Disclaimer – I own nothing. All characters are the property of Dick Wolf.
A/N – "Outsider" takes place six years after Elliot Stabler left SVU.
Rated T for mature subject matter, language, and adult situations.
Outsider
The day her body was discovered, it was scorching hot.
Thick, towering pines dotted the gentle green slope of the mountain, their heavy limbs blocking the majority of the late summer sun but trapping the stifling heat below. The air was dense and sluggish, the distant calls of hidden birds hanging thickly in the atmosphere. Underfoot, the rich mahogany soil was soft and the glimmering lake at the bottom of the mountain seemed too distant to be anything more than a seductive mirage.
Strands of caramel-highlighted hair escaped Captain Olivia Benson's ponytail and clung damply to the back of her neck as she crouched, holding her breath and examining the decaying corpse. Her aviator sunglasses, slick with sweat, slipped down her nose. Irritated, she pushed them back up, simultaneously shooing the buzzing flies that attacked her ears and mouth. The motion threw her off balance and nearly knocked her on her jean-clad behind.
"It's her."
Wiping her wet palms on her already dirty jeans, Olivia straightened, a stray twig crunching underfoot. Her eyes never left the body of eighteen year old Teresa Simmons as it lay protruding from a random scrub bush. The young girl's once porcelain skin was now a mottle of broken blood vessels, the odd twist to her neck a dead giveaway as to cause of death. Her eyes, sightless, gazed up at the green canopy above.
"How the hell'd she get out here?" Detective Odafin Tutuola's eyes were hidden beneath dark sunglasses. His face was its normal mask of calm, with only the twisted corner of his mouth to suggest inner disgust. Reported missing twelve hours earlier, the daughter of a prominent New York City Prosecutor, Teresa usually resided in downtown Manhattan. Given the party girl's penchant for designer handbags and designer drugs, it was surprising she had travelled so far afield.
"Not a dump job." Detective Odessa Ryan shifted her weight from side to side. The raven-haired detective held pen to white notepad but wrote nothing, nodding her head at the crusted bloodstains on either side of the body. "M.E. can say for sure, but looks to me she was killed out here."
Olivia's brown eyes flickered over the landscape thoughtfully. From where they stood, there was little to see outside of the hovering pine trees, but she knew from the drive in that they were not alone in the seemingly remote New York state wilderness. They had passed a series of dirt laneways and caught glimpses of expensive cars and massive houses tucked back into the trees.
"A different zip code maybe, but you saw the real estate. There's money out here. Maybe she found herself a sugar daddy."
Wiping her forearm across her melting forehead, Olivia turned and started up the slope, her feet slipping slightly in the loose soil. Behind her, she heard the rustle of the black tarp as Fin covered the body.
"We'll need to canvass everyone along this road as a start. I'll go back to the House, send reinforcements from the local PD to help you out. The houses are pretty spaced out. You'll want to divide them up."
Sweat-stained members of the Crime Scene Unit appeared at the crest of the slope, stretcher bouncing roughly over the assorted rocks. Brian Pableski, Assistant M.E., greeted Olivia with a smile, his freckled face red with late summer sunburn.
"Morgue is quiet today, Olivia. Should be able to get your vic in right away."
Olivia returned his smile wanly, peeling her damp T-shirt off the small of her back as she walked. "That's good Pableski. Get a rush on that T.O.D for me, will you?"
Brian saluted cheerfully, stepping past her and carefully winding his way down the slope. Olivia lowered her head to watch her footing on the rocks as her calves strained.
When the hell did I get so out of shape? Stupid desk job . . .
As she crested the top of the hill, a familiar voice from lives past startled her from her quiet mental reverie.
"Olivia?"
Head snapping up, Olivia blinked into the bright sunlight. Beside the waiting patrol car, a tall man stood stalk still staring at her, the leashes of two large dogs clutched loosely in his hands.
For a brief moment, Olivia's heart stopped in surprise.
"Elliot?"