Summary: "Just think if we'd grown up here, we would've been almost like brothers."
With a nudge of Vinny's shoulder, Eli said quietly, "Life's strange cuz here we are…right where we would've been." They grew quiet at that. "Full circle."
(Eli POV in which a long-awaited reunion takes place and a protection plan for Liv is devised)
Events take place after Wheatley's "Love of His Life" speech in OCS1e7 "Everybody Takes A Beating Sometime" and during SVU s22 e16 "Wolves in Sheep's clothing" but before Fin's wedding.
Disclaimer: I didn't know that Stripey the Tiger existed when I named it.
A/N: Refers to the church scene in OCs1e6 "I Got This Rat", Wheatley arrest in OC s1e7 "Everyone Takes A Beating Sometime", the Calvin Arliss episodes of SVU s12 episodes "Trophy "and "Penetration" and s13 episode "Missing Pieces", and the Nitro Nibbles raid in OCs1e2 "This is Not Your Father's Organized Crime"
Past story references:
- Crew communication method of using a "CN" label in text messages sent to the entire Crew, a bit like a bat-signal. Established in my story Part/Ch 5 Safety in Numbers.
- Warnings about the targeting of Eli established in Part/Ch 5 Safety in Numbers and Part/Ch 6 Stuck Like Glue
- Eli and Vinny relationship established in the Part/Ch 9 Heading for a Breakdown and Part/Ch 10 Meaning of Family.
- Vinny's relationship with Mama K/Krissy/Sarah is established in Part/Ch 2 Mothering the Mother
- Jez as Jet Slootmaekers and her background/relationship with Sketch established in Part/Ch 5 Safety in Numbers.
Looking at his phone, Eli noted with a groan that he was late. C'mon. C'mon. C'mon. Move! he mentally shouted at everyone as he squeezed and slithered his way through the disembarking throng of people at the Times Square subway station.
"Finally," he muttered as made it outside and began to hoof his way to the diner. A mandatory meeting of the Crew had been called by Jez to discuss some urgent development, and now he was late, anxiety churning his gut as he had no idea what this might be.
God, I hope Paco hasn't slipped , he worried. It was only a few weeks ago that the kid had been flying high on Purple Magic, and everyone was waiting with bated breath to see if the rehab program Father Miguel had found would help him stick to it this time. Eli had to give the other younger teen credit, he, so far, seemed to be working the program, keeping his appointments, staying out of trouble, and going to an alternative school the Father had found as well. He'd even joined their little study group at the Corner. Yet, the rest of the Crew seemed to be viewing it all with guarded optimism, having been through this a couple of times with him before.
The sound of sobbing within a nearby alley halted his progress.
"Hello?" he called from the opening; even though it was daylight, it was hard to make out anything in the shadows.
Taking a few cautious steps and trying to see where the sobbing was coming from, he called out again, "Anyone there?"
Hanging out with a bunch of street kids, he'd heard lots of stories about things happening in alleyways. Stories of muggings and ruses designed to prey on tourists. Stories of gang members knifing people and drug deals in doorways.
"Shh…it's okay. Don't cry. We're safe here," he heard a female voice whisper, and with every cautious step he made closer, he heard the echoing sound of someone scooting away. Eli bit his lip and paced a bit where he stood as he debated going in further.
Safe. Okay. That wasn't very reassuring. Eli swallowed nervously, trying to figure out what to do. Shit. He certainly wasn't as prepared as the others to handle anything like this. Reinforcements. That's what he should do. Stepping back a bit, he dug out his phone and called Vinny.
"You're late, and Jez is about to hunt you down."
Eli glanced uncertainly down the alley, making sure that the lady hadn't moved. "You in uniform?"
There was a pause on the other end of the line before a confused, concerned voice answered, "Yeah. I was covering for someone…" sigh "…a-gain…so I just got off shift."
Eli blew out a relieved breath. "Umm…I need your help."
"Where are you?"
"The alley by the subway station. Don't bring anyone else with you…you might spook her."
"Spook who?" Vinny demanded, alarm in his voice and before Eli could answer, he continued, "You know, what? Just wait there. I'm on my way."
It wasn't long before Vinny arrived, thankfully without any of the others with him. Eli was relieved to see that his friend's uniform and gun belt were still visible through the unzipped NYPD winter jacket. That will hopefully make this easier , Eli hoped.
"What's going on?"
Eli indicated his head down the alley and explained in a low voice, "Someone down there was crying and then said to someone else that they 'were safe' there. I didn't know what to do."
Vinny took a deep breath. "Okay. Let me see what I can do."
"Hello?" He called, taking cautious steps into the mouth of the alley. "I'm a police officer. Can I help you?"
Shuffling feet could be heard, and Eli peered around Vinny's shoulder to see a woman with a young girl in her arms carefully creep out from behind the dumpster. Oh, thank God, I'm not crazy, Eli thought as his shoulders slumped in relief.
The little girl sniffled and buried her head in the waist of the woman, causing Vinny to halt his progress and hold up his hands in a non-threatening manner. "Hi, there," Vinny greeted in a soft voice. "My friend, Eli, here thought I might be able to help you."
Eli poked his head around Vinny's body to send a friendly wave, receiving a tremulous smile in return. "No one can help us," she whispered in a broken voice.
Vinny put his hands down. "Why don't you try me?" A smile could be heard in his voice, "You might be surprised."
"I couldn't stay there anymore," she burst out, a tear shimmering in a beam of sunlight that managed to hit her face just right. "Not after one of them went after my little girl." She looked down, stroking the hair of the young girl in her arms.
"Of course not," Vinny affirmed. "Can you tell me who?"
Her long, blonde hair whipped through the air at her emphatic head shake. "No…No…No…I c-c-can't," she stammered in a panic, "He'll kill us!"
"Okay, okay, okay. You don't have to tell me," Vinny nodded before saying in a cajoling tone, "but I think you should tell someone to stop him from doing it to someone else's little girl."
Eli saw the woman bite her lip, an uncertain look coming across her face.
He saw Vinny take a breath before asking, "Have you ever heard of the Special Victims Unit?"
The young woman shook her head.
"Well…they're a special unit we have that takes care of people who try to hurt kids, and I know the Captain at the 16th precinct."
Liv , Eli thought as he sucked in a breath of surprise at the fact that Vinny seemed to know her too.
"He's powerful," she worried, "She'll believe him over me."
Eli felt the urge to defend Liv's reputation rise within him, prompting him to forcefully chime in, "Look, I know some cops would but not her, okay? I've known her all my life," Or at least it feels like it , he thought as he continued, "and there's no doubt that she's pretty badass. She'll do everything she can to protect you."
Vinny shot him a surprised but thankful look. "People have called her Badass Benson for years, and I know it for a fact because she helped me, too." Eli stared at the back of his head, astonished at the little tidbit about his friend's life he'd never heard before.
The woman moved closer to the two young men, seemingly reassured. "She helped you?"
Vinny nodded. "And it's because of what she did for me that I'm standing here in front of you as a cop."
As her shuffling steps drew her closer to them, Vinny further explained, "The officers in SVU are special because they volunteer to take cases like yours, and she has stayed in that unit for over 20 years because she has made it her life's mission to fight for and defend victims like you."
Eli stared into her blue eyes and asked softly, "So what do you say? Want him to take you to her?"
She shot a glance down at her daughter who still had her face buried and whispered, "I-I-I think so." Trying to untangle her daughter's arms from around her waist, they heard her say gently, "Sweetheart, you have to let me go, so we can go meet this nice lady." The little girl shook her head "no" causing her mother to heave a sigh.
Eli was by no means at Sketch and Blaze's caliber with kids, but his heart was breaking for this kid who had obviously gone through so much. An urge to do something came over him, so with a glance up at the mom, he whispered, "Can I try?"
Shooting him a relieved look, she nodded.
Nervously licking his lips, Eli stepped forward and crouched down in front of them. "My name is Eli. What's yours?"
Her mom rubbed a hand up and down her back and asked gently, "You want to tell the nice boy your name?"
The towhead little girl shook her head "no", so her mom looked at him and spoke for her, "Her name is Andrea."
This isn't going well , Eli thought, getting more and more disheartened every second. Glancing up at Vinny, the police officer gave him an encouraging nod. Eli took another breath and as he did so happened to spot the tip of a curved, striped tail peeking out from where it was clutched tightly in her arms. "Is that a tiger you have?" She nodded shyly. "My nephew Kiernan loves tigers too. You know what he named his?"
She turned her head, allowing scared but curious blue eyes to look at him. "Tiger." He made a dramatic face. "So his name's Tiger the Tiger." She giggled. "Isn't he silly?" She nodded. "What's your friend's name?"
"Stripey," he heard a little voice whisper, relief filling him at the small sign of progress.
"That's a great name. You're a much better name giver than Kiernan." She turned to look at him, flashing him a small grin.
Eli took a breath and held his hand out. "How about you hold my hand as we go meet our friend, Olivia? She's really nice, I promise."
When he felt a small hand take his, he let out a sigh of relief and gave her a small smile as he stood up.
Vinny looked at the young woman. "Sorry, I don't have a patrol car. Is it okay to walk, or would you prefer the subway?"
Blue eyes lit up with anxiety at the word "subway", so it wasn't a surprise when she opted to walk the short distance to the 1-6. The entire way, Andrea kept a tight grip on Eli's hand and jabbered on about Stripey's origins and adventures.
Once in front of the building, the group walked inside and headed to the front desk where Vinny flashed his badge at the lady stationed there and told her quietly, "We're here to see Captain Benson at SVU."
The uniformed lady glanced between them and nodded her head, allowing them through after telling them the floor number. Looks seemed to follow them, causing Andrea to move closer to Eli while her mother started to get more and more nervous.
"I don't know if I can do this," she whispered, as the doors opened.
"Okay, we'll go at your own pace," Vinny assured her, as they stepped back and waved for people to go before them. "It'll be okay. Olivia is the best in the business and is a legend in the department." Catching her eyes, he tried to reassure her by saying, "She's a force for good in this world, and she'll go to bat for you without batting an eyelash. So what do you say?"
Taking a deep, fortifying breath, she nodded her head, and taking advantage of her current acquiescence, the two boys hurriedly stepped into the next elevator that opened.
Eli winced as the little hand in his tightened her grip, nails digging into the palm of his hand. The entire ride was made in silence until they reached their floor and stood in the entryway of the SVU bullpen.
Eli almost bumped into the back of Vinny who suddenly stopped in his tracks. "You okay, man?"
"It's just…some of it looks the same," he whispered as his eyes took in the room's look and layout.
As Eli turned to look at the space, he was overwhelmed by similar feelings of deja vu . "It even feels kinda the same," he agreed quietly as his eyes examined the space that had felt so large when he was little. The hustle and bustle. People moving back and forth. Intense concentration of detectives hard at work. The ringing of the phones. These all felt strangely familiar, but the lighthearted camaraderie he seemed to remember feeling in the air was missing, a realization that sent a pang of longing to his heart.
The hurried click click click of heeled shoes coming around the corner could be heard just before Eli heard Liv's voice say, "Officer, can we help you?"
When Vinny turned, her brown eyes opened in shock as she whispered, "Calvin?"
Eli saw his friend give an uncertain, sheepish nod, which caused dark chocolate brown eyes to mist with tears. "Calvin, oh my God; it is you!" she whispered with elation as she took him in. "And you're a cop, too."
"Hi, Olivia," Vinny choked out, his green eyes looking at her with nervousness, "I've been meaning to come by, but I wasn't sure…" he trailed off lamely.
"It's so good to see you. I tried…"
"I know. I'm sorry," he gently interrupted with a small, regretful smile.
Eli's charge tugged on his hand, so he leaned over to hear her shout whisper, "Is that her?" He nodded gently, his eyes looking up to meet Liv's questioning eyes with his. "She's pretty."
"She is," he agreed, "You wanna meet her?"
With a shy nod, Tiger the Tiger came up to hide her face as she swayed from side to side. Eli stood up to introduce in a faux formal voice, "Captain Olivia Benson, may I have the honor of introducing my friend, Miss Andrea and Stripey the Tiger?"
A quiet giggle escaped from my very young friend, bringing a tender smile to Liv's face as she bent over to say, "Hi, there! You can call me Olivia. It's very nice to meet you."
Standing up her eyes took on a sad sheen before the professional wall descended. "Why don't we all go to my office?"
"You okay, Cap?" They heard a voice ask as the group began to make the trek towards the corner office, and as Eli crossed the threshold into the main room, a memory flashed of running across this room towards a desk on the left side and of feeling the soft embrace of a woman once he reached his destination. Was I running to Liv? He couldn't help but wonder. Were we really that close at one time? Being here, he had a sense that they had been…that the strong connection between them had been deliberately worn away by parental choices or perhaps even maternal jealousy, and knowing now the kind of person Liv was, he couldn't help but feel a bit of resentment about it.
Liv cast a glance towards the voice, leading Eli to glance that way too. As he did so, he saw the forehead of the African-American man sitting there crinkle as his gaze flickered between himself and Vinny as if searching his mind for a memory before the light of puzzled recognition came into his eyes. "Just going to have a meeting with some guests, Fin," Liv stated as they walked into her office.
So that's Fin , Eli noted with a very slight sense of recognition, relieved to be able to put a face to a name in his memories. For some reason, it seemed to close the loop on his father's friendship with the man and his own vague memories of this place.
When the door closed, the young woman began shifting around nervously. "I think I should just go," she whispered, a look of anxiety coming across her face. "He's gonna know I came and come after us. I just know it."
Eli watched as Liv's eyes softened as she stepped forward to put a hand on the woman's elbow. "We can protect the both of you from whoever is hurting you."
The young woman took a breath. "This is all a misunderstanding. She promised me that they wouldn't go for 'drea so maybe it's a mistake," she half-heartedly tried to insist in a desperate attempt to convince herself of this fact.
Earnest brown eyes met anxious blue ones. "I promise we'll do everything we can to help you, but you need to tell us what's going on…if not for you…for her." She added with a nod towards Andrea.
Vinny cleared his throat. "Maybe we should just leave you guys to talk in private."
The woman stared at her daughter for a few seconds before her shoulders slumped, finally giving in. She knelt down asked, "Would you be okay with waiting with the boys while I talk to Olivia?"
Andrea looked up at Eli who gave her a friendly smile, and she assessed him before nodding. "I'll be okay."
Eli nodded, relieved. He wasn't sure he could handle whatever horror story that was about to be told. It remained a mystery to him how Liv had managed to do this job for 20 years and not become a jaded cop. "Is there a good place we can take her to wait?"
Liv nodded, her eyes grateful. "There's a kid-friendly room around the corner. Fin can show you where to go."
Eli held out his hand and said, "Okay, Miss Andrea. Let's go check out this special room."
With that Vinny and Eli left the room, leaving the women behind to carry on their serious conversation, and headed over to Fin who eyed them with curiosity. "You're Calvin Arliss, aren't you?"
Calvin nodded and remarked absently, "Benson actually." Eli and Fin stared at him slightly stunned; it was only then that Eli realized that he'd never actually learned Vinny's last name. Huh. Strange world we live in . "Good to see you again, Detective Tutuola," the young cop continued as the two men shook hands.
"And you…who're you? I know you from somewhere." He squinted at Eli as if searching his memory. Eli had seen pictures of his towhead, blue-eyed self when he was little, so he couldn't blame the man for not making the connection.
"You knew me when I was really little. I'm Eli Stabler."
"Right, the littlest of the Stabler Army. You musta been what three the last time I saw you? Man, broke Liv's heart when you guys lost touch."
"Mine, too." Eli said, the words ringing true in his heart. His mind flashed upon a vague memory of being mad at the world and screaming for someone. Most of his life he'd had a long lost sense of someone missing from his life. When he'd asked his parents, they'd played it off as his siblings or his grandmother, but he'd always known it was someone else. It finally dawned on him that that feeling of emptiness was no longer there and hadn't been since he'd met Liv again. She really was the missing piece of his family, and it boggled his mind that his father still didn't seem to really realize or even understand that.
As his gaze flicked between the two young men, Eli decided to head his curiosity off at the pass. "Liv mentioned that there's a room we can take our friend Andrea to?"
Fin flicked his eyes down to the young girl clutching at Eli's hand. "Down the hall over there."
Treating this like they were at the Corner, the two boys plopped themselves on the floor and let Andrea explore the nooks and crannies of the room, dragging things out for them to do until the adults came. After coloring a bit and a game of Chutes and Ladders, she settled for playing alone and giving her tiger friend new friends.
"It feels weird being back here," Eli noted, knowing that Vinny might be the only one who could relate.
"Tell me about it. Isn't it funny how all of us seem to be tied to one another?" Vinny mused with a laugh. "Sketch and Noah. You and Olivia. Me and Olivia. Your dad and Jet. Sketch and Jet."
"I'm sure Sketch would have some quote about that," Eli said with a chuckle as they watched Andrea play with Stripey the Tiger. "How do you know Liv anyway?"
Vinny sighed and wiped a hand over his face. "It's a long story, but basically, she was my guardian for a while when I was a few years younger than you."
Eli's mouth dropped open in shock. This was, in essence, Liv's oldest son…the first she'd played a part in raising. "What happened?"
Vinny shrugged. "They eventually identified my bio-dad, so I went to live with his parents in Vermont."
"Didn't you stay in touch? I mean you were old enough. Not like me. I was really little, but you…you had a choice to stay in touch with her…to love her…to be loved by her…why? Why would you abandon her like that?" Eli quietly ranted, tears coming to his eyes. The whole situation was unfair. In this place that was at once so familiar yet so alien, it was like a tap that had been turned off for too long had suddenly been turned on, flooding him with a long suppressed feeling of loss. "Why? Why would you do that to yourself…to her?"
He stared at his friend whose damp green eyes stared at his own. "I was a snot-nosed, bratty teenager," he mumbled with a sad smile, "There's no other explanation I can give than that, and I'll spend the rest of my life regretting not keeping in touch with her better. Figured she hated me for it."
"Of course, I don't," a soft voice said, and they turned to see Liv in the doorway.
Sending her a sheepish smile, they stood up, grabbing their coats. It seemed that now that Vinny had taken the step of seeing Liv, he couldn't help but blurt out, "You know…I came across a box in the attic with all these notes and trinkets you'd sent through the years, and I'm just…" he got choked up "so sorry for breaking off contact. I don't know how you can forgive me…"
Her eyes misted with tears, and she pulled him in for a hug. "You were just a kid, Calvin. It's okay," Eli heard her murmur. They hugged one another tightly, almost afraid each would disappear into the ether.
A little hand tugged on Eli's, and Andrea said, "Is she his mommy?"
Eli opened his mouth, and Vinny beat him to it, "Yes, she's my adopted mommy." His eyes cut over to Liv who gasped when her eyes fixated on the shiny gold nameplate of his uniform with the word Benson proudly on display. "She always has been," he murmured softly with a loving smile, "I just got lost for a bit."
Liv's eyes cut to him, and she drew him back in for a large hug. When she pulled away, she said, "I'm proud of you." Vinny's chest puffed up at the praise.
Eli watched as she pulled herself together to look at his young friend. "Miss Andrea, let's get you back to your mom." She held out her hand and thankfully, the little miss felt comfortable enough to take it. The small group headed back to Liv's office, where the little girl ran into the arms of the young woman.
Liv turned to stare at the two young men regretfully. "I wish I had time for us to talk, but we're in the middle of a huge case involving Holt Tower." She stared at the duo in her office, sorrow peaking through her professional facade a bit. "And it sounds like they're a part of it. Haven't heard anything about kids Andrea's age being targeted, but it wouldn't surprise me with some of these bastards." Shooting them a small, proud smile, she praised, "You boys did the right thing bringing them here. You just saved them from another night on the streets."
Vinny pulled on his jacket. "Don't worry about it. I understand how it goes," he said with a gentle smile, "I'll get your number from Eli, and we'll meet up. Maybe you can meet my girlfriend, Sarah."
Happiness shone from her eyes like beams of sunlight. "I'd like that," she whispered just before giving them each a squeeze on their biceps and, after a deep breath, headed back into her office.
Shit , he thought as their phones pinged with the arrival of texts. Pulling his out, Eli saw that it was a rather demanding text from Jez asking where they were, reminding them of the urgent meeting they were missing. Showing the screen to Vinny who nodded in acknowledgement, Eli shot off a response telling her they had to take someone to SVU and were on their way back now.
As they paused to take one last look at the SVU bullpen, a thoughtful look came across Vinny's face. "Just think if we'd grown up here, we would've been almost like brothers."
With a nudge of his friend's shoulder, Eli said quietly, "Life's strange cuz here we are…right where we would've been." They grew quiet at that. "Full circle."
Another insistent ping sounded from their phones, shaking them out of their nostalgic, pensive mood. "Geez, she's persistent," Eli muttered as he punched out a message to say they were on their way.
"To say the least," Vinny agreed with a chuckle as they turned to make their way back to the diner. When they got there, they found a bunch of restless people glaring at them. Impatience bled from them all, indicating that Jez had been waiting until their return to break the news.
"Sorry, guys," Vinny said, giving Krissy a kiss on the cheek before sliding in next to her. "Had a mom who needed to go to SVU and a little kid who wouldn't let go of Eli. He's becoming a regular kid whisperer."
Eli shrugged with a sheepish smile as he slid across from them. "All that time at the Corner and with the crazy nephews has done it I guess."
"Got to reconnect with Olivia," Vinny mentioned quietly to Krissy.
"Honey, that's wonderful!" Her brilliant smile lit up the room.
Eyes brimming with happiness, Vinny began to nod and opened his mouth to continue his story, but the clearing of Jez's throat halted whatever he was going to say. Looking at her glaring eyes, he cowered and muttered, "I'll tell you about it later."
Krissy and Eli chuckled at that.
Jez huffed out a frustrated sound. "Speaking of Olivia, she's the reason we're here."
A loud silence fell over the corner of the busy diner before with a nervous lick of his lips, Eli burst out, "What do you mean?"
"A credible threat has been made against her," Jez announced, an uneasy hush descending upon the group. Given that their little family was composed of her non-blood relatives and those who hero worshiped her, it took no time at all for the silence to be replaced by angry, indignant rumbles.
"Ain't heard nothin' about it," Blaze muttered, "Someone else from the Crew report it?" His eyes looked around the room to everyone shaking their heads "no". "How we know it's legit?"
"It was said by someone in our custody," Jez clarified with a roll of her eyes.
"So someone had the balls to say they were going after Liv?" Eli scoffed in amazement.
Jez shuffled a bit in her seat, eyes shifting away from him. "Not by name but the implication was clear."
Blaze's eyes narrowed. "Hold up. Did they actually utter the name 'Olivia Benson', Captain Benson, SVU or anything else directly tied to her or not?"
Jez cocked her head, her eyes dead serious. "No, but anyone who knows her and Stabler would know it's her."
What the hell did this person say? What could they have possibly said that could say it's Liv without saying Liv? Eli's head was spinning at the information as fear caused his stomach to clench.
"Who is it?" Paco asked quietly.
Jez looked at each of them before stating flatly, "Can't tell you that." She stared down at the table nervously, "And even though I was there when he was arrested…"
Eli sucked in a breath at the news of an arrest. He'd known in his gut that something big was about to go down…that his dad would once again be in danger. Having felt his father's impatient, chaotic energy when they happened to catch dinner the night before Mass, he hadn't been able to sleep well, making him dead tired the next day. When he'd seen his dad looking up as if asking God's help for some task that was coming up during Father Hogan's sermon on vengeance, his anxiety spiked until all he could do was worry about whether his dad would come home safe. He'd waited impatiently to hear from Jez that his dad was okay and didn't even believe her message until he heard his father's voice during their nightly check-in call. Relief had allowed him to finally sleep, and since all he'd been able to think about was the fact his father was okay, he hadn't really thought about who or what the operation had been about.
"Wait," Sketch's harsh whisper broke through Eli's thoughts, "What you mean you were there? You were on scene? Like out in the field?" An angry, incredulous look on his face. "What the fuck?! You're just a tech."
She shot him a dark glare. "I'm a cop. I carry a badge AND a gun. That means I'm trained to go in the field too."
Eli's eyes cast over at Sketch who looked at her like she'd grown two heads. "Since when have you ever wanted to be involved like that? It means actually interacting with people."
"We were short-staffed cuz some other cops were assholes," she said with a huff, "I couldn't let the team down, and it felt good for the Sarge to trust me to get it done. I was the only one who could do it. Everyone else would've been recognized, and it was tech-related."
The fury and worry in Sketch's amber eyes lit them up like a campfire, and the two childhood friends locked eyes in furious glares. Finally, Jez conceded with a sigh, "'Sides it wasn't that dangerous. All I had to do was deliver a directional mike in a hot dog bun to an undercover cop."
The tension between the two broke when Sketch let out a chuckle. "You're gonna be the death of me, Jezzie."
Eli's brow furrowed as his mind turned back to the threat against Liv. "What's the NYPD gonna do 'bout it?" Everyone looked at him confused. "About Liv."
Jez shrugged. "The guy is currently awaiting arraignment, so I don't think they're gonna do anything about it."
"But you're still worried," Vinny noted, "Which is why we're here."
"The perp's tech-savvy, dangerous, slimey, and has a long arm."
"This the guy you told me about? The motherfucker who sent those assholes after Wally?" Sketch demanded, eyes gleaming with the need for vengeance.
Jez nodded her head, her dark eyes serious.
"Shit," Sketch muttered with a loud sigh. "Ever since you tol' me that stupid ass ice cream…"
She glared at him. "You can't call it that."
"…place was empty, I been tellin' you got a mole. You figure out who it is yet? Cuz if not, no matter what we do it's gonna get leaked."
Letting out a frustrated sigh, she groused, "Haven't been able to find a money trail on anyone related to that op. There's gotta be one, though…just have to find the right angle."
Blaze shook his head. "So what we gonna do? She's a fuckin' Captain in the NYPD? How the fuck are we gonna protect her ?"
Eli had a sudden thought and sat up straight. Staring at Jez, he asked softly, "She know?"
She looked at him, uncertain. "Not sure if your dad told her yet."
"What the fuck?!" Blaze shouted in frustration. "She deserves to know. She's got a whole unit that could back her up."
Jez shrugged. "I don't get in between the two of them. Cuz ya know that's intense, complicated stuff." Pointing at Eli, she declared, "You ask him why."
Eli huffed out a laugh. "Yeah, right. How the hell am I gonna explain that?" Putting on a faux friendly voice, he said in a mocking manner, "Hey dad. How was your day? Heard that a psycho made a threat against Liv. What you gonna do about it?"
Vinny nodded with a look of serious amusement. "Think the delivery could use some work but yeah," he teased with a shrug, "it works."
"If he won't do it, then I'll fucking tell 'er," Sketch growled. Ever since he'd found out that Noah was his brother, he'd been spending some time with the family unit, and Eli could tell his friend's protective instincts were running strong right now.
Vinny sighed and ran a hand across his face. "Unfortunately, there might be a reason he hasn't told her. Maybe it'll jeopardize the case or something. We don't know, so we can't risk it."
"We gotta do somethin' to protect her and Noah," Sketch argued, determination in his every pore. The knowledge of blood family had changed something within him…like something wild had been tamed a bit, but right now, that wild side was angling to get out.
"Let's think this through," Vinny said, ever the voice of reason. "She's got a whole squad to look out for her while she's on the job, so maybe we should focus on when she's not? We could be like a protective detail."
"How's that gonna work when we ain't got no cars?" Blaze scoffed.
Krissy chimed in softly, "Maybe we could send out a CN and set up a rotation with people to serve shifts…like we could pair up people with cars and without."
A ping could be heard on all their phones, and Jez looked up to confirm nonchalantly, "CN went out. Gonna have to get a bigger planning space to get this all pinned down." She cast an assessing eye around. "Can't do it here."
"Scout tol' me about an abandoned warehouse," Paco said, grey-green eyes peaking up from his downcast look. "Maybe there?"
Krissy shot him a questioning look. "Why's he telling you about stuff like that?"
"Dunno," Paco shrugged, his fingernails picking at the black nail polish on one of his other fingers, "Mebbe he thought I needed a new place to crash."
She humphed. "I'll talk to him about that."
Jez had a thoughtful look on her face. "That'd work."
"Some of us should watch Noah's school before and after," Vinny mused, thinking of possible other targets the guy could go after to get to Liv.
"I guess that would have to be you, me, or Eli," Sketch said, knowing that they would be the most likely to spot people who may not belong, "and when we're with them, there won't be a need for others to be around."
" So old school," Jez muttered, annoyed. "Maybe I can try to hack into her SUV's navigation system, and if I could get my hands on her phone, that'd be easier."
Sketch caught her contemplative look and held up his hands. "Oh hell no! I'm not stealing her phone, Jez! You figure out another way to get your hands on it."
"Fine," she huffed out, "Scaredy cat."
"Of a NYPD Captain?!" he spat back, "who can throw my ass in jail and cut off access to my brother? You bet!"
"I'll do it," Paco announced eagerly.
"No!" Everyone shouted, a scared look coming over their faces.
He crossed his arms in a pout. "I was only trying to help."
"You'd fall flat on your face trying to do it, or you'd drop it and break it as you were running away, baby boy," Krissy pointed out gently. The young teen thought about it for a moment before conceding her point with a sheepish smile.
Jez tapped the table in thought. "Maybe I could come up with some sort of security protocol…" she trailed off as her eyes glazed over in thought.
The others began to spout out other ideas and return phone calls from older, more established Crew members from across the city who started to return Jez's CN message. A fervent determination settled over their little group, a secret pact made that they would do their very best to encircle this city's guardian angel and her little boy. All Eli could do was hope and pray that it was enough.