title: religious ecstasy - chapter two
author: duck
rating: pg-13
author's notes: my mind is full of silvery stars - wilco
disclaimer: see chapter one. to recap: not mine.
- Corner of Bridge Street and Whitehall Street -
- Saturday April 24th 3:30pm -
Elliot scanned the street as he shifted the police sedan into park and yanked the parking break into place. "We in the right neighborhood?" he asked Olivia who sat in the passenger seat next to him. She checked over the list in her notebook.
"Doesn't seem to be the right place for a hooker hangout, but yeah," she agreed. She nodded in the direction of the church across the street. "Maybe we have another religious nut on our hands."
"Oh God I hope not," Elliot groaned. He opened the door and stepped out. "This is where the first victims were found, right?" He looked across the car to Olivia and they both turned to look at the alley behind the church. It was still cordoned off with the bright yellow crime scene tape.
"It would fit with the M.O.," Olivia commented. Elliot slammed the door to the car and headed for the alley.
"Maybe he comes out of the church and sees the pro and the john, gets upset that such a sin is occurring so near to a house of God, goes crazy," he theorized as he walked, Olivia falling into step next to him. "So where are the hookers now?"
The surrounding row houses, while not the top of the line, were well maintained and neat, no prostitutes in sight. "If one of my friends were murdered in cold blood in my area I wouldn't work the same beat either," Olivia said. "I guess that means no one to warn around here." They'd already spent nearly six hours visiting various disreputable street corners in the area.
"In the mood for confession?" Elliot asked blithely.
"Why, you got any sins you need to confess?" Elliot could tell she understood what he meant and they headed for the church in step.
-----
"Welcome to the sanctuary of the Opus Dei. I am Brother Alphonso. Are you brethren seeking shelter or worshippers seeking their weekly circle?" The open and fresh-faced young man that greeted them was dressed in simple clothes and his curiosity was obvious.
"Neither," Elliot said, withdrawing his badge from his pocket. "I'm Detective Stabler, this is my partner Detective Benson. We're investigating the murders that took place outside your..." he paused. "Sanctuary? I thought this was a church."
"It is. The Opus Dei is a worldwide prelature of the Catholic church," Brother Alphonso explained. "We bring the teachings of St. Josemaria Escriva to the world. He taught that that the Lord asks all of us to become saints in our own right; to act in our everyday lives for Christ."
Olivia made a noise of sudden understanding and looked around warily. The man caught her gaze. "I can see you have heard our reputation," he said with a half smile. "Certain works of fiction have been most unkind. I assure you, the vast majority of Opus Dei members do not practice such an extreme form of St. Josemaria's teachings. We are humble people; you may even work with several and not realize it."
Olivia nodded, but Elliot could see the tension of caution still tugging around her eyes, but knew better than to ask about it until they were alone. "Do you live here?" he asked the younger man.
"Yes, as do many other numeraries." The man glanced around. "I already spoke with the other officers."
"We're just going back over everything, trying to get a feel for the crime," Olivia explained. "What are numeraries exactly?" Elliot pulled his notepad out of his pocket quickly.
"Numeraries are men and women who have devoted themselves to the faith," he explained. "We are celibate in addition to giving up many other worldly things. We devote our time and entire salaries to the prelate and go wherever they direct."
"Would it be possible to obtain a list of the numeraries who live in this sanctuary, Brother Alphonso?" Elliot asked, pausing in his note-taking.
The man shook his head. "Not without a warrant I'm afraid. We value our privacy here. As the name indicates, it is a sanctuary."
- Special Victims Squadroom -
- Saturday April 24th 6:12pm -
"Great, and make sure it's just a general list of members, not specific on the people living there."
Elliot hung up the phone and grinned. "That was Alex. She thinks she'll be able to get us a warrant for the list. She makes no guarantees, but was optimistic." He watched his silent partner with no small measure of concern. "You okay? You seemed pretty shaken up at the church. Ready to tell me why yet?"
"Have you ever read 'The DaVinci Code,' Elliot?" she asked. He chuckled.
"The most advanced reading I've gotten to lately is 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone,'" he answered with a grin. One eyebrow went up. "The twins got it for their birthday. I've been reading it aloud to them."
"It was the runaway bestseller last summer," she explained. "I picked it up when it came out in paperback, figured I'd try to get away from sexually-based crimes for a while. It has some scary stuff in it."
"Like what?"
"Like that Opus Dei numeraries engage in a practice known as 'corporal mortification.' They inflict pain on themselves in order to better understand the suffering of Christ. They're practically a cult."
"Oh please, Liv," he scoffed. "The Catholic Church would never sanction a prelature that actually does that. It's just exaggerated for story-telling purposes."
"There's a ton of testimonies from former members talking about how Opus Dei controlled and ruined their lives! They whip themselves, wear this spiked belt around their thigh." She bent down over her desk. "My gut's telling me our perp is here."
"So's mine, but not for those reasons," Elliot agreed. "I'll go along with religious fervor, but not to the degree that you're suggesting." His tone had a note of finality in it.
- Sanctuary of the Opus Dei -
- 483 Whitehall Street -
- Sunday April 25th 12:31pm -
"Detectives Stabler and Benson," Brother Alphonso greeted. "You have more questions?"
"Nope," Elliot replied, a smile firmly in place. "Just a warrant for the list of members of the church." Alphonso's face fell as Elliot extended the blue wrapped warrant.
"I had hoped it would not come to this," he said, sadness in his voice. "We are deeply religious people. We would not harm anyone. I don't suppose this could wait until tomorrow? It is the day of worship after all."
"Sorry, but no," Olivia interjected. A sandy-haired youth pushed open the door behind Alphonso as she spoke.
"Brother Andrew, you should be in mid-day mass," Alphonso scolded.
"I apologize, Brother Alphonso," the boy replied, his head bowed. "But I heard voices and I felt the need to investigate."
"Such curiousness," Alphonso clucked in a manner reminiscent of a mother hen. "Since you are here, please fetch the list of our current members. It is in the top right drawer of my desk."
"To live is to serve," the boy replied, bowing and backing through the door.
"He seems awfully young to be living here, Brother Alphonso," Olivia commented. Alphonso drew in a deep breath.
"He is eighteen and just joined. His parents were not members themselves, but are recently deceased. They lived in the area, but when they died he had no family to turn to. We accepted him here." Alphonso placed a hand over his heart. "He is perhaps too eager to serve, but he takes the teachings to heart."
"Since we're here..." Elliot trailed off and Alphonso gave him a pained look.
"More questions? Or perhaps a tour?" His tone was slightly sour, but Elliot glossed over it.
"A tour would be fabulous."
-----
"As you can see, we live simply." Alphonso gestured around the small room. A mat lay on the floor and a sink was tucked into the corner. The only decoration was a crucifix on the wall and the only light came from a small window. A single partially spent candle sat on the floor next to the mat.
"And whose room is this?" Elliot asked.
"This is my room," Alphonso responded easily, stepping inside. "We are all equals and you will find that every room occupied by a numerary is identical to this one."
"Brother Alphonso do you wear a cilice?" Elliot glanced at Olivia sharply at her question. The man shrugged the condemnation in her tone off easily.
"As it is required. It gives me peace to know I can feel even a slight bit of Christ's suffering," he answered delicately. He smiled at her unasked question. "The same for the discipline."
------
"'The discipline'?" Elliot looked at his partner sitting next to him in their sedan.
"The whips, Elliot," she said glaring at him. "It's a whole new level of bondage."
"Masochism you mean," he said. "They enjoy the pain. Really it's none of our business what they enjoy and not pertinent to this investigation." He eyed her closely. "Are you sure there isn't anything personal in this, Olivia? Because if there is I can do this alone."
"You want to take me off the case?" Olivia's temper flared. "What, now you don't need me to be your partner?"
"No, that's not what I mean, Liv," he placated. "You know that's not what I meant."
"Well then what *did* you mean, Elliot, cause it sure sounded that way from over here." Her eyes flashed at him.
"All I meant was that if there's something that's bothering you about this and you can't even talk to me about it.." He left the sentence unfinished.
She gritted her teeth in frustration. "There's nothing there. Let's just get back to the station house. We can look through this list there."
[tbc]
author: duck
rating: pg-13
author's notes: my mind is full of silvery stars - wilco
disclaimer: see chapter one. to recap: not mine.
- Corner of Bridge Street and Whitehall Street -
- Saturday April 24th 3:30pm -
Elliot scanned the street as he shifted the police sedan into park and yanked the parking break into place. "We in the right neighborhood?" he asked Olivia who sat in the passenger seat next to him. She checked over the list in her notebook.
"Doesn't seem to be the right place for a hooker hangout, but yeah," she agreed. She nodded in the direction of the church across the street. "Maybe we have another religious nut on our hands."
"Oh God I hope not," Elliot groaned. He opened the door and stepped out. "This is where the first victims were found, right?" He looked across the car to Olivia and they both turned to look at the alley behind the church. It was still cordoned off with the bright yellow crime scene tape.
"It would fit with the M.O.," Olivia commented. Elliot slammed the door to the car and headed for the alley.
"Maybe he comes out of the church and sees the pro and the john, gets upset that such a sin is occurring so near to a house of God, goes crazy," he theorized as he walked, Olivia falling into step next to him. "So where are the hookers now?"
The surrounding row houses, while not the top of the line, were well maintained and neat, no prostitutes in sight. "If one of my friends were murdered in cold blood in my area I wouldn't work the same beat either," Olivia said. "I guess that means no one to warn around here." They'd already spent nearly six hours visiting various disreputable street corners in the area.
"In the mood for confession?" Elliot asked blithely.
"Why, you got any sins you need to confess?" Elliot could tell she understood what he meant and they headed for the church in step.
-----
"Welcome to the sanctuary of the Opus Dei. I am Brother Alphonso. Are you brethren seeking shelter or worshippers seeking their weekly circle?" The open and fresh-faced young man that greeted them was dressed in simple clothes and his curiosity was obvious.
"Neither," Elliot said, withdrawing his badge from his pocket. "I'm Detective Stabler, this is my partner Detective Benson. We're investigating the murders that took place outside your..." he paused. "Sanctuary? I thought this was a church."
"It is. The Opus Dei is a worldwide prelature of the Catholic church," Brother Alphonso explained. "We bring the teachings of St. Josemaria Escriva to the world. He taught that that the Lord asks all of us to become saints in our own right; to act in our everyday lives for Christ."
Olivia made a noise of sudden understanding and looked around warily. The man caught her gaze. "I can see you have heard our reputation," he said with a half smile. "Certain works of fiction have been most unkind. I assure you, the vast majority of Opus Dei members do not practice such an extreme form of St. Josemaria's teachings. We are humble people; you may even work with several and not realize it."
Olivia nodded, but Elliot could see the tension of caution still tugging around her eyes, but knew better than to ask about it until they were alone. "Do you live here?" he asked the younger man.
"Yes, as do many other numeraries." The man glanced around. "I already spoke with the other officers."
"We're just going back over everything, trying to get a feel for the crime," Olivia explained. "What are numeraries exactly?" Elliot pulled his notepad out of his pocket quickly.
"Numeraries are men and women who have devoted themselves to the faith," he explained. "We are celibate in addition to giving up many other worldly things. We devote our time and entire salaries to the prelate and go wherever they direct."
"Would it be possible to obtain a list of the numeraries who live in this sanctuary, Brother Alphonso?" Elliot asked, pausing in his note-taking.
The man shook his head. "Not without a warrant I'm afraid. We value our privacy here. As the name indicates, it is a sanctuary."
- Special Victims Squadroom -
- Saturday April 24th 6:12pm -
"Great, and make sure it's just a general list of members, not specific on the people living there."
Elliot hung up the phone and grinned. "That was Alex. She thinks she'll be able to get us a warrant for the list. She makes no guarantees, but was optimistic." He watched his silent partner with no small measure of concern. "You okay? You seemed pretty shaken up at the church. Ready to tell me why yet?"
"Have you ever read 'The DaVinci Code,' Elliot?" she asked. He chuckled.
"The most advanced reading I've gotten to lately is 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone,'" he answered with a grin. One eyebrow went up. "The twins got it for their birthday. I've been reading it aloud to them."
"It was the runaway bestseller last summer," she explained. "I picked it up when it came out in paperback, figured I'd try to get away from sexually-based crimes for a while. It has some scary stuff in it."
"Like what?"
"Like that Opus Dei numeraries engage in a practice known as 'corporal mortification.' They inflict pain on themselves in order to better understand the suffering of Christ. They're practically a cult."
"Oh please, Liv," he scoffed. "The Catholic Church would never sanction a prelature that actually does that. It's just exaggerated for story-telling purposes."
"There's a ton of testimonies from former members talking about how Opus Dei controlled and ruined their lives! They whip themselves, wear this spiked belt around their thigh." She bent down over her desk. "My gut's telling me our perp is here."
"So's mine, but not for those reasons," Elliot agreed. "I'll go along with religious fervor, but not to the degree that you're suggesting." His tone had a note of finality in it.
- Sanctuary of the Opus Dei -
- 483 Whitehall Street -
- Sunday April 25th 12:31pm -
"Detectives Stabler and Benson," Brother Alphonso greeted. "You have more questions?"
"Nope," Elliot replied, a smile firmly in place. "Just a warrant for the list of members of the church." Alphonso's face fell as Elliot extended the blue wrapped warrant.
"I had hoped it would not come to this," he said, sadness in his voice. "We are deeply religious people. We would not harm anyone. I don't suppose this could wait until tomorrow? It is the day of worship after all."
"Sorry, but no," Olivia interjected. A sandy-haired youth pushed open the door behind Alphonso as she spoke.
"Brother Andrew, you should be in mid-day mass," Alphonso scolded.
"I apologize, Brother Alphonso," the boy replied, his head bowed. "But I heard voices and I felt the need to investigate."
"Such curiousness," Alphonso clucked in a manner reminiscent of a mother hen. "Since you are here, please fetch the list of our current members. It is in the top right drawer of my desk."
"To live is to serve," the boy replied, bowing and backing through the door.
"He seems awfully young to be living here, Brother Alphonso," Olivia commented. Alphonso drew in a deep breath.
"He is eighteen and just joined. His parents were not members themselves, but are recently deceased. They lived in the area, but when they died he had no family to turn to. We accepted him here." Alphonso placed a hand over his heart. "He is perhaps too eager to serve, but he takes the teachings to heart."
"Since we're here..." Elliot trailed off and Alphonso gave him a pained look.
"More questions? Or perhaps a tour?" His tone was slightly sour, but Elliot glossed over it.
"A tour would be fabulous."
-----
"As you can see, we live simply." Alphonso gestured around the small room. A mat lay on the floor and a sink was tucked into the corner. The only decoration was a crucifix on the wall and the only light came from a small window. A single partially spent candle sat on the floor next to the mat.
"And whose room is this?" Elliot asked.
"This is my room," Alphonso responded easily, stepping inside. "We are all equals and you will find that every room occupied by a numerary is identical to this one."
"Brother Alphonso do you wear a cilice?" Elliot glanced at Olivia sharply at her question. The man shrugged the condemnation in her tone off easily.
"As it is required. It gives me peace to know I can feel even a slight bit of Christ's suffering," he answered delicately. He smiled at her unasked question. "The same for the discipline."
------
"'The discipline'?" Elliot looked at his partner sitting next to him in their sedan.
"The whips, Elliot," she said glaring at him. "It's a whole new level of bondage."
"Masochism you mean," he said. "They enjoy the pain. Really it's none of our business what they enjoy and not pertinent to this investigation." He eyed her closely. "Are you sure there isn't anything personal in this, Olivia? Because if there is I can do this alone."
"You want to take me off the case?" Olivia's temper flared. "What, now you don't need me to be your partner?"
"No, that's not what I mean, Liv," he placated. "You know that's not what I meant."
"Well then what *did* you mean, Elliot, cause it sure sounded that way from over here." Her eyes flashed at him.
"All I meant was that if there's something that's bothering you about this and you can't even talk to me about it.." He left the sentence unfinished.
She gritted her teeth in frustration. "There's nothing there. Let's just get back to the station house. We can look through this list there."
[tbc]