"Detectives, this is Detective Brian Cassidy; he's going to be joining us through the duration of the Novelo-O'Malley Case. Introduce yourselves, get acquainted, and let's arrest this son-of-a-bitch before he rapes and kills another woman. Fin, go do the honors of showing Cassidy around?"

Fin nodded, "Roger that."

Olivia tenses in her seat while Elliot is watching her like a hawk. Elliot grabs her by the arm and leads her up the stairs away from the bullpen.

"What the hell, Elliot!"

He crossed his arms over his chest, regretting his actions at the very moment, but it was too late to back out now, "What did he do to you?" he asked.

Olivia blinked, "What?" she swallowed, unsure if she'd heard him correctly or if she was making it all up in her head.

He stepped closer, "You heard me, Liv. If there's something you want to—"

She interjected, "What makes you think—"

"Look at yourself! You're shaking, Liv. Cassidy wasn't in the room for a minute, and you look like you've seen a ghost!" Elliot all but shouted. The determination to get to the bottom of Olivia's worry was gnawing at him.

Olivia tensed again and balled her fists, for sure leaving nail indentations in her palms, "What the fuck is he doing here?" She gritted, pointing towards what would be Cassidy's desk.

Elliot ran a hand down his face. He felt defeated as she bypassed just about everything he said, "I didn't know he was coming. Must've put in a transfer—"

A glare from Olivia, and he thought it best to stop talking before he dug himself into a larger hole than he was already in. Smart man, he can nearly hear her say.

They were nearly nose to nose now, and Elliot's voice had gone to a whisper, "Olivia, what did he do to you?" he asked again.

Olivia spat, "Nothing."

"Don't lie to me."

Olivia's teeth began their assault to her bottom lip, she tried to look at anything else in the room anything, but she found her way back to Elliot's eyes, "Brian and I were partners…Last year we got drunk at Maloney's, and I slept with him." She mumbled, barely audible.

All color had left Elliot's face. The vein on his temple protruded significantly, one look in his eye, and Olivia knew he was thinking of all the devilish ways he could get away with murder.

Olivia squints, "Don't look at me like that."

Elliot backs up, "Like what?"

"Like I just killed your damn dog. I broke a rule, Elliot, A personal one, and now he wants to see me again."

"Can you blame him?"

Olivia scoffed.

"You have absolutely no interest, right?" he clarifies.

"No. Nein. Nada. I can say it in any language you want me to! He looks at me like he knows a dirty little secret. It was one time, and it meant nothing."

"And how was it?"

Stupid. You stupid, stupid man…

"You're seriously asking me that?"

"Yes."

Olivia relented, "It was consensual. I did my job. He didn't do his, okay? He's not…."

"Me?" Elliot joked with a sly grin.

Olivia rolled her eyes, "You forgot to check your ego at the door this morning."

"I've known you coming up on sixteen years, Olivia. I know your body. I know how to get you to—"

"Focus, please!" She yelled, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, "Alcohol was flowing, I was single at the time, and drunk Olivia thought It would be a good idea. It was supposed to be a one-night one-time thing. Which it was and still is, might I add. For the rest of my time in homicide, he was flirting heavily, touching me, and just trying to get me into bed again…."

"Relax…None of that's going to happen. For as long as he's here, if he makes it that long, I'll be sure he leaves you the fuck alone."

"Don't get in trouble, alright?"

"I won't…as long as he keeps his hands to himself."

"Elliot."

"I won't stand idly by Liv. We've been over this, remember?"

Olivia nodded, "Yeah," she whispered.

"We're gonna be just fine. I'd rather think about how we're finally getting you all moved in tonight. We just have to pick up that insipid corner chair you insist on bringing." He teased her.

It was the only piece of furniture Olivia couldn't part with.

"I love that chair."

"Mmhmm, and it's going to take a game of Tetris to get it in the car."

"You'll figure it out," she teased back, "Any second thoughts?"

"No. Nein. Nada," he kissed her nose and grinned, "Never."

"What did we get back on the DNA?" Elliot asked.

"DNA was a match. The sample was mixed. Two contributors…" Olivia said.

"That's it? That's all you have?"

"No. Would I ever lead you on like that?" She opened the new file on her desk, "They're both in the system…but not the system you're thinking of. Melinda ran it twice to make sure she got it right…and the data is a bit concerning. It's a familial match."

"Wow, the Laudermen bloodline is as dirty as a crack pipe."

"Joe Laudermen's brother, Alan, is an earth science teacher at the same school with first period being his free period."

"We got him?"

Olivia snapped the file closed, "We got him."

"That's sick, don't ya think?" Cassidy said, "Doesn't that make your stomach just…."

Munch shook a bottle on his desk, "Take an antacid. Helps us old folk stomach the rest of society's wrongdoings."

"Can't take it?" Elliot said, grinning at Cassidy like the cat who ate the canary.

Cassidy swallowed, "No…no, I'll be fine. Just need to get used to it, that's all."

"You'll never get used to it, Cassidy. You just learn how to handle the sick twisted fucks better." Fin said.

"Do we even know why he raped the kid?" Cassidy asked.

Fin shrugged, "Could be plenty of things. Sometimes…there isn't a real answer."

"Isn't that the point of SVU? Finding out the why aspect?" Cassidy asked.

"You're looking a little green there, kiddo. You sure you're okay?" Munch asked.

"Fine," Cassidy burped, "I'll just try and think happy thoughts."

"Well, they won't be too happy for long," Cragen said, "We got another body, a record album, and a new note according to CSU techs."

"They started the investigation without us?" Olivia asked.

"Hardly, you all had a busy morning. Melinda still requests your presence."

"Who goes?" Fin asked.

"Benson and Stabler. You two seem to be more well-versed with the music genre this guy spews out. Maybe you two can decipher what code this idiot is talking in."

"Let's roll." Elliot takes his coat off the back of his chair.

"Right behind you."

Cassidy swiveled his chair around, un-nauseated and feeling better, "Do you know who Liv is seeing?"

Fin shrugged, "Don't know, buddy," he lied, "She's a private lady."

"Munch, help me out here!" Cassidy begged.

"Sorry, pal, if she doesn't want to tell you, she's not going to tell you."

"Is she dating a cop?" Cassidy asked.

"Again, none of your concern." Munch parroted.

"Liv and I used to work homicide together. We told each other everything…." Cassidy explained.

"Nah, Cassidy, this isn't homicide. Besides, she did her job. You probably just watched her backside..." Fin laughed.

"Wouldn't you?" Cassidy grinned.

"Hell no," Fin said, "She's like my kid sister."

"Yeah, well, Stabler looks like he wants to take a bite out of your sister." Cassidy remarked.

"Watch it." Fin warned.

"I wanna take a bite out of who's sister?" Elliot asked.

Brian went pale, "I thought you guys left."

Elliot squints, "Forgot the keys to the cruiser," he jingles them in his hand, "Care to run that by me again, Cassidy?"

"Our new friend Brian is asking about SVU's token lady," Munch said, jabbing a thumb at Cassidy.

"Ever think about sharing your partner, Stabler?" Brian asked.

Elliot laughed, "I don't like to share, sorry."

Elliot turned on his heels with keys in tow and left Cassidy brooding at his desk, trying to figure out a way to see Olivia without the NYPD on his back.

Little did he know that it would be more complicated than he thought.

"God, is that what I think it is?" Olivia coughed sharply.

"Decomp," He gagged, "and it's bad."

The duo stood outside the victim's apartment door while Melinda was just an earshot away.

"What do we got?" Elliot said, his tie stretched over his nose.

"Isabella Sanders, twenty-seven, cause of death is exsanguination from a slashed jugular."

Elliot coughed, "How long has she been here?"

"Liver temp isn't very telling, her organs have begun decomp, but I estimate it to be somewhere between ten to fourteen days. I can be more precise when I get her on my table."

"No one reported her missing?"

"Not until the downstairs neighbor reported the smell. The landlord found her. He's back in his office throwing up."

"What's in the bag?" Olivia coughed.

"MP3 player, the victim was wearing it."

"What song is cued up?" Olivia asked.

"Time After Time, the one that Cyndi Lauper chick sings."

"And a note?"

I'm one step closer. I'll just take my time with you. Tick Tok.

Elliot lost color, even more nauseated than before, and Olivia noticed it immediately.

"El? Are you okay?"

"We need to get back to the station. Right now." He urged.

"We just got here!" Olivia exclaimed.

"Trust me?"

The worried expression he was sporting made her uneasy because this wasn't his nature. Elliot would never be this upset if it wasn't critical. Of course, she trusted him.

"We need to go. I'll explain on the way."

The duo entered the precinct with a new sense of doom, ironically they had to make their case before introducing their convoluted theory. They rounded up infront of the murder board, Munch's legs were strewn over his desk, "We don't have any suspects, the murder weapon is a weapon of opportunity, and these women are not linked!"

"The killer is fixated on these women, not for who they are but rather how they are."

Fin furrowed his brow, "I'm not following you, Stabler."

Elliot's desk phone rang, and he stepped away to answer. Olivia pointed to each of the pictures, "All of these women had the same color and length of hair when they were found. All of them have the same frame. The only thing these women have in common is their body type. Our rapist has a type."

Elliot let the phone drop back on the hook, "That was Melinda. She said that stomach contents contained a sedative, alcohol, fries, and peanut oil."

"Peanut oil?" Fin said.

"Yeah…That threw me for a loop too."

"Peanut oil is rarely used in frying nowadays because of the number of peanut allergies kids and adults are developing nowadays. How many restaurants serve fries cooked with peanut oil?"

Elliot crossed his arms in thought, "Not that many."
Olivia's smile began to grow, "And how many of those places have a liquor license?"

"Shit," Elliot cursed, "Flannigan's." Their theory may not be so convoluted after all.

"Yeah," Olivia nodded, "And what I'm about to say isn't going to make things better."

Elliot went rigid, "Liv—"

"No, just listen," she hissed, "I told you…I sang these songs."

Fin shrugged, "Anyone could sing those songs…."

"Not with Jerry's rule." Olivia explained.

"What's Jerry's rule?" Fin asked.

"No song can be sung twice in the same month. It prevents the wanna-be broadway people from overdoing their version of The Wizard and I."

The Captain's door was cracked, Donald Cragen had heard it all, "Are you telling me our guy is fixated on you, Benson?" Cragen asked, trying his best to follow.

"It's just a theory… speculation, Cap. There are no solid leads. This guy's messages are personal as hell."

"Make enemies in homicide?" Cragen asked half-heartedly, "Anyone that stands out? This all seemed to have started the night after you got here…."

Olivia was speechless. Of course, she had made enemies. She didn't join the force to make friendship bracelets and sing Kumbaya. In scouring through her time in homicide through memories, Olivia made a startling connection. A connection that made her stomach jump. She went white, and all breath left her body.

"None that stand out."

"Liv, what's going on?"

"I um…I.." She stuttered, "There's another possibility," The gang leaned in, anxious to hear if maybe she was right again, "Every night I was on stage, every night I sang, the next morning these women are found dead, hours after my performance."

The men in the circle said nothing but looked to her with sorrowful eyes, "Who the hell did I piss off?" She said, withholding a tear.

Elliot looked to her, distraught, flushed, and frustrated he couldn't console her. Instead, he threw his arm around Olivia and pulled her against his side, "Our guy is a patron of Flannigan's."

A/N: GUYS! I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I know it's been like a month! After having COVID over Christmas and the stupid side shit I had to do for school, I found time to finish this chapter that I started a month ago. More soon! I love you! Your kind reviews bring me back to my computer faster! xoxo