The Station House

Chapter 13

They arrive at the station and before Elliot even has the time to reach for his handle Liv opens her door and he watches as it swings open. She steps out and he steps out immediately after her. They shut their doors and walk towards the stairs of the precinct. When they get there he offers his hand to help her up the stairs since she's in heels. A small smile creeps onto her face and she says "I'm okay El. Thank you."

She seems calm and collected in the outside but on the inside she's warm and giddy at how sweet and caring he is. They make their way inside and to Captain Cragens office. Immediately upon their arrival Cragen looks over Olivia's dress, "Date night?" He asks She pauses nervously. "Yeah.." she mutters quietly and Elliot smirks eyebrows raised.

"The rapist from the other night struck again. Fin and Munch are at the scene canvassing. You can take their places if you want but at some point I need someone to go talk to the first victim again. See if we can find a link between the 2 victims. If they shopped at the same grocery store, used the same laundromat, anything." They exchange a quick look. "We can go talk to the victim." Liv responds.

"We have rapport with her, and Fin and Munch are more than capable of canvassing the crime scene." "Go-cragen replies-keep me updated" They made a stop at their lockers and grab their guns. Where are you going to put that? Elliot asks while laughing. I've got a thigh holster. She rests her foot up on a bench seat and slowly pulls her dress up exposing her upper leg. His eyes trail up as she wraps the holster around her leg and buckles it into place. She looks over at him his eyes still don't leave her body. She clears her throat and his eyes abruptly dart to hers. He subsequently clears his own throat and grabs his gun and holster from his locker.

They make their way to the car and as soon as they enter the car Liv slaps his shoulder. "You ass." She says playfully lips widely stretched with a smile. He laughs. "What did I do?.." "You laughed at my expense then undressed me with your eyes in the locker room" "No one was around.." he says facetiously. They both smile, briefly locking eyes before Elliot begins backing out of the parking space. He makes his way through the traffic to the victims apartment. They get out and head to the landlords on site office. He takes them to the victims apartment and they look each other over flirtatiously while waiting on her to answer the door.

They knock again this time harder. Immediately following their knock they hear a loud bang in front of the door. They both take a step back and draw their weapons. Elliot kicks the door in and upon entering they find a human sized floor lamp knocked over in front of the door as well as several other items stacked in front of the door.

They push everything out of the way and make their way through the apartment. Peering carefully around each corner. They make their way through the bathroom kitchen and dining room before finally coming to the bedroom. When they open the door they scan the room looking for anything out of the ordinary. Apart from an unmade bed which isn't unordinary, it's just a bedroom. They lower their guns and turn to exit the room. Suddenly a quiet sniffle erupts from the bedroom and the both quicky turn back around.

They walk in slowly holding their guns at their sides. They hear another sniffle and make their way towards the closet. Liv plants herself to the left of the door and Stabler quicky opens the door and raises his weapon. They find the victim curled up on the ground knees tucked into her chest. Her head resting on her arms facing towards the floor. "Emily.." Olivia says and she quickly looks up and descends into the closet further.

"Emily... It's Olivia. You're okay." She looks up at her and very slowly begins to emerge from the closet. She steps out and begins sobbing falling into Olivia's arms. "Okay.. you're okay. Tell us what happened." She pulls away and wipes her face. "He was here. He found me." Olivia grabs her hand and leads her to the bed taking a seat beside her. "What do you mean he was here?" She asks softly.

"He was here. Yesterday evening. I don't know how he found me. I was getting ready to start dinner and I heard a knock at the door. I looked out the peephole and I seen him. I freaked and quickly locked the chain on the door. I guess he heard it, he screamed that he was going to kill me. I quickly stacked some things in front of the door and ran to the bedroom and hid in the closet." "Why didn't you call the police" "I froze. I panicked. I just covered my ears and tried to block it all out." "That's not unusual Emily. It's fight or flight. It's your body's response to an intense or traumatic situation." Elliot says.

"Well let's get you to a hospital. You're in a state of shock. You sat in this closet for 17 hours. They'll probably give you a sedative to help you sleep and they'll monitor you for any side effects of the sedation or shock." "I can't afford that. I just lost my insurance." "It's covered. The state will pay for it. There's funds for victims services." Olivia says as she helps her to her feet.

Emily nods her head slowly as Liv guides her to the front door. They make their way through the apartment building to the outside where there's a squad car waiting. They help her into car. "We'll meet you at the hospital after we talk to your neighbors and get their statements okay?" She gives very faint notion of comprehension before turning her head and staring at the seat in front of her.

They head back inside and take the surrounding neighbors statements. One of them a hard of hearing 70 year old woman who didn't have her hearing aids in. Another Tennant who claims to have heard the incident and peered into the hallway briefly. The man claimed he presumed that it was a distraught boyfriend and didn't take the threat seriously. The others all admitting to hearing screaming but ultimately were unable to make out what was said and assumed it was one of the couples in the building having a heated argument.

They finish up with witness statements and get in the squad car and begin their way to the hospital. Neither of them saying a word. They check in with the front desk and a nurse directs them to Emily's room. When they enter the room she's semi conscious on the verge of falling asleep. "We just wanted to check on you and make sure you were doing okay." "I'm better.." She mutters sleepily and yawns. "Okay well then we'll leave you to it so that you can get some rest okay?" Emily grabs Livs hand. "Okay Olivia."

She begins to fall asleep and Liv sighs in relief. They head out and head back to the station to brief Cragen. When they're done he tells them that they can go home for the night. Get an early start tomorrow with a fresh set of eyes after some rest. They head out to the squad room and grab their personal belongings before making their way to the car.

They get in and he drives to Livs apartment. When he pulls up and puts the car in park she doesn't move. She remains still and lets out a sigh, Elliot asks if she's okay. "Just unbelievable what these women go through." "Yeah... Emily's strong though. She'll be okay. As long as we catch this guy and bring him to justice." Elliot replies. "I'm not sure there is justice anymore." Liv says.

She quickly opens the door and exits the vehicle shutting the door behind her. "Liv-she keeps walking towards the stairs- Liv hold on a second." She stops and turns towards him when she finds herself on the landing at the top of the stairs. He grabs her hand. Liv I know that these cases get hard. I know it feels like an uphill battle, but we will find this guy." "Yeah but how many more women will he hurt before we find him." "You can't think about that. You'll drive yourself crazy."

"This guy is getting sloppy okay. It's just a matter of time. We will get him. Maybe they'll find something when they lift the prints off the doors at Emily's apartment" She nods unconvincingly. He wraps his hand around the small of her back and gently pulls her closer resting his head against hers. He brings his hand up and traces her check with his thumb and forefinger.

They stand there for several moments trying to decompress. "I've been where you are Liv. Too many times. Discouraged and disheartened by our justice system, your thoughts and heart consumed by it. It takes hold and won't let go. Trust me I know. But I genuinely believe that everything will be okay. We'll get through it. Together like we do every case. You gotta trust me Liv. Let yourself go and let me take care of you. You don't have to carry this alone, let me take some of the weight." He moves his hand slowly up her back and up her neck. Entangling his hand in her hair and caressing her neck softly.

"I need you El. I can't do it alone anymore, so I'm not going to fight you on this" She mutters softly. And he hugs her tightly. She pulls away just enough to place a kiss on his lips. It's a slow surreal kiss-tender and loving. They slowly withdraw their lips as their faces fall to each other's shoulders."You're never alone Liv. I'm not going anywhere. I promise. You're stuck with me" he jokes. They both smile and take a deep breath. They hold each other tightly letting the rest of the world drift away.