"What have we got?" Olivia asked, being the first one back into the squadroom, Nick shortly behind her.
"More like who have we got," Fin corrected, standing next to Munch infront of the big screens.
"Victor Palmero. Remember him?" Munch asked, looking at Olivia as her and Nick came to stand beside him in front of the screens.
Olivia nodded,"Yeah, me and Elliot put him away for public indecency, right? We thought he raped that little girl in the park, too, but we couldn't prove it. What about him?" she asked.
"He was released last year, and, apparently, he has been paying men to do his dirty work for him this time around," Munch explained.
"He what?" Nick asked.
"He paid at least one of those men to rape Lizzie," Munch said.
"How do you know?" Olivia asked, curiously.
"The second rapist came in right after you guys went to the cribs. He said he felt too guilty, couldnt' sleep, and spilled everything. Palmero was a friend of his mom's. He asked him to do this for him, for 5,000 dollars, and as a favor to him. Guy said he needed the money, didn't think it would be this hard to live with," Fin explained.
"And you're sure he's not lying?"Nick asked.
Munch nodded,"We checked his bank account," he said.
Olivia sighed,"You arrested him, right?' she asked.
Munch nodded again,"He's on his way to be booked now," he confirmed.
Cragen nodded,"Olivia, Nick, go talk to Lizzie. Munch and Fin will continue trying to track down Palmero. If we find him, we'll give you a call," he instructed.
Olivia and Nick nodded, grabbing their jackets and heading for the elevator,"Wow," Nick said, shaking his head.
"It wouldn't be the first time a perp has tried to get back at one of us," Olivia said, clipping her badge and gun to her hip, before slipping on her jacket.
"If someone did that to Zara, I don't know how I would be able to keep from killing them," Nick said, stepping off of the elevator.
Olivia took out her car keys,"Well, we aren't going to tell Elliot who it is before we get him in to custody, because he will kill him," she said, sliding into the driver's seat.
Nick shut the passenger seat door behind him,"Ok," he said as Olivia began to drive. Olivia drove to the house in Queens, knowing the kids still lived there with Kathy. She parked in the driveway, and got out of the car, leading the way up to the front door, and knocking.
It only took a moment for Elliot to answer the door,"Elliot? I thought Kathy stayed here with the kids?" Olivia questioned.
Ellliot nodded,"She does, but she never came back yesterday, so when the doctors were ready to discharge her, I took her home. Why are you guys here?" he asked, looking between the two detectives.
"Is Lizzie up?" Olivia asked.
Elliot nodded, stepping aside,"Yeah, she's in her room," he replied,"Now, will you tell me why you're here?" he asked, closing the door.
"We caught a break on the case. We just need to talk to Lizzie," Nick replied.
Elliot kept his eyes fixed on Olivia,"Did you find who did this to her?" Elliot asked.
Olivia shook her head,"Not yet, but we have a lead," she replied, heading for the stairs, with Nick behind her. She made her way to Lizzie's door, knocking lightly.
"Who is it?" Lizzie asked.
"It's Olivia," she replied.
"Come on in, Livvie," Lizzie replied, sitting up in her bed as Nick and Olivia came in. Nick chose to stand by the door, as Olivia made her way over to the bed, sitting on the edge of it.
"How are you doing, sweetie?" Olivia asked.
"Good," Lizzie replied simply.
Olivia raised an eyebrow,"You sure?" she asked.
Lizzie sighed and shook her head,"I can't sleep. I just had nightmares all night. I just keep imagining him, on top of me, inside of me," she said as a tear rolled down her cheek.
Olivia's heart broke and she wiped the tear from Lizzie's cheek,"Sweetie, I promise you, we are going to catch him. Actually, that's why we are here. We just came to tell you that we have the man who raped you the other night in custody, and we are working on finding the man who paid him to do it," she said.
"Someone paid him to rape me?" Lizzie asked.
"Yeah, sweetie. Someone mad at your dad for arresting him. We know who it is, and we are looking for him. I will come back when we catch him, ok?"Olivia assured her.
Lizzie nodded,"Ok," she said.
"Bye sweetie," Olivia said, kissing her cheek, before standing up.
"Hey Livvie?" Lizzie asked.
"Yeah sweetie?"Olivia asked, turning back around.
"Can you just sit here for a few minutes with me? I think it might help me sleep," Lizzie said shyly.
Olivia smiled warmly, sitting back down on the edge of the bed,"Sure honey," she said as Lizzie slipped her hand into Olivia's. Olivia watched as Lizzie closed her eyes, settling back into her bed. Olivia turned to look over her shoulder at Nick, who was smiling warmly at her. Olivia returned the smile, before looking back at Lizzie, who's breathing seemed to have evened out. Olivia waited a few more minutes before speaking,"Lizzie?" she asked quietly. After getting no reply, Olivia carefully extracted her hand from Lizzie's, and kissed her forehead, before standing up and following Nick out of the room.
"You really are amazing," Nick said as he walked down the stairss next to Olivia.
Olivia smiled,"I'm just glad I could help her get some rest," she said as they made it to the bottom of the stairs, where Elliot was waiting.
"Is she ok?" Elliot asked.
"Yeah, she's sleeping," Olivia replied.
Elliot smiled at her,"You still have that magic touch, don't you? I sat in there with her all night, and all morning, and could not get her to close her eyes for more than 3 seconds," he said, shaking his head.
"Well, if you have that problem again, you can always call me. I will come over and sit with her until she goes to sleep," Olivia said.
Elliot nodded,"So, are you going to tell me what you have found out about the case?" Elliot asked.
Olivia sighed,"Elliot, you know that I can't do that," she said.
"Come on Liv," Elliot begged.
Olivia sighed,"We know who did it, we are just trying to find him, and that is all I can tell you," she said.
"Liv, can I talk to you alone for a minute?" Elliot asked, glancing at Nick.
Olivia nodded,"Sure," she said, turning to look at Nick with a question in her eyes. He nodded, letting her know that he trusted her, and kissed her cheek, before heading out of the house, towards the car. "So, what's up?" Olivia asked, turning to look at Elliot.
"What is going on between the two of you?" Elliot asked.
"Elliot, I really don't think that is any of your business," Olivia said.
"Oh come on, Liv. You can't stay mad at me forever, and you sure as hell can't tell me that you are happy with him!" Elliot exclaimed.
"Yes, Elliot! I can be mad at you forever, if I want to! Do you realize what you did to me? You left, without so much as a goodbye! You were my best friend, and, whether you knew it or not, I was in love with you. You broke my heart, and you didn't even check in to make sure I was ok! Now, I am finally starting to be happy again, and here you come, right back into my life, trying to pretend that nothing ever happened. I moved on, Elliot, because you left me no choice. Yes, I can be happy with Nick, and I am. So, you can deal with that, and be my friend, or not, and leave me the fuck alone," Olivia fumed.
Elliot didn't say anything, just pulled Olivia close, connecting their lips before she had the chance to push him away,"Don't tell me you didn't feel anything," he said after he pulled away.
"Elliot, there isn't anything there anymore. You can accept that, and be my friend, which I would love, or you can not accept it, and leave me alone. But, those are your only two options," Olivia said, shaking her head, and wiping at her lips, before heading out of the house. She knew Nick wasn't going to like this, but she also knew she had to tell him.
What will Nick think about Elliot kissing Olivia? Will he confront him? Will they catch Palmero? What about Lizzie's first rapist? Will Lizzie be able to sleep without Olivia around? Which of his two choices will Elliot pick?
Find out all of this next chapter, but in the meantime, let me know what you thought of this chapter!