A/N: I'm not sure if anyone is still reading, but I'm just going to keep posting anyway, because I want to finish this story and I've really enjoyed writing it. Still some chapters to go.

Lilly woke the next morning, feeling very safe and warm, her consciousness reactivating slowly and she blinked sleepily, managed to open her eyes properly to find the new day had dawned; the blinds were closed still, creating a comfortable semi-dark atmosphere. She was enclosed within a pair of strong arms, upon glancing upwards encountering Scotty's brown gaze, a tender smile crossing over his features.

"Good mornin', bella."

"Morning," she whispered, shifting a little closer and brushing her lips against his, a wave of happiness moving through her; waking up next to this man was feeling more and more incredible every day. "What time is it? How long have you been awake?"

"Half an hour or so; it's almost nine." He kissed her forehead. "You looked so peaceful, I didn't want to disturb you. I'll go feed the cats an' bring us some coffee."

"Mmm. Thank you." She watched him get up and reach for some clothes, quite enjoying the sight of his gorgeous, strong body, with a little sigh closed her eyes again after he left the room. She was still feeling a little drowsy; they had remained at the precinct until late, close to midnight, reading up on details about the recent murder victim and trying to find possible connections between her and three other unsolved cases where the MO had been exactly the same, each woman found buried on the backyard of their house. The case files had stirred up some very unwanted memories in Lilly's mind, memories of George Marks and his victims, their headless corpses in shallow graves in the forest and skulls found hidden in the ground behind the killer's childhood home, memories of him holding her hostage in the attic, clearly determined to have her join the long line of women whose lives he had ended after first hunting them like animals. She hadn't wanted to talk much, but Scotty had obviously guessed her thoughts as she'd felt his worried eyes on her regularly; after they'd finally left the precinct and returned home, she had sat motionless and quiet on the couch for a while, just staring at the opposite wall until he'd gently prompted her upstairs.

In the bedroom, she had reached for him immediately after they had settled down, desperately needing him to drive the monsters away from her head; the raw, uninhibited passion of their lovemaking had managed to do just that, had grounded her into the present moment and convinced her she was safe, safe enough to be able to sleep. Boss had told them all to take the weekend off, unless something urgent was found, wanting his team to rest up following the previous case; normally Lilly would probably have ignored him and made her way to work anyway, as there was always something she could do, but now everything really was different, the past week completely rearranging her priorities.

She headed to the bathroom, on the way opening the window blinds slightly into the sunny morning, wrapped herself into a robe and grimaced at her messed-up hair and sleepy eyes. Scotty returned with two steaming mugs just as she was done making herself look slightly more presentable, and she settled back against the headboard of the bed, sipping the lifesaving brew and offering him a grateful smile.

"How are you feelin', Lil?" he asked quietly, touching her cheek softly. "Any bad dreams?"

"Not that I can remember." She sighed, leaning her face against his shoulder, drawing comfort from his strong, secure presence, knowing he had a good reason to worry about her sleep. George Marks hadn't appeared in her nightmares for years now, but he had definitely been the main star in them constantly after she had killed him and escaped The Woods; night after night she'd seen his face, heard his voice, his taunting words over and over. Even though she had escaped the attic physically unscathed, the mental cuts had been deep; she'd remained terrified for a long time, terrified over the fact he'd managed to worm his way so deep into her head, had read her files, learned her secrets and used them against her, attempting to break her. And he'd been damn close to succeeding, darkness threatening to overcome her, especially when she'd been alone and the walls had seemed to be closing in on her, when she'd found herself in the attic again and again even during daylight, the twisted serial killer pointing the gun at her, seconds from shooting her... Eventually Lilly had somehow managed to fight her way onto solid ground, little by little starting to heal, to drag herself out of the pit he'd been intent on burying her into; the terrors and nightmares had faded away, but she would probably never fully forget those events.

Scotty rubbed her neck softly, quiet, just staying close, and she let her mind wander back to the events that had taken place on the previous day, before the new case; Ryan Cavanaugh's unexpected visit, the employment offer he had extended to her fiancé, the offer that would enable them to embark on this new adventure together, if they chose to do so. They hadn't talked about it at all yet, definitely needed to do so soon; right now, however, she wanted to tell him something else, something that thinking about George Marks again had also brought up, something she finally felt strong enough to share with the man she loved more than life itself.

"Scotty," she whispered, moving back a little bit and setting her coffee onto the nightstand before meeting his eyes, clearing her throat and gathering all of her courage. "Back when I was ten years old…"

She saw his gaze sharpen as he obviously understood immediately what she was referring to; he remained quiet, only reaching down and taking her hand, tightly entwining their fingers.

"One evening, my mum was drunk again, like she very often was; I gave Christina whatever dinner I could get together, put her to bed and we read a story." Lilly closed her eyes against the painful memories, holding onto his hand like a lifeline. "After she fell asleep, I was about to get ready for bed too, but then mum told me to go to the corner store because… because she was out of alcohol. It wasn't the first time I… she'd had me buy her stuff before too; the man who was running the store, he knew what our situation was, he tried to help me and Chris a couple of times by calling child protective services. They even came to check on us, twice, but somehow mum always managed to convince them she'd get her act together, that things would get better."

She glanced at him, sniffling. "You know how it is, so many families to try to help, so many children in far worse circumstances than we were, so they chose to believe her. So many files, a filing cabinet after a filing cabinet stuffed full."

"Yeah." Scotty nodded, his eyes dark and emotional, his thumb soothingly caressing her fingers. "I know."

"Obviously selling a 10-year-old any alcohol was terrible, but I suppose he figured my mum was a lost cause, and it would be far worse if I went home empty-handed, that she would just unleash her wrath on both me and Christina," she continued, staring at their joined hands. "I... that evening I didn't make it to the store; I was about halfway when I thought I heard someone walking behind me, but when I looked back, there was no one there. Then I heard it again, and… I panicked, I started to run but he…this guy, he..."

She tensed, anxiety tightening her chest, making her feel like there was no oxygen; Scotty turned to put his mug down too, moved closer, pressing his lips against her forehead.

"You're safe, Lil. I'm here. Just breathe slowly, okay?"

She took a shuddering breath, then another, air finally moving easier again. "He… he caught me, he asked me what I was doing out alone so late and where I was going; I told him I was on my way to the store and he asked if I had money. I said I couldn't give him any, because my mum had sent me out for errands, and she'd be angry if I didn't buy her what she wanted; for a moment it… it looked like he was going to believe me, leave me alone, but..."

She started to cry, hot tears rolling heavily along her cheeks; Scotty slotted his other arm underneath her to be able to pull her into a tight, secure hold, muttering quiet, soothing words.

"He tried to take the money, to get into my pockets to find it; he was big, strong, but somehow I managed to fight him, managed to get away. I ran, and I was almost at the store, I knew I'd be okay if I could only get in, but… I didn't. And the guy… he was really angry now, telling me I shouldn't have done that, and then… then he hit me, in the face, so hard that I blacked out for a moment."

Scotty ground his teeth together, tense from pure rage, and she held onto him tighter, both for security and as though trying to keep him from attacking the invisible enemy in the room, as though her assailant was right there with them. "I fell down, and he still… he kept hitting me, like it was some sort of a… like he enjoyed it, he was laughing, I can still remember the sound of his laughter. I don't know if he would have killed me, but then I guess he maybe… heard someone or just had enough, so he kicked me a few times, took the money from my pocket and left me there. Somebody found me a little while later, and the store owner called an ambulance; I remember his face so clearly, he looked absolutely horrified and he was crying. The guy had broken my jaw and four ribs, knocked off a few of my teeth."

Scotty growled, some tears escaping him too; she felt them against her forehead and looked up at him, the expression on his face shattering her heart.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered, letting out a choked sob. "Jesus Christ, I… I love you so much, Lil, an' I'm so, so sorry."

She wasn't fully sure how much of her ordeal he'd been aware of previously; she had never really spoken about it, but he might have learned bits and pieces from other people, perhaps Christina or their colleagues who had some more details. Still, Boss was the only one who had been told the whole story until now, and she knew he would never have revealed it without her consent, not even to her partner; Scotty's shocked, pale face told her he hadn't known much at all, most likely only the fact that something bad had happened to her when she'd been ten years old.

"I love you too." She kissed his cheek, now a little worried about how this might affect him; it wasn't something he could save her from, she would always carry the scars caused by what had happened to her, both mental and physical, and from now on Scotty would have to live with it just like she did. Briefly she wondered if she should have waited a bit longer to tell him about the attack, but at the same time she knew it was too huge, too significant to keep from the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with; that evening had largely shaped her, affected who she was today, both her personality and her chosen profession.

"Are you okay?" she whispered, gently stroking his hand, trying to read his expression; his eyes were dark and full of pain, and Lilly pressed her face against his, held him silently for a moment, relieved to see him looking slightly better when she finally pulled back. He managed to give her a tiny smile, took a deep, shaky breath.

"Lil, you don't need to worry about me; I'm just… so horrified and disgusted you had to go through somethin' like that, but… God, you are so brave. So goddamn brave. Thank you for sharin' this wit' me." He kissed her softly, managing to relax her a little bit; then his face tensed again.

"Please tell me they found this guy an' put him away for a very, very long time?"

"They did." Lilly smiled, caressing his shoulder. "I was drifting in and out of consciousness, and the next thing I remember properly is the face of a police officer; I was still on the ground and he was putting a blanket over me, kneeling down and telling me everything would be okay, that I was safe now. He never left my side; he asked where my parents were but I couldn't talk, my jaw was hurting so much, so he gave me a pen and a piece of paper to write down my name and address, sent an officer over to my mother's house before getting into the ambulance with me. He made sure I was okay, he was there when my mum managed to drag herself to the hospital and was furious at me for getting in trouble, and he was there when a few days later I had to face a lineup, with that guy and some others. Luckily he'd never bothered to try and hide his face from me, so I picked him out straight away."

She met his eyes again, brushing some wetness from his cheek. "That police officer was detective John Stillman."

"Oh Lil." Scotty's face crumbled, more tears leaving his eyes. "God, I… I was aware you've known Boss for a long time, but… I had no idea you met him like that."

"Mmhm." She traced his features, the familiar gorgeous face. "But it wasn't like in the movies; I didn't decide right there and then that I wanted to follow in his footsteps and become an officer, to save the world and everyone in it. That was nine years later, when I was done being a rebellious teenager and returned to Philly after my road trip with Ray on his Harley; I didn't know what I wanted to do with myself, there was no way I could have afforded to go to college, but then I saw a leaflet about joining the police and I remembered the officer that had been so kind to me. I still had the card he'd given me that night, so I tracked him down, asked to meet him. And the rest, as they say, is history."

Scotty smiled. "Did Boss remember you too?"

"He did, he recognized my name." Lilly sighed. "The first thing he told me was that the guy who attacked me was dead, he'd been killed in prison, five years earlier. I didn't really know how I was supposed to feel about that, so there wasn't much… emotion in me; I'm still not fully sure how I feel. I guess I could be angry, but it wouldn't help with a damn thing."

"I know." He brushed some strands of blonde hair behind her ear. "What about your mum, did she…?"

"Care?" she supplied, shrugging as he reluctantly nodded. "Not really; mostly she was angry that she had to keep me at home for several months since I couldn't go to school."

"Right." Scotty scoffed, shook his head, anger moving over his face. "I'm not gonna say what I want to say, because she was your mum, an' I know you loved her, despite everythin'. I'm just glad you had Boss there for you, an' I suppose I should also give some credit to the Harley guy, for standin' by you and supportin' you through your childhood."

"Yes, Ray was very helpful." She grinned, placing a hand on his cheek, now feeling a lot lighter after sharing this with him, a great deal of weight lifted from her shoulders. She outlined his full lips with her thumb, feeling the very sexy stubble against her palm and a heavy warmth settling into her belly; this man was truly far too gorgeous for his own good.

"You know, I could definitely see you on a bike, Valens, dressed all in leather and those really nice sunglasses; it's a very, very tempting thought."

"Is it now?" He kissed her finger, arched an eyebrow teasingly. "I hate to disappoint you, darlin', but I'm more of a convertible man myself."

"Yeah, yeah, I know, you're nuts about cars." Lilly smiled, then swallowed heavily as his hand softly and carefully traced her jawline, finding the little bump where it had broken, the bone not setting absolutely perfectly, but she supposed that after such a major fracture the damage could have been a lot worse. Sadness and pain were again evident in his eyes, and then he kissed the site tenderly, covering the entire area with tiny pecks.

"I am, once again, absolutely awed by you," he whispered, sighing and shaking his head a little. "By how strong you are, how amazin'. There's only one thing I'm nuts about, Rush, an' that's you. Ain't nothin' I can do about that, so I hope it's okay wit' you, beautiful."

She crushed her lips onto his, knowing the feeling was most definitely mutual, moaning as his hands started to caress her, pushing the robe from her shoulders; she lost herself in him, completely, all the bad memories fading to the background, where they would hopefully stay from now on. She had been through a lot, had encountered many people who had hurt her, physically as well as emotionally; now there was finally someone she could share her painful experiences with, Scotty's mere presence healing the old wounds and scars from inside her, a little bit more every day. And with her strength growing and her heart being far more open now, she truly hoped to be able to do the same for him.

A long while later, after they were done and Lilly had mostly managed to gain back her ability to breathe and also her brain function, she reached for her mug, took a sip and made a face.

"Eww. Cold."

Scotty laughed, cracking one eye open briefly; he was laying on his front next to her, leaning his head against strong arms, the covers down to his waist and she was very, very much appreciating the sight of his bare back, smooth olive skin, wide muscular shoulders. "I'm sorry. Did we take too long?"

"Hell no." She decided that cooled coffee was a tiny price to pay for the way pleasure still lingered all over her body, several incredible releases having made it feel heavy and very relaxed. Sighing a little, she enjoyed the lovely sensations for a moment longer, before gently tracing her forefinger down along his spine; he opened one brown eye again, his lips curving into a lazy grin.

"What are you thinkin' about, bella?"

Lilly smiled, cleared her throat before sliding back down, laying on her side and watching him. "Scotty, we… we have a decision to make."

"About the Feds?" He arched a questioning eyebrow, closed the eye once she had nodded. "Well, I'm definitely up for it."

She swallowed. "Up for making the decision or for… changing jobs?"

He chuckled, turned to his back, now offering her a view of his chest and his defined abs, and her fingers itched to touch him again; she controlled herself to the best of her abilities, focusing on his face. He reached to grasp her hand, played with her slender fingers for a moment before looking at her.

"Up for changin' jobs'."

"You are?" Her eyes widened, her hand closing around his in a death grip. "Seriously?"

Scotty tugged her closer, kissing her forehead. "Lil, it's the FBI; it's every little boy's dream when they decide to become a police officer. I didn't think I'd ever have a goddamn chance in hell to work for them, but now thanks to you an' Boss, an' I suppose also Cavanaugh, I do."

"It's not only thanks to me or Boss or Ryan," she reminded him, slightly angry that he still seemed to think this way, despite John Stillman's words on the previous day, still seemed to somehow believe he was only getting the job offer as her sidekick and nothing else. "It's thanks to you being an amazing detective. Don't you dare to forget this, Valens, or I'm going to keep banging it into your head until it stays there. This clear?"

"Yes, Ma'am." He watched her with a slight smile. "God, you're so fuckin' gorgeous, Lil. Especially when blushin'."

"I'm not blushing, I'm just annoyed with you." She pulled her hand from his, crossed her arms and pouted, her cheeks definitely feeling rather hot so she was probably very much resembling a tomato right now; Scotty laughed, shook his head before becoming serious again.

"All right, all right, let's try this one more time." He cleared his throat, focused carefully. "I didn't think I'd ever have a goddamn chance in hell to work for the Feds, but now, thanks to me bein' an amazin' detective, I do."

"There you go; that's more like it." She softened, leaned to kiss him tenderly. "Good boy."

He chuckled, gently brushing his fingers against her cheek. "Most importantly… I get to stay wit' you, Lil. Even if they decide to separate us so that we'll never even see each other durin' the workday, we'll both be in New York, we can live together. You an' me an' Olivia an' Tripod. An' it's just what, a year or so away altogether, so we could maybe still keep this house too, an' come back here when we return to Philadelphia, if that's what we decide to do."

"Yeah." She teared up, felt hot tears escaping her eyes, knowing she definitely wanted to return here; this city was her hometown and always would be, her hood, her blood, and she knew Scotty felt the same way. "That sounds amazing. Absolutely amazing. What about your family though; do you think they'll freak out?"

"They might need a moment to get used to the thought, my mom especially." He took her hand again, squeezed it softly. "But the fact that I won't be goin' alone will be a big relief for them."

Lilly nodded, biting her lip and sighing. "I really should meet them."

"Lil." He sat up more, pulled her onto his arms. "Do you remember what I told you a week ago? You don't need to hurry; you'll meet them when you're ready."

"I know, but…" She rubbed a hand across her face, feeling stupid; why was this such a huge deal for her? This was Scotty's parents and brother they were talking about, not the Grim Reaper; from everything he'd told her about his family over the years, she knew they were amazing people, and there was nothing to worry about, but despite that, she couldn't help feeling stressed out.

"It's just such a… apart from Ray, I've never met anyone's parents. Patrick's mother died when he was in his teens and he wasn't close to his dad; we invited him to our wedding, but I don't think he ever even responded. And none of my other boyfriends were ever… it just never happened."

She sniffled, looking down. "I can't help worrying that I'm… a disappointment, somehow. That they won't like me. And they'll want to… know about things, about my past, my mum and dad, Christina…"

She drifted off; Scotty held her tightly, soothingly rubbing her neck. "Lil, ángel, you don't have to tell them anythin' if you don't want to, but there is nothin, nothin', in your past that you need to hide or be embarrassed about. They are goin' to adore you, simply because you're so amazin', an' that fact isn't gonna be changed by anythin' that has happened before; that's your story, it's where you come from, an' if it's difficult for you to talk about it, they will understand. Then you can just tell them about our beautiful goddaughter, an' look at funny photos of me at her age an' growin' up; Mom's got enough of those to fill at least a dozen visits."

Lilly chuckled, rubbing her eyes. "Yeah?"

"Absolutely." He kissed her hair. "Tell you what, let's start wit' Mike an' Allie, maybe for a lunch next week or somethin'; they're easy, an' they already love you. Allie's often been talkin' about this kickass cop lady that's my partner, an' Mike knows you've always been there for me, wit' our mom's case an' everythin', so they'll be beyond happy to finally meet you. An' then when you feel ready, you can meet my mom and dad, one by one if that feels better for you, an' it doesn't have to be at the house either; Mom can bring those photo albums with her anywhere."

She laughed, feeling so touched and a bit more reassured, loving him so much right now. "So they're not going to be mad when they meet me for the first time ever, and hear that we're engaged and moving away?"

"They won't be, but I do have to warn you about somethin'." Scotty pulled a pretend fearful expression onto his face, met her probably very panicked gaze before grinning widely. "The weddin' plannin' will start immediately. An' I do mean immediately. An' it will be endless; just ask Allie if you don't believe me."

"Oh." She hid her laughter into his chest. "Well, I suppose I can definitely understand that."

"Mmm." He tugged her head up, framing her face gently, pressing a kiss onto her lips. "Just remember that you don't have to go along wit' anythin', okay? If it was up to Mom, she'd love to plan the entire day from the food to the dress an' the honeymoon, but I want you to have your dream weddin', Lil. It doesn't matter if that's a quick lunchtime appointment at the courthouse next Monday, or a massive church ceremony ten years from now, as long as you're happy."

"I'm happy already, happier than I've been in a… very long time," she whispered against his lips, knowing that she really was; she was relaxed now, things seemed to be working out professionally, she had this incredible man by her side and there was a lot more space for happiness in her, a joyful warmth in her heart that had been previously missing. Perhaps it had been there sporadically, fleetingly every once in a while, before something had destroyed it, again and again, but now it was definitely gaining strength, growing roots inside her and sprouting everywhere.

"And I'm not waiting ten years to marry you. Next Monday is a bit soon, but… and as for the honeymoon, I think you can take charge of planning that, Valens."

"I would absolutely love to." He kissed her again, chuckling as her stomach growled. "We should definitely get some breakfast, or brunch; it's almost eleven so no wonder you're starvin'."

"Yeah." She sighed softly, still reluctant to get up even though she was hungry indeed. "What are we going to do about the… Boss said he wants me to wear my ring on Monday. On my finger. Which means we should probably tell Nick and Will and Kat that we're together, before they see it and faint on the spot."

"That would be a sight." Scotty chuckled, scratched his cheek thoughtfully. "How about we ask if they could meet us for dinner tonight, or quick drinks at least, Boss too? I dunno if Kat can get a babysitter on such a short notice, but… we could try."

"Sounds like a good plan." Lilly hesitated for a moment, then looked up at him. "After breakfast – or brunch – I thought we could take a little drive, unless there are developments with the case; there's something I really need to do, but I haven't… been feeling strong enough for it yet. Would you… come with me?"

A quick worry crossed his face, a frown briefly appearing on his brow; still, he didn't ask anything, just kissing her forehead tenderly, nodding. "Absolutely. Whatever you need to do, Lil, I'll be right there wit' you."