Olivia had been put in a cell on her own. This would be the only special treatment she would get, not being put with cellmates who knew that she was a cop and who would probably kill her before Olivia ever faced a judge again. The room was at most four square meters big. The light was dull and aggressive. Olivia was seated on what was supposed to be her bed, resting her elbows on her knees. She wanted to throw up, and this did not come from the flu. She could hardly breathe and every noise made her jump. God, she had never thought she would be back in prison, and of course not under these circumstances. Flashbacks from Sealview assaulted her, and Olivia felt her pulse become faster. When she raised her eyes towards the window, everything was blurred. She stood up and moved her shaky legs towards the little square of light, grasping the concrete boarder to breathe in some fresh air. It was getting hot in here.

Elliot was pacing back and forth around his desk and Olivia's. Now and then he would stop at Olivia's chair and look at her almost empty desk. After twenty minutes of this attitude, Don Cragen decidedly opened his office's door and marched towards his detective. Hands in his pockets, he leaned on Olivia's desk next to her partner and did not say anything during a minute. Then, still looking at the floor in front of him, he said in a low voice.

"Elliot, if you can't handle it, go home."

"I can't."

"So what do you intend to do? Help us out finding who set your partner up or pace around the whole day?" Cragen's voice was cold but not angry. He knew as much as anyone else in this room how Elliot felt about his partner, and he did not want to push him too far.

Elliot reflected a minute on his captain's words and bit his lips.

"I'm okay, Captain. Just give me a minute, I know what I'm going to do."

He turned around and grasped his phone, dialing the number of central booking.

"Hello. This is Detective Stabler, SVU Manhattan. Whom should I contact to pay Olivia Benson's bail?"

As soon as these words escaped Elliot's lips, he saw Don Cragen in the corner of his eye shake his head in a reproachful way. No, this was not the solution. This would only postpone the problem. He would rather have his detective help out proving Olivia's innocence. When Elliot almost threw the phone onto its receiver, the older man was still standing next to him.

"Did you talk this over with Kathy?"

"With all my respect, Captain… This is my business." Don Cragen raised his blue eyes towards Elliot and said very coldly – and not too loud, so that their colleagues would not overhear :

"Detective Stabler, this is my business when I suspect two of my top detectives are too close to work together." The detective, who had begun making his way towards his chair to grab his coat, stopped dead in his tracks. One glance to the left was enough to confirm that Fin and Munch had heard this last comment.

"What do you mean? I don't know what…"

Don Cragen took one step closer. He was tempted to take his hands out of his pockets and shake the man back into reason. But his hierarchy would not be pleased if the captain now lost his mind as well.

"I don't think throwing out 250 000 dollars is merely a gesture of friendship… And your wife would certainly not be pleased, if I might add." Now Elliot was almost boiling inside. He could hardly keep himself from punching his superior. A very shy Fin came to stand between them, feeling that it was time to intervene.

"Captain… Elliot and Liv have been working together for over a decade. I think it's quite normal to be close in these circumstances. Don't you think that Olivia belongs out of prison?"

Don's eyes were literally throwing flames at his detectives.

"Whatever… Do what you have to do, detective. The others, get back to work…"

Both Elliot and Fin nodded and the group separated. With one last glance at the people staring, Elliot grabbed his coat and left the precinct.

Olivia was merely a little thing seated in the corner of her cell, almost completely hidden by the darkness of this late-afternoon. She had wanted to cry, to shout, to throw herself at the walls, to punch her head against the concrete until she lost consciousness. But her legs refused to move and she had to use all her energy to steady her breath. She had broken into sweat and was now freezing. Impossible to say if it was the flu or merely the flashbacks from Sealview taking control over her mind and body. Lowell Harris throwing her onto a mattress. Lowell Harris punching her on the face, in the stomach, on the back. Lowell Harris pressing his hard part on her thigh. Lowell Harris. Her tears were fighting to escape but she did not manage to get out all this emotion. She had to leave this place.

Olivia Benson did not hear the footsteps coming closer in the corridor. All she could listen to were the disdainful comments of the other inmates and the whispers of Lowell Harris.

"Olivia? Open this cell now!" She raised her exhausted eyes to find a very angry Elliot Stabler standing right outside her cell with an officer. As soon as he had unlocked the door, the detective almost threw himself at his partner and lifted her from her corner.

"Liv? Are you okay?"

It took Olivia a few moments to gather her voice.

"I'm alright." Now that you are here.

"What the hell are you thinking?" She did not realize that Elliot's words were directed at the officer. "Don't you see she is sick? Why has no one been warned about her state?"

God, I must look terrible, thought Olivia as she saw the look on Elliot's face.

"Come on, I'll take you outside…" She let her partner lift her limp body and walk her out. Why was he taking her out?

"What did you do?" She managed to utter while still holding onto Elliot's arm.

"I paid your bail. Just a little signature and you're free."

Olivia stopped in her tracks when she heard his answer. Well, she intended to but was pulled forth by her partner. He had one arm holding her left forearm, and the other supporting her back to keep her moving.

"How the hell did you talk Kathy into doing that?"

"I didn't. Come on, we'll talk later." Olivia stopped to sign the register and grab her personal belongings. Her hands were still shaking, her whole body was shivering and Elliot's contact only made it worse. She couldn't wait to arrive outside. They hadn't even reached the parking lot that Olivia had to stop.

"Wait a second…" She stumbled a few feet away to throw down in a nearby bin. God, it felt good to get everything off her chest, so to say. She threw down her fears and memories of that night with Lowell Harris. After that, Olivia felt awfully empty. Only Elliot's arms kept her from falling down again.

"God, what happened to you?" Elliot's blue eyes were boring holes into her, as they were seated in his car, Olivia leaning her head onto the seat.

"It… brought back some memories." Why the hell did she say that? Now he would want to know, he would want to know everything, about Lowell Harris, about Sealview, about her assault.

"I don't want to talk about it now. How did you get that money?"

Elliot turned the motor on and tapped his fingers against the wheel.

"I… put a mortgage on the house." When he dared looking back to his right, he met the angry eyes of Olivia.

"Why the hell did you do this?" Olivia had found a surprising energy. She could not believe it.

"Did you really expect me to watch them ship you to Rikers?"

"Are you ready to lose your house for me? Are you mad?"

"No chance, you're innocent."

Olivia merely nodded. The truth was, she was awfully touched that he had done such a thing. Elliot Stabler was really a man you could count on.

Olivia searched through the brown envelope to get out her house keys. Her hands were still shaky from the earlier anxiety crisis, and she decided to let Elliot open the door. As soon as it was, she led the way and went straight to her couch, happy to sit down in a familiar environment. A massive headache was starting to take the most of her. She tried to suppress a sigh when Elliot came to sit next to her.

"Want to talk about it?"

The only answer Elliot got was a very discreet sob. Olivia was brushing both her hands over her face, as though she wanted to erase the exhaustion on it. But it was too much. Her lips began shaking when she felt a warm hand gently touch her shoulder. As much as she would have liked to cry in that cell, when she was on her own, she now wanted to suppress the emotions taking over. Fear, of Lowell Harris and the bad side that he had brought back two years after the events. Pain, of seeing how she pulled her friends and colleagues in difficult situations. Damn, Elliot had put a mortgage on his house, an awfully huge weight on his whole family, just because of her. What was that supposed to mean?

Elliot did not say anything when his partner crumbled next to him, breaking into tears she vainly tried to suppress. It was just too much. The reasons behind, he didn't quite know, but he could imagine that it was not merely spending a few hours in prison that had led to such a crisis. So the man just sat next to her, soothing her back while she let escape all these feelings.

After a few moments, the strong Elliot could no more listen to Olivia's sobs and whimpers, so he pulled her shaking form towards him and imprisoned her in a tight embrace until he felt her relax. He really had put himself in a complicated situation, and couldn't imagine going home to an angry and disappointed Kathy. Maybe the captain was right. Maybe he had grown far too close to Olivia Benson. But what was the problem in doing everything to free his partner of eleven years? To be there in tough times, to comfort her and assure her he still believed in her?

"How is she?" Of course, Elliot knew that his captain would call to check on Olivia. Even after their verbal fight, Don Cragen remained a very concerned superior, who thought of nothing else than the well being of his detectives. And the captain seemed to be more than happy to know Olivia safe at home instead of beaten up in a cell at Rikers.

"She's sleeping." Saying that, Elliot threw a glance at the lying form on the sofa. Olivia had fallen asleep twenty minutes earlier, exhausted by this awful day. "Anything new on your side?"

"We had a call from a woman who recognized the man on your picture. And Melinda is here. I think you'd better come as quick as possible."

"I'm not so sure about leaving Olivia alone, Captain. She had a rough day."

"I'm sure she would want you to help solving the case. I really need you down here, we've got some important news."

After ending the call, Elliot sat down on the coffee table, looking at the now peaceful Olivia on the sofa, her right hand laid on a cushion near her head. Her face looked less exhausted and hurt than it had earlier. Elliot reluctantly grabbed his coat, readjusted the blanket over Olivia and left, using his own emergency house key to close the door without a noise.