"Give her time," Elliot said to Huang, when they were in the hallway and out of everyone's earshot.
"Pardon?"
"Liv. Give her time. She's new to this parenting gig. She's nervous and she's scared. Let her get over this first hurdle in family court. Give her a bit of space and she'll start thinking about it."
"This isn't just about Olivia, Elliot. It's about Joshua."
"I know. But Joshua relies on Olivia so much. They're really close. If Olivia is upset, Joshua is upset and vice versa. If we give Olivia a little more time to get used to the shrink idea, maybe Joshua will be a bit more open to it."
"He will have to see someone, Elliot. He's been through a lot."
Elliot looked back towards the squad room. "So has Olivia."
Olivia tucked Joshua into bed, well aware this could be the last time she did it. She sat herself beside his bed, smiling down at him.
"Livia sad."
She looked down at him, surprise in her eyes. "What do you mean?"
Joshua reached up, his small fingers tracing her lips. "Sad."
"I'm just a little bit nervous about tomorrow. But everything is going to be okay," Olivia assured him.
Joshua held his arms out. "Love Livia."
"I love you, too," she replied, hugging him.
When he lay back down, she tucked him in, pressing a kiss to his forehead. Her hand gently caressed his cheek, before brushing some of his hair away from his face. Olivia put Ruggles into Joshua's arms.
"Sleep well," she whispered.
Dimming the light, she went into the living room and sat in her favorite chair. She curled up, taking deep breaths.
"Get a grip, Benson."
Olivia didn't want to think about Judge Henckel's ruling. She bit her lip, willing herself not to cry.
When she heard the doorbell ring, Olivia ignored the couple of tears that had slipped down the side of her cheeks. She answered it, a smile on her face when she saw who was on the other side.
"Hi."
"Hi, back," Elliot smiled. "I thought you might like some company tonight."
Olivia nodded and closed the door behind him. "Thanks."
"Is Joshua asleep?"
"I think so. I just tucked him in."
Elliot led her over to the couch. He sat down and then took her in his arms. "Whatever you want, okay, Olivia? I'm happy to sit here all night and hug you."
She looked up at him. "Really?"
"I know tonight is going to be tough for you, Liv. This whole thing is tough."
Olivia rested against him. "Elliot?"
"Mhm?" Elliot's fingers gently ran through her hair.
"I love you."
He grinned, kissing the top of her head. "Love you, too."
Cragen looked up as Olivia, Joshua and Elliot came into the Squad Room. "You two look exhausted."
"Couldn't sleep," Olivia finally answered.
"They found Larry Morgan."
Elliot's eyes lit up. "Where is he?"
"He floated up the river."
Olivia's eyes widened. "He's dead?"
Cragen nodded. "Munch and Fin are down at autopsy now."
"Damn it," Elliot growled. "Do we know how long he's been in the water?"
"Not yet. They should find that out at autopsy. Elliot, I want you to get Leah Watson in here. Olivia, you and Joshua have a court date." He smiled warmly at her. "Good luck."
Cragen headed back into his office and Elliot glanced at Olivia and Joshua.
"I don't know what to say."
Olivia smiled at him. "Don't say anything. Just…"
"I love you," Elliot whispered.
"I love you back," she replied, hugging Joshua tight, then they headed down to Family Court.
"So…how long has the son of a bitch been dead?" Fin asked, peering at the slightly wrinkled body of Larry Morgan.
Melinda Warner gave him a look. "This particular son of a bitch has been dead two days, give or take."
"How distinctly unhelpful of him," Munch commented. "What killed him?"
"Blunt force trauma to the head. Cylindrical object."
"Pipe?"
"Maybe. Got any ideas?"
Fin shook his head. "We know about as much as you do."
Melinda just looked at them.
"Always less," Munch told her.
"Water has washed away most of the evidence, but we did find some skin under his nails. I sent them over to the lab, who'll run them against your list of current suspects."
"So he was murdered," Fin said to Munch.
"Unless he gave himself a fatal blow and then tossed himself in a river, then yes, he was murdered," Melinda told them.
Judge Henckel sat back in her chair. "Detective Benson, there are a lot of reasons why I shouldn't give you foster care privileges of this child. You have a demanding job that can take you away at odd hours. You are a single woman. You've never had children before." She leant forward, watching as Joshua's small hand started stroking the back of Olivia's neck again. "And when I first talked to you, I was thinking this was a case of a cop getting too close to a child that they rescued. However…this is not a normal case. You have a very good support team, as well as documentation from professionals. When Joshua was on the stand, you were the only person that could communicate with him and put him at ease." She took a deep breath. "Therefore, I am granting custody of the minor to Detective Benson. We will start with a trial period of 6 months, when you will be visited periodically by Department of Child Services. Joshua will have regular visits with a psychiatrist. We will reconvene in 6 months for progress reports." Judge Henckel hit the gavel. "We're adjourned."
Olivia's arms were tight around Joshua as she hugged him in the hallway of Family Court.
"Thank you," she said, looking up at Casey and Mary Clark.
Mary smiled. "I like to help out every once in a while." She picked up her bag. "Take care, Olivia. You too, Joshua."
Elliot looked up from his desk as Olivia, Casey and Joshua returned to the squad room.
"So?"
Fin, Munch and Cragen also looked eager for news.
"He's staying with me," Olivia smiled.
Congratulations were handed out to the two of them.
Joshua cuddled closer to Olivia, whispering to her the first words he'd said since the end of the hearing. "Love you, Livia."
"Love you, too," she whispered back.
