Chapter 32 – Munch
Thanks to nem, Katydidit, tria246815, qt-angel, Lady Padfoot II, steph, christopher-meloni-freak, SVUchik18, stablerchic14, emma, AglaiaWar, and Mika Tsuki for reviewing!
Katydidit, my most loyal reviewer! With Kathy, I really don't know too much about her. I've seen some episodes with her in it and I don't think she's really all that bad. - Or at least she wasn't until she left Elliot (that part was true). - But, having her be a psycho in this story just went along with my plot.
SVUchik18, thanks for the reviews! Yeah, in my story, Kathy thought that Olivia and Elliot were sleeping together, having an affair. Kathy was the unexpected guest, yeah. Bring Alex back? I never would have thought of that. I'll consider it - any suggestions are welcome like I've said - but I'm not sure if I want to take it there. We'll see.
AglaiaWar, thanks for reviewing! I know, I switch things up all the time. I just like keeping everyone on their toes! Like I've said before, my stories are emotional roller coasters. If you don't like something, give it a chapter to change and it probably will! ;)
Just an author's note here, I made up Olivia being a cook, I don't know if she really is, and I also made up Munch's vegetable preferences, all this stuff really just to try and get things somewhat back to normal. Then again, I don't know if this is really normal for them, but... Anyway, I'll stop rambling and give you another update, Munch.
Also, I had to bring Munch to the rescue again! ;)
Lyrics by Billy Gilman – One Voice
We need some help
Down here on earth
A thousand prayers
A million words
But one voice was heard
A house on a neighborhood
Where you could ride your new bike to school
A kind of world where Mom and Dad
Still believe the golden rule
Life's not that simple
Down here on earth
A thousand prayers
A million words
But one voice was heard
One voice
One simple word
Hearts know what to say
One dream can change the world
Keep believing 'til you find a way
Thanks for the help
Down here on earth
A thousand prayers
A million words
But one voice was heard…
Munch
This can't be happening… This is just a sick dream that I'll wake up from. It can't be true. That bastard couldn't have gotten away with what he did to Olivia. Even as I thought that, I knew he had. The scumbag lawyer that the state sent to defend him had refused to let him say another word. Casey had been able to keep him at Riker's because of his confession. She was charging him with assault, attempted rape, and robbery, but of course his lawyer already filed a motion to throw the confession out because he "was coerced into it". She said that it was possible that a judge might throw it out, but she'd do anything in her power to fight to keep it in.
Even if Casey was able to win and get him indicted, it was his first offense and any judge would probably be lenient on him. He'd get about seven years, plea it down to five, and get out in two or three on parole. Not only did that mean that Olivia's rapist would be out on the street, but she'd also get absolutely no justice. The system she'd dedicated her life to had let her down, all because of idiotic legal technicalities. She'd never she him behind bars for what he did to her, because we couldn't find anything that'd give us a DNA sample warrant.
The three of us, Cragen, Fin, and I, were in the squad room. Cragen was emotionless as he flipped through a filing cabinet, trying to catch up on some paperwork, and keep his mind off the case. Fin, the stubborn one he was, refused to give up on Brent. He was still frantically searching through anything in his history that we could get a warrant from. He'd read the same papers about twenty times over. I was just staring at my blank computer screen, trying to muster up enough energy to start the paperwork on a case I had. It had been this way all morning. None of us spoke about it because we knew we'd just be snapped off by the other two. Until this guy was indicted for attacking Olivia, or Olivia came back, this office was just a pressure cooker, filled with frazzled nerves and anger.
We all felt responsible for letting Olivia down, but I took it really hard. I was the only one who really saw everything this was doing to her first hand. I already had a pretty good idea of her reaction when she found out we'd failed her. I tried not to think about that.
Every time I closed my eyes, there he was, either breaking into Olivia's apartment, watching TV as if nothing had ever happened, or jumping out the window as he tried to escape. I kept replying that last scene in my head, observing as Fin sent his face flying into that ladder. That second was the first time I had truly smiled in a while.
Why couldn't we just get that damn blood sample warrant!
"Oh my God." I heard my stunned voice break the silence as I had a sudden realization.
"What?" Fin looked up and spoke. The Captain had gone back into his office.
"I can't believe it!" I scrambled to my feet and took off down the halls, towards the room we'd held Brent in during questioning.
"Hey! What is it?" I heard Fin's footsteps behind me.
"I'm an idiot," I told him, looking around the room. My eyes finally settled on it – the wastebasket.
"I know that," he sighed. "But what's that got to do with anything?"
"Everything." I got to my knees and started looking through it, quickly realizing the cleaning staff had been here already and emptied it. "Where do they take the trash after they empty it?"
"Ask him." He pointed to a teenager pushing a big trash can with wheels down the hall. He was going into the interrogation rooms, bringing out the small plastic bags from the wastebaskets.
"Kid! Kid!" I jumped up and took after him, trying not to tackle the kid as I came up behind him.
"Yeah?" His eyes widened in guilt when he realized that I was a cop. "Sir, I'm just doing my job, really." He quickly started defending himself.
"Good for you," I snapped. "Did you take the trash from that room?" I pointed down the hall.
"Yeah." He nodded. "Why?"
"Where is it?"
"In here." He went over to the trash can and pointed. "Why?"
"I need it."
The kid gave me a strange look before he nodded again. "Okay." Adjusting the gloves on his hands, he leaned over and hesitantly began shuffling through it. "Here." He pulled a plastic bag out and handed it to me, slightly disgusted.
"Are you sure this is it?" I asked, grabbing it by the handle.
"Yeah. I remembered thinking it was really gross because there were tons of bloody tissues in it. And I thought someone must of really beat the crap out of a guy." His eyes flashed when he said that, a sure sign that this kid was an aspiring cop, in it because he thought we spent all our time senselessly beating perps.
I turned the bag in my hands. Sure enough, I saw the crimson colored tissues in it.
"John, what the hell you doing with that?" Fin came up to me as the kid left.
"I can't believe I didn't think of it before," I smiled.
"What?"
"After you smacked the bastard's nose against the ladder, he had to stop the bleeding right?"
Fin's eyes lit up, the same realization hitting him. "Of course."
"Giving us a whole trash bag full of DNA," I grinned, absolutely ecstatic with myself.
"Come on!" He took off running back towards the squad room, motioning for me to follow.
A few minutes later, we burst into Cragen's office, first Fin, then me.
"What is it?" Cragen asked, irritated at us barging in.
"This." I held the bag up triumphantly.
"Trash?" He looked at me like I had lost it.
"Trash with a ton of Brent's bloody tissues in it," Fin clarified.
"You, John, Warner's lab. Now!" Even I could see the excitement in his eyes as he realized what we had.
"Come on!" This time, I pulled Fin along with me. "You drive." I instantly regretted those words the second I spoke them.
--XXX--
As Fin and I walked down the hallway with Casey, I felt like a kid at Christmas. We'd finally gotten the tests back from Warner. The blood on the tissues was a match to the semen found in Olivia's rape kit. We finally had him.
Now Fin and I were accompanying Casey to a meeting with Brent and his lawyer. We stood back and let a guard open the cell. Stepping in, I saw Brent sitting at the table, his cuffed hands on top of the table and his lawyer next to him.
"What is this about Miss Novak?" The young and cocky lawyer crossed his arms, staring at us as Casey sat across from him. He was still a baby, just barely out of law school as he tried to gain a foothold in the system. He was also incredibly over-confident in his abilities. I couldn't wait for Casey to knock him off his pedestal.
"This is about a plea bargain for your client." She folded her hands over her briefcase, very collected.
"Assault two and robbery." He said, throwing his offer on the table. "He'll be out in two after parole." The judge had kept the confession in.
"Well," she shrugged, secretly knowing that she had the upper hand. "That might be fine if he hadn't raped a woman."
"I didn't rape that bitch!" Brent pounded his fist on the table, not getting the slightest reaction from Casey. His lawyer placed his hands over his, telling him to calm down.
"Molly Bates?" Casey produced two manila folders. "No. You just used her as a rag doll." Out of one, she pulled out the same pictures that Cragen had showed him. "But you did rape her." From the second folder, she pulled pictures of Olivia out, clearly documenting the cuts and bruises on her face, arms, and legs. One look and I had to turn my eyes away from them.
"You have absolutely no proof!" The lawyer declared almost too quickly, Casey beginning to get to him. "Besides, you never got a warrant for a DNA sample from my client, so you can't tell a jury whether or not it was his semen inside that detective."
"No," Casey agreed, a slight smile on her face, "we didn't get a warrant, but we did get his blood." She pulled out an evidence bag from her briefcase and placed it in front of Brent. "You left these in the interrogation room," she informed him, watching as his eyes traveled over the bloody tissues inside.
"What are these?" The lawyer looked at them, but seemed too revolted to pick it up.
"These are tissues covered in his blood, the blood that has the same DNA as the semen inside her," she pointed towards Olivia's picture, trying not to yell.
"Hey! Those are from when the detective broke my nose!" He looked up towards Fin. "You!"
"If what my client says is true," the flustered kid tried to cover his confusion and the fact that he wasn't aware of this before, "then I'll have a judge throw it out of evidence."
"Your client obviously didn't tell you what happened," Casey informed him, not abashed at all by his threats. "Mr. Silvestri was resisting arrest. Detective Tutuola only tackled him after he'd jumped down three stories on a fire escape. He had every reason to think he was going to run and do whatever he could to stop him. No judge will throw it out."
The lawyer's face slightly paled, realizing that she was right. He looked from Brent, to the tissues, then to Casey.
--XXX--
"How'd it go?" Cragen stood up as the three of us walked into the squad room.
"He took the deal," Casey grinned. "He'll be in jail at least fifteen years before he's even considered for parole."
"That's great." Slowly, Cragen's lips turned into a smile, something I don't think I've ever seen before.
"Yeah." She stepped back towards the door. "Well, I have to go catch up on my paperwork. You'll let her know, right?" She asked, referring to Olivia.
"Yeah," I nodded, basically volunteering myself.
"Okay." She smiled and nodded as she headed outside.
"Casey?" I walked outside of Cragen's office, pushing the door back.
"Yeah?" She turned back around and waited.
"Thanks, for getting him." I said somewhat sheepishly.
"No problem." She grinned and put her hand on my shoulder. "Besides, I couldn't have done it without those tissues you found." Then she turned and left the squad room, heading back to her office. I went back into the Captain's office, completely shutting the door behind me.
"So, who wants to go tell her?" Cragen looked back and forth between Fin and me.
"I think John should." Fin nodded towards me, pleased with everything as well. "If you didn't think of the tissues, we wouldn't have gotten him."
"Yeah," I agreed. "But if you hadn't bashed his nose in with the ladder, they wouldn't have existed."
"He was resisting arrest," he smiled, proud of himself as well.
--XXX--
Standing at Elliot's front door, it felt all too familiar. This time though, I was the bearer of good news. I don't think the grin left my face the entire drive over here. Trying not to look too happy, I knocked on the door.
"Hold on!" I heard Olivia's voice yell, followed by some shuffling noises. "Hey John." She pulled the door open and greeted me with a smile. "Come in." She ushered me in and quickly closed the door behind me.
"Hey." Elliot greeted me with a wave of his hand. He was sitting in an over-sized chair, his legs propped up by a matching foot rest.
"Hey. She let you out of bed?" I joked, remembering what he'd said about her not even letting him sit up the other day.
"Would you stop blaming me?" She playfully shoved my arm as she walked by and into the kitchen. "I am simply following the doctors orders to make sure my brother says in bed." As she walked by Elliot, she ran her hand over his head.
"Brother?" I looked at him quizzically.
"Long story." He smiled and shrugged it off. "Hey," he got my attention. "Do you think you could go in there?" He pointed to the kitchen. "Make sure she's not burning anything or turning my kitchen upside down?"
"I heard that!" Olivia's voice rang out from the kitchen. "I am not totally incompetent Elliot. And I can cook!" We both smiled at her usual spiciness. Deciding to go talk to her alone, I went into the kitchen anyway.
"Whatca making?" I asked, stepping past the doorway.
She was standing in front of the refrigerator, pulling out a stick of butter. Carrying it over towards the stove, she answered, "Baked chicken, angel hair pasta, and green beans."
"Wow," I was genuinely impressed with the menu as I watched her pour some milk into a pan on the stove. "I didn't know you cooked."
I watched her smile as she added the butter. "Yeah. I guess it's my hidden talent. Though some people refuse to admit to themselves that I can!" With the last sentence, she raised her voice loud enough so that Elliot could hear her.
"Right!" I heard his disbelieving voice yell back.
She just rolled her eyes and pulled a plastic container out, fresh green beans inside.
"Geez. Real green beans? I don't think I've ever seen them outside of a can, or frozen." I remarked.
She laughed and looked up at me as she held the container in the sink under running water, washing them off. "You mean four wives and not one of them ever cooked fresh vegetables for you?"
"No." I shook my head. "Why bother when you can just open a can or a bag into a pan?"
She frowned and shook her head. "I've never liked vegetables like that, too much sugars and artificial things. Then again," she brought the washed vegetables over the island in the middle of the kitchen, "I suppose that explains why you like them."
I grinned at her comment. Everyone knew I had an incredible sweet tooth. I blamed my parents for never letting me have any when I was a kid, now over-compensating as an adult.
I watched as she pulled each one out, one at a time and methodically snapping off the ends.
"Hey," she felt me watching her and suddenly looked up. "How about you come here and help me instead of just watching?"
"Sure." I washed my hands and stood next to her. "What do I do?"
"Just take them," she picked one up, "and snap the ends off." She demonstrated, holding them up once she was finished.
"Okay." Simple enough, I thought, picking one up. With each one, I slowly started developing a rhythm.
"Perfect." She watched me for a moment before going back to the stove. "Hey John?"
"Yeah?" I didn't look up, not wanting to lose my rhythm and pace.
"You want to stay for dinner? I have more than enough food. And I don't think El'd mind, he'd probably appreciate having someone else here. I think I'm starting to bug him." The way she sounded, it seemed like she was pleased.
"Oh, no." I declined her offer politely. "I wouldn't want to bother you."
She laughed as I said that, causing me to look up. "Since when do you care about being a bother? Besides, it's no problem."
The corners of my lip curled into a grin as I listened to her. "Well, I would like to see how these turn out." I referred to the green beans as I finished the last one.
"Of course, because we all know what an art snapping the end off a green bean is," she said sarcastically.
"It is." I carried the container back over towards the stove. "Where do you want these?"
"In there." She pointed to a pan filled with water as she poured raw noodles into a milky, seasoned mixture.
Just as I was pouring them in, a beeping noise went off. At first, I wasn't sure what it was.
"The fire extinguisher's in the hall closet!" Elliot's voice yelled from the other room.
Olivia rolled her eyes and pressed a button on the control panel of the stove, the noise stopping. "Shut up Stabler! You know that's just the timer, not the smoke alarm!"
"Hey! Just trying to help!" He tried to sound innocent, though we heard him chuckling.
"I'll burn his food," Olivia sighed jokingly, opening the oven door and peering inside. Setting the timer again, she turned to me. "Oh, there was probably another reason you stopped by other than to snap green beans, right?"
"Yeah." This time, I hadn't forgotten, I was just waiting for the right time to tell her. "Actually, there was."
"What?" She watched me, waiting patiently.
"Cragen and Casey wanted me to tell you," I started. "We caught him."
"Caught… who?" I knew she realized whom halfway through her question. "You mean, the guy who, who-" She couldn't bring herself to say it. I could see the shock on her face.
"The guy who attacked you," I nodded.
"Who was it?" Her eyes were wide as she asked me about him.
"His name's Brent Silvestri. He was the boyfriend of your super."
"Molly?" I nodded. "But, how…?" I watched her eyes nervously dart around, trying to figure it out herself.
"The night he attacked you," I put my hands on her shoulder, bringing her gaze back up to me, "he was at Molly's apartment. He assaulted her and stole her wallet and master key to the apartments. That's how he got into your apartment. That's why you didn't hear anyone breaking in."
Her eyes teared up as she turned to her gaze to the floor, letting everything sink in.
"Is there going to be a trial?" She looked back at me. "Do I have to testify?"
I shook my head. "No. He confessed to assaulting Molly and his blood matched the DNA in your rape kit. Casey gave him a deal. He's going to jail."
"How long?" She looked into my eyes, still dazed.
"Fifteen to twenty years."
Just as I was about to ask if she was all right, she threw her arms around me. "Thank you," she whispered into my ear.
"Just doing my job," I smiled as she let go of me and stepped back, a tear glistening on her cheek as she grinned, and a grateful look in her eyes. That was all the thanks I'd ever need.
--XXX--
"I see you're still alive," Olivia noticed, looking at Elliot. "Couldn't have been too bad."
"All right," he smiled. "I was wrong and I apologize. You can cook. It was actually pretty good." The three of us had just finished dinner and were now sitting around Elliot's living room, talking and occasionally listening to a story or two on the news on TV.
"Thank you," she accepted his apology and sat back, satisfied that she was right.
"Yeah," I agreed. "Though I still say canned vegetables are better."
She chuckled and grinned. "I suppose you can't change a sweet tooth over-night."
As we talked a few more minutes, I suddenly caught sight of the clock. It was pretty late and I already starting to nod off. I'd barely gotten any sleep last night. "Well, it's getting late," I announced. "I should probably get going." I stood up, getting ready to leave.
"Thanks for stopping by," Elliot nodded.
"Sure." I turned to Olivia. "Thanks for dinner."
"No problem." She stood as well, following me to the door. Just as I was about to leave, Olivia caught me.
"John?" She lightly touched my arm, pulling me back.
"Yeah?" I waited for her to speak as I threw my coat on.
"I just wanted to thank you, for everything. I couldn't have gotten through it all without you. I really appreciate it."
I just smiled as I listened to her. When she was done, she wrapped her arms around me again, pulling me into an embrace.
"Anything for you Liv," I whispered, pulling back. Locking eyes one last time, I headed down the steps and went to my car.
