Post-Trauma Day 5

Alec Hardy came in to Liv's hospital room at 7am, on high alert for the possible presence of Jim Wright in the vicinity. According to the police surveillance team in Bridport, he still hadn't shown up at his home, and Alec had a feeling he was still hiding out in the vicinity of Broadchurch. On one hand, he hoped he had disappeared and would never come back, but on the other hand, he wanted him to make a stupid mistake and show up so he would be caught and get punished for his crimes. It was the only way he felt that he, and especially Liv, would have any peace of mind. Honestly, he wanted to make Jim Wright pay for what he had done to Liv himself. His fists clenched at the thought, but he closed his eyes and took a deep breath—all that would do is get himself in trouble—and if there was one thing he learned from Joe Miller's trial, it was to stay clean and above board.

He smiled as he looked down on Liv. After five days, the doctors were pleased with the results of testing Liv's ability to breathe on her own. The tube had been removed and she was off the ventilator. All that remained was a smaller feeding tube. There was still some bruising and swelling on her face, but she looked so much more like normal that he couldn't help but feel a surge of hope.

*Flashback – Month Five of Alec and Liv*

Olivia MacDonald growled and buried her face in her hands, elbows on either side of her laptop keyboard. This chapter was not coming easily to her. She took a deep breath and a long drink of water before starting to type again. She was typing away, having finally hit a groove, when there was a knock at the door. "Come in!" she yelled.

She heard the door creak open and close shut again, noises in the kitchen, then footsteps coming towards her. "You shouldn't let just anyone walk in. What if it hadn't been me?" Alec said as he leaned over, resting his hands on her shoulders, and kissing the top of her head.

She wasn't listening – she was too focused on the paragraph she had just tried to write. It was horrible. Again. Another growl escaped her, this one louder, and her hand slammed down on the table. "This is ridiculous! I couldn't write a letter right now if I tried, much less a bloody mystery novel! What the hell is wrong with me?!"

Alec's eyes went wide and he looked down on the woman in front of him. He released his hands from her shoulders, keeping them open as he backed a few steps away slowly. It's one of those days, he thought to himself. He sighed and moved to plop down on the sofa that was a few feet away from her desk. "Exhaustion maybe? You're overworking yourself. It's only been a few weeks since your ex was nosing around, and since then you've thrown yourself into every bit of work you can get. You've taken on another shift at the pub, you're visiting your publisher in London two days a week, or you're in here with your fingers stuck to those laptop keys. And they say I'm a workaholic!"

She frowned. "Speaking of which, what are you doing here? You're usually at the station by now." She sighed and rubbed her hands over her face, then leaned against them, her elbows propped on the desk again.

"It's Saturday," he said, as if that was enough explanation.

"Yeah?" she said, not following his train of thought, head still buried in her hands.

He sighed again. "I told you I was taking Saturday off so we could take Daisy shopping. You promised her you'd be there to help her pick out her dress for the prom. You promised me you wouldn't leave me to do it alone. And I promised Tess she'd have a dress that was fashionable but decent. If it were up to me she'd be covered from head to toe and not show an inch of skin. You have got to be there to help me, Liv."

Liv groaned into her hands. "Ugh, I forgot that was today."

"Yes," Alec said with a light tone. "I figured that out when I came in to you growling at your computer."

"I knew it was you, by the way. You always knock the same way." She spun the chair around and smiled apologetically at him, only then noticing the vase of flowers sitting on the coffee table. Her apologetic look only intensified. "You brought me flowers."

"Aye, that I did. Guess my intuition is still good for something. I thought you might be needing a pick me up after your busy week." He turned his gaze from her to the empty spot beside him on the sofa, then back to her, motioning her over with his head. "Come here," he said softly.

She sighed and arose from the chair, moving the few feet necessary to plop down next to him on the sofa. He lifted his arm and she nestled herself into his side, resting her head against his chest. "You're too good to me. You're turning into a softy, Alec Hardy."

"Hmm, yes, well—there's a red-headed Scottish lass who has that effect on me." He gently squeezed her against him. "But she needs to go easy on herself, I worry about her." He leaned down and kissed the top of her head again. She nodded into his chest and sat there quietly a minute.

"I should go get ready. I'm really sorry I forgot about our date with Daisy." She sighed again, disappointed in herself.

"It's alright. I came 'round early to get you, just in case. She'll never know you've forgotten." She smiled and got up, stretching as she started to step away, but he tugged on her t-shirt. "And now I know what became of my shirt."

She looked down and grinned. His Scottish football t-shirt had become one of her favorite night shirts, and she frequently lounged around in it and pajama bottoms. She shrugged, the grin not leaving her face, and continued to move away towards the bedroom. "Maybe one day you'll get it back." She made it to the bedroom door by then. "I'll be out in just a few."

*Present Day*

"Sir, I'm just going to excuse myself a moment. I'll be back shortly." Alec looked up to see the uniformed officer with his head in the doorway.

"Not a problem, I'm not going anywhere." Alec said.

Alec was on the last chapter of Liv's book. He was pleasantly surprised by the story and had honestly enjoyed it. He had read a couple pages when he heard a nurse speak up from the desk that sat in the middle of all the ICU rooms.

"Excuse me, sir. Can I help you? Sir?" the nurse called out, loud enough that Alec heard it. Something about her tone made him look up from his book.

There, standing in the hall, was a recognizable face. The man was standing about five feet away from the door, but peered in at Liv and Alec from where he stood. Down his face were several very noticeable scratches. It was Jim Wright.

Alec jumped to his feet and at his movement the man turned and quickly began running, Alec making chase. As soon as his feet entered the hallway, Alec turned to the nurse. "Call the police, make them aware of the situation. Tell them Jim Wright has been located and an officer is in pursuit."

Alec ran out the ICU doors, by then about 50 yards from the criminal. He ran as fast as he could, thankful in that moment for his pacemaker, and that he had begun exercising and even running, to get healthy again. He rounded a corner after the man just as the police officer came out the door of the toilet. He immediately determined what was going on and began running with Alec.

Call it fate, or divine intervention, but a nurse wheeled a cart of bedpans out of a room just in time to catch Jim off guard and he tripped, falling to the floor. At that moment, Alec pushed himself hard and began running faster. The officer was right on his heels. At the same time they both caught up with Jim, who was trying to get back up on his feet. They each grabbed an arm.

"I'll allow you the honor, sir." The officer handed Alec his handcuffs.

"It'd be a pleasure, Dunham." Alec said as he attempted to catch his breath. A small smirk appeared on his face, as he snapped the cuffs on. "Jim Wright, I am placing you under arrest on suspicion of violation of a non-molestation order, planned commercial robbery, and attempted murder. You do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something which you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence."

Alec and Officer Dunham escorted the man downstairs to the main hospital entrance where a police car was pulling up, along with Ellie Miller. Officer Wright placed the man into the police car while Alec stepped away to speak to Ellie as she hopped out of her car. She kept a frown on her face till the police car drove away, then a grin spread on her face. "You got him."

"I did," he stated, the relief beginning to wash over him, a small smile came on his face.

"I bet that felt good." She continued to grin.

"It did." His smile grew wider. "Now, it's your turn to enjoy the questioning. Who's going in with you? I know I don't have to remind you to keep it above board—but do. Neither of us wants this to go south when it gets to court."

"DC Hartford will be with me in the interview room," Ellie answered his question. "And yes, I'll behave. No matter what I'd like to do to him, I won't deny Liv the pleasure of knowing he's rotting in jail instead of out there somewhere."

Alec looked at her with sad eyes. They both still dealt with the guilt of feeling like it was their own poor decisions that left Ellie's ex-husband walking the streets. He sighed and moved their conversation along. "I'll go ahead and have the CCTV footage pulled for the ICU and hallways, and the entire route out to here. NO chance of the defense saying there was mistreatment during the arrest. We've got it all on tape thanks to full video coverage of public areas in the hospital." Ellie nodded in response as they watched the police car drive away, then Alec continued, "I wish I could be there."

"Not that I don't trust your professionalism, Alec, but I don't want to have to pull two grown men apart. It's better for you to be here. You stay here and take care of our girl." She gave a small smile and paused a moment before quietly broaching the next question. "Do you think she'll wake up?"

"I have to. All her scans look good. The damage wasn't too severe. I can't let myself think otherwise. I hope it will be soon. It's so strange to have her so close, but miss her so much."