Olivia paced back and forth aimlessly, the worry and pain evident on her
tired features. Munch and Fin were not sure how she was even standing on
her feet.
"Olivia, why don't you sit down," Munch suggested quietly, not surprised when she ignored him yet again. "I'm not sure who is worse. The two of them are so fucking stubborn," he muttered to Fin, who shook his head in agreement.
He stood up, walking over to Olivia. She turned around, walking directly into Fin's broad chest. She attempted to sidestep him, but Fin moved in the same direction, blocking her path.
"Move," Olivia ordered, refusing to meet Fin's eyes.
Fin gently tipped her chin up, gently forcing Olivia to look into his eyes. He met her tear-filled eyes, and Fin's heart nearly broke. It was obvious to everyone, except for the two detectives, that Olivia and Elliot were in love. If Elliot didn't pull out of it, he was sure it would be the end of Olivia Benson.
He swallowed the lump in his throat, pulling Olivia into a hug. "Liv, it's not going to help Elliot if you wear a hole in the carpet. Why don't you get checked out and we'll wait to see how he is afterwards?" Fin suggested softly, whispering into her hair.
"I'm not leaving this waiting room until I know Elliot is okay," Olivia said in a determined tone.
Fin rolled his eyes, realizing that Olivia was one of the most stubborn women he had met. Instead, he decided to humor her. "Okay, I can respect that. At least sit down, would you? You're making Munch dizzy," Fin told her.
Olivia took a deep breath, nodding her head against Fin's chest. The older detective sighed with relief, guiding Olivia to a chair next to Munch. She sat down, somewhat surprised when Munch reached over and gripped her hand.
"He's going to be okay, Olivia," Munch told her confidently.
"I hope so," Olivia said hoarsely, leaning her head back.
The past two hours were a blur for Olivia. She had covered Elliot's wounds with her hands, yelling at him to wake up and talk to her. He had opened his eyes for a second, only for Olivia to meet his blue eyes. He smiled weakly at her before passing out again. She could hear Cragen telling her to let the paramedics do their jobs, but she refused to listen. It wasn't until Fin physically pulled her off of him that she finally allowed the EMT's to do their jobs. She remembered Munch telling her to get checked out, and her screaming at him to get away from her.
Olivia closed her eyes, knowing that she must look frightening. Her entire body hurt. Her mouth hurt, her jaw hurt, her cheek hurt, and she could feel the throbbing in her temple from being hit repeatedly. The open wound on her forehead was still bleeding slightly. All of this was nothing compared to the excruciating pain in her wrist. She wasn't sure how long they had been tied up, but she was 150% sure that having her arm tied behind her back for even a short period of time wasn't one of the activities that the doctor wanted her to participate in.
She was surprised that Fin hadn't knocked her out and drug her to a doctor to get checked out. Olivia couldn't help but feel slightly embarrassed about her reaction to being taken to a room when they arrived at the hospital. She was pretty sure that she used every expletive imaginable in addition to creating some new ones when the nurse attempted to help her into a gown. It wasn't until Fin realized the nurse was about to get punched in the face that he stepped in, pulling Olivia away. He calmed her down slightly, gently explaining to her that the doctor had told them Elliot was in stable condition and that she should get checked out. Olivia had shook her head and began pacing before Fin was finally able to convince her to at least sit down.
Olivia breathed deeply, knowing that Cragen was going to be incredibly pissed at her for not seeing a doctor. She also knew Elliot was going to kick her ass for not taking care of herself. Then again, she really didn't care. The man she loved was hurt, and the only thing that mattered right now was him.
Love. There was that fucking word again. Maybe she was in love. But if love hurt this bad, she wasn't sure why it was worth it.
Maybe it was because he was Elliot.
And she was Olivia.
"Detective Benson!" Olivia heard, and she jumped slightly, all but leaping to her feet at the sound of the Captain entering the waiting room. "Why in the hell haven't you been checked out?" he asked, frustration evident in his voice.
"With all due respect, I'm fine, sir," she said softly. "Besides, I can't leave. Not until I know he is okay."
Cragen closed his eyes, fighting down the urge to personally drag her by the ear to a hospital room. Instead, he chose to reply, "Olivia, you aren't doing anyone, least of all yourself, any good by being stubborn. Please, get checked out. As soon as we know anything, we'll let you know."
Olivia looked from Munch to Fin to Cragen, aware that they were all worried about her. She closed her eyes again, dropping her chin to her chest in defeat. "Fine, I'll go," she said grudgingly.
Cragen extended his hand to Olivia. She accepted it, allowing the older man to pull her easily to her feet. Her knees buckled at the sudden movement, and she collapsed against Cragen's chest.
Fin leaped to his feet, easily picking Olivia up, supporting her under the knees and across the back, cradling her to his chest. "Yeah, you're really fine," he scoffed gently, securing his grip on her.
"Just shut the hell up. The sooner you take me there the sooner I can get back to Elliot," Olivia said grumpily.
/
"Detective, you have several cuts on your face that will heal within a week without scarring. The bruises will also fade soon. The wound on your forehead took four stitches to close up. Your doctor can take out the stitches in about a week. You will have a small scar there, but can easily be hidden by bangs since it is near the hairline. The stitch in your lip will dissolve within a week or so and there shouldn't be a scar. Your nose isn't broken, but you do have a minor concussion. I'm going to give you antibiotics to make sure none of the wounds become infected. I'm also going to keep you overnight for observation due to the concussion to make sure there are no effects to your neurological system. As for your wrist, the fractured bone became a clean break and we have to reset your wrist."
"Okay," Olivia said miserably, leaning her head back. She was relieved that Cragen had stepped to the outside of the room to give her some privacy.
Within a few moments, the doctor had reentered the room. Olivia watched quietly as he sawed the cast off her wrist. The doctor shook his head at the swelling and quickly gave her a shot to numb the area. He cleaned the area carefully before popping the bones back in place and recasting her wrist.
"Try to keep it clean and uninjured this time, Detective," the doctor said with a small smile.
"I will," Olivia replied.
"The nurse will be right in to help you into a room, okay?" the doctor said, making a few notes on her chart.
"All right," Olivia said. She watched as the doctor left, then reached in the drawer beside her bed, pulling out her shirt. "Fuck this," she muttered to herself as she yanked the hospital gown over her head. With some difficulty, she managed to pull the tattered shirt over her head, moaning in pain at the movements. She forced herself to stand and walked out of the room.
She was surprised that Cragen wasn't standing outside of her room. Olivia moved slowly to the elevator, partly because she was hurting too much to move quickly and party because she was half expecting someone to tackle her from behind and drag her back to the hospital room.
She sighed with relief when the elevator doors closed, pushing the button for the fifth floor. Elliot had been taken to surgery hours ago, and she couldn't help but wonder what was taking so long; after all, Elliot had only been shot in the shoulder.
The elevator made a chiming sound, and with a small groan, she forced herself to move out of the elevator. Olivia saw Munch and Fin sitting in the same chairs. "Hey," she called with a small smile. "Where's the Cap?"
"He had some business to take care of," Munch said as Fin leapt out of his seat to help Olivia to a chair. Looking at her suspiciously, Munch asked, "They didn't admit you?"
"No," Olivia lied, feeling slightly guilty.
"Bullshit, Liv," Fin chastised. "We know you should be in bed."
"Well, you're going to have to drag me back to the ER," Olivia said stubbornly.
"I'm sure the nurses will know where to find you," Munch said with a shake of the head. "Just don't pass out on us, okay?"
"I'll try not to," Olivia said with a small grin, settling down in the chair once again. She leaned her head against Munch's shoulder and closed her eyes, allowing the exhaustion to overtake her body.
She wasn't sure how long she was out, but Olivia awoke to the sound of Fin arguing. She looked around, her glassy eyes spotting Munch and Fin having a heated conversation with someone. Upon further inspection, Olivia resisted the urge to roll her eyes when she saw Kathy Stabler standing in the doorway to the waiting room.
"He's my fucking husband!" Kathy said angrily, attempting to force past the detectives.
"And you're the one who kicked him out," Olivia spoke up, forcing her battered body off the chair to move over to the group.
"And you're the home wrecker," Kathy replied, hatred filling her eyes when she saw Olivia moving toward them.
"And you're a bitch," Olivia shot back, too tired to care about immaturity.
"Takes one to know one," Kathy answered angrily.
"Okay, ladies, that's enough," Fin said, moving in front of Olivia. He knew his colleague was too professional to engage in a fight in the middle of a hospital waiting room, especially with the wife of her partner. However, he also knew that Olivia was wired to the maximum and was looking to lash her anger and frustration out at someone, and right now, Kathy Stabler was looking like a good target. "Kathy, either you shut up and sit down or get the hell out of this hospital. Your choice," Fin stated, relieved that Olivia wasn't pressing forward.
Kathy rolled her eyes, arrogance evident in her features. "You can't kick me out of here," she scoffed. "It's a public hospital."
"Why the fuck are you here anyway?" Olivia asked, annoyed. "You don't care about him."
"How the hell do you know what I feel, Olivia?" Kathy retaliated. Olivia was silent, prompting her to continue. "You have no clue what it's like to have your husband love someone more than yourself. You have no clue what the feels like!" Kathy yelled.
"Well, maybe if you weren't an insecure, jealous, pompous snot who had no idea what she had you wouldn't have that problem," Olivia snarled back.
At that moment, something in Kathy Stabler snapped. With a animal like yell, she pushed past Munch and Fin, punching an unprepared Olivia in the mouth, sending the detective reeling for a second.
Without thinking, Olivia lunged at Kathy, ready for a fight. The emotion of the case and the fact that she was sucker punched was enough to push Olivia over the edge. She didn't get far, though, for her movements were slow from exhaustion and pain and Fin was able to quickly grab a handful of her shirt and yank Olivia back as Munch restrained Kathy.
"Let me go!" Kathy yelled, pulling against Munch's hold.
Olivia, however, settled down. Experience told her that there was no chance that Fin would let go of her and straining was useless. Rather, she moved back with him voluntarily and touched her lip. "Son of a bitch," she cursed when she saw blood on her fingertip. The bitch had reopened her wound.
"What the hell is going on here?!" Cragen's thundering voice was enough to stop all movement in the room, even Kathy's. He looked from Munch and Kathy to Olivia and Fin. With any dignity she had left, Kathy pushed herself away from Munch and straightened her shirt out. Olivia chose to stare angrily, refusing to try to stop the bleeding of her lip or spit out the blood in her mouth. "Well?" Cragen asked, his tone no nonsense.
"Kathy and Olivia were having words and Kathy hit Olivia," Fin spoke up first. He ignored the angry look Kathy sent his way.
"Why were they having words?" Cragen asked patiently, resisting the urge to press his fingers to his throbbing temple.
"Because she's a fucking home wrecker!" Kathy yelled before anyone could answer. "She ruined a perfectly good household!"
"Oh, screw you!" Olivia replied.
"That's enough!" Cragen barked. "Now, you two can either act civil or leave this hospital!"
"Fuck you and this hospital. I'm leaving!" Kathy snarled, turning on her heel and walking out of the room.
Fin released his grip on her shirt and the four officers stood in silence for a few moments before Cragen noticed that Olivia was shaking. "Are you okay?" he asked gently, reaching out to take her arm.
"Yes, I'm fine," Olivia answered quickly, moving her arm out of his reach and raising her fingers up to touch her lip. "She hits pretty hard for a housewife," she joked slightly, although Olivia felt dangerously close to tears.
Cragen tilted her chin up, examining her lip. "She split your lip open again," he said softly. The Captain frowned, leaning back. "They didn't admit you?" he asked incredulously, looking at her bruised and battered face.
Before Olivia could answer, a doctor walked into the waiting room. "Elliot Stabler?" he called.
Olivia pushed past Cragen and said, "That's us."
The doctor looked at her suspiciously, choosing not to question her haggard appearance. "I have good news," he began. "Mr. Stabler went through surgery successfully and we expect him to make a full recovery." Everyone sighed with relief and the doctor continued, "He was shot in the shoulder. This normally isn't a serious problem but the bullet nicked an artery and it took us awhile to stabilize him."
Olivia gasped softly, swallowing hard. "He... he's okay, though, right? I mean... he's going to be okay, right?"
The doctor smiled sympathetically at her and replied, "He's going to be fine. After a few days, he'll be set to go home."
Olivia sighed with relief, a true smile gracing her features for the first time since the hellacious case began. "Can I see him?" she asked eagerly.
"He's pretty groggy, but yes, for a few minutes. We're getting ready to admit him," the doctor replied. "Room 16."
Olivia took off down the hallway as fast as she could. Cragen watched her and shook his head, smiling slightly. "Hey, Doc," he said as the man turned to leave. "Any news on Wald?"
"Andrew Wald died in surgery. Risking my professionalism, I can't say I'm not sorry. I saw what he did to the detectives... and..." the doctor trialed off, unsure how to continue.
"No need to explain yourself. God saved the right person today," Cragen said lightly. He nodded toward the doctor before heading in to see Elliot, Munch and Fin close on his heels.
"Olivia, why don't you sit down," Munch suggested quietly, not surprised when she ignored him yet again. "I'm not sure who is worse. The two of them are so fucking stubborn," he muttered to Fin, who shook his head in agreement.
He stood up, walking over to Olivia. She turned around, walking directly into Fin's broad chest. She attempted to sidestep him, but Fin moved in the same direction, blocking her path.
"Move," Olivia ordered, refusing to meet Fin's eyes.
Fin gently tipped her chin up, gently forcing Olivia to look into his eyes. He met her tear-filled eyes, and Fin's heart nearly broke. It was obvious to everyone, except for the two detectives, that Olivia and Elliot were in love. If Elliot didn't pull out of it, he was sure it would be the end of Olivia Benson.
He swallowed the lump in his throat, pulling Olivia into a hug. "Liv, it's not going to help Elliot if you wear a hole in the carpet. Why don't you get checked out and we'll wait to see how he is afterwards?" Fin suggested softly, whispering into her hair.
"I'm not leaving this waiting room until I know Elliot is okay," Olivia said in a determined tone.
Fin rolled his eyes, realizing that Olivia was one of the most stubborn women he had met. Instead, he decided to humor her. "Okay, I can respect that. At least sit down, would you? You're making Munch dizzy," Fin told her.
Olivia took a deep breath, nodding her head against Fin's chest. The older detective sighed with relief, guiding Olivia to a chair next to Munch. She sat down, somewhat surprised when Munch reached over and gripped her hand.
"He's going to be okay, Olivia," Munch told her confidently.
"I hope so," Olivia said hoarsely, leaning her head back.
The past two hours were a blur for Olivia. She had covered Elliot's wounds with her hands, yelling at him to wake up and talk to her. He had opened his eyes for a second, only for Olivia to meet his blue eyes. He smiled weakly at her before passing out again. She could hear Cragen telling her to let the paramedics do their jobs, but she refused to listen. It wasn't until Fin physically pulled her off of him that she finally allowed the EMT's to do their jobs. She remembered Munch telling her to get checked out, and her screaming at him to get away from her.
Olivia closed her eyes, knowing that she must look frightening. Her entire body hurt. Her mouth hurt, her jaw hurt, her cheek hurt, and she could feel the throbbing in her temple from being hit repeatedly. The open wound on her forehead was still bleeding slightly. All of this was nothing compared to the excruciating pain in her wrist. She wasn't sure how long they had been tied up, but she was 150% sure that having her arm tied behind her back for even a short period of time wasn't one of the activities that the doctor wanted her to participate in.
She was surprised that Fin hadn't knocked her out and drug her to a doctor to get checked out. Olivia couldn't help but feel slightly embarrassed about her reaction to being taken to a room when they arrived at the hospital. She was pretty sure that she used every expletive imaginable in addition to creating some new ones when the nurse attempted to help her into a gown. It wasn't until Fin realized the nurse was about to get punched in the face that he stepped in, pulling Olivia away. He calmed her down slightly, gently explaining to her that the doctor had told them Elliot was in stable condition and that she should get checked out. Olivia had shook her head and began pacing before Fin was finally able to convince her to at least sit down.
Olivia breathed deeply, knowing that Cragen was going to be incredibly pissed at her for not seeing a doctor. She also knew Elliot was going to kick her ass for not taking care of herself. Then again, she really didn't care. The man she loved was hurt, and the only thing that mattered right now was him.
Love. There was that fucking word again. Maybe she was in love. But if love hurt this bad, she wasn't sure why it was worth it.
Maybe it was because he was Elliot.
And she was Olivia.
"Detective Benson!" Olivia heard, and she jumped slightly, all but leaping to her feet at the sound of the Captain entering the waiting room. "Why in the hell haven't you been checked out?" he asked, frustration evident in his voice.
"With all due respect, I'm fine, sir," she said softly. "Besides, I can't leave. Not until I know he is okay."
Cragen closed his eyes, fighting down the urge to personally drag her by the ear to a hospital room. Instead, he chose to reply, "Olivia, you aren't doing anyone, least of all yourself, any good by being stubborn. Please, get checked out. As soon as we know anything, we'll let you know."
Olivia looked from Munch to Fin to Cragen, aware that they were all worried about her. She closed her eyes again, dropping her chin to her chest in defeat. "Fine, I'll go," she said grudgingly.
Cragen extended his hand to Olivia. She accepted it, allowing the older man to pull her easily to her feet. Her knees buckled at the sudden movement, and she collapsed against Cragen's chest.
Fin leaped to his feet, easily picking Olivia up, supporting her under the knees and across the back, cradling her to his chest. "Yeah, you're really fine," he scoffed gently, securing his grip on her.
"Just shut the hell up. The sooner you take me there the sooner I can get back to Elliot," Olivia said grumpily.
/
"Detective, you have several cuts on your face that will heal within a week without scarring. The bruises will also fade soon. The wound on your forehead took four stitches to close up. Your doctor can take out the stitches in about a week. You will have a small scar there, but can easily be hidden by bangs since it is near the hairline. The stitch in your lip will dissolve within a week or so and there shouldn't be a scar. Your nose isn't broken, but you do have a minor concussion. I'm going to give you antibiotics to make sure none of the wounds become infected. I'm also going to keep you overnight for observation due to the concussion to make sure there are no effects to your neurological system. As for your wrist, the fractured bone became a clean break and we have to reset your wrist."
"Okay," Olivia said miserably, leaning her head back. She was relieved that Cragen had stepped to the outside of the room to give her some privacy.
Within a few moments, the doctor had reentered the room. Olivia watched quietly as he sawed the cast off her wrist. The doctor shook his head at the swelling and quickly gave her a shot to numb the area. He cleaned the area carefully before popping the bones back in place and recasting her wrist.
"Try to keep it clean and uninjured this time, Detective," the doctor said with a small smile.
"I will," Olivia replied.
"The nurse will be right in to help you into a room, okay?" the doctor said, making a few notes on her chart.
"All right," Olivia said. She watched as the doctor left, then reached in the drawer beside her bed, pulling out her shirt. "Fuck this," she muttered to herself as she yanked the hospital gown over her head. With some difficulty, she managed to pull the tattered shirt over her head, moaning in pain at the movements. She forced herself to stand and walked out of the room.
She was surprised that Cragen wasn't standing outside of her room. Olivia moved slowly to the elevator, partly because she was hurting too much to move quickly and party because she was half expecting someone to tackle her from behind and drag her back to the hospital room.
She sighed with relief when the elevator doors closed, pushing the button for the fifth floor. Elliot had been taken to surgery hours ago, and she couldn't help but wonder what was taking so long; after all, Elliot had only been shot in the shoulder.
The elevator made a chiming sound, and with a small groan, she forced herself to move out of the elevator. Olivia saw Munch and Fin sitting in the same chairs. "Hey," she called with a small smile. "Where's the Cap?"
"He had some business to take care of," Munch said as Fin leapt out of his seat to help Olivia to a chair. Looking at her suspiciously, Munch asked, "They didn't admit you?"
"No," Olivia lied, feeling slightly guilty.
"Bullshit, Liv," Fin chastised. "We know you should be in bed."
"Well, you're going to have to drag me back to the ER," Olivia said stubbornly.
"I'm sure the nurses will know where to find you," Munch said with a shake of the head. "Just don't pass out on us, okay?"
"I'll try not to," Olivia said with a small grin, settling down in the chair once again. She leaned her head against Munch's shoulder and closed her eyes, allowing the exhaustion to overtake her body.
She wasn't sure how long she was out, but Olivia awoke to the sound of Fin arguing. She looked around, her glassy eyes spotting Munch and Fin having a heated conversation with someone. Upon further inspection, Olivia resisted the urge to roll her eyes when she saw Kathy Stabler standing in the doorway to the waiting room.
"He's my fucking husband!" Kathy said angrily, attempting to force past the detectives.
"And you're the one who kicked him out," Olivia spoke up, forcing her battered body off the chair to move over to the group.
"And you're the home wrecker," Kathy replied, hatred filling her eyes when she saw Olivia moving toward them.
"And you're a bitch," Olivia shot back, too tired to care about immaturity.
"Takes one to know one," Kathy answered angrily.
"Okay, ladies, that's enough," Fin said, moving in front of Olivia. He knew his colleague was too professional to engage in a fight in the middle of a hospital waiting room, especially with the wife of her partner. However, he also knew that Olivia was wired to the maximum and was looking to lash her anger and frustration out at someone, and right now, Kathy Stabler was looking like a good target. "Kathy, either you shut up and sit down or get the hell out of this hospital. Your choice," Fin stated, relieved that Olivia wasn't pressing forward.
Kathy rolled her eyes, arrogance evident in her features. "You can't kick me out of here," she scoffed. "It's a public hospital."
"Why the fuck are you here anyway?" Olivia asked, annoyed. "You don't care about him."
"How the hell do you know what I feel, Olivia?" Kathy retaliated. Olivia was silent, prompting her to continue. "You have no clue what it's like to have your husband love someone more than yourself. You have no clue what the feels like!" Kathy yelled.
"Well, maybe if you weren't an insecure, jealous, pompous snot who had no idea what she had you wouldn't have that problem," Olivia snarled back.
At that moment, something in Kathy Stabler snapped. With a animal like yell, she pushed past Munch and Fin, punching an unprepared Olivia in the mouth, sending the detective reeling for a second.
Without thinking, Olivia lunged at Kathy, ready for a fight. The emotion of the case and the fact that she was sucker punched was enough to push Olivia over the edge. She didn't get far, though, for her movements were slow from exhaustion and pain and Fin was able to quickly grab a handful of her shirt and yank Olivia back as Munch restrained Kathy.
"Let me go!" Kathy yelled, pulling against Munch's hold.
Olivia, however, settled down. Experience told her that there was no chance that Fin would let go of her and straining was useless. Rather, she moved back with him voluntarily and touched her lip. "Son of a bitch," she cursed when she saw blood on her fingertip. The bitch had reopened her wound.
"What the hell is going on here?!" Cragen's thundering voice was enough to stop all movement in the room, even Kathy's. He looked from Munch and Kathy to Olivia and Fin. With any dignity she had left, Kathy pushed herself away from Munch and straightened her shirt out. Olivia chose to stare angrily, refusing to try to stop the bleeding of her lip or spit out the blood in her mouth. "Well?" Cragen asked, his tone no nonsense.
"Kathy and Olivia were having words and Kathy hit Olivia," Fin spoke up first. He ignored the angry look Kathy sent his way.
"Why were they having words?" Cragen asked patiently, resisting the urge to press his fingers to his throbbing temple.
"Because she's a fucking home wrecker!" Kathy yelled before anyone could answer. "She ruined a perfectly good household!"
"Oh, screw you!" Olivia replied.
"That's enough!" Cragen barked. "Now, you two can either act civil or leave this hospital!"
"Fuck you and this hospital. I'm leaving!" Kathy snarled, turning on her heel and walking out of the room.
Fin released his grip on her shirt and the four officers stood in silence for a few moments before Cragen noticed that Olivia was shaking. "Are you okay?" he asked gently, reaching out to take her arm.
"Yes, I'm fine," Olivia answered quickly, moving her arm out of his reach and raising her fingers up to touch her lip. "She hits pretty hard for a housewife," she joked slightly, although Olivia felt dangerously close to tears.
Cragen tilted her chin up, examining her lip. "She split your lip open again," he said softly. The Captain frowned, leaning back. "They didn't admit you?" he asked incredulously, looking at her bruised and battered face.
Before Olivia could answer, a doctor walked into the waiting room. "Elliot Stabler?" he called.
Olivia pushed past Cragen and said, "That's us."
The doctor looked at her suspiciously, choosing not to question her haggard appearance. "I have good news," he began. "Mr. Stabler went through surgery successfully and we expect him to make a full recovery." Everyone sighed with relief and the doctor continued, "He was shot in the shoulder. This normally isn't a serious problem but the bullet nicked an artery and it took us awhile to stabilize him."
Olivia gasped softly, swallowing hard. "He... he's okay, though, right? I mean... he's going to be okay, right?"
The doctor smiled sympathetically at her and replied, "He's going to be fine. After a few days, he'll be set to go home."
Olivia sighed with relief, a true smile gracing her features for the first time since the hellacious case began. "Can I see him?" she asked eagerly.
"He's pretty groggy, but yes, for a few minutes. We're getting ready to admit him," the doctor replied. "Room 16."
Olivia took off down the hallway as fast as she could. Cragen watched her and shook his head, smiling slightly. "Hey, Doc," he said as the man turned to leave. "Any news on Wald?"
"Andrew Wald died in surgery. Risking my professionalism, I can't say I'm not sorry. I saw what he did to the detectives... and..." the doctor trialed off, unsure how to continue.
"No need to explain yourself. God saved the right person today," Cragen said lightly. He nodded toward the doctor before heading in to see Elliot, Munch and Fin close on his heels.