AUTHOR'S NOTE: I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THESE CHARACTERS, THEY ARE THE CREATION OF DICK WOLF AND NBC ENTERTAINMENT. I HAVE MERELY BORROWED THEM TO COME OUT AND PLAY. IF THERE IS SOMETHING YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE IN THE STORY, FEEL FREE TO LET ME KNOW.

The morning was bright and sparkling in the morning sunlight as Amanda entered the station. She raised her sunglasses to the top of her head and smiled, coffee cup in hand. Work was always a constant in her life, nothing else seemed to change here. Well, that's not entirely true. Some things have changed; some for the better and some for the worst.

Some of the worst changes were when Nick left. He had made the decision to leave without even consulting her. Not that they were really a couple, more like two people who fueled each other's fire for a short time. Maybe she felt something more for him at one point in her life but now Nick Amaro was nothing more than a fleeting memory of what was.

So was Declan Murphy. Okay, maybe not as fleeting as Nick but still a memory of her past. Getting busted all those years ago in that gambling club had brought the UC Lieutenant into Amanda's life and had brought her the only thing she had ever done right in her life: her daughter Jesse. Amanda wouldn't trade Jesse for anything but Declan couldn't say the same. Apparently to him, his daughter was not as important as his undercover work and before she was even born, Declan was back in deep cover of Serbia.

All that had led Amanda here: a single mom working her tail off to create a life for her and her daughter. But something was changing. A recent case involving a missing child had her rethinking things. As Carisi had told her after the case was over, she is a good mother and like she told him, it does get lonely sometimes. Perhaps that's when things started to change. Maybe it was before that or it could've been after. But the truth was she had been through a lot lately and she wasn't doing it entirely alone anymore – now she had Sonny Carisi by her side.

"You just gonna stand there or you gonna sit?" a voice said behind her. Amanda turned to see Fin standing behind her.

"Thought I'd take in the scenery. That a problem?" she asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Nah, just giving you a hard time. I was up late last night."

"Hot date?" Amanda asked, sitting at her desk while Fin took his place across from her.

"Nope, KOBS meeting."

"You boys and your video games. I just don't get it."

"Hey you have your way to relax and I got mine," Fin said with a knowing smile. While nobody else at the precinct knew of the budding feelings (if she would call them that) Amanda was starting to feel for Sonny, she had confided in Fin. Fin was like the older brother every girl wished they had. He never criticized her for her choices, only offered support when she needed it and a comforting hand when she was about to fall apart.

"Thought we weren't going to discuss this anymore," she said quietly to him.

"We aren't. Just know I'm here if you do want to talk," Fin replied.

"Thanks," Amanda said as both she and Fin turned to see who had come in.

Sonny walked in and stopped short in the doorway. He could feel eyes on him. Why was Amanda and Fin staring at him like that? Did he have something on his face, his tie or his suit? He glanced down and ran his hand nervously over his face. Nothing.

"What's up?" he asked, the Staten Island accent as thick as could be.

"Just getting the morning going," Fin said.

"Anyone want coffee?" Amanda said.

"I'm good girl," Fin said as he nodded his head in the direction of the break room.

"Carisi?"

"Yeah. I'll come with," Sonny said, following Amanda. Fin just kept an eye out for Olivia. He may know something is going on with the young detectives, but their boss does not.

Inside the breakroom, Sonny went to the coffee pot as Amanda sat down.

"Missed you last night," he said in a low voice.

"Sorry. Jesse hasn't been feeling well. I thought a night in would be better for her."

"I could've helped you. Why didn't you call?"

"I'm a big girl, Carisi. I can handle an upset stomach by myself."

"I know that, 'Manda. But I want to be there for both you and Jesse."

"I know you do. Why don't you come over tonight for dinner?"

"Are you cooking it?" he asked, skeptic.

"No, you are. We can go shopping after work," Amanda said, standing and accepting the coffee cup from him. "Thanks for the coffee," she said, smiling at him.

"Anytime," he said as he smiled back. Just then, another detective came into the break room and they both disappeared back to their desks.

A short time later, after Liv had arrived in a flurry with Chief Dodds, both emerged from her office. Her face was stern and clearly stated something big was happening.

"Listen up. We've got a big one," she called out to the squad room. Everyone stopped and looked at her.

"As most of you know, we have a few very special guests in New York this week, the royal family of Calcutta. They are here along with a few security personnel. The head of the security detail is Johnathon Applewhite. His wife and teenage daughter have accompanied them," Dodds said.

"It appears that Jennifer Applewhite has been abducted," Liv explained. "Jennifer is a 15 year old white female with brown hair and hazel eyes. It's unclear as to who is the real target of this abduction, the Applewhite family or the royal family. Nonetheless, we have been asked by the mayor to handle this personally."

"Everything else you're working on now has been pushed to the back burner. SVU detectives from other boroughs will be coming to gather whatever it is that needs to be done on your other cases," Dodds explained.

"Where was she abducted?" Fin asked.

"At a bodega near 23rd St. she was there with her mother, the royal princess and two female security agents. Once they stepped outside the bodega, Jennifer was grabbed by a masked man and tossed into a dark colored van, possibly brown or black," Liv replied.

"Everyone else?" Sonny asked.

"Relatively unharmed. Mrs. Applewhite was shielding the royal princess from danger with one agent protecting them and the other agent trying to rescue Jennifer. That agent has a few minor injuries and has been transport to Bellevue. Her name is Alexis Johansen. Mrs. Applewhite and the royal princess have been escorted back to the hotel and their entire floor is on lockdown. Nobody up or down except us," Liv added.

"What do you want us to do first?" Amanda asked.

"Rollins start gathering security footage from any camera in the area of the bodega and include a 5 mile radius. Anything suspicious, get it to TARU. Carisi, go to the hospital and take Ms. Johansen's statement. Fin, you and I will go talk to the family. We do this 10000% by the book as Chief Dodds will be our liaison between us and the mayor's office," Liv finished.

"Let's try to solve this as quickly as we can people. These people are guests in our great state and we need to get the girl back, safe and sound to her family," Dodds added.

Liv, Fin and Sonny all grabbed their coats. Amanda was firing up her computer as they left but looked up to see Sonny's eyes on her. He mouthed the words 'I'm sorry' but she just nodded her head. This was no time to get distracted. The clock was ticking.