Protection {A Bensler Fanfiction}

6

Three full months after Olivia was taken from her house, she was finally on her own. Agent Danson and Agent Ford still checked in on her monthly, but she wasn't watched as closely. The house she lived in was paid off, so all she had to do was pay for utilities and other bills. Olivia was thankful for her freedom, but it also meant she wasn't reminded all the time that she couldn't contact her daughters.

Olivia stood in the middle of her living room with a painful memory of this day last year. Macie and Rory got so scared during the late-night fireworks that they sprinted into their parents' room and crawled under the sheets between Hugo and Olivia. She remembered the smile on Hugo's lips as he looked at their daughters, and it was one of those rare moments that Olivia remembered why she loved her husband. 

"Benson?" Elliot asked as he opened the front door to her house. Olivia was still frozen as Elliot shut the door, and she didn't move until he walked into her field of vision and waved a hand in front of her face.

"E-Elliot?" Olivia asked, her voice shaking as she tried to blink away the scared little faces that snuggled so close to her last July.

"Yeah, it's me. Are you okay?" Elliot asked as he reached to brush a tear from Olivia's cheek. She took a large step back and flicked the tear from her cheek.

"I'm fine... Why are you here?"

"You asked me to pick you up since your car is in the shop. Did you forget?"

"I guess I did... Uh, let me grab my blazer and we can leave," Olivia replied quickly. She turned on her heel and ran to her bedroom before grabbing her blazer from the foot of her bed. Facing the mirror, Olivia adjusted her shirt before wiping more tears from her cheeks.

"You gotta get over them... You'll never see them again, no matter how much you want to. Macie and Rory are fine and they'll forget about you soon enough," Olivia whispered to herself.

///

"Are you enjoying being my partner?" Elliot asked as he and Olivia sat at their desks. Fourth of July weekend was going to be busy, but nothing had hit yet. All they had to do was waste time and try not to sweat to death.

"Not when you are being needy," Olivia smiled as she looked at Elliot.

"Do you love me? Am I your best friend? Can we do a sleepover and paint each other's nails?" Elliot rapid-fired, as Olivia laughed loudly and covered her face with her hands. 

She couldn't believe that this man had turned into her best friend, even if he could be extremely annoying.

"You are too much, Stabler," Olivia replied, as she slowly lowered her hands and shook her head.

Elliot and Olivia continued to tease each other until Olivia's desk phone rang and she was quick to answer it.

"Detective Benson," she spoke, as she searched her desk for a pad of paper and a pen.

"Detective, dispatch received a call regarding two abandoned girls in Central Park. They look like they've been out there for a while."

"O-okay, what part of the park? My partner and I will go assist," Olivia replied, as her heart pounded. Even if she knew deep down that the girls in Central Park weren't her girls, she couldn't help but be hopeful. Maybe Hugo shipped them away, and he picked the perfect location.

"They are just past the cobblestone bridge by the thicker wooded area. An officer is with them right now," the voice replied.

"We will get there as fast as we can. Thank you," Olivia replied.

///

By the time they arrived at Central Park, the girls had been taken to the nearest hospital and a group of officers were combing the woods for a campsite or any evidence.

"Do you have a picture of the girls?" Olivia blurted out the moment she reached the responding officers. He turned to look at her, confusion covering his face.

"I'm Detective Stabler and this is Detective Benson," Elliot spoke, as he glanced at Olivia.

"Oh, okay. Uh, yeah, this is what I took," the officer replied, pulling out his phone and showing it to Olivia. She looked at the picture for a long moment, but no matter how hard she looked, the faces of the dirty little girls didn't match the faces of her babies.

"T-thank you," Olivia spoke, disappointment seeping into her voice.

"A jogger found them right here, and they were barefoot and covered in dirt. We were flagged down and responded."

"Has anyone found where they came from? They may have set up camp in the woods to hide out if they ran away from home. It's pretty hard to walk through this part of the park, but there are clearings throughout," Elliot explained, as Olivia tried to get over her disappointment.

"We are trying, but like you said, it's hard to get through," the officer replied. Olivia looked at Elliot as she reached out and touched his arm.

"We should get to the hospital and check on them. Let's go," Olivia breathed.

"Of course. Here is my card, give me a call if you find anything," Elliot spoke, as he quickly pulled his wallet out and handed a card to the officer.

The moment they were out of earshot, Elliot questioned Olivia.

"Why were you so eager to see a picture of the girls?"

"I was hoping they were ones from the database. Then we could help bring families back together," Olivia replied weakly. She wanted her family back, yet she'd never have that.

///

Elliot watched from the window as Olivia sat on a bed with the girls on her lap. She was talking quietly to them and trying to figure out what happened, while Elliot was getting an update on them from the doctor.

"Detective?" the doctor asked.

"Sorry. So they don't have any major injuries?" Elliot asked, and the doctor nodded.

"No broken bones or signs of assault. They are dehydrated and very hungry. If they had been out in the woods for much longer, they may have died. We will keep them for a few days before releasing them into your custody."

Elliot thanked the doctor before reaching for the door handle. Olivia opened it from the inside before stepping towards Elliot so she could shut it.

"Are we leaving?" Elliot questioned.

"The girls are tired, so I tucked them in and told their nurse to call me when they wake up," Olivia replied as she walked towards the exit. Elliot followed closely and grabbed her elbow as they got hit with the hot July air.

"Are you sure that you aren't mom material? Seeing you with those girls proves otherwise," Elliot spoke, as he stopped Olivia. She looked at him for a long moment before letting out a slow breath.

"Let's see if we can reunite these babies with their parents," Olivia replied slowly, not wanting to discuss being a mother any longer.