This is the last chapter to this story. It's really long and I could have probably made it 2 chapters, but I wanted to end with the 11th chapter because that's my favorite number. I'm also in a gooshy chick flick mood today and I hope I didn't get too carried away in some places. Let me know if it's too much. I'll make a rewrite. I left some things open for a sequel. If any of you are interested in reading more let me know and when I get some spare time I'll think of some stuff. I'm also always up for ideas. If you're the kind of person that only likes to come to this website to read. Let me know what you would like to read these characters doing and I'll see if it sparks anything in my gooy mind. Peace Out Ya'll
Scar
1+1
The pounding of his head beat like a drum over and over again to the sounds of metal and coughing around him. Elliot looked up to the ceiling of the jail cell, of which he now resided. His feelings of betrayal circulated around the thumping in his mind. Eight years on the job and there wasn't one day that he could fathom being on the other side of these bars. With is hands crossed over his heart he closed his eyes and talked to the only God he knew for an answer out of this hell. He heard footsteps coming down the hallway and they stopped at his cell. "Stabler. You got a visitor."
Elliot looked at the guard and slowly pulled his body from the bed. The guard cuffed him and led him to the visitor's quarters. Olivia sat on the other side of the glass. He sat down and touched the glass with his hand. She reached out and met her hand to his. Her lips formed an inaudible "Elliot" to him, and they stood in silence for a moment. Elliot picked up the phone on the wall and Olivia followed his lead. "Liv, don't be sad. I'm going to get out this. I didn't do anything. I just need to wait for you guys to find Craig."
Olivia didn't answer right away. "El, we found Craig. He had an alibi and it checked out. Unless his alibi is wrong, he wasn't there."
"Olivia, he smashed me on the head. I have the bruise and cut to prove it."
"Elliot, the guy you shot, hit you on the head. They found the rock and it has his prints on it."
Elliot backed away from the glass, "Liv, you have to believe me. Why would I lie to you?"
"I don't think you are lying to me, but I can't prove anything. Elliot, things aren't adding up. I mean you even said that it was possible that I might not have heard you leave the night you stayed with me."
"Liv, why would I tell you that and then lie to you right now? I have no reason to want to kill innocent people. The guy in the videotape doesn't even look like me. Liv, please don't tell me you're on their side?"
"I'm not. I'm just trying to take in every angle, so that I can get you out of here."
"There were video cameras at the school. Watch them. Craig was there. I'm innocent."
Olivia looked away and then back at him. "Elliot, the tapes were destroyed."
Elliot stood up "What are you talking about? "
"They found small explosives in the video recorders that were wired to a remote control."
"Search Craig's things. He has the remote."
"Actually, Elliot, the remote was in your pocket."
Elliot banged on the glass and yelled, "Olivia, don't say this to me. My god, I didn't do this."
Olivia put the phone down and grabbed her temples with her hands. Elliot sat in the chair on the other side of the glass. He got close to the glass and spoke into the phone with a soft fear behind his voice.
"Liv, you have to believe me. I'm being framed. Please pick up the phone. I won't yell again."
She pulled her eyes up to look at his. She wanted to believe him. With a shaky hand she reached for the receiver and they sat in silence.
"Elliot, why did you follow Craig without us?"
"He told me Cragen brought him in. I thought he was working with us. He had all of these explanations about finding new evidence. I was tricked, Liv. Can't you see that? You would have done the same thing."
Olivia quietly nodded.
"I don't know what else to say to make you believe me."
"Elliot, I want to believe you more then anyone. I have to believe you."
She paused. "What was Craig wearing that night?"
"Black coat. Cotton or Polyester of some sort. Blue jeans, and black Doc Martin boots. I only know that because it was the first thing I saw when he helped me off the ground."
Can you think of anything else?"
He squeezed his eyes tightly shut to think and opened them with a shake of his head, "I've told you everything."
"I know."
Elliot sat forward near the glass, "Liv, give me your hand."
She reached her hand up to his and leaned close to his eyes.
"Liv, I want you to go to my apartment and look in the drawer on my nightstand. There's a box in there that I want you to have. Keep it with you until this is over."
She just starred at him.
"Liv, I love you. Please don't lose faith in me. You're all I have."
She looked deep in his eyes to try and find the answers. She knew he wasn't capable of these crimes and the fact was, she knew he was smarter then the evidence left behind. Everything was happening too quickly. She backed up and quietly replied, "I have to go. Be patient."
Olivia dropped the phone and walked out of the door. Watching her leave was painful. His anger and frustration fell into a dark depression.
Scene
Olivia walked into the small apartment. The emptiness was over whelming. She sat on the bed next to the nightstand trying to decide if she really wanted to see what was in the drawer. His presence was all around her. The red candles were the only color and even they were growing dusty. Taking a breath she opened the drawer and pulled out a small box. Her heart stopped. She didn't need to open it to know what it was. The air seemed to get thin and breathing was becoming more difficult the longer she sat there. Swallowing hard she opened the lid. Inside was a gold ring with several diamonds on it. Olivia closed her eyes. The thoughts of Elliot were blank. Her mind was fuzzy with confusion. She lay down on the bed and hugged his pillow. Every breath she took brought in the scent of his body. She wanted to cry but she could only stare at the ring. This was uncharted territory he left for her to deal with. Marriage was a pipe dream to her. She slid the ring on her finger. It fit perfectly. She thought about him being there with her. She could almost feel him spooning her from behind. His low voice whispering in her ear, "Olivia Benson, will you marry me?" She would in turn roll on her back, look up at him, and softly say, "Yes, Elliot Stabler, I will marry you." He would kiss her and run his hand lightly down the front of her chest. She would stop him like the stubborn woman she was, "But only if I get to be on top." Olivia rolled over on the empty bed smiling at the ring on her hand. In mid daydream her phone vibrated on her belt. "Stabler. I mean, Benson."
Fin was on the other line. "Liv? "
She mouthed a "Shit", and continued. "Ah, yeah. What do you want Fin?"
"Where you at? The Captain's been looking for you."
She looked at the clock on Elliot's nightstand, "Oh, huh, I'll be there in 10 minutes. I had to ask Elliot some more questions. Tell him I'll be there. Later." She clicked the phone off. The diamond shined as she moved her hand. She stopped and pulled the ring off of her finger. After a second to collect her thoughts she unlatched the necklace around her neck and slid the ring onto the chain. Wearing it on her finger may have brought unwanted questions. The ring lay safely under her shirt. She touched it and took in a deep breath before quickly heading back to the station.
Scene
Deputy Inspector Greg Orneel knocked on Cragen's door. Don looked up from his paper work, "Greg, what brings you to my office? Come in, please."
Cragen stood up to welcome him inside and shake his hand. The Deputy was a tall man with a strong build. He towered over the Captain and shook his hand with the force of a tank.
"Hi Don, I dropped by to talk to you about the case involving one of your detectives."
Cragen's smile slowly faded. "I had a feeling you would. We're doing everything we can to find more evidence."
"That's the thing Don. I looked it over and there's plenty of evidence. We feel that this unit is too personally involved with the perp. I came here to tell you that we're going to transfer this case to the 61st precinct."
Cragen nodded. "I can see why you would want to do that, but this isn't just some random killer you want to prosecute. Detective Elliot Stabler, has been part of my team for 8 years. He has never shown this type of behavior before in the past. The person and the crimes don't match up. Now can you give us at least one more week to see what we can come up with? "
"I looked over your Detective's records and I feel differently about his behavior."
"He had a ruff patch. Don't we all? He was going through a divorce. He had anger problems that he works on in counseling. He would never do something as terrible as to rape and slice up 3 girls."
"Don, I'd love for you to be able to find evidence pointing in a new direction, but that doesn't change my opinion about transferring this case. I have to do what's best for the city of New York. Think about how bad it would look for us to push this case back to help out one of our own. We have enough trouble getting the people to trust us. I'm sorry Don. That's how it goes."
"You're telling me that you're going to let a man who puts his heart and soul into this job rot in jail because you don't want to look bad."
"That's not what I said Don. Now if you could kindly point me to the files on this case I'd greatly appreciate it."
Greg opened the door and walked towards the filing cabinets. Everyone in the room froze. Fin and Munch glanced up at the Inspector, Craig stopped writing in the corner to listen, but he didn't turn around, and Olivia stood up, "Captain, what's going on?"
"Not now Olivia."
Cragen started taking down all of the photos and evidence from the bulletin board. His face grew red hot as he placed it in a box. Fin and Munch stood up to confront him as they watch the evidence slowly vanish from the board. Cragen placed his hand in the air, "Detectives don't even start. Go back to work."
Olivia started to panic, "You can't do this. Captain, you can't stop this case yet."
"Olivia, it's beyond my control. It's been reassigned to a different branch."
"Why? We know the case. We're this close to a lead. Don't do this."
Cragen ignored her. Greg strolled over to them with the files in his hand. Olivia looked at him with her mouth open, "Inspector, you have to give us a couple more days."
"Darling, I don't know who you think you are, but if you want to keep your job you're gonna have to hand over all of the information on this case. There seem to be some missing files. How about I check your desk?" Greg walked over and pulled the rest of the information off of Olivia's desk.
Olivia was about to flip out, when Cragen pulled her arm, "Olivia, let it go."
Greg scooped up the box and smiled at her, "You keep up the good work now, Sweety."
Olivia glared at the Inspector as he rounded the corner. "I outta turn him in for sexual harrasment and endangering evidence."
"You'll do no such thing. Get caught up on your work or I'll assign you desk duty." Cragen said with a angered flare.
Olivia couldn't stop though. She just kept up her guns. "Are you going to allow this to happen? I can't believe you would leave him in there and rely on people that are going to treat his case as a sitting duck."
"There was nothing I could do."
"You could have tried harder." She yelled.
Cragen yelled even louder, "That's it. Go home."
Fin and Munch sat in silence. Olivia couldn't believe what was happening in front of her eyes. "You're all a bunch of cowards."
She turned to leave and stopped at Craigs desk. He had his back to them the whole time. "And you. You've been awfully quiet." He didn't move. She walked closer to him. "Did you have your fill of questions and answers?" He didn't answer her. "She stood over his shoulder. "Who's life are you going to destroy next, huh, Craig? Fin? Munch? It's gonna be tuff. Neither one of them has a personal life for you to invade."
Cragen stopped her from going any further, "Olivia, that's enough. Get out of my precinct."
Olivia looked down at Craig. His hand was cut. She grabbed it, "What's that?"
Craig pulled it away, "I go horse back riding at my grandfather's house every weekend. I cut it on a branch."
"Olivia, now." Cragen yelled.
Scene
Olivia walked with imaginary smoke pouring from her ears as she played the argument with Cragen over in her mind. She didn't stop until she got to the library. Lucky for Elliot she had his files memorized. She sat at a computer and dug up some background on Craig. She found his grandfather's address. He lived an hour outside of the city. She went back to the precinct and stole a car from the lot. An hour later she arrived at an old farmhouse to the name of Paul Garner. Olivia knocked on the door. Nobody answered. She took a walk to the barn where she could hear the horses whinnying and shuffling in their stalls. She pulled out the list that Melinda gave her with the name of the muscle relaxer on it. "Robaxinaxin" she said to herself. There were cabinets at the end of the barn. She started going through each one until she found it. There on the top shelf were a bunch of different medications for racehorses. Each bottle had a strange name and description on them. Finally, Olivia grabbed a big bottle. On the back read "Robaxinaxin". "AH!" She cried with excitement. She tore the phone off of her belt. "Casey, I've got a lead to Elliot's case. I'm at Craig's grandfather's house. He has Robaxinaxin for his horses."
"That's great Liv. Did his grandfather give that to you or are you illegally snooping around?"
"I-"
Just then a man stood at the barn door with a shotgun pointed at Olivia's direction.
"Casey, I gotta go."
The old man spit.
"Are you Paul Garner?"
He let the gun drop a bit. "Who wants to know?"
"I'm a detective. I work with your grandson, Craig."
"Yeah, what are you doing in my barn?"
"I…Well Craig told me that you have horses. We're doing an investigation, and we're looking for this muscle relaxer." She wasn't completely lying. She pointed to the bottle and the old man spit again.
"What do you need that for?"
"Um. I have to compare it with a sample we have to see if it's what we're looking for. Craig thought you might have some."
Paul slung his gun on his shoulder, "Why didn't Craig come down himself? He knows where it is."
"We've been swamped at the office. He's pretty busy."
"He seems to like that sort a thing."
"Mr. Garner, did Paul visit you this past weekend?"
"He hasn't visited in over a month. Ever since he got that city job. That's where he spends his time."
Olivia smiled. "Can I take a sample of this Robaxinaxin?"
"Take the whole bottle if you like. My horses don't race anymore. I'm too old to be race'n horses."
"Thank you Mr. Garner. I've gotta go, but I'll tell Craig you said hi."
"mmmyeah." He spit again.
Olivia said goodbye and walked to her car.
Casey had called her 3 times after she hung up on her. "Casey?"
"Liv, what happened?"
"I need a warrant for Craig's apartment and locker. I have a bottle of the muscle relaxer used to stun our victims."
"I'll see what I can do."
"Casey, it's important. Please do what ever you have to to get it."
Scene
Casey walked into the squad room and threw the warrant at Fin. "Here's Olivia's warrant."
Fin looked at her, "What are you talking about?"
"For Craig's apartment and locker."
"What? She's not supposed to be on that case. The Captain was given strict orders to stay away from Elliot's case. Not to mention he sent her home 2 hours ago for bad mouth'n him."
"Well talk to him about. I got the paper work for it and Olivia supposedly has the evidence to support it."
Cragen came out of his office. Casey, Fin, and Munch all stopped like a deer in headlights, "I heard you. What does she have?"
"Some sort of muscle relaxer from Craig's grandfather's house."
Munch stood up, " Olivia, you sly fox. Captain, you can't ignore this."
Cragen wiped a hand down his face in frustration. He really wanted to agree with Olivia. She and Elliot were more to him then good detectives. He lifted his head and looked at Craig's desk. "Where is Craig?"
"He's taking a long lunch at the Café Aroma. He says they have excellent tuna fish sandwiches. Fish once a day keeps the cancer away." Munch said with his best Craig impersonation.
Cragen looked at the blue warrant, " Ok go search his stuff, but I'm calling the other precinct. Their detectives should be handling this."
Fin jumped for the locker. They opened it to find a bagged lunch, a trivia video game, and a picture of Olivia that he took from his camera phone. "Looks like Craig has a little crush. Here's to you Mrs. Robinson."
Munch grabbed the photo, "Let's keep that to ourselves. No need to alarm Liv even further then we need to." He dropped the photo in a case box.
"Not much in here." Fin said as he looked at his partner. "To the squad car?"
"Onward."
Scene
Fin and Munch arrived at his duplex shortly afterwards. They opened the door to find a picture perfect apartment.
"Damn, is he compulsive or am I just a disgusting pig?" Fin said.
"Both." Munch replied. They started by looking in all of the cupboards including the refrigerator. Munch picked up one of his shoes, "Fin, these boots have a fair amount of mud on them."
"Bag it."
Fin dug into the jacket hanging in the hallway closet "Bingo." In the pocket of a black coat he found a syringe and a small bottle of clear liquid.
Scene
Back at the precinct Olivia walked in to find the squad room empty. She knocked on the Captain's door.
"Yeah." He said through the pain.
"It's Olivia. Can we talk?"
"Come in."
She opened the door. "I'm sorry. I was out of place."
"No, Liv. I should have done the same thing. Elliot needs us and we're all sitting around waiting for a miracle to happen. You're the only one who hasn't given up. I respect that about you. You're a loyal friend."
"Thanks Captain. You know I'd do it for you too."
"That's good to know."
"Where is everybody?"
"Bringing back a syringe and some muscle relaxer from Craig's apartment."
She smiled. " I knew you couldn't give up."
Scene
Olivia paced the office waiting for Craig to come back from his break. Fin and Munch sat at their desk making phone calls and looking busy. Craig came through the door.
"Craig." Olivia said with a smile.
"Ms. Benson. I thought you were told to take the day off?"
"I came back to apologize. I've been a little stressed. I took a break and realized I was out of line. The Captain wants you to start on the perp we have waiting in the interrogation room."
Craig was about to sit but his whole body perked up at what Olivia had to say, "Me? So I'm back on?"
"Yeah, you better get in there before we lose his confession."
Craig walked in the room and turned around when he saw that no one was in the room. Olivia blocked the doorway.
"What's going on?" Craig asked.
"That's what I'd like to know. Why don't you tell me why Fin and Munch found these in your apartment?" She threw the siring and the muscle relaxer on the table.
"You went in my apartment? You can't just do that without probable cause."
"Your grandfather is a nice guy. He let me have the bottle you took that from. And I know that you took it from that bottle because not only matches the stuff we foun din your coat pocket but your fingerprints are all over it."
"Olivia, I help my grandfather with the horses all of the time. I probably just left them in my pocket the last time I used it."
"Your grandfather told me that you haven't visited him in over a month. Where did you get that cut on your hand?"
"My grandfather's senile. He can't remember what his last name is."
"He seemed to know his last name just fine today when I talked to him. And how about the mud on these boots, Craig?"
"What about it?"
She took the boot and held it up for him to see, "That's an orangish color mud, just like the dirt we found at the school. When the lab is finished placing it to our location you're gonna need a pretty sweet deal if you ever want to see the light of day again."
" I want a lawyer. I'm not answering one more question. Get me a lawyer, now."
Olivia pushed him onto the chair. She bent over him and got up in his face. "You better have an excellent lawyer, Garner. I've been coming up with new evidence all day and when I get started I don't stop. Why'd you do it Craig?" He didn't answer her and she put on a seductive voice to get him to open up. "You know, I was starting to think you were a good guy. Someone I'd like to bring onto this team permanently."
"You sure have a funny way of showing it."
"What do you mean?"
He turned his head away form her gaze and whined like a little boy. "You can't trick me like this. I said I wanted a lawyer."
"I think you're acting classes just ran out, Craig. Why would I need to trick you if you didn't have anything to hide?" She was about to sit on the table and the gold chain fell to the outside of her shirt. The ring beamed at Craig. Grabbed the necklace and shoved it down her shirt.
"Nice diamonds. Where'd you get those?" Craig said with a smile.
Olivia stood up. "Don't change the subject smart ass."
Craig stood up next to her. "Those are some harsh words. What would your partner have to say about that?"
She backed up, "What do you have against Elliot, Craig?"
He stepped closer to her, "I don't know what you're talking about Olivia."
She walked around the table with her arms crossed. "Are you jealous, Craig? You know what I'm talking about. You know a lot of things don't you?"
Craig followed her and got close to her ear. "I know your secret, Olivia Benson. And if you think that I'm not going to use it against you in the courtroom, you better think again."
Olivia boiled with anger. She turned and left the room slamming the door behind her. "Get him a lawyer."
Cragen looked at Olivia, "What was that all about?"
"He's a nut job."
Cragen didn't know what to say. He could see there was more going on then she was stating, but he wasn't sure he wanted to know the details.
Munch broke the tension as he pushed past Cragen, "I think we should make him wait for the 61st precinct. Since this is their case. How long do you think they'll make him wait? 4…5 hours?" He turned to Olivia and gestured for her to leave the room with him.
Scene
Chung ChungTrial Part 64
Alex Cabat sat on the left side of the courtroom as Craig Garner and his lawyer; Milton Schoenfeld entered the doors and sat on the right side. Judge Elizabeth Donnelly entered the courtroom and the officer to her left stood, "All rise."
"You may be seated." Donnelly said as she fixed her glasses and sat like a permanent board was attached to her spin. "I see we're reopening this case. Alex, welcome back."
"Thank you, your honor."
"Can I have the defendant take the stand?"
Milton stood to face the judge, "Your honor, I'd like to call Vanessa Cleaver to the stand."
A young woman about 20 years old walked to the bench. Milton rubbed his chin and started the trial. "Vanessa, do you recognize my client seated over there?"
She looked at Craig and bashfully smiled, "Yes, he comes to the bar that I work at."
"Was he there last Friday?"
"Yes. He's a regular."
"How long did he stay on Friday?"
"He stayed the same as usual from 8pm until 2am. Most of my customers don't usually stay at the tables that long, but Mr. Garner likes to sit at the same table and order the same thing all night long. Diet coke."
"No further questions, your honor."
Alex stood and made her way to the stand, "What kind of bar do you work in, Vanessa?"
"I work at a place called The Spot. It's a nightclub with a bar."
"How busy were you that night?"
"Oh, it was very busy. I could barely keep up with the drinks."
"So you could have missed Mr. Garner leaving for an hour or so and then coming back?"
Milton stood, "Objection. Leading the witness."
"Sustained. Answer the question."
Vanessa thought about it for a moment, "I suppose I could have. I do remember seeing his table empty at one point in the night. I thought he could have been in the bathroom or dancing. Most tables go in and out of the bar section to dance. I don't really remember how long he was gone."
"No further questions, your honor." Alex strode back to her seat and Vanessa left the bench.
Judge Donnelly looked at the defense. "Do you have any further witnesses, defendant?"
Milton shook his head, "Not at this time your honor."
"Do the people have anyone to call to the stand?"
Alex stood forward, "Yes, I'd like to call Detective Elliot Stabler to the stand."
Chung ChungElliot sat on the bench in the courtroom. He finished telling his side of the story and starred out into the room. His four children and Kathy sat in the front seats. Their heads were low and attentive. Olivia was nowhere to be found. Alex was through with her questions and she took her seat behind the table on the left side of the room.
Craig and his Lawyer sat on the right side. Craig never took his eyes from Elliot's face. It was as if he got a cheap thrill from the vein pulsating on Elliot's forehead. Milton Schoenfeld made his way towards Elliot. He stopped and smiled. "Detective, can you tell me why Renee Janson had your DNA on her?"
"Objection, your honor. My client was cleared of that evidence."
Milton pushed the argument, "Yes, your honor, but the case has been reopened making the evidence questionable again."
"Proceed." Donnelly barked from her thrown.
Elliot looked at the doors for Olivia, "I don't know how my DNA got on Renee Janson."
"You don't know because you blacked out, or you don't know because you don't want to admit to what you did?"
Elliot sighed through his nose. "I don't know how it got there because I didn't put it there."
"Where were you the night of Renee's attack?"
"I was sleeping in my bed."
"Were you alone?"
Elliot paused. He had never lied on the bench before. Olivia wasn't even there to help make it easier. "Yes."
"The statements say that your sperm sample was made in a condom just hours before it was placed on the victim. Are you sure you weren't alone?"
Alex stood up, "Objection. Relevance?"
"Sustained.", said Donnelly.
Milton stood focused on Elliot's face. Elliot looked at his children and quickly looked away. "I…I masturbate in condoms."
Kathy wrinkled her face with question in her eyes. She knew he was lying.
Alex walked towards the judge. "Your honor, what does this have to do with the attacks?"
The judge looked at Milton, "Move on to the next question please."
"How do you explain the bloody fingerprints found on Patricia Corbin?"
" I told you I was hit on the head. I don't know how they got on the girl. I never consciously touched her. Why don't you ask your client that question?" Elliot was getting angry.
"Because my client wasn't at the scene of the crime. You on the other hand have several huge pieces of evidence connecting you to these crimes, Detective Stabler. Why don't you tell me where you got the knife that you used to slice open those girls? Or maybe you could tell us why you had an explosive device in your pocket."
Elliot got up in Milton's face, "Because I was framed."
Alex cut in before things got too ugly, "You honor, the defendant is badgering my client."
Donnelly peered over her glasses, "Mr. Schoenfeld, make your point."
Milton paced the floor for a moment and then starred Elliot in the eye. "You say you were framed. Is that right?"
"Yes."
"How do we know you aren't framing my client?"
"I'm not framing your client. I'm telling you the facts. That's something Mr. Garner should be familiar with, since he's so good at making them up."
"Why do you think my client framed you?"
"New evidence links your client to the victims attacks."
Milton nodded, "Yes, and Detective Benson was the one who found this evidence, correct?"
"Yes."
"What's your relationship like with Detective Benson?"
Alex spoke up, "Relevance."
"Sustained." Donnelly replied.
Elliot's pulsed quickened. "Detective Benson and I have been partners for 8 years."
The courtroom door opened. Olivia and a man and woman walked through and sat near the back. Olivia held a file in her hand. Elliot's insides grounded themselves at the sight of her face. Milton continued the trial.
"So you two are a pretty tight team. I'm sure you spend more time with her then you do your own family."
Elliot glanced at Kathy, "Yes."
"Would you put your life on the line for her?"
"I have and would."
"What about your job?"
"What do you mean by that?"
"Would you go out of your way to help her out of a bad situation even if it meant risking your job?"
"Objection! Forcing a situation." Alex cried.
"Get to your point Mr. Schoenfeld."
Milton stuck out his finger giving the judge a one second signal. "I went through your records, Detective. It looks to me like you and Benson have been bending rules for quite some time. Why should we believe that she isn't making the new evidence appear on my client to cover for you?"
Elliot looked right at her as he spoke. "Olivia would never do that. She's an honest detective. Any negative records on our behavior were justified or we would have been fired."
"Have you ever lied to help your partner out?"
"No." The lie burned in his guilty conscience.
"Have you ever had a romantic relationship with each other?"
"Objection!" Alex cried as she banged the table.
The judge pointed her gavel at Milton. "I agree. Mr. Schoenfeld move on to something substantial or I'll have to remove you from my courtroom."
"No further questions, your honor." Milton took his seat.
"Can I have the defendant take the stand?" said Judge Donnelly.
Elliot was cuffed and removed from the courtroom. Olivia and the other two detectives stood up and walked up to Alex. She handed the file that she carried to Alex.
Alex looked up at the three of them. "What's all of this? Who are these people?"
Olivia spoke lightly to Alex, "This is Detective Palmer and Detective Gordon from the 61st Precinct. We found more evidence that locks your case against Garner." Alex took the files and the three detectives turned back to their seats. Elliot's kids waved and smiled at Olivia as she walked past them.
Judge Donnelly started banging her gavel at Alex and the detectives, "Miss Cabat is there a reason why you're having a meeting in my courtroom without me?"
Alex presented the file to the Judge. "Judge Donnelly, I have new evidence that further connects the defendant to the victims."
Donnelly held out her hand, "Let me see it." She looked over the papers. "A dirty glove and some bank statements. Explain."
"The glove has Patricia Corbin's blood all over it and Garner's blood DNA on the inside of it. SCU found it in a trash can a block away from the school. The bank statements belong to Mr. Garner and Eric Stone. Eric Stone was the guy shot the night of the attack. We believe Mr. Garner paid him to be an accomplice."
"How so?"
"There's a few thousand dollars missing from Mr. Garner's account two days before Renee Janson's attack. If you look at Eric Stone's account a cash deposit of the same amount was added just one hour after that. Eric Stone was also an exact match to our sketch and we have a witness that has confirmed Eric Stone as the guy in the baseball cap."
Milton stood next to Alex fuming, "Your honor, I need a recess to go over this evidence with my client."
"Recess granted. Be in my office in twenty minutes." Donnelly said as she stood up, addressed the court, and left he room.
Scene
Both lawyers convened in the Judges chambers shortly afterward.
Milton sat in front of the judge. "My client wants a deal."
Alex waved her head to the side, "No deal. There's more then enough evidence here. I'll take my chances in front of the Jury."
Milton pushed the issue. "One count of homicide and extra time for framing a detective."
"What about the other two girls and Eric Stone? No deal."
Donnelly stepped in. "Alex, he would be in jail for 35 years on those charges. You're other evidence is lame if that. I'd go with the deal."
"Three counts of homicide. That's my final bargain plea."
Milton looked at the Judge. She answered his silence with a wave of her hand and women's rights attitude, "You heard the woman. Take it or leave it. You have10 minutes to convince your client that's the best deal he's going to get. I'll see you in the courtroom."
Scene
Olivia sat outside of the courtroom with her head in her hands. Detectives Palmer and Gordon stood close by arguing an issue they were having with another case. Palmer was a tall man with thick black hair and a nice build. Gordon was a beautiful African American woman with long braided hair. She was average height, in shape, and full of passion for the job. She jabbed at her partner, "You mean to tell me that after all the years I've spent working with you, you're going to believe some guy with a history for beating his wife over me?"
Palmer, who was leaning on the wall, pushed off, and got in her face. "Gordon, you're taking this too personally. I believe him because his wife is a lying bitch. The woman would take him to the grave and back if she could."
"And how do you know that? Are you some kind of mind reader? There's no evidence that she's lying."
Olivia listened to them and was reminded of Elliot. She looked up and watched them banter back and forth. They were so heated in the moment that they were oblivious to the world around them. Gordon caught Olivia starring and pushed Palmer to the side. "Oh just shut up. I'm done with you. Olivia, you ok? You look like you just saw a ghost. "
She smiled. "I'm fine."
Palmer added his two cents, "If she could learn to control her temper we wouldn't have to disagree to agree."
"I'm quite familiar with the argument." She said with a wry facial expression.
Gordon slapped him on the arm with fury in her eyes. Palmer laughed, "How about I'll go get all of us some coffee."
"Good idea, Captain Starbuck." Gordon scuffed with a grin.
Alicia Gordon sat next to Olivia on the bench. "You gotta be going out of you mind. I consider myself a patient person but if I found out Palmer raped and murdered three women I'm not sure I could get up and go back to work."
"He didn't do it.", she said matter-of-factly.
"That's right. No, he didn't do it, but I'm just saying if he did and I was on the other side of the relationship, I mean, the partnership, I would have to reconsider every person I've ever trusted."
Olivia looked up at Alicia who was seriously looking back at her. "How long have you and Palmer been together?"
"Rick and I have been together for 5 years. Hell, I can't even imagine doing this job without him. Having this job is like a bad math equation sometimes. Everything has to be balanced. Sometimes the reasons for balance don't even make sense, but you do it anyway."
Olivia looked down at her shoes, "Yeah, well, when you find that balance give me a call."
Alicia laughed and patted Olivia on the back. "I like you, girl. You're one hard ass woman. You're partner is very lucky. I hope it all works out."
"Thanks."
Alex pushed open the door to the courtroom and Olivia shot up like a bolt.
"The trail is over."
Scene
The room outside of the prison cells stank of a dirty mop. Olivia waited in anticipation watching the light bulb blink above her head. A guard opened the door and Elliot came out uncuffed and in his street clothes. Olivia ran to him and they hugged so tightly she thought her ribs would collapse. Elliot released the air from his lungs.
They starred at each other with a half smile. Olivia broke his gaze with a nod towards the door. "You have four very excited young adults waiting for you in the hallway."
He walked through the metal doors and Maureen, Kathleen, Dickie, and Elizabeth charged him with hugs and kisses. Olivia watched and fell into a haze.
Dickie jumped up and down. "Dad. Dad, Olivia is a superhero. She came into the courtroom and caught the bad guy. She just swooped in with her detective powers and 30 minutes later, BOOM, case closed. I knew you didn't do it."
Elliot laughed. Olivia grinned at the whole lot of them. "What can I say, that gym membership has really paid off."
Elliot looked around and didn't see Kathy. "Where's your mom?"
Kathleen answered, "She's with Ted, her new boyfriend." Kathleen said boyfriend like it was a disease.
Maureen looked at Olivia. "Livi, brought us."
Elliot was glad to see that Maureen and Olivia were getting along. He looked at Olivia and then back at his children.
"You guys hungry? Let's go celebrate." He turned to Olivia. "Come on Superwoman. I need you to save my empty stomach from starvation."
Olivia laughed. "Now that sounds like a job I can handle. You have a whole crew of people waiting for you down at Mahoney's."
"Then I guess we're going to Mahoney's." Elliot cried.
Olivia started to feel like she was part of the family. Elliot grabbed her hand as all six of them walked down the street towards Mahoney's bar and grill. The kids walked in front of them and quarreled the whole way. Olivia and Elliot teased each other back and forth about the length of time she took getting him out of jail. They laughed and took in every moment of the playful conversation. Olivia remembered the ring and touched it under her shirt. "Elliot, I got the box from your apartment." She pulled the necklace out or her shirt and smiled. "It's beautiful. I've never-"
Elliot stopped her. He pulled her hair to the side and unlatched the necklace. "It doesn't belong there." He softly said to her. "I'm sorry I didn't get to do this the right way. I feel like everything we've had together has been out of tradition. Maybe that's the way things are supposed to be. Maybe in order to get something right you have to mess everything up." Olivia watched him kneel to the ground. He grabbed her hands. "You have been more than a partner to me for a long time. I was blind to ignore that. You told me once that I was the only man that could ever put up with you, but really you're the only woman that can put up with me. Olivia Benson, I am a new man and I want to share this world with only one woman. Will you marry me?"
Elliot's kids stood 10 feet in front of them watching their father pure his heart out in the middle of New York City. It was a side of him they'd never seen before.
Olivia could feel the tears swelling in her eyes. She really hated to cry. Especially when it felt cliché. She smiled and a fat tear rolled uncontrollably down her cheek. She started to laugh and Elliot smiled at her. "Yes, Elliot Stabler, I will marry you."
The kids cheered and whistled as Elliot embraced Olivia and kissed her over and over again.
Dickie grabbed the pole holding a sign up and swung around it shouting. "Yeee Haw. I'm gonna have a super mom."
Maureen shouted. "Get a room you two. That's just disgusting."
Olivia and Elliot ran towards them to shut them up and give them a hug. They all proceeded down the sidewalk laughing and talking over top of each other. The hidden lives they once lived were about to blossom in the smelly spring city air.
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