Olivia laid alone then, alone with her thoughts. The pieces of he puzzle were all over. They were scattered so far beyond reach. It was her job to get them all back together so she could stop panicking, wishing she knew what had happened - all of it. Most of it was there in her mind, terrifying her every minute. But other parts of it were blurry or even black, too black to make out anything. She remembered the pain of every burn, cut and bruise because she remembered getting them.
Olivia's breath hitched as a piece of the puzzle previously black came back to her all at once. Lewis had pinned her down after they'd struggled long and hard. He'd reached in do close to her, carving a cross into her face.
The piece lengthened. Olivia almost wished she could forget it again.
Emily had left them both when he'd laid Olivia flat on the mattress and sat atop her as he painfully violated her. His fingers had moved within her, making the back of her throat attempt throw the invisible contents of her stomach to the surface.
Olivia was back in the grain terminal as she remembered it all.
Then she'd found the hammer. She remembered that feeling of power. Her hands took it all the way to Lewis' back. Another blur of event took place - blows both of them suffered. It was a fight like she'd never given before. It had been her final fight to stay alive.
The rest of it was gone. The piece placed itself in the timeline she thought out as its replay ended. Olivia came back to the hospital room as she breathed heavily, her lung gasping for air. He'd knocked her unconscious for sure. She'd remembered that blow to the head. And when she'd come to, he'd made it clear what he'd done. He didn't have to say anything, she'd felt it the moment she'd awoken.
Olivia's eyes flew open again as a pain shot downward from her lung. Her chest was heaving, her breaths too fast for her healing body. She blinked quickly, trying to rid herself of the images. It didn't stop the pain. Still it all resonated from deep within her.
Nick stopped down in the cafeteria, and on his way back up he saw a familiar face. The man took a deep breath as he met Olivia's partner.
"Nick." He extended his hand out, which Nick took, giving a look of deep empathy.
"Simon. You heard." Nick felt a different type of pain enveloping him. Simon and his young family were there to see Olivia. He couldn't imagine what they felt, though he had a pretty good idea.
"We flew back from Portland as soon as we got the call. She's awake?" Simon was well aware that his words were hurriedly, rushed and molded together. It didn't matter to him.
Nick smiled a little at Simon's family. Tracy held little Olivia as Ty walked alongside her. Then he took Simon's arm and turned so that the kids couldn't hear him when he spoke. He didn't want Simon going up there not knowing how bad it really was. Olivia's face was carved, scarred with cuts, bruises, and a large section of her body was wrapped to keep the mortal wounds from claiming her life.
"It's bad, Simon." Nick said quietly, knowing Simon would understand what he was trying to say.
"I know." Simon spoke equally as softly. "I was here late last night."
Nick showed his surprise for but a moment. Then his face shifted to a deep calm, a sorrowful expression gracing his face. He nodded a little bit. Nick stepped back and gave another nod.
"She's having trouble talking, but I'm sure she'll be glad to see you." He sighed deeply as he watched her family go up to witness the horror of what Lewis had left for them all to see. He'd nearly destroyed Olivia's body, leaving her soul in tatters as well. She'd get better. She had to.
Simon and Tracy made their way up to the hospital room. Outside the doorway, Simon paused and then entered. He smiled when he saw his sister's eyes open, hers finding his immediately. As Tracy and the kids followed, he could see her reciprocate the smile, a weak one.
It was a bittersweet moment. She looked even worse than before. The bruises had darkened on her face, the cuts deep crimson as they began to heal. Yet, her eyes were open and she took each breath on her own.
Olivia's throat closed up, her breathing almost back to normal when her brother walked in. The faces of her niece and nephew, the lights in her life greeted her as they all came in. Simon took her hand when he reached her bedside.
"You came." She whispered almost too quietly to hear. A single tear dropped from her eye as she smiled weakly.
He nodded with a sad smile of his own. "Of course we did."
Ty walked up to the side of the bed as Simon let her hand out of his. Olivia read the look in her brother's face as she saw the pain of Ty's face, one of terrified shock. He saw the bruises, the cuts. His aunt didn't usually look like that. Was it even her? Ty reached out slowly to touch her arm, his eyes wide. His mannerisms were cautious, full of doubt. Maybe it wasn't even real.
"Aunt Olivia?" His voice shook as he spoke.
Olivia read his expression immediately, wishing she could ease his fear. She moved her own crippled hand and touched his.
"It's me, Ty. It's ok." Her whisper was minimally reassuring, but it was all she could offer him.
"What happened?" The boy asked, tilting his head to the side as he did so.
Olivia thought for a minute, trying to come up with the best answer, a simple one.
"A bad man - hurt me when I was doing my job." She wished that was all it had been.
Ty digested the answer slowly, furrowing his brow as he thought. Why would a man hurt Olivia? It just didn't make sense. But his dad had told him before how dangerous Olivia's job was. That's why she carried a gun on her hip.
"Did you put him in jail?" Ty continued.
Olivia felt great relief when she was able to say that William Lewis was dead. It was a freeing moment. "He died, Ty. He won't ever hurt me again." Olivia nodded to him.
the pause the small boy gave was one of deep thought. He had to ask. Olivia waited patiently for his next question.
"Does it hurt?" Ty hoped that it didn't.
Olivia was deeply touched by his concern, and she gave him a small shake of her head.
"Not much at all." She lied. She had to. The little boy looked to be in so much pain just seeing her as she was.
That's what she hated most about the situation. She didn't want to give any of her own pain to the people who loved her just because they saw her as battered as she was.
Ty whispered to her as Tracy and Simon watched with heavy hearts. Little Olivia began to whimper impatiently in her mother's arms as the two parents silently watched the exchange.
"Will you get better?"
Olivia smiled at her nephew's question. She kept that expression as she nodded. "Yes. I'll get much better."
No matter what had happened, what would happen on her road to recovery, they would still be there for her. Lewis couldn't take any of that away from her.
Ty was as content as he could be in such a moment, and he stopped his questions. Then he leaned back into his mom's legs. Simon watched Tracy let a struggling toddler out of her arms and onto the floor. The miniature Olivia walked to Simon and climbed up on him, kneeling on his lap to reach out for Olivia.
Olivia's heart almost hurt with the love she felt for that little girl. She used some of her last energy to reach out and take the small hand in her own, watching as her niece investigated. The tiny fingers probed Olivia's hand, right down to the bandages that held together the flesh that had been sliced by the wire-cutters. Simon was amazed when Olivia let no sign of pain show. It was healing for her, for all of them. Life seemed to be brighter than it had been only moments before. Olivia found that she had had so much more to live for, so much for which she had needed to live.
"How are you feeling?" Tracy asked her from her position next to Simon.
Olivia let little Olivia continue to touch her injured hand. The toddler had always had an interest in Olivia's hands. She traced the outline of her fingers almost every day they spent time together. But the small girl was feeling differences. She felt the uneven, torn skin. She moved her fingers along it gently, exploring the confusing differences.
"I'm ok. It's good stuff they have going through me." She wished it was better, though. The worst pain was still enough to remind her of what piece of the puzzle it resulted from.
Her eyes were hardly able to stay open with the combination of her pain medication, the healing touch of her niece, and her pure exhaustion. Her body would shut down to sleep soon. She had no power to stop it.
"You guys didn't have to come back." Olivia spoke regretfully, knowing they had been visiting Tracy's family out in Oregon. Even as she saw the things that Lewis had no chance to take away from her, she saw how he had affected everyone's lives just by impacting hers.
"Yes we did." Simon almost whispered it.
Olivia fought sleep as hard as she could, but it closed in on her quickly. After she expelled her reserves to grin wearily, her eyes forced themselves shut, and sleep claimed her body peacefully. A miracle.
Simon realized where she'd gone, and it was a relief to him as well as her. His daughter continued to feel Olivia's skin, probing it ever so tenderly.
"Why don't you give it a kiss to get better, and then we'll go. She needs some sleep right now." Tracy suggested.
Three-year-old Olivia kissed her aunt's hand gently. Then she turned to Simon with her arms up. "All better."
Her little voice made him smile, wishing it was that easy. He knew how long of a road it would be for his sister. Ty did the same thing his little sister had, reaching up and replacing Olivia's hand next to her on the bed. Tracy and the family left, relieved and still scared.
Nick found the room nearly empty when he got up there. Olivia's chest was rising and falling slowly, without trouble as she took in her own breaths. What a beautiful thing to see amidst the visible injuries. Despite them, she could breathe alone.
He stood at the foot of the bed, just watching her sleep peacefully. Maybe it was a good thing she had to have those painkillers running through her. They made sure she could sleep without Lewis haunting her. Taking a deep breath of his own, Nick brought out his phone quietly. He had to speak to an answering machine.
"Lacy. It's Detective Amaro. Olivia's doing a little better." He didn't know if she'd be alright, but he put it the best way he could.
"She's been awake and breathing on her own since earlier today. I'll call later with anything the doctor says. Thanks." He hung up idly, taking a seat beside Olivia again.
Then he leaned back, putting his feet up on only a tiny square of the bed. His eyes scanned her face unintentionally. He wished they'd stop. It hurt too much. He saw every bruise, every place where her skin had been painfully split. The cross beneath her eye gave him chills.
BX9. That awful gang. Olivia had said nothing - she'd had no time to - about how she'd gotten that cross carved into her. It had to have been BX9 who requested it. It had to have been. In time, Nick knew Olivia would piece it together for them, helping them understand. He gave an audible sigh as he folded his hands in his lap.
"You know what?" He didn't care that he was speaking into ears that would not hear him.
"I let you go home alone the first time. I left you at home alone the second time. How about I don't ever do that again?" He smiled a little before feeling his discomfort throbbing deep within him again.
"It's not my fault - I know that. But I can't help but wonder -" he stopped, his voice dropping to a whisper beneath the crushing pressure of the new lump in his throat.
"-where would we be if I hadn't?"