Pure and Simple
Chapter One
Elliot Stabler's Home
Queens
3:30 AM Saturday
He felt tremors of pain reverberate through his entire body as he entered his empty home. The silence in the house reminded him of how lost he really was. There were so many times when he felt like crying, but he held it in because of his pride. He had to stay strong, but what for? He realized that it was absolutely okay to cry, to feel something. He felt like he was walking in the dark, shouting, but with no sound escaping, no one to hear, a safe place not too far away, yet so far.
Elliot found himself in a battle against himself, and it became harder and harder for him to face what was happening around him.
He wouldn't call it depression, loneliness was more like it, and he didn't know why he felt loneliness when he had four other people that cared about him at work. They were all concerned, and he knew deep down in his heart of hearts that they knew about his emotional battle. They frequently asked if he was okay, if there was anything that he needed…he'd always say that everything's fine, fearing that if he said anything for his own sake, they'd be disappointed in him, or end up blaming themselves. He felt ashamed at these feelings because he was supposed to be the logical one, the person that understood things. But this just hit so close to home, that he was shaken. He was afraid of facing those hidden things buried away in the back of his mind; all those unconscious things that contributed to the break up of his marriage…his withdrawal from the woman he pledged his life to, promised to help in her time of need, and not being there for his children like he should have been. Kathy had made him very much aware of the hurt she saw in their eyes when he missed trivial things, like appointments, plays, game nights, even a family dinner. He'd chosen work over them for twenty years and Kathy couldn't stand to look at her children's disappointed faces nor hers any longer. 'Time to end it,' she had said calmly, quietly.
Elliot loosened his tie as he looked at a picture of his family. It had been taken a few years ago, when things were good, and they were all smiling. He smiled faintly at the picture, wishing that things were different. Unfortunately for him, and so many other men in his predicament, they couldn't travel back in time, they could only go forward, and pray to God that things would work out in their favor, giving them a second chance to start anew.
That was what Elliot was afraid of; starting over because he didn't know where to begin, or what the future would bring. He was afraid of what kinds of things he would face head on. All he wanted to do was see his children whenever he wanted. He didn't wish to be back together with Kathy. Reconciliation was out of the question for both of them. Kathy wanted to just detach herself from him, but promised that he would be able to see their children frequently.
God, his children. His Achilles heel.
He was so afraid that night when he came home to an empty house. Not seeing his children or hearing them scared him to death. Then Kathy called.
Two months had brought him here, alone in the house that he and Kathy built their life in, their children torn to pieces over whose side to be on in this, and filing for divorce.
He'd gone through a gauntlet of emotions: anger, fear, sadness, confusion. Now, with no feelings left, he just felt numb. He'd worked cases at work with little or no emotion and it scared him because he was supposed to be objective. He cared about the victims, but the cases didn't get to him as much as they used to.
Kathy held no malice toward him, and she didn't turn their kids against him.
Olivia was not taking this very well either, and he could see the hurt in her eyes when he didn't want to tell her what was going on.
He was pushing away the two women in his life that cared deeply for him. Olivia had a place in his heart too, and Elliot discovered that he couldn't have the best of both worlds. He could vent to Olivia because he knew that she could handle the details, handle the anger because she reflected those feelings. With Kathy, things were so much different: she was already sensitive to begin with; Elliot thought he was protecting his family from the harsh realities of the world.
He got a rude awakening.
The only things that were helping him keep his sanity were his children, Olivia and the job.
As long as he had those three vital things, he could survive.
Elliot didn't have much of an appetite, so he just went ahead and took a shower. He only had about four hours to get some sleep before he had to go to get back to work. The Sherona Anderson case was priority and he knew that he wouldn't get much sleep for the next few days.
He put on a new suit and then headed out again.
O-O-O
1-6 Precinct
SVU Squad Room
8:00 AM
Munch and Fin were already seated at their desks waiting on their assignment and Olivia was emerging from the crib, looking more tired than before. She didn't go home; instead, she used the showers at the precinct and she already had an extra change of clothes handy. She ate a meager meal of watery oatmeal and had a coke and a cup of coffee. She felt a little better, but a good night's sleep would have done her some good.
She yawned daintily before sitting down at her desk. Working on borrowed time was not good. They had an extremely violent killer on their hands and that wasn't good at all.
"Ah, nice to see you sleeping beauty," Fin joked.
Olivia scowled at him through narrowed eyes.
"Hey, don't look at me like that," he chuckled.
"Fin," she groaned.
Just then, Elliot walked in and that's when Cragen emerged from his office.
"Okay people," he said. "Sorry for the early hour, but this case can't wait another minute. The rain gave the perp a head start. Any updates?"
Olivia picked up the phone when it rang.
"Benson," she chimed. "Okay…thanks."
She hung up, looking relieved.
"What've you got?" Elliot asked.
"That was CSU," she explained. "They found a business card in Sherona Anderson's jacket pocket when they picked up her clothes from the hospital. One of their guys is bringing it up now."
"Alright, Olivia, Elliot, trace that number, Munch, Fin, contact any close relatives, friends, old boyfriends and the like," Cragen ordered. "Head out."
As Munch and Fin headed out, Olivia and Elliot stayed behind to wait for the business card. Elliot poured coffee for them.
"Here you go Liv," Elliot said, putting the cup on her desk. "You could use a cup."
"You and me both," she sighed. She sat up straight in her chair and began to pull her hair back. She pondered for a second if she should get her hair cut again. "Why do I get the feeling that there's going to be more to this case than meets the eye?"
Elliot leaned back in his chair and shook his head.
"Because that's always the case," he said. "But this may be cut and dry. I mean, Sherona was a school teacher for God's sake. She probably didn't see this coming. She was just out having a good time."
Olivia nodded her agreement as she sipped at the bitter coffee. She grimaced, thinking that it needed more sugar.
After a couple of more minutes, Ben from CSU approached them with the business card in a small plastic evidence bag.
"Thanks," Olivia said, looking at the name. "Jeff Richardson, of Geiger, Knoll and Associates 757-9140."
Elliot was already up out of his chair and ready to go.
"Let's pay them a visit."
Geiger, Knoll & Associates
Financial District
9:00 AM Saturday
Olivia and Elliot walked through the door of the fifth floor office and found them selves in the midst of hustle and bustle. Geiger, Knoll & Associates was a huge advertising company that would soon be linked to several other major advertising companies in a worldwide network. And, as the detective found out, that was going to happen in just under thirty minutes.
"Don't we have great timing?" Elliot quipped.
Olivia just gave him a ghost of a grin as they approached the front desk. There was a mousy looking receptionist with impossibly bright red hair that was pulled back in a tight bun. She had on a heavy sweater and a blue pinstripe skirt with black heels. She transferred paperwork from one pile to another and was frantically taking phone calls.
"I hope you two have appointments," the receptionist said rudely as she looked up at the detectives.
They both flashed their badges and that gave her a wake up call.
"How may I help you detectives?" She asked.
"Is there Jeff Richardson here this morning?" Olivia asked.
"Yes," the receptionist said. "Follow me."
Elliot and Olivia followed the young woman down a long hallway, dodging people scrambling with information and reports, and most of all the people in the office were chattering away on cell phones.
They finally reached the office of the suave businessman. He was grinning devilishly about something and he was tossing a mini basketball into the air. When Jeff saw the intruders in his office, he dismissed his caller.
"Yeah, I'll talk to you in a few," he said before hanging up his earpiece. "I'm sorry, have we met before?"
"I'm Detective Stabler, this is my partner Detective Benson," Elliot introduced.
"Detectives?" Jeff asked, surprised. "Look, you've got the wrong brother whatever it is."
"We're just here to ask you a few questions," Olivia explained, pulling out the small evidence bag. "We found your business card in the jacket pocket of Sherona Anderson."
"Oh, yeah, I know her," Jeff said. "What? Is something wrong?"
"Well, Sherona's dead," Elliot informed the man bluntly.
Jeff felt his heart skip a beat.
"What happened?" He asked.
"Mr. Richardson, were you the last person to see Sherona?" Olivia asked.
"Yeah," Jeff answered, walking over to his desk and leaning against it. "We talked, had a few drinks, danced…"
Elliot clasped his hands behind his back, knowing that there was more to the story.
Jeff sighed and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Okay, listen, Sherona was gorgeous," he explained. "So fine. I know this sounds crazy, but there was something between us, you know? And to answer your next question, yes, we had sex. We went into the back, we uh…you know, nothing freaky, and then I told her to give me a call, and I left. She was just fine, I swear it."
Sensing the guy was telling the truth, the detectives thanked Jeff for his time.
Olivia rubbed away the beginnings of a headache.
"Why is this case going nowhere?" She asked as they boarded the elevator.
"Everything so far is pretty innocuous," Elliot observed. "Until the M.E. tells us anything probative, we've got nothing."
"I hope that Munch and Fin are having better luck than we are right now," Olivia commented.
Sherona Anderson's Apartment
South Side
10:15 AM
Munch and Fin made their way down the hallway to apartment 238. When they confirmed the address, they knocked on the door. After a few seconds of waiting, the door opened and they saw a little girl. She looked no more than five years old. She had on jeans and a sweater and her hair was put up into a ponytail.
"Hi," Fin said in a fatherly tone of voice. "Who are you?"
"India," the little girl said quietly.
"Is there a grown up in there we can talk to?" Munch asked.
"Grandma!" India yelled as she ran into the apartment.
An older woman who looked like she had been washing dishes because she was wiping her hands off on her dress stepped up to the door. She had short reddish brown hair that had a small streak of gray here and there. She didn't look old enough to be a grandmother, but she was somebody's mother.
"Yes?" She asked, putting her hands on her hips. "Who are you?"
"I'm detective Munch, this is my partner Fin," Munch introduced. "Mind if we come in and ask you a few questions?"
The woman sighed and turned a second.
"India, why don't you go into the kitchen and help yourself to a snack?" The grandmother offered the little girl.
"Okay," India said and she ran to the back.
The woman stepped outside the apartment and closed the door.
"I'm Helen Anderson," the woman introduced herself. "Are you here about my daughter?"
"Yes ma'am," Fin answered. "I'm sorry Ms. Anderson, but Sherona was found dead earlier this morning outside a bar."
Helen looked away, tears filling in her eyes.
"What happened?" She asked.
"That's what we're trying to find out ma'am," Munch said. "Ms. Anderson, do you know anyone that held a grudge against Sherona?"
"No," Helen said in frustration. "Sherona was a good woman, a wonderful mother. She would never do anything to hurt anybody. The child is wound so tightly. Her friends have to practically beg her to go out and treat herself to a good time."
"Did she come home last night?" Fin asked.
"Only for a second, around seven thirty," Helen explained. "Sherona stayed late after school to tutor some students, then she went back to her classroom to grade some papers. She came home and had dinner with me and India, changed clothes, then left. She told us that she would catch a cab home."
Fin wrote the information down as Munch asked the questions.
"Ms. Anderson, has Sherona been acting strange lately?" He asked the grieving woman. "Has she mentioned any fears, expressed any paranoia?"
"No, like I said, Sherona was a very routine woman," Helen explained. "Going out last night was not something she did on a regular basis."
"Your daughter was raped," Munch said. "Has she met anybody new? Been dating?"
"No, no, no!" Helen hissed. "Sherona wasn't like that! The one night she does something for herself, she gets murdered! Sherona didn't have any enemies, she was a wonderful person! I want you to catch the bastard that took my daughter's life. And don't come back to my doorstep until you do."
With that, Helen wiped her tears and went back inside her apartment.
Munch and Fin headed down the hallway, knowing that this would be a hard case.
"So basically, from the sound of things, this guy's random," Fin said. "I mean, Sherona's squeaky clean."
1-6 Precinct
SVU Squad Room
12:00 PM
"Is it lunch time already?" Olivia asked as Munch and Fin came into the squad room bearing food.
Fin handed out bags for everyone.
"We got the usual for you two," Munch said. "Olivia, we got you the pastrami and Elliot, we got you the meatball."
"Thanks," Olivia said as she plopped down into her chair and began to eat some of her French fries. "So, how did it go with the relatives?"
Fin spoke up from the coffee station.
"We talked to the mother," he explained. "Ms. Helen Anderson. She says that Sherona was a very routine woman, didn't go out much. Dedicated teacher and mother."
"She's got a kid?" Elliot asked.
"Yeah, a daughter," Fin continued. "About five or six years old. Her name is India."
"So basically, we've got a woman who doesn't get out much, who's got nothing on her, and she's targeted for rape?" Olivia pondered. "Something's not adding up."
"You want the victim to have something suspicious about her?" Munch asked before biting into his Philly cheese steak sandwich.
"No," Olivia said, taking a sip of soda. "All I'm saying is that this is a little too textbook. I mean, we've got an attractive classy looking twenty three year old black woman who went out for a good time for herself, and she goes to the sleaziest, shittiest looking place in the whole damn city and boom, she ends up in a back alley with her head smashed in and raped? It doesn't make any fucking sense."
Munch grinned.
"I love it when she talks dirty, don't you?" He quipped.
"Yeah, she's pretty hot when she's got a potty mouth," Elliot chuckled.
"Hello, I'm right here," Olivia said, agitated. "Sorry, I'm just frustrated that this is going nowhere."
"Yeah, and the guy Sherona was with was clean too," Elliot mentioned. "Says they met, drank, danced, had sex and he left."
"Yeah, sounds like the typical night on the town for a guy," Fin commented. "So what next?"
Cragen stepped out of his office.
"We got another victim," he announced. "Elliot, Olivia, the coroner just called. She wants you at the morgue ASAP."
The detectives collectively lost their appetites as they prepared to get back to work.