A/N: Trigger Warning- graphic descriptions of violence and rape ahead. Much of the rest of this story includes this as well, if this makes you uncomfortable, please skip to the next chapter or stop reading now.

Olivia taps lightly on Meredith's hospital room door, drawing in a shaky breath and pulling her FBI agent mask on. Quinn was silent beside her, their moods somber. In a minute, Alex opens the door. Olivia is about to say something when the pounding of feet on the ground causes her to turn, hand instantly going to the butt of her Glock on her waist.

"What happened?" Cristina gasps. "I was paged?"

Olivia relaxes, but a lot of the tension remains in her body. She understands the weight of what she needs to do here.

"Ms. Perkins, what are you doing here?" Alex cuts in.

"We need to get a statement from Dr. Grey," Quinn says.

"What? No." Cristina says, stepping in front of both of the women, blocking the door.

Meredith is on her side in the bed, not comfortably but she's facing the door. The lights in her room are dimmed, so the bright hallway lights filtering in make her squint. Meredith is silent, listening to what the people outside are saying.

She recognizes Cristina, Alex, and Olivia's voices, but a fourth, sharper one is unfamiliar. She inhales sharply, a stab of fear passing through her until she reasons with herself. If the woman that voice belongs to is with Olivia, she has to be safe.

"Do you or do you not want to put William Dunn away for good?" Quinn's voice reaches Meredith. "We need a statement, we've already waited as long as we can."

At the mention of his name, images of William flash through Meredith's mind, causing her stats to spike. At the sound of the monitor going off, Cristina and Alex are instantly in the room at her side again. It takes a few minutes, but she calms down and Alex turns to face the women at the door again.

"You see what you're doing to her? Backoff," he spits. Olivia slowly steps into the room, Quinn hanging back.

"Can I just talk to her for a minute, please? I won't interrogate her, I swear. I won't ask a single question. I just want to talk." Olivia pleads. Alex and Cristina look at each other, clearly hesitant.

"It's okay. Let me talk to Olivia," Meredith says quietly.

"Are you sure, Mer? You don't have to do anything you don't want to," Alex turns back to her.

"I'm sure. Just...just give us a few minutes. Alone." The blonde requests, though not moving from her spot. For a minute, the two doctors stand there, debating leaving their friend. Until Meredith flicks her hand at them to the door, they both slowly leave.

Painfully, Meredith sits up to try and gain better ground on the agent now sitting next to her. "Do you really need my statement?" She begins quietly.

"Yes, I'm sorry. I know how you're feeling right now and I know talking about it is the last thing you want to do."

"Do you really know how I feel? When was the last time you were kidnapped, raped, and beaten for no reason?" Meredith snaps, angry for no real reason.

"I'm not saying that, Meredith. And I'm certainly not in any way comparing myself to you, but you should know that when I was twenty-three, I was in the FBI training academy, and my superior raped me more than once. So I understand how you're feeling better than you'd think."

At that, Meredith is silent, a pang of guilt hitting her for taking her anger out on the woman next to her. Curiosity gets the better of her, and the look on her face prompt Olivia to give an explanation.

"I...I was only twenty-three. I didn't know anything back then. The first time it happened, I thought it was just something I had to deal with. Then, it happened again. The second time I tried to fight him off, but he...he beat me so much I was transferred to the academy's hospital. Out of training for over a week. I thought no one would believe me, Meredith. So I didn't report it. I was terrified all the time of everyone. I put in for a transfer and they eventually moved me out from under his command, but it didn't mean I was automatically better. Looking back now, I only wish I had the strength to speak up and tell someone about it, who knows how many other girls I could've helped. It's one of my biggest regrets."

Meredith is stunned into silence. Olivia, usually so tough on the exterior is now avoiding looking at the woman in the bed. She nervously plays with her hands in her lap, trying to hold back tears. Meredith picks up on the rapid rising and falling of the agent's chest, and doesn't really know what to do.

"I'm sorry," Meredith whispers. Finally, teary electric blue eyes meet hers.

"It's not your fault. You have to remember that. You didn't do anything to deserve this, no one does. Very, very few people know this about me, I'm only telling you so you don't make the same mistake I did. You have a chance to see that the man who did this is punished. I'm asking you to take it."

The blonde drops her gaze, studying the bed as she thinks. Olivia takes this moment to collect herself, brushing the tears from her eyes and taking a few calming breaths until Meredith looks up again.

"Okay," she whispers. "Okay, I'll give you my statement."

Olivia forces a small smile to show her gratitude and pulls a notepad and pen from her jacket pocket. "Thank you."

"Um...Cristina and Alex don't have to hear this, right?"

"If you want, I can keep it between me and Quinn. Meredith, it's up to you. Derek doesn't even have to hear it."

"Quinn does? She doesn't have to be in here though, right? Just you and me?"

"Just you and me. Quinn will read my notes and I'll have to talk to her, but she will keep it confidential if that's what you want. She only needs it to win your case."

Meredith takes a deep breath and clears her throat. "Okay, go ahead."

"Tell me everything you remember about the night you were abducted."

"Um, it was cold. Derek walked me out the doors of the police station, and we kissed on the sidewalk in front. Then, I walked away. I had parked my Jeep on the far side of the building. There weren't any lights or anything. Um...I-I tried to get in my car but it wouldn't unlock. He-he came up behind me and covered my mouth so I wouldn't scream. I tried to fight him off, I-I think I broke his nose, but then he...he threw me to the ground and I think I hit my head on the concrete. Probably where the skull fracture came from. That's the last thing I remember."

"Did he say anything to you?"

"Yeah, uh, when I broke his nose he called me a bitch, but that was it."

"What's the next thing you remember?"

Meredith swallowed hard, her voice shaking. "I woke up in that little room. No windows, nothing. It was freezing. My head hurt really bad...everything is kind of fuzzy."

"Describe the room."

"It...it was small, but I could lay out, the ceiling was high enough that um, h-he could stand. There was this generator or some sort of machine in the corner that I was t-tied to. There was this-this one light right in the middle, but I-I uh, never knew what time it was."

"What happened the first time you saw him?"

"I...Is this really necessary? My body isn't proof enough? Everyone knows what he did."

"I'm sorry, Meredith. This is important." Olivia says gently, her face holding nothing but sympathy.

"O-Okay. I, um, he came in, mumbling to himself, I don't know what he was saying, but I started yelling at him. Cursing, mostly-" she let out a strangled, humorless chuckle. "-then he hit me. It was the first time he did it, punched me right in the face. Got this black eye and broken nose from that. That kind of knocked me out, but I remember how cold it was when...when he...t-took my clothes and...raped me."

Her voice had gotten weaker as she spoke, the last few words barely audible. Olivia shakes the images from her head, giving Meredith a moment to collect herself while she scribbles everything on her notepad.

"Then what happened?" Olivia presses eventually.

"He-he said something...I, uh don't remember what." Meredith glances up at Olivia, knowing that she's lying. She remembers every single word that man said to her. The agent is studying her, and that's when Meredith realizes there are tears falling down both of their cheeks.

"I um, I cried for a while and I think I fell asleep because the next thing I remember I was sore from laying on the concrete for so long. I hadn't had anything to eat or drink, so I just...sat there."

"When was the next time he came to see you?"

"I don't know how long it was, but he came back smelling like vodka. I've never met a person who smelled as strongly of alcohol as he did. Then, the same thing happened as the first time. This time he gave me this ratty old blanket to use."

"Did he say anything to you then?"

"I-I don't remember..." Another lie.

"What happened the next time?"

"I became a human punching bag," she spits, hot tears falling freely now. "He didn't rape me. I mouthed off and he beat me. I don't know how long that lasted, but every time I would yell he would laugh. He didn't untie me, but always made sure to check I was securely roped to that generator."

"Okay, do you think this was about day three?"

"I have no idea, I told you, no windows. I didn't have a clue how much time had passed."

"Did he still smell like vodka that time?"

"Um...yes, but it was fainter. He had this look in his eyes," Meredith felt shivers cover her body as the image of William flashed in her mind. "He looked...crazy. I don't think there's any other word to describe it."

"Did it look like he was high?"

"No, not really...um, there weren't any signs of drug abuse."

"Okay, the next time he came, what happened?"

"He smelled like um, Bourbon. Really, really strongly. He came in...r-raped me without saying a word, then gave me that t-shirt. He said I n-needed to cover myself. Then, he handed me a bottle of water. Said I d-didn't get to die yet..." A sob shakes her body, stopping her midsentence.

"It's okay, Meredith. You're doing great, really great. You're safe now, it's okay," Olivia sets down her pen and inches closer to the bed, trying to comfort the woman and ground her.

Olivia senses her distress and they take a break before things get out of hand, knowing they both need it.

Ten minutes later, Meredith draws in another shaking breath, finally having calmed down enough to continue.

"So, is that the last thing he said to you that time? What happened after?" Olivia continues gently.

"I don't remember him saying anything else," Lie. "The next time he came, it was the same thing. He strangled me. Not enough for me to die, but enough that I would do whatever he wanted. Not like I had much of a choice, I was weak from lack of food and water and could barely hold myself up."

"Keep going, what happened next?"

"It was a while before he came again. I couldn't move, everything was hurting so badly, and I didn't have the energy to f-fight it anymore. I um...I made a promise to myself...uh, that I wouldn't cry and beg for my life when it came to it. Um, I would face it like the woman I was. I wasn't going to scream and plead." Meredith has zoned out of her conversation at this point, thinking back to when she was tied up, remembering exactly how she was feeling and her thoughts.

"Take your time, Meredith, then what?"

"He came in this time really rushed...he smelled faintly of like, four different drinks. It happened a-again, and he almost left but came back. He pulled this piece of r-rope out of his pocket, shoved me into the wall. I um, I yelled, and finally, he pulled to him and wrapped the rope around my neck. I thought that was it."

"But...?" Olivia prompts.

"Then I heard y-you guys. Um, Derek walked in with you and Jake. I-I remember staring down the barrels of all t-three of your guns. The rope got tighter around my neck and you w-were saying something to him, I couldn't uh, couldn't really hear. I thought you were going to shoot me...but um, just as I was about to go unconscious, William moved and I heard a gunshot and then I was on the-the ground, gasping for air. Derek was next to me."

Meredith brings a hand to her throat, lightly running her fingers across the scars, feeling as if William's hands were around her neck once again. She covers her mouth when she finishes, breaking into sobs again. Olivia finishes writing and stands up, hesitantly placing a hand on Meredith's.

"How...how did you get past it, Olivia? Right now, I-I feel like it will never end..."

The agent sighs, gently sinking down on the bed next to Meredith. "It took a long time. It still haunts me to this day. But you have a support system. You're surrounded by people who care about you and in a few weeks you'll put William Dunn away for a long, long time. That's a lot more than I had. You're strong, Meredith. You will get through this. I'm not saying it will be easy, because it won't. I won't lie to you. Recovering is going to be one of the hardest things you'll ever have to do. But I don't have a doubt that you will be able to."

PSA:

Sexual assault is not a joke, it thrives when it is not taken seriously and victim-blaming goes unchecked. Use your voice to prevent it. Say no more to the shame and silence.

If you or someone you care about needs help, visit .org or call the 24 hour National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 800-656-HOPE (4673)