In the interview room, Cragen was eyeing Richard White with dark eyes and impatience. "You've barely been out of prison 48 hours," he pointed out.
"Where's detective Benson?" he asked ignoring his comment. Olivia's heart rate increased at the mere mention of her own name.
"Busy," he said vaguely. "You're dealing with me now! Where were you yesterday between 7 am and 9 am?" Cragen wasn't interested in playing his game and White was aware of that.
"Has Detective Benson been thinking about me?" he smiled. "I've spent a lot of time in prison thinking about her…"
Cragen was turning red from controlling his temper, and both Olivia and Elliot could see that he was only seconds from loosing it. "Listen, you dirt bag, you need to answer my questions and forget about Detective Benson."
"Does she forget about me?" he challenged.
"Where were you between 7 am and-"
"I heard your question. I won't speak to anyone but Detective Benson, so save your breath." White was intent of having his mind games with her, and only her.
"I told you she's busy," he snapped. "If you don't answer me I assume you are guilty, you have no alibi and this pattern is yours," he held up a gruesome photo of his latest victim. "Remember her?"
White looked towards the mirror knowing full well that she was out there watching him. "Olivia…" he sang. "I'm waiting…"
Cragen said nothing else. He simply turned and closed the door behind him, uttering nothing until the sound-proof door was closed. "He won't talk. Elliot, I want you-"
"Captain," Olivia begged. "Let me give it a shot. He wants me in there, you know he does, he's asking for me."
"I don't want you in there with him. Last time he caused you too much trouble, what if we have to let him go again?"
"Captain, give me a chance…" she was pleading with him. "White isn't going to talk to anyone else, but me, he's been waiting for this moment for six years. You know I've been thinking about him for a long time, let me lay it to rest… please."
Cragen nodded reluctantly. "Are you going to be able to handle it objectively?" he questioned.
Olivia sighed. "Captain, I can handle it."
"Elliot?" Cragen waiting for his approval, if anyone knew Olivia it was him, he knew her capabilities and he knew her strengths and weaknesses on the job.
"I'll stay with her the whole time, Captain, no need to worry," he promised.
Olivia frowned. "Elliot," she snapped. "I can handle this without you, I have no desire to hold your hand. I can break him," she stated. Sometimes when he tried to be protective she got angry, she wasn't a child, and she didn't need his blessing to carry on a case she had started. She was well equipped to handle it alone if she had to, and the idea that he thought she needed a baby-sitter put her back up.
"I know," he said honestly. "But it wouldn't hurt you to have someone as back-up, I'm offering," he tried to make it sound like he was casually doing her a favor.
Olivia shrugged. Cragen wouldn't have let her take the case alone, and at least Elliot knew the ins and outs of the case, she didn't need to fill in the blanks. "Fine," she agreed. "But let me do the talking."
"Okay," Elliot nodded giving his approval.
Elliot walked in first, causing White's head to turn and see who would be questioning him. He looked disappointed until he saw Olivia follow behind her partner.
"Olivia…" he beamed excitedly like a kid with a new pony. He looked her over. "You look good. Still dressing the same I see, you are still as beautiful as ever."
"Thank-you," she smiled as if she accepted the compliment as real, as long as she played his game, he'd talk. "This is your handy work, isn't it?" Olivia insisted staring down at White as she shoved a heinous photograph of what she assumed was his latest victim, right under his nose.
He flinched. "Do you still think of me, Olivia?" he asked ignoring her question.
"Nope. I don't have time to think of you… it's wasted space in my head," she answered calmly. "So did you stalk your latest victim first… find out where she likes to eat out, what their favorite chocolates are… did you send her flowers?"
"Oh Olivia," he sighed lightly as he looked at her with a smile. "I didn't realize you were jealous. I'll give you more than chocolates and flowers once I'm outta here."
"I have no intention of letting you go anywhere," she stated matter-of-factly.
"Missed me that much, huh?" His smile was wicked.
"Where were you between 7 am and 9 am yesterday morning?" she asked.
"Thinking of you…"
"WHERE?"
"At home."
"You're lying," she said shaking her head.
"I'm clean now, Olivia, I've done my time. I'm a new man."
"You don't fool me!" she snapped. Against the wall, Elliot folded his arms and watched his partner wondering if she would eventually slam White's head through the wall. "You are incapable of being rehabilitated, you raped and murdered this girl," she slammed her fist on the photograph in front of his face but he didn't jump. Nothing seemed to scare him, which only angered Olivia further.
"Prove it," White shrugged leaning back in his chair unconcerned. "That's your problem, Olivia, you can't charge me and if you could I'd be locked up right now."
He was right. "Give me a DNA test," she suggested.
"Nope, you find the evidence to convict me, I won't hand it to you," he answered weakly.
"So you admit there's something to find," she said with fresh anger and a hint of hope.
"Nice try, Olivia." He smiled.
Olivia, who was far off from patient with him now, leaned down so that she was whispering in his ear. "You don't get to call me that," she said. "You don't get the privilege of calling me by my first name, nickname or any sick pet name you have for me. You call me Detective Benson, you got that?"
"Come on, Olivia, don't be like that… we know each other more than just casually. I know what makes you tick," he wasn't at all fazed by her comment and he clearly liked playing with her head, the problem was that he knew she was bugged by him.
Olivia forgot the promise she had made to the Captain about keeping her cool and grabbed hold of the back of White's head, and slammed it hard, only once, into the table, then she let him go. He lifted his head up showing the trickle of blood that ran out of his nose, he showed no sign of anger or annoyance but acted as if nothing had happened.
"Feel better?" he smiled ignoring the blood that made it's way down to his mouth.
"Much," she answered with a false smile. But she annoyed that he wasn't bothered by her assault. "Was it as good for you as it was for me?"
"Better," he responded.
A moment later Cragen opened the interview room door and Olivia knew she was in for it. "Benson, a word?" he demanded using his Captain voice.
Olivia looked to Elliot who seemed sympathetic and nodded encouragingly at her as she moved away from the suspect and towards the door. With regret she followed Cragen outside, and the moment the door of the interview room closed, Cragen let her have it. "I thought you said you could handle it?"
"I'm sorry Captain, it won't happen again," she promised. She had lost it and she was sorry she had, but she wasn't sorry that she had caused White an inch of pain, even if it were only temporary.
"No it won't," he said with conviction. "I'm taking you off the case."
"CAPTAIN?" she cried.
"He could have you charged for assault, Olivia, that is NOT how I operate my precinct and it's NOT how I expect my members to behave, no matter what the perp deserves," he said sternly.
"He wasn't hurt, he found it amusing," she pointed out. "Come on, Captain, you can't expect me to play nice with THAT creep!" she pointed to the glass where White and Elliot were easily visible.
"That's exactly how I expect you to behave," he challenged. "Until he is charged with these accusations, you have to treat him like you would any other suspect."
"And do you think he's gonna admit he did this if Elliot or I play by the rules, come on Captain, you know him?!" she exclaimed.
"I know the law," he replied.
"He wants to get caught," Dr. Yaung interrupted standing beside them at the two-way mirror looking in on Elliot and White. He was the squads FBI agent and Psychiatrist and seemed to know what reaction the perp had to most every situation, he had never been wrong. It was what he had been studying for years and seemed to know the suspects well enough for the job.
"See," Olivia replied to the Captain before turning back to Dr. Yaung. "He'll tell me eventually, right?"
"I'm not sure that's what he wants," Dr. Yaung admitted. "Olivia, you are his toy, he likes messing with your head and playing by the rules is something he can see you avoid when it gets too hard… he's playing on that. He wants you to catch him out," he explained.
Olivia pulled a face. "You mean catch him raping a woman?" she was instantly disgusted.
"No," Dr. Yaung seemed amused by her response. For a woman she saw a lot for a cop, especially working sex crimes. "He wants you to catch him lying, when he knows you have him trapped in a corner and there's no way out, he'll talk."
"And how do you suppose I do that?" she asked. "He's going to deny any involvement to this rape and murder, like last time… he'll get a few years in prison, I want a needle in his arm."
"Get some evidence," he shrugged.
"You're a huge help," Olivia said to him with sarcasm. She turned and grabbed hold of the interview door handle as if she expected to return to her work.
"Olivia," Captain called. Olivia turned around. "Your NOT going in there," he reminded her.
"Captain," she argued. "I know him more than anyone else does. He wants ME to catch him out."
"If you can't handle this objectively, which you showed me you couldn't, you can't handle the case, end of story. Munch… Fin…" he said calling his two junior detectives. "Find out what White's alibi was when the latest attack occurred."
Both Detective's John Munch and Fin Tutuola sprung into action.
"Captain," Olivia pleaded.
"You are assigned to desk duty until further notice," Olivia frowned in disagreement. "You assaulted him, Olivia, your lucky I'm not suspending you. Now, I know you have a mountain of paperwork on your desk, it has to be done sometime," he ordered.
Olivia didn't argue and went to her desk to fill in the files of paperwork she had waiting for her, like any job, you had to take the good with the bad and nobody liked paperwork.
But Olivia could only think about White's case and the three months of hell she had spent thinking about him when he was locked up, wondering how long it would be until he got parole. She was beginning to believe he'd get away with it a second time, his chance to rape and murder women for years to come.
When Elliot returned to his desk late that night – it was after ten – Olivia's frustration switched to him. He was the only one she could vent her angry on.
"Why do you have to do that?" she demanded.
"What did I do?" he frowned picking up a file from his desk and looking back at her. He was not surprised to have this conversation, she was always accusing him of something. "The Captain asked me to question him," he said.
"You made the Captain think I couldn't handle the case," she accused. "I CAN handle it."
He shrugged not wanting to cause an argument. "It's just that this guy makes you tick, he knows it, I know it, you know it… even White knows it and he plays on that. You smashed the guys head into the table and broke his nose, Liv."
"The guy stalked me, Elliot. He's been in my head for six years," she argued. "I'm entitled to be a little pissed."
"Alright," he agreed. "And I'm just there to make sure you don't kill the guy."
"One less White in the world, won't be a great loss," she replied. She meant it. "Talk to the Captain for me, make him re-assign me," she begged.
"Nuh," he shook his head.
"Elliot…" she whined.
"No, Liv, I happen to think you need to take a breather from this one."
Olivia shook her head in frustration and stood from the desk, she grabbed her jacket and stormed out.