Disclaimer: All familiar SVU characters belong to Dick Wolf. I'm just having a little fun with them.

Thank you for all of your feedback on Chapter 24! Poor Josh…he didn't deserve to be murdered. He was genuinely trying to do what was best for everyone, even if he went about it poorly.

Chapter 25

Elliot could normally read his partner's face like an open book, but the slew of emotions that were playing across it now, he couldn't figure out what was going on in her mind. The expression didn't go unnoticed by Alex, either.

"What is it, Liv?" Alex asked, pausing as she cleared the table. Olivia rubbed her chin, trying to decide the best way to answer the blonde's question.

"Nothing," she finally answered. With that, she turned and headed into the bedroom. Alex walked over and stood next to Elliot, both staring at the door way Olivia just disappeared through.

"What was that all about?" Alex asked.

"I don't know, but there's something she isn't telling us," Elliot said, stepping forward to follow Olivia. Alex wanted to follow after them, but she knew just how close the two of them were. Elliot was far more likely to get the truth from her with less resistance than she was.

Elliot found Olivia sitting on the bed with her face buried in her hands. Two open suitcases were laid out. He pushed one aside and took a seat next to her.

"What's going on?" he asked softly. She immediately stood up and hid in her closet, trying to focus her mind on selecting the items she and Alex would need in the near future. "Josh was the reason we found you, you know. He really was a hero."

"Think whatever you want, Elliot, but Josh was no hero," Olivia said, piling clothes into one of the two suitcases. She turned and headed back into the closet. Elliot furrowed his brow.

"He came into the precinct after we had been spinning our wheels for days. Without him, we never would have had a solid lead," Elliot told her.

"And that's fine, and I'm glad you got the information you needed, but you have absolutely no idea what happened back there," she answered, tossing another pile into the suitcase and disappearing back into the closet.

"So tell me," Elliot replied.

"What?" she answered, standing in the doorway.

"Tell me what happened," Elliot repeated. She paused. As much as she didn't want to talk about her experiences, it was almost a physical pain keeping them inside.

"Do you know how he got out of there, Elliot?" she asked.

"No, he wouldn't tell us," Elliot answered. Olivia pursed her lips.

"In order to be released, you had to prove you were straight," Olivia replied.

"How in the hell…" Elliot started, and then he saw it. His eyes connected with hers and he knew. He didn't know how, but he knew. "He raped you, didn't he?" She didn't need to answer. Her eyes told the entire story. So instead, she turned back into the closet. "That's why he wouldn't answer anything without a lawyer," Elliot reasoned. Elliot crossed the room and stood in the doorway of the closet. "Olivia?"

"Every day, Elliot," she said, raising her voice, punctuating each word. "Every damn day someone raped me. I grew to expect it from Luke, but Josh seemed so nice in the beginning and then, he just…" Her voice trailed off. She still hadn't turned to face him.

"He must have done it to rescue you and everyone else in there," Elliot said. Idiot, he thought, as soon as the words slipped out of his mouth. Olivia threw down the blouse in her hand.

"I don't give a damn why he did it. The point is, he decided he had the right to take what he needed from me just like every other person with a penis in that God-awful place," Olivia spat back.

From the kitchen, Alex could hear voices being raised as she turned on the dishwasher. Thought she couldn't make out specific words, she decided to investigate the source of her girlfriend's apparent anger. From the bedroom doorway, she could see Elliot in the doorway of the closet, effectively trapping Olivia inside.

"Everything ok in here?" she asked.

"Yeah, we're fine," Olivia said, pushing past Elliot and making a beeline for the bathroom.

"You should tell her, Liv," he replied.

"Tell me what?" Alex asked. Olivia returned to the bedroom with her arms full of toiletries.

"You should learn how to mind your own business," Olivia snapped back at Elliot.

"What happened?" Alex repeated. "Does this have something to do with this Josh guy Elliot mentioned earlier?" Olivia and Elliot exchanged glances, but neither of them spoke.

"Will one of you tell me what the hell is going on here?" she asked, feeling out of the loop once again.

"Josh was my roommate while I was being held," Olivia began. Her voice faltered, and she was suddenly unsure of how to continue with her story.

"He came to the precinct after he was released and told us exactly where to find Olivia, but what he didn't tell us was how he convinced them that he had been 'corrected.'" Elliot explained.

"'Corrected?' You mean he convinced them he was attracted to women?" Alex asked. Olivia nodded. "How?"

"By raping one," Elliot answered grimly. Alex's blue eyes snapped back towards Olivia.

"Oh my God," Alex whispered. "Liv, exactly how many men attacked you in there?" she asked, finding her voice again.

"Can we just drop this?" Olivia asked. "Please?" She needed to get away. She pushed past both of them and dropped herself onto the couch in the living room.

"She needs to talk about this, Alex," Elliot said softly.

"I know," Alex replied. "But I don't see that happening if we go into hiding somewhere."

"Can you take care of her?" Elliot asked. Alex was experiencing déjà vu.

Alex sat in the diner at the back table nervously checking her watch. She had met with Elliot multiple times, but this time was different. They weren't meeting to discuss a case or even to have a meal together as friends. It was far more personal. Alex looked up and saw Elliot striding towards her, dressed casually, but he bore the same menacing look she had seen on his face as he interrogated suspects. He slid into the booth across from her.

"She just got through a nasty break-up, you know," Elliot began after ordering two coffees.

"I know," Alex replied. "And I can't imagine how hard it was for her to find out the person she supposedly loved was cheating on her."

"He wasn't just cheating on her, Alex. He had a girl for every night of the week. Olivia was just a number to him," Elliot told her. "She's more than that, so much more."

"You…you really care about her, don't you?" Alex asked.

"We've been partners for twelve years. Sometimes I feel like I'm closer to her than I am to my own wife," Elliot had confided in her.

"Can you take care of her, Alex? Can you treat her like a queen and give her everything she deserves?" Elliot asked.

"I will, Elliot. I swear to you, I would never do anything to hurt her," Alex vowed.

"You'd better not. Because if you do, you won't be answering you her. You'll be dealing with me." And with that, Elliot had stood from the booth, never breaking eye contact with her. He had sauntered out of the diner as quickly as he had arrived, but his point had been made. No one was going to mess with Olivia's heart on his watch.

"Listen, my parents have a summer place on Cape Cod. Why don't I take her there for a little while? I can get her some real counseling, and the ocean air might do her some good. Besides, the place is so secluded, it would be highly unlikely anyone would ever find us there," Alex suggested. Elliot considered her plan. The farther away from New York Olivia could get, the better. He nodded slowly.

"She's not going to agree to this easily, you know," he said.

"Let me handle that part. Just promise me you'll find the bastards that did this to her," Alex replied.

"You know I will," he said cockily. Alex headed into the living room.

"Liv?" she asked. Olivia looked up at the blonde woman who was lowering herself next to her on the couch. "Let's get out of here for a while."

"I thought that's what we were doing," she replied.

"No, I mean, let's get out of New York," Alex suggested.

"Alex, don't be ridiculous. We both have responsibilities here. You need to get back to work, and I plan to go back as soon as I can," Olivia replied.

"I know, but with the press camped out everywhere, calling all the time, and doing just about everything they can think of to get close to us, I think it would be better for us to just disappear until things quiet down for a bit," she answered.

"And exactly where do you want to go?" Olivia asked.

"I was thinking we could head up to my parents' summer home on the Cape," Alex said. Olivia opened her mouth to protest. "Before you say anything, think about how much you love it up there. It's so peaceful and relaxing, and we can leave the stresses of the city behind us. Just until this thing blows over."

"I don't know, Lex. I feel so much more at home in the city," Olivia countered.

"I'm scared, Liv," Alex said. "I don't want to think about the possibility of another break-in. And if they killed Josh, surely they'll be after you, too. I don't want to hear about your body being discovered in an alley."

"I can take care of myself," Olivia answered.

"I know you can, but that doesn't make me any less scared. Please, Liv. For me?" Alex flashed Olivia a look of innocence that she knew the brunette couldn't resist.

"Ok," Olivia answered. "If it means that much to you, we'll go."

Alex and Liv are leaving New York! Is this good or bad? What do you think? I'd love to hear your thoughts and theories! Feel free to join in on the discussions about this story and Lioness on my Facebook fan page under "Summer Jayne."