A/N: Sorry it took so long to get this up! Next chapter should be up soon (its spring break, yay!) and it will conclude Part One of the story… PLEASE READ AND REVIEW:)Thanks!
Strong PG 13 in this chap by the way….
Disclaimer: Refer to the previous chapters if you really care…
Munch didn't appear to have heard her, and so asked with a slight grin, "What did you and Elliot do to scare off the poor uni? He said he had your address and when I suggested that he could swing the file by he immediately said that he didn't want to intrude again." Olivia didn't answer and couldn't even bring herself to laugh at the joke. Standing quickly she raced back out the hall. Munch stared in confusion after her and shook his head.
All the lights had been shut out in the stable when Olivia arrived there. Quietly getting up out of her car Olivia slipped into the barn. It was dead silent except for the soft playing of classical music on the speaker system to keep the horses calm. Olivia swallowed slightly and tried not to think about the eeriness of the whole situation. As she started down the hall, the hairs on the back of her neck pricked. She paused, but dismissed it as the sounds of the horses stamping and crunching on the straw. Moving on, she glanced at each nameplate on the stalls. Then she heard the quiet crunching sounds again. Turning around she thought she saw a shadowy figure slipping into a nearby open door. Olivia whipped back around and kept walking down the stable block, frantically searching. Her heart jumped when she finally found plate that read 'Siegfried.' The light was so dim that she had to pull her flashlight out. When the beams illuminated the interior, Olivia's eyes widened as she saw the horse laying on his side, covered in sweat and panting heavily. She slid the door open and went to kneel by his side. As she reached out to unclasp his blanket she gasped in surprise as a person stepped out of the shadows. Before she could even respond they had jumped forward, tackling her to the ground.
Olivia used the force of his leap to flip them over and she slammed her fist against his jaw. Then from out of nowhere a second man appeared, and his booted foot slammed into her stomach. Olivia collapsed to the side, completely winded. The one man sat on her abdomen and pinned her arms above her head while the other sat on her legs. Olivia was gasping for breath, and squinted as the man shined a flashlight in her eyes. Fighting furiously she hit the man as hard as she could in the face. He recoiled back and she twisted to the side, wrenching her feet out from underneath the other man. She struggled up and then lunged forward as they started to stand. Olivia came down hard on the man's back, pinning him face down. She jerked out her handcuffs and applied them as tightly as she could. But before she could do anything else, the other man had sprinted out.
"You stupid bitch!" screamed the man under her knee, flailing miserably. Olivia knelt on him harder and slid out her cell phone. As she did so, the lights in the stable were starting to come on, and a young groom came sprinting down the aisle.
"Are you okay? I heard a commotion…" he began, and Olivia nodded.
"I am fine. Just call a vet for this horse."
By the time Elliot arrived a vet was already working on Reagan's horse, and had quickly discovered that it had been drugged. Olivia walked over to Elliot and was unable to meet his gaze. "Liv, what were you thinking? Coming without backup?" When she didn't answer Elliot cupped her jaw in his hand and forced her to look at him.
"I had to, El. I figured it out."
"Figured what out?"
"Reagan's rape is rape number eight in our current case. I wasn't sure at first if they were connected, but now I am positive. And it all dates back twelve years." Olivia told him.
Elliot frowned slightly and asked, "How did you figure that out?"
"Winter brought by an old file. Remember when I went to Colorado and was drugged? Well the documents state that they were drugs only available in hospitals. We never suspected anything larger than just our situation."
Elliot's eyes widened and said, "That guy told Reagan that we had made a big mistake."
Olivia nodded slowly. "We never investigated the possibility of a larger drug ring. And Nathan Myers, the guy that went to trial for my attempted rape, got out on parole three years ago."
"He's the main guy in this?" Elliot questioned incredulously.
"It's looking like it." Olivia replied, and then flinched as she touched her side with her hand. Elliot glanced down at her in concern and gently raised the corner of her shirt. There was a large swollen bruise where she had been kicked.
"Come on, let's go get you checked out by the medics." Elliot told her, taking her arm. As they made their way over to the ambulance, they found Devon walking up to the barn, carrying Reagan in his arms. She was still in hospital scrubs and was looking completely exhausted. "Devon, whenever you get a minute we need to talk to you about the case."
"Sure. Just let me get her over to her horse. I will be right back." Devon replied before hurrying into the stable.
Meanwhile the medics bandaged on a thin gel ice pack to Olivia's bruise, after telling her to be sure to have her doctor check it out in the morning. Just as they were tying it off Devon trotted back over. "What's up?" he questioned. Olivia filled him in on their discovery and he nodded in agreement.
"Well at least you caught one of the little bastards tonight. That way maybe we can get some more information." Devon said.
"Do you think that they are taking to drugging the horses now too?" Olivia questioned, as she hadn't been sure whether or not the events were connected.
"Positive. Reagan told me that their main point of raping her was to get her to withdraw from the competition. You see, the top three from a variety of competitions this year made it to this show. Reagan won the last one, so she and two other people moved on. However, the third place finisher mysteriously withdrew, leaving an open spot for the fourth place person- a Steven Jones. Now here's the other part. Whoever wins this one is invited to a championship in Brazil."
Olivia rubbed her face with her hands, trying to process all of this information. Devon continued, "Basically, the drug ring needs these competitions for some reason, and Reagan was in the way."
"Makes sense. But somehow I don't think that Jones is capable of orchestrating something like this." Elliot said after a moment.
In the dark shadows behind the barn wall, the man who had escaped stood listening. Taking a cautious step forward, he took them all in. The woman who had given him a nasty bruise on his face seemed convinced that it was Jones. However, her husband didn't seem to be. He slipped out his camera phone and snapped a picture, quickly sending it off. With a smile he turned and hurried away, quite confident that all of their problems would be solved soon.
The next morning dawned bright and clear. Elliot and Olivia had stayed out all night, waiting to hear the horse's diagnosis. The vet told them that they had caught it just in time and that he should be okay to compete. An hour before she was scheduled to go Olivia helped Reagan get ready. "Are you sure you should do this?" Olivia asked one last time as they stepped out into the ring, where Siegfried stood with the trainer.
"I have too." Reagan answered simply, gathering up the horse's reins and swinging up. She did a fairly good job pretending like it didn't hurt, but Olivia wasn't fooled. Olivia watched in concern as Reagan slammed her heels against the horse's sides and they cantered off.
Tension was extremely high when Reagan entered the ring as the final rider. Devon and Elliot were watching from the stands while Olivia stayed at the in gate, pretending to be a groom. As she watched Reagan salute the judges and begin her round, the young man who had ridden just before came to stand beside her. "Hi. I'm Steven." He said with a grin, holding out his hand.
"Nice to meet you." Olivia said with a flattering smile.
"Steven, don't converse with the help!" came an angry voice behind them. Olivia turned and saw a middle aged man standing with Steven's horse. She immediately looked away and pretended to focus entirely on Reagan's round. "Let's see how the little bitch does now." The man said softly, taking a few steps forward. Olivia felt her heart speed up slightly and she gripped the rail a little harder. Reagan was doing well so far, her horse leaping the massive fences like they were nothing. The man behind her seemed to be growing more and more frustrated. "God damn it! She's still going to win even after all of that!" he shouted, and several people turned around, Olivia included.
Elliot and Devon were on their feet much like the rest of the crowd, the excitement tangible. Then all of the sudden a shot rang out, causing Reagan's horse to spook sideways. Reagan barely managed to stay on through the horses mad leap out of the way of the bullet. "What the..." Devon began, and then stopped as he saw his wife glance briefly around. She had evidently made up her mind. Kicking the horse forward she made the way to the final jump. The crowd roared loudly as they cleared it and sprinted through the finish line. Reagan galloped out of the gate as fast as she could, one final shot barely missing them. With that Devon stood and ran down the steps, racing towards his wife. Elliot meanwhile was glancing up in the stands, trying to see if he could locate the shooter. With no luck he hurried down after Devon.
Reagan had slipped off her horse as soon as she crossed through the gate. Luckily Olivia saw this coming and caught the exhausted Reagan in her arms before she hit the ground. "You okay?" Olivia asked, and Reagan nodded slowly. As Reagan sat up on her own, Olivia glanced over at the man with Steven's horse. He took a few steps forward and spat, "Reagan Masters, you do not know when to quit, do you?"
Reagan noticeably tensed and Olivia didn't miss a beat. She was on her feet and whipped out her handcuffs. "You are under arrest for the rape of Reagan Masters. You have the right to remain silent…" As the security guards rushed over Olivia told them to call the police and have them bring him back to the 1-6.
Olivia and Elliot stayed for the awards ceremony, as Reagan had won despite it all. They watched as the red roses were draped over the white horses neck and the blue ribbon hooked to his bridle. Then Reagan was handed a thick bouquet of roses. With a broad smile she took them and then turned to look at Olivia and Elliot. "I couldn't have done it without you two." With that she tossed the bouquet over, and Olivia caught it deftly. "Come on you guys, get in the picture."
And for one last time they all stood together. Devon held the horses bridle while smiling up at his wife, who grinned broadly holding the large silver trophy. Olivia leaned back against her husband's chest, relaxing to the sound of his heart beating.
As soon as the photographer finished Reagan got down off her horse and the trainer led him away. Olivia gave her a hug and said, "You were amazing."
"Thanks. I am going to be okay." Reagan told her, then turned back to Devon. He smiled at her as she wrapped her arms around him.
Olivia was starting to lose patience with the man she had caught the night before. James was refusing to talk about anything. "I told you, I don't know what you are talking about." He repeated for the eighth time.
"Sure you do, James. You drugged that horse so Reagan couldn't compete and so you could continue your little drug ring."
"No. That's incorrect." He said with a smirk. As he leaned back and stuck his hands in his pockets Olivia heard the sound of paper crunching.
"Empty your pockets." Olivia told him suddenly, "Now!"
James grudgingly yanked some items from his pockets and dropped them on the table. Olivia slowly reached out and picked up the folded piece of paper. On the top was a picture of Elliot, and at the bottom…
"You and your husband, Detective." James said with a wide grin.
Olivia just stared at the photo and then looked up. "That's not me. That's my daughter."
James looked mildly surprised and took back the piece of paper, examining it. Then he shrugged. "You don't understand, Detective. You are way too late. If you had figured it out sooner… but you are just too late."
Elliot met Olivia at their desks before they headed home for the night. "Did you get anything out of Reagan's rapist?"
"No… he admitted that he 'taught her a lesson' but nothing else. But we have a court order for his DNA, so I have no doubt that that will be a match. Plus, he only made it partway through the interview…" Elliot answered, handing over her jacket.
Olivia caught the gleam in his eye, and asked, "Why was that?"
"He decided he'd like to pick a fight and nailed me in the ribs. Then I got him a few times maybe a little harder than necessary and he went unconscious." Elliot told her, slipping into his coat. Olivia laughed and then walked out with him.
It was nearly ten when they got home. Riley had fallen asleep at her desk. Olivia smiled as Elliot picked her up and put her into her bed. Riley woke slightly and asked, "Mom, can you check my Spanish paper in the morning?"
"Sure, honey. Goodnight."
"Thanks." Riley said, immediately falling asleep again.
Shutting the door quietly they both walked into their bedroom. Elliot caught Olivia's hand and pulled her back over to him. "Are you still mad at me?" he asked, stroking the sides of her face. Olivia shook her head and smiled. She slipped her shirt over her head and kissed him fervently. He put his hands on her back and pulled her to him, breathing deeply into her hair. She pushed his shirt off his shoulders and ran her hands up and down his chest. Feeling him wince slightly she looked down and saw the good sized bruise on his ribcage. "It's okay." He told her softly, taking her hand in his. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his jaw. He picked her up and laid her gently down on the bed. Olivia wasn't sure why, but for some reason tonight she was nervous. Elliot picked up on this and asked, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing." Olivia answered, her breathing already very fast from her nerves. Elliot kissed her forehead and then made his way down her neck. As he did so, Olivia couldn't shake the fear raking through her gut. She couldn't figure out what was wrong with her, and so took his hands and drew them up. He seemed surprised by her sudden initiative and hesitated a moment. "I'm fine Elliot." Olivia repeated, pulling his lips to hers again.
That entire night Olivia wasn't able to get rid of the nerves. At nearly midnight Elliot took her hands in his as they lay on their sides and kissed her gently. "You okay?"
"I'm sorry Elliot." she said softly, and shut her eyes, failing to stop tears from dripping down her face.
Elliot pulled her up close to him and said, "You did great. It's just been a tough week." He held her gently, feeling more than a little guilty. It had been a long time since she had cried when they slept together. In fact the last time was the first time. He pressed his forehead against hers, feeling her breathing slow down. "Did I hurt you?" he asked, his tone gentle and worried.
"No. No. It's me. These past few days I just… I don't know. I feel like everything is falling apart… Elliot, I can't lose you." Olivia said, scooting up closer to him.
"You won't." Elliot told her, shocked by her uncharacteristic behavior. She was usually so reserved about things like this. As he ran his hands through her hair he inwardly began to feel a strange sense of uneasiness. The loud ring of her cell phone made them both jump.
"Benson… yes, we will be right there." She said, and turned to Elliot.
"That was Knolls. They think that the guy who escaped is in this warehouse, and he's evidently got some sort of hostage." She said, and Elliot sighed.
"Let's go."
The sounds of water dripping from the pipes of the old warehouse were quite irritating to the man, who rarely had to work in these filthy of conditions. The woman beside him was proving to be quite the handful, though he should have guessed that from who her father was. She was also remarkably calm, she had only screamed when he caught her, but after that had only glared at him. "Don't worry Kathleen. I am quite positive your father and his partner will be arriving soon. She's a pretty thing isn't she?"
"You had better not let my father hear you talking about Olivia like that." She spat, furiously fighting against her restraint.
"Oh trust me, he won't hear a thing. And believe me, she will be screaming fairly loudly." He said with a smile, and then turned as another man stepped up beside him.
"Sir, they are here." He said, glancing down at the hostage.
"Good. Let the game begin."
A/N #2: Sorry, if it was confusing, I tried to use dividers and stuff… but next chapter is going to pretty much explain it out completely! I promise! You know what to do… R&R!
