A/N: Strap yourself in, it's about to hit the ceiling again.
46. Karma's a Bitch
Olivia stood at the arrival gate, waiting for her dad and Alex. It was Tuesday afternoon and the court case was this coming Thursday but neither Alex nor her father had been able to get away any earlier today as they had other commitments. They were going to be staying till after the new year and had to make sure that all their commitments back home had been completed or organised before they left town. Olivia was glad to have her father around for longer than just a few days, though she had to admit she was a little nervous about how her father and Elliot meeting. Elliot was just as protective of her as her father was though so maybe that would play well in his favour. However, she had to admit she was glad that Alex would be here too, as she'd met Elliot before and could help Olivia convince her father that Elliot was good a guy, should it be needed. Not that she really thought that it would be needed as Elliot is a million times better than Brian ever was and that had to stand for something.
Elliot had invited everyone around for dinner tonight, though Olivia wasn't sure whether Alex and Don would be up for it. They had just travelled for several hours to get here and would likely be tired but she appreciated his gesture. Alternatively, Olivia had invited Elliot and his kids over for dinner tomorrow night, as she knew that Don and Alex would be rested by then and considering Don was spending all day tomorrow with Chloe, it might be nice to follow that up with dinner with Elliot and his kids. Olivia was a very good cook and honestly loved to cook whenever she got the chance to do so, which meant she was actually excited at the prospect of cooking for a lot of people like that.
Olivia walked closer to the arrival gate as she saw Alex and Don out the doors from the gate, they both looked well and she was honestly excited to have them here now.
"There's my girl" Don greeted as Olivia hugged them both closely.
"Welcome to New York" Olivia greeted as they pulled apart from the hug.
"We could have had better weather for our arrival" Alex teased.
"Ah sorry, though suspect you were lucky to get here when you did, they are saying there is worse weather blowing in over the next couple of hours and days. The kids at school today were excited at the prospect that they may get so much snow we can't go to school. Sadly, I don't see that happening" Olivia answered as she offered to take her father's carry on bag for him, but he refused.
"No Elliot?" Alex asked, looking around to check if there was anyone else meeting them. She would of thought that he would of come with Olivia to be the proper gentleman.
"He sends his apologies, but he had a meeting that he simply couldn't miss. He also wasn't sure if he was really welcome to come so he chose against it. However, he will see you either tonight or tomorrow night. Don't worry though he still sent me with the car and driver, so the driver will meet us outside" Olivia apologised to both of them on Elliot's behalf whilst the trio walked to the baggage claim area.
Olivia, Don and Alex never made it over to Elliot's for dinner that night. Don and Alex were too tired from all the travelling to really be up to socialising too much. Olivia had called and apologised to Elliot over the phone but he had insisted that there was nothing she needed to apologise for as he understood. They were going to see each other for dinner tonight though and Elliot was already looking forward to that. He had made sure to look in on Alex the night she had arrived in town, to make sure that she had everything that she would need for her stay and to encourage her just to let him know if she needed anything else. He'd told her that he was glad to see her in town again and looked forward to properly catching up soon. Olivia knew, when Elliot had told her that he'd done this, that he was doing it both as the owner of the hotel with a special guest, but also as the partner of her best friend. Elliot was determined to continue to make a good impression on this lady. It was these little things, that made Olivia really love Elliot that little bit more than she even thought was possible.
Olivia had truly never been so happy to be leaving school, than she was on Wednesday evening. Even though she had to head home to make a meal for several people, she was actually relieved to be off school till Friday. She'd had a meeting with one parent of a student in her class this afternoon, about how the boy was behaving in class lately and the fact that he'd been having some difficulty handing in his homework each week. But that meeting had turned into a personal attack on her and her poor management skills. But Olivia genuinely thought that there might be something happening wit the child either at home or socially. The mother claimed that if Olivia actually spent more time with her son and teaching the class, rather than taking time off school or dealing with other children, her son might have more respect and attention for her. The mother refused to understand that there were 25 other needy children in the classroom and Olivia even felt like apologising for the time she had taken off. Olivia knew that confrontation with parents came with the job of being a teacher but it's still something that she really shouldn't have to put up with like this.
Olivia caught the subway and bus home to her apartment. She had a huge smile on her face the minute she saw her dad and Chloe open the door for her. Chloe was talking away about all the fun they'd had that day and Olivia spent several minutes listening before her father gave the instructions about where he'd unloaded the shopping they bought earlier for her. Elliot and the twins would be here in about an hour and she had so much she had to do to be ready by then. Even though she was only going to make a simple home cooked lasagna and salad, it would still take a decent amount of time to prepare everything.
Elliot could smell cooking from the moment that he walked out of the elevator with the twins. This was the first time that the twins would see where Olivia actually lived and he had already warned them to be on their best behaviour tonight. He made sure to stop to get flowers and wine for the beautiful hostess before they arrived. There was no way that he would turn up to Olivia's empty handed and especially not tonight when he knew there were others there and he needed to make a good impression. Elizabeth ran ahead of him once Elliot had told her the number to find for Olivia's apartment, knocking on the door when she found the right one. By the time Elliot and Richard caught up, Alex had already opened the door to the apartment. She made sure to greet the trio before inviting them in and helping grab their coats. The apartment smelt like food heaven and Elliot knew the dinner was going to be good. He already knew Olivia was an incredible cook and he couldn't wait to taste whatever she was making tonight.
"Hi guys" Olivia greeted as she looked up from the salad to see Elliot and the twins walking into the lounge area from the corridor of the front door in her tiny apartment.
"Hi Livvy" Elizabeth and Richard chorused as they sat down near Chloe. Elliot could already feel the gaze of an older man from across the room. Elliot knew that had to be Olivia's father and although he was sitting near Chloe, the focus was soley on him.
"Uh, I bought these for you" Elliot said holding the wine and flowers he'd brought whilst Olivia moved around the breakfast bar and towards him.
"Thank you. I told you, you didn't have to bring anything tonight" Olivia graciously accepted the flowers once she was closer to him and pressed a kiss on his cheek as a move of thanks.
"Dad, this is Elliot and his children Elizabeth and Richard. Elliot, this is my father Don" Olivia introduced everyone.
"Mr Benson, it's a pleasure to meet you" Elliot nodded.
"Please, call me Don and it's great to finally meet the man that my daughter has told me so much about" Don got up and walked over to the couple, extending a hand to shake Elliot's. He started to feel a little more at ease now having been formally introduced but not much more. Elliot looked over at Olivia and she gave him a warm smile of encouragement.
"I'm just…going to go and grab a vase for these. Dinner shouldn't be too much longer" Olivia excused herself before disappearing down the hall. Elliot wanted to go with her but knew that would raise too many suspicions which he didn't need, especially tonight.
"Ellot! 'ook what Ganpa 'ive me!" Chloe stated as she looked up at the man holding some kind of toy. Chloe may not know it but she had a great habit of making herself a distraction and he was grateful for it right now.
When dinner was ready, Olivia had the kids sitting at the coffee table whilst the adults sat around her small dining table and Chloe was in the highchair. She would have preferred to have everyone at the table but there simply wasn't enough space for that. Chloe was currently sitting in the highchair between Don and Olivia whilst Elliot took a seat on the left of Olivia and Alex was next to him. The meal was delicious, and the conversation had been lovely. Don had managed to start a conversation with Elliot about how everything business related was going whilst the ladies discussed the court proceedings for the next day. There were occasional interruptions from the twins, to keep them involved in the conversations, but it was mainly just talk between the adults.
After dinner was finished, Don volunteered to give Chloe a bath and get her changed whilst Elliot volunteered to wash up and have the twins dry everything before Alex agreed to put them away. Olivia managed to keep herself busy by setting out the pyjamas and picture book to read tonight, ready in the little girl's room. It was a book that was all about family and the different ways families could be, which was a book Chloe was obsessed with at the moment for some reason. Once she'd got everything ready though she made her way out to the kitchen to check on her guests and was surprised that almost everything was away.
"You guys work fast" Olivia stated as she took in the sight before her.
"We're a good team…Daddy says everybody has to help out where they can and you cooked so…you should sit down" Richard explained and Olivia smiled. Elliot had them trained well.
"Can I get you another glass of wine?" Elliot called out as Olivia nodded and thanked him in appreciation. A couple of minutes later, Elliot had finished all the washing up and organised Olivia's glass of wine, as well as one for himself before sitting next to her. Alex and the twins were working on the last couple of things which gave Elliot and Olivia a moment to themselves as her father hadn't entered the room again yet.
"Dinner was amazing, you're really quite the cook" Elliot gushed.
"Why thank you, to be honest I wasn't sure how it was going to work out as I got home so late" Olivia confessed.
"Well you pulled it off and sorry to hear you got home so late. You know that you can always use one of the cars when you need to right? You have the number for the driver and we weren't using it" Elliot stated.
"Believe it or not, I actually enjoy the subway and bus route I take to and from work…I know you don't but I actually do"
"I just…I care about your safety because I care about you"
"I know you do, and I thank you for it. Now you ready for tomorrow?" Olivia asked changing the topic.
"I'm ready if you are. The team still feel as confident as they did when we met with them last week, so I think we'll be fine. There is no way that she could actually get off for what she did" Elliot explained as he placed his hand over where Olivia's was sitting on his knee. This had to be the most affection that they had showed apart from her kiss on his cheek, in the whole time he'd been in this apartment tonight. Elliot was reserved today due to the fact there are so many people around and Olivia appreciated it. That wasn't to say she wouldn't make sure to see them out properly later tonight though, especially to kiss him goodnight.
The following morning, Elliot sent the SUV to Olivia's apartment to collect her and Don whilst he made sure to bring Alex in his car with him. Whilst he had wanted to be the proper gentleman and go to Olivia's to collect them, he knew there wouldn't be quite enough room for everyone in the town car unless someone was up with the driver. But Elliot knew that the driver hated that. Instead, they agreed to meet in the entrance to the court house, where Elliot had already organised to meet with his team. Today would be a long day, as the court case was expected to go for at least most of today and possibly tomorrow but the legal team were sure they would end up with victory. Elliot made sure to give Olivia a hug the minute she walked up with Don to where he and Alex were standing. He was still trying to impress her father, so he as keeping the signs of affection to a minimum and a hug for greeting would have to do today.
Everyone had a discussion in regards to the proceedings today, as Olivia and Elliot were both going to be called in to testify, neither could be in the courtroom till after they had done so. They had to wait until they were call to testify and once they had done that they would be free to sit in the gallery for the rest of the case. Alex and Don were going to stay in the courtroom the entire case and would be able to provide updates where required after Elliot and Olivia had testified on what they had missed. Elliot was going to be the first to testify and then it would be Olivia's turn. Elliot wasn't really a fan of this as it meant that Olivia would be left in a holding room by herself. If Olivia was left alone she would overthink things and like start to panic about it all. But on the plus side, going first meant that he could be in the court room when she testified and be there for her when she was finished.
Elliot and Olivia were sitting on a bench in the holding room. Elliot had his arm around Olivia as she snuggled into him. He was just saying soft words of affection to her whilst they waited to be called, neither were trying to think about what would happen next. It was probably the most affectionate Elliot had been able to be with Olivia for the past couple of days. Olivia was just grateful that she had him here, she could rely on him to help her through all of this.
"Once this is all over, we're going to celebrate" Elliot remarked, breaking the silence that they had been sitting in for a couple of minutes.
"Haven't we done enough celebrating for different things lately?" Olivia queried.
"Are you kidding? There is no such thing as enough celebrating for big things and besides this event really needs it. I want to take you away from everything for a couple of days, before everything gets crazy for the holidays" Elliot explained and Olivia knew he had a point.
"I can't deny how nice some time away would be" Olivia replied as she looked up at him from where her head was resting on his shoulder.
"My brother is currently staying with his family on Long Island for a couple of weeks, they want to meet you. So, I was thinking, we could go away to a little cabin I have in a secluded forest a couple of hours north of here and on the way, stop in on my brother" Elliot explained.
"I-" Olivia tried to explain that she didn't think this was a great idea at the time and she didn't want to start any more family drama.
"He's my twin brother Edward, remember how he stood up for us big time with my mother over thanksgiving? Well he's really keen to meet you, plus his wife is lovely and they've got a son who is about 3" Elliot continued to explain. Now Olivia had to meet this sibling of Elliots. If he was prepared to fight their mother over her and be in her corner than the least Olivia could do was meet him and give her thanks.
"Well, if he's prepared to stick up for us against your mother then I have to meet him" Olivia agreed and Elliot just smiled before placing his cheek on the top of her head on his shoulder.
When it came to Elliot's turn to testify in the court room, he gave Olivia a quick kiss before promising her that everything would be alright. He'd be there for her when she was done and he wasn't going anywhere. He told her that he'd be in the courtroom when it became her time to testify and if she got nervous or felt stressed, she just had to find him and look at him the entire time. Olivia wished him luck and then he had to leave, she was now alone and she really wasn't sure whether she could do all of this.
Elliot had a determined look on his face as he stepped into the courtroom. He was here for one reason and one reason only, to make sure Dani got what she deserved. All the stressed that she had caused him and especially the stress she had caused Olivia, made him want to get revenge and make sure that she got what she deserved. He took to the stand and gave his oath to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth before he took a seat. As he was called upon by the prosecution, Tony was the first lawyer to question Elliot for the jury.
"Elliot, you own the hotel where the incident with Miss Beck and Miss Benson occurred, correct?" Tony asked.
"Yes, I am the owner of all Paradise Suite Hotels and the incident happened in the lobby of my Manhattan hotel" Elliot replied in a very professional manner.
"Were you there at the time?" Tony continued to ask.
"No, I was uptown attending to a number of business matters with other locations of my hotels" Elliot replied again.
"And how did you know to go to the hotel or what was happening?"
"I received a call from one of my staff at the reception of my hotel, who informed me that Olivia, Miss Benson had returned with the children to the hotel from their afternoon activities but I should go there immediately"
"Do your staff often call you directly in regards to attending to the hotel or the actions of your children?"
"If there is a matter, that requires my attention, then yes I will be called directly. So, when I received the call, I got in the car and went straight back to the hotel" Elliot explained as he looked at Dani from the witness stand.
"And what did you see when you got there?" Tony queried.
"It took a little while for me to get back to the hotel, due to the usual New York traffic. But when I got there, I saw the defendant was on top of Miss Benson and attacking her. My children were nowhere to be seen but my first instinct was that I had to get the defendant off Miss Benson. I made my presence known and that's when the defendant...tried to get close to me and twist the whole situation" Elliot explained, he knew that not calling Dani by her name would cause a reaction but he didn't care, he wasn't going to give her any kind of acknowledgement.
"I have a name" Dani called out from the table next to her lawyer.
"Mr Carlson, control your client" The judge ordered.
"You know my name, it's Dani Beck and you used to be really close to me once, you would never not call me by my name then" Dani called out at Elliot and Elliot just focused on Tony, he was not going to give that woman any kind of response.
"Miss Beck, another outburst like that and you will be held in contempt of court. Mr Carlson control your client" The judge continued to order and Elliot saw Mr Carlson nod his head at the judge and lean over to Dani.
"So then what happened?" Tony asked, redirecting the attention back to Elliot rather than a disruptive defendant.
"I had the security detain the defendant and made my way over to where Olivia was lying on the ground. She dismissed me and was being looked after by hotel staff whom I believe called the paramedics. I then made my way upstairs to find my children who were visibly shaken up by the whole ordeal and told me they never wanted to see Miss Beck again" Elliot concluded, choosing now as the right time to use Dani's name formally and glare her in the eye for the horror she'd caused the children. To this day, he would never let her near his children again.
Once Tony had finished his line of questioning, it was Mr Carlson's turn to question him and Elliot was prepared for any path he took.
"Mr Stabler, how long have you known my client?" Mr Carlson asked as he approached where Elliot was sitting in the witness stand.
"Before the incident, she worked as my nanny for about a year" Elliot replied.
"15 months to be exact. But what would you say your relationship with my client was?" Mr Carlson asked, Elliot found it a little strange where this line of questioning was going.
"Strictly professional. I thought very highly of her work with my children and knew they were very fond of her early on. She was there for anything I needed in a time when I had a lot going on" Elliot replied but hated the way he'd phrased it the minute he had.
"Anything you needed? Was that just for your children or yourself too?" Mr Carlson continued to push.
"Well as she worked as my nanny, it was mainly for the children but there were a few occasions where we had a good conversation or she provided useful advice for me" Elliot replied, he didn't see why that was important.
"So would you say you never had dinner with her alone or spent time with her outside of when she was looking after your children for you?"
"I think I invited her to a Christmas event that we were having once, when the children weren't around but there were a lot of my staff invited to that and it was a way that I could say thank you for all the work they did for me"
"You never made any kind of romantic advances with my client then or hinted that maybe there was something more between you two?"
"No, never" Elliot frowned, he'd never felt anything romantic for Dani and he never would.
"So, if you were so grateful for my clients work with your children, why did you then have Miss Benson looking after your children leading up to and including the day of the incident?" Mr Carlson asked.
"There had been a couple of incidents in the time leading up to the day of the attack and it was not safe for my children to be around the defendant anymore. Miss Benson volunteered to step in to look after them in the absence of another nanny" Elliot explained, not wanting to get into specific details of why he had ended Dani's employment.
"Because you two were dating?" Mr Carlson said with a smirk and Elliot knew what he was trying to get at now.
"No, but I knew that my children were very fond of her" Elliot corrected.
"So, you aren't in a relationship with Miss Benson then?"
"I didn't say that. I am in a committed relationship with Miss Benson now but I wasn't back then. Quite frankly our relationship is none of your business and it has nothing to do with this case" Elliot replied, placing Mr Carlson in his place, Elliot's relationship with Olivia wasn't up for discussion.
The questioning went on for a short time longer, Dani's lawyer was trying to make it out that Elliot had lead Dani on to believe there was something there between them, that there wasn't and that had spiked the attack. He was trying to get the court and jury to believe that the attack on Olivia was sparked due to the fact Dani was under the impression she was in a relationship with Elliot and she had been fired. Elliot wasn't having it though and he held up a good fight to get the court to see what was the real truth. He just hoped that they didn't go so forcefully after Olivia when it was her turn.
A/N: Next chapter, Olivia's on the stand and I wonder how that's going to go? What does Don think about Elliot? You'll find out soon enough. Leave me a review with your thoughts on this chapter and this story! I've almost finished writing this whole story and got several chapters to edit so more reviews means more motivation to edit and post?
Until next time ;)
