Blind Chapter 21, a law and order: svu fanfic

I hope you enjoy the next chapter. Feedback would be much appreciated! S

Title: Blind, Chapter 21

Author: Sorsha711
Fandom/Pairing: Munch/OFC, Tutuola/??, others implied
Rating: M, for language and references to violence; some adult situations
Disclaimer: Anything you recognize belongs to Dick Wolf. A quick check of my bank account should prove I'm not making anything off of writing my stories. Sigh!
Summary: A brutal assault in Central Park exposes a horrifying family secret… one that leads the SVU squad down paths none of them anticipated when they took the call. Munch-centric with heavy doses of the oh-so sexy Fin

Blind, Chapter 21

A cold, wet nose prodded his left cheek, followed by a low "Muroww". A second nudge, this one a little more forceful, accompanied a faint mewing. When that failed to gain his attention, a small clawless paw began to gently pat his face. On some dazed level, John was amused by the cat's persistence.

After several minutes of concerted effort on the cat's part, John grumbled and cracked one eye open. A pair of large blue eyes met his bleary gaze with a determined stare. It took him a few seconds to process whose eyes they were… and why he was waking up on the floor with a cat next to his head.

"Megan?"

A rumbling purr greeted his question as the cat sat back to watch him struggle to focus his thoughts. Lifting a hand to touch the side of his head… the throbbing pain was making him dizzy and nauseous, John groaned as his fingers found a large lump several inches to the right of his temple. A trickle of blood oozed from a cut at the heart of the wound.

Rolling to his side, John fumbled in his pocket for a handkerchief to stem the flow while he tried to remember how he had come to be on the floor of… Sam's apartment, given the presence of her cat. The world began to spin as he moved and he froze in place hoping to steady his senses.

John took several deep breaths. Shoes… black leather shoes. He had come to Sam's apartment to get Megan to take to his place so he could care for the cat without the need to make a stop by Sam's apartment several times a week. Someone had broken into her place and trashed the living room… apparently the same someone that had knocked him out.

Slowly shifting to his side, John struggled to clear his head sufficiently so that he could decide what to do. A worried, yet practical voice of reason… one that reminded him of his mother, urged him to call 911 and get help. A second voice… this one sounding suspiciously like his former partner in Baltimore, Stanley Bollander, told him he was an idiot for getting blindsided… to be a man, "De-TEC-tive. Munch". The third… he paused for a few seconds trying to decide who that voice sounded like… /Fin? No… Liv? Maybe… with a heavy dose of Cragen/ he decided. That voice insisted he call one of his partners. The scene needed to be protected and evidence collected.

Fumbling for his cell phone, John struggled to focus his eyes enough to find a number on his speed-dial. Seeing one that looked right, he entered the number and listened as it rang. Fin's irritated voice answered, "You damned well better have a good reason to call…"

"Fin… I'm at Sam's. I…" before he passed out a second time.

The bright light being directed into his right eye hurt and he groaned. Lifting his hand to try and shield himself from the harsh glare, John heard a voice announce, "He's awake, detectives. Det. Munch... we're going to transport you to the hospital. Relax and let us do our job."

Forcing his eyes open, John vaguely recognized the paramedic leaning over him from more than a few crime scenes he had investigated since joining SVU. "Transport? No, I need to…"

"You need to remain as still as possible until we get you to the hospital. You have a head injury and were unconscious when we arrived. We need to assess how badly you've been injured," the voice insisted, breaking into his objections before he could complete his thought. "Let us do our job… OK?"

"No… I have to…"

"Keep your scrawny ass where it is and let them get you to the hospital," Fin interjected, shifting into his limited line of sight. "You were out cold when Liv and I got here, so don't try to jerk us around that you're not hurt."

"What time is it?"

"Just after 3," Fin supplied. "Why did you come by here so late?"

"Arrived… just before 11. Visited Sam. Told her I'd take Megan to my place… until she comes home." Struggling to focus on his partner, John stated the obvious. "Someone had broken in… hit me…"

"We see that, John," Liv's voice soothed as she crouched at his side. "CSU is processing the scene, so relax. We have it in hand. You need to go to the hospital and we'll take it from here. Were you unconscious before you called Fin?"

"Guess so," John replied, too dazed to be making much sense. "Megan… promised Sam I'd take her home with me…"

"I'll take her to your place," she promised. "I'll take good care of her until you get home, but you need to let a doctor check you out. Megan will be fine. We'll get your statement in the morning. Now, shut up and let them do their job."

Putting as much force as he could given the headache pounding in his temples, John glared at the couple watching the paramedics ready him for transport to the hospital. "Someone needs to check on Sam. That bastard…"

"I called ICU and alerted the uniforms guarding her," Fin interjected. "Now, do like Liv said and shut up. We'll take care of the rest. Once we're done here, we'll run by the hospital and make sure she's OK… and make sure you're behaving. Satisfied?"

Frowning, John closed his eyes and stopped arguing… for the moment.

John was sitting on the edge of his hospital bed when Cragen and Fin arrived at his room the next morning. Noting that he was struggling to get his arm into the right opening of his shirt, Fin strode forward and grabbed the garment. "What the hell you doing? You're supposed to be in bed until the doctor says otherwise."

"I'm fine," John bit out, making a feeble swipe at reclaiming the shirt. "Now, give me my goddamned clothes so I can get out of here. I have more important things to be doing than lying around in bed waiting on a doctor to show up."

"Det. Munch, you know department policy," Cragen began, expecting the veteran policeman to respond to a direct order without argument. "Until the doctor says you're cleared for duty, you're staying put. Are we clear?"

Glaring at the two men, John forced himself to his feet, stuffing his feet into his shoes in the process. "I don't give a damn whether you consider me on duty or not. I'm not lying around when I should be out finding the bastard that hit me. Sam is…"

"Sam is safe… you're not the only cop watching her," Fin inserted, laying a steadying hand on his friend's shoulder. "Liv and I checked on her after you were transported. She was sleeping peacefully… her guards were alert and taking the threat seriously. You're no good to her, man, if you're the walking wounded, so stay put until the doctor…"

"Screw the doctor and screw you!" John growled. "It was her bastard of an ex-husband that trashed her place. He knows she's Samantha Dunbar which means he knows where she is. He took her from one hospital once before. He could…"

"Did you get a look at the man that hit you, John?" Cragen demanded, trying to get him to focus and be rational. "If you did, we'll get an arrest warrant for him this morning. He's no threat to Sam if he's at Rikers."

"He'd make bail before we could get out the door," John scoffed, trying to shove Fin's hand away. The fact that he couldn't coordinate his movements enough to accomplish something that simple confirmed his condition to the men watching. He needed to be in bed and under a doctor's care. "I have to protect her… I promised I wouldn't let that son-of-a-bitch come near her ever again. Now get the hell out of my way!"

"You haven't answered my question… did you see the man that hit you?" Cragen repeated, his no nonsense tone penetrating the anger and worry driving John to rush to Sam's side… do something, anything to protect her.

Slumping back onto the bed, John admitted, "No… bastard came up behind me. I was heading into the bedroom… he must have been hiding in the kitchen. I heard him too late… turned, but… it was Welch. I know it."

"How do you know that, John?" Fin reasoned. "You've got no proof he knows where she ran when she left DC, but we do know Phelps knows her name… has already tried to get to her. More likely he sent someone to her place hoping to find something to use against her."

"You saw the place… too personal… too much anger to be someone Phelps sent," John countered, offering the first logical observation he had made since they arrived. "If they wanted information to use against her, why trash the place and tip anyone off they had been there? No, it was Welch. He wanted to destroy her sanctuary… remind her he can find her… that she isn't safe no matter how far she runs. He was in a rage that she dared to leave him. I've seen the pattern too many times not to recognize it now."

"John… you're not exactly seeing anything about Sam too clearly," Fin cautiously observed, choosing his words with care in hopes of preventing his friend from taking his comments as an implied criticism of his professionalism. "You're getting too close… you need to keep your feelings out of our work…"

"That's rich coming from someone that's sleeping with one of our partners…"

"That's enough!" Cragen interjected, needing to cut off John's comment before he was forced to 'deal' with the relationship between Fin and Olivia. While he personally had no problem with their seeing each other, he had to pretend to ignore it so he didn't have to split up his squad. "Keep it up and I'll be forced to take you off of this case. Until the doctor clears you for duty, consider yourself on medical leave. I don't want to see you anywhere near the squad or her hospital room until then. Are we clear?"

In the coldest voice either man could remember ever hearing John Munch use, he growled, "You may be able to keep me out of the squadroom, but you've got no say in what I do on my own time. If I want to see Sam, I'll see her and you can go fuck yourself if you think otherwise."

"You're off the case effective immediately," Cragen responded, a dull flush of anger darkening his features. "As for seeing Ms. Dunbar, your name will no longer be on the list of authorized…"

"Sam has control of that, so… I repeat, fuck off," John bit out, shoving past the two men. Grabbing his jacket off of the chair by the bed, he struggled to pull it on over his undershirt. "I'll do what I have to do, so stay out of my way."

Watching as John disappeared out the door… his movements unsteady and labored, Fin glanced over at his commander. "You mean it about taking him off the case?"

"Yeah I do," Cragen responded, furious with the insubordination of one of his senior detectives. "And I also meant it about taking him off the list…"

"That's not right, Cap," Fin interjected. "John's the only one she has to visit her. I spoke to her nurse when Liv and I checked on her and she says his visits are all she has that's keeping her spirits up. Sam's facing being blind and she's depending on John for support."

"It's getting out of hand…"

"It's out… all the way out, Cap," Fin inserted. "I saw it happening, but… I hadn't realized how deep he was in until now. John's in love with that woman and nothing you do will change that. If it falls apart, it's already too late to change anything. She needs him and he won't leave her to face things alone. Accept that or John will walk for good. You want that?"

Sighing, Cragen rubbed his neck in frustration. "Hell no, it's not what I want! But, I won't tolerate any officer in my command defying my orders. I…"

"You've taken worse from Elliot… a lot worse and we both know it, usually for less reason on his part. I think John has earned a little slack this time," Fin insisted, ignoring Cragen's angry glare. "You know he's not thinking clearly from that concussion… he's tired and worried about someone he's in love with. He's scared of seeing her hurt again… losing her. And… it's not about you anyway, Cap… it's about what I said. He was right… I'm in had no position to question his judgment. I…"

Holding up his hand, Cragen grudgingly nodded in agreement. "Don't say any more. The less I know officially the better. All I ask is keep it out of the office and under the radar… and that you make each other happy. God knows we all need a little of that."

"Yeah… and so does John."

"Yeah, I know. Let's find him and talk some sense into that thick head of his."

The first part proved easier than they had expected. They found John leaning weakly against the wall near the elevators, too dizzy to push the call button. Both men could see he was pale and shaky, only staying upright by sheer force of will. Sighing, they flanked him and turned him around to walk him back into his room.

Once they had him sitting on the edge of his bed, Cragen ordered, "You are not to leave this room again until the doctor clears you. I expect to you take the rest of the day off if he releases you and rest. When the doctor says you're fit for duty, you can return to work. Disobey a direct order from me again and I'll do more than take you off a case. We clear?"

John lifted his head and fixed Cragen with a bleary stare. After a moment, he nodded.

"I'll let you stay on the case provided you show me you're capable of keeping a clear head, John," his commander added. "Samantha Dunbar's life depends on our doing our job right the first time. We owe it to all the victims not to screw this up. Compromise the case or their safety and you're on the bench… maybe permanently, understood?"

A second grudging nod.

"Have you had a chance to talk to her about her brother?" Cragen asked. "I know you planned to on Saturday… but given how the weekend went… Do I need to go by and talk to her? McCoy is going to need to give his friend an answer or they are going to know we're keeping something from him. That might cause him to do something rash if he's genuinely worried."

"I'll do it," John insisted. "After the doctor releases me…"

"Already ignoring my orders, detective?" he demanded, a hint of a smile taking the edge off of the reprimand. "I'll handle it… and I'll do my best not to upset her. I do have some experience in dealing with the victims of violent crime, remember?"

"But, she knows me, Cap," the injured man argued, only to fall silent at the look he was getting.

"Think about it this way… do you want to upset her by showing up dazed and clearly not thinking straight? Let me handle it. You can go by once they discharge you and clean up any damage I unwittingly do," Cragen suggested. "You can play knight in… hell, even with bandages over her eyes, I doubt she thinks you wearing shining armor!"

"And John…" Cragen added, seeing the slight smirk his teasing had produced. "Be careful. None of us wants to see you hurt."

A snort of weary amusement greeted the last. "You too, Cap. How was your dinner last night… since we're discussing potential conflicts of interest to doing our jobs with a clear head?"

Rolling his eyes, Cragen turned to leave. "Det. Tutuola, keep an eye on him until the doctor gets here… then drag his ass home."

The silence in the room stretched for several minutes before John broke the tension. "I'm sorry, man. I had no right…"

"Yeah, maybe… but you were right. I had no business criticizing you when I'm involved with one of our own," Fin offered. "I just don't want to see you get too far ahead of her, bro. She's hurt and needy. If this goes somewhere, great, but… you need to give her time or you're both are going to get hurt."

Sighing, John shifted to recline against the raised mattress. "Yeah, I know… but… I can't explain it, Fin… I just know. Sam's… I just know."

Fin held his friend's gaze for several seconds before he nodded. "I get it. Felt the same the day I first saw Liv."

A devilish grin brightened John's pale face. "I forgot to ask with all that has been happening… do I need to find a box of confetti?"

"None of your damned business…"

8/2/08