It was a little before dinner, and Amy and Peter sat in the living room while Georgie and Katie were in their rooms.

Amy looked to Peter, remembering that she'd been angry at him for so long after the Vancouver incident with his girlfriend, and then also after him and Lou signed the papers. She remembered Lou being so worried and so uncertain about the whole thing, but Peter was adamant that it was the right thing to do. It was as if he didn't even bother trying, as if he didn't care about Lou, or their daughters. Had he not seen that he had so much to lose? Had all those years meant nothing to him?

The resentment was still there, but it was difficult to stay mad at him in this moment in time…because they were all to be blamed. How much different was she from him? Amy now felt herself drawn to Peter's grief and she felt herself empathizing with what he was going through. All the anger and resentment set aside, Amy figured that she and Peter had one thing in common: their love for Lou. Despite it, they had both been unable to help her, and instead, they'd both push her along that dangerous path. Because of her grief and isolation, she had been vulnerable, and this allowed Bennett come into her life and wreak havoc.

It was intensely quiet in the room, and Amy looked to her ex brother-in-law again, this time with a different intent. She waited for him to say something. She hoped he'd say something. She wanted to know more on Lou, and what was going on with the police and Bennett. But Peter seemed out of it, completely lost in thought, his gaze unfocused. He had a hand resting on his chin, and the creases on his forehead were evident.

"Hey, Peter…?" Amy called out.

"Hmm?" Amy's voice seemed to bring out of his reverie. "Yeah?"

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

"No, you didn't. I'm just…" Peter sighed. "I'm not really sure. You wanted to ask me something?"

"Yeah. Uhm, is Lou okay? How's she doing now?"

"She's doing really well—I mean, as well as she can be at this point."

Amy nodded, her heart heavy. She sighed, "I can't believe all of this happened...and it was all my fault."

"What? Amy, you too? Georgie said it was her fault as well. You girls need to stop blaming yourselves. Sometimes bad things happen and there's just no way to make sense of them. It's nobody's fault, okay?"

Amy shook her head. She felt like she needed to share her thoughts with someone, or else she'd go crazy. "No, Peter. It really is my fault. The night she went out...right before, we had this huge fight, and I stormed out. I should've stayed, I should've talked to her, helped her sort everything out. Instead, I left her alone to deal with everything, and she was already in such a bad space, and she went out and she—she almost died. Last night could've been the last time I ever spoke to her. Oh my god, I can't even begin to fathom the thought..." Amy trailed off, shaking her head, her blue eyes deeply troubled.

"And you don't have to. She's fine."

Amy nodded. "Yeah, but it would've been on me. And I know how selfish that sounds, but I just…I wouldn't have been able to bear it…"

"I get that," Peter said quietly.

"Did the doctor say anything about her emotional state? I mean, is she—she wouldn't hurt herself, would she?"

Peter was startled. He hadn't thought to ask the doctor. He shook his head. "I—I don't know…" he said nervously, tapping his fingers to his other hand.

"I mean, I know Lou. She would never, and she has her girls to take care of, but she's been through so much. It's been almost three months since this all began."

"Months?"

Amy nodded. "A few weeks after your papers were finalized."

Peter ran a hand through his hair. "Oh god...and nobody got a hint?"

Amy shrugged her shoulders, feeling guilty all over again. "I don't know...I mean, everyone knew there was something going on, but we just figured it was about the divorce, and how final it was. She'd taken it pretty hard."

"And Georgie? She never noticed?"

"Lou said that Georgie had noticed her behaviour on multiple occasions over the last few weeks, but every time she brought it up, Lou would just deny it, saying it was work related because she didn't want to worry her. And the marks were easy to hide too, especially now in the cold weather. She'd wear turtle necks, long sleeves...put on makeup when it was necessary…" Amy trailed off, thinking of how she herself hadn't noticed any of that.

Peter sighed heavily, taking it all in. "Wow...So, do you know how—I mean, do you know when he started—"

"Hurting her?" Amy finished for him. She saw him nod, to which she answered, "She told me it started out with just verbal abuse, and that he began physically hurting her just less than a month ago," Amy sighed. "It was a gradual process."

"Phys—physically…? How exactly?" Peter's voice rose in pitch.

"You know, hitting her, bruising her...she said his specialty was coming up to her and choking her...when she least expected it. Fast reflexes."

Peter set his jaw back, angered and feeling helpless. Bunching up his hair at the back of his head, he asked, "Did you know about him—just the fact that she was with him?"

Amy shook her head. "No. I didn't—I found out just this morning," Amy said, sighing, her heart heavy.

"Mmm," Peter replied, nodding.

The two sat in silence for a minute or so, both taking in the situation they were in.

Peter's phone chimed. He reached out to grab it from the table in front of him and held it up. It was a text from Sylvia. He wrinkled his brow, confused as to why she'd be texting him now. He swiped to the right to open the message. It read, "Hey, Peter. Can we talk?"

Seeing the text angered Peter. It made him angry at himself because it made him realize how unworthy of Lou he really was. And how much he'd hurt her. She didn't deserve it. Any of it. This was completely and entirely his fault...had the incident with Sylvia in Vancouver not happened, and had he not been such a jerk with the divorce papers...she'd be okay right now. Thinking back to the hospital, and remembering how small and tired she'd looked, his eyes welled up so much so, that his vision was momentarily compromised. He blinked hard and fast, getting rid of the tears.

He texted back, "Look, I meant what I said. You should stop trying to contact me now." Peter was flustered. He blew out his breath.

Amy noticed. "Is everything okay?"

Peter looked up. He nodded. "Yeah, it's just work. Nothing to worry about."

Amy nodded back.

"Hey, where's Jack? Is he not around today?"

"Yeah, him and my dad are out of town."

Peter nodding, understanding. "That makes so much more sense now. I was wondering why he wasn't here."

Amy's phone chimed now. She opened the message and saw it was from Ty. To Peter, she said, "Ty said that Lou just called my dad. They're both on their way. They'll be here tomorrow."

Peter replied, "Good. That's good." Finally, there would be an elder coming home and helping to settle the situation. Peter himself was a grown up, and he had learned to navigate his way through life, but he knew how assuring and calming it was to have a parent around, someone you could look to when you were uncertain on which way to take things. Tim and Jack's presence would certainly help everyone feel a sense of security in this uncertain time.

It was a little after dinner, and Peter was reading Katie a bedtime story, while Amy and Georgie were washing the dishes.

Georgie had been drying, and was currently waiting for Amy to hand her the plate she was working on.

Amy noticed Georgie had gotten lost in thought. "Hey, what is it?"

Georgie snapped out of her reverie. "Nothing—it's nothing."

"No...it's something. Now tell me."

Georgie sighed. "Mom said you two had a fight before she went off last night..." Georgie trailed off.

The plate Amy was working on slipped from her fingers and sloshed into the water. She put the back of her hand to her lips, willing herself not to cry.

"Oh my god, Amy...I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to—"

Amy backed away from the sink. She'd begun to cry, tears forming in her eyes. "It's not your fault. But it's true—we got into a fight, and she got hurt because of it. I didn't know what she'd been dealing with, and our fight was her breaking point, I just know it."

"I was going to tell you about what had happened, but Lou swore me to secrecy. She said she was going to go end things with him soon. And as for your fight, it didn't drive her to go to his apartment last night; she'd made up her mind to do so long before that."

"Georgie, I know what you're trying to do. You're trying to make me feel better about all of this."

Georgie quieted, unsure of what to say next.

Amy put a hand to her forehead, moving backwards.

Georgie noticed. Worried, she moved toward her aunt. "Amy? Amy, come here. Sit down," Georgie said, leading Amy to sit on the round table. "What is it?"

"It's nothing."

"No, tell me. What is it?"

"It's nothing," she repeated.

"Amy..." Georgie said worriedly. She moved away to get Amy a glass of water. Returning, she said, "Here."

Amy pushed away the glass. "I don't want it."

Georgie sighed, "Don't do this."

Amy was adamant that she could do without the glass of water.

"Fine. I'll leave it here if you want it later."

Amy sat a moment more, then wiped her tears away and stood up. "Come on, we need to get these dishes done."

"Amy, stop. The dishes can wait, okay? Just—" Georgie moved forward, engulfing Amy in an embrace. "It's okay."

"I'm sorry, Georgie. Your mom's hurt because of me. It's my fault," Amy sobbed.

Georgie hugged Amy tighter. "No. It isn't your fault." Georgie could feel Amy shaking and trembling, so she brought her arms tighter around her aunt.

"It is my fault…" Amy repeated quietly and gently, as if she'd made up her mind.

When Georgie eventually pulled away from the hug, she said, "Look, Amy. Lou had said that she was going to end things with him sooner rather than later. And she told me that hours before your fight. And honestly, if anyone should be blaming themselves, it should be me! I'm the one who convinced her to go end things, I'm the one who refused to let her stay with him. Maybe I should've kept my mouth shut, at least that way he wouldn't have hurt her like this…and I know how dumb that sounds, but now that I think about it...I'm the one who put her in danger."

"No, Georgie, don't…"

Georgie shrugged her shoulders, sighing, "But it's true. I'm the one who started this whole mess, not you. It's my fault that my mom's been hurt, not yours."

"I don't know what to say right now."

"It's okay. You don't have to say anything. But just know it isn't your fault. You didn't do anything wrong."

"I still feel guilty for not being there for her when she needed me."

Georgie shook her head. "Well, Lou has a way of getting through things on her own. She probably didn't want to burden you. So, when she comes home tomorrow, just talk to her, okay? You'll feel better. But stop blaming yourself, please. If anyone's to blame, it's me."

"Georgie…" Amy said, now worried about her niece.

"It's okay. I'm okay. Let's get these dishes done."

Tim and Jack arrived late the next morning, almost around eleven.

Almost an hour later, Lou's eyes flitted open, and she saw Tim sitting at her bedside, his head in his hand. "Dad…?"

Tim lifted his head, looking to Lou. "Honey, hey..." Tim moved forward to Lou. "We're here now," he said, kissing her forehead. Caressing her hair, his hand eventually came to her hairline. "You're okay, you're fine," he kept repeating, trying to reassure himself.

"Where's Ty? Grandpa?"

"I sent the both of them home. Jack came, saw you'd be okay, and he was satisfied. Then I told Ty to take him home. The both of them needed their rest."

"Dad…" Lou said quietly, on the verge of tears, her heart heavy.

"Honey, what the hell happened?"

Lou shook her head. "I...I'd been seeing him for a while…" Lou looked up hesitantly, expecting a scolding from Tim. But he was just listening in quietly. "Turned out he wasn't the person I thought he was, and now I've had to pay the price."

Tim craned his neck toward Lou. "Why did he do this?"

"Because I tried ending things with him."

"Okay…" Tim said thoughtfully, taking it in, and nodding his head. "And why exactly was that?"

"Because...he…" Lou felt ashamed talking about this with her dad. It was uncomfortable for her. "He…"

"Lou, honey, just say it," Tim urged her.

"He was abusing me."

Tim had been listening intently, his forehead creased. As soon as he heard her say these words, he moved back. "What!?"

"Dad, it's okay—"

"Okay!? Are you listening to yourself?"

"Dad, please."

"Honey, look at you!"

"Okay, I get it! I look like a mess, you don't need to keep reminding me!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry sweetheart," Tim said apologetically, putting a hand to the side of her head. "He was hurting you, how?"

"It doesn't matter at this point."

"Yes, it does."

Lou looked down again. She sighed. "He hit me, slapped me, choked me. There's bruising, and some cuts...that was just the physical bit…" Lou trailed off, not wanting to get into the other stuff.

Tim's anger flared inside him. Listening to what his daughter had been through over these past few...he didn't know. Had it been weeks? Months? "How long has it been since this began?"

"It's been maybe three months…"

"Seriously?" Tim asked again, confirming.

Lou nodded. "It's okay though."

Tim scoffed. Angrily, he said, "Nothing about any of this is okay!"

Tim's sudden outburst frightened Lou. Involuntarily, she jolted, her heart beating like crazy.

Tim noticed this, and it troubled him. "Oh my god, Lou, honey. I'm sorry. I'm really sorry."

Recovering, Lou shook her head. "It's fine." She saw Tim's eyes were red, and they were deeply troubled by what they just saw. "Dad. It's okay," she reassured him.

Tim quieted. It was dead silent in the room. He looked around Lou. He saw the machines around her, the IV drip that ran along her arm and went into her wrist. He felt helpless and desperate, a constant fear clawing at his chest. "Honey...do you remember all those times you came to visit me here after my stampede wreck?"

She nodded. "I remember."

"And how you were always there for me, how you always stood up for me, always took my side, even when your grandpa would put me down—"

"Dad…"

"And your mother...after the accident, you were the one who called me and told me everything."

Mom. Lou closed her eyes at the mention of her mother. She realized then how much she missed her, how much she needed her right now. "Dad…where are you going with this?"

"I want to thank you for always being my rock, always being there for me, even when I wasn't for you. Like now."

Lou shook her head. "You didn't know. You couldn't have, and that is not your fault."

"It is my fault. I was so blind, so ignorant."

"No—"

"But you hide it so well, it's ridiculous…"

Lou laughed wryly, with no hint of amusement in her voice. "Hide it well…? Not well enough…"

"What?"

"Georgie. She found out. And it's all my fault."

"There's nothing wrong with that. In fact, it's good that she knows, now she's more aware."

Lou sighed, "I don't know, Dad…"

"Trust me. Knowledge is key."

"Dad, you sound like my high school philosophy teacher," she laughed gently, her injuries restricting her movement.

Tim chuckled. Eventually, his smile faded, and he asked, "Honey, are you going to be okay?"

Lou nodded, "Yeah."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, Dad. I'll be fine. Stop worrying. God, you and Georgie."

Tim laughed again. "She takes after her grandfather."

Lou smiled. "Yeah, she's amazing. I don't know what I'd do without her. She's the one who called Peter home. Honestly, I'm relieved."

Tim looked up at that, surprised. "Peter's here?"

Lou nodded. "Yeah."

"And he didn't bother to let either me or Jack know what'd happened?"

"Dad, he had no idea you guys were gone. Please, don't turn this into something."

Tim sighed, calming. "Right. Right, okay...so, when are you coming home?"

"They said they'd discharge me in a bit...like now—" Lou broke off as she saw Peter appear in the door. "Hey."

"Hey, Lou. Tim," Peter said, acknowledging Tim.

Tim turned partly around, and stood up. "Peter," he said as he walked over. He shook Peter's hand firmly, putting a hand to his shoulder. "I'm glad you're here."

Peter smiled, elated with the way Tim was speaking to him. It made him feel important, like he was needed…like his family needed him. "You too, Tim," he said. Looking to Lou, "Your papers are ready. We can head home."

When Lou arrived home, Amy headed toward her sister. She wrapped her arms around Lou, planting a kiss on her temple. "Hey, how are you feeling?"

"Better."

Amy pulled away from the hug, putting a hand to Lou's arm. "Good, that's good. Come on...let me take you inside, you shouldn't be standing for so long." They began walking into Lou's room, when Amy asked, "Where's Dad and Peter?"

"Peter just dropped me off inside and then headed out back to the car in a rush. Him and Dad went off somewhere. I tried asking him where they were going, but he went off so quickly...and where's Grandpa?"

"I don't know…he's been out working all day…"

Lou nodded, a little disappointed her grandpa wasn't home yet.

They walked into Lou's room, and Amy sat Lou down, helping her lean against the pillows by her headrest. Bringing a lock of Lou's hair behind her ear, and she said, "I love you."

Lou smiled at Amy, a little amused. "I love you too, Amy. What's going on with you?"

"I missed you."

"You saw me yesterday, Amy."

"I know, I know," Amy said, taking Lou's hand in hers.

"Hey, what is it…?"

"I'm sorry about everything."

"Amy—"

"No, Lou, hear me out. You didn't even let me apologize at the hospital...It was unfair of me to storm out like that. I should've been there for you. And now…" Amy sighed, "You almost—you—"

"I know, it's okay honey."

"I'm so sorry, I didn't know…" said Amy in barely a whisper. "I didn't know what you were going through, and I should've stayed and helped you figure it out."

"Amy…"

Amy's eyes welled up, she sighed, saying, "Please?"

Lou was confused. "Amy, why are you even apologizing? It's not your fault."

Amy didn't say anything. She silently looked down, closing her eyes momentarily.

"Okay, it's okay. I accept your apology," Lou said, feeling badly.

Amy sighed, a huge weight lifting off her shoulders. "Really?"

Lou smiled at her sister, "Really."