A/N: This story has been in my head since before Barba left SVU but it got shoved on the back-burner while I wrote The Rediscovered Country. Thanks to motherbearof03 for putting up with my constant ramblings, questions and frettings about titles! She deserves a medal.
As the silver Ford Taurus cruised along the long road that ran the length of the East River, the driver glanced in the rearview mirror and caught the eye of the young occupant in the back. She flashed a smile.
"Tonight was fun," she said, before turning her attention back to the road. They'd been out for dinner and to the movies and were now making their way home. With her busy work schedule, it had been a long time since they'd spent any quality time together. She felt guilty for working so much, for not being around, but as a single mom, it was necessary. Their outing to see The Greatest Showman had been a much overdue chance to reconnect; for her to catch up on the news from school and anything else that her child felt like sharing with her.
"Yeah. It was cool. Thanks for taking me," her passenger replied, still chomping on the super-sized popcorn from the movie theatre. Given the large meal they'd eaten and the amount of ice-cream and candy they'd also bought, it was hardly a surprise the buttery treat had gone unfinished.
"Pass me some popcorn, will you?" She reached behind blindly, just about managing to scoop up some kernels without dropping any on the floor. "I'd say we could do it again soon, but…" She trailed off with a shrug.
"…it depends on work," her young passenger finished for her. "I know."
"I love you, baby. Don't ever doubt that."
"I know. I love you too."
"So, what was your favourite part of the movie?" she asked, returning both hands to the wheel to move into the next lane.
"Maybe the part where-" Suddenly, a bright light flashed through the window. The shining beams got bigger, the vehicle they were coming from getting closer. "Mom, watch out!"
Suddenly there was an almighty bang; the sound of screeching brakes and breaking glass filling the air. As the airbags deployed with a pop, the car spun towards the guardrail between the carriageways. It ploughed through the barrier and into the path of an SUV coming the other way. The noise was deafening, like the roar of an aeroplane at take-off. Then there was nothing. No spinning, no noise. Nothing. Just the creeping darkness.
"Air 14, responding to the location of MVA on FDR Drive," the helicopter pilot radioed his current location, while his co-pilot studied the scene below as they circled. "Be advised, rescue vehicles and patrol are on site. We have three vehicles, and extrication is underway."
"Copy that, Air 14. Extrication is underway. Maintain air presence. We don't need press helicopters crowding our airspace," the dispatcher relayed.
"Understood." The pilot circled again, casting a look at the ground below. "We've got a real mess down there. You might want to send more ground support to this location. Traffic is backing up quickly. Additional emergency vehicles are having difficulty reaching this location." Even at this hour of the evening, the roads were busy both in both directions; into and out of the city.
"Copy that, Air 14." came the reply. "Additional patrol support is rolling."
"What a mess," the co-pilot stated, binoculars in hand. "That is one mangled Ford Taurus. No way they're getting out of there in one piece."
"Let's hope for the best," the pilot said, keeping one eye on the ground, another on his instruments.
On the ground, Detective Phillips approached the accident scene. He flashed his badge at the FDNY and EMS personnel as he passed. As he cleared the side of the fire truck all the air in his lungs left. He had to bend forward at the waist, while the street and buildings around him spun slowly.
"Holy mother," he muttered quietly. He ran his hands through his hair, fisting them as he straightened up. He looked over the mangled remains of the car and grimaced; it was not a pretty sight. The driver's side door was crushed in, bending the car into almost a v shape and all its windows were smashed. The light pole had stopped its trajectory, preventing it from ending up on the sidewalk. Working traffic, you saw a lot of accidents and this was up there with some of the worst he'd seen.
Paramedics and firemen were on scene, attempting to extract the victims. Phillips winced at the eerie sound of the gas-operated saw as it began cutting through the metal of the front pillars to remove the roof.
"Detective, I think you should see this." A younger patrol officer jogged over, carrying an iPad. "I was running the names from the licenses, searching for next of kin, and… Well, see for yourself." He handed the device to the detective.
Scanning the details on the screen, Phillips' face fell as his eyes were drawn to a familiar name. "Oh hell." He looked once more at the scene of devastation in front of him. "Listen up everyone!" he called, trying to make himself heard over the whirring and grinding of the machinery. "Everything here needs to be done by the book. Every I dotted, and every T crossed. Do I make myself clear?" He wouldn't tell them that this involved a member of the law and order community – they didn't need to know that yet, but they did need to make sure that there were no cock-ups. If someone was at fault here, Phillips knew that the powers that be would want to see them punished.
The assembled officers and rescuers nodded sombrely and returned to their tasks as Detective Phillips turned back to the patrol officer. "When the victims are clear of the vehicle I want CSU to go over both it, and the wider scene with a fine-toothed comb." Hopefully, EMS and FDNY wouldn't mangle the evidence too much. "We cannot afford to miss anything here," he added.
The patrol officer nodded, and Phillips made his way back behind the crime scene tape. He had some calls to make. Families needed to be notified, but he would prefer to break the news from the relative quietness of his car.
A/N2: Sorry for the cliffhanger - I'll get the next chapter up as soon as I can.