A short woman with dirty blonde hair stumbled into the ER of Mercy Hospital, clinging to the arm of a dark haired woman. The shorter woman wore a torn little black dress. "She's been raped!" the other woman exclaimed.

Detectives Benson and Stabler were assigned to the case. Stabler brought in the dark haired witness for questioning.

At the hospital, Benson questioned the victim and her husband. He looked very distraught, "My name's John Prescott, I dropped her off only forty minutes before her friend was supposed to pick her up. She was mad at me because she was running late, she said she needed to find some pair of shoes she'd already packed to go out tonight and wash her hair. We did look at a few apartments this afternoon, one on Broadway and one on seventy-fifth. The doctor said she'd been beaten" His voice broke.

"Do you have any idea who could have done this?"

"No, no one that I can think of, she's likeable, she goes out every weekend, I go with her sometimes but when she goes with her friends they go to bars and clubs, it could be anyone."

"Alright, thank you Mr. Prescott. I need to speak with your wife now."

Carrie lay helplessly in the hospital bed, awaiting rape kit results. "Carrie, I know this is really hard for you, but can you tell me anything, who might have done this to you?

"I didn't see his face. He wore a mask, one of those black ski masks." She winced. "I walked into my apartment, it was locked, he was already in there. He must have had a key. I don't know anything else, I walked in and he slammed my head into the door frame, I tried to get out the door but he pulled me in and shut the door." John kneeled next to her bed and put his head down. He looked ashamed. I tried to get to the kitchen I guess I thought I'd stab him or something but he tackled me to the floor." She took a deep breath as tears streamed down her face. "He held me down and, and he pulled off my panties."

"It's okay,"

"And he raped me, I fought and tried to get away but he kept hitting me and like kneeing me. And once he was done, he kept kicking me and telling me I was a whore. He sounded so familiar but like different, I can't explain it."

"You think you know this person?"

"I must, he had a key."

"An old boyfriend maybe, or land lord, a friend?"

"I always get the key back, it can't be an ex, and my apartment is co-op, I own it, the only people that have keys are myself, Big, Charlotte, Samantha, and Miranda."

"Big?"

"That's me, that's what she calls me." John lifted his head. "And my key is right here on my ring, I've never made a copy. The girls are her best friends."

"Okay, I'm going to need to talk with each of them,"

"My name is Charlotte Goldenblat. I was supposed to meet Carrie at her apartment with the cab. She and I were supposed to go out for drinks. When she didn't come down after a few minutes, I went in to get her and, and-" Charlotte began to cry.

"It's alright. Do you know who could have done this? Did Carrie say anything?"

"No, I walked in and she was on the floor in the kitchen, she was barely conscious, all she could say was she'd been raped. I brought her out to the cab and went straight to the hospital. I don't know, I'm no help"

"It's alright, every little detail helps. Do you know if Carrie was with anyone today that you know of?"

"Her and her husband, they just got married, they were supposed to be looking at apartments today. I don't know where, She's been packing up her place so everything at her apartment was out of order already, I don't know if it were a robber or anything, I didn't look around to find out, I just went up there and the door was unlocked, that was unusual, this is New York you know?"

"Ok, you've been a great help. We're gonna catch this guy."

At Samantha's PR office, Benson and Stabler questioned her, "Have you ever made a copy of Carrie's key?"

"Of course not, I don't even go over that often I'm very busy, we usually meet for coffee in the mornings the four of us or we meet on Friday or Saturday nights for drinks. I've never given her key or lent it to anyone. I can't believe this happened to her."

"Does she have any new male friends or any enemies that you know of?"

"No, not that I know of, Carrie tells me everything, she just got married. She's been busy apartment hunting and packing and writing, she only goes out with us girls or her husband."

"What about before the wedding, did she have any affairs?"

"Carrie is a sex columnist; she's been with a few men before she was married. Her and Big's relationship were on and off for ten years before they added the ball and chain. The only man she cheated on was Aidan, and that was with Big."

"Who's Aidan?" Benson asked.

"Her ex fiancé. He wouldn't hurt a fly. Their first break up was because of the affair, the second, she didn't want to marry him. He couldn't have done this."

"So he has never hit her? Has any of her other ex's been known to abuse Carrie?"

"Not that she's ever told me, well there was one incident, it was nothing really, She dated this older man, Aleksandra Petrovski. He slapped her once after she moved to Paris with him. It was an accident. But right after that, she was right back with Big."

"Would Mr. Prescott ever harm his wife?"

"Never! Granted my opinion of him has swayed back and forth, Carrie was emotionally hurt by his lack of commitment on several occasions but he never emotionally or physically abuses her. Trust me, I would know; even if she never said anything, I would notice a thing like that. I was supposed to be the maid of honor at her wedding."

"Supposed to be?"

"Well, it's a bit complicated. Carrie had planned a huge wedding for her and Big. He hesitated, when he didn't show, she called him, said he couldn't do it and the four of us left. It wasn't until nearly six months later, they reconciled and tied the knot at the courthouse. "

"Any idea where Aidan or Petrovski is?"

"Last I heard, Aidan Shaw was married, he still lives in New York and is a silent co-owner to the bar Scout. Miranda Hobbs husband it the primary owner."

"Thank you."

Scout, the bar, Benson and Stabler question Steve and Aidan. "Mr. Hobbs?"

"Mr. Brady, my wife Miranda Hobbs. She kept her last name because our son was born as Brady Hobbs. What's this about?"

"Carrie Prescott's rape."

"My wife told me about that. It's awful."

"Do you know if Aidan Shaw is still in touch with her?"

"Nah, they bump into each other from time to time and they are friendly but her affair hurt him bad. He didn't want to stay friends. Then she wouldn't marry him. It killed him."

"Do you know where he is?"

"He's in the back. I'll get him for ya. Wait, you don't think that he, cause Aidan would never do a thing like that. He doesn't have it in him."

"It's just routine." Benson assured him.

"I'm Aidan, how can I help you officers?"

"Carrie Prescott was raped last night; you don't know anything about it do you?" Stabler began.

"I only know what I heard through the grapevine. Steve heard from Miranda, I heard from him."

"Are you and Carrie still friends?"

"We're friendly, I don't see much of her, we have our own lives why you ask?"

"Do you still have a key to her apartment?"

"No I left it when I left her. I didn't want anything to do with her."

"That's what we've been hearing. Sorry to waste your time."

Miranda Hobbs law office, "She said to go right in." The secretary told the detectives as she hung up the phone.

"Hi come on in."

"Miranda, we have to ask you a few routine questions." Benson began.

"Sure, any way I can help, but I don't know much to be honest."

"That's alright; have you noticed anything unusual, new friends, or places she visits?"

"Just the apartments that her and Big have been looking into. She's been going to the same shoe stores and clothing stores for fifteen, twenty years now, since she moved to New York. The worse crime to ever happen to her was a street mugging, stole her Blaniks, she was devastated at that. I saw her in the hospital last night. She slept the whole time so she didn't tell me anything."

"We understand you have a key to her apartment?"

"Yes."

"Have you ever left it anywhere, made a copy or lent it to anyone?"

"No, it's never left my key ring. Anyone that has business in her apartment already has a key, why?"

"We believe the attacker had a key, anyone you can think of?"

"Well a few of her old boyfriends have gotten keys. But as far as I know, she always gets them back."

"Well, just in case she didn't, can you tell me what boyfriends might have gotten a key?"

"Well I don't know, a lot of them, and she's had a lot. She's always been looking for that one love. She always knew deep down that Big was the one. That's why she couldn't marry Aidan, but whenever they were on a break up, she'd look anywhere. She's dated older men, younger men, men her own age, tall short, sweet, neurotic, she doesn't discriminate."

"Thank you. Um, one more question, do you know where this Aleksandra Petrovski is?"

"I don't know, he could still be in Paris for all I know, he's some big time light installation artist in Europe. I don't think any of her ex's could have done this though, none that I can think of."

"Thank you."