Chapter 20
She's Not Crazy
"Olivia, you can go home. We'll be fine, honestly. I can see that you're tired and uncomfortable. Go home and get some proper sleep." Amanda could see and sense Olivia's restlessness and read her body language that spoke of soreness and stiffness. Olivia had gotten them a sandwich for lunch and it was now several hours since then. Kim was still asleep and the doctor said that she would probably sleep through the night.
It was dark outside and snow was falling. White fluffy flakes of frozen water gracefully covered the ground below, making everything glowing white. It was beautiful. Amanda had always liked the snow, Kim as well. As soon as the first snow of the year would fall they would run outside and make snow angels and snowmen. Snowball fights were also a favourite. Even their mother would sometimes participate if she was lucid enough to manage. Those moments were rare but it was one of the few good memories Amanda had of her mother.
She snapped out of her thoughts when Olivia placbitchand on her lower back, bringing her back to reality. "Amanda, I'm not leaving you and Kim on your own. Its not safe. Its my job to make sure you're both safe and I'm not just saying that you're just a part of an investigation, I'm here because I want to be, not just because I've been told to. Do you understand?" she ducked so she could look Amanda in the eye but the blonde was looking elsewhere.
Liv sighed and placed her hands on Amanda's stiff shoulders and gave them a reassuring squeeze. "Honey, look at me, please." when blue eyes met hers, she brushed her knuckles across her cheek. "I care about you. I care about what happens to you and if I can keep you safe then I will, okay?"
Amanda didn't have time to answer before Olivia's phone rang and she quickly fished it out of her coat pocket. "Cap, whats up?"
"Liv, good news, we got enough on these guys to put them away for a long time, the bad news is that none of the girls wants to testify. They're too scared. Elliot and Fin are trying to talk them into it but it doesn't look promising. Also, I'd like Ms Rollins to come in to identify her shooter in a line up."
Liv sighed. Glad about the good news but also frustrated with the girls not wanting to testify. She knew they were afraid to tell everyone what had happened. They were afraid for their lifes and for their families lifes. Going against their pimps and handlers was something they had been trained to not do. Breaking a bitch is what it's called. Beating and brainwashing the girls until they think that they are worthless, all alone and have nothing else to live for. Olivia had seen it so many times before and this was no different. If they don't testify some of the pimps might get out on bail or spend just a couple of years in prison. If there were more evidence of trauma and abuse by the girls telling their story then they had a better chance of sending these guys away for twenty-five to life.
"What's going on?" Amanda asked as she heard Liv sigh, thinking the worst.
"The girls are too afraid to testify which means that the perps will get away with way too little time spent in prison for my liking. Elliot and Fin are trying to change their minds about it but it doesn't look good." she rubbed her hands over her face in frustration. "Also the captain wants us to call down to the station for a line up. They might have found your shooter."
Liv watched as Amanda tensed up and walked closer to her. "I'll be right next to you the whole time, don't worry."
"Im not." Amanda said quickly, a bit too quickly, which told Liv that she was indeed worried and probably scared too to face her attacker. She decided to leave it off and not dig deeper into it.
"Okay," Liv stated, "well, we better get down to the precinct so we can get this over with."
"I'm not leaving." the blonde firmly stated, her eyes not leaving Kim for a second.
Olivia walked up next to the bed and rubbed Amanda's shoulder soothingly. "The doctor said that she will probably sleep through the night. I promie you I'll have you back here straight after you identify the guy, okay?"
Blue eyes searched brown for a moment before she finally agreed. "Fine, but we're going straight there and straight back." Liv just nodded.
"It's number four." Amanda was sure, her voice held no indication of uncertainty or doubt. Number four was the guy who shoot her in attempt to kill her.
Craigen walked up to the window where Ms Rollins were standing. "Where do you recognize him from?"
Not tearing her eyes off the evil face she was looking at, she clenched her fist and jaws. "He's the man that shot me." Tears welled up in her eyes and turned away from the detective's prying eyes in attempt to hide them. Craigen knocked four times on the glass and turned towards Liv.
"Okay, one less thing to worry about. Liv and Elliot, get her back to the hospital and come straight back here. We need you to try and talk to the girls. Maybe they'll warm up to you since you have a nack with victims. They're in protective custody so Elliot will take you to them. Go now, we're loosing time as we speak."
Olivia placed a hand on Amanda's lower back and escorted her through the door and towards the car, Elliot in tow. The drive to the hospital was uncomfortably quiet but no one said a word. All Liv wanted was to stay by Amanda's side to make sure she was okay and had everything she needed, offering her support to the blonde, but she knew the captain was right and she did have a job to do.
The brunette made sure that Amanda got to Kim's room safely. "I'll be back later tonight, okay. Try to get something to eat and get some rest. I'll see you later on."
Amanda shook her head. "You've already done enough Olivia. They got the man who shot me, I'm alright."
Without warning Olivia leaned in and gave the small woman a passionate kiss, lingering longer than she had planned and stroking one cheek with her fingertips. "I'll be back, okay." Amanda didn't have time to respond before the older woman was gone. Touching her lips, still burning from the kiss, she couldn't help but to smile.
Liv got into the black Sedan and sat down in the passanger seat. Elliot was quiet and made no attempt to start the car which made Liv turn towards him. "What?" she said.
Grinning from ear to ear, Elliot shrugged. "Your lipstick is smeared."
Rolling her eyes, Liv looked in the rear mirror and wiped away the smudge. "Just drive."
It was harder than she thought it would be, to convince the girls to testify. They were scared out of their minds to take the stand and tell the whole courtroom, the whole world, what they had been through, what they had endured. Almost two hours later they seemed to start coming around and saw the bigger picture. If they testified it was more likely that the perps would get twenty-five to life and they would no longer have to be afraid or look over their shoulders for the rest of their lifes. Things were looking up and finally they all agreed to take the stand even though they didn't want to.
The two detectives got back into the car and Elliot headed towards the hospital. "How's Amanda doing? And Kim?"
Liv sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. "Its a bit too soon to tell how Kim is doing, she didn't really say much when she woke up. Amanda is... Ha, Amanda is another story." Liv gazed out the window, watching the streetlights glowing in the dark. "I can't seem to get through to her. One moment she's starting to relax and open up a bit and the next she's shutting herself off from any type of contact and even her own emotions. Its like she's almost two different people."
Elliot could sense her frustration. "Give her time, Liv. She's been through a lot just like Kim but on a different level. She didn't know if her sister was still alive, where she was or what they were doing to her. That must have been unbearable. Its gonna take time for Amanda to start trusting people again and that goes for Kim too. Don't give up on her."
"I won't." Liv said with determination.
It was close to six o'clock in the evening when Olivia approached Kim's room and heard loud voices from behind the door. She heard Amanda's distressed tone and quickly barged in. The blonde was close to tears and she was clearly upset by Kim's doctor. Kim was surprisingly awake but drowsy. "What's going on?" Liv asked in a firm voice walking up to stand next to Amanda, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"This awful no good doctor wants to send Kim to the psych ward but I won't let him." She glared at the middle aged man and continued, "if you think for one second you're taking her to psych, you are sadly mistaken."
Liv took a deep breath and held her hands up in a non confrontational manner. "Okay, calm down, what's happening? Why is she being moved?"
"Because he thinks that she's crazy, that's why." Amanda answered before the surgeon even got a chance to open his mouth.
Liv took one of her hands in her own, feeling the tension that was there. "Calm down, Amanda, no one is saying she's crazy, okay? Just let the doctor speak, hon?" The anger was boiling and radiating from the blonde and the room suddenly became very warm. The doctor seemed a bit startled by Amanda's outburst but made an attempt to keep his proffesional stoic face.
"Im not saying she's crazy, Ms Rollins. Its just that we can keep a better eye on her there, give her a full checkup and assessment, try out new medications and find the one that works for your sister and provide the right dosage, that's all. We can't do all that here. It's for the better."
"Its fine, Manda. It doesn't matter. Its not like I haven't been in the nut house before." Kim's speach was slurred but she seemed to know what was going on around her and speak for herself.
"Kim, I'm not letting you stay in that awful place." she shouted,"I will..."
"Amanda!" Liv interrupted before she would say anything she would regret. "Calm down, shouting is not helping."
"She's right, Manda. And besides, it's not that bad. The food is decent, there'll be activities and stuff to do and I might make some new crazy friends." Kim tried to lighten the mood and calm her sister down.
Amanda inhaled deeply, rubbing her fingertips over her temples, grimacing from the dull ache in her shoulder and chest. Liv felt sorry for the blonde for having to go through all this just after Kim has been found. It wasn't fair and it wasn't easy for any of them. Brown eyes met blue and time seemed to stand still for Amanda. Something in Olivia's eyes told her that things will be okay and they would work themselves out for the better. Finally, after a minute or two she agreed.
"Fine," she said and turned to the doctor, "but if she doesn't like it or not being treated right, I'm taking her out of there."