Okay, guys, I am REALLY sorry. I know this chapter is super late, but I had a MAJOR writer's block on this one. I really hope it was worth the wait, there's going to be a lot of excitement in this chapter. Thanks for reading!
Elliot and Olivia awoke to Stabler's phone ringing. He scrambled to answer it, and Olivia awkwardly slid out from beneath his arm. She may not have been an expert on relationships, but falling asleep in his arms didn't seem like something 'just partners' did for each other.
"That was the Captain," Elliot said, his voice breaking into her confused and groggy thoughts. "The DNA results are in."
"Oh, good. Maybe now we can finally end this case," Olivia said, relieved. "But... What do I do about Dominic? I don't want to bring him with us after the bomb fiasco, but I don't want to leave him with someone else, either. What if Preston comes back?"
Before Elliot could answer, there was a knock on the door. Olivia got up to answer it, and found Casey Novak on the other side.
"Hey, Casey! What are you doing all the way out here?" Elliot asked.
"I'm here to take Dominic for the day," she said, attempting a smile. "You guys have to work on catching Preston. And... I have to talk to you, Liv."
"About what?"
The smile on Olivia's face was too genuine, and Casey absolutely hated saying what she was about to tell her. She gestured for her to step outside so they could have a bit of privacy.
"Liv, how serious are you about adopting Dominic?" she asked.
"How did you—"
"I have friends in family court, and I know you talked to someone with ACS. And, Liv, I think it's great, but..."
"But?"
"Like I said, I have friends in family court, and I heard that... Mike Quinby's wife is also applying for custody. And it looks like she might get it."
Olivia stared at her friend, a feeling of dread creeping into her mind. She couldn't lose Dominic, not after she already started loving him. And certainly not to the wife of the man who sold him to Preston in the first place.
"But, why would they even consider giving him to a woman who allowed her husband to do what he did? She didn't even report him missing!"
"She claims that Mike forced her to do it."
"What if she's lying?"
"Nobody will believe she isn't telling the truth. They look at a guy like Mike, and they see an abuser, every time. I'm sorry, Olivia."
Casey saw the expression on her friend's face, and she knew she had seen that look before. It was the same look she had when Vivian had taken Calvin away.
"But don't worry," she said, trying for a smile. "I'll get you a really good lawyer— the best there is."
"Second best," said Olivia, smiling back. "You're the best, Case."
"Oh, you're too kind. Now, please, get out there and put that lunatic behind bars."
"Believe me, I will."
When they got to the station, they found Morales behind a computer, beads of sweat sticking to his forehead. He seemed so focused on his work, they were surprised he noticed them coming in.
"I've been doing all sorts of digging on this guy. His name's Bryce Masters, and there are plenty of things about him that seem shifty. In and out of Juvenile Facilities when he was a kid, mostly for stealing. Several reports of beating his girlfriends when he was a teen, but they all recanted. A DUI. Assault and battery, charges dropped."
"I'm seeing a pattern here," Elliot muttered.
"Could you look up any property he might own?" Olivia asked.
"Yeah. A house in Brooklyn and a warehouse in Manhattan."
"What is it with these guys and warehouses?" Munch asked.
The Captain, who had been listening to the entire conversation, finally spoke up.
"Fin and Munch, you go to the house. See if Masters is there, and arrest him if he is. Benson and Stabler, you check out the warehouse. This could be another false trail, but we have to make sure. If you see anything out of the ordinary, call for backup."
"We will," Olivia said. It was a good thing she was now able to take her arm out of its sling, for otherwise Cragen probably would have made her stay behind.
"Okay, go. And be careful. All of you."
They all nodded and went their separate ways.
Elliot and Olivia hopped into their car, praying that this arrest would be an easy one, but knowing it wouldn't. It was a quick drive to the warehouse, so they barely had enough time to come up with a plan on the way.
"I know one thing, though," Elliot said, more to himself than to his partner, "I am not letting us get separated this time."
When they arrived at the building, everything seemed completely normal. They drew their guns as a precaution and opened the door. Olivia was disappointed that they had, once again, followed a false lead, for if this were the right place, they would have seen the guard by now. Despite this knowledge, she didn't let her guard down, just in case.
They quietly pushed one of the doors open, and Olivia gasped at what she saw. Several children were huddled in the corner, most of whom Olivia immediately recognized.
"Olivia?" the young boy asked hopefully.
"Charlie! Thank God you're all okay. Come with me," she said. She gestured for the children to follow her from the room. "Quickly, now. We don't have much time."
The children quickly filed out of the room. Just before Charlie, Elliot, and Olivia could leave, though, a door swung open to reveal Bryce Masters, AKA Alec Preston.
"Oh, Detective Benson, Detective Stabler!" he said, as if greeting old friends. "So nice of you to join us."
Elliot and Olivia raised their guns once again, and saw that Masters had lifted his own, pointing it directly at Charlie.
"Drop the gun, Masters. It's all over," Elliot commanded.
"Now, why on earth would I do that?"
"Because if you don't, we'll have to kill you now."
"Oh, really? How do you know that I won't kill this innocent little boy here before the bullet hits me? We both know you can't shoot me unless I shoot first."
"We also know that if you even think about pulling that trigger, we'll shoot you."
"Then I suppose we've reached an impasse," Masters said, sighing sadly. "Pity. I was so looking forward to killing you. Especially you, Livvie."
"You don't deserve to talk to her," Elliot growled.
"I wonder, who would be more fun to kill? This young boy here, or the lovely Olivia?"
He moved so that the gun was pointed toward Liv instead. While he was preoccupied, Elliot quietly nudged Charlie, then quickly pushed him through the door. Seeing the movement, Preston turned towards Elliot.
Time moved in slow motion.
Masters.
The gun.
The finger slowly squeezing the trigger.
Elliot.
No!
Just as Masters pulled the trigger, Olivia threw herself at her partner, shoving him to the ground.
An earth-shattering bang reverberated off the walls.
Olivia's body smacked into the hard pavement, knocking the wind out of her in a loud gasp.
Elliot lifted his gun and fired twice. Masters was dead.
"That was a close one, huh, Liv?" he asked. "...Liv?" He grinned and looked down at her, but she had become motionless. "Olivia?" he said, his smile fading and his voice becoming urgent. He rolled her over and saw the hole the bullet had torn through her shirt.
She'd been shot.
As he watched, a scarlet stain grew bigger and bigger on the white fabric. He lifted the hem of her shirt, and he felt his eyes widen as he saw the bullet wound on her abdomen.
"El..." a quiet voice called. He quickly looked up and saw Olivia's big brown eyes staring back at him. "El, there's...something I need to tell you, before...before I go…"
"No," he said, grabbing her hand and holding it tight. "No, Liv, you're not going anywhere!"
"Elliot, I..." the words caught in her throat and a tear ran down her face. "I lo..."
"Shh, I know, Liv. It's okay. It's gonna be okay."
She gripped his hand tighter and squeezed her eyes shut, barely trapping the groan behind her teeth, the whimper that threatened to escape her lips. This was pain as she had never experienced it.
"I love you, too," Elliot whispered.
Her grip suddenly loosened and her face relaxed.
"No...No! Liv! Stay with me!" Elliot grabbed his radio. "OFFICER DOWN! OFFICER DOWN! My partner has been shot! I need a bus, now! Please, Liv! Olivia! Please, don't...don't leave me...I can't live without you. I can't! OLIVIA!"
She wasn't responding. Was she even breathing?
"Liv! Olivia, please! Please, open your eyes. Let me see those beautiful eyes again. Please, Olivia!"
Olivia was fighting to comply, but her eyelids weren't obeying her commands. Finally, with great effort, she managed to open them slightly.
"El…" she said, so softly he barely heard it.
"Liv! Just keep your eyes open, okay? Can you do that for me?"
"Elliot, I've always…"
"Shh, don't try to talk. Just stay with me."
"I…I can't."
"What? No! Don't you dare close those eyes, Olivia!"
"I'm sorry."
Her eyes drifted shut, and didn't open again.
Elliot barely noticed when the ambulance pulled up outside. The only thing he noticed was that his partner, his best friend, the love of his life, wasn't moving.
He held tight to her hand. He held it like he was a helium balloon, and her hand was the only thing weighing him down as his body threatened to float away. As the paramedics loaded her onto the stretcher and he was forced to let go, he felt a sob erupt from his chest.
If she dies...
"No! She won't die!"
But if she does...it will be your fault.
Elliot didn't argue this time. He just slowly fell to the ground. He closed his eyes, but all he could see was the fear in her eyes, the blood on her shirt, the hole in her stomach.
A car pulled up outside the warehouse, and Fin and Munch hopped out. They saw Elliot sitting with his face buried in his hands as the ambulance drove away, and they shared a worried glance.
"Hey, El, what happened?" Munch asked. When Elliot looked up at him, he was worried further. "Why is there blood on your face?" But Elliot didn't care that he had smeared Olivia's blood all over himself.
"Munch! Fin!" he exclaimed, as if seeing them for the first time. "I need you to drive me to the hospital."
"Stabler, where's Liv?" Fin asked, looking around. When he saw the pain and urgency in Elliot's expression, he understood immediately. "Munch, give me the keys."
They jumped into the vehicle and Fin stepped on it. On the way to the hospital, Elliot tried to close his eyes. But all he could see was what, out of everything that happened that day, had scared him the most: Liv's peaceful expression as they loaded her onto the stretcher, as if all the pain had left her.
"Please, Olivia. Please hang on."
I'm sorry! I know it was kind of a cliffhanger, but this was the only way I could close the chapter!
Please review. I'll try to update soon, but I started school last week, so I might not be able to.