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Pieces Mended

(2)

The morning light poured through the windows waking Olivia with gentle force, the day waiting for her to get started. With an exhausted groan she threw the covers away getting up while attempting to prepare her mind for all of the things that were about to come. The hot water of the shower washed away the sleepiness but still the exhaustion remained as she dressed the smell of coffee filling her apartment.

The empty bottle of wine and pizza box had remained on the coffee table a reminder of the night before. She couldn't help but smile to herself thinking about Nick's offering of help when she had needed it. But with that the memories of David and what had happened between them started to nag at the back of her mind; a bittersweet atmosphere settling in the small space.

Taking a sip of her coffee Olivia tried to shake the feeling that had sunk into her skin, briefly reading the headlines that were on that morning's paper in order to distract herself; her phone rang cutting through the silence.

"Benson" She answered it with a small sigh as she prepared herself for the details of the case they would be working today.

"Vice just threw a 6'47 our way." Nick's voice filled her ears, his serious tone speaking of the severity of the situation. "I'll come pick you up"

"Sure" With the sound of a click the phone call ended. A strange amount of anxiety settled in as she acknowledged that she had to go back to work; that it was up to her to speak for their victim. That feeling that she'd had the previous of self doubt had not yet disappeared. And as she watched the door with a steady gaze it became all the more real that the moment she left that door there would be eyes on her; the way she worked, the things she did and the things she said.

It seemed bizarre to her that after all of these years she, once again, doubted her ability. Olivia glanced at her breakfast, her stomach turning to knots; the food suddenly becoming unappetising.

The buzzer rang throughout the apartment startling her slightly as she came back to present time realising that there was somewhere she needed to be. Taking a few moments she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Olivia grabbed her things from the table abandoning everything in a slight daze.

"I'll be right out" She informed the person, on the other side, she assumed would be Nick. Quickly slamming the front door shut she rushed down the stairs.

Nick was waiting by the car, leaning against the driver side door with his hands casually tucked into his pockets; a frown upon his features as he watched passersby while waiting for her. Their eyes met and a strange understanding was created between them; they were jaded. This job had most certainly gotten to them- under their skin.

"Sorry for the wait" Olivia said awkwardly making her way towards the car.

"It's fine...I don't think the DB has any plans..." He said with a small smile attempting to raise the mood that they had both found themselves in.

"Very funny" She forced a small laugh climbing into the passenger seat.

"How are you feeling today?" Nick asked keeping his eyes focused on the road rather than watching her.

"I'm...okay...I think" Olivia gave him a faint smile appreciating his concern but realising that she had lied slightly about how she was feeling. It was time to put on a mask, a brave face and pretend that things were going as she had planned for them to.

Dark skies rolled in the clouds above them matching the dark mood that had settled in Olivia's system. People rushed about the streets with somewhere to be not looking back at the strangers they had pushed aside. Traffic clogged up all the roads with drivers restlessly tapping their fingers against their steering wheels. It was another day; just another day in a city like this. As she glanced at the sky scrapers that surrounded her she realised just how small she felt.

The car lurched forwards suddenly as the traffic lights turned green as people attempted to escape their static positions in order to get to where it was they needed to be. Nick turned to her but quickly looked away swallowing whatever words that had appeared in his mind.

"We're almost there" he ended up saying to the taxi ahead of them making a turning into a narrow road. Olivia simply just nodded taking in the damp walls and gloom they had made a turn into. After a short amount of time Nick pulled up, stopping the car in near a dark alley.

The detectives climbed out of the car approaching the yellow tape with cautious steps their heels clicking against the ground.

"What do we have?" Nick asked moving under the tape with one quick motion.

"Underage girl, found naked, bound... She's not talking..." The CSU tech informed them tucking his clip board beneath his arm as he led the detectives to the crime scene. "She's being taken to Lincoln Medical" He indicated to the ambulance.

A metallic smell filled the air, getting steadily stronger as they made their way to a particularly dark part of the alleyway. Damp crawled down the side of the building, the mould and water determined to reach the ground.

"She was found here..." The tech stepped back letting the detective's eyes wash over the small space. Blood stained the floor and the walls in an odd pattern of hurt.

"Who found her?" Olivia asked turning away from the blood pool and splatter surveying the rest of their crime scene.

"A guy who works in the cafe across the street...Frankie Mitchell...He was sneaking out of work for a cigarette break..." Again the tech indicated to the side lines where a man stood with a pale face and a nervous expression.

"Picked the wrong alleyway..." Olivia gave a small shrug turning back to the very spot where their victim had been found.

"Well...smoking is bad for you..." Nick added. There were a few moments silence as they both attempted to let everything around them sink in before they attempted to make guesses at what had happened here.

"Her clothes haven't been found, no traces of a weapon and see the way the blood has pooled...I don't think this is our primary..." She said turning to her partner, the glint in her eye clearly suggesting that she was unsure about the judgement she had made.

"You're right..." He agreed with a firm nod and a weak smile hoping that he could help her get her confidence back.

"We should go see our victim...Maybe she's talking..." Olivia glanced around; the intonation in her voice clearly suggesting that she was asking Nick weather he agreed.

They walked back to the car watching evidence was carefully being handled and collected to be processed, hoping for the sake of their victim that the things they'd found would be enough to piece together what had happened here.

Again they were moving through the streets surrounded by the sound of silence as they prepared themselves for the story they knew was going to unfold.