I apologize for the delay. I meant to have this posted sooner. But I had a family emergency. Anyway, here is the latest chapter. Enjoy! Please feel free to read and review!
"What I'm saying," the doctor continued. "Is that Olivia is suffering from retrograde amnesia. Why her mind chose to go back to just after her first attack, I do not know."
The news slammed into Elliot's mind like a garbage truck.
"Will she ever recover her memories?" Elliot asked.
"Yes," Dr. Cavanaugh answered. "It may take days, weeks, or even months. However, some of the memory loss may be permanent, meaning she'll recover her memory, but there may be some holes."
"Is there anything you can do for her?" Elliot asked.
"Unfortunately, no," Dr. Cavanaugh shook his head. "We just have to wait patiently. Just have Olivia go about her normal daily routine. As she goes along, she may come across things that trigger flashbacks. It could be anything, like smells, pain, sounds, the feel of something she touches, or she may even see places or people that will recall memories. Keep in mind, the memories will most likely come back in any random order. Depending on what triggers the memories will determine what memory she'll recall."
"What happens when she starts remembering?" inquired Elliot.
"Be as calm and gentle as possible," the doctor instructed. "As with most victims, Olivia will most likely relive the trauma, which I'm sure you're familiar with in your line of work. She'll be in an emotional and suggestive state. Also, she may be temporarily disoriented and confused after each flashback. When she's calmed down, speak to her gently and ask simple questions. Try to get her to remember as many details as possible. The more details the better. Then you can try to establish a date and time for the memories. Keeping a journal might even help with keeping the memories in order."
Elliot stood there deep in thought, letting everything the doctor said sink in.
"Are you okay, detective?" asked Dr. Cavanaugh. "Did you have any more questions?"
"I'm fine," Elliot lied. "I have no more questions. Thanks."
The doctor's diagnosis echoed in Elliot's mind as he reentered the room and sat back down next to Olivia. He tried to convince himself that Dr. Cavanaugh was wrong. Maybe Olivia was just temporarily confused. After all, she had been drugged. He'd seen victims before wake up confused and disoriented after being drugged. Elliot reached for Olivia's hand and held it in his.
"What the hell is going on?" Olivia demanded, pulling her hand away. "You two are looking at me strangely and talking about me in the hall. Am I missing something?"
"Actually...yes," Elliot couldn't lie to her again. "Your attack in the motel room happened about a month ago. You're missing all of your memories from the last month."
"What?" Olivia uttered in disbelief, tears streaming down her face. "How? The last thing I remember is Tucker raping me! I don't remember him knocking me unconscious! But I know he did because the next thing I know, I'm waking up here! What the fuck happened to me?"
Tucker? Elliot couldn't believe his ears. She had used Granger's alias. He realized then that Dr. Cavanaugh's diagnosis was correct. He took a deep breath as he retold her about Tucker's real identity and her three week long coma. He recounted the details from the investigation. Then he continued to tell her about her abduction from the safe house.
"This is where it gets even more complicated," Elliot explained as gently as possible. "We don't know all the details of your abduction. We found a syringe by an open window, so we're assuming that he drugged you and carried you out."
Olivia continued to sob even harder as Elliot told her that Granger had driven her across the border into Canada and took her to an abandoned mental hospital where he tortured her for two days. Elliot didn't tell her about the rest stop because he wanted to see if she could remember it on her own. He was hoping to jog her memory. But Olivia continued to sob, staring at him in complete shock.
"We found you on the second night," Elliot told her. "You were badly beaten and barely alive. But we don't know what happened during the first two days there."
"I need to know," Olivia wiped away tears as she looked him in the eyes. "Did he...did he...rape me...again?"
The words caused her great pain as they came out of her mouth, but she felt that she needed to know.
Elliot nodded. "Yes. There were physical signs that he drugged and raped you repeatedly. Also, you have deep welts and cuts on your back. I'm so sorry, Liv."
"Oh my God!" Olivia cried, trembling as she examined her body.
As she brought her hands to her face to feel her facial wounds, she noticed the bruises on her wrists. She then pushed off the blanket, revealing the deep, heavy bruising on her thighs. She closed her eyes and leaned back, oblivious to the injuries to her back until it touched the bed. A stinging pain shot through her back causing a flashback.
Suddenly, Olivia was back in the mental hospital. Granger stood over her, holding her hand down as he turned her over onto her stomach. She was drowsy and disoriented. The memory was hazy.
"Let's how your precious Elliot likes this!" Granger roared.
He raised his belt high above his head and struck Olivia in the back very hard. She cried out in pain, but he ignored her. Instead, he continued to whip her again and again, harder, and harder, leaving deep red welts on her back. Blood trickled across her back and down onto the bed.
Then suddenly, Olivia was laying on her back again, with Granger on top of her, inside of her. He moved deeper and harder and faster. He stared at her with an insatiable look in his eyes. She tried to fight him off but she was strapped to the bed.
The flashback ended. Olivia found herself screaming and crying hysterically while Elliot and Dr. Cavanaugh tried to calm her down.
"Stop!" Olivia cried out as Elliot stepped closer to her. "I'm so sorry! Just don't hurt anymore! Please!"
"It's okay," Elliot's voice was warm and soothing. "Take it easy. Everything is going to be just fine. Liv, look at me."
Trembling, Olivia looked up at Elliot with wide frightened eyes. She blinked a few times before realizing where she was. She stopped screaming and took a few deep breaths.
"It's okay," Elliot repeated, still looking her in the eyes. "Take a moment to put your feet on the ground."
Olivia leaned forward and put her head on Elliot's shoulder as he put his arms around her. He continued to hold her still trembling body as her screams died down to a whimper. She continued to weep softly on his shoulder.
"You remembered something, didn't you?" he whispered in her ear.
Olivia nodded. "He...whipped me...with his belt...over and over. Then he raped me. It hurt...so much. And I couldn't stop him. I was dizzy...and disoriented. It's all true. He really did attack me again."
"He can't hurt you anymore," Elliot kissed her forehead tenderly and held her close. "He's dead. I killed him."
"It was my fault," Olivia sobbed, staring blankly. "I made him angry. So angry that he hit me."
"What did you do that made him angry," Elliot asked her.
Olivia gulped. "I called your name. I told him you'd find me, no matter what."
"Listen to me," he held her face in both hands. "None of that was your fault. Don't you ever believe that. Ever."
"Are you sure he's dead?" Olivia asked, still frightened and confused.
"Yes," he assured her.
Elliot told her about the night he and Dana found her. How he shot Granger to stop him from shocking Olivia with the ECT machine.
"He...shocked me?" Olivia couldn't believe it.
Elliot nodded. "That's why you lost your memory. You have retrograde amnesia. I'm so sorry I couldn't stop him."
"It wasn't your fault," she told him. "You did what you had to do. And I don't blame you for it."
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. A nurse entered the room.
"I'm sorry to interrupt," she said. "But I'm here to take Olivia to get a rape kit done."
"You mean, you haven't done one yet?" Olivia asked.
"No," answered Dr. Cavanaugh. "We needed to stabilize you first and flush the drugs out of your system."
"What about from my first attack?" Olivia asked Elliot. "A rape kit was done then, right?"
"Yes," Elliot told her.
He then told her the results of the first rape kit.
"The condom broke?" asked Olivia in disbelief.
Elliot nodded. "Liv, there something else you should know. You're pregnant."
"I'm...pregnant?" uttered Olivia in shock. "Are you sure?"
Dr. Cavanaugh nodded. "The test was positive. You're approximately six to eight weeks along."
Olivia suddenly had another flashback. Memories of the precinct filled her mind. She remembered following Dana out the back exit. She remembered Dana telling her about the rape kit. Fear and confusion swept through Olivia's mind as the scene changed to the safe house. Anger and despair filled her as she remembered her fight with Elliot the following morning. Then she remembered afterward when she was finally ready to open up to him.
"No, no, no, no," Olivia whimpered. "I can't have his baby. I just can't"
"We don't for sure that it's his," Elliot informed her. "The baby could be mine."
"That's right," Olivia remembered their night of passion in the motel room. She was glad that memory hadn't been lost. "I'd give anything to have that night back."
"Me too," Elliot said, gently. "But why don't we talk about this later? Right now the doctor's waiting to do the rape kit. I'll go with you if it will help."
"Could you please?" she begged him. "I don't think I could go through it alone."
"Of course," he tenderly kissed her cheek. He then turned to the doctor. "I think we're ready now."
Several Days Later.
"Knock, knock," called Fin as he tapped on the door of Olivia's hospital room.
"Hey, Fin," Olivia forced a smile. "Where's Munch? He didn't come with you?"
"I left his ass back at the station house," Fin quipped. "Ain't no way in hell I'm listening to his conspiracy crap for eight hours!"
"I don't blame you," Elliot told him. "I would've done the same damn thing. Did you bring Olivia's clothes?"
"Yep," Fin held up a duffel bag. "Picked it up from the safe house on my way up here."
"Thanks," Olivia took the bag from Fin. "You're a life saver."
Olivia went into the bathroom to change her clothes and freshen up. Meanwhile, Elliot and Fin began to talk.
"How's she doing?" Fin asked.
"She's traumatized," Elliot answered. "She's upset because she can't remember much. She's still in pain, physically and emotionally."
"How much does she remember?" Fin inquired.
"Not much," Elliot responded. "She remembers the trip to the safe house. And very little about her abduction. That's about it. She doesn't remember coming out of her coma, or much of what happened at the abandoned mental hospital."
Once again, Elliot left out Olivia's pregnancy. He felt it was Olivia's choice whether or not she wanted to share it.
"Can't say I blame her," Fin sympathized. "I wouldn't want to remember my own attack either."
"Tell me about it," Elliot said. "I'm just glad all this is finally over. I want to get Olivia home and help her recover from this."
"I hear ya," Fin agreed.
Their conversation was cut short when Olivia emerged from the bathroom, fully dressed in jeans and a navy blue blouse. Her hair was neatly brushed and her makeup was done. Although her bruises were fading, they were still visible through her makeup.
"So are we all ready to go?" she asked.
"Yep," Elliot replied.
With that, he and Fin helped Olivia with her things. Once Olivia was officially discharged, they exited the hospital and settled in the car for the long ride home. Fin was at the wheel, while Elliot sat in back with Olivia.
"So, what happens now?" Olivia asked Elliot after several moments of silence.
"Well," Elliot began. "Once we gather all the evidence we've obtained, from New York and Canada, we'll send it all to the FBI. They should have enough to charge Lowell Harris, or Carl Grady, whatever he wants to be called, with rape, murder, and accessory to rape and murder. He'll be transferred to a maximum security federal prison where he'll spend the rest of his life."
"Really?" Olivia gasped.
"Yes," Elliot assured her. "He's never going to get out. And Granger is dead. They'll never be able to hurt you again. It's finally over."
"Oh, thank God," Olivia sighed a breathe of relief.
"How about we try to get some sleep?" Elliot suggested. "It's going to be a long ride. Then when we get home, we can recover from this mess together."
"Home?" she repeated. "As in my apartment?"
He nodded. "Unless you want to stay at my place."
"No, thanks," she shook her head. "I've been away from mine way too long. I can't wait to sleep in my own bed again."
"I know," Elliot put an arm around her. "But for now, how about you sleep on my shoulder."
"I'll try," Olivia rested her head on his shoulder. "But I'm not tired."
"That's all I ask," Elliot wrapped his arms around her.
Olivia leaned back against Elliot and tried to relax. Elliot too leaned back causing Olivia's head to descend onto his chest. She began to relax to the soothing sound of his heartbeat and the rhythm of his chest slowly rising and falling with each breath he took. It felt like a lifetime since she had felt such comfort. Before she knew it, she had drifted off to sleep.
Elliot was surprised to find himself yawning. He was so concerned about Olivia that he didn't realize how tired he was. He looked down at Olivia, already fast asleep in his arms, and smiled. It had been so long since he felt this peaceful. Elliot yawned again, his eyelids growing heavy with sleep. He kissed the top of Olivia's head and closed his eyes, falling sound asleep.
Elliot found himself back inside the abandoned mental hospital. He wasn't sure which floor he was on. He looked around the hallway to the left, then to the right. Both ways looked the same. Dark and deserted. He picked a direction and began walking, when suddenly he heard a scream.
"Olivia!" he cried out, recognizing the scream.
He broke into a run and raced down the hall in the direction of the scream. When he reached the end of the hall, it brought him to a fork that branched off into three different directions. Elliot was confused. He didn't remember the hallways being this complicated. Or that there were so many of them.
"Olivia!" he called out again. "Where are you?"
"Elliot!" her voice echoed through the halls. "Help me!"
He flew down the halls, following the sound her cries. He turned down one hallway, then another, again and again, becoming disoriented and confused. All the hallways looked the same. How could he be sure he wasn't going around in circles? Not too mention he was growing tired. How long had he been searching? It felt like hours.
"Help me, Elliot!," Olivia's voice cried again. "I need you!"
"I'm coming, Liv!" Elliot shouted.
Once again, he ran down the hall, with Olivia's voice as his guide. He refused to give up. He had to find her, no matter what it took. Elliot suddenly came to a stop when he found himself in a circular room. The hallways branched out in ten or more directions all around him. It reminded him of the story, Alice in Wonderland, which he used to read to his kids when they were young.
"Now I know how Alice felt when she fell down the rabbit hole," muttered Elliot.
Except, here there were no locked doors, only open hallways. And there were no keys or magic cakes or drinks on a glass table. And there was surely no white rabbit in a waistcoat running around. Elliot peered down each hall, not sure which one he had just come from. Which hall would take him to Olivia? Finally, he peered down one hall and saw a light at the very end. He knew it had to be Olivia. He raced down the hall toward the light, but stopped just before he reached the light, which was coming out of an open door. He pulled out his gun and entered through the door with his weapon drawn.
"I've been expecting you," taunted Granger.
He was standing in front of the nightstand by Olivia's bed, his hand on the button of the ECT machine. Olivia lay strapped to the bed, naked, battered, and bruised. She stared at him with pleading eyes as she begged him to save her.
"Elliot!" she called to him. "Help me! Please!"
"It's okay, Liv," he told her. "I'm here now."
Elliot then turned to Granger.
"Let her go!" Elliot demanded. "Or I'll blow your fucking head off!"
"Say goodbye to your precious Olivia!" Granger grinned wickedly as he hit the button.
"AAAAAAHHHH!" Olivia's shrieks filled the entire room as her body began to jerk and convulse violently on the bed.
"OLIVIA!" Elliot reached his arms out to her. "NO!"
Suddenly, Elliot found himself falling through the floor. Everything dissolved around him into a dark nothingness. Olivia's screams echoed all around him as he continued falling deep into the darkness.
Elliot's eyes snapped open and he sat up straight. He looked around to find that it had all been a dream. He was back in the car with Olivia and Fin.
"Are you okay?" Olivia asked him.
"Yea," he replied. "Just a bad dream."
"Do you want to talk about it?" she moved closer to him.
"Maybe later," he told her. "How long was I asleep?"
"A few hours," Fin answered. "It's a good thing Liv woke up before you did. You would've knocked her to floor waking up the way you did."
"Are you okay," Elliot asked Olivia.
"I'm alright," Olivia responded. "Just hungry."
"You and me both," Fin spoke up. "You guys want to stop and grab a bite to eat?"
"That would be great," said Elliot.
"Hey, look!" Olivia called out. "There's a rest stop over there on the right."
As Olivia stared at the rest stop, she was overcome by a sense of familiarity. Memories of the rest stop began to flow through her mind. She remembered being incapacitated in the backseat of Granger's car. She remembered stopping at the rest stop, where she wrote a note and hid it for Elliot to find. He never mentioned the rest stop to her before. Did he ever find the note?
"Elliot," Olivia turned to look at him. "I just had another flashback. I was here at this rest stop. And I left a note for you. Did you ever find it?"
"Yes, we did," Elliot smiled. "We would've never been able to follow the car that he stole and get as far as we did, had it not been for your note. I'm so glad you remembered!"
He gave her a big hug.
"How come you never mentioned it before?" she demanded.
"I wanted to see if you could remember it on your own," he told her. "And you did. It's a good sign."
"We're here," Fin called out as he pulled into the parking lot of the rest stop.
"Great," Olivia nudged Elliot. "Let's go eat. I'm starving."
Stay tuned! More exciting chapters to come soon! Please feel free to read and review! By the way, thanks for all the wonderful reviews. You guys are awesome! You all rock!