Time jump: After the trial

Barba threw his jacket against the couch in rage. He had pushed through every attempt to make the charges stick but in the end, the jury failed to look past his charm. Looking down at his phone he nearly screamed at the message he received.

"He's on bail." Barba scoffed. "Some system we have." Losing up his tie, he placed the phone to ear waiting for the other line to pick up.

'I heard about the trial. Tough luck.'

"Yeah, look I need someone to tail him."

'Who? Lewis?'

Was the question not obvious enough? "Yes."

'Rafael, let it go. Nothing else you can do, but wait until he slips.'

"James, it's not a request. Get someone to tail him. He's out on bail if I can't get my hands on him, I at least want something to put him behind bars."

James sighed, but in the end, had given in. 'Alright, I'm sending two out right now.' He cleared his throat. 'But we have an assignment.'

Barba wasn't surprised. You wanted something from them, you needed to give something back. "Where?"

'Rome. Italy to be specific.' James replied. 'The counterterrorism task force is having difficulty with a prisoner of theirs. They need you in on that.'

Knowing he couldn't talk himself out of this, he agreed with no issues. "Fine. When do I leave?"

'Now, before you go all Barba on me Carmen will pick you up at the station. Say your goodbyes and get going. Shouldn't take longer than two days.'

"On it." Staring at the phone it took all his will not to throw it across the room. "I need a new job."

Walking into the squad room, he spotted the group huddling eating dinner. "Don't you lot have a life outside the station?"

"Say the DA that just walked in." Rollins snapped.

Barba raised a brow at the tone. "Eat a snicker, Rollins."

Fin was quick to stop the incoming insult. "So, Lewis on bail?"

"Seems that way." He had no intention of wasting his little time, talking about Lewis. "We will get him."

"Without a doubt." Carisi smacked the table, causing the others to jump. "Sorry."

"Where is Liv?" Barba hadn't seen her when he came in and her office was closed. "Home?"

Fin shook his head, handing him a box of rice. "No, Lucy just dropped off Jess and Noah. She's gone outside to pick them up."

"Noah still going to your place?" Barba asked.

Rollins nodded. "Yeah, two days. I'll be dropping him off Sunday afternoon."

"Uncle Rafa!" Noah had just turned into the bullpen when he noticed Rafael.

Barba had just enough time to turn around and catch the incoming boy. "I don't see you for a few days and you're already as tall as me." Kissing him on the cheek, he hugged him tightly. "Como estas?"

"Bien!" He grinned proudly at having answered in Spanish. "Y-Y tu?"

"Mejor." Putting him down, he looked over at Olivia. "Liv, got a moment?"

"Yeah, ah, Can you guys watch Noah for a moment?" She sat her son down, grabbing the box of rice Barba handed her. "I will be right back."

"Okay mami."

Barba chuckled. "He's catching on."

Closing the door behind her, she nodded. "His teachers have been wondering who's been teaching him. Hoping they can teach the rest of the class." Sitting in her chair, she frowned at seeing Barba, not a move. His body was tense, rigid-like. "Rafa, what's the matter?"

"I have to go away for a few days." He blurted out. "Should be back in two days max, sooner if I can."

"Away? Where to?"

He knew he shouldn't say anything, but he couldn't, not say anything. Like he said before he would never leave without saying goodbye and he try his best to never lie to her. "Rome, Italy."

"Rome." She leaned back with a 'phew.' "When are you leaving?"

He felt his phone vibrate as she spoke those words. "Now, but I wanted to come tell you in person." He gripped the back of the chair in a form of restraint. Barba wanted nothing more than to kiss her, but her office was not the best place. "I will call you as soon as I land. If it's not too late, I FaceTime."

"Okay." She smiled.

"I'm sorry Liv." He walked around her desk, crouching beside her chair. "I tried getting out of it."

"I understand." She truly did. What she didn't understand was, why he was going to Rome. What purpose would the ADA have going to Rome? "I'll miss you."

He chuckled. "Probably not as much as me." Poking his head to glance over her desk, he found no one looking towards them. As he leaned forward to stand, he paused just inches from her. As she leaned forward, he pulled back. "We are in your office, Captain."

"Screw it." Grabbing his tie, she pulled him in for a kiss.

Barba braced himself on the armrests, pushing her back into her chair. Running his tongue across her bottom lip, he swallowed the slight moan she gave. As he deepened the kiss, he growled at feeling his phone vibrate once more. "I will see you in a few days." Pulling back he gave her one last peck, before walking out of the office. He stayed any longer and he was sure Carmen would have to drag him out. "Noah."

The little boy turned around with cheeks full of food. "Mm?"

"I have to leave, you behave yourself okay?" All Noah could do was nod his head. "Atta boy, I'll see you in a few days." Kissing him on the head, he waved to the others.

Olivia walked out to join her son and team, catching Barba stepping into the elevators. "Noah, you still want to spend the night with Amanda? Or come home with me?"

"Amanda please." He grinned.

"Rollins, that okay?"

The blond nodded. "Of course, it was the plan either way."

"Hey, Liv, where Barba go off to?" Fin asked.

Carisi took a bite of his food, shaking the chopsticks towards her. "He said he'd see Noah in a few days."

Of course, they would catch up on that. "He's going to Rome, Italy for two days. Some case I believe."

"Rome?" Amaro frowned. "They don't have lawyers down there?"

Olivia shrugged. "Asked myself the same thing."

Fin took a sip of his drink, the wheels in his brain turning. Italy. What were the odds? For the past month, he has been talking to an old friend, who was currently stationed in Italy, Rome. 'This should be interesting.' Should Barba run into him, it was sure to bring up a common subject between the two.

Time jump: few hours.

Barba stood at the entrance of the jet, scanning over the airfield. His eyes landed on the unmarked SUV a few feet away from him. As he took a step down, he froze. Ever since he got on the jet, he's been getting an uneasy feeling. Something screaming at him to go back. Sending Olivia a quick text he was approached by a man in a suit. Desoro trotted over to him, sniffing him out before letting Barba get close.

"Mr. Barba?" His tone was a bit shaky. "That is you correct?"

Barba raised a brow. "Get many ghosts on private planes down here?"

The younger man quickly shook his head. "N-no, sir. Forgive me."

"Relax, now how about you brief me." Following him towards the vehicle, they jumped into the back seat. "What am I doing here?"

"I am not the one to ask." He replied. "My supervisor will brief you."

"Then let's get going." He ordered. "I need to get back home as soon as possible."

"Yes sir."

Barba clenched his fist as the jet got further and further from him. That screaming he felt, was now turning into a pounding. Glancing at his phone, he sighed at not seeing a response. But then again they had a time difference. It was 6 am where he was at the moment, making it midnight in New York. Pulling up James's contact he made the call.

'I need to set a schedule of the times you are allowed to call.'

"I'm in Rome." Barba snipped. "Have you heard anything from the Tails?"

'Last update I got was 15 mins ago Barba. He's stashed in some halfway house. If anything happens you will be the first to know.'

"What about the one assigned to Liv?"

'She hasn't gotten home yet. Reported back they went out for drinks, still at the bar at the moment.'

"And-"

'Noah is fine, Lucy is watching over him. You need to focus on your assignment Rafael. They want to know everything this man knows. You can't give them that if you're worried about something else. We have it covered over here, you do that.'

Taking in a deep breath, he exhaled slowly. "Right, I-I have a feeling. Something isn't right."

'Look, I'll double the security on Olivia and Noah tomorrow. But right now I need your head clear.'

"Understood." Hanging up, he tossed his head back. Focusing on his breathing, he inhaled and exhaled a few times. Attempting to clear his mind of anything, but the now. Which turned out harder than he expected.

"We are here sir." The young man called out.

Barba glanced out the window, nearly rolling his eyes. Opening the door he was greeted by a brunet woman. "You are?"

"Linda." She smiled. "Mr. Barba I presume."

"Who are they?" He gestured to the four individuals standing at top of the stairs.

"They are the counterterrorism team." She gestured for him to follow her. "These are Bryan, Teddy, Viddick, and Elliot."

Barba offered them a stiff nod. "Which one of you is going to brief me?"

Bryan stepped forward, hands behind his back like a good soldier. "You will be brief inside."

"Lead the way gentleman. I need to get going soon." Barba stood back, following them into the building. Cramping into the elevator, they pushed for the lowest level. Desoro sat beside him, creating a gap between him and the group. He could feel the set of eyes on him. It was starting to irritate him. Before he could snap at them, the doors opened to reveal a long dark hallway. Following them once more they took him to the end of said hallway and walked into a room. It was pretty much a room to view the interrogation from another room.

Barba's eyes landed on the man sitting into the box. He was untouched. No bruises or cuts. "So, what's he in here for? What do you want from him? And what do you have?"

Bryan handed him a file, frowning when Barba refused it. "It has everything you need."

"I don't need anything, but the answer to those three questions." Barba replied. "That file will tell me nothing, but his history. You want something that isn't in there, otherwise, I wouldn't be here. So what is that?"

"Three weeks ago there was a bombing at one of our largest malls." Linda began. "A week after, at our schools. Three schools with times bombs to go off at the same time."

"This week they bombed two police stations." Teddy added. "His prints were on every single one of them. When we caught him, he was in the process of building another."

"Okay, that answers question 1." He shrugged his jacket off tossing it over a chair. "What have you gotten from him?"

"Nothing." Elliot replied. "He won't talk."

"I got that part." Barba rolled his sleeves up and crossed his arms across his chest. "What do you want from him?"

"Everything and anything you can get from him." Linda ordered. "Do whatever you deemed necessary."

That was a new one. "Do you need him alive?"

Elliot frowned at the question. "Wait, wait. What exactly are you planning on doing?"

Barba's eyes jumped to each individual in the room, stopping on Elliot. "My job. Make him talk."

"Torture." He scoffed. "You are going to torture the man."

"I prefer the term forcible interrogation, but torture works." Walking past the man, he was pulled back by a hand on his arm. "You wish to keep that hand, I'd remove it." Desoro gave him a warning growl.

"You are not going in there." Elliot growled.

"And you are the one that's going to prevent that?" Barba shrugged him off, with an annoyed sigh. "I was ordered to come here. Not because I wanted to. I was very much happy in the arms of a very beautiful woman before this. So, if you think you can do what you haven't been able to do, please go ahead." He stepped to the side giving him access to the room.

Elliot turned towards Linda. "This is not how we work."

"Not my call any more, Stabler." Linda gave him a warning tone. Clearly ordering him to stand down. "This comes from above us. They want to know everything he knows. You gave it a shot."

Barba retrained any reaction to hearing the name. Elliot Stabler. So this was Liv's ex-partner. 'Just my fucken luck.' "Am I good to go or are we going to keep chatting over this?" Barba knew he was bending an ass. But then again he didn't care.

Linda nodded. "Please continue."

"Desoro, watch the door." The dog sat against the now-closed door. Her eyes jumped to each person. Anyone who attempts to get close got a snap of her teeth.

Elliot glared at the dog. "This is wrong Linda. You know that."

"I do, but like I said. This is not my call."

"Bullshit." Bryan scoffed. "The man is a suit! What could he possibly do that we haven't?"

"Make him talk." She grumbled. "Look, Rafael Barba is much more than he appears. I haven't worked with him before, but a colleague of mine has. I asked made a few calls and he sent this back to me." She handed Elliot her phone with an email opened.

You didn't get this from me, but I did some digging around. Rafael Barba has been with the organization since he was 15. No record of a family, doctor, or even a birth certificate anywhere. The man is a ghost. Appears when he is summoned and disappears when the job is done. He is the best at what do does. He may look like just a suit, but do not underestimate him. He will have you hanging from your feet and guts spilled before you know it. There is a file of what I was able to snatch. Linda, erase all of this when you are done.

Clicking on the file, Elliot knitted his brows. "He's working as the ADA?"

Linda nodded. "For now it appears that is his cover story. A life within his true life."

"Where?"

She shrugged. "Don't know." That was a lie. She knew of Stabler's past with NYPD and SVU. Hell, doing this job has finally allowed him to fall back into the good grace of the NYPD. The last thing he needed to know was the fact that Barba was working with his old partner.

"So, we just stand here and do nothing?" Teddy huffed.

"For now." Linda switches the intercom back on, listening in on the interrogation. If you can even call it that.

Barba circled the man and table a few times. He wasn't sure how to start. So he improvised. "My name is Rafael Barba, I'm just going to ask you a few questions." As expected the man simply glared at him. "My not so friendly GI-Joes on the other side have explained to me you aren't much of a talker. So I figured I'd change that." His eyes landed on the sheet-covered cart the unexpected man. "What's your name?" Walking over to the cart, he grabbed a syringe. "You ever hear of the Caribbean Pufferfish? No. Well, like most pufferfish they are venomous. It's one of their defense mechanisms." He appeared in front of the man, taking a seat in the chair. "The toxin completely disables your ability to move your muscles but it leaves all the other neurological functions intact so you feel everything." Placing the syringe in between them, he leaned back. "What's your name?" Getting no response, he sighed. "I was thinking about using the toxin, but where's the fun in a little struggle." Un-cuffing him from the table he walked over to the cart and grabbed a knuckle brace.

Attempting to open the door, he growled at finding it close. "Let me out of here."

"Ah, he speaks." Barba chuckled.

Snatching the syringe from the table, he held it up. "You don't let me out, I will stick this into you."

Shoving his hands into his pocket, he shrugged. "Try it."

The man was hesitant but still ran at him with the needle. Barba suddenly bends down using his strength to flip him over onto the table. His back hits the steel table with a loud bang. "Nice try."

A silent groan escaped from him. His arms pinned against his chest, trying to detain the pain in one spot. "A-Adam."

"Adam." Barba patted him on the chest ignoring the painful cry. "Alright Adam, tell me are there any more bombs set up by you? Or anyone with you?"

Adam shook his head. "Fuck you."

With an exhausting shake of the head, he stood beside him. "These next moments are going to be extremely painful for you." Turning towards the cart, he suddenly felt a prick on the side of his stomach. "You are an idiot." Slapping the boy across the face, he pulled the syringe out. Adam fell from the table, spitting the blood that had pooled into his mouth.

"Did he-" Teddy approached the glass pointing that the two men inside.

Linda nodded wordlessly. "Get him out of there."

Elliot made quick to enter the box, only to be stopped by the growling dog. "Damn dog."

Bryan grabbed his taser aiming it at her. "This is going to hurt."

"Wait, stop." Linda stared at Barba, releasing an annoying groan. "It's was water in the syringe."

"Asshole." Elliot grumbled.

Tossing the syringe to the side, he picked Adam up and pushed slammed him against the wall. "I have been going real easy on you Adam. But I'm bored. So, either start talking on your own accord or by force."

"Screw you puto!"

Letting him drop to the ground, he punched him a few times. He needed the younger man's adrenaline running if he was to withstand what was coming. Grabbing the handcuffs off the table, he cuffed them back on Adam's wrist and attached them to a hook on the wall. Adam stood on his tiptoes groaning at the sudden stretch. Barba used a pair of scissors to cut off the bloody shirt and shoved a piece into Adam's mouth. Grabbing a knife from the cart, he sat on the edge of the table. Twirling the knife in his hand.

"All I need from you is the names of your associates and targeted places." Barba spoke in a smooth tone. A weak attempt at not scaring the man any more than he already was. "It's not just your life in danger here Adam. Any family you may have will be targeted." He saw the fear flash in his eyes. "They will be questioned, tortured, and killed. I will personally make it my pleasure in making sure you are there to witness it. Feel the pain and agony you made thousands feel bombing those schools." Walking over to him, he placed the knife just below his third rib. "It takes a lot to learn the human body. But you have 67 spots I can stab that will not be fatal to you. They will hurt like hell, but you will live." Pushing the knife in, Adam gritted his teeth. "Names Adam."

Elliot walked out of the room after the sixth stab. He needed a breath of fresh air. The kid was bathed in his blood by the time he walked back in. His eyes follow Barba's movements. He clenched his jaw at seeing the smirk on his lips. "He's enjoying this."

Bryan chuckled. "There is a reason he is claimed to be the best."

"Doing that you're good at." Viddick grumbled.

"He's going to kill him." Elliot clenched his fist. Reminding himself he couldn't intervene."

"I will stop it if need be." Linda whispered.

Barba cringed at pulling the knife back out. He was starting to feel sick at the sight of Adam. Closing his eyes for a moment, he regain his composure and moved in once more. The vibration of his phone breaking his momentum, seeing the caller ID his frown deepens.

"Carmen, not the best time."

'I know, but we have a problem.'

"What?"

'They lost Lewis.'

Barba paused. "Excuse me?"

'Lewis lost his tail.'

"You're telling me Lewis ghosted two ghosts?!"

'Yes.'

"Where was he last seen?"

'Amsterdam st.'

Barba's entire body froze. A dark feeling crawled up his body. "Manhattan?"

'Yes, why?'

"Get everybody you can to Liv's apartment now!" Barba barked, ripping the door open.

'Rafael what's going on?!'

"Do as I say, I want every available body there now! I am on my way." Running out to the hallway, he was blocked by Teddy and Viddick. "Move."

"You are still not done in there." Viddick said. "We haven't gotten what we needed."

Barba shoved him against the wall. "I don't give a shit!"

"You said it yourself, you were ordered." Elliot blocked the exit door. "We need those answers."

Barba nearly screamed out loud as he walked back into the room. Grabbing a scalpel and towel from the cart, he raised Adam's arm and slashed him right above the armpit. Putting the towel under the arm, he gripped the boys' face and forced him to look at him. "Right now that towel is the only thing keeping you alive. I remove it and you have about ten seconds before bleeding out. Give me names!"

Adam whimpered with a shaky nod. "Anything, please just stop."

Letting him go, he removed the towel and threw it towards Elliot. "6 seconds before he bleeds out." Grabbing his phone, he called James. "4 seconds." Teddy and Viddick rushed to stop the bleeding. "2 seconds." Adam passed out exactly at ten seconds.

'Rafael, Carmen just updated me. What do you need.'

"Besides the heads of the idiots that lost him, a faster jet."

'Already done.' James had ordered managed to get ahold of one. He knew it would be fruitless in stopping Barba from coming back. 'Our people are on their way.'

"Call her squad. Make sure Noah is looked after. If he so much as touches her I –"

'Don't.' James snapped. 'Don't think like that. You need to be clear-minded in case something did happen.'

"Let me know what you find at Liv's place."

Barba ran out of the building ignoring the calls from those behind him. Desoro by his side, he climbed up into the jet. Urging the pilot to get a move on he banged his head against the seat. 'I should have listened myself.'

Elliot stared at the departing jet. Barba had spoken of a Liv and a squad. It couldn't have been his Liv right? Olivia could never be involved with a man like that. Surely it wasn't his Olivia.