Sequel to FIX THE BROKEN PIECES, so check that out first!
So quick explanation of where this story begins – Olivia is going back to work after maternity leave, Amelia Harmony Summer Benson-Stabler and Sophia Trinity Autumn Benson-Stabler are six months old. Lizzie and Dickie are 11, Calvin is 10, Katie (Kathleen) is 15 and Maureen is 16 (turns 17 in this!)
One Police Plaza Day Care
7.33 am
"I'm not ready to this Elliot." Olivia whispered as she kneeled in front of the double baby carriage.
"Yes you are, I know you can do this." He whispered back kneeling beside her.
Slowly Olivia unbuckled Amelia and then Sophia. She held them both in her arms and sat on the nearest chair.
"I can't ..." Her voice trailed off as she blinked back the tears surfacing in her eyes.
"Yes you can Liv. I know you can." He sighed.
They'd been discussing Olivia's return to work all week. She had been looking forward to getting back until it dawned on her that she would have to leave the twins at day care. Cassie the blonde haired nineteen year old smiled and rushed over to them, she had been a babysitter for the Stabler family since they had moved in next door to her and Olivia and Elliot had given a recommendation for her when she had applied for a job at the day care centre. Elliot smiled weakly at Cassie who understood what he meant.
"Hi Detective Benson how are we this morning?" She asked kneeling down in front of Olivia.
"Fine, don't think I'm ready yet." Olivia stated not wanting to make a fuss in front of Cassie.
"It's ok to be nervous Olivia." Cassie smiled gently, her voice dipped in a whisper so that she wouldn't be caught using the Detective's first name.
"I'm not ready Cassie. They're only babies." Olivia explained.
"Who will still be babies when you collect them at six." Cassie smiled trying to coax the detective into leaving the girls.
"Come on Olivia, how about we come down here at lunch so you can check on them?" Elliot suggested.
"I don't know El. It just feels too soon." She moaned.
"Olivia, Sophia and Amelia are going to be fine. You know me and you know they're going to be fine with me." Cassie continued trying to coax Olivia.
"Can't they come to the precinct, just for today?" Olivia asked her eyes pleading.
"No baby, IAB will be down on Cragen like a ton of bricks!" Elliot explained. He'd been back at work five months, so he was used to leaving the girls and coming back.
"I'm not ready Elliot! I really am not." She explained looking down at the sleeping babies in her arms.
"Why don't you go for a couple of hours and if you still think it's too early then come back and pick them up and if you find you've settled a little, call me on my cell and I'll update you on everything they've done." Cassie suggested.
"Ok." Olivia sighed. "Ok, I'll do it."
Slowly she bent over and kissed each girl on the head.
"Mommy loves you both very much. See you later." She smiled as Cassie and one of the other nurses took Sophia and Amelia.
Olivia walked backwards out of the day care desperate to run back and snatch her daughters. She knew it was irrational and it was just her mother's instinct to want to not be apart from her daughters but she also knew that this had to happen eventually, she'd already put an extra month onto her maternity even though she didn't really need it.
Manhattan SVU
7.58 am
"Good morning Olivia welcome back!" Cragen smiled as he embraced his Detective.
"Hi." She replied reluctantly returning the hug.
"What's the matter?" He asked sensing her discomfort.
"Nothing." She whispered before stalking off to the coffee pot.
Cragen looked at Elliot who shook his head in warning not to pursue asking Olivia. Elliot nodded his head towards the office door and Cragen nodded. They both went into the office so they can speak.
"So what's the matter with Mommy Stabler?" He asked as Elliot took one of the seats opposite the desk.
"I think she has separation anxiety or something Cap." He sighed avoiding Cragen's gaze.
"What do you mean Elliot?" Cragen asked the concern ringing in his voice.
Elliot just sighed and rubbed his face in his hands, trying to find the words to explain what Olivia had been going through.
"Well she first extended her maternity by a month, which surprised everyone, then all last week she kept saying she wasn't ready to come back after saying she was excited. This morning when we took Amy and Sophie to the day care centre it took ages for me and Cassie to coax her into leaving the girls there." Elliot explained.
Cragen just nodded as his mind went into overdrive.
"How did you get her to leave?" He asked eventually.
"Cassie suggested that she came in, did a couple of hours and then if she couldn't do it then she could go and get the girls but I'm worried if she doesn't do it now, then, she never will." Elliot explained.
"Elliot, why don't you go and speak with Huang he's ..."
"No way! Olivia nor I are going anywhere near that man especially concerning our daughters." Elliot spat.
"He might ..."
"No Cap and that's the end of it!" Elliot yelled jumping to his feet. "That man ..." He took a breath and steadied his voice to stop himself screaming. "That man told my wife that she didn't love her babies. He managed to convince you that she might not love those girls when she was still pregnant with them and I am not having him convincing anyone that there is something wrong with Olivia again. Do I make myself clear?" Elliot hissed.
Cragen knew not to pursue the matter further.
"I understand Elliot, why don't we just see how she gets on?" Cragen suggested.
"That might be the best. Let's try keeping her busy, if a case breaks send her and Jessie and let her do her job, see that she's needed here." Elliot sighed hoping that it would work.
"Sounds like a plan, now go out there before she figures out your talking about her." Cragen sighed and Elliot left the room quickly.
He saw Olivia sat at her desk staring at one of the pictures, he suspected it was one of the twins and decided not to disturb her. He went to his own desk and saw a steaming hot cup of coffee. He smiled and went over to it and found a note beside it.
I am ready El. Liv oxox
He smiled and glanced over to see her smiling back at him. He nodded his head in thanks and sat down to continue some paper work.
"Good morning." Jessie smiled taking to her desk.
"Where have you been?" Olivia asked seeing the young redhead beaming.
"I hope you don't mind, I popped to the day care to see Sophia and Amelia." Jessie explained.
"No I don't mind how were they?" Olivia asked glad that she could get some news on her twin daughters already.
"Enjoying themselves with Cassie. She had one in each arm and was reading Cinderella with a couple of the toddlers." Cassie smiled.
"That's good, glad they've settled." Olivia smiled feeling a little more relaxed with the news.
Olivia sank back into her chair and smiled at the picture of her and the twins that sat on the desk. She was relieved that they had settled in at the day care centre and she looked forward to doing some work. Having caught up with all her paper work while she was on maternity, having taken every moment her daughters slept to type on her laptop, she found herself bored waiting until a case came in.
"What are you doing?" Olivia asked as she swung herself gently from side to side on her desk chair.
"Nothing why?" Jessie asked a red blush descending on her cheeks.
"You got a text and you smiled and text back quickly and now you're blushing, so come on... spill!" Olivia smiled.
"Honestly it's nothing." Jessie smiled shyly and placed her phone in her very full in tray.
"Yeah right and pigs fly!" Olivia laughed knowing that Jessie would tell her when the time was right.
"Benson! Taylor!" Cragen called as he marched into the bullpen.
"What have you got for us Cap?" Olivia asked knowing that he only called like that when they had caught a case.
" Homicide, Melinda's on scene." Cragen explained handing Olivia the pink sheet as she slipped on her jacket.
"Homicide then why isn't Homicide taking the investigation?" Olivia asked confused.
"Because Melinda says the vics are definitely special." Cragen shrugged.
Olivia took the paper and read the address.
"Cap this is my old apartment." Olivia exclaimed knowing the address off by heart.
"I know." He replied having thought the exact thing when he had heard it.
Olivia sighed and turned to Jessie trying to paste a smile onto her face.
"Come on Jess, let's see if having babies has affected my detective skills." She winked as she grabbed her car keys.
Apartment 4D
9.06 am
"What have you got for us?" Olivia asked trying not to look around the apartment as she walked in.
"Olivia, what are you doing here?" Melinda asked throwing the sheet back and jumping to her feet.
"First day back on the job." Olivia smiled.
"You look well." Melinda smiled back.
"Thank you. It's a bit strange ending up in here." Olivia sighed finally looking around what had once been her sanctuary from the horrors they saw at work and now she was here to face one of those horrors.
"Just a little, I got the address and I realised I didn't need the GPS. Place has gone downhill, from what I gathered the last occupants did a runner, realtor found the ... the crime when he uh came to check the place before bringing a client around." Melinda explained.
Olivia moved towards the covered body and felt Melinda's hand on her shoulder.
"You don't want to look Olivia. Trust me." Melinda sighed.
Olivia shook her head and knelt down in front of the covered body. She could tell the body was small, very small, and as she peeled back the cover her hand shook, Melinda's warning echoing in her voice.
"Oh my God." Olivia gasped yet she didn't avert her gaze.
"I told you not too look Olivia." Melinda sighed kneeling next to her friend.
"Update?" Olivia asked swallowing hard trying to push the image out of her head.
"Baby Ja ..."
"Don't." Olivia pleaded her voice shivering.
"Don't what Liv?" Melinda asked.
"Call her Jane Doe." Olivia's voice was barely a whisper.
"Ok, we'll call her Angel." Melinda suggested and received a grateful nod from Olivia.
"Baby Angel, I'd say six months old, been dead around five hours if that." Melinda explained.
All Olivia could do was nod. She wanted to reach out and stroke the girl's face, pick her up in her arms and hold her.
"Cause of death?" Olivia asked bring herself out of her daze.
"Liv ..." Melinda warned.
"Cause of death?" Olivia asked her voice stronger and firmer.
"One stab wound to the upper torso." Melinda explained watching her friend.
"Ok, well let us know when you get anymore." Olivia stated getting to her feet.
She shakily walked straight out of the apartment and almost ran to her car with Jessie not far behind her. Once in the sanctuary of her SUV she dropped her head to the steering wheel desperately trying not to cry.
"Olivia?" Jessie asked her voice dry and shaky, it was the first thing she'd said since seeing the body.
"Just a minute." Olivia whispered as she tried to compose herself.
Once she'd straightened herself out she started up the engine with only one destination in mind.
One Police Plaza Day Care Centre
9.54 am
Olivia saw her daughters both nuzzled in Cassie's arms. She rushed over and scooped them up holding them both close as she tried to hold back her tears.
"Decided that you weren't ready?" Cassie asked softly.
"No, I was ready, until ... never mind you don't need to know. I need their buggy. I'm going to take them for an hour or two." Olivia sighed knowing that right now she needed to be around her bubbly little girls as she desperately tried to erase the image of Baby Angel form her mind.
"Ok, so they might be back later?" Cassie asked hopeful.
"No, they will be back later. But for now, I need my daughters." Olivia explained and she handed Sophia over to Jessie as her cell phone rang.
"Ok Olivia. Bye bye Amelia, bye bye Sophia." Cassie smiled and she left to get on with her job.
"Benson." She answered. "How did you know? Really? Ok we won't be long. I love you too. Bye." Olivia hung up and returned the phone to her pocket as Cassie returned with the pushchair.
"What did he want?" Jessie asked as Cassie took Sophia and placed her into the pushchair as Olivia placed Amelia in.
"Warner called and said I'd rushed from there, Cragen has apparently said he wants the girls at the one six for the remainder of this case so we can all know what had been lost with Baby Angel and be reminded that there is some innocence in the world." Olivia explained.
"Ok well let's get going." Jessie smiled.
This is going to be a very horrifying case, I've rated this M because there is some Smut but I will warn when there are graphic details too!
So who is Baby Angel, how will Olivia and the rest of the squad handle the case? Who's idea was it to have Sophia and Amelia at the one six?
Well give me reviews and I'll upload! ;) :P