"In the criminal justice system, sexually based offenses are considered especially heinous. In New York City, the dedicated detectives who investigate these vicious felonies are members of an elite squad known as the Special Victims Unit. These are their stories."
It Comes with the Badge
Last Time:
A rosy blush colored the former prosecutor's cheeks. "But, the sooner we start... The better."
Ryan chuckled and switched off the bedside lamp. "I completely agree, Counselor."
Ryan strutted in to work the next morning about ten minutes late with a broad grin on her face. "Morning, Andy."
Andrew looked up in a state of quasi-shock. "Ryan..." The first words out of her mouth were usually "where's the coffee" or "damn it's early" or some other complaint along those lines. He watched as if she carried the black plague in her blood. "How are you?"
She smiled at him, "Pretty good. You?" Sitting down at her desk, she smoothed her khaki skirt down and crossed her legs.
"I'm fine," he shook his head a moment.
Ryan pulled a picture frame out of her messenger bag, it was over 6 months old... She smiled at it reminiscently before setting it on her desk. Alexandra had begged her to get a new one, but she loved the pictures Alex had left at her door before... Well, that didn't matter now. Alexandra was home, with her. She turned to her partner, "So what now?"
Andy shrugged, "We've got two minor cases, one in Jersey and one in California."
She cringed, the idea of leaving Alex for any amount of time sounded painful. "I see."
Knock. Knock. The two turned to the door. Detective Grimes looked straight at Ryan as he poked his head in . "I need you."
Looking perplexed, she nodded and stood up. Shrugging to Andy, she followed Benjamin out. "Yes, sir?"
He shook his head, "I'm not the one who wants you. Mr. Rogelio Guevara wants you."
"Oh," she replied plainly. "Where is he?"
Grimes watched her closely, "He's upstairs, I'll show you to the office."
Ryan nodded complacently, "You seem uptight, what's wrong?
"Jamerson, do you know who Mr. Guevara is?" He watched her closely.
She shook her head, "Not a clue. Why, is he some big shot I should know about?"
Benjamin looked astounded. "He's the Chief Inspector of the DEA, Ryan. He's as big as they come, hell, you might as well have the Administrator breathing down you neck."
A chill ran up her spine. "What could he want with me?"
He opened the door for her, "Go find out."
---
Olivia sighed softly, "Don't."
Alex looked at her in surprise. "It's no trouble. You watched Mariah for Ryan all those times, now you need to rest. You've got two weeks left... I can pick up the kids from school for you. I don't have a job, I have no obligations. It's fine."
"I'm tired of being babied! I'm a full grown woman and I can take care of myself!" she grumbled exasperatedly.
Her companion nodded, "But you aren't just taking care of yourself. You're taking care of yourself, that baby, Elliot's children and this house. That's a bit much, even for a full grown woman."
Olivia gave her a death glared, "Lawyers."
Laughing, Alex took her keys from her. "I'll be back in twenty minutes. Don't over-exert yourself." Having said that just to annoy Olivia, the ex-ADA made a dash for her car with a wink and drove out of the driveway.
After closing the door, Olivia sighed. God, feeling useless was the worst feeling ever. Her phone started ringing, only leading her to realize both handsets were upstairs. Trudging up as quickly as she could, she heard the message machine pick it up. "Detective Benson? Do you know who this is? I was just wondering how you were doing... How's my son? I've heard you're expecting... Don't worry, I'll call back."
Olivia sobbed, leaning against the wall and sliding down it as she curled up as tight as her swollen stomach allowed. Tears ran down her cheeks. How could he still manage to destroy her life in prison? Struggling to compose herself, she pulled herself to her feet and dried her eyes. He wouldn't ruin her life anymore, she was a full grown woman, right? Tears threatened to fall again but she forced them back and carried one handset back downstairs after deleting the vulgar and offensive message. That bastard. How dare he.
---
Elliot frowned, wondering if he was even cut out for this line of work any more. Case after case, rape after rape... Did it ever help? Did it really do any good? His contemplation was interrupted by the phone ringing. It reminded him that he didn't have any time to think about these things, he had a job to do, he had women to save. "Manhattan SVU, this is Detective Stabler."
---
Ryan drove home around two a.m. and she was beyond exhausted. She'd have to sit down Alexandra and talk with her. Her lover would not be happy. Not at all. Tossing the keys on the end table, she trudged up the stairs to find Mariah fast asleep in her bed. Tucking the little girl in with a kiss, she headed down the hall and opened the door to her bedroom. Alex was sitting up with the bedside light on, a book in one hand and a cup of tea in the other. "Hey there stranger."
Smiling, she stripped off her jacket and hung it up, "I'm sorry I'm so late. We had a meeting, it ran awfully late." Giving her an apologetic look, she headed for the bathroom.
"What was it about?" Alex called to her.
Ryan answered with a heavy sigh, "Another undercover operation..."
A knot grew in Alex's stomach, "Where?"
"In the tri-state area... I made sure of that. The only thing to worry about are the hours." She reemerged in a big t-shirt with 'USMC' sprawled across it. She climbed in to bed next to Alex and kissed her softly. "You mad?"
Alex remained quiet for a moment and then shook her head. "I'm not mad. I'll be worried out of my mind about you... But I'm not mad."
Ryan settled in under the blankets, "How was your day?"
It was soothing to hear Alex's voice ramble about the Stabler kids, Olivia and her trip to the grocery store. Snuggling up next to her, she smiled softly and let her continue her explanation. Such trivial things, but they always seemed to be the most important at the end of the day.
---
Elliot glanced at the clock that read 4 a.m. and decided he should get some sleep before Munch and Fin came in around seven. Heading up to the crib, he closed his eyes. God, he was getting old. Coffee wasn't enough to keep him up in the morning anymore... And this new case was one of the worst. A husband raping his wife and child? A ten year old girl pregnant with her father's son and her mother pregnant as well.
A quick look in to the perp's background had revealed three previous marriages. Those ex-wives would be coming in tomorrow but Elliot wasn't sure he could take it. Two of them had at least one female child. Massaging his temples gently, he rolled over on the cot and tried to get some sleep.
---
Olivia paced slowly, Elliot had called to say he wouldn't be coming home. Since then, that bastard had called her five times. Every time, she'd been reduced to tears on the bed. The kids were long asleep, it was half past three. She felt worse than she had in a long time. When the phone rang again, she jumped. Staring at it as if it were the devil himself, she checked the caller ID. It was Ryan. Picking it up quickly, she sighed with relief. "Benson."
"Hey, Liv..." Ryan sounded like Olivia felt.
She pursed her lips, "What's up?"
Ryan sighed, "I'm surprised I didn't wake you up..."
Why was she avoiding the question? Olivia frowned, "It's hard to sleep with a little rugrat kicking your spine or bladder, depending on his current mood."
Her friend chuckled, "Don't I know it."
"What's wrong, Ryan?" she wasn't going to beat around the bush.
Ryan took a ragged breath, as if on the verge of tears. "Have you been getting calls?"
A breath caught in Olivia's throat. "From who?" She closed her eyes in sweet denial, praying her mind was imagining things.
"Him," Ryan said, proving she was experiencing the same denial.
Olivia couldn't hold the tears back. "Yes," she sobbed softly.
A sigh came from the other line, "We have to do something." She wasn't quite in tears, she was struggling to hold them back.
"What is there to do?" she sounded weak, angry at herself for giving in so easily.
"Olivia," Ryan sounded terribly concerned. "I'm going to come over."
She shook her head, "That's not necessary."
Ryan would have none of it, "For the both of us." Rustling was audible through the phone. "I'll be there in a hour. Call my cell if he calls again, I don't want to wake Alex."
Olivia had momentarily forgotten about Alex. "Oh, don't leave her there Ryan... I'm fine." She sniffled softly.
"Not a chance, Olivia." She kissed Alex's sleeping form once. "One hour." She clicked her phone off and unplugged the line. Jerry wasn't going to torment her family in her absence. Grabbing her keys, she headed out in a pair of jeans and a camisole. It was freezing, but she'd been too hurried to look for a jacket. Pulling the car out, she sped off silently in to the night.
---
Alex woke to a loud phone ringing downstairs. Why wasn't the one up here working? Yawning, she hurried down and picked up the phone, "Hello?"
"Who is this?" the voice was deep and male.
She frowned, "Who's calling?"
There was a soft chuckle, "I'm looking for Samantha..."
"She's not here at the moment," she didn't like this guy at all.
"Pity," he frowned. "Tell her an old friend called and I'm eager to hear from her."
Alex was worried now, "Who is this?" The line went dead. She looked at the caller ID. A government number? She pushed the message button.
'Samantha. I've missed you. Olivia wasn't answering today either. How's she doing? Is my son growing inside her? Are her breasts getting bigger? I'm thinking of you both. I'll never forget you. You were the best, you know. That's why I kept you so long. Don't worry, I'll call back.' Click.
Her blue eyes went wide, where was Ryan now? She ran upstairs to find Mariah sleeping soundly. Dialing Ryan's cell, she waited anxiously as it rang three, four times.
"Jamerson," the voice was troubled.
Alex frowned, "Sam, are you okay?"
She sighed heavily, "I'm going over to Olivia's. Something came up. I'm sorry, I didn't want to wake you."
"Does this have to do with the man who called? The one who left the message? Was it Jerry?"
Ryan bit her lip, a terrible habit of hers. "Yes. I'm fine, I just need to talk to Olivia. I'll be home in the morning, I promise."
Alex nodded, "I will see you then. If you need me, call, okay?"
"I love you," she kissed the phone with a faint smile.
She repeated her lover's action, "I love you too."
Fin. To be continued.
