Law and Order SVU: Episode, a law and order: svu fanfic

Disclaimer: If I owned the characters and themes from Law and Order SVU, I wouldn't be writing for Fanfiction .net, I'd be writing episodes….but I don't own it…yet

In the criminal justice system, sexually based offenses are considered especially heinous. In New York City, the dedicated detectives who investigate these vicious felonies are members of an elite squad known as the Special Victims Unit.

These are their stories.

LAW & ORDER

SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT

"Jimmy, you don't want to do this…"

"Yes I d-do, I…I can't go back to prison! Not for this, they'll kill me!"

"Jimmy, you haven't even gone to trial yet, you may still win, but you have to give yourself that chance, come back over." Olivia pleaded. She and Elliot Stabler were standing on the top of an apartment building where their rape suspect was threatening to jump to his death. Below him was a large glass sunroof; they were only on the second floor, but if he came down on the shattered glass, there would be no saving him.

"I can't go back-" Jimmy was crying now, tears dripping down his face and into the corners of his mouth. "Tell the girl I'm sorry."

"Jimmy don't!" Elliot yelled, reaching out to grab him. He had caught his pant leg for a moment, but the fabric was wrenched from his hands and he was almost pulled over himself. Dr. Huang and Olivia managed to pull him back over, and breathing heavily he leaned himself up against a cold cement wall.

"Damn it." He whispered finally.

"You did what you could. Sorry I'm late." The Doctor said. He had been called to negotiate with Jimmy, but he had jumped just as he arrived. "Are you going to be okay?" Elliot wiped the sweat from his forehead and nodded.

"Let's go see the damage."

"What happened up there?" Munch asked, walking with them to the broken sunroof.

"We saw Elliot hanging over the edge, for a second there we thought he was gonna take you with him." Fin piped in, slapping Elliot on the back

"For a second there so did I." He coughed. "Damn it Jimmy." Elliot sighed as they looked down into the mass of broken, bloody sunroof. Jimmy had been cut to pieces; his blood was dripping down the angled glass.

"One less perv on the streets." Fin said quietly. The others, perhaps with the exception of Dr. Huang, silently agreed.

"What is that? The blue…near his feet, look." The Doctor pointed out.

"Oh my god…" Elliot jumped down into the pit full of glass, the room that had been below the sunroof. "It's a kid, call a bus! And I need keys, she's cuffed to a pipe" The detective unlocked and pulled the child into his arms. She couldn't have been more than fifteen, if not younger. She was unconscious, and it probably had something to do with the bruise on her eye and forehead. Munch and Huang helped him out of the room with the girl in his arms.

"Look at her bracelet." Munch said.

"Faith. Her name?"

"It doesn't look religious so I'd say so."

"Bus is here!" Fin called.

"Pulse is steady, but she has injuries to her neck and head. Pupils are slightly dilated, I'd give her 30cc's of Lytocine." Huang told the EMT's, helping Elliot place the girl on a stretcher.

"You're a doctor?" The EMT asked. "Will you ride with us, my guy's new?"

"Sure, Elliot, you should come too, she'll need to talk to you when she wakes up."

Elliot sat with his hands in his coat pockets, on a squeaky seat in the hospital waiting room. He had been waiting for nearly an hour when a lady doctor approached with Doctor Huang at her side, deep in conversation.

"Maybe three or four days, she would have died if she went any longer without water."

"Those three or four days were probably a nice vacation for her." Huang said sadly.

"Why's that?" Elliot stood up and walked over to the two.

"Are you her father?" Huang smiled slightly at the doctor's comment.

"Uh…no, Detective Stabler, Special Victims." He said laughing a little. The Doctor didn't find it funny.

"Well you're victim was probably relieved to have been down there for so long. She was beaten to a pulp probably five days ago and she was massively dehydrated. You're Dr. Huang here insisted," she put a nasty emphasis on the word, "that I do a rape kit."

"Elliot you'll probably want to call Olivia for this one."

"I can't, she's going to Connecticut tonight for an emergency hearing. Why?"

"Faith was raped repeatedly over a long period of time. And she seems very shy of men."

"She had a fit when one of my male orderlies was bringing her lunch."

"And we need to take her back to the precinct before we talk to her."

"Why?" Elliot asked.

"Because she asked me to, she won't even speak aloud, she had to write it on a napkin. She said she doesn't like hospitals and she won't say anything until we get her out of here."

"What do you mean you can't? I have a fifteen year-old rape victim with nowhere to sleep tonight! I need someone from DCF to give her temporary foster care." Captain Cragen was arguing very loudly on the phone from Olivia's empty desk. He had given his office to the girl, Faith, who was wrapped in a blanket, sleeping soundly on the couch.

"Damn it!" Cragen yelled, slamming the phone down. "They said they're too busy to take her, all their social services reps are out."

"What are we gonna do with her?" Fin asked. But Elliot was already walking over to the office.

"Elliot?"

"There's somebody else in there!" Huang followed him toward the office. But before they arrived, Faith had thrown open the door and backed into the Doctor. He wrapped his arms protectively around her as Elliot placed himself between them and the rather large, rich-looking man that pursued them.

"Get out of the way! That's my daughter!"

"Is that so? Prove it." Elliot said darkly. "Who are you?"

"He's Franklin John Bricks, and here's the adoption certificate. My client is Faith James' stepfather. Her mother and biological father are dead." The Captain took the certificate and read it over.

"She's a rape victim and the primary witness in our investigation-"

"She's my kid and we're going home now!"

"Is that true Faith?" Dr. Huang asked the child in his arms, not yet letting her go. She opened her mouth to speak, but only nodded. He still didn't let her go. "Do you want to go with him?" This time Faith didn't respond for several seconds. She looked up at her stepfather, scared, and eventually dropped her head in a failed nod.

"If she's your daughter why is she so scared of you?" Elliot asked, fronting the man off. He didn't respond.

"The NYPD have no jurisdiction over my client's parenting skills." The Captain knew this too.

"We've got no choice. Let her go." Huang slowly pulled his arms off Faith and she stepped forward, chin still on her chest, towards Bricks and his lawyer.

"Oh Faith, I was so worried about you, lets go home." Bricks said, hugging her. She recoiled slightly and they walked out.

"Faith!" Huang said, catching up with them. He bent down to the height of the girl and handed her a piece of paper. "If you need help you can call me at any of these phone numbers." She slipped the paper into her pocket.

"Let's go Faith, now."

"Son-of-a-bitch." Elliot said, throwing the copy of the adoption certificate down on the table.

"We just gave that little girl back to the man who's most likely to be abusing her." Munch said.

"And now we'll be lucky if we ever get to talk to her. He's her only guardian and there's no way he's gonna give us permission." Fin added.

"What do we do now?" Elliot asked.

"We wait." Huang said. "We have to hope that she'll call." The Captain nodded.

"We have to hope she calls while she still can."

"What was that guys name again?" Fin asked.

"Bricks, Frank Bricks." Munch said with a mock-Bond attitude.

"Frank Bricks the drug lord?" He prodded.

"He's a drug lord?" Cragen asked, looking at the adoption papers again.

"Yeah, when I was in narcotics we were investigating him for it but my old captain made us stop when he tortured the lead detectives family to death. He said it wasn't worth it; that was three years ago. We could have saved that little girl then…"

"And we can still save her now." Cragen said. "Who was your informant in the first Bricks case?"

"A minor dealer, kid's name was Frizz."

"Alright. You and Munch talk to him. Doctor, does the FBI need you desperately?"

"No, and I'd like to stick around for this one anyway. I'll call my C.O."

"Great. Elliot, you're with Huang, get to the crime lab to check out that rape kit."

"This was a nasty one…" Dr. Warner was saying. "It looks like your victim was gang-raped."

"Oh my god. She's only fifteen." Elliot said, disgusted with humanity for the moment.

"I got four different semen samples, no spermicide so it looks like none of them bothered to use a condom." She added. Dr. Huang read over the chart.

"Is there a danger of her getting pregnant?"

"No. I found Nexine in her blood. It's a prescription birth control pill."

"How did a fifteen year-old get ahold of prescription birth control?"

"Or who gave it to her?" Huang asked. "It's illegal to prescribe Nexine to a minor, someone must have had the prescription and given it to Faith."

"That's him." Fin said motioning towards a young man in a fleece jacket. Munch nodded and circled around behind him so he had nowhere to run.

"Hey Frizz!" Fin called. Sure enough, Frizz ran, straight into Munch.

"Hi there, what's this?" He said mockingly, pulling a bad of cocaine out of his jacket pocket and tossing it to Fin.

"Frizz, you moved up a notch. How much you think is here? 20, 30 grams? It's probably worth a couple grand."

"I don't know man that ain't mine."

"It just materialized in your jacket pocket?" Munch asked sarcastically.

"Don't worry about it Frizz, we're not here about that." Frizz laughed aloud.

"Yeah man, I heard you was working the sex crimes now."

"Who told you that? Your pal Frankie Bricks?" At the sound of his name, Frizz tried to run again.

"Where do you think you're going?" Munch said, knocking him back to Fin.

"Man I can't be talkin' to no cops about Bricks! I got a family man!"

"That's just fine; we can take you in for possession with intent. How happy's your boss gonna be when you lose 2000 dollars worth of his business?" Frizz considered this.

"Alright man, what do you want to know?"

"Talk to me about Bricks' daughter."

"That sweet thing Faith? What's she got to do with anything?"

"Four men beat her to a pulp, raped her and left her for dead, and daddy won't let her press charges." Munch said.

"Oh man… I don't know about no four dudes, but the boss gets nasty with Faith."

"Define nasty." Fin said, dangling the bag of coke.

"It's nothing like that man. There's no way he's riding his step kid, not with all those other fine ladies around, but he slaps her around pretty bad."

"Our doctor found evidence of prolonged sexual abuse. It means someone's been raping her for a long time." Munch added at the confused look on his face.

"That could be Andrew. Bricks Junior."

"There's a junior in the picture?" Munch asked, "How junior?"

"He's 25 man. And he slaps Faith around more than his daddy."

"Thanks for the ride." Dr. Huang said as he stepped out of Elliot's car and onto the sidewalk in front of his small house.

"No problem, I'll pick you up…" Huang waved his words away as he stared at his front door. "What is it?"

"The latch is broken." Elliot called for back up. The door was hanging slightly ajar and lights were on inside. Huang drew his weapon, and together, he and Elliot kicked the door open. They checked the kitchen and the hall, and soon entered the living room.

"What the hell?" Elliot breathed. Faith was sitting on the floor, crouched against the wall, sobbing quietly. Huang put his gun away and moved slowly over to the girl. She gasped when he reached out a hand towards her, shrinking back into the corner.

"It's okay Faith. You're safe, nobody's going to hurt you."

"Andrew will." She sobbed. "He said he was gonna kill me." It looked as though he had tried. Faith's lip was bleeding and she had the makings of a bruise on her cheek.

"How did you get here?" Elliot asked.

"Andrew brought me. He threw me and I broke your door. He said if I really didn't want him then you could have me."

"Faith who raped you? Was it Andrew?" Elliot pressed.

"I can't, he'll kill me." She cried.

"We won't let him hurt you Faith. We're police officers, it's our job to protect you." Elliot said smoothly. Huang lowered his voice to almost a whisper.

"Faith, we can protect you from him, but you have to tell us what happened. Did Andrew Bricks rape you?"

"Oh god…please don't make me go back!" She begged. Dr. Huang inched forward and took this girl in his arms, and embrace she mimicked tightly.

"It's okay Faith. You don't have to go anywhere. We wont make you go back."

Elliot stood staring through the one-way window of the occupied interrogation room at the precinct. He felt a surge of hatred toward the young man in front of him, Andrew Bricks, for stealing the innocence of a child. It was less what he did than the situation in which he was able to obtain his prize. Faith, his innocent victim, had been handed to him on a silver platter.

"How is she doing?" He asked, hearing Dr. Huang walk up behind him.

"I gave her something to help her sleep. The Captain is on the phone with DCF again, they're still busy. What about you?"

"Can we talk in confidence Doc?" Elliot asked.

"Absolutely." Dr. Huang said. He closed the door and Elliot sat down on one of the benches. "What's up?"

"I keep having these dreams."

"Nightmares?" Elliot nodded, rubbing his forehead. "For how long?"

"Since my wife left with the kids. But since we got this case, every time I fall asleep." Dr. Huang nodded.

"What happens?"

"It's about my teenage daughter. Shelly. Maureen is married to somebody else, and this guy… he rapes Shelly."

"Who's the new guy?" Elliot sighed and held his head in his hands.

"He's different every time-depending on the case I'm handling."

"So the rapist in your dream becomes the rapists and pedophiles you face at work."

"Yeah."

"Are you in this dream?"

"No. I'm just watching it happen. He rapes her and…" Tears welled up in Elliot's eyes. "After he stops, she just cries. She cries and cries and I want to help her but-"

"You're not there to save her." Huang finished for him. Elliot coughed the tears away, trying to keep up his front.

"Yeah."

"Do you even want me to ask you what you think or should I just give you a diagnosis?" Elliot looked up at him, confused. Huang sat down on the bench beside him. "You're wife left you and took your children away. Every time you put a rapist in jail, you feel that you're saving them, but now that their gone, how can you protect them? You've got a not-so-rare malady, it's called being a father."

"So how do I get the dreams to stop?" Huang smiled.

"They'll stop on their own."

"Why?" Elliot asked.

"Because we get better." There was a long silence, not one of the awkward ones, but the stillness was engulfing. This particular stillness was shattered when Captain Cragen slammed through the door, red and aggravated.

"Congratulations Doc. Because and only because you're a certified medical practitioner, you've been afforded emergency custodial powers in Miss Bricks' case."

"Looks like she's bunking with you tonight."

Dr. Huang handed the girl a mug of hot chocolate, spilling a tiny bit of whipped cream in the process.

"Oops. Here." He said, handing her a towel. They had not yet left the precinct; it was getting late, but Huang wanted to end this for the girl in front of him, sitting cross-legged on a sofa, as soon as possible.

"Thank you." She said quietly, refusing once again to make eye contact.

"Let's talk about what happened four nights ago Faith."

"Let's not." Huang smiled.

"We have to. I know you're scared, you're hurt; those men hurt you badly didn't they?" Faith nodded, tears appearing in the corners of her eyes.

"I just want to crawl into a dark hole and sleep forever. I have such beautiful dreams. I wish the world could be like them, it could be if I wasn't so stupid."

"You think the rape was your fault?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because I couldn't keep my mouth shut."

"Somebody told you not to say anything? About what?" She shook her head. Huang knew he wasn't going to get anything relating to her stepfather's drug business, so he decided to focus on the attack.

"Someone told you not to say anything. But you did say something?"

"I told the police about- I told a police officer, but he said he didn't believe me."

"What happened after you spoke to the police officer?"

"I went home. The cop told Frank what I said. He was so mad."

"Did he hurt you?" She shook her head again. "How did you get to the room with the glass roof?"

"They took me there. Four of them." Huang leaned in closer.

"Faith, do you know the men that raped you?"

"I can't tell." There was a sound of rapping on the one-way window, Captain Cragen's sign to get on with the interrogation.

"Faith, I know this is hard for you, but we have to talk about Andrew."

"I can't." She said, setting her mug down and staring at her feet.

"Why not?"

"I already told you."

"Because you think he'll kill you if you tell?"

"Not him. Frank." Huang raised his eyebrows.

"You think your stepfather will kill you because of what his son did?"

"Yes. He controls everything. He's in so deep with the police that he'll never go to jail for anything. I know you would try your best. But the truth is, you really can't protect me."

Elliot was sitting across the table from Andrew Bricks in the SVU interrogation chamber, and they weren't alone. Munch was at Elliot's side, but Bricks had denied representation, even though his father had insisted.

"Here." Munch said, sliding a pad of paper across the table at him.

"What's that for?"

"To write down your confession. Faith told us what you've been doing to her all these years since her mother died." Munch said. He and Elliot had a game plan: good cop, bad cop. It sickened Elliot to do so, but his job was to identify with Bricks junior, tell him what he wanted to hear.

"Faith didn't tell you anything." Bricks said. "She may have outed my Dad, but she would never betray me, she knows better." He had a smug look on his face.

"We have four different DNA samples from the night she was raped. Tell me Andrew, if we check your DNA against them, will it make a match?" Munch asked.

"That's really terrible what happened to Faith. But I wasn't there, I know there's some nice detective checking my alibi behind that window."

"That doesn't exclude you from the other rapes. The ones that happened again and again since she was thirteen-"

"You're sick!"

"We're sick? You're the one that likes little girls Andrew, if she was thirteen, you were what, 22? Or have you always been a pervert?"

"That little slut wanted-"

"Munch, why don't you go see if that alibi is ready yet." Elliot said loudly, speaking for the first time. He stood up and opened the door for him, earning a false glare on the way out.

"Are you crazy?" Elliot said, closing the door behind him. "If you confess and get sent to Sing Sing, you're Father's gonna string me up like a damn piñata!" He said, raising his voice in mock frustration. The detective walked over near the mirror-window and flipped a switch on the wall. "There, they can't hear us now."

"You're one of my Dad's?" Elliot sat back down at the table and rolled up his sleeves.

"I owe him a favor or two." Andrew smiled grimly.

"What did you say your name was?"

"Detective Elliot Stabler."

"Okay Elliot, tell me how you're gonna make this right for me?" Elliot leaned back in his chair.

"There's some physical evidence, nothing that can't get lost in transit. It happens all the time, for the right price."

"Everybody's got a price. What's yours…Detective?"

"I've got family money. But I've also got what every guy's got, an itch that needs to be scratched… How old is your stepsister?" This made the smile on Andrew's face grow both in width and in scorn.

"Old enough. You like young women?"

"I like fighters. And that evidence, the evidence that won't be here in the morning, says Faith fought you."

"She did, she fought me every time. But we both know she wanted it. She even got there once or twice, she cried for hours afterward; couldn't believe she could get off on her own pain." Elliot laughed aloud and leaned in, lowering his voice.

"Let's talk a date and a time so I can get on with forgetting we had this conversation and I'll walk you out of here myself." Andrew nodded and took the pen and pad Munch had given him.

"This weekend, go to this address, it's where my Dad's more expensive clients get their fix, she'll be there."

"Who'll be where?" Elliot said mockingly, putting the folded slip of paper in his pocket. "How do you know she'll keep her mouth shut?"

"I wasn't kidding about what I said to that other cop, she would never betray me." Elliot pretended that was good enough for him and he stood up, opening the door and following Bricks out.

"Andrew Bricks, you are under arrest for rape, aggravated sexual assault, and obstruction of justice. You have the right to remain silent…again, anything you say can and most definitely will be used against you in a court of law. You obviously forgot that this time." Captain Cragen was saying as two uniforms grabbed Bricks.

"Don't forget bribery of a police officer." Casey Novak, the Assistant District Attorney, said as Elliot handed her the same paper Andrew had written the address on.

"Oh, that owing your Dad a favor stuff: I lied." Elliot said disgustedly.

"Screw you, I'll be out tomorrow!"

"You have the right to an attorney. In the unlikely event your Daddy won't let you borrow his, one will be appointed to you…"

"What's going to happen?" Faith asked, staring out Dr. Huang's front window. "When he goes to court I mean." Huang walked up beside her.

"Your stepfather or Andrew?"

"Both I guess."

"You won't have to be involved in Bricks senior's case, but the defense will subpoena you to testify at the last part of Andrew's trial tomorrow. Do you think you can face him?"

"It doesn't matter anymore. I don't have to afraid; I'm going to die tomorrow anyway."

"You still don't believe we can protect you?" Huang asked, disappointed. Faith breathed on the window and drew what looked like a judge's mallet.

"No. But it's okay."

"Why?"

"I'll get to go to sleep forever, I can dream of that other place."

"I won't let anything happen to you, I pro-" Faith pressed two fingers to the doctor's lips.

"Don't make a promise you can't keep."

Casey Novak was reviewing the Bricks rape trial for the final proceedings the next day. It was late, nearly midnight, but she wanted to bring Bricks down in flame. She shuffled papers around on her desk, rereading and making notations on her closing statements. Her concentration was so that she didn't hear the knocking on the door until Elliot opened it and whistled to get her attention.

"Oh, sorry Detectives. Come in." Olivia was back from Connecticut, and she closed the door, joining Elliot in front of Novak's desk.

"What can I do for you?"

"Huang is concerned about putting Faith Bricks on the stand tomorrow Casey." Olivia said straightforwardly. Casey fell back in her chair.

"Faith is my primary witness, I don't think we can win the case without her testimony. Why won't she testify?"

"She's terrified. Of the four men who raped her and left her for dead two were dirty cops and the other two were Bricks' influential journalist friends. She's convinced that if she testifies against Andrew she's going to die tomorrow." Elliot said.

"If she doesn't testify, Bricks goes free and then he probably will kill her!"

"Can you raise security on the court house?" Olivia asked.

"With a case this high profile I could turn that place into Fort Knox, but what's the point if she doesn't think it will help?"

"We agree with Faith." Olivia said, shrugging. "Bricks has an extensive drug cartel, more money than he knows what to do with, and he has ties deep in every level of the criminal justice system. If he really wanted to kill his stepdaughter, he could do it, there's no way to stop him."

"What else can I do?" Olivia and Elliot looked at each other for a moment and back at Casey. Elliot leaned forward and lowered his voice slightly.

"Have you ever heard of the drug cartel case involving one Alexandra Cabot?"

"Would the defense like to call any more witnesses?" The Judge asked, raising his eyebrows. Bricks' attorney stood up.

"No your Honor, defense rests."

"Miss Novak, the people have a final witness for us today?"

"Yes your Honor, the people call Faith Bricks-"

"Approach your honor?" The defense attorney called. The Judge, looking annoyed, waived them forward.

"What is it Mr. Taylor?"

"Your Honor we object to Faith Bricks being called as a witness in the people's favor. Since her alleged rape, she has been in the temporary custody of one George Huang of the FBI, he was closely involved in the case and could have coached the girl."

"Is this true Miss Novak?"

"Your Honor, Doctor Huang is a licensed psychiatrist, with the FBI or not. It would be a breach of medical ethics-"

"Exactly! We are questioning his ethics your honor!"

"Then put him on the stand for cross-examination! Let yourself and the jury decide if he acted outside his bounds your Honor."

"That's a great idea Casey, but I don't want this to turn into a case of patient confidentiality, and I would like to get this over with today."

"What if Faith waives the confidentiality?" Casey asked. The Judge considered this for a moment.

"Fine. If you can get her to waive the confidentiality, then you can put the good Doctor on the stand. Any objections Mr. Taylor?"

"None your Honor. But I will ask that you remind the witness of the hearsay law beforehand. Striking words from the record doesn't strike them from a juror's brain."

"Fine, if you can convince me that there was no breach of medical ethics that would lead to perjury, I'll allow the witness. Step back counsel." They stepped back and Casey approached Faith, who was sitting behind the gate with Huang on the prosecution's side.

"Faith, I need you to release Doctor Huang from your doctor-patient confidentiality rights. It looks like he'll have to testify for me to get you on the stand." Faith considered this for a moment, looking at Andrew's side of the courtroom and then back at the Doctor.

"Ok." Casey turned around in her seat and nodded to the Judge.

"Miss Bricks, will you please step forward?" Faith stood up and walked in between the defense and prosecution tables. She didn't look over at Andrew, but kept her eyes locked on the Judge. Andrew didn't return the favor; he was glaring at her with a sick superiority on his face.

"Miss Bricks, you understand that if you waive the doctor-patient confidentiality that exists between you and Dr. Huang, anything either of you have said to each other is subject to scrutiny by this court?"

"I do." Faith replied.

"Let the record show that the witness has waived her doctor-patient confidentiality. You may go." She did, glancing over at Casey as she did. The Judge nodded at Brick's attorney.

"Your honor, defense calls Dr. George Huang." The Doctor squeezed Faith's hand reassuringly and rose to the stand.

"Please raise your right hand. Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth so help you God?"

"I do."

"Before we start, Dr. Huang, you do understand that the hearsay law prohibits you from relaying anything that Miss Bricks told you that was not a direct action against her?"

"Yes sir."

"And Mr. Taylor, be advised that if you don't keep your line of questioning directly on the subject of the relationship between Dr. Huang and Miss Bricks, I will have you arrested for contempt."

"Yes your Honor." His Honor waved the proceeding on, and Taylor walked toward the stand.

"Dr. Huang. You are a licensed psychiatrist with the legal ability to prescribe and administer medication to any patient, correct?"

"I am."

"Did you at any point in your time with Faith Bricks prescribe or administer medication to her?"

"Yes on two separate occasions. The first was on the ambulance when myself and Detective Stabler accompanied Faith to the hospital. I advised the EMT's to administer 30 cc's of Lytocine because she was so dehydrated."

"That sounds innocent enough. And the second occasion?"

"The second time was at the Special Victims Unit precinct after we had picked Faith up from being attacked and left in my living room. I administered 20 cc's of Andatracil to help her calm down enough to sleep."

"Andatracil, that's a sedative correct?"

"A mild one, yes."

"What is the other name for Andatracil?"

"I don't understand the question."

"I'll rephrase, what is Andatracil used for when it is not being used as a sedative?" Huang sighed heavily.

"Andatracil can be used as a sort of truth-serum. But not in the amount I gave to-"

"Stick to the question please Doctor. Did you at any time speak with Faith after having given her the drug?"

"Only to tell her to go to sleep, and…"

"And what Doctor?"

"And that no one could hurt her if she told us who had raped her."

"What did she say?"

"She repeatedly begged me not to make her go home."

"So you told an alleged rape victim, while under the influence of a 'truth serum', that her safety depended on telling you a name, any name to keep herself safe from her rapist?"

"Objection your Honor! Defense will have ample opportunity to question Faith Bricks' honesty during her cross-examination."

"Sustained. Keep to the line of questioning Mr. Taylor."

"Withdrawn. Dr. Huang, at the time you administered the Andatracil to Faith Bricks, did you consider her your patient?"

"Yes."

"Do you often let your patients sleep in your guest bedroom?"

"Your honor!" Casey said.

"Only when they would otherwise go home to be beaten and raped by their stepbrothers!" Huang retorted.

"That's enough. Jury will disregard Mr. Taylor's and Dr. Huang's last statements."

"No further questions your honor." Taylor said, returning to his client's side.

"Redirect your honor?" The Judge nodded. "Dr. Huang, why was Faith staying with you?

"The Department of Children and Families was unable to take her into the system, so they awarded me emergency custodial powers."

"On what conditions?"

"That I maintain a strictly doctor-patient relationship between myself and Faith."

"And do you feel that you followed this condition adequately?"

"Yes."

"Doctor, did you at any time coach Faith Bricks to lie to the police, implicate an innocent man in her rape, or commit perjury?"

"No."

"No further questions Judge."

"You may step down Doctor. Let's take a brief recess before we continue. I'll see you all back here in thirty minutes at which time I do find it appropriate to allow Faith Bricks to speak as a witness for the people."

"Are you ready?" Elliot asked in the hallway as Faith bent down to drink from a fountain. He wasn't talking about the trial.

"Will anyone be able to tell I'm wearing it?"

"He won't." Elliot replied, knowing she was referring to Dr. Huang.

"Don't forget your promise."

"I won't." Elliot placed his hands in Faith's and pulled her over to a bench.

"What you're doing is incredibly brave, Faith."

"Please raise your right hand – Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth so help you God?" The bailiff read.

"I do."

"Go ahead Miss Novak." Casey rose and walked toward the bench.

"Faith, how long have you lived with Frank and Andrew Bricks?"

"Four years. My mother married Frank when I was eleven."

"How long after her marriage to Frank Bricks did your mother die?"

"Two years later."

"You were thirteen years old. Correct?"

"Yeah."

"Who did you go to for comfort after the funeral?"

"Andrew."

"What happened when you went to see Andrew?"

"I went into his room. He was sitting on the couch. I was crying so he hugged me, he told me everything would be okay, that his father would take care of everything and that he would take care of me."

"What happened next?"

"He carried me over to his bed. I thought he was going to leave me there, but instead he took off his belt and used it to tie my hands behind my back. He said now I was the woman of the house and I had to start acting like it. He held me down and raped me."

"You fought back?"

"Yes."

"In his statement to Detective Stabler, Andrew said and I quote 'she fought me every time.' Is that true?"

"Yes. But he said fighting just made him want me more. He said it was his proof that I wanted it."

"Did you?"

"No! Never."

"How often did Andrew rape you after that?"

"Almost every week. He was gone on business a lot. He said I was the one thing that brought him home."

"So for two years now, Andrew Bricks has raped you almost every week." Casey was addressing the jury now. "Even if you were generous and said he did it every other week, that would mean he raped you over 50 times."

"Yes."

"What happened on the day of August 15th?"

"Andrew called me up to his room. He and another man were waiting for me. Andrew had a gun. He was holding it to the man's head and he said if I didn't – if I didn't give the man a blow job, he would kill him and he would make me have sex with his dead body."

"But you refused."

"Yes. I told him no and he shot the man. Andrew grabbed me by the hair and tried to force me onto the body, but I ran."

"You went to the police to report the murder."

"Yes. I told the officer what Andrew did. He said I was making up stories to get attention, and he drove me home."

"Did he speak to your stepfather while he was there?"

"Yes. I heard him tell Frank what I said. He was furious. After the cop left, he started to beat me up, but Andrew stopped him."

"Andrew stopped his father from beating you? Why?"

"Objection your Honor, that's speculation."

"Keep it clean Miss Novak."

"Faith, what did Andrew say to make your stepfather stop?"

"He said to lay-off, I was his and he wouldn't let anyone else hurt me. It just made Frank angrier. He said Andrew was a pervert for what he was doing to me."

"What happened that night?"

"Four men came to the house. I was upstairs with Andrew, in his room. He hadn't touched me yet when they broke the door in. The two cops grabbed me and the other two grabbed Andrew. He was fighting and yelling for them let me go, I was his. But one of the guys hit him on the head with something and he stopped moving."

"One of the cops, did you recognize him?"

"Yes. He was the one who I talked to about the man Andrew killed."

"Where did they take you?"

"The drove behind this building and took me down in the cellar. The cop, the one I knew pulled out his handcuffs and locked my hands to a pipe that was coming out of the wall and floor. Then he started to touch me, my hands were behind my back, so I couldn't stop him."

"Did you remain quiet or did you do what you always do?"

"I fought back, I grabbed the pipe and lifted myself so I could kick him. But it just made him mad. He took is baton and hit me in the head with it, but I was still awake."

"What happened next?"

"They took turns. It felt like hours while they were raping me, and when they were done, they left me alone. I couldn't move, I was still cuffed to the pipe, so I just waited to die."

"On the second day that you were trapped in the room, did you have any visitors?"

"At about midnight, Andrew found me. He said this wasn't his fault, that his father had paid them to do it and there was nothing he could do."

"Then what did he do?"

"He tried to pick the lock of the handcuffs, and when he couldn't he said he'd take me right there. And he raped me again, for the last time."

"Casey, over here!" Elliot called. He, Olivia and Dr. Huang were sitting near Faith on a bench outside the courtroom.

"What was the verdict?" Olivia asked.

"They found him guilty on all counts but we'll have to deal at the sentence hearing. We'll take the death penalty off the table in exchange for Andrew's testimony against his father."

"Good." Faith spoke for the first time since her testimony. "I don't want him to die. More death won't help anybody."

"Are you ready to go?" Huang asked with a smile. Faith nodded and he helped her to her feet. Elliot got on the radio and let the legions of court security officers know they were leaving the courthouse.

"Let's go." Huang walked arm in arm with Faith, who looked victorious but still sad and weary. They walked down the long white steps into a crowd of news anchors and flashing cameras. Hundreds of questions were buzzing in their ears, and flashes blinded them everywhere they looked.

"Faith Bricks! Daddy says hi!" A man's voice called. Shots made the news crowd scatter and scream. One of the bullets caught Dr. Huang in the arm, and Olivia's stomach was grazed. Faith had reacted the fastest. She pushed Huang as far away from her as possible, placing him out of the line of fire. Countless officers, members of the escort, had drawn their weapons and gunned down the man. He had been dressed as a news anchor, but he wasn't shooting photographs.

"Cop-killers!" one of them shouted, emptying the magazine into his hand. He needn't have spoken at all. Huang pulled Faith into his arms, bleeding on her slightly. She too was bleeding. Elliot tore open her shirt, revealing the Kevlar bulletproof vest underneath.

"Armor-piercing rounds. Call a bus!" Commotion and chaos were all around them, but Huang and the dying girl in his arms were oblivious to all of it.

"Doctor?"

"I'm here."

"I told you so." She laughed a little, mingling it with her tears.

"I'm so sorry Faith."

"It's not your fault. I wanted to do this. I had-" Her breaths were becoming short and strained. "It hurts."

"I know, just stay with me Faith…Faith!" He shook her back to consciousness.

"Dr. Huang?"

"It's – it's okay Faith, you can sleep now, you can sleep and dream of the other place – "

"No… Listen. It's not sleep…" Huang leaned an ear down to her lips but couldn't hear the words that escaped them in her final breath.

"Olivia's waiting in the car. You ready to go?" Elliot asked. Dr. Huang had just had his arm patched up by the doctor and they were adjusting the sling around his shoulder. He only nodded. Elliot and Olivia didn't seem disturbed that a fifteen year-old girl had been gunned down on their watch. It was probably because she didn't die in their arms, Huang thought.

"Dr. Huang if you'll just sign here and here and you can leave. Try not to do any heavy lifting for a couple of weeks." The Doctor joked.

"Come on." Elliot said, taking him comfortingly by the shoulder.

"It's okay Elliot, I'm just gonna take a cab."

"You can't do that."

"Why not?"

"We have something to show you. You're just going to have to trust us." Dr. Huang shook his head and slid into the back seat. The drive was silent and long. None of the three passengers were paying much attention to where they were going. Dr. Huang paid no attention simply because he didn't much care, but Elliot and Olivia's attention wasn't on the road because they knew the route well. They went over the same small wooden bridge and passed the same silver grain field and came upon the same long row of black Federal SUV's.

"What is this Elliot?" The doctor said as they approached the cars. Several Federal agents, a few of which Huang new personally, had stepped out of the cars.

"Hi George." One of these agents said as the three joined them on the dirt road. "She insisted on telling you as part of the deal."

"Derrick, what-" Before he could finish his question, the doctor saw Faith stepping out from behind the agent. She was wrapped in gauze and had a portable IV in her arm.

"She can't speak, one of the bullets hit her in the throat." Elliot said. Neither Dr. Huang nor Faith heard her as they shared an embrace.

"Two years ago, A.D.A. Alexandra Cabot was shot and killed by the agent of a drug lord she had just put in prison. Her name is different now, and she has graciously agreed to let the late Faith Bricks come and live with her." Olivia said.

"Where you're going, will you be safe?" Dr. Huang asked. Faith smiled slightly and nodded. "I'll miss you." He said with another hug. Faith mouthed the words 'me too' and then retreated with the agents to her car.

"Come on, let's go home." Elliot said, trying to lead Dr. Huang away.

"Wait! Faith," he leaned down to her height as he spoke. "What did you say? You never finished. You said, it's not sleep…" Faith pulled the pen out of an agent's shirt and a napkin from her own pocket. After writing something down and slipping it into the Doctor's front pocket, she drove out of sight with a line of black SUV's.

"What's it say?" Elliot asked. Dr. Huang shook his head slightly as he read the words on the napkin aloud.

" 'It's not sleep, it's waking up…This is the dream.'"