Chapter 5:

Elliot opened his front door to see his partner standing there. She was smiling, which made him slightly angry. He was having a hard time in only a few short hours. "Maria's real name is Margo Palenti. No father in the picture just a mother and sister. Her mother, an Italian immigrant, is a nurse at Bellevue. How'd you know?" Elliot stepped aside, indicating Olivia should come in. She did.

"Last night, she was rambling on about how she used to watch us from her bedroom window." Olivia's eyes widened in shock.

"She knew you."

"Yeah, she said something about her mother. She said she was crazed." Elliot kept his voice low. He didn't want his kids to hear their conversation.

"You think her mother raped her?" Olivia asked astonished. Very rarely they had they had a female predator. It did happen though. But her own mother.

"Maybe. Give me a second and we'll go talk to her." Olivia nodded. Elliot walked out towards his bedroom. Olivia went and sat down on the couch to wait for him.

"The Patriot Act is just a way to invade people's privacy for the enjoyment of the White House. I mean, how many people have actually been arrested for terrorist activity?" Cameron said very seriously to Munch as they sat at the precinct.

"If they arrested that many you'd think it'd be in the paper. Let's face it, The Patriot Act is just a way for the government to listen into people's conversations. I bet they pay more attention to how many people go into legal porn sites than the Anarchist Cookbook." Munch added in. Fin sat on the sidelines wondering how he got stuck with two conspiracy crazed detectives.

"After what, five years? And they don't have anyone in custody to plan nine-eleven two, you'd they'd cancel it. Or do we have to wait till Bush gets off his comfortable leather chair to pull the troops out of Iraq."

"And Kuwait, and Afghanistan."

"Are you two done, I'd like to get some work in." Fin interrupted before they could say something.

"Laugh it up, my friend, but when you're arrested because of the Patriot Act, don't expect me to bail your ass out." Munch said, turning back to his desk.

"Wouldn't dream of it." The three of them went back to their random works. Cameron opened up her case files and read the first case out loud.

"Rip the Jacker." She immediately closed the folder. The two men looked at her like she was just some naive child. "Pictures. Give me a serial killer any day." She breathed heavily before opening the folder again.

785 Metropolitan Ave

Queens, New York

Elliot knocked on his neighbor's door. He thought that this visit was going to be awkward. He knew his neighbors slightly, but not very well. And he never came to their door as a cop. But if Maria Rodriguez was really Margo Palenti, then Isabella had, as Dezi Arnez put it, some 'splainin' to do.

In only a few seconds Elliot and Olivia heard someone on the other side coming to the door. "Who is it?" A woman asked with a thick Italian accent. Elliot remembered hearing that she was a recent immigrant.

"Ms. Palenti its Elliot Stable from next door, I'd like to ask you a few questions." Elliot yelled to the door. In only another few seconds the door flew open and a middle-aged, naturally tanned woman with long, thick curly black hair stood there. She smiled widely seeing Elliot. Elliot smiled back. She made a happy sound and grabbed him and hugged him tightly. Elliot was slightly taken aback. He looked at Olivia for assistance, but she just stood there, smiling, mocking him.

Finally Ms. Palenti let him go, but grabbed his arms and kissed him on both cheeks. "Mr. Stapler, it's so nice to see you. You never come over. How is Kathy? I heard about the separation. I'm so sorry. If you ever need to talk to anyone, please, feel free to stop by. I could make some tea and you could tell me anything you'd like." She said a mile a minute. Neither Elliot nor Olivia really understood what she said. All they did was smile and nod.

"Thanks, it's Stabler."

"Oh of course. Well," she looked at Olivia for the first time. She looked shocked. "Is this your girlfriend? She's very pretty." That they understood. Olivia almost laughed out loud at the thought. Like she would ever date Elliot. He was like a brother to her.

She thought about the night they made love and instantly regretted the analogy.

"Oh, no," Elliot did laugh. "She's not my girlfriend, she's my partner."

"What's the difference?" Ms. Palenti asked with genuine curiosity.

"At work. She's my partner at work. I'm a police officer remember?" Ms. Palenti's eyes lit up.

"Oh of course. Well, what can I do? I don't understand why you are here? Did I do something wrong."

"No," Elliot said quickly, in case the woman fainted. Her face was already growing pale as if she were afraid they would arrest her. "No, I'd like to ask you a few questions."

"What about?"

"Your daughter, Margo." Fear and curiosity were instantly replaced with anger.

"I don't know who you are talking about." She walked back into the house, leaving the door open. Olivia and Elliot took the liberty of walking in behind her.

"Ms. Palenti, I remember her. Your youngest." Ms. Palenti turned to face to face the detectives. Her face was on fire. Instinctively the two took a step back.

"She's a whore. She lost her virginity! She is no longer my daughter." She turned back around and started yelling something in Italian. Liv and Elliot just stood, waiting for her to calm down.

Finally she stopped yelling. "So the two of you had a falling out?" Elliot said calmly. Ms. Palenti took a deep breath.

"When she was fifteen. Last year. Mary Ellen, my oldest daughter, she tells me, Margo lost her virginity. I told her, she could not live in my house anymore. Maybe she could live with her pervert boyfriend."

"Why was he a pervert?" Olivia asked. The first time she spoke. Ms. Palenti was slightly taken aback.

"He took her purity! He's twenty!" That shocked the detectives. But as soon as it came it was gone.

"Ms. Palenti, do you mind if we take a look around Margo's room?" Elliot asked. Ms. Palenti waved her hand in acceptance. She sat down on her white leather couch and stared off into space. Elliot and Olivia walked into Margo's old room. Olivia closed the door so they could have some privacy.

"Mary Ellen and Margo? Doesn't sound very Italian."

"Her husband was white. I guess he picked the names." Elliot immediately went to the window. He thought about Maria-Margo. What was so horrible in her life that she had to come sit at her window daydreaming about another family? What was her mother doing to her?

"Elliot?" He shook out of his thoughts. He turned back to Olivia, she was looking at him with a concerned look. He brushed it off and went to search around the room. The room was kept as it was, probably when Margo left. But it looked like no one ever even walked into this room. He slid his finger over her dresser, and saw the streak in the year's worth of dust.

"Glad they kept up on the housekeeping."

"Elliot," Olivia held up a notebook. "Diary." He walked over as she opened it and began to read a random page. "'Elliot played catch with Dickie today. Dickie kept dropping the ball, Elliot told him it was ok, even when Dickie hit him in the shin. He swore a couple of times. Dickie ran away screaming "I'm sorry! I'm sorry." Kathy came outside and laughed at Elliot. They looked happy. And that made me sad. I keep wondering, what did I do? Why do I live next door to this family? Why am I stuck with these people? Why am I-'" Olivia looked back at Elliot. "It just stops there." Elliot was thinking. He remembered that day. Dickie was afraid he was going to get yelled at. His leg was sore for a week.

"What did she do to that girl?"

Ok, now, in like the next chapter or so, I'm finally going to explain Maria slash Margo's deal. So sit back and relax, oh and review! Really, tell me if you like it! I really appreciate it. Look I'll make a deal with you, you review my story, be it a flame or what, even if its only a "good story plz continue" I'll review your story. Deal?

Bob