"Frannie May Rollins! Stop that God Damned barking before I lose my mind!" Amanda rolled over in her bed, trying to ignore her dog, who, for the last day and a half, had been staring up at the ceiling, barking her fucking head off and annoying the absolute hell out of the neighbors. Amanda had tried everything. She'd tried to take Frannie on a run, which had ended in Amanda being dragged back towards the door of her building by the snarling, angrily focused Frannie, who seemed to think barking was the best way to let out whatever pent up tension she had inside of her. She'd even taken the annoying dog to the park, thinking that she could get out some of her energy chasing a frisbee, but all Frannie had done was sit on her haunches and howl mournfully, running back to the car and pawing at the door as soon as Amanda had dropped the leash and thrown the frisbee. Even the vet couldn't understand what was wrong. Amanda had taken Frannie in after the first day of non-stop barking.
"I have absolutely no idea what's gotten into her." Amanda had said to as she sipped her triple espresso, having gotten no sleep, in between Frannie's barking and the neighbor's complaining, and the visits from the beat cops who responded to the noise complaints. When she opened the door to speak to the officers, Frannie had raced out between them, down the hall to the fire stairs and sat in front of them, howling and barking. She'd run back and tugged on Officer Reagan's pant leg, before racing back to the stairwell, slamming into it with such force Amanda had been surprised she hadn't dented the metal door. It took both officers and Amanda to get the damn dog back into the apartment. She completely ignored the offer of bacon from Officer Janko, instead continuing her vigil of barking and snarling at the ceiling for ten seconds, and walking over and weaving in between Amanda's legs like a cat before doing it again.
On Sunday night, when Amanda absolutely could take no more, she took Frannie out for a run, surprised when the tan pitbull galloped out the door and jerked the leash from her mother's hand, nose to the ground and racing after an invisible scent trail. She barked desperately, and Amanda indulged her, running after her dog as Frannie ran down the street and out of the parking lot, turned left and raced towards the hardware store.
"FRANNIE NO!" Amanda shouted, but it was too late. Panting, Amanda stood with her hands on her knees and watched in absolute horror and embarrassment, as Frannie ran through the automatic doors, down the camping aisle and straight into a display of R.V. safe toilet paper before jumping back up, and running right past her, nose to the ground outside in a handicapped parking space. She stopped sniffing, sat down on her haunches and howled the most mournful, sad, desperate howl Amanda had ever heard a dog make. Her heart sank. Frannie was trying to tell her something, and she had no idea what it could be.
"Ok girl. I get it. Why don't we go back to the apartment, and Liv can watch you while I get some sleep? I have work in…..eight hours." At the sound of Olivia's name, Frannie jumped up, barking hysterically, chasing her tail and putting her nose back to the cement, pawing at it, racing past her and into the store once more, down the camping aisle where an employee was restocking the display she'd just destroyed moments ago, looking up in horror at the charging pitbull, who, to her credit, avoided the display this time, choosing instead to race towards the first aid section, sit on her haunches and snarl at the bottles of rubbing alcohol. Eventually, Amanda was able to coral the dog, leash her, and drag the uncooperative mass of dog the four and a half miles back to her apartment. Once back in the apartment, Amanda mentally prepared for the barking to resume, but Frannie surprised her. The dog walked over to the guest room, and leapt onto the bed, howling once up at the ceiling before curling up in the mess of blankets that Amanda still had not washed, and laying with her head on her paws, alert and awake.
Amanda herself popped a shot of Nyquil and was asleep for a blessed, wonderful, amazing seven hours.
"Hey Manda!" Fin's voice brought her out of her sleep deprived haze. She came into the office, Frannie in tow, with the largest, most caffeinated coffee that Starbucks had on their menu. "How was your weekend? I didnt know its bring the dog to work day."
"My weekend was fucking AWESOME!" Amanda scowled at Fin. "My neighbors all hate me because THIS ONE wouldn't stop BARKING!" She took a deep breath, attaching the leash to the leg of her desk, putting her feet up in annoyance. "She sat there and screamed at my ceiling for forty eight hours, trashed the hardware store and assaulted a police officer who just so happens to be the commissioner's son. So..yeah. She's coming to work with me so the neighbors can have some peace and quiet for once. My God. You shouldve heard her. Just started randomly barking around nine Friday night, and every so often she did this demonic growl thingy where she raised her hackles and bared her teeth at my living room fan and jumped up and tried to attack it." Amanda took a swig of her hot coffee, fell into a coughing fit and spit it into the garbage can. "And ALL my neighbor's on both floors were pissed at me. Except for Liv. Which is odd, because she lives right above me."
Frannie's ears pricked when Amanda said Olivia's name, and she gave one, short, sharp loud bark. Just as Cragen entered the squad room. He turned and stared at the dog, a smile on his face.
"Let me guess? You're bringing her because of her not so peaceful protest this weekend? I had dinner with the Commissioner's family Sunday night. Jamie had a lovely tale to tell regarding this dog's antics." He walked over and patted Frannie on the head, offering her the remains of his breakfast biscuit, which, to Amanda's horror, she shook her head at.
"She hasn't eaten all weekend, Captain. I took her to the vet, but even he didn't know what had gotten into her. Maybe when Liv gets here, she'll settle down." Once more, Frannie barked when Olivia was mentioned, and Cragen's face broke out into a smile.
"Does someone miss her buddy? Here girl. How about we wait for Liv over here. I've got an important development regarding the Lewis case to discuss with her." Cragen unclipped Frannie from the desk, shocked when the dog made a beeline for Olivia's desk, leaping high into the air as if she was catching a frisbee, before sitting down on the chair and licking the desk. Amanda rolled her eyes, sitting down at her own desk and pulling out her phone, deciding to play a hand or two of poker while waiting for Olivia to arrive.
"She probably overslept." Cragen said finally, when Amanda had lost several rounds of poker. "Let's take her something to eat, and let Frannie in to wake her up." He smiled mischievously, obviously in a very good mood. Amanda watched in annoyance, as Frannie, who seemed to understand every damn word that had been said, leapt up and charged towards the door, leading the squad out to their cars.
The drive to the apartment made Amanda's stomach knot tighter with every passing minute, which she wasn't sure what to make of. She attributed it to Frannie's incessant whining, and compulsive licking of the dashboard, Amanda's face, and Olivia's sweater which was on her backseat. Amanda had only to open the driver's side door before eighty-five pounds of muscular pitbull used her as a launching pad and leapt out into the parking lot, lunging past an old woman with her grocery bags in her haste to get inside the building. "Frannie May! Sorry...Police business. So sorry ma'am. Here...Let me help you with those! God Damn it Frannie! Get back here!"
Abandoning the groceries and the old woman, Amanda raced into the building, following her dog and her squad into the elevator, Amaro laughing at Frannie, who kept body slamming the elevator doors, her barking far too loud for such a small space.
"She needs a tranquilizer." He muttered, hands over his ears.
"WHAT?" Amanda shouted, trying to be heard above the dog's barking, which turned into vicious snarling the closer they got to Olivia's floor.
"SHE NEEDS A TRANQUILIZER!" Amaro shouted, dodging an annoyed swat from Fin.
"NO ONE CAN HEAR YOU. SO SHUT UP" Fin yelled into both of their ears.
"ALL OF YOU SHUT UP OR IT'S A WEEKS WORTH OF MIDNIGHTS FOR ALL OF YOU!" Cragen, it seemed, was no longer amused by the dog.
As soon as the elevator came to a stop, Frannie shot out of it like a bullet out of a gun, dodging the other residents who were going about their business, shooting Amanda dirty looks as Frannie barreled down the hallway, barking like a hound on the hunt. She reached Liv's door first, and, the moment she did, Amanda's heart dropped to her feet from halfway down the hallway.
Frannie paced, her snarls turning to desperate whining, her tail tucked between her legs. Her head hung low, and pressed against the cracked door, and when Amanda pushed it open, shouting Olivia's name, Frannie backed away, shaking like a leaf, whimpering like she had the night Amanda first found her in the parking lot, having been kicked in the head by the man who dumped her without a care in the world.
"Frannie..honey? Was this what you were trying to tell Mama?" Amanda knelt beside her dog, guilt flooding her. If only she'd listened! If only she'd paid attention to what her dog was trying to tell her. "Go find Liv! Where's Liv? Go on Frannie. Search it up!"
Amanda was right behind her dog as she ran into the dark apartment, a strangled cry leaving her throat as she saw the state of the place. Chairs and tables were overturned, take out sat untouched on the counter top, a lone chair in the middle of the room sat sentinel, bearing the remains of bloody rope, cigarette butts surrounding the legs, which Frannie was snarling at, hackles raised. Liv didnt smoke.
"Frannie! Search the other rooms! Now girl! GO" Amanda was off after the dog, her heart shattering in her chest, a million hopes and dreams and joys and tears dying with the thought that Olivia Benson, her heart and soul, the woman she loved more than life itself, the driving force in her life for good, the one person that had been her light when she drove through a tunnel of darkness, was in peril, in the clutches of William Lewis, and Amanda hadn't been able to stop him.
Had Olivia cried out for her? Pounded her feet onto the wooden floor in a desperate attempt to gain Amanda's help? Had she shouted for Amanda, as Amanda would no doubt have been shouting for Olivia if the roles were reversed? Had Lewis raped her? He'd burned her surely, the same as he had the old woman who had identified him from the park.
And Amanda had been too damn busy playing her fucking poker game. Fucking poker! Why was that shit so important to her? Why? If she'd taken her head out of that damn game room for one fucking second! She might have heard Olivia's calls for help, heard something! Paid attention to what her smart, perfect, wonderful, amazing dog had attempted to tell her!
Slowly, Amanda shut the bedroom door behind her, wrapping her arms around Frannie and kneeling down beside Olivia's bed.