"Liv?" Elliot asked. "What happened?" He could hear in her voice how upset she was.

"McGrath suspended me for a month."

"What?" Elliot asked, shocked. "Why?"

"Because I continued working on the case with the sex worker after he said not to," Liv said.

He could tell she was crying. "He suspended you for a month over that? That's totally unreasonable."

"He's furious that her case is now being prosecuted. He told me I wasted time and resources that could have been spent helping real victims," she said. She was openly crying over the phone now. "He accused me of being insubordinate, stubborn and naive."

"That's ridiculous, Liv," Elliot responded. "I'm sorry. He's an asshole who shouldn't be overseeing SVU. Do you want me to pick you up?"

"Fin insisted on driving me home," she said. "I thought it would help prevent him from killing McGrath."

"Tell him I'll help," Elliot said.

"I don't know if I can work for him anymore," Liv admitted that night.

"I know," he said. "It's not just today and getting suspended, is it? It's been building for a while. Have you been thinking about Alex's offer?"

Alex Cabot, who now ran a non-profit helping survivors of sexual assault and intimate partner violence, had offered Liv a job recently.

"Not until today," she said. "But I could be part-time, do clinical work instead of dealing with bureaucracy. When I broke my hand, I got to be home for dinner every night with Eli and Noah. It was nice to have that time. I love helping Sarah with Emmy too." Her eyes widened. "My suspension is perfect timing," she said. Elliot looked confused.

"Oh," he said, catching up to her train of thought, "you mean to help Sarah. It is, actually."

"We hadn't really come up with a plan for after you go back to work next week. I could tell she was nervous with someone new coming in."

"It makes sense she'd still have a lot of anxiety around strangers," he said.

"You have four weeks to decide anything about work," Elliot said, returning to their original topic. "You could retire with a full pension and benefits."

"I actually love the idea of working part-time with set hours," Liv said. "I want a few years of getting to be home for dinner and not having to worry about missing a recital or school event. I love our family so much. I want more time with all of you. With Sarah and Emmy too. I love that they've become a part of our blended family."

"Me too," Elliot said, holding Liv affectionately in his arms. "I love you, Liv."