Then Elliot pressed a kiss on the top of her head, and some kind of primitive instinct for survival ignited inside Olivia. She was still alive, Elliot was still alive, and as long as the situation remained that way, nothing else mattered.

It was as if he had read her mind, because he took her hand in his own, and looked at her determinedly with his blue eyes.

It wasn't time to give up yet.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The journey to the wreck of the plane took longer than usual because of Cassidy's foot, and Brown had rushed them, clearly stressed. When they finally arrived at the scene of the crash, Cassidy collapsed to the snow, exhausted and in pain, and Olivia felt sorry for him. Sweat dripped from his forehead, and he had squeezed his eyes shut tightly. Brown glanced at him irritably.

"You better be thankful I didn't shoot you. We were almost late because of you, and the bosses don't like waiting." Then they heard the muffled sound of the helicopter from a distance, and Brown dug the radiophone out of his pocket while looking up at the air. Olivia glanced at Elliot and then looked at her hands.

"I'm sorry I didn't believe you when you said there was something suspicious about Brown," she said quietly. Her partner smirked as he closely followed Brown's movements.

"Well, I wouldn't have believed either," he said. "It was pretty far-fetched, but something in his demeanor made me anxious."

"Your instincts are clearly not rusty," she smiled weakly. Hunger, sleep debt, and mental stress made her feel weak, and she leaned against a tree. Elliot looked at her and frowned.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine."

However, he did not have time to answer, because then the helicopter appeared from behind the trees, and its rumble filled the environment. A stream of air dusted the snow around them, and they had to cover their faces with their hands. However, the thick forest cover prevented the helicopter from landing, and someone threw the rope ladder down.

"Seriously?!" There was Cassidy's desperate exclamation, but then Brown pointed them with his gun and commanded to climb the ladder. Munch and Fin set out to climb up, Cassidy somehow managed to slowly follow them. Olivia looked at the swaying ladder in front of her and swallowed but gathered all her strength and was able to climb up in the helicopter. A moment later, Elliot slumped groaning beside her, and the last climber Brown closed the helicopter door.

"Everyone's on board, we can leave."

The driver of the helicopter nodded briefly, and then the helicopter took off and started to head towards the destination. They couldn't say that flying after the accident made them feel very relaxed, and the color had escaped even the face of the iron-nerved Munch. Elliot took Olivia's hand in his own and entwined their fingers, and she leaned tightly against him. The heat radiated from her partner made the knot in her stomach loosen up a bit and soon she felt sleepy.

"I really hope we'll get at least some food there. I wouldn't like to die knowing that the last thing I ate was a bird cooked by Fin's underpants," there was Elliot's voice. A faint smile lingered on Olivia's face as she closed her eyes and sighed deeply.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

After about an hour, the helicopter slowed down and began to land. They looked around, but all they could see was the forest. Then, however, they noticed a large house in the middle of the trees, to which a small road led. There was a small runway about half a mile from the house to which the helicopter also headed. Olivia felt Elliot's grip on her hand tighten as the helicopter hit the ground and Brown opened the door.

"Everybody out!" He exclaimed and waved his weapon. They climbed out clumsily, and the bright daylight made them squint their eyes. Then Brown pointed his gun towards the house and announced: "We are going that way, move!"

After a while, they arrived at the house, which on closer inspection turned out to be huge. It looked well maintained, as its white exterior was flawless, and the road to the house was also ploughed carefully.

"Can I introduce, the headquarters!" Brown said and grinned. "Quite modest but meets the needs of the organization."

Suddenly the door of the house opened and two men in suits stepped towards them. They both had a gun in their hand, and Elliot moved slightly in front of Olivia.

"Brown, the boss wants to meet you right away," one of the men said and Brown nodded. He started to walk ahead, and the unknown men walked behind them as they entered through the door of the house. The house was also luxurious inside and decorated in light colors. A few green plants created coziness, and without knowing it better, you might have thought that the house was just an ordinary home, albeit an expensive one. However, Brown continued to the kitchen and to their surprise opened the refrigerator door and then the vegetable box. There was a keypad at the back of the box on which Brown typed the number combination.

"The safest hiding place in house," he grinned and at the same time there was a slam on the wall next to the fridge and a gap appeared in the wall. They slipped through the gap and ended up in a surprisingly small room with a few high-tech computers and a desk. Behind the desk sat a man who stared at them intently.

"SVU's elite squad," he said. There was something in the man's voice that made the cold shivers run along Olivia's spine. "What an honor to have you here as our guests. I'm so sorry there were a few plot twists on your trip, but now you're finally here. My name is Robert Harris, and I am the brain and the heart of this organization. I would like to warmly welcome you to our low hut."

Then he got up and walked slowly from behind the table in front of them talking at the same time: "We have had a bit of technical issues in recent days and our technology manager is taking care of things elsewhere. Contrary to previous plans, we will not start working with you until tomorrow. But since you are our guests, of course we will provide you with meals and accommodation, because with all due respect, you look like you need a hot shower as soon as possible," he grimaced. "However, there is round-the-clock surveillance in the area, so we'd appreciate it if none of you tried to go out on your own," he glanced menacingly at them and then turned his gaze to Brown.

"Is that it?" He asked and looked greedily at the box in Brown's hands. He nodded and handed the box to his boss.

"Against all the laws of physics, it survived the crash."

Harris took the box in his hands and held it as if it were a newborn baby. His eyes glimmered and a happy grin rose to his face. "Finally," he whispered. "Finally we take a step forward. Then he lifted his gaze to them and looked at them in turn, evaluating. "Brown, you could introduce your new friends so we can create a profile of them for tomorrow."

Brown nodded and pointed to Fin first: "Odafin "Fin" Tutuola, a kind-hearted and witty man. Loyal to his friends, and once you win his trust, he'll always have your back."

Then he pointed to Munch: "John Munch, Fin's partner. Smart, has the ability to look "out of the box". Sometimes he gets stuck in his own thoughts, but he's ultimately trustworthy and empathetic."

When he got to Cassidy, he sighed: "Brian Cassidy. My initial impression of him was that he is a little immature, yet kind-hearted and a guy for everyone. During the trip, however, he showed some traits that made me to change my mind. So basically, he wants to do things the right way, but he's a little unpredictable, especially if he doesn't get what he wants."

Cassidy clenched his fists and Brown moved to Elliot: "Elliot Stabler, he's got quite a temper. Fair, ready to put himself on the line for his friends. Trustworthy and sharp-witted, great detective."

Then Brown's gaze moved to Olivia, and a greedy gaze caught his eyes: "Olivia Benson, also called Liv. The heart of the whole gang, who does everything for her friends and for the right acts. Elliot's partner, Cassidy's ex-girlfriend," he finished talking. Harris nodded and looked at them thinking.

"Is there anything else that could benefit us?" He asked.

"Well, at least these two," Brown pointed at Olivia and Elliot. "These two would for instance jump into the well for each other."

Harris's eyes flashed dangerously, and he put his hands behind his back. "Thank you for the information, Brown. Now we can talk a little bit about this day. Each of you has your own rooms, all with a private bathroom. The house used to be an apartment hotel," he explained. "Dinner is served at 7pm, I recommend shower before it. You can get a change of clothes in the locker room. You are allowed to move around the house freely except this room, going out is not allowed. Brown will guide you to your rooms. Now you are free to leave."

They set out to follow Brown towards the locker room, and Olivia couldn't wait to enter her room. She managed to close the worry from her mind by filling it with the idea of warm shower and clean clothes.

"I'll have time to worry later," she decided as she pulled the blouse off the hanger. She was going to enjoy the shower as if it were literally the last of her life.