Moonlight

Part III

Pairings: Cabot/Benson

Rating: pg-13, still.

A/N: Thank you to those of you who have read thus far. It's a struggle for me to draw out the build of the relationship between our two lovely ladies. If it ends up going too fast this chapter, let me know and I'll slow it down. Also, tell me if I need to work on anything else…or if there's something you really like. I love feedback. Lastly, I'm trying to sharpen up on my legal terminology: My deepest apologies for any errors.

Sunlight coursed through the open windows of Alex Cabot's apartment; more specifically, the windows of her living room where she lay asleep on her sofa. It wasn't too early, yet it wasn't too late either. A siren wailed outside the building, jolting the woman from her slumber.

She stretched and blinked a few times to clear her vision. After taking a moment to take in her surroundings, she remembered the previous night. "Liv…" she whispered and looked around almost frantically. The indent on the couch from where the detective had fallen asleep in the blonde's arms was still intact, which relaxed the ADA. She's still here, Alex breathed.

From her bathroom came a muffled squeal and Alex leapt to her feet, rushing towards the door. "Liv?" She questioned. "You ok in there?" Cabot couldn't help but smile and blush a little at the rushed response that greeted her.

"I didn't use all the hot water," Olivia called out. "I mean, yeah, I'm fine. I'm great. I just…soap slipped," Alex chuckled, imagining the blush on her detective's face. My detective? We haven't even finished our talk, yet, Counselor. Don't get your hopes up. "Are there, um, any extra towels?"

"Yes. Detective," Alex smirked. "Actually, there are. Why don't you open the door a crack so I can hand you one? They're out here in the linen closet," a thud sounded from behind the door; the soap had slipped again.

"Erm, out there? I mean, sure, just a sec," there was a shuffling of several items in the shower and then a blushing, slightly wet-haired Olivia peeked her head out the door. "Towel?"

Alex grinned and blushed a shade to match Olivia's and turned to dig through a closet next to the bathroom door. "I didn't have you pegged as a shy person, Detective," her hand came out with a fluffy pink thing that could pass as a towel if thoroughly examined and studied. "Is this one ok?"

Olivia nodded and thrust her arm out the door. "I'm running a bit late for work. And we still need to talk a bit about…last night?" Shit, I think that just came out sounding like we'd just slept together. But…I need to thank her for holding me and welcoming me in.

"Are you implying something happened, Detective?" Cabot teased. She thinks I read too deeply into that comment. Hah! I can't wait to mess with her on that one. More blushing cuteness is heading my way. "I'd love to give you a lift. As for talking about last night…I thought we settled the talking last night."

The door to the bathroom opened and Alex was sprayed with fragranced water being shaken from a still slightly wet head. Olivia stood before the ADA with one corner of her lips turned upwards in a warm, soft smile. "Alex, I'm talking about discussing something a little different. I think I've made sure that you are aware of my…inevitable attraction towards you…and I hope I'm right in thinking it's mutual. But last night…" Olivia shook her head and looked away still blushing. "I opened up in a way I haven't been able to in a while…and that's not even half open. I don't know why I feel so comfortable with you, but maybe it's because I know inside that this means something. Thanks for taking me in last night and being there for me. You did a lot more than you could possibly know."

"Do you have any idea how beautiful you are like that?" Alex blurted out unexpectedly.

"Excuse me, Counselor?" Olivia laughed. "Like what?"

"Your hair…all natural and tossed, like that. It's never been like that before. Usually it's blow-dried and formed. Almost like it's trapped and has nowhere to go. But right now…it's free and has a spirit. Like you," Alex leaned in and awkwardly kissed Olivia on the cheek. "You should let it dry like that…or style it like that at least. I have mousse…but maybe you should get it trimmed first…It'd be amazing on you."

"Wow. I'm standing in two-day-old clothes, holding a pink fuzzy towel thing, in the doorway of your bathroom, discussing hair styling," Olivia smirked. "Either I'm in heaven or this is some weird ass dream that I'm definitely going to miss when I actually wake up. Except for the hair part; that's just weird."

"I don't know about heaven, Detective, but this is no dream. And I find it very hard to believe you haven't given your hair much consideration," the blonde reached her arms around the brunette's waist and pulled her into her body. The contact sent electricity through them, which intensified even more when Alex softly pressed her lips into Olivia's. "I could get used to that," she whispered.

"So could I," came Liv's murmured answer. She kissed Alex back and they stood for a few minutes testing their boundaries and exploring each other. "You have coffee? I could make us some while you shower and get ready…"

"Yeah, in the kitchen: It's right on the counter next to the espresso machine…" Cabot mumbled softly against Olivia's lips. Her own lips gently wound their way to the detective's neck and she whispered into her ear. "I'll be out as soon as possible," and with that she walked around Olivia and into the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

This day is definitely going to be a good one. I'm almost looking forward to nipping this case in the butt today…oh crap, I hope we do nip this case in the butt today…I'd hate for it to be one of those forever-long cases that never goes anywhere. With that thought, images of the rest of the day grew very dim and doom.

Shaking, or attempting to shake, off the feeling of dread surrounding the new case, Olivia walked into Alex's kitchen and began searching around for coffee mugs. Breathing a sigh of relief, the detective was ecstatic to find that the ADA had a regular coffee maker, seeing as she didn't quite know how to use an espresso machine. Olivia found the coffee grounds and set about brewing the much-needed caffeinated beverage. Shit. It's decaf.

After leaving Alex at the DA's office, Olivia walked the short distance to the precinct. She strolled into the SVU squad room at a half-stroll/half mosey: not quite her usual pace. She tended to come in at a brisk walk, sit at her desk, and go right to business. So, of course, her squad mates found it odd to see Benson, the Olivia Benson, on the verge of a full-fledged mosey first thing in the morning. On second thought, though, it wasn't quite first thing in the morning anymore.

"Benson, you're a little later than you tend to be? Whatever happened to your bright and early motto?" Cragen leaned against the doorframe to his office, fixing Olivia in a semi-glare. "You partner just left for the forensics lab on your Jane Doe. Hurry up and meet him there."

"Don't bother, Liv. 'Just left' translates to two hours ago. Forensics just typed and filed the report. There's a copy under your briefcase in case you missed it," Elliot sat down at the desk in front of Olivia. "Now, onto more important matters…how was the meeting last night? I take it went…well into the night and possibly the morning."

"I haven't the slightest inkling as to what you're talking about Stabler," Olivia didn't look up from the file she was scanning. "They found dog hair and…bodily residue inside the victim's-"

"You have the same catsup stain on your shirt that you did last night at the crime scene. Either you crashed in the crib, then teleported to your place, ate, then walked back in here three hours late, or you were at someone else's apartment getting busy," Elliot waggled his eyebrows.

"Liv's getting some? No wonder you walked in here so casually," Fin Tutuola grinned. "So girl who is it? That fireman we saw you gettin' friendly with on that…whatsername case last week?"

"No, he was a redhead…Liv's seeing a blonde haired, blue eyed…very businesslike…" Stabler trailed off watching his partner's reaction. "Of course, I could be wrong."

"Why is it that chicks always go for the handsome, rugged yet gentlemanly, macho man type and never us comedians and nerds? Sure, we don't got the muscle, but we got the looks and we talk cool," Munch lowered his shades to the bridge of his nose and looked over them at Olivia.

The female detective sighed in exasperation. "I didn't get any last night! We had dinner, got interrupted by a crime scene, end of story. I guess I'm just late because I haven't gotten much sleep over the verdict of the last big case, and now there's this one," she took a deep breath then continued. "Which leads me back to my question, El: This report can't seriously be for real. The stuff forensics is suggesting is far more heinous and vulgar…it's saying a dog had sexual intercourse with a corpse."

"No, Liv, it says canine bodily fluids. Saliva, Liv; our Jane Doe has dog saliva in the general area of her vagina. There are also dog hair samples, so forensics will be able to find the breed. Then we can find out how many registered animals of that breed are in the city…then narrow it down to the area where the body was found, to a certain radius that will be determined…"

"The norm, El: I know. It's the norm," Olivia shook her head. "Except this isn't the norm. In our line of work, it's never the norm. And now this…this is just too damn much. It's always sick when animals are involved, because it normally means our perp is even more of an animal. This guy cleaned up too well to be a first timer. He's raped, possibly even killed, before. And he'll do it again. We need to bag this guy and his pooch."

"Come in," Alex Cabot answered the knock on her office door without looking up from her papers. It was well after lunchtime, her stomach was growling, yet still she abstained from eating. Such was the importance of the file in her hands. It wasn't a case, a closing argument, witness interviews, or a motion for remand. Those papers, which she studied so closely, were her taxes. "Oh, good, that's deductible I think…" she muttered to herself.

"I'm sorry, counselor, should I come back at a better time?" Olivia had entered the room without notice from the engrossed ADA and now stood behind her. "That looks very stressful, and you sound very hungry. Perhaps a lunch break is in order?" The detective gently massaged Alex's neck and shoulders. "I can help you relax if you want."

"Mmm," Alex rolled her neck to the side, exposing more of her neck for Olivia to rub. "That feels so good." The blonde sighed in content and allowed the knots in her muscles to come undone. "What else do you have in mind for help me relax? I know you too well to believe you're just saying hi, so spill," she groaned softly as Olivia's hands gave her muscles one final knead before stopping. "On second thought, don't stop."

Olivia laughed and turned Alex's chair around and looked her in the eyes. "I told you what my intentions are…lunch…maybe Italian or Greek. Does that sound good?"

Alex stood and looped her arms around Olivia's waist. "That sounds lovely. Italian would really be great…maybe some fettuccini with pesto…with some Manhattan detective on the side." She giggled softly and gave Olivia a peck on the lips. "You don't want to know how this day is going so far. Get me out of here, knight in shining armor."

Blushing, as was becoming a habit to Olivia, the detective placed a kiss on Alex's cheek and hooked her right arm through the blonde's left arm as she turned towards the door of the office. "Great, because I know this place just down the street that serves great Manhattan detective…I mean…fettuccini with pesto."

The restaurant bustled with activity. Alex and Olivia had gotten in without reservations quite easily, but there was a shortage of waiters and chaos was inevitable. After being seated it took nearly ten minutes for their waiter to take drink orders, and another five minutes for their simple order of ice water to arrive. Afterwards, the waiter returned five more minutes later to take their entrée orders. By the time their food finally came, they had already been seated for an hour.

"I'm so sorry, Alex. This place usually has much better service…however, the crowd is usually significantly smaller and the place tends to be well staffed. I hope you don't mind the wait so much once you taste your food," Olivia's smile was apologetic. She took her knife to her meat and cut into it. Steam rose high and the detective relaxed. "At least the food is still hot."

Alex twirled her fork in her noodles, wrapping the steamy, sauce covered food around the utensil, and took a bite. After chewing and swallowing, she put on an air of dissatisfaction. "Well, Olivia, this is completely and utterly," she paused to take a sip of wine before continuing, "amazing! It was definitely worth the wait." She smirked when the detective visibly relaxed.

"Oh, thank god," Olivia laughed. Music began to filter through the various rooms of the restaurant, finally reaching their ears over the clatter and chaos of the under-staffed facility. "Just our luck for things to calm down after we are forced to sit so long," she chuckled again and took a bite of her filet mignon. "So, what do you think of the Da Vinci Code?"

"It's a wonderful book. I think this controversy over it is outrageous, but you know the Vatican. Everything in that religion must be perfect according to their word," Alex smiled and took another bite of her food. "They act like Dan Brown wrote this book claiming it to be non-fiction. Clearly, even a mystery thriller novel cannot exist without throwing their institution into a whirlwind of conspiracy. Really, do you think Brown intended the book to bring question into the history of Christianity?"

"No not at all. Like you said, it's a novel. True, Opus Dei exists in the real world, and he may have taken some liberties in what he wrote about them, but it's not a direct attack against the Vatican: and that's assuming it's an indirect attack at all. The Vatican needs to get a grip on reality, that's what I think," Olivia dabbed the corner of her mouth with her napkin before continuing. "The whole existence of the Christian religion has been surrounded by question. There never will be a time when the belief doesn't have some new lead as to historical accuracy. The world isn't black and white, you know?"

Alex laughed softly. "So I take it you're not a very religious person? Neither am I, but I do believe in some kind of outside force that is the reason we live here today. I'm no firm believer in creation, nor evolution. I think life on earth was sparked with the intent of human life someday evolving from it…sort of a mixture of both."

"I've never thought of it that way…interesting. You surprise me every day, Alex." They smiled at each other and continued their meal. Conversation was on the light side, but not one moment of silence was awkward. Peace seemed to settle around them like a pillow, protecting them from outside obscenities and keeping them safe within their bubble of fun.

That early afternoon was one of the few rare occasions, in which either could relax one hundred percent, without unsettling thoughts of the job seeping through. Indeed, it was a very long lunch break, and it may have been longer except without notice Olivia's beeper sounded. Apologizing sincerely, she stepped outside and made a phone call.

"Yes, El, I got your beep. What's up?" As she listened to her partner, Alex came up behind her, having paid the check. "You're kidding? So you think I was right about this guy not being a first timer…uh huh. Well, if it's the same MO it could be the same guy. The body was posed? Shit, well maybe he's trying to make it look like a copycat to throw us off. You want me at the scene? Okay, I'll be at the ME's in twenty." With that she hung up the phone and turned towards Alex. "Sorry, but I've got to go…new break in the case."

"I'll drive you, Liv. Besides, I could use this as a briefing of what's going on. The better I understand the case, the easier it will be for me to do my job when I'm needed," blushing she added: "Plus I need an excuse to spend more time with you."

"Alright, but just one thing: You don't need an excuse to spend more time with me," Olivia smiled and they began the walk to the DA's office, near which was parked Alex's car. Against the cold autumn air, they walked closely: too closely to be just friends, and just close enough to be much more.

After meeting with the ME, Olivia, Elliot, and Alex reconvened at the SVU squad room. Four desks were cleared and pushed together and laid upon them were crime scene photos from both discovery sites. Both victims were blonde, tall, slender, youthful, and still unidentified. They sported similar bite marks, and both had been found in similar positions.

"According to Mr. Lang, the discoverer of the second victim, he checked for a pulse before calling 911. The body was still warm," Elliot recounted from his notes taken at the crime scene. "That means our perp is getting gutsy. If the body was still warm at," he checked his notes. "Eleven thirty PM, then our guy must have dumped the body in broad daylight right after he killed her."

"No, wait," Olivia walked around and studied a few of the pictures. "Our perp is getting gutsy, yes, but he is also getting smarter and more efficient. Look at the bites: they weren't post mortem this time. Look at the bruising around the canine marks, and the little bit of dried blood dribbling down her skin. The dog was let loose on her before she was dead. The body was dropped while she was still alive."

"So are we dealing with the same perp or someone trying to perfect the first one's technique?" Alex inquired of the detectives' opinions. "It appears to be the same MO, yet there's no cracked skull, internal bleeding, or immediately fatal wounds."

"Unless the first victim's death was a mistake," Cragen pointed out. "What if he hadn't meant for her to get that massive head wound? He starts to attack her, she struggles, in the struggle he accidentally slams her head into the concrete, she stops moving, he rapes her, and then he realizes she's gone. He wanted her to feel pain when the dog attacked her, but lost the chance when he accidentally knocked her out. What happened to the second victim must be what he had intended for the first. Look at the necks of the victims in the photos."

Elliot and Olivia take their time with their observations before Elliot states his findings. "The first victim has many bite marks on her entire body, but fewer on the neck. The second victim has many marks on her entire body, and more on her neck than the first. Also, the second victim's neck is far bloodier than the other's."

"I still stand by what I said before: this guy has killed and raped multiple times. To add to that theory, I think this is the first time he has added unusual torture to his routine," Olivia pointed out. "He got bored with just rape and murder, so he decided to throw in some kink. The dog must have attacked certain areas of her body when he told it to. The jugular is completely torn, and her vocal cords were rendered useless according to the ME. He wanted to dump her while she was alive. She was tortured first by man, then by dog and lastly by nature. It was how cold last night? Thirty degrees or below? She froze to death over the course of five to seven hours."

"This is the report from the lab," Elliot handed Olivia a file he had been holding. "The breed is a rottweiler, most likely purebred in Germany. The follicles of the hairs found at both scenes had a disease present in the DNA samples, and most rottweilers with that disease contract it by birth. The only cases of it in the US have been in dogs imported or descended from dogs imported from Germany. That really narrows it down. It shouldn't be hard to track down all of the purebred rottweiler owners in the city, least of all purebred in their native land."

"Also, check into German immigrants owning rottweilers. It could be that our perp immigrated and brought his pet with him," Cragen threw in his two cents. "Any leads on who our Jane Does are?"

"No," Olivia answered. "Neither of them had prints nor DNA in the system. That means that they have no record. This guy seems to have a blonde fetish. To narrow it down, he has a thing for tall, strong, imposing blonde women. Both our victims had fibers on them from fine skirt suits, meaning these women had nice jobs and were probably high on their career food chains. We should look into companies with high standing blonde women employees to see if anyone has been missing their executives lately."

"Great, well, that's enough for right now. I want to hear from you at the end of the day to see what progress you have made," Cragen started towards his office. "More importantly, I want to find out who these Jane Does are. Their jobs or names could have something in connection to this killer. There's always a reason for a serial rapist and murderer to target his victims…these women have to be connected somehow. Find out before going home, got it?"

Olivia and Elliot sat at their desks facing each other in the empty squad room. "I'd like to introduce you to some new evidence I found in support of one of my theories," Elliot said to his partner and smirked. "The car you drove last night to the crime scene wasn't yours, was it? There were some interesting stickers on the windshield that couldn't possibly have been yours. And today Alex had keys with her held together by the same keychain the car keys had. Why do you think that is?" He waggled his eyebrows suggestively at Olivia's surprised blush. "I think it's because you two have got something going on…just between you two. I didn't want to say anything last night because you seemed like you were having a hell of a time with this new case, but I want to ask you something now. Why didn't you tell me? You know you can tell me anything."

Olivia sighed and put down the file she had been going over. "You want to know the truth? Even I don't know what's going on with me and Alex. We were having a fun time, you know, just going out for dinner as friends. One thing led to another and we started flirting. She lured me back to her office under the pretense of retrieving a file…and it got out that we both liked each other. My beeper went off right when we were about to kiss outside her apartment, and I had to run off to the crime scene. After finishing up there, I drove her car back to her place; we had tea, talked about the new case, end of story. I'm not sure if we're a couple now or if we're going to be or what. So can you just stop acting like we're fucking every night like a couple of horny teenagers? And please stop teasing me in front of the rest of the unit…I don't want people knowing until I know what this is."

"You still didn't answer my question," Elliot softened and looked into his partner's eyes. "You didn't tell me." A stern look from Olivia got him to relent. "Okay, okay, I get it. You wanted to wait to tell me until you knew yourself what was going on. Just like with the rest of the squad, you want this hushed up. If it hadn't gone anywhere, you would have just never told me. I understand. But you could have at least have told me what was going on…I like being a shoulder to lean on." He smiled widely. "You know what you mean to me, Liv."

It was true. Olivia and Elliot considered each other like sister and brother. It had taken a while to dispel the rumors flying that they were having an affair, but when they did the rest of the squad began to almost even see them as siblings. The two were practically attached at the hip and told each other everything.

It was this that made Olivia sad that she hadn't kept Elliot in the loop. "Sorry, partner. I guess I just didn't know…I mean…I know I can tell you anything, but I didn't know what 'anything' included. I mean, I didn't know what you'd think if I'd told you that the object of my affection was a woman, not to mention our ADA. I couldn't stand to make things awkward between us, and that's just the thing to make friendships awkward, ya know?"

"Yeah, well, I suggest we hurry up and find out who these Jane Does are so you can go to your ADA. If we're right about this guy having a blonde fetish…" he let himself trail off as he listened to the sounds of a small TV on the other side of the room. 'Breaking news from Civil Corp, a small law firm on the upper east side of Manhattan: I am Roger Hamilton of Civil Corp. I'd like to report that one of our lawyers has been missing for the last few days. If anyone sees this woman, please contact us immediately. Thank you.' The news anchor came back on with contact information.

The detectives leapt from their seats and rushed to the TV screen. On the monitor was a picture with a phone number underneath it. "Liv, that's one of our Jane Does. Why would they wait until so late at night to put out a search for her? Actually, why didn't we hear about this? If they are making a public announcement, the police must have been notified at some point or another."

"Maybe she was away on business and they just figured she'd taken an extra day. When that extra day became three they got worried. The cops they reported it to probably didn't think to call SVU because they didn't see any connection to our case. We should probably mention it to them when we interview them on what they may know. If we say we want to know about anything that might be connected to our case, we mean anything. They should know that that means if a blonde is reported missing we need to know about it."

"Yeah, look, now that we know who one Jane Doe might be, I think we should call that number. It's too late to call Mr. Hamilton in to make an identification of the body, but we can at least make an appointment with him for tomorrow. Do you think you could do that? Now that you've mentioned Alex being potentially in danger I think I should at least go check on her. She may even not be at her apartment right now," Olivia smiled when her partner nodded. "Tell Cragen for me, alright? And make sure he lets you go home for the night. We've made progress, and you're in dire need of a family breakfast tomorrow morning. Good night."

Alex walked from the DA's office to her car. It was a late night, and she was definitely ready to go home and sleep. When she neared her car, she heard a noise in the same alleyway as the night before. Then she heard a dog bark once before a man and his pet walked out of the shadows and into the light of a streetlamp. The dog was a rottweiler. And the man seemed oddly familiar. "Hey blondie," he said with a chuckle. His dog struggled against the leash. "It's a bit late for a lady like you to be out by yourself in a neighborhood like this," his eyes roamed up and down her body, taking in her dress attire. "I see you're probably an attorney with the DA's office…I hate women authority types," he let out some slack on the leash and the dog scrambled closer to Alex.

"You're the gang leader from last night. I recognize your voice…that's a nice dog you have there," Alex said coolly and chanced another step towards her car. "Where are your lackeys tonight?" A few more steps and the man let the dog have more slack. Okay, I need to be more careful. I don't want him letting his dog loose until I think I can make it to my car before getting my legs ripped off, she thought.

"Don't need them tonight. I though that it would be easier talking to you without them making things awkward," he fingered something in his pocket and smirked. "Your detective isn't with you tonight. Why is that? Is she busy working on her latest case? I bet you miss her."

"What kind of gang are you? Do you have a name? And what's with the rottweiler? Is that like your mascot or something?" Alex took the final step to her car. It was a disadvantage that each step brought her closer to the man and his beast, but she needed to get out of there. One hand in her pocket turned on her cell phone and called Olivia.

"Jester? He's my companion. He and I are like best buddies. The thing about being in a gang is you can never really trust anyone. Especially being the leader, there are always hits against me by mutinous members," he tossed a dog treat out to the pet, which left his relentless struggling briefly in order to eat it. He then went back to pulling against the leash. "I think Jester wants to get to know you more."

At that moment Olivia's voice rang down the street with her footsteps echoing around her. "Stop, police! I'm armed, so back away slowly!" Her gun was outstretched before her and she came to a halt in between the man, his dog, and Alex. "Restrain that animal right now!"

"Hey, I don't mean any trouble. I was just saying hi." He jerked the leash and the dog shut up. They both turned heal and began to walk away. As they walked, the man began to whistle ice dream truck music. The dog wagged its stub of a tail once and barked before continuing to walk in silence.

"Don't move or I'll shoot! Get back here now!" Olivia shouted and started to run after the retreating man and dog. She was beginning to think that the gang from the previous night was related to her case. As a result of that growing dread in the pit of her stomach, she was regretting more and more not mentioning it to the squad that day. "I said stop, unless you want more charges against you when we finally arrest you. Don't walk away from me, bastard!" Her emotions were indeed getting the best of her, but Alex had been threatened. Her anger boiled just for that, and on top of it he could be the culprit in the case she was currently working on.

"Olivia! Wait!" Alex shouted after the running detective. "Let him go!" She didn't want to be left alone in case one of the other gang members was lurking. When Olivia heard Alex, she quickly changed her direction and ran the one hundred yards or so back to the blonde. Upon Olivia returning to her side, Alex threw her arms about her and held her close. "God, I was so scared, Liv."

A/N: I hope you liked it!