Chapter 8

He loved her? Did she hear him correctly, or had she been dreaming? She wasn't exactly sure, but she hoped it was the first. Why did she do it? It was obvious, wasn't it? It really surprised her that he asked that question. He should have known this. She would do anything for her team, even if it meant going on a dangerous assignment and loosing her life over it. They were her brothers, her friends, her family. Why wouldn't she do that for them? She was certain he'd to the same if he were in her shoes.

He didn't need to be sorry, he didn't do anything wrong. She wanted to hug him, to pull him close. She wanted to yell at him for thinking it was his fault she was in this state. If it wasn't for the huge amounts of morphine being pumped into her system, she would surely cry out. Knowing that her team and the person she loved most were ok was worth it. Knowing that he was in here with her, touching her sure as hell made it worth the pain.

She was a fool, well, it wasn't the first time he had called her that. Usually, that, and everything else he said for that matter, was all true. Usually she had done something wrong that should have been obvious wouldn't work, but not this time. This time, he was the fool for not believing in himself. It wasn't always his fault-scratch that it was rarely his fault. Everyone else believed in her, he said it before. He told her how much everyone admired her strength.

That was great, but why did it matter that they believed in her? It was nice to hear that her team believed in her, but she didn't care about what they thought. She wanted him to believe in her.

She didn't mean to hurt him. She did it because it was part of her job to go on an assignment. Did he seriously not know that she loved him also? Had she been THAT stupid? Had she been that stupid not to let him know a little bit of how she felt for him? Damn it all, she hadn't told him and, from the looks of things, she wasn't going to have another chance. Stupid! she thought to herself, why didn't I tell him? Was she scared that he'd reject her? Could he not see past her loyalty and devotion, or was his act just that good? Could she be that blind to not see that there was more than just loyalty before now?

She could feel his touch, and with her gathered strength, managed to curl her fingers around his hand before she lost all conscious thought again.

He had fallen asleep, his head resting on the edge of her bed, their hands still entwined. Cragen left him some food on the bed table. His hair had been rumpled from the many times he ran his fingers through it (a nervous habit of his.) His much needed sleep had been interrupted when he heard a violent, raspy cough coming from the slowly dying detective. Instantly, as if powered by impulse, he stood up, ready to run and get the nearest doctor, but he stopped when he saw her eyes open.

"Liv?" he asked, his tired face reflecting deep concern. "Liv, can you hear me?" Her eyes squinted against the bright light of her hospital room. She hadn't seen this much light in weeks. Her world seemed to swim in and out of focus. She tried to focus on where his voice was coming from, but it was too difficult for her.

"El-liot?" she asked, her voice a bit uncertain. She was sure it was his voice she heard, but she had to keep her eyes closed from getting sick. Was she still in that cell, or had she been freed? Either way, she couldn't tell.

"How...How are you feeling?" Elliot asked, his voice cracking for a split second.

"How do you think...Where am I?" she asked, her voice hoarse from disuse.

"You're in the hospital," he said gently.

"How long have I been here? What the hell happened to me?" she asked. She had been freed, thank god! She was afraid that he tried to rescue her, and that they were both trapped in that hell hole.

"I should go tell the doctors you're awake," he said, standing up suddenly.

Why was he avoiding her questions? She heard the hesitancy in his voice. What was he not telling her? The pain was killing her, but she wanted to know the truth.

"Elliot, tell me what the hell happened to me," she said, wincing as she tried to sit up.

"I should let the doctors tell you," he said.

"Elliot, what the fuck aren't you telling me? I want to know the truth!"

He sighed deeply, and walked back over to her bed, trying to keep his emotion down before he spoke again.

"You were hurt badly. The doctors told us that you weren't going to make it through the night. You have a massive infection from your wounds, so they've been giving you all known medicine known to man. You have many broken bones, mainly from the nonstop beatings you endured. The doctors have done several surgeries to try to repair the worst of your injuries and internal bleeding, but, so far, nothing has worked. You haven't been doing well since we brought you here. We lost you four times on the way here. You've had us all scared to death."

She tried to move to a sitting position, and managed to only raise her head when a blinding pain hit her like a ton of bricks. She lay her head back down, closing her eyes and listened to him.

"I hear what you said while I was unconscious. Was it true? About you loving me?" she asked, opening her eyes a bit to look at him.

He said nothing, but turned to smile at her and left the room...