Chapter Fifty-Five:

Robin looked at her hands as she sat in Dr. Holly's office the next morning. She was so confused and she was hoping to find answers.

Patrick had stayed with her for a while, but they both agreed he should go home about 1am. She ended up sleeping on the couch and she told him she would see him later.

See him later. What did that even mean? Should she call him? Wait for him to call her?

"Sorry to keep you waiting," Dr. Holly smiled as she walked in. "How are you doing?"

Robin exhaled and smiled.

"I'm okay, I think."

"You think?" she asked. "Can you tell me more?"

"Well, I don't really know what I am. I have times where I'm fine and then my anxiety and fear creeps in and it's like I'm back to square one. I start to trust and then I think of all the reasons why I shouldn't."

"Have you remembered anything more?"

Robin filled her in on her memories and what happened after.

"Do you trust Patrick?"

Robin sighed and nodded.

"I do, but I don't know that I can get past everything that happened. I can't stop thinking about him being with other women," she angrily wiped her tears and then smiled as she looked at the doctor.

"Isn't that ridiculous? Of all the things I have to handle, another woman sleeping with my ex husband shouldn't be one of them."

"It's not ridiculous at all," Dr. Holly said. "You were hurt on a number of levels, the torture and violence at the hands of the kidnappers was just one of them. In a way, it's sometimes easier to get over the trauma that was done to you as opposed to the betrayal you feel on a personal level. You believed your husband would wait for you. You believed he would come look for you, even if he was hurt and angry. You believed your mother would drop everything and find you. Not only did those things not happen, but you came home to a far more hurtful reality. Your husband and mother appeared to have moved on with their lives and you were stuck in a reality that made little sense to you."

Her tears fell steadily at the harsh reality of the situation. Robin wanted desperately to move past this feeling of sadness. She wanted to be okay. She wanted to be whole.

Dr. Holly handed her a tissue.

"But now is when you can decide to take control. You are no longer being held prisoner and your choices are not dependent on anyone coming to help you. What you need to do is decide to move forward. You survived the worst and now you need to find a new meaning in life. There is no script here and you need to be able to find your way believing in yourself and your worth."

"But what if he," Robin began and took a breath mid sentence. "What if he hurts me again?"

"He might. He also might be worried about you doing the same thing. Don't forget, his life has been a mess without you and as much as you may think he could have or should have done things differently, he has to live with his choices. He has to look at is life and the choices he's made and come to peace with the reality of everything that happened. You can't look at your life and live in fear. There are no guarantees, but you can choose to trust him or move on. My goal is to see you move forward and be happy; with or without another person."

"I love him," Robin said simply. "I can try and deny it or pretend my anger is too strong, but it's not. I would wait for him forever."

Dr. Holly smiled when Robin sighed.

"I'm pathetic, aren't I? I should move on and leave him behind."

"Why?"

"Because he moved on from me and I should do the same. I need to be stronger about this. He's been with other women and I haven't been with anyone since we met. I don't want to be naïve and I want my daughter to grow up knowing it's okay to be a strong single woman."

"I understand, but there is also a lesson to be taught about forgiveness and overcoming obstacles," Dr. Holly said. "Look, I'm not saying you need to be with him, but I need you to stop putting qualifications on your heart. It's not weak to want your life and love back. It's also not wrong to be angry and doubt yourself. What you need to try and do is make a decision and put your best effort into living the life you want. You can't continue to punish Patrick because you're worried he isn't being genuine. If you doubt his love, then maybe you should move on. If you truly believe he wants this as much as you do, then allow yourself to believe in that feeling. Either way, you need to take that first step. You need to heal."

Robin nodded and felt a huge weight life off her shoulders. She knew what she wanted and she felt it was time to go after it.

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Patrick paced outside the conference room as he waited for the board to call him inside. As Chief of neurosurgery, he was finally doing something he should have done a long time ago.

"Dr. Drake? Please come in," a woman walked out and told him.

Patrick straightened his tie and walked in.

"Hi Patrick," Monica smiled and motioned for him to sit at the end of the table. "We have gone over your allegations and we have some questions for you."

He nodded and waited.

"You are requesting that the board remove Dr. Obrecht from her position as Chief of Staff and ban her from working at General Hospital. You listed reasons of torture and intimidation and blackmail as well as kidnapping. Can you elaborate on these allegations?"

Patrick looked at the faces around the table. He knew most all of them well and he hoped they would be in his favor. He took a moment and explained all of the facts he had and the list of transgressions was long. When he was done, his heart ached at all he said and all Robin had been through.

"I don't have proof that she blackmailed any of you to get her job, but there is no way someone with her ties should have been allowed to work here, let alone be in a position of authority. I was unable to quit before for reasons that now seem absurd. I know I signed a contract and if you choose to sue me, then I will take this to court, but if she stays here, I will no longer work at this hospital."

"Why isn't Dr. Scorpio here to back up any of your claims?" One of the members asked.

Patrick shrugged.

"Because she shouldn't have to. I am not here on her behalf. I'm here because what has been allowed to happen is wrong and it needs to be stopped. Our reputation as a premier hospital is at stake and I think the integrity of the ideals Dr. Hardy set forth should be honored. Right now we're spitting on all of them. I look forward to your decision and I hope you make the right one."

He looked at all of them and walked out.

XXXX

"I can't believe you did that," Robin smiled as Mark and Aaron told her stories about the pranks they played on each other.

"It was awesome," Aaron smiled as he looked at his dad. "Living in a bachelor pad is the best."

Mark blushed and Robin looked at him.

"Bachelor pad, huh?"

He cleared his throat and laughed.

"Well, you know what I mean," he said.

"My dad is awesome," Aaron said weakly as his stamina was waning. "I'm lucky to have him."

Mark felt his chin quiver as he smoothed Aaron's hair back.

"I'm the luckiest," he said and Robin wiped her eyes as Aaron fell asleep.

"The meds should begin to help him," Robin told him. "It will take a few days before we can do another scan and see results, but I truly believe we will."

"I know," Mark smiled. "It's just so hard to see him like this. He should be home and having fun. He should be playing sports or video games or whatever he wants. He shouldn't be in a hospital. None of this is his fault. He shouldn't have to deal with the choices his mother made."

Robin felt the sting of her words and he immediately apologized.

"I'm sorry. That was incredibly insensitive."

"No, it's okay. You're right. He shouldn't have to deal with this at all. Nobody should, let alone a child. You are right to be angry."

"I'm not angry. I mean, I am, but it serves no purpose. I'm just worried," he paced in the room and ran his hand through his hair.

Robin got up and walked to him, touching his arm.

"I know you are, but you need to try and have faith. I truly think we can get him through this crisis. He can live an amazing life with HIV and this doesn't have to be the end. I am living proof of it and I will do whatever I can to remind you of that."

He nodded and his eyes were full of gratitude as he leaned in and hugged her.

Patrick walked into the room as they were hugging and he slipped back out, his heart in his throat.

He was so jealous and he knew he needed to get a handle on things. Robin was worth everything, and he wasn't going to blow it. He needed to prove to her that he was in this for the long haul.

Still, her words about being attracted to Mark stung like a knife.

"Patrick?" her voice startled him. "What are you doing standing here?"

"Oh, well I was coming to see if you were ready to go and you were having a 'moment', so I was giving you privacy."

She smiled.

"A moment? You're jealous," she said and crossed her arms playfully.

"No I'm not," he pouted. "I was being nice."

"Because you're jealous."

He raised his eyebrows.

"Maybe," he grinned. "But I didn't interrupt, so I think that deserves bonus points."

She laughed and he adored her smile.

"I'll give you that. Is your appointment done? I wanted to talk to you about something," she said.

He needed to tell her about his meeting. He wondered if he should have before he went, but he didn't. He truly felt this was something he needed to do. Something he should have done long ago.

"I need to talk to you, too," she said and took his hand. They began to walk to his office when they were stopped.

"Are you proud f yourself? Do you honestly think this will work?" Dr. Obrecht asked them.

Robin felt her fear surface and her confusion.

"Get out of here," Patrick said and held Robin's hand tighter.

"You will not get away with this. You have no proof, and more importantly, I have ways to get to you that you will never see coming."

Robin felt stronger as she stood with Patrick.

"I don't know what you are talking about, but if it's upsetting you, then it's all good. Excuse us," Robin said and she and Patrick walked away.

Patrick was so proud of her and he knew he needed to be completely honest about everything.

He hoped she would be happy. He hoped it wasn't a big mistake.

He also didn't like that Obrecht made threats.

Could he truly protect Robin?

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