Disclaimer: See chapter one.

I'm taking a brief break from my job before I explode myself! Seriously having a rubbish day with the only bright side being that I'm off tomorrow! So I thought I'd do something enjoyable to bring my blood pressure back down out of the rafters, which translated into you all getting a new chapter :)

Thanks as always for all the reviews on the last chapter and on all chapters up to this point. A warm hello and welcome to new readers/reviewers and thank you to those who have recently added this story to their favourites/alerts. Honestly, I'm blown away by all your support for this story. (And for those not liking the Abbie stuff, remember that sometimes, we all need a catalyst to give us a boot up the backside... ;o) )

Better get back to the grind. Thanks for being my safety valve for the day :) Onwards...

Friday February 20th 2009

10.47

Bellevue Hospital Centre

"You're doing great, Shannon," Olivia murmured as the young woman squeezed her hand tighter as the nurse inserted a speculum so that she could properly assess any damage. The still forming bruises on the redhead's inner thighs, the contusions and grazes were definitely indicators that whatever had happened had been against Shannon's will, her body telegraphing that she had not been sufficiently ready to receive whatever penetration had occurred. When Olivia had attempted to leave the room at the beginning of the examination, Shannon had begun to panic, reaching blindly for the brunette's hand, claiming she couldn't go through it alone. And so the detective had stayed, swallowing back her own desire to flee the hospital in favour of tending to the needs of a woman who had so obviously been traumatised.

"Almost done, Ms Arkwright," the kindly Hispanic nurse assured her patient, intently focused on completing the exam as swiftly and as painlessly as possible. Liv felt the room closing in on her once again, forcing herself to concentrate on her breathing, on keeping it steady and even, on not hyperventilating but still it spun mercilessly. Images of the last time she had been there flooding her mind; snatches of memories of the pain, the listlessness, the apathy to survive her injuries.

"Detective?" Shaking her head slightly, the brunette struggled to bring her focus back into the present. With some difficulty, she turned to look at the timid woman gripping her hand, realising that her own hand had clamped down around the smaller one in her palm. Easing back her vice-like hold, she sent an apologetic grimace at the victim.

"There's a stool behind you, Detective Benson. Why don't you take a seat while we finish up with this part of the exam?" The nurse had witnessed enough people fainting in the ER to be well aware of the signs before they actually slumped to the floor. Without releasing Shannon's hand, Olivia pulled the stool closer, perching on it gratefully, feeling her cheeks colour at the outward signs of her struggle.

"How long have you known Terri Gabbidon?" Liv asked, hiding behind her job once more in the hopes she would hold herself together long enough to get Shannon out of there.

The young redhead grimaced and winced as a swab was taken from a particularly sensitive area. Through gritted teeth, she replied, "about five years now. I started temping for her straight out of school and never left. When she offered me a permanent position, I didn't hesitate to accept. I enjoy the work, it's varied and I get to meet some really interesting people without the stress of taking the job home with me. I can't believe she'd do this, she's never even hinted that she was interested in me that way, not once, not even when I first started there and she was getting to know me."

"Did you see Terri this morning before you left?" The question produced a shake of Shannon's head, copper-coloured hair swishing around her pale face.

"No, I didn't hang around to check but I didn't see or hear her in the apartment. I just wanted to get out of there," Shannon admitted, sucking in a tight breath as the speculum was removed.

"That's the internal exam done. I just need to take some photos of your injuries for the detective and then you're good to go. I'll get a doctor to write you up a script for the morning after pill and we'll send you a follow-up appointment for a repeat blood test to screen for sexually transmitted diseases," the nurse explained gently as she reached for the camera.

Shannon looked a little perplexed but Olivia sought to reassure her, "it's standard procedure. Better to be safe than sorry just in case there was someone else involved."

Friday February 20th 2009

12.29

Manhattan SVU Squad Room

"Lab have just confirmed the presence of Rohypnol in Shannon Arkwright's urine. You want to call Cabot, Liv and see if we can get a warrant for Theresa Gabbidon's crib? I think it's time we had a chat with Terri," Munch mused.

"You go ahead and call for the warrant, I've got other work I need to get to and it's not like I can come on the search anyway. You'll have to get Fin or Elliot to back you up with that." As she spoke, Liv allowed the scowl she had been wearing since their return from the hospital to deepen considerably, telegraphing her displeasure at not being able to see the case through.

"You ok?" John asked, in a wary but kindly tone.

"I'm fine. I'd be even better if everyone stopped treating me like I was about to break all the time!" Olivia snapped, standing from her desk and storming out in the direction of the restroom. Elliot strode in, almost being pinned to the wall by his partner, as she stalked past him.

"Woah…" he exclaimed, watching her go. "What's that about?" he asked, turning to the only other detective in the bullpen.

John held his hands up in the universal gesture for cluelessness, watching their female detective go with a small shake of his head. "Are you free to help me schmooze Cabot into giving us a search warrant? Liv picked up a case this morning, alleged drug-induced female to female sexual assault. Lab confirmed the presence of Rohypnol so that should give us probable cause to search the premises where the victim found herself this morning."

"Umm, ok sure. I'll just go speak to Dad about it, check he's managed to kick the case we were called out on to homicide, no evidence of sexual involvement at all. Why don't you go ahead and call Alex?" In truth, Elliot wanted to go after his partner, to check she was ok but knew that his first responsibility was to his job. Despite their recent differences, he adored Olivia and considered her as much part of his family as his wife and children. To see her in pain, to see her hurting because of what had happened, caused him pain too. He didn't agree with her choice to pursue a relationship with another woman but that didn't mean he wished her to be going through what she was.

Liv burst through the doors of the ladies' locker room, forcefully pushing her way into one of the stalls and locking the door behind her. Her nerves were raw, putting her on edge and making every little niggle sting like acid in an open wound. The visit to the hospital that morning had jarred her far more than she had anticipated, the scents and sounds triggering flashbacks the like of which she had not experienced in a while. She feared for her sanity, for her ability to go on, to do the job she lived to do. She had come through her ordeal at Sealview partly thanks to the counselling she had received but also thanks to the support and patient affection she had found in Samia. The loss of her lover pained her more greatly than even that horrific event and this time, as she was beginning to realise all too well, there was no one she could rely on for that support this time. She was truly alone and had never felt it more keenly. Taking a couple of shaky breaths, Liv exited the stall and crossed to the well used sinks, deliberately averting her gaze from the scratched mirror which hung above it not wishing to see the reality of her situation etched into her reflection. She splashed cold water on her face, holding her wrists beneath the icy running water until she felt detached enough, numb enough to walk back into the squad room.

Friday February 20th 2009

13.26

Terri Gabbidon's apartment, Midtown

Munch stood aside as Elliot hammered on the plain wooden door, demanding attention from anyone inside.

"Theresa Gabbidon, open up, it's the police," the swarthy detective hollered gruffly. There were muffled sounds of movement from inside the abode and then the door opened the barest crack. Both men held their badges up so that the occupant could see they were genuine.

"What can I do for you, detectives?" a hoarse voice asked. No attempt was made to open the door wider, allowing the men only the merest glimpse of the tenant.

"Ms Gabbidon?" Munch asked, wanting to be clear that they were speaking to the person they were seeking before divulging any information about their reason for being there.

"That's me," the woman hiding behind the door replied.

"Ms Gabbidon, we need to ask you some questions about an incident which has been reported to us by a Shannon Arkwright. We have a warrant to search your apartment," Elliot barked, putting one palm flat against the door and applying a little pressure.

"What? Shannon? What happened to Shannon?" The door swung inwards, their suspect choosing to keep the wood between herself and the troop of men who entered as soon as there was sufficient space.

"Theresa Gabbidon, you are under arrest for the sexual assault of Shannon Arkwright…" Elliot began, his voice trailing off as the woman came fully into view, finally coaxed from behind her barrier. Her face was a mottled mixture of bruises and cuts. There was more bruising evident around her neck and obvious signs of restraint at her wrists. She stood before the two men self consciously, folding her arms across her body in a feeble attempt to shield herself once more from their scrutiny.

"I… I don't understand… I didn't… did I? What the hell happened last night?" Terri stuttered.

"Ms Gabbidon, can you tell us what you do remember about last night? How did you get those bruises?" Munch asked, a little more gently than his colleague.

"I don't know… I can't remember last night after coming back here from the second… I think it was the second club… It's all a bit hazy." Terri absentmindedly rubbed her hands up and down each arm as she spoke, a frown marring her pale brow. Reaching up, she fingered a loose strand of dirty blonde hair nervously.

"Let's talk about it down at the precinct, you can use the time on the way to figure out what you do remember," Elliot snapped, his suspicions still aroused despite the woman's dishevelled appearance.

"Detectives, you might want to take a look at this," one of the crime scene techs advised quietly as he popped his head out of the bedroom. Munch indicated for one of the uniformed officers to take Ms Gabbidon outside as he followed his colleagues into the bedroom.

"What are we looking at?" the gangly detective asked, peering over his glasses imperiously at the rumpled bedclothes without seeing any obvious signs of distress.

"We checked for fluids, standard procedure, but we weren't expecting to find evidence of semen. Wasn't this reported as a female to female assault?" The tech held up the UV light which made the bodily excretion in question fluoresce brightly.

"So either Ms Gabbidon has a secret she's been hiding from her colleagues or there was someone else at this apartment with them. Given the state of Theresa Gabbidon, I think it's more likely to be the latter. I doubt she gave herself those bruises or tied her own wrists up. We should take her by the hospital for a rape kit to be done on her too," Munch surmised.

"We don't know she wasn't in on it. She could have set Shannon up and then had second thoughts when they got back here. Maybe her partner decided to show her who was boss while he had his fun." Elliot was still reluctant to let go of the woman as a suspect.

"And maybe you're letting your personal feelings get in the way of your judgement," Munch cautioned, knowing how Elliot felt about homosexuals, given his beliefs.

"It wouldn't be the first time someone had led everyone to believe she was a lesbian only to be found to be swapping more than football scores with a guy," the Catholic detective reminded his colleague, remembering Babs Duffy and the revelation part way through that investigation that she was in fact in a relationship with a man.

"We need to collect any evidence that is still on Theresa Gabbidon, whether she is a perp or a victim. To prove a case either way, we need irrefutable evidence. I'll take her to the hospital, you stay here and finish searching the apartment." Munch needed to step away, to cool his heels a little. He had seen Liv, Fin and even Captain Cragen butt heads with Stabler before but this time it appeared to be his turn. "Keep an open mind Elliot. As the Captain is always drilling into us, we don't get to choose the vic."

Friday February 20th 2009

15.45

Manhattan SV U Squad Room

"I keep telling you, I don't remember! How many times do I have to say it before you'll believe me, Detective Stabler? I don't invite men into my home, I certainly don't invite them into my bed and I would never force someone else to have sexual relations with me or with a third party. I don't know what else I can say to convince you." Terri Gabbidon let her head fall forward onto the scarred, well worn table she was seated at. They had been shut in the cramped, claustrophobic room for coming up to half an hour with the two detectives grilling her about the events of the previous night. Stabler seemed to have taken on the role of aggressor, opting to assume her guilt or at least complicity in the attack on Shannon while Detective Munch appeared more amenable to at least considering her involvement was minimal and possibly non-consensual.

"Ms Gabbidon, let's take a moment to focus on what you can remember. Tell us what you can recall from last night," Munch requested, willing Elliot to bite his tongue long enough to let the woman give them her version of events.

"It was Darren's birthday… Darren Mantle, our computer technician. A group of us went out to a restaurant… San Morito… for a meal to celebrate. We moved on from there to a club called Select where I bought everyone a drink. Darren insisted on joining me at the bar when I went to place the order, said something about me needing a hand carrying all those drinks back to our table. We were chatting at the bar about the meal, he was thanking me for arranging the night out and we talked a little about work-related things, nothing major, just some little niggles that had been plaguing the network." Theresa paused, wracking her brain for every little detail she could remember. "I remember there was a man who bumped into me as I was moving away from the bar, he came close to spilling the drinks I was carrying all down me…"

"Whose drinks were you carrying at the time?" Munch interrupted, knowing that although it was unlikely anything had been slipped into the drinks during that moment, it might have provided a distraction long enough for someone else to administer the drug into Shannon's drink.

"Mine, Mike's and Amanda's. Darren had his, Shannon's, Neil's and Phillipe's. Three bottles, one glass. I had two tumblers and a pint glass." Theresa paused again, waiting to see if any further clarification was requested. When none was prompted, she continued, "we returned to the table, dished out the drinks and continued our night. We talked, some danced on and off, I stayed at the table the entire time – no one really wants to dance with the boss and anyway, it wasn't the sort of club to appreciate two women dancing together. Shannon danced with Neil for a couple of songs, finished her drink and then seemed to get quiet after a little while. When we were heading to Banjo, another club, I was worried about her. She seemed to be struggling with her words and couldn't co-ordinate her movements very well and I knew she'd only had that one drink that I bought her. I asked her if she was ok, if she'd taken anything that might have reacted with the alcohol but she seemed to say not. I wanted to take her home with me so she'd have someone with her to make sure she was safe and that she was ok. I didn't think it was right for her to be looking so drunk after just one Jack Daniels. I know Shannon's not a heavy drinker by any means but she's not that easily inebriated either." A sudden dawning of remembrance flooded Terri's face, "I told Neil I was taking Shannon home with me. He offered to help me get her into a taxi. I agreed, she was pretty out of it by then, and he rode back to my place with us. He helped me get her up to my apartment. The last thing I remember clearly is getting Shannon into my bed so she could sleep it off. Beyond that, there's nothing."

"What's Neil's surname?" Munch asked even as Elliot scoffed, displaying his scepticism for all to see.

"Danvers, Neil Danvers. He's one of the people on the PR team for the Foundation." A tap on the glass prevented Elliot from expressing his concerns regarding their suspects version of events, drawing him and Munch out of the room.

"Cap'n?" Munch questioned as he pulled the door closed behind them, standing in the viewing area outside of the interrogation room.

"Traces of Rohypnol were found in Theresa Gabbidon's urine sample – either, luckily for us, her body was slow to metabolise it or hers was administered later than Shannon's. Munch, take Fin with you and track down this Neil Danvers. He had access to them both at the apartment where the assault is alleged to have taken place which makes him a person of interest at the very least. See if he'll come voluntarily to answer some questions, if not, I'll have Alex on standby to get us a warrant. Elliot, why don't you give Olivia a hand checking the Foundations records and the LUDDS from Theresa's apartment and cellphone have just arrived, see if any calls were made last night that we should check out." With a terse nod, the brawny Detective stalked back towards his desk.

Friday February 20th 2009

16.29

Manhattan SV U Squad Room

"Take a seat Mr Danvers. Would you like a drink of water before we begin?" Sergeant Munch offered politely, watching the young man squirm uncomfortably in the rigid, plastic chair provided for the interrogation rooms.

"No, thank you. I'd just like to get this over and done with. What is it you wanted to ask me about? Why am I here?"

"What can you tell us about your whereabouts yesterday evening?" Fin asked, flipping a chair around and straddling it, folded arms resting on the now forward facing back of the seat.

"Erm well, I went for a meal and some drinks with colleagues from work. Why?" Danvers asked, fidgeting nervously with the cuff of his maroon sweatshirt.

"What time did you return home?" Munch asked, still giving nothing away about their reasons for asking.

"I uh… I got home around 6am this morning. Look, could you please tell me what this is about?"

"6am? That's a long night of drinking – where were you at with these work colleagues?" Fin inquired, once again ignoring the request for information.

"San Morito, then Select, then Banjo, then I helped my boss take one of our colleagues home – she'd had a bit too much to drink." Danvers' eyes flitted between the two male detectives; one seated in an almost casual pose, the other hovering beside the table in a passive aggressive stance. "The party… ummm… sorta continued when we got to her place."

"And what time did you offer this 'assistance' to your boss?" Munch's sceptical emphasis on the word chosen by their latest suspect gave Danvers pause.

"Should I be requesting a lawyer before answering any more questions? Would you please tell me what the hell this is about?"

"It is entirely up to you if you wish to speak to counsel Mr Danvers. I remind you that you are not under arrest, we merely need to clarify your movements last night. A complaint of sexual assault has been made…"

"What? That bitch said I raped her? No way! No fucking way! She never said no, not once. Frigid bitch." A knock on the two-way mirror drew the detectives out of the interrogation room and into the small observation area where Alex and Captain Cragen were watching them.

"Read him his rights. Anything he says from now on, we need on record and to be admissible in court," Alex instructed, watching the tense, nervous suspect beyond the glass as he muttered to himself. "One count of rape for now, we'll add the other rape later and possibly facilitating a sexual offense with a controlled substance if the evidence supports it." She watched as the two male detectives re-entered the interrogation room, quietly asking the man beside her, "where's Olivia? I'd have thought she'd have wanted to see this through."

"She and Elliot are looking through phone records from Terri's apartment. Why don't you go give her an update?" Don Cragen suggested, concerned about his only female detective's subdued mood and hoping that Alex could reach out to her and persuade her to take a break.

"Hi Elliot, where's Liv?" Alex asked as she strode into the bullpen confidently.

"You just missed her Counsellor, she headed out about five minutes ago," Elliot replied, leaning back in his chair with a grimace as the kinks in his back muscles straightened out for the first time in over an hour.

"Damn," Alex cursed softly under her breath, having hoped to see her friend before she left work for the day. "Did she say where she was going?" the lithe blonde asked, a concerned frown marring her patrician features.

"No, she's not said a word to me unless it was about work the entire time we've been at this, this afternoon. She ok? I mean, I know she's not ok, ok but is she, you know, coping?" Elliot asked, feeling more and more like a complete ass for how he had handled her coming back to work.

"I honestly don't know. Some days it seems so and then others… I'm not sure where her head's at right now. She told Abbie earlier that she was spending the evening with Sam's parents, perhaps she's headed over there already." The attorney considered calling Gina, asking her to try to get Olivia to open up to her but didn't want Liv to feel like she was being smothered.

"I'm sure that's where she's headed then," Elliot soothed, wondering how he could make amends with his partner.

"Yeah…" Alex murmured, "anyway, I wanted to let you both know that we're arresting Neil Danvers for rape. Idiot as good as confessed to having sex with one of the women in that apartment and since they both had Rohypnol in their system, it makes consent a moot point."

"So Theresa Gabbidon was an innocent party?" Elliot asked, feeling even more of an ass for the way he had treated the woman, acknowledging that his personal feelings regarding her orientation had affected his handling of the case.

"It would appear that way but let's cover all our bases and make sure everything is watertight before we take it in front of a court, ok? Keep checking those phone records, you never know what they might turn up and we don't want to be blindsided by a defence attorney producing another credible suspect or explanation that we've overlooked because we fixated on this one guy." Alex offered Elliot no opportunity to assure her that no stone would remain unturned as she spun on her heel and marched out of the squad room.