Chapter 18

Fin didn't give a shit if the chief of police was with him or not. When he got to Carlson's house, he took over. He made a promise and he intended to keep it. "Rollins, Carisi, follow me closely. You" he indicated to the handful of uniformed officers standing by, "Be ready. We know he's not in the house, but apparently there are plenty of places to hide on the grounds. No one makes a move without hearing from me first." He was pretty good at command. Liv can take all the time she needs. I can get used to this!

It only took Fin 186 steps to reach the tree with the ladder; his stride was longer after all. He immediately found the door and when everyone had their guns drawn and ready, Carisi pulled it open. It was pitch black inside. "Police! Come where I can see you!" he shouted down into the darkness. Nothing. A couple of officers brought out the spotlights and shined them down. They were able to see, but Fin had no idea how wide or long this room was, so he knew he had to be careful. He threw down the ladder and knowing everyone was ready just in case, he made his way down.

Carlson wasn't hiding in there, but Fin felt sick to his stomach. As he took a look around, he called for CSU to come down. He wanted to make sure nothing was compromised by clumsy cops who were just lookey-loos. It could constitute being called a room, but the walls, floor, and ceiling were made of packed dirt. He found a sleeping bag off to the side of this 'hole' along with a few blankets, an oxygen tank and a mask. There was a hole in the corner that he assumed was to be used as a toilet. He almost gagged on the smell! Not just coming from the corner hole, the dirt smelled...rotten. He heard a few comments from CSU and decided to leave it to them as he made his way back up.

"Nothing Chief" he mentioned to Dodds when he surfaced. "It's where he kept her, pretty much as she described it, only she omitted the fact it is a dirt hole. CSU will bag everything and get a soil sample. Who knows what the hell that little girl was breathing in?" Fin made his way back to the tree and started walking. It took him 74 steps before he saw yellow flowers that seemed to be stomped, dug up, and just growing as weeds. Everyone backed up as he grabbed a shovel from one of the officers and started digging. It wasn't long before he came upon the reason that Serena asked him, and him alone, to dig.

-SVU-

They all spent a quiet afternoon on the beach. Bernie's friend Gladys brought over some grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup and Liv and Serena caught a fit of the giggles. This was definitely turning out to be their go-to comfort food. Elliot raised his eyebrows in question, but he didn't need a response. Just seeing them both smile after this morning made his day. Gladys was a breath of fresh air and she brought Serena so many clothes that she would fit into. Gladys had four teenage granddaughters who always brought new clothes with them when they would visit, but never brought them back home. After she changed into knee length leggings and a long-sleeved tee, they went for a nice walk along the beach and Serena kept bending down to collect shells and stare at whatever it was that would wash up with the waves. She was very quiet, but he sensed she wasn't closed off to conversation. It seemed unnecessary though. They were just enjoying each other and the gorgeous, albeit hot day.

Elliot was scrubbing down the grill for dinner when his phone rang. Time seemed to stop for all of them. "Hey Fin" he answered.

"I have you on speaker here Elliot" he stated so that his lieutenant knew the chief was listening. "I think I need Baby Girl on the line also."

"Okay. Liv!" he called over. "Fin wants you on speaker."

"Hey Fin" she said as she walked over. "What do you got?"

"Hey Liv. Actually, I meant the other Baby Girl. Sorry, but I need Serena on the line too" Fin said, feeling Dodds' accusatory glare on the back of his head. He didn't give a shit. He loved those two like family. Let Dodds think whatever the hell he wants.

Before Liv could consent or object, Serena was by her side. "D-did you find the flowers Un-Uncle Fin?"

"I did. First, I found the rope ladder and I want to tell you that I did go down. I had to see, ya know? I can't even comment." He paused then. "The patch was right where you said it would be. First thing I dug up was a camera. The idiot buried it but didn't consider weather as a damaging factor. TARU is going through it now hoping they can salvage the SD card." He stopped talking again.

The young teen knew what was coming. After all, she was the one who sent him. "Did you find her too?" she asked clearly.

"I did. She's with the M.E. now." Fin didn't know how to ask the next question. He knew Liv and Elliot were listening and were probably confused at the moment, but that wasn't Fin's concern. He needed only one answer right now; not out of curiosity, but to protect her. "Serena, did she cry?"

The girl did not look up into the questioning eyes of her parents. Instead, she decided to be methodical and separate herself from the conversation in order to convey the necessary information, as she did earlier. If she didn't have to think, she didn't have to feel. "No. No she wa-wa-wasn't rrrready Uncle Ffffin. I I I had no other p-p-place for her." All the adults listening could tell that Serena was struggling now more than she was before.

"Detective" commanded Elliot feeling he needed to be brought up to speed immediately. "What exactly did you find?"

"Well, Lieutenant" started Fin getting a little pissed off but trying to keep himself in check since Serena was listening. He wasn't angry at Elliot; he understood exactly where the man was coming from. "After I climbed out of the 10 X 10 dirt room little Baby Girl was kept in, I found the camera. Underneath the camera I found the body of an infant. I couldn't tell if it was a boy or girl and it wasn't dressed or wrapped in anything. The only person who can answer your questions now is on your end of the phone."

Elliot and Olivia both looked towards Serena. Liv had her hand over her mouth and her eyes were wide with shock. Elliot didn't move a muscle nor say a word. What the hell was he supposed to say anyway?

Serena finally looked up at them both. "He he he said he c-c-couldn't bbbee sure if it was his and and he wwwasn't going to havvvvvve someone else to c-c-care for. He gave...he made...I'm sorry" she looked right at Liv as if pleading with her, shaking her head. "I'm so sorry Momma! I'M SORRY! I'M SORREEEEE" she screamed louder and louder before she let out the most guttural cry anyone listening had ever heard. The emotions that she must have shoved down for two years seemed to rise to the surface all at once and she wailed from deep down. Elliot was reminded of the day he had to hold Olivia in the alley just after Serena was taken. Serena backed away from them still scream-crying and fell to her knees clutching the sides of her head, knocking her glasses to the floor.

The shock of Serena's words made Olivia take a minute to catch on to their meaning, but it was the screaming coming out of Serena's mouth that spurred her into action. "NO! No, no no baby, shh!" she began as she bolted towards her daughter. Olivia's own tears were triggered by Serena's and there was no stopping them this time as she reached for Serena and pulled her into her lap. "It's okay. You're gonna be okay" she managed to say before the crying made it impossible to speak. After that, the only sound was their combined cries, with Serena's being much louder and harder.

Fin didn't want to listen anymore, and he felt no one else needed to either so he hung up. Elliot forgot he was on the phone. He took a seat on the floor, positioning himself so that he was holding onto both of them before letting his own tears fall.

-SVU-

Serena continued to scream and cry for a very long time. She already had a raspy voice, but it finally gave out on her and all that could be heard was "silent screaming" and cries that reminded Olivia of being in a nightmare. Her baby was raped by the sick fuck who took her. That, she knew the moment she saw the security tape from the school. That, she knew she could get through and help her daughter put it behind her. This morning she found out her baby was gang raped, repeatedly, and had photographs taken while it was happening. Even after all these years it still blew her mind how sick some people could be. Even through that, Serena was able to laugh, be near Elliot and Fin, and she began talking again, living, enjoying the beautiful summer day at the beach. Olivia knew she could help her. But her baby had a baby that was dead, and Olivia wasn't sure that she could get passed that, let alone how to help Serena. Was she alone when she delivered? He was a doctor, did he help? How did it come to be that the newborn baby, her grandchild, oh God, came to be found in a flower bed in the middle of fucking nowhere? Serena said, 'she wasn't ready.' Did that mean the baby came early? She had so many questions. Her heart was absolutely shattered right now, and she couldn't breathe or think straight. She found herself gasping for air right alongside her daughter. She felt Elliot's tears on the top of her head, where his head was resting as he leaned over them both. She heard him try to keep his sniffles inside and he was only half successful. Hearing him feel for her daughter only caused her to cry harder.

While Olivia was trying to breathe, Serena was practically suffocating. The gut-wrenching cries that made her vocals disappear were wreaking havoc on the child's respiratory system. Plus, Olivia's grip was like a vice that she couldn't loosen even if she tried. Elliot let go of the two of them and ran to get the oxygen mask and tank. He knew the cannula would do no good as her nose was stuffed beyond repair and she was practically hyperventilating trying to force oxygen into her lungs. Olivia told him Serena confessed to having bruised ribs, so the kid must be in physical pain right now that rivaled her emotional pain. When he sat down again, it was a struggle to put the mask on her face. Her eyes were closed and with all the crying and screaming, she must have felt like she was back in that hell. Olivia forced herself to loosen her hold and help and between the two of them, they were able to get it on and going. Serena seemed to come back to herself a bit and finally reached out to grip Olivia's shirt. This was the first voluntary hug that she gave after the initial reconnection with her mother. She hugged Elliot and allowed Bernie to hug her shoulders, but not Liv. Technically, it may not even have qualified as a hug, but Liv was happy for any contact. Serena seemed to grab on for dear life as a new wave of sobs broke through. Neither of them knew what was going through her head, but they had a pretty good idea since their own imaginations were in overdrive right now.

They sat there for almost an hour when they realized the room had gone quiet. Olivia lifted her head up, forcing Elliot to do the same as she looked down at her daughter. Serena was asleep. Thank God! She knew she was exhausted, but this was beyond measure. Olivia's eyes were red rimmed and so puffy they looked swollen. Elliot's fared no better. He cleared his throat, but there were no words right now. He got himself up and bent back down to get Serena. The child's hand was wrapped around Olivia's bra strap in front and back. She was "dead" to the world and Liv was able to untangle her from the front, but Elliot had to extricate her hand from Olivia's back. He has touched Olivia in such different ways in the last couple of days than he has in the past two decades. Even under the circumstances, he loved it. He came back around front to put his arms under Serena's knees, which forced his hands to brush up against Olivia's lap and put him within a hair's length from her face. He met her eyes and gave her a quick peck on the nose before giving a shy smile while apologizing quietly. She was taken aback by that, but she shook her head and gave a shy smile back. She hadn't found her voice yet. He managed to pick Serena up and waited for Liv to rise and grab the tank. He carried her to the bedroom where Olivia pulled down the covers and transferred the mask over to the machine for the night. She definitely needed a new tank. Elliot did put the ac on in the bedroom while Olivia covered her. Neither of them wanted to leave her so even though it was early, Olivia changed and got into the bed. Elliot walked out before she had a chance to stop him. Did she want to stop him?

He walked into the kitchen and found his mother. Damn! He forgot about her which made him feel worse than he already did. He threw Liv and Serena on her after all these years and all she saw and heard...She walked up to him and pulled him into a fierce hug. "What are you doing out here?" she asked. "I'll lock up. You go be with them. They both need you, and you may not want to admit it, but you need them. Goodnight son." she said as she kissed his cheek and went back to the task of closing the house for the night. Elliot grabbed his bag from the other room and changed into lounge pants and a different t-shirt. He then went back into the big room and walked over to Liv's side of the bed. She was watching him carefully. He just stood there and looked into her eyes, their silent way of communicating negating the need for words. He was exhausted himself after being up last night and they all had a very emotional day. Olivia pushed Serena over a bit and she scooted herself to the middle of the bed. Elliot climbed under the covers and by the time Bernie finished up and walked passed to go to her room, all she heard was the hum of the machine and her son's snoring.

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