Fanfic: The Man You Deserve 3b/?
Title- The Man You Deserve (3b/?)
Fandom- Suits
Ship- OMC/Harvey, Harvey/Mike
Rating- PG-13
Genre- angst, drama, hurt/comfort, first-time, slash
Warnings- domestic abuse
Wordcount- 11,200 (4,600 part a)
Disclaimer- I do not own Suits
Chapter Summary- James comes to the office to threaten Harvey, and Harvey has to make a decision about what he's going to do from here on out.
Overall Summary- Harvey is being abused, and Mike will do anything he can to stop it.
A/N- written for a prompt here at suitsmeme: I want to read a story where Harvey is the one in an abusive relationship - it can happen to guys like him too.Can start out emotionally abusive and escalate from there. Who helps him through it? I'd like to see Donna, Mike, and Jessica, but you can include whoever works for your story. Can make it Harvey/Mike in the end, or just friendship.
*** Previous Chapter *** Master Post ***
Mike was heading to Harvey’s office to tell him what he’d found in the documents their client had handed over. His eyes were on the office, and the first thing he noticed was that Harvey wasn’t inside. Then he saw Donna, sheets of paper falling from her hands as she sprinted a few steps to her desk and picked up the phone, a panicked expression on her face as she dialed. Mike followed her gaze and saw Harvey standing before the elevators. His eyes were wide with fear and his body was tensed, like it had been last night when Mike locked the door behind them and he had seemed to be flashing back to some instance of abuse. There was a man standing with him, his hand on the back of Harvey’s neck in a controlling, dominating gesture. He looked a bit older than Harvey, and perhaps an inch taller, with blonde hair short and expertly tousled. His clothes looked as expensive as Harvey’s, and with his stance and posture he seemed to radiate confidence, control, and power. From Donna’s expression and Harvey’s reaction, there was only one man this could be.
Mike saw the elevator door open and James push Harvey inside. He didn’t stop to think what he was doing; he just ran for the doors, and managed to slip inside just before they closed. Mike placed himself between Harvey and James, hands balled into fists as his side as he glared up at the man who was responsible for the pain in Harvey’s eyes. James was taller than him, boarder, stronger, probably capable of doing a lot of harm to Mike, but at that point he didn’t care. If James gave him half an excuse, Mike would do everything in his strength to kill him.
“Who the fuck are you?” James asked, glaring down at Mike with green eyes narrowed in anger. Mike glared right back and said the first thing that came to mind.
“I’m Harvey’s lawyer.” Mike heard Harvey make a noise of disbelief, felt a hand on his arm as Harvey tried to stop him, but he ignored it. He wasn’t backing down. This man didn’t scare him.
“Lawyer?” James repeated, lips curving into a smirk. He looked over Mike’s shoulder and addressed Harvey. “You hired a lawyer? Against me? And one who looks like he’s in his first year of law school, too!”
Mike felt Harvey flinch behind him and move as far back from James as he could, pressing himself against the wall of the elevator. “I didn’t…” Harvey tried to object, his voice soft and unsteady as he attempted to answer James. He couldn’t say more than that.
Harvey’s reaction only further enraged Mike. He took a step forward, getting in James’ face and forcing the other man to look at him rather than Harvey. “You will address all statements to me, not my client,” Mike said. His fisted hands were trembling with rage at his sides, and he was surprised by how cool and even his voice sounded.
“Harvey, this is ridiculous,” James said, still talking over Mike’s shoulder. “You want a legal battle, against me? I taught you some of your best tricks! Exactly how do you think you’re going to win this?” He took a step forward, but Mike didn’t move back. The only way James was getting any closer to Harvey was if Mike was incapacitated or dead.
James looked down at Mike, and for a moment Mike thought James was going to say something to him, but then he just laughed and shook his head. “You know what, Harvey,” James continued, ignoring Mike once more, “this whole thing is laughable. It’s put me in a good mood. How about you forget about all of this and come home with me now? I’ll forgive you for everything, and we can get on with our lives.”
Silence from Harvey. Mike could imagine him swallowing hard as he weighed his options, wondered if Mike could really do anything to protect him if it came down to that. Mike had to prove to Harvey that he could. He wouldn’t back down and abandon Harvey. Not ever.
“I said,” Mike raised his voice, “you will address me, not my client. You can be charged with harassment, stalking, menacing, and assault,” he picked out the most likely charges from his mental database of laws, though he knew there could easily be others. “If you don’t leave this property, you can also be charged with trespassing. Leave. Now.”
James looked down at Mike, his smile fading into a scowl. “Don’t worry, kid,” he said darkly. “I’ll leave.” He raised his eyes, continuing to speak to Mike even as his gaze zeroed in on Harvey. “But not without what’s mine.”
“You’ll leave now,” Mike replied. “Or else.”
James scoffed. “Is that a threat?”
“It’s a promise.”
“Look who’s trying to be tough. You think you’re a better lawyer than me, kid? Think you’re stronger than me? You can’t compare to me in any way. What do you think you can do for Harvey?”
James cut himself off as he looked between Mike and Harvey, and then a smirk spread across his face. “I see what’s going on here. Is that it, Harvey? You’re trying to replace me? This kid’s too young and scrawny to do anything. You need a real man. Someone who knows how to treat you the way you deserve.” He leered at Harvey over Mike’s shoulder and his voice dropped low on the last words, clearly implying what kind of treatment he though Harvey deserved. Mike swallowed, forcing himself not to rise to the challenge. James could say whatever he wanted about Mike, imply anything he cared to. This wasn’t about Mike. This was about Harvey.
The elevator dinged as it came to a stop on the first floor. The doors slid open. “Leave,” Mike repeated, refusing to let himself be shaken. “Now.”
Jessica was just returning from her lunch break when her phone rang. She saw Donna’s number on the screen and answered immediately, knowing she probably couldn’t to miss the call. Donna was near hysterical when Jessica put the phone to her ear. That in and of itself was enough to unnerve her, but the words that followed made her blood run cold. She went into the building and called over the two security guards from the front desk, telling them quickly that there was someone in the building whom she considered to be a threat, and she needed them to escort that person out. Then they stood before the elevators and waited.
It was nerve-wracking, knowing that Harvey was trapped in a small space with James, and that until the doors opened there was nothing she could do to help him. Donna had told her that Harvey had spent the night with his associate, Mike, and she knew that was probably what had so enraged James that he would come here to confront Harvey. There was no doubt in her mind that he intended to do Harvey serious harm to make up for the disobedience.
She tensed as the light above the elevator lit up with a ding. It was agonizing seconds before the door slid open. She saw James and Mike squaring off in the center of the elevator, James’ face pulled into a twisted smirk and Mike’s dangerously blank. Harvey was behind Mike, plastered to the wall as far from James as he could get. His eyes were wide with fear but Jessica could see that his hands were balled into fists at his side, a sign of defiance. “Leave,” Mike addressed James coolly. “Now.”
“You don’t have any authority to tell me that, kid,” James replied. He reached out like he was going to shove Mike. Jessica spoke quickly.
“No, but I do.” The three men turned at the sound of her voice. The snarl on James’ face immediately faded into a calm and civil expression. He held up his hands in a placating gesture and stepped from the elevator. Mike glanced at Harvey. He put a hand on the door to keep it from closing but didn’t try to step out. He kept his body between James and Harvey like a human shield, even with James’ attention elsewhere.
“Mr. Whitfield,” Jessica addressed James as evenly as she could, “the way I see it you have two options now. You can walk through those doors alone and under your own power,” she nodded to the entrance of the building. “Or, these two gentlemen behind me can escort you bodily from the premises. Take your pick.”
James’ eyes roved over the guards, then as they turned to her for a moment his mask fell and she could see the hate and cruelty in his eyes, so great it made chills run down her spine. Then the mask was back up again. He smiled disarmingly and held his hands up. “Of course, Ms. Pearson. I wouldn’t want to inconvenience your upstanding guards.” He turned back to Harvey, and Jessica saw Harvey flinch like he’d been struck and drop his gaze to the floor when James’ eyes fell on him again. “I’ll see you at home tonight, and we can continue this conversation there.” James’ voice was light and his words seemed innocuous, but Jessica knew what he really meant by them.
Then James turned and left the building. All eyes watched as he got into a car parked on the side of the road and drove off. “Remember his face,” Jessica told the guards. “He doesn’t set foot in this building again. Not for anything.”
Jessica finally turned back to Harvey and Mike. Mike still held the door open, but he was watched Harvey. He bit his lip, like he was trying to figure out what to say. Jessica knew the feeling. “Are you okay?” was the instinctive question, but the answer was plainly clear. She watched as Harvey took a deep breath and stood up a little straighter, though his eyes remained downcast.
Jessica stepped into the elevator along with them. “My office,” she said simply, pressing the button for her floor. “Donna’s waiting.”
They didn’t speak as the elevator began to rise. Jessica went to Harvey’s side, and Mike stepped back respectfully. She laid a hand on Harvey’s arm and felt him tense beneath her touch. Harvey lifted his eyes from the floor to meet Jessica’s gaze. She could clearly read the pain in his eyes, and she wanted to pull him close and tell him he was safe, but knew that touch would probably hurt more than help at the moment.
The elevator stopped and the three of them got off. Jessica didn’t question it when Mike followed her and Harvey to her office. He walked a little behind them, seeming to respect the fact that Jessica had known Harvey longer and had helped him through this and worse in the past.
Donna was waiting in Jessica’s office when they arrive, pacing anxiously in front of the desk. When they entered she ran to them, stopping in front of Harvey and looking like she wanted to throw her arms around him, but hesitating. Then Harvey held out his arms to her and Donna stepping into them, wrapping her slender arms around his body like she could somehow protect him from the world. She let his head fall on her shoulder and ran her fingers through his hair in soothing motions. Jessica could see his body trembling in Donna’s arms. Over Harvey’s shoulder Donna shot Jessica a look that plainly said “that man needs to die.” Jessica couldn’t agree more.
Harvey pulled back first, which surprised Jessica. Perhaps, she thought, it hadn’t broken him down as much as she’d thought it would to have James show up in a place he had always considered safe. That had to be a good sign.
Harvey turned to Mike, his expression shockingly grim and defiant. “You had no right to do that,” he told Mike coldly. His tone startled Jessica. She would never have expected such anger directed towards someone who had been protecting Harvey, and she wondered what exactly Mike had done. “Saying I was your client? You had no right!”
“Well, what was I supposed to say?” Mike shot back, equally angry although Jessica sensed it was not directed at Harvey. “What do you want from me, Harvey? There was no way I was going to let him near you again. I just said the first thing I thought of to get him to back off.”
“I can’t have him thinking I’m going to bring charges against him!” Harvey replied. “Do you know how angry that’ll make him? As long as he thinks he’s in danger of being brought before a judge, he’s never going to leave me alone!”
“So do it, then!” Mike cried, waving an arm for emphasis. “Charge the bastard! Get him sent to jail!”
“You don’t know what he’s like! He’ll have the judge and jury eating out of his hand by the time it’s over. They’ll be ready to charge me with domestic abuse for all the times I fought back.” Harvey’s anger seemed to deflate as he outlined the bleak scenario. He dropped onto the couch and ran a hand though his hair, looking exhausted. Donna sat next to him and laid a hand on his arm. Jessica was surprised that Donna didn’t glare at Mike for upsetting Harvey. She must have thought that anger, as opposed to despair, shame, or numbness, was the best possible reaction to all that had happened.
“So,” Jessica said, trying to keep her voice even in wake of all the screaming, “what are you going to do now, Harvey?”
He looked up at her, which in and of itself she saw as a good sign. He wasn’t breaking down, wasn’t retreating into himself or blaming himself for the abuse. He was able to fight now; it was just wearing on him. “I can’t go back there,” Harvey said plainly. “He’ll kill me.”
“It can’t just be for one night,” Donna told him, her voice stern. “Or one week, or one month. It can’t just be until he’s cooled down and ready to start begging you to come back without threats. Harvey, you need to leave him for good. For the rest of your life.”
“I know,” Harvey muttered. “I know that.”
“So will you?” Donna pressed. Harvey didn’t answer immediately.
“We will keep you safe,” Mike said with conviction. “I think the bastard should rot in jail for the rest of his life, but I can press any charges for you. I can’t do that if you don’t want me to, but I swear I’ll do everything else in my power to keep him away from you. He will have to kill me before he lays a hand on you again.” The words seemed like an exaggeration but Mike spoke them with such sincerity and seriousness that Jessica truly believed he meant it.
There was silence in the room for a moment as it seemed that no one knew how to follow such a weighty statement. Then Donna spoke. “You stole my line,” she said dryly, her lips quirking into a wry smile. Harvey snorted and shook his head, but Jessica could see the beginnings of a smile on his lips.
“You need to understand,” Harvey said slowly, “he has my home, cell, and office numbers. He knows my address. He has a key. He knows my gym, the restaurants I go to, the stores I shop at. Everything. Every detail of my life, he knows. I would need to rebuild from scratch. New place, new furniture, new clothes. It’s not as simple as walking out the door.”
“Does he have access to your bank account?” Jessica asked. Harvey thought the question over.
“My personal account is safe,” he said. “But there is still a mutual account from years ago. I counted it as a loss the last time I left. Trying to take my half of the money out of there would leave me open to legal repercussions, and meeting him in court every day for months while we try to get it straightened out is the last thing I want.”
“How much was in it?”
“Maybe half a million dollars,” Harvey admitted. “From both of us. It was supposed to be saved for our lives together.” His lips quirked into a wry smiled. “We talked about having children.”
Jessica shuddered at the thought of children in the house with James. She didn’t want to think what he would do to them if they cried or disobeyed him, as children so often did. She could imagine the power that would have given him over Harvey, who would not have been able to leave the children behind but would have opened himself up to parental kidnapping charges if he tried to take them away. She wondered how abused mothers were ever able to escape, and marveled at the strength it took.
“I suppose there’s nothing to do about that for now,” Jessica murmured. She hoped that someday Harvey would be able to claim what was his, but she knew at the moment Harvey wouldn’t be able to handle a legal battle with James.
“I’ll take care of everything else,” Donna volunteered, her tone businesslike. “I’ll make a few calls; find you someplace to stay for now. And after that I’ll see if I can’t pick you up some clothes. They won’t be the quality you’re used to, but you’d better be grateful; personal shopper isn’t in my job description.” She smiled, and Harvey returned it. “Starting from scratch is difficult,” Donna admitted gently. “But it’s not impossible, especially not with your resources.” She laid a hand on his shoulder. “You will get through this. We’re all here to support you.”
“I know,” Harvey said softly. He closed his eyes, drew in a deep breath, and let it out slowly. “Alright,” he said. “I’ll do it. For good this time.”
“You’ll do what?” Donna asked with a smile, obviously wanting him to say clearly what he was going to do. Harvey saw that, and he raised an eyebrow at her.
“I will leave James,” Harvey said solemnly. There was something powerful about saying it outright, Jessica thought. Even though he had said he would do it already, actually putting to words exactly what “it” was seemed to give him a sort of power that “I’ll do it” couldn’t. He seemed to stand a little straighter just by saying it, and Jessica was proud of him. “I will leave him and I will never go back no matter what he does. I won’t let him make me live in fear again.”
“Good,” Donna told him. She leaned in and kissed his cheek lightly, then pulled back and gazed into his eyes. “Good,” she repeated more softly.
From the corner of the room, Mike cleared his throat, drawing their attention back to him. Jessica had almost forgotten that he was there. She was used to it being only her and Donna who knew enough about what was going on in Harvey’s life to exhort him to leave. “He could stay with me,” Mike offered. “I mean, if you want. You’ve been there already, so I think it’d be better than someplace new. And…” he trailed off, looking embarrassed. His eyes swept over Donna and Jessica before settling back on Harvey. “And to be honest, I don’t think you should be alone, at least not at first.”
Jessica and Donna exchanged a look. In the past when Harvey had left James, he had been so fearful and so assured of his own worthlessness that they had kept him in one of their homes for several days afterwards, both to protect him from James and to protect him from himself. Usually within a few weeks Harvey wanted to get away from them. He had nightmares, Jessica knew, but he didn’t want people to see them. Given that he seemed stronger this time than the others, Jessica had thought he would want to skip that part of the process and have a place of his own. She wished Mike knew the things she and Donna did, knew what helped and what didn’t. Maybe they could talk to him about it later.
To Jessica’s surprise, Harvey nodded. “I’d like that,” he said softly. Jessica and Donna exchanged another look, both silently asking the other why Harvey was agreeing to something he’d always fought. What was different about Mike that made Harvey accept his offer?
“Okay,” Donna murmured, looking between the two men almost suspiciously. “I won’t book a hotel, then.”
Jessica looked between the two men, contemplating their relationship and the effect it seemed to be having on Harvey. He seemed to make Harvey stronger, and also somehow more willing to open up. He had done things Jessica and Donna would never have thought of, and it had worked. Perhaps it was time to try something different, to make this time be different. The time Harvey stayed away for good.
What did Harvey need, Jessica wondered, trying to look past the approach she and Donna had always taken and see what else could be done. When they had gotten Harvey out the first time, she remembered, she had wanted Harvey to see a psychiatrist, and even offered to cover it as a work expense. She had gone so far as to threaten him with his job if he didn’t get some kind of psychiatric clearance, but Harvey had been adamant that he wouldn’t go, and Jessica had let it drop. Maybe it was time to try again.
“Harvey,” Jessica said slowly, “I think that you should talk to someone about this. Someone who knows what you’re going through and can help you with it.”
Harvey gave her a suspicious look. “Are you asking me to join a support group or something?”
“It wouldn’t have to be a group,” she reasoned. “Just talk with a professional. Maybe they can help you get things figured out.”
“A shrink?” Harvey said skeptically. “I don’t need anyone messing with my head, Jessica. James has done a good enough job of that.”
“That’s why I think it would be a good idea. They’d know how to help you through that.” Harvey still looked unhappy with the suggestion. Jessica resisted the urge to roll her eyes at his stubbornness, but inside she was pleased. Stubbornness was a good thing. It was something James always tried to beat out of Harvey, and it seemed he hadn’t succeeded yet at this point. Harvey was getting out earlier in the cycle than before. He was doing better. “Harvey, just hear me out,” Jessica said. “You don’t like to talk about it with me and Donna, even though that seems to help you. Maybe it would be easier with someone who hasn’t known you for so long. And unlike us, they’d actually be trained for this and know how to make things better.”
He gave her a pained look, but that was better than outright rejection. Jessica was silent as Harvey seemed to contemplate it. “You could do it however you want,” Mike said softly. “Groups, if you don’t want to do it one-on-one. Or alone if you don’t want to talk in front of a lot of people. They just want to help. I’m sure they’d be more than willing to give you a trial session, just to show you what happens. You don’t need to say anything more than you want.”
Harvey sighed heavily. “Fine. On one condition.”
“What’s that?” Jessica asked, half expecting Harvey to mandate something nearly impossible so he could avoid going.
“You find me someplace where I don’t have to go alone, and one of you comes with me.” Donna and Jessica exchanged a look. They both knew how Harvey hated for new people to find out about the abuse. Jessica knew that Harvey trusted her implicitly, but he’d still begged Donna not to tell her when she first found out. Needless to say Donna had refused. It wasn’t so surprising that Harvey would want someone he trusted with him when he tried to open up to a stranger.
“I’ll go,” Mike volunteered immediately. Jessica and Donna looked at him in surprised, and he flushed and mumbled, “I mean, I think it would be easiest, since we’d be staying together and all.”
To Jessica’s surprise, Harvey nodded. “That would work.”
Jessica looked between the two men, again struck by how different Mike’s approach to Harvey seemed to be from hers and Donna’s, and how differently Harvey responded to him. She was glad if it helped, but all the same she didn’t like the thought of Harvey being so open to another man. Although Mike seemed sincere in his concern for Harvey she couldn’t help but wonder what he truly felt for the other man. If he was attracted to Harvey, she wasn’t sure she could trust Mike to be with him. She knew first-hand how vulnerable Harvey was. With the way James messed with his head, he might easily give in to a come-on he wasn’t comfortable with and would have wanted to resist, and Mike, even with the best intentions in the world, might not be able to tell the difference. The fact that Harvey seemed to respond so well to Mike only added to her unease. If the attraction was mutual, could she trust Harvey to know what he could handle and what was too much?
Jessica tried to put her unease aside. She would have to talk to Mike about that, make it clear that he couldn’t do anything until Harvey was in a more stable place emotionally. For now, though, she wouldn’t object to Harvey staying with Mike. Harvey seemed to trust him, as did Donna. Even though Jessica hadn’t had much interaction with Mike herself, knowing that they trusted him was enough.
“Then it’s settled.” Jessica said, pleased that Harvey would be seeing a professional even if it was under conditions she wouldn’t have expected. “You’ll stay with Mike, and Donna will get you some clothes and try to find a psychiatrist. We’ll deal with everything else as it happens.”
They all nodded in agreement, and Jessica let out a soft sigh. She felt like she should be able to breathe easy now, but somehow she still couldn’t. Harvey had a long road ahead of him before he was well again, and she knew that all three of the people in the room with Harvey would be taking every step alongside him. It was nowhere near over yet.
Jessica went to Harvey’s side and laid a hand on his arm. “I’m proud of you,” she told him. He looked into her eyes and nodded solemnly. Then she pulled him into a tight hug. Jessica felt tears burning in her eyes as she put her arms around Harvey’s body. She couldn’t help but think that they had been through this three times before, and Harvey had always ended up in the same place once more. She truly hoped that this would be the last time, that this would be when Harvey broke the cycle and got his life back.
She pulled back from the hug to look into Harvey’s eyes, seeing the cautious hope burning in them. She nodded to him and let her hand slide from his shoulder. After a second’s hesitation, Harvey took the dismissal and turned to leave the office. Donna and Mike followed, each on either side of him. Jessica watched them go with hope in her heart, ignoring the creeping doubt that tried to invade. Yes, this would be the time everything worked. It had to be.
*** Previous Chapter *** Master Post ***
Fandom- Suits
Ship- OMC/Harvey, Harvey/Mike
Rating- PG-13
Genre- angst, drama, hurt/comfort, first-time, slash
Warnings- domestic abuse
Wordcount- 11,200 (4,600 part a)
Disclaimer- I do not own Suits
Chapter Summary- James comes to the office to threaten Harvey, and Harvey has to make a decision about what he's going to do from here on out.
Overall Summary- Harvey is being abused, and Mike will do anything he can to stop it.
A/N- written for a prompt here at suitsmeme: I want to read a story where Harvey is the one in an abusive relationship - it can happen to guys like him too.Can start out emotionally abusive and escalate from there. Who helps him through it? I'd like to see Donna, Mike, and Jessica, but you can include whoever works for your story. Can make it Harvey/Mike in the end, or just friendship.
*** Previous Chapter *** Master Post ***
Mike was heading to Harvey’s office to tell him what he’d found in the documents their client had handed over. His eyes were on the office, and the first thing he noticed was that Harvey wasn’t inside. Then he saw Donna, sheets of paper falling from her hands as she sprinted a few steps to her desk and picked up the phone, a panicked expression on her face as she dialed. Mike followed her gaze and saw Harvey standing before the elevators. His eyes were wide with fear and his body was tensed, like it had been last night when Mike locked the door behind them and he had seemed to be flashing back to some instance of abuse. There was a man standing with him, his hand on the back of Harvey’s neck in a controlling, dominating gesture. He looked a bit older than Harvey, and perhaps an inch taller, with blonde hair short and expertly tousled. His clothes looked as expensive as Harvey’s, and with his stance and posture he seemed to radiate confidence, control, and power. From Donna’s expression and Harvey’s reaction, there was only one man this could be.
Mike saw the elevator door open and James push Harvey inside. He didn’t stop to think what he was doing; he just ran for the doors, and managed to slip inside just before they closed. Mike placed himself between Harvey and James, hands balled into fists as his side as he glared up at the man who was responsible for the pain in Harvey’s eyes. James was taller than him, boarder, stronger, probably capable of doing a lot of harm to Mike, but at that point he didn’t care. If James gave him half an excuse, Mike would do everything in his strength to kill him.
“Who the fuck are you?” James asked, glaring down at Mike with green eyes narrowed in anger. Mike glared right back and said the first thing that came to mind.
“I’m Harvey’s lawyer.” Mike heard Harvey make a noise of disbelief, felt a hand on his arm as Harvey tried to stop him, but he ignored it. He wasn’t backing down. This man didn’t scare him.
“Lawyer?” James repeated, lips curving into a smirk. He looked over Mike’s shoulder and addressed Harvey. “You hired a lawyer? Against me? And one who looks like he’s in his first year of law school, too!”
Mike felt Harvey flinch behind him and move as far back from James as he could, pressing himself against the wall of the elevator. “I didn’t…” Harvey tried to object, his voice soft and unsteady as he attempted to answer James. He couldn’t say more than that.
Harvey’s reaction only further enraged Mike. He took a step forward, getting in James’ face and forcing the other man to look at him rather than Harvey. “You will address all statements to me, not my client,” Mike said. His fisted hands were trembling with rage at his sides, and he was surprised by how cool and even his voice sounded.
“Harvey, this is ridiculous,” James said, still talking over Mike’s shoulder. “You want a legal battle, against me? I taught you some of your best tricks! Exactly how do you think you’re going to win this?” He took a step forward, but Mike didn’t move back. The only way James was getting any closer to Harvey was if Mike was incapacitated or dead.
James looked down at Mike, and for a moment Mike thought James was going to say something to him, but then he just laughed and shook his head. “You know what, Harvey,” James continued, ignoring Mike once more, “this whole thing is laughable. It’s put me in a good mood. How about you forget about all of this and come home with me now? I’ll forgive you for everything, and we can get on with our lives.”
Silence from Harvey. Mike could imagine him swallowing hard as he weighed his options, wondered if Mike could really do anything to protect him if it came down to that. Mike had to prove to Harvey that he could. He wouldn’t back down and abandon Harvey. Not ever.
“I said,” Mike raised his voice, “you will address me, not my client. You can be charged with harassment, stalking, menacing, and assault,” he picked out the most likely charges from his mental database of laws, though he knew there could easily be others. “If you don’t leave this property, you can also be charged with trespassing. Leave. Now.”
James looked down at Mike, his smile fading into a scowl. “Don’t worry, kid,” he said darkly. “I’ll leave.” He raised his eyes, continuing to speak to Mike even as his gaze zeroed in on Harvey. “But not without what’s mine.”
“You’ll leave now,” Mike replied. “Or else.”
James scoffed. “Is that a threat?”
“It’s a promise.”
“Look who’s trying to be tough. You think you’re a better lawyer than me, kid? Think you’re stronger than me? You can’t compare to me in any way. What do you think you can do for Harvey?”
James cut himself off as he looked between Mike and Harvey, and then a smirk spread across his face. “I see what’s going on here. Is that it, Harvey? You’re trying to replace me? This kid’s too young and scrawny to do anything. You need a real man. Someone who knows how to treat you the way you deserve.” He leered at Harvey over Mike’s shoulder and his voice dropped low on the last words, clearly implying what kind of treatment he though Harvey deserved. Mike swallowed, forcing himself not to rise to the challenge. James could say whatever he wanted about Mike, imply anything he cared to. This wasn’t about Mike. This was about Harvey.
The elevator dinged as it came to a stop on the first floor. The doors slid open. “Leave,” Mike repeated, refusing to let himself be shaken. “Now.”
Jessica was just returning from her lunch break when her phone rang. She saw Donna’s number on the screen and answered immediately, knowing she probably couldn’t to miss the call. Donna was near hysterical when Jessica put the phone to her ear. That in and of itself was enough to unnerve her, but the words that followed made her blood run cold. She went into the building and called over the two security guards from the front desk, telling them quickly that there was someone in the building whom she considered to be a threat, and she needed them to escort that person out. Then they stood before the elevators and waited.
It was nerve-wracking, knowing that Harvey was trapped in a small space with James, and that until the doors opened there was nothing she could do to help him. Donna had told her that Harvey had spent the night with his associate, Mike, and she knew that was probably what had so enraged James that he would come here to confront Harvey. There was no doubt in her mind that he intended to do Harvey serious harm to make up for the disobedience.
She tensed as the light above the elevator lit up with a ding. It was agonizing seconds before the door slid open. She saw James and Mike squaring off in the center of the elevator, James’ face pulled into a twisted smirk and Mike’s dangerously blank. Harvey was behind Mike, plastered to the wall as far from James as he could get. His eyes were wide with fear but Jessica could see that his hands were balled into fists at his side, a sign of defiance. “Leave,” Mike addressed James coolly. “Now.”
“You don’t have any authority to tell me that, kid,” James replied. He reached out like he was going to shove Mike. Jessica spoke quickly.
“No, but I do.” The three men turned at the sound of her voice. The snarl on James’ face immediately faded into a calm and civil expression. He held up his hands in a placating gesture and stepped from the elevator. Mike glanced at Harvey. He put a hand on the door to keep it from closing but didn’t try to step out. He kept his body between James and Harvey like a human shield, even with James’ attention elsewhere.
“Mr. Whitfield,” Jessica addressed James as evenly as she could, “the way I see it you have two options now. You can walk through those doors alone and under your own power,” she nodded to the entrance of the building. “Or, these two gentlemen behind me can escort you bodily from the premises. Take your pick.”
James’ eyes roved over the guards, then as they turned to her for a moment his mask fell and she could see the hate and cruelty in his eyes, so great it made chills run down her spine. Then the mask was back up again. He smiled disarmingly and held his hands up. “Of course, Ms. Pearson. I wouldn’t want to inconvenience your upstanding guards.” He turned back to Harvey, and Jessica saw Harvey flinch like he’d been struck and drop his gaze to the floor when James’ eyes fell on him again. “I’ll see you at home tonight, and we can continue this conversation there.” James’ voice was light and his words seemed innocuous, but Jessica knew what he really meant by them.
Then James turned and left the building. All eyes watched as he got into a car parked on the side of the road and drove off. “Remember his face,” Jessica told the guards. “He doesn’t set foot in this building again. Not for anything.”
Jessica finally turned back to Harvey and Mike. Mike still held the door open, but he was watched Harvey. He bit his lip, like he was trying to figure out what to say. Jessica knew the feeling. “Are you okay?” was the instinctive question, but the answer was plainly clear. She watched as Harvey took a deep breath and stood up a little straighter, though his eyes remained downcast.
Jessica stepped into the elevator along with them. “My office,” she said simply, pressing the button for her floor. “Donna’s waiting.”
They didn’t speak as the elevator began to rise. Jessica went to Harvey’s side, and Mike stepped back respectfully. She laid a hand on Harvey’s arm and felt him tense beneath her touch. Harvey lifted his eyes from the floor to meet Jessica’s gaze. She could clearly read the pain in his eyes, and she wanted to pull him close and tell him he was safe, but knew that touch would probably hurt more than help at the moment.
The elevator stopped and the three of them got off. Jessica didn’t question it when Mike followed her and Harvey to her office. He walked a little behind them, seeming to respect the fact that Jessica had known Harvey longer and had helped him through this and worse in the past.
Donna was waiting in Jessica’s office when they arrive, pacing anxiously in front of the desk. When they entered she ran to them, stopping in front of Harvey and looking like she wanted to throw her arms around him, but hesitating. Then Harvey held out his arms to her and Donna stepping into them, wrapping her slender arms around his body like she could somehow protect him from the world. She let his head fall on her shoulder and ran her fingers through his hair in soothing motions. Jessica could see his body trembling in Donna’s arms. Over Harvey’s shoulder Donna shot Jessica a look that plainly said “that man needs to die.” Jessica couldn’t agree more.
Harvey pulled back first, which surprised Jessica. Perhaps, she thought, it hadn’t broken him down as much as she’d thought it would to have James show up in a place he had always considered safe. That had to be a good sign.
Harvey turned to Mike, his expression shockingly grim and defiant. “You had no right to do that,” he told Mike coldly. His tone startled Jessica. She would never have expected such anger directed towards someone who had been protecting Harvey, and she wondered what exactly Mike had done. “Saying I was your client? You had no right!”
“Well, what was I supposed to say?” Mike shot back, equally angry although Jessica sensed it was not directed at Harvey. “What do you want from me, Harvey? There was no way I was going to let him near you again. I just said the first thing I thought of to get him to back off.”
“I can’t have him thinking I’m going to bring charges against him!” Harvey replied. “Do you know how angry that’ll make him? As long as he thinks he’s in danger of being brought before a judge, he’s never going to leave me alone!”
“So do it, then!” Mike cried, waving an arm for emphasis. “Charge the bastard! Get him sent to jail!”
“You don’t know what he’s like! He’ll have the judge and jury eating out of his hand by the time it’s over. They’ll be ready to charge me with domestic abuse for all the times I fought back.” Harvey’s anger seemed to deflate as he outlined the bleak scenario. He dropped onto the couch and ran a hand though his hair, looking exhausted. Donna sat next to him and laid a hand on his arm. Jessica was surprised that Donna didn’t glare at Mike for upsetting Harvey. She must have thought that anger, as opposed to despair, shame, or numbness, was the best possible reaction to all that had happened.
“So,” Jessica said, trying to keep her voice even in wake of all the screaming, “what are you going to do now, Harvey?”
He looked up at her, which in and of itself she saw as a good sign. He wasn’t breaking down, wasn’t retreating into himself or blaming himself for the abuse. He was able to fight now; it was just wearing on him. “I can’t go back there,” Harvey said plainly. “He’ll kill me.”
“It can’t just be for one night,” Donna told him, her voice stern. “Or one week, or one month. It can’t just be until he’s cooled down and ready to start begging you to come back without threats. Harvey, you need to leave him for good. For the rest of your life.”
“I know,” Harvey muttered. “I know that.”
“So will you?” Donna pressed. Harvey didn’t answer immediately.
“We will keep you safe,” Mike said with conviction. “I think the bastard should rot in jail for the rest of his life, but I can press any charges for you. I can’t do that if you don’t want me to, but I swear I’ll do everything else in my power to keep him away from you. He will have to kill me before he lays a hand on you again.” The words seemed like an exaggeration but Mike spoke them with such sincerity and seriousness that Jessica truly believed he meant it.
There was silence in the room for a moment as it seemed that no one knew how to follow such a weighty statement. Then Donna spoke. “You stole my line,” she said dryly, her lips quirking into a wry smile. Harvey snorted and shook his head, but Jessica could see the beginnings of a smile on his lips.
“You need to understand,” Harvey said slowly, “he has my home, cell, and office numbers. He knows my address. He has a key. He knows my gym, the restaurants I go to, the stores I shop at. Everything. Every detail of my life, he knows. I would need to rebuild from scratch. New place, new furniture, new clothes. It’s not as simple as walking out the door.”
“Does he have access to your bank account?” Jessica asked. Harvey thought the question over.
“My personal account is safe,” he said. “But there is still a mutual account from years ago. I counted it as a loss the last time I left. Trying to take my half of the money out of there would leave me open to legal repercussions, and meeting him in court every day for months while we try to get it straightened out is the last thing I want.”
“How much was in it?”
“Maybe half a million dollars,” Harvey admitted. “From both of us. It was supposed to be saved for our lives together.” His lips quirked into a wry smiled. “We talked about having children.”
Jessica shuddered at the thought of children in the house with James. She didn’t want to think what he would do to them if they cried or disobeyed him, as children so often did. She could imagine the power that would have given him over Harvey, who would not have been able to leave the children behind but would have opened himself up to parental kidnapping charges if he tried to take them away. She wondered how abused mothers were ever able to escape, and marveled at the strength it took.
“I suppose there’s nothing to do about that for now,” Jessica murmured. She hoped that someday Harvey would be able to claim what was his, but she knew at the moment Harvey wouldn’t be able to handle a legal battle with James.
“I’ll take care of everything else,” Donna volunteered, her tone businesslike. “I’ll make a few calls; find you someplace to stay for now. And after that I’ll see if I can’t pick you up some clothes. They won’t be the quality you’re used to, but you’d better be grateful; personal shopper isn’t in my job description.” She smiled, and Harvey returned it. “Starting from scratch is difficult,” Donna admitted gently. “But it’s not impossible, especially not with your resources.” She laid a hand on his shoulder. “You will get through this. We’re all here to support you.”
“I know,” Harvey said softly. He closed his eyes, drew in a deep breath, and let it out slowly. “Alright,” he said. “I’ll do it. For good this time.”
“You’ll do what?” Donna asked with a smile, obviously wanting him to say clearly what he was going to do. Harvey saw that, and he raised an eyebrow at her.
“I will leave James,” Harvey said solemnly. There was something powerful about saying it outright, Jessica thought. Even though he had said he would do it already, actually putting to words exactly what “it” was seemed to give him a sort of power that “I’ll do it” couldn’t. He seemed to stand a little straighter just by saying it, and Jessica was proud of him. “I will leave him and I will never go back no matter what he does. I won’t let him make me live in fear again.”
“Good,” Donna told him. She leaned in and kissed his cheek lightly, then pulled back and gazed into his eyes. “Good,” she repeated more softly.
From the corner of the room, Mike cleared his throat, drawing their attention back to him. Jessica had almost forgotten that he was there. She was used to it being only her and Donna who knew enough about what was going on in Harvey’s life to exhort him to leave. “He could stay with me,” Mike offered. “I mean, if you want. You’ve been there already, so I think it’d be better than someplace new. And…” he trailed off, looking embarrassed. His eyes swept over Donna and Jessica before settling back on Harvey. “And to be honest, I don’t think you should be alone, at least not at first.”
Jessica and Donna exchanged a look. In the past when Harvey had left James, he had been so fearful and so assured of his own worthlessness that they had kept him in one of their homes for several days afterwards, both to protect him from James and to protect him from himself. Usually within a few weeks Harvey wanted to get away from them. He had nightmares, Jessica knew, but he didn’t want people to see them. Given that he seemed stronger this time than the others, Jessica had thought he would want to skip that part of the process and have a place of his own. She wished Mike knew the things she and Donna did, knew what helped and what didn’t. Maybe they could talk to him about it later.
To Jessica’s surprise, Harvey nodded. “I’d like that,” he said softly. Jessica and Donna exchanged another look, both silently asking the other why Harvey was agreeing to something he’d always fought. What was different about Mike that made Harvey accept his offer?
“Okay,” Donna murmured, looking between the two men almost suspiciously. “I won’t book a hotel, then.”
Jessica looked between the two men, contemplating their relationship and the effect it seemed to be having on Harvey. He seemed to make Harvey stronger, and also somehow more willing to open up. He had done things Jessica and Donna would never have thought of, and it had worked. Perhaps it was time to try something different, to make this time be different. The time Harvey stayed away for good.
What did Harvey need, Jessica wondered, trying to look past the approach she and Donna had always taken and see what else could be done. When they had gotten Harvey out the first time, she remembered, she had wanted Harvey to see a psychiatrist, and even offered to cover it as a work expense. She had gone so far as to threaten him with his job if he didn’t get some kind of psychiatric clearance, but Harvey had been adamant that he wouldn’t go, and Jessica had let it drop. Maybe it was time to try again.
“Harvey,” Jessica said slowly, “I think that you should talk to someone about this. Someone who knows what you’re going through and can help you with it.”
Harvey gave her a suspicious look. “Are you asking me to join a support group or something?”
“It wouldn’t have to be a group,” she reasoned. “Just talk with a professional. Maybe they can help you get things figured out.”
“A shrink?” Harvey said skeptically. “I don’t need anyone messing with my head, Jessica. James has done a good enough job of that.”
“That’s why I think it would be a good idea. They’d know how to help you through that.” Harvey still looked unhappy with the suggestion. Jessica resisted the urge to roll her eyes at his stubbornness, but inside she was pleased. Stubbornness was a good thing. It was something James always tried to beat out of Harvey, and it seemed he hadn’t succeeded yet at this point. Harvey was getting out earlier in the cycle than before. He was doing better. “Harvey, just hear me out,” Jessica said. “You don’t like to talk about it with me and Donna, even though that seems to help you. Maybe it would be easier with someone who hasn’t known you for so long. And unlike us, they’d actually be trained for this and know how to make things better.”
He gave her a pained look, but that was better than outright rejection. Jessica was silent as Harvey seemed to contemplate it. “You could do it however you want,” Mike said softly. “Groups, if you don’t want to do it one-on-one. Or alone if you don’t want to talk in front of a lot of people. They just want to help. I’m sure they’d be more than willing to give you a trial session, just to show you what happens. You don’t need to say anything more than you want.”
Harvey sighed heavily. “Fine. On one condition.”
“What’s that?” Jessica asked, half expecting Harvey to mandate something nearly impossible so he could avoid going.
“You find me someplace where I don’t have to go alone, and one of you comes with me.” Donna and Jessica exchanged a look. They both knew how Harvey hated for new people to find out about the abuse. Jessica knew that Harvey trusted her implicitly, but he’d still begged Donna not to tell her when she first found out. Needless to say Donna had refused. It wasn’t so surprising that Harvey would want someone he trusted with him when he tried to open up to a stranger.
“I’ll go,” Mike volunteered immediately. Jessica and Donna looked at him in surprised, and he flushed and mumbled, “I mean, I think it would be easiest, since we’d be staying together and all.”
To Jessica’s surprise, Harvey nodded. “That would work.”
Jessica looked between the two men, again struck by how different Mike’s approach to Harvey seemed to be from hers and Donna’s, and how differently Harvey responded to him. She was glad if it helped, but all the same she didn’t like the thought of Harvey being so open to another man. Although Mike seemed sincere in his concern for Harvey she couldn’t help but wonder what he truly felt for the other man. If he was attracted to Harvey, she wasn’t sure she could trust Mike to be with him. She knew first-hand how vulnerable Harvey was. With the way James messed with his head, he might easily give in to a come-on he wasn’t comfortable with and would have wanted to resist, and Mike, even with the best intentions in the world, might not be able to tell the difference. The fact that Harvey seemed to respond so well to Mike only added to her unease. If the attraction was mutual, could she trust Harvey to know what he could handle and what was too much?
Jessica tried to put her unease aside. She would have to talk to Mike about that, make it clear that he couldn’t do anything until Harvey was in a more stable place emotionally. For now, though, she wouldn’t object to Harvey staying with Mike. Harvey seemed to trust him, as did Donna. Even though Jessica hadn’t had much interaction with Mike herself, knowing that they trusted him was enough.
“Then it’s settled.” Jessica said, pleased that Harvey would be seeing a professional even if it was under conditions she wouldn’t have expected. “You’ll stay with Mike, and Donna will get you some clothes and try to find a psychiatrist. We’ll deal with everything else as it happens.”
They all nodded in agreement, and Jessica let out a soft sigh. She felt like she should be able to breathe easy now, but somehow she still couldn’t. Harvey had a long road ahead of him before he was well again, and she knew that all three of the people in the room with Harvey would be taking every step alongside him. It was nowhere near over yet.
Jessica went to Harvey’s side and laid a hand on his arm. “I’m proud of you,” she told him. He looked into her eyes and nodded solemnly. Then she pulled him into a tight hug. Jessica felt tears burning in her eyes as she put her arms around Harvey’s body. She couldn’t help but think that they had been through this three times before, and Harvey had always ended up in the same place once more. She truly hoped that this would be the last time, that this would be when Harvey broke the cycle and got his life back.
She pulled back from the hug to look into Harvey’s eyes, seeing the cautious hope burning in them. She nodded to him and let her hand slide from his shoulder. After a second’s hesitation, Harvey took the dismissal and turned to leave the office. Donna and Mike followed, each on either side of him. Jessica watched them go with hope in her heart, ignoring the creeping doubt that tried to invade. Yes, this would be the time everything worked. It had to be.
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