The story of Amelia Amaro, the daughter of the precinct
As the brown paper bag landed on the table, the young detective jumped up. The long hours at work had taken its toll on the young man. He rubbed his red eyes and stretched after being woken from his unintended nap.
"Since you didn't come home for dinner, I brought it here." A female voice said before sitting down on the edge of the desk. The detective immediately recognised the smell and opened the bag. A box filled with spaghetti and meatballs replaced the mountain of paperwork on the little desk.
"You're the best, sweetheart." The detective said with a grateful smile on his face. She found the knives and forks in the bottom of the bag while the man went around the corner. He came back with two bottles of water from the venting machine. They both quickly dug into the warm homemade food in silence.
"Amaro!" Someone yelled from the back of the room. Frustrated the cutlery was placed rather aggressively on the table.
"Yes Captain?" He said with a mouth full of food. He quickly drank half of the bottle before running to the office door. The girl was left alone at the table, as the door was slammed shut after the detective had entered. Sighing she got up from the desk and slammed her body into the spinning chair. Her fork was playing around with the long spaghettis and meatballs as she waited for the dark haired man to return. The room was like school during the summer holidays, deserted. There were a few wooden desks filled with paperwork and stationary computers. Behind every table there was a spinning chair, just like the one she was sitting in.
"I'm so sorry, sweetheart. It's all hands on deck with this one." A tired voice said from behind her. She must have dozed off for a few minutes. The room was suddenly not so dead. A lady with brown shoulder length hair was sitting at the mountain of paperwork called a desk next to her while a blonde female was packing a bag at another station.
"No worries. I just wanted to make sure that you got something to eat today." The young girl said, looking up at the detective. He smiled back down at her, thanking her for the kindness.
Surprising the people around when he clapped his hands, he let out a small laugh.
"Let's go home, sweetheart. You look just as tired as I am." The girl nodded her head, letting her long wavy hair fall in front of her face. Slowly she stood up and packed down the almost empty box and cutlery. The chair was slammed into the table as he took the jacket off the back rest.
"See you all tomorrow!" He half yelled when walking out of the door. He was replied with a few tired 'see you, Amaro' and 'goodnight'.
The sound of water running over dirty plates filled the little apartment early in the morning. She was intensely cleaning in the sink after having breakfast. A pair of strong arms were wrapped around her shoulders, giving her a well-deserved hug.
"No need to use all of your energy cleaning when you have school soon. You need to save it for the match tonight." The dark voice whispered. The girl just smiled and put the last plate on the table. Before even blinking the man had placed it back in the cupboard.
"Thanks, dad." The girl said before walking out of the small kitchen.
A black car rolled up in front of a giant building. Backpacks were slowing people down, but that didn't stop them from pushing their way through the double doors. There were people from all over the world gathered inside the boring looking building.
The car door slammed shut, but the window rolled down seconds after.
"Have a good day, sweetheart. See you tonight!" The young detective yelled after his teenage daughter. She turned around waving goodbye. Seconds after two girls engulfed her in a group hug. They all walked towards the door, laughing as if nothing wrong could happen to them.
Shaking his head at his little girl's happiness, the detective turned the car around and drove towards the prescient.
"Morning, Nick." A blonde woman said as he walked through the door. He flashed one of his flattering smiles and greeted her. Before he could even sit down in his spinning chair, the captain had called the team out to attend a crime scene.
The team of two sat in the front seats of a black car. There weren't any music playing so the silence were smothering the two detectives. The detective driving coughed in hope of getting the awkwardness to disappear.
"Got a cold there, Amaro?" The female asked with a smirk on her face. Her shoulder length hair was moved away from her eyes as she looked up at her colleague.
"No, no," he laughed nervously. She just shook her head and went over the details of the crime.
"Female in her early 20's, raped in the back of the store she works at. Possible suspects are the employees. The victim is currently at the hospital for a suspected concussion as she was found unconscious on the floor a few hours ago." Benson, the detective frowned her face when she was done reading the description. Even after she had been working this unit for years, she still got goosebumps whenever she was met with the gruesomeness that people could do to each other. The other detective sighed and took a right turn towards the hospital. No other words were spoken until they reached their destination.
A small knock on the doorframe startled the young lady. The covers were all crumbled up by the force she was using to hold onto it. It looked like her life depended on her not letting go.
Her curvy body was hidden underneath the ugly white hospital gown. The dark coloured skin was dry and covered in fresh bruises. Her lipstick was smeared around her mouth, most likely from the attack. Salty tears were still rolling down her face, bringing her mascara down with it. The look in her eyes could hunt you forever, embarrassment, confusion and helplessness.
"Hey," detective Benson said while looking down at the hospital chard for her name. "Emily. We are police detectives; this is my partner Amaro." She said in a very clear and calm voice. She pointed at the other detective when saying his name. He smiled friendly at her, but kept his distance so that he wouldn't scare her. The poor young woman just sat there in absolute terror. Her hair was a mess yet she started to play with the tips instead of ruining the sheets. "Can you tell us what happened at the shop, miss?" Detective Amaro asked, finally stepping a bit closer. Before she could say a single word, a doctor walked in bit a folder in her hands. Feeling out powered by the genders in the room, the young detective took a step back again.
The doctor was wearing blue scrubs with a white lab coat. A white little name tag was hanging from the left breast pocket. "Hi again Emily," the doctor greeted the patient and turned to the detectives. "Hi detectives. Olivia." The elderly employee at the hospital gave the detective a nod when saying her name out loud. Amaro thought to himself that they must have a history together since she knew her first name. "Hi Allison. So how is she? We heard that she might have a concussion." Olivia Benson asked the elderly doctor. Amaro's suspicion was confirmed by another first name.
Opening the folder, the doctor explained the injuries done to the hardworking girl. A severe concussion was the result of the attacker banging her head against the floor when he was done changing her life forever. Small cuts and bruises were all over her curvy body as the criminal had held onto her with force and slamming her against walls, doors and whatever had been around.
Tensing his jaw, the detective's strong facial features were only made more noticeable. He could feel anger starting to boil inside him. The victim in this case weren't much older than his own daughter and her school was only two blocks away from the shop. Every time a case reminded him of his little angel, he really wanted to call her. He wanted to make sure that she was alright and safe. No matter how old she would be, she would always be his little girl. He sure could be overprotective at times, but she understood it in the end. Seeing the dark side of humanity every day can make every man a bit paranoid and protective of their loved ones.
The team worked hard to follow up on everything they could. They had gathered information about the employees by interviewing them separately in interrogation rooms throughout the day. A map of the city was hung up on the board. Small dots were placed at various destinations indicating where the suspects were at the time of the crime. Only two remained without a reliable alibi.
"Terry Delmott, 27. He was working at the shop, but no one can confirm where he was at the time of the attack." The petite blonde detective said, pointing at the picture of the man.
"Oliver Harris, 23. Same situation." The detected continued looking around at her colleagues. Their brains were on the verge of melting. They had interrogated them for hours and none of them had confessed to the horrible crime. Captain Cragen had agreed to a detectives request about leaving the case for tomorrow. The two suspects were both held back overnight in a cell at the prescient.