on the play button. He needed to hear her happy voice teasing him.

The first thing he heard was her saying shit. And for some strange reason it made him smiled. She didn't swear much but he enjoyed the few times that she did. The line grew quiet and then Fitz heard a man's voice speaking. It was Eric Ward's voice he quickly identified. His heart began beating faster in his chest as he listened.

"You and Grant, huh?"

"Excuse me?"

"Where do you think you're going? I just want to talk."

"We can talk on the other side of that door, Lt. Ward,"

"No, I want to speak to you in private, Olivia. Why do you keep avoiding me like if I'm diseased?"

"Lt. Ward, please move out of my way. You're beginning to make me feel uncomfortable."

"Why do you have to be such a stuck up bitch? I just want to talk to you and all you do is give me a damn attitude!"

"Move out of my way!"

"Liv, calm down. Please calm down. I just want to talk to you. That's all."

"I don't want to talk to you! I never want to talk to you! I want you to move out of my way so I can leave this room! Now!"

"You're not going anywhere until I say so! Why do you have to be so fucking difficult?"

**Loud Bang**

"Let go of me!"

"You're a fucking cunt! All this time I thought you were some prize to be won, but you're a classless bitch. When someone asks politely to speak to you, you speak to them!"

**Sound of skin being slapped**

**Loud Bang**

"What do you want from me? Let me go!"

**Olivia crying**

"I want some damn respect. Never in my entire life has so much a bitch ever disrespected me. You know how many women would love to be in your shoes? To win the admiration of a man like me?"

"Answer me!"

And the voicemail ended.

Fitz sat stock still for several minutes replaying the voicemail over and over in his head. The initial shock wore off and raged filled him. Without thinking Fitz hurled his iPhone at the wall and smashed it into a million pieces. He then got up and grabbed a hold of the bedside lamp and also smashed it against the wall. Any inanimate object he could get a hold of he grabbed and threw against the wall. To hear a woman being assaulted was devastating to listen to, especially when that woman was the love of your life.

Bubba's barks stopped Fitz from completely destroying his bedroom. His dog, who was no doubt asleep was awakened by his loud banging.

He had never felt angrier in his entire life. Not when his mother left him, not when his father mistreated him, none of it filled him with so much anger – the type that consumed his soul. Since listening to the voicemail he had no other thoughts plaguing his mind other than to take matters into his own hands. If the law won't gave him justice then he would take it for himself.

Fitz moved to his closet and stretched to reach the small safe that was hidden in the far upper corner. He carried the safe back to his room. He unlocked the safe and took out the M&P9 pistol. He loaded it before he concealed it inside the waistband of his sweatpants. He ignored the looks his dog was given him as he made his way down the stairs and back into his truck.

When a lion is asleep you let him, unless you want to awaken his wrath.


A/N: Fitzvader is on the loose after he heard the voicemail. What is he going to do? Eric is lying through his teeth and he has his father and Detective Joseph covering for him. Speak about a plot twist! My goodness! Olivia is distraught as to be expected and Harrison has yet to awake. Cyrus is one step away from taking matters into his own hands. Things don't look so good right now.

What are your thoughts? I anticipate your reviews…

Until next time,

XOXO.