Disclaimer: (oops forgot it in the first chapter) Anything that is recognisably Law and Order SVU stuff is not mine, everything else is purely a product of my imagination. That about covers it… read and enjoy! Reviews are welcomed and greatly appreciated!


Small World



At the restaurant, Maureen had suggested, the group of three were seated in a booth by a large window overlooking a park.

"So what's your roommate taking in school?" Elliot asked trying to make conversation and get all the information he could without his daughter becoming suspicious.

"She's doing forensic science and criminology," Maureen said as she scanned over the menu.

"Tough work load" Olivia commented as she took of a sip of the water the waiter had brought as soon as they were seated.

"Yeah, she's always studying, she even brought books home this past weekend when she went home" 

"Why'd she go home?" Elliot said casually as he pretended to figure out what to order.

"She felt homesick I guess, she was going to surprise her family, so she didn't tell them she was coming… I should ask her how that went" Maureen looked up thoughtfully. "So enough about my roommate, what are you guys going to get?" Any talk about Gracie Walker was abandoned and Maureen launched into a series of stories about her teachers, classes and other friends.

As Elliot and Olivia walked Maureen to the entrance of her residence, Maureen looked at her watch and groaned.

"Man I forgot that I have a group project to work on in like five minutes, but I have to give Gracie her book back," she said sighing loudly. She pulled the book form her bag.

"S'ok, we can take it up to her if you like" Elliot suggested kindly.

"Could you?" Elliot nodded and took the book form his eldest child's hands. "Thanks dad you're the best" and with that she gave him a hug and said goodbye to Olivia, before running off to the library.

"Smooth" Olivia smirked.

"I thought so," he stated.

Knocking on the door of Maureen's room, Elliot and Olivia stood waiting for Gracie to answer. According to Maureen she would be in there probably studying at the moment. The sound of a lock unlocking made each detective stand up straighter. Again upon seeing the two police officers, Gracie's eyes widened and she tried to shut the door. Elliot put his foot in the way and pushed back gently with his hand so not to make the door swing back and hit the girl in the face.

"We just want to talk Gracie," Olivia said softly, as Elliot and she entered the room, shutting the door behind them.

"Yeah well I don't want to, so please leave" She said her voice wavering. "Why are you here?"

"Returning your book to you" Elliot said holding it out. Gracie cautiously moved forward and took it, throwing it on the bed.

"So why'd you run out on us this morning?" Olivia wanted to know.

"Get out" Gracie tried again.

"Not until you tell us what we need to know" Elliot began. "From the little that you did tell us this morning, it sounds like there is a specific serial rapist that has started taking women again, and we need your help to find him before he does it again, okay?" Elliot hated guilting victims into helping them but it was their only chance of catching the bad guy before one of the victims ended up dead. Gracie was debating in her head whether or not to make them leave or help them. She would hate for another person to go through what she did but she was so ashamed of what had happened that she didn't want tot talk about it.

"Okay" the teenager said uncertainly.

"You'll talk to us?" Olivia asked making no effort to hide the surprise in her voice. Gracie nodded apprehensively.  

"You have time to do it now?" Elliot asked hopefully. The teen nodded again and Elliot inwardly commended her for her bravery. He was relieved she was going to help them; he would hate to not be able to stop the man who was doing this. The sooner they caught the rapist the better.

"So Maureen said that you were going home this weekend to visit your family?"

"It was supposed to be a surprise," Gracie said quietly, from her spot on the edge of her bed. Olivia sat on Maureen's bed across from her, while Elliot opted for a desk chair. Olivia opened her mouth to speak again but shut it quickly when Gracie continued,

"I was leaving on Friday night, after all my classes and when I was walking in the Train Station parking lot, where my cab dropped me off, someone grabbed me from behind and put a cloth with something on it over my face… next thing I knew I-I was tied up in a basement or something." She took a deep breath, and nervously ran a hand through her hair.

"So you never made it home?" Olivia asked carefully. They had to move slowly with Gracie or she may close up and refuse to further talk to them.

"Guess not" Gracie said.

"So were you in that basement, from Friday night until Tuesday?" Elliot asked looking at the pictures on his daughter's desk of friends and surprisingly of their whole family.

"Yes" Elliot and Olivia both inwardly sighed sadly. Three and a half days of being raped was a lot to go through.

"Do you remember any specific sounds or smells or anything at all about where you may have been?"

"I could hear the university football game"

"What do you mean?" Olivia leaned forward.

"I could hear cheering and people chanting the teams' names and stuff"

"So you must have been pretty close then?"

"I guess, I don't know" she had tears welling up in her eyes.

"Anything else you recall?"

"Coffee. I could smell coffee," She said still not meeting the detective's eyes.

"A coffee shop possibly?"

"I don't know I wasn't exactly conscious when they took me there, and they knocked me out I guess before I was dumped in the park."

"You said 'they'… was there more than one?" Elliot questioned.

"Uh, yeah, there were two of them"

"Did you happen to see their faces?" Olivia was praying that she had.

"No they wore masks every time they came down and… and.." Gracie's voice trailed off and she began to fidget with her comforter.

"Did both of them rape you?" Olivia asked bluntly. She hated having to make the victims remember things like this but they had to know whether it was one or two people that they should be looking for.

"Yes"

"Did either man say anything to you or each other that may help us identify them?" Gracie hesitated and started cracking her knuckles.

"You know, I'm really tired, I think you should go now," she said quickly. She stood up and both detectives stood up with her.

"You know who they are." Elliot surmised.

"No-"

"You can tell us, they can't hurt you anymore"

"You don't know that!" Gracie yelled, surprising the adults.

"Just tell us who it was" Elliot said, his voice softer this time. "We can make sure they don't do this again" Gracie regarded the two of them carefully, debating whether or not to tell them what she knew.

"I can't," she said in a small voice.

"Please" Olivia pleaded.

"No he said if he found out then he'd kill me, my family and my friends" Her fear filled voice wavered and a tear rolled down her cheek. Gracie quickly brushed it away.

"How is he going to know?" Elliot pointed out. "He won't know until we catch him, the only people who will know are the police… the good guys" he raised his eyebrows and looked at her as if saying 'what have you got to lose'.

"Exactly, the only people who will know are the police" Gracie said barley audibly. Had they not been listening, waiting for an answer they would have never heard it.

"What do you mean?" Olivia asked, a bad feeling growing in her gut. She and Elliot as well, already knew the answer.

"One of them was a cop," Gracie said, more tears sliding down her face.

TBC…

Thanks for the great reviews on the first chapter!!