February 21, 7:57am
Detective Olivia Benson was still catching her breath as she draped her favourite suede jacket over the back of her desk chair. Rarely late to work, she prided herself on being at least ten minutes early; today she'd been pushing it, but with a distraction such as Alexandra Cabot in her shower, Olivia figured it was excusable. John Munch raised an eyebrow at her still damp hair but wisely refrained from commenting. Stabler sat opposite and smirked as he caught sight of a small bruise just under his partner's right ear. Before he could determine whether it was, in fact, a hickey, Olivia had subconsciously pulled up her shirt collar to cover it.
"Morning," she exhaled, sitting down heavily.
"Running late?"
The ex-marine cocked an eyebrow, mentally calculating the number of times his partner had started her shift like this. He was pleased for her – she was so committed to her job that he had, on more than one occasion, feared that her personal life would be forever condemned to second place – but the ADA had helped restored balance. The very fact that it was Alex Cabot who had prompted the change was a welcome one, not least because she understood just what Olivia's work entailed. Sure, tensions could run high between SVU and the ADA's office, but at the end of the day, no grudges were held, and Olivia was the happiest he'd ever seen her.
"Technically, I'm here early," Olivia smirked, knowing just what Elliot was driving at. She settled into her chair, hearing the familiar creak as she leaned backwards and stretched. Looking very much like the cat that got the cream, she smiled and reached for the coffee that Fin had deposited on her desk as she had come through the door. It was a good start to the day, and in spite of it being Monday, she felt refreshed. Mind-blowing sex will do that to you, she mused, knowing full well that she'd only managed to grab a few hours of sleep. Flushing slightly as she remembered her invigorating morning shower, she distracted herself by asking about Munch's weekend. The slim detective had started writing a book, fuelled by his conspiracy theories and years of detective work – something to ease himself into retirement, or so he'd said. Fin's running commentary soon had her smiling at the traditional banter shared between the two men. Leaving them to it, she returned her attention to her partner.
"Good weekend, El?" she asked, taking a sip of her coffee and grimacing slightly at the bitter taste. Even after years of drinking it, she had never quite grown accustomed to consuming it on a regular basis; it was a necessary evil, one she made amends for with numerous cups of green tea in her spare time. She'd even converted Alex, a feat she was still proud of given the attorney's reliance on strong, black coffee to get her out of bed in the morning.
"Yeah," he smiled, looking relaxed and even slightly tanned with his sleeves rolled up. "Managed to get lucky with the weather when we hit the beach. How 'bout you?"
He refrained from asking about Alex, not wanting to push for details in case it made Olivia uncomfortable. Though everybody in the squad knew about their relationship, he tried not to meddle. More often than not, Olivia would tell him anyway – letting small details slip in the car, or accepting personal calls from Alex when they were eating lunch. Minor things, but signs that she appreciated his respect for her privacy and trusted him completely.
"We drove upstate for the weekend and managed to catch some of the sun, too," she said, remembering fondly how Alex had managed to burn the back of her neck, and how she had kissed it better as the attorney drifted to sleep in her arms.
Before Elliot could ask any further questions, Cragen stepped onto the floor.
"Good morning, everybody. Things were unusually quiet this weekend, so I hope you made the most of your time off. Unfortunately, I've just received a call of a body dump. Warner's already there – Elliot, Olivia, I want you to get over there and see to all the preliminaries. Munch and Fin, there's a potential witness from the Petrov case in interrogation room one." He handed Tutuola a copy of the file.
"This the rape-homicide?" he asked, flipping through the report and gruesome images contained within before handing the folder to his partner.
"Yeah. Treat this one with kid-gloves, this witness is only 15. Lawyer is on the way, so you have time to read up and refresh your memory."
"Sure thing, Cap'."
"I'd like to hear progress reports by 3pm today, or as soon as you find any reasonable leads. That's all, folks."
Olivia sighed as she drained her coffee cup and winced as the hot liquid scalded her tongue. Business as usual. It was only a matter of time before reality hit, and the weekend's memories were overwritten by blood and tears.
February 21, 8.43am
As soon as they approached Warner, the smell of the body made Olivia stop in her tracks. Breathing through her mouth, she spared a glance at her partner, who was actually wincing as he tried to adjust to the odour. Warner had on a paper mask, and her latex gloves were covered in some kind of bodily fluid.
"A decomp?" Stabler asked, tucking his tie into his shirt and crouching as near to the victim as he could get without being overwhelmed by the smell.
"Looks like it. She's been in this dumpster for a while – my guess, probably three days give or take. It's not open to the elements, but she's been kept in water for a prolonged period of time. I'm not sure why, maybe to try and speed up the process and make it hard to identify her. She's missing both hands."
That got Olivia's attention, and she frowned as Warner lifted the sheet.
"How old?"
"From height and build, I'd say about ten."
"Signs of assault?" Elliot looked calm asking the standard questions, but Olivia knew that cases involving young girls always wound him up.
"Hard to say, but I'll be able to let you know more once I conduct an autopsy. It looks like bleach was used to clean the body."
"Wow," Olivia breathed, forgetting that she'd been trying to avoid the smell and stepping away when it hit her again. Walking off to one side, she heard Elliot thanking the M.E before joining her.
"You ok?"
Olivia nodded.
"It never fails to surprise me how many sick fucks there are out there," she sighed. Her opinion of humanity took a regular beating, and she was glad that Alex was there to restore her faith in it. The thought of her lover in this context seemed out of place, though, and she wanted to keep the two as far apart as possible. Shaking her head as if to dispel the thoughts, she looked around.
"Quiet part of town. The way she was left suggests that this guy doesn't want to take risks. Like he's just getting started."
"Or had a lot of practice," Elliot shrugged. I hope to God that isn't the case.
An hour later and they'd interviewed the man who'd discovered the body, left their details with the uniforms at the scene, and were driving back to the squad room, in silence. The ringing of Olivia's cell phone startled them both, and she dug it out of her pocket in irritation. When she saw who was calling, however, she couldn't help a smile from spreading across her face. It was infectious, and Elliot relaxed in his seat, the tension in the car having lifted within the space of seconds.
"Hey," Olivia said softly, turning to look out the passenger window. Stabler resolutely kept his gaze on the road ahead, trying to give his partner some privacy.
"You've already been called in? That's quick," Olivia frowned, her thumb running along the inside of the door as she listened.
"Jesus. We'll be back in about twenty, depending on traffic. I'll see you then?" she added quietly, flipping her phone shut soon after.
"Munch and Fin have already made some kind of break with their witness. Apparently there are links to the Russian mafia – trafficking, child prostitution, you name it."
"Shit," Elliot sighed, knowing that other agencies would soon be involved and that the case could drag on for months. It was a small price to pay for justice, but even minor victories were overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of the problem. Sex trafficking a different world altogether, something driven by sheer disregard for the worth of human life and on a massive scale. It was something they could work towards stopping, but would never truly be able to end. Such efforts were tiring, to say the least.
Olivia ran a hand through her short hair in frustration.
"Why do I feel like this is just going to turn into one big mess?"
Elliot smiled grimly.
"People can be bought off and evidence can disappear. Witnesses can disappear. This case might not even make it to trial."
Olivia had to chuckle. "Ever the optimist, huh?"
"After four years in SVU, I'm surprised I'm not more cynical."
It was going to be one hell of a week.