Special Victims Unit Squadroom
March 18
"According to the witness, Brian Caldwell had a girlfriend that lived with him, one Leeah Szlasky" Olivia said as she and Elliot did a computerized people search for
Isis Black.
"I think Fin and Munch went to see at work," Elliot replied, then pointed at the screen. "There we go. Isis Black, 30 years old, stockbroker at Walter Brown
Brokerage Services."
"That name still sounds familiar to me," Olivia said.
"Did you write the note?" Elliot asked sarcastically.
"Yeah, and you're next," she said, grinning.
"Let's go get this over with," he sighed.
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Walter Brown Brokerage House
207 Wall Street
2nd Floor
March 18
The first thing that Elliot noticed about the Walter Brown reception room was how large and bare it was. Other than two hard metal chairs, a wooden reception
desk with a platinum blonde secretary behind it, and a potted plant, there wasn't anything there. The secretary looked up from her magazine in alarm when she saw the
two detectives. "How may I help you?" she asked Elliot, ignoring Olivia completly.
"Is Isis Black in?" he asked.
"Do you have an appointment?" the secretary cooed.
"She's my cousin." He leaned in towards the desk. "My sister and I are here to suprise her."
The receptionist giggled. "Oh, so she's not your girlfriend?"
Olivia looked up from a copy of Forbes and rolled her eyes, then went back to reading.
"I guess you don't look like a serial killer or anything, so I'll let you through without telling Ms. Black."
What would Kathy think? Elliot thought. Even though she'd cheated on him once before, he desperately wanted to prove that he was a good husband, and flirting
with secretaries was not the way to go about doing that. Kathy claimed that the only reason why she'd cheated was because she was under the impression that he was
doing the same thing. He'd said time and time again that he would never do that, and it hurt that she refused to believe him. Although he knew that it was possible that
she was trying to make him feel guilty to justify her own actions, he still felt that he had something to prove, especially since he'd had feelings for Olivia for a long time. I'll
find a way to make everything alright, even if I have a nervous breakdown in the process.
"Elliot? Are you alright?"
Elliot realized that he had been spacing out. He forced a smile. "Yeah, I'm okay."
The interior of Walter Brown was full of cubicles surronded by offices. Phones were ringing everywhere, with people shouting orders into their mouthpieces, each
broker trying to out scream the others. Suddenly, a short redhaired man collided with Olivia, who Elliot caught before she fell. The man's cell phone clattered to the floor,
and he would have joined it if it wasn't for a passing intern. He opened his mouth, perhaps to tell off the two detectives, when he realized that they weren't co-workers, but
rather potential investors.
He extended his hand, a false smile plastered on his face. "Chandler Denison, at your service. Are you folks looking to invest today?"
"We're looking for Isis Black," Olivia informed him. "Do you know where her office is?"
"More of her clients, eh?" It was a rhetorical question that caused Chandler's smile to dim.
"You could say that."
"Straight down this hall, there's about eight executive offices. You want the second one."
The door was open slightly, so the detectives just walked in. Sitting at a desk along the far wall, with her back to a window, was a woman with dead white skin
and dark hair, wearing a black suit. She hung up the phone that she'd been trading stocks over and turned to the detectives, cold blue eyes narrowed slightly. "Can I help
you?" she asked, her voice just as cold as her appearance.
Olivia closed the door as Elliot showed the woman his badge. "Are you Isis Black?" he asked. When she nodded, he said, "I'm Elliot Stabler; this is my partner,
Olivia Benson. We're with the NYPD Special Victims Unit."
Isis shook both of their hands firmly. Pale face revealing nothing, she gestured at two chairs in front of her desk and asked them to sit. "Now, tell me what this is
about," she said, sitting across from them. "I wasn't raped."
"Do you know a man named Brian Caldwell?" Elliot asked.
"Yes I do. We went to NYU together. I majored in Finance; he majored in graphic design. I set him up with my roommate; now they're engaged."
"That's the extent of your relationship?" said Elliot.
"We considered dating, but decided against it," she said dismissively. "Why? Is he in trouble?"
The detectives exchanged glances. "I'm afraid he was killed this morning," Olivia said gently.
Any faintest traces of color that might have been in Isis's face drained away. "He's dead? Have you told Leeah yet?"
"We had another one of our detectives tell her this morning."
Isis's face remained emotionless. Elliot reached inside his coat and pulled out a copy of the letter found by Brian's body. He set it in front of the broker, and sat
back in his chair, studying her expression carefully. She read the letter and set it aside. "Whoever killed him wants me dead too," she stated, as though commenting on
the weather.
"Do you know anyone that would want to harm you?" Olivia asked.
Isis smirked. "I'm one of the highest paid brokers on Wall Street- male or female. My clients are both superrich individual investors and multibillion dollar
corporations. I give legal investment tips to the highest bidder, and I never lose money. I've made a lot of people- myself included- very wealthy, and both their rivals and
my rivals hate me for it." She held up a copy of Forbes. "Half the people in here are my clients; the other half want me whacked."
"Anyone with a relationship with Brian Caldwell?"
Elliot's eyes never left her face, but during the entire interview he saw no cracks in Isis's stony mask. "I doubt it," she said. "I like to keep business and my
personal life seperate."
Join the club, Elliot thought. He took one of Isis's business cards and threw one of his own on her desk. "We'll be in touch," he said.
"I'll look forward to hearing from you," Isis said, with more than a hint of sarcasm.