It was another day at the precinct.
"I'm going to need warrants to search the church," said Olivia Benson. "And get computer crimes over to analyze the hotel security camera."
It was late May and the SVU squad had an influx of cases on their hands. They had been working nonstop for days now trying to investigate.
In the late afternoon, a girl who looked about ten and her mother and father walked into the precinct. Amanda Rollins walked up to them.
"How may I help y'all," said Amanda.
"We need to file a report," said the father.
Amanda paused for a second. Then she turned to Sonny Carisi.
"Carisi," she said. "Lets take them into a side room."
They all walked into a side room.
"What is your name?" said Sonny to the girl.
"Mary Rasputin," said the girl in a small voice.
"Okay," he said. "Tell me what happened.
"At my after school program," said Mary. "There's this man who acts really nice to all the kids. He plays dodgeball with us and makes great snacks. And sometimes he takes kids out of the rec center for the afternoon to do fun things."
"What sort of things," said Amanda.
"Well, the other day, he took me out," continued Mary. "Except we didn't do anything fun. We went to his apartment and and…"
Mary's mother began to cry. Mary's father gripped her hand.
"What did he do to you," said Amanda gently. "It's okay, we're here to help you."
Mary took a deep breath. "We watched these videos where these naked people were rubbing each other with their bodies. Some of them looked like children. I told him these looked gross, but he said that I would like them once I hit puberty. And then he told me to take off my clothes."
Mary's mother was trying hard not explode. Her father was breathing angrily.
"What did he do to you after that?" asked Sonny.
"He took pictures of me," said Mary. "And then he started to touch me around my crotch. I told him to stop, but he said I was very sexy and this could be our secret. He then started giving me a massage and ruffling my hair."
"Mary…" said her father. "Who did this to you."
"I can't say," said Mary beginning to cry. "He said he'd kill me if I tell."
"We'll keep you safe," said Sonny. "Just give us a name."
Mary took a deep breath. After a minute, she spoke.
"His name," she said. "Is Matt. Matt Wooten.
"Okay," said Amanda, writing it down. "And what did Matt do to you after that.
"He told me to kiss him," said Mary. "I said I only kiss my parents, but he said that he could be the the first boy I kiss, like a princess. And then he got really persuasive, so I reluctantly kissed him on the cheek. Then he pulled me into a hug and held me for a while. I wanted to get out but he wouldn't let me. Then when he finally let go he told me to go into the kitchen and have some muffins he made for me. I had lost my appetite but I ate one anyway. I could hear him breathing heavily in the living room. I didn't look at what he was doing."
Even Amanda and Sonny felt like they wanted to cry.
"So what did he do to you after?" said Sonny.
"We left and he took me back to the rec center," said Mary. "He told me that this was between us and if I told anyone, he'd kill me or keep me as his sex slave." She began to cry again.
"Mary," said her father. "Thank goodness you told. What he did is not okay and the police are going to make sure he goes to jail for a long time.
"Mary," said Sonny gently. "You said he took other kids out before you. What were their names."
"Let me try to remember," said Mary. They were Tasha, Tom, Lily, Mark, Eric, Mariah, Joni, Danny, Elliot, Terri and Liza," she finished. I think that is it."
"Okay," said Amanda writing them down. "We'll get the attendance list for the rec center and hopefully get a word with some of the other kids.
"Mary," said Sonny. "We just need to talk to your parents for a minute. Go help yourself to a soda or a snack in the fridge."
"Okay," said Mary. "She left the room."
Mary's mom burst into tears. She started talking quickly "She was acting strange the other day and complained she felt sick. She had no fever but she wet the bed, which she never does anymore. I just knew something was up. She loves school and the rec center. So today when she felt sick again, I asked her if anyone made her feel bad. She said no, but I could tell she was lying. I then asked her if that person told her not to tell. She still said nothing happened. So I called my sister Linda who is a psychologist at Yale. She suspected someone might have abused Mary. So I asked Mary, and she finally said yes. I called my husband and we went straight here." She put her head down and continued to sob.
Mary's dad began to cry too. "We need to do what's best for Mary," he said. "She can never go near that place again."
"Yes," said Amanda. "We're going to do some more investigating. But in the meantime, I think it would be best for one of you to take Mary out of the city, just as a precaution. "Mrs. Rasputin, you said your sister works at Yale right.
"Yes," she said.
"Why don't you take Mary to her house and try to get her to make an appointment for Mary," said Amanda. "She's going to need help."
"That's a great idea," said Mary's mom. She turned to her husband. "Aaron, you can stay here with Mary, while I go home to get the car. I'll fill up the tank and take Mary to New Haven."
"Okay Laura," said Mary's dad. They both left the room.
Sonny sighed. "Sometimes this job gets really difficult."
"Yeah," said Amanda. "I hope Mary gets help. That took a lot of courage to tell. Especially when you've never been exposed to that shit before."
A half an hour later, Mary's mom returned.
"Thank you," said Mary's mom as she left with her daughter.
"You're welcome," said Amanda.
After Mary and her parents left, they began to work on the case file.