You're Somebody Else || A Bensler/EO Reunion Fanfiction

Kathy

Olivia was staring through the two-way in her office, her face set in a stoic scowl and her eyes unseeing. Her thoughts raced through the past few days events... she was reeling, spiraling, and unable to focus. A dangerous combination given the current trajectory of events... given her proximity to the case that she desperately wanted - no, needed - to solve. Rollins and Fin were in the interview room, throwing their best shots at Sacha Lenski...who was surprisingly deft at dodging their blows. She heaved a sigh and shut off the volume from the interview room, but Carisi spoke, "How long has this kid been shadowboxing with them?" he inquired, his voice even but laced with an undertone of impatience. His voice jarred her back to the present, reminding her that she wasn't alone... Garland stood to Carisi's right, hovering around the case to ensure that she didn't let Stabler back into interrogation, she was sure. "All night," she replied, turning to look at the pair with frustration evident on her face... she had hoped Lenski would be easy to crack. "Keep him talking," Carisi instructed, pausing briefly before adding, "He thinks he's brighter than he is."

Olivia was about to reply when Kat walked in, addressing her, "Captain, I made some calls. Turns out young Sacha isn't connected. He's more of a wannabe... That Iron Triangle garage has been linked to VIN switches on stolen cars and insurance fraud." Carisi cut in, "That's all penny ante," he said, waving a hand, "That's a big step up from that to a hit on a cop's wife..." Olivia looked at him, feeling her stomach turn as she voiced the thought that crossed her mind, "...or a cop. It's more likely that Elliot was the target." Carisi nodded slightly, his gaze shifting back to the two-way, back to Sacha Lenski, "There's another possibility here," he said, pausing before voicing his suggestion, "What if Sacha was set up?" Olivia shook her head slightly, not bothering to disguise her disapproval of the idea, "Carisi, Sacha is still our guy." Carisi was quiet for a moment, but replied, "Yeah, even if he is, maybe he didn't realize it was a hit on a cop. Who knows what they told him." Carisi was playing devil's advocate, something he did more often now that he was an ADA. She frowned slightly, almost imperceptibly, but didn't reply. Kat jumped in, "Yeah, they might've told him it was an arson job for insurance," she suggested, bolstering Carisi's theory. 

Olivia remained silent, her face set in a stoic mask of indifference, though the corners of her mouth tipped ever-so-slightly downward. "Either way. I think it's time we arraign him," Carisi replied, putting an end to the debate. "You do that, he's gonna lawyer up," Olivia cautioned him, as if he hadn't been a detective in her unit...as if he somehow didn't know that to be the case. She wanted desperately for Sacha to confess, to provide them with some detail that would lead to the truth...to closure. "Exactly what I'm hoping for," Carisi retorted, his tone laced with confidence, "Listen, if he's a patsy, and he's looking at 25 years-" She wasn't used to such confidence in his voice, it was a sign of his well-earned reputation in the DA's office... he had grown a lot in the time since he joined SVU. She understood his meaning, "Then a lawyer will get him to cooperate," she finished his sentence, sitting in her chair as she did and looking up at him. She nodded slightly as she spoke, a sign of approval of his plan... she had taught him well. Once more she was reminded why it was so nice to have a former cop as their ADA, he knew how the system worked from both sides. Carisi smirked slightly, a small confident expression, and turned back to the two-way. 

He departed her office and Garland gave Olivia a knowing look before following. Liv pinched the bridge of her nose...she was exhausted. It had been over 60 hours since the explosion and she had barely slept or seen Noah. She frowned at the thought, but she knew that if the roles were... somehow... reversed, Elliot would be doing everything in his power to make progress. She stood and approached the door to the interview room, pushing it open, "Good news, Mr. Lenski, you don't have to talk anymore... you're being scheduled for arraignment. Fin, Rollins, take him where he needs to go," she said, her voice commanding. Once she received curt nods from her people, she retreated back into her office and sat heavily in her desk chair, pushing her hair back from her face with both hands and breathing a heavy sigh. By now, Noah would be at school, she only hoped he was better off than she was. She stared at the picture of him on her desk, the corners of her mouth tugged upwards for the briefest of moments... the ghost of smile amidst all of the chaos, a smile for her sweet boy. Her gaze drifted to the bottom drawer of her desk and she breathed a heavy sigh, reaching for it and tugging it open. It was a drawer she didn't really use and it only contained three things. The first, laying face down, was an image from her trip to Paris several years prior, an image of her with her former boyfriend, Ed Tucker. It was face down, not because she was angry or hateful, but because seeing him made her melancholic for the hints of happiness she had known when he was in her life. Those fleeting moments that faded faster than they came.