Family Portrait

Chapter 3 This I Promise You

Mercy General Hospital

325 West 32nd Street

Monday February 15, 2009

2:16 am

Bong, Bong

"Melinda Warner?" Benson requested as both detectives whipped out their badges. By now it was just a formality though because almost everyone at Mercy knew all of the people at Manhattan SVU.

The clerk nodded. "Brought that poor baby into the NICU a few hours ago to do some tests."

"She still there?" Elliot wanted to know.

"Yeah but since it is intensive care you'll have to put on masks before you go in. Standard sterile environment spiel."

"We know it well," replied Benson smiling her thanks. She walked down the hall with a silently fuming Stabler beside her. Out of the corner of her eye Olivia saw her partner's mouth opening and closing.

"And five, four, three, two," she counted under her breath.

"How can you stand there and be so calm," Elliot finally exploded.

"And blast off!" said Olivia. "Elliot what's your deal? You and I have dealt with millions of chauvinist pricks before. And lots of them have taken digs at me, it just goes with the territory, I can hold my own."

"I know you can," Elliot replied. "But that little boy can't. Williamson goes after women and just blows off the fact that little kid was found in his dumpster. I haven't known anybody that made me that sick in a long time. That little boy… " Elliot eyes fell as if he couldn't bear to finish that sentence.

Olivia froze in the act of tucking her hair into a surgical cap "No Elliot we are not going to think that way. Not until and unless Warner shows us a body." Olivia slid the glass doors of the NICU open.

"And that is not going to happen!" She looked up at Melinda begging her to corroborate the statement. She wanted herself to believe it just as much if not more than Elliot.

"No fortunately not," Warner spoke up from an isolate across the room. "But it was a close call. Way too close for my comfort. And poor thing isn't out of the woods yet. One of the nurses tried to get formula in his system earlier but he wouldn't take very much. They hooked him up to an IV to get enough electrolytes in him that he would be able to latch the bottle but as you can tell he wasn't to fond of the idea."

Benson and Stabler peered in to the cylindrical container waving at the little angel. Benson's heart swelled. He was beautiful with a shock of blond hair. The baby's color slowly went back to normal as his sobbing lessened to disgruntled whimpers. His skin was the prettiest shade of seashell-pink either detective had ever seen. The infant eyes fluttered open momentarily revealing beautiful golden-brown irises before he closed them again

"A little too bright for the little guy," chuckled Olivia.

"That's amazing!" Warner whistled. "This is the first time he's open his eyes since we've found him at the hotel. "

"Aren't infants accustomed to the darkness of their mother's womb?" Elliot wondered.

"You should know you've had five," joked Olivia.

Elliot raised his eyebrows. "And they were all able to keep their eyes open for more than a few seconds within the first few days. How old did you say he was Mel?"

"Four or five weeks," Warner answered.

"So he should be used to light by now," deduced Elliot. "But sometimes people who've been in the dark for long periods of time don't know what to do with themselves once they step out in the sunlight."

"This baby hasn't seen the light of day," gasped Benson finding it immensely unfair that people who had what the thirty-eight-year-old had always wished for—a child to call their own—could throw them in a dark room just as casually as she would throw a pair of True Religions that no longer fit into the back of her closet

"Mommy and Daddy's bundle of joy," hissed Elliot digging his nails into the palm of his hands.

"I honestly doubt he's parents had much time to bond with him or interest in trying at all," Warner replied with a sigh. "He'll need all the human contact he can get."

Olivia took a couple of hesitant steps back from the dome. She was qualified for a lot of things but since Elliot had five kids and she had none he certainly outshone her in the infant field. She knew her partner be anything and everything the traumatized baby boy needed.

It wounded Elliot to see his partner and best friend doubting her own instincts when he had seen her work magic with his own eyes. On more than one occasion Olivia had been the only one who could get a victim comfortable enough to accept the detectives' help.

"Go on Liv" he whispered giving her a nudge of encouragement.

Reassured Olivia resumed her spot reached into the incubator and gently cradled the infant to her chest "Come here darling," she crooned being extra careful when she remembered the patches of angry red on his chest. The little boy made no objection. His only move was to shift positions so that his head was snuggled securely in the crook of Benson's neck.

"Well look at you Mother Hen," Elliot smiled placing a chair behind her. "Who woulda funk it?"

She rolled her eyes. "I swear Munch has been a horrible influence on you Elliot Stabler," she teased.

Watching the two of them banter Warner gave Benson a knowing wink. The brunette detective cleared her throat and tried to think of an offhanded way to segue back to business which was given by an oblivious Stabler who had flagged a passing nurse.

"Don't you think he's a little cold in just a diaper?"

The nurse shrugged. "Someone did such a number on the little guy that my supervisor said it would best not to aggravate the skin until his bruises had a chance to heal," she explained.

"Could you do us a favor?" Benson asked the nurse flashing her badge. "Put on some latex gloves and bring us the clothes he was wearing when ME Warner brought him in." The woman nodded and disappeared behind a swinging door.

Warner circled the milling NICU room coming to a stop at Benson's other side so that only the two detectives would be able to hear. "His bruises will heal but I'm not so sure about the other things," she sighed sadly.

Elliot's ears perked up. "Other things?"

"Johnny Doe bilateral subdural hematomas and psychical injuries consistent with…"

"Shaken Baby Syndrome," whispered Stabler

"Right," replied Warner. "And according to the temperature reading we took when he first got here he was in the dumpster for no more than an hour before that Pegasus maid found her."

"And Alisa said she took the trash out at the very beginning of her shift which started at ten-thirty," Benson recalled. "That puts the time of the drop at 9:30 at the earliest."

"And the shaking occurred very shortly before the dump itself," added Warner. "The handprints were still raw and bright red when he was found." Benson looked down at the baby in her arms, the blotches had become red-violet. Hopefully the returning nurse had something in the bag of clothes that could provide the DNA of the creep who had done this.

"Here's everything," the nurse delivered the requested plastic bag dropping it at Benson's feet and lying a hospital-issued blue onsie on top of the open incubator 'in case he still looked cold'.

"Seems like a good night's work to me," decided Elliot standing up. "I'm going to go put this evidence in the car so we bring it to the 1-6. You coming Liv?"

"In a minute," Benson answered looking down at the baby in her arms.

Stabler nodded and backed away just as a second nurse came over with a freshly made bottle.

"Let's try and drink some this time all right buddy," she cooed moving to unburden Benson.

"Do you mind if I do it?" the detective asked quietly. "If it isn't any trouble."

The nurse nodded and smiled as she handed Olivia the bottle. "Welcome to the club detective. They do have a way of snuggling into your heart."

"I never had a chance," Olivia agreed turning her attention to the infant. "Hi sweetheart my name is Olivia. Let's see how much headway we can make on this bottle, huh. Can you do that for me?" She tipped the liquid to his lips. He seemed to have regained some energy because he took hold to the rubber nipple gratefully. A few minutes later he let out a very healthy burp and Olivia was happy to see that the bottle was less than a quarter full.

"You were one hungry boy mister," Olivia laughed placing him on a changing table where she used one finger to lightly massage a small uninjured part of his belly. With an extra careful featherlike touch she robed him in the terrycloth onsie and placed him gently back in the incubator. "There I bet you'll be much warmer now. How's about I make you a deal: you stay here and take a nice long nap and I promise you I will do my darnedest to find your mommy and daddy."

"Detective Benson your partner is out front with the car." Olivia found it very difficult to tear her eyes from that the incubator where that little boy slept.

"I assume he can expect you to come back for a visit?" the second nurse asked.

"Definitely."

NOW I HAD A LITTLE MORE BUT I FIGURED THIS WAS A BETTER PLACE TO END IT. GUESS YOU'LL HAVE TO WAIT FOR CHAPTER 4 EVIL SMIRK AND I PROMISE THE ACTION WILL GET FASTER!