A/N: At first I kind of struggled with this chapter but then I kind of got carried away. I hope that this story isn't becoming too predictable but I would love to know what you guys think. The next 'big' plot is coming up in a few chapters. Watch this space...xxx
The next morning, Elliot and Olivia were on their way to CPS. They had just dropped their daughter off at school and had called Cragen on the way. They told him that there was a 'family emergency' but were quick to assure him that everything was fine and that they just had a couple of things to sort out.
Arriving at the front desk of the ACS building, they introduced themselves as Elliot and Olivia Stabler. After all, they were there on personal business as opposed to official. "How can I help you today?" The receptionist asked with a sunny smile.
"We was wondering if we could speak to Irene Miller. We want to make an enquiry." Elliot told her.
The receptionist, whose name was Amy, typed at her keyboard before looking back at the couple. "She's in a meeting at the moment. They should be done in about five minutes. Just take a seat in the waiting area just over there." She directed them to a group of couches.
Elliot and Olivia waited nervously for about ten minutes. Liv's leg kept bouncing up and down in anticipation of the looming meeting so her husband put a comforting hand on her knee to stop the nervous tick she had suddenly acquired.
"Mr and Mrs Stabler?" The familiar voice of Irene Miller called out. El and Liv looked up at the same time and stood up from the couch after hearing the announcement. Recognition dawned upon the social worker when she saw the couple who had requested a last minute meeting with her. "Ah, do you have news for me regarding Zoe Jones?" Miller asked as she led Olivia and Elliot towards her private office.
The couple waited until they had sat down in the two chairs opposite her desk before speaking. "Actually, we're here on a personal matter." Elliot said when he realised Olivia wasn't going to speak up.
Olivia didn't know why but she couldn't help but somewhat glare at the woman before her. It probably had something to do with the fact that she was the one who had taken Zoe away from her whilst the little girl sobbed and reached out for Olivia.
"Oh?" Irene cocked an eyebrow and Olivia was brought out of daze when she sensed the woman looking at her.
"We want Zoe." Olivia demanded rather than asked. Her tone was adamant as if she was prepared to do almost anything to get what she desired.
Although he felt much the same way as his wife, Elliot cleared his throat at Liv's sudden outburst and gave Irene an apologetic look. "Uh, what my wife means to say is that we are considering giving Zoe a permanent home with us. We've obviously already had background checks and we already have one adopted child." He went to say more but stopped when the social worker raised a hand.
"Look, I'm fully aware that you are both highly decorated officers within the NYPD. However, I cannot agree to anything right now as Zoe's mother's case hasn't been closed. Not to mention the fact that neither of our organisations have been able to locate the girl's father. He still has his parental rights in the eyes of the law." The social worker tried to let the two detectives down gently but at the end of the day she was just doing her job. She hoped that the Stablers realised that although she was unsure when she saw how Olivia's eyes dilated.
"You do realise that Zoe's biological father is probably one of her mother's clients-"
Before Olivia could go on a full on rant, Elliot interjected. "We understand and our unit is doing everything we can to find any family members. We just wanted to let you know that if we are unable to find Zoe's father or a blood relative who will take her, my wife and I are interested in adopting Zoe."
El missed the slight glare he received from his wife as he and Miller stood up. Olivia followed suit. She refused to shake hands with the social worker, instead she turned on the spot and marched out of the office. Elliot sighed as he watched his wife leave before turning to face Miller who held her hand out to him.
"I'm sorry about my wife. We just want that little girl so bad. I can't tell you the amount of times we've come across victims who were in the system. Olivia just doesn't want to see anything happen to Zoe." Elliot explained hoping Irene would take his word for it.
The social worker gave him an understanding smile as she held her office door open for the detective. "I understand, Detective. I want what is best for Zoe too, believe me."
Elliot said his goodbyes and left the office. He was able to track Liv down to where they had parked their car. She seemed to be on a phone call so decided to wait until she had hung up before announcing his presence.
"Ok. Thanks, Cap. We'll be there in about twenty minutes." Olivia hung up the phone and hesitated before turning to look at her husband. "That was Cragen. He said Warner found a match with Zoe's DNA and the semen that was on Alexa. They're the same person. Zoe's father is our perp."
"Any hits on CODIS?" Elliot asked they climbed into the car.
"Nope, but we've finally got an address for Nathan Hale – the man Alexa's pimp said she had a date with the night of her murder. Cap told us to bring him in for questioning." Olivia said before giving Elliot the address.
"Why am I here?" A rugged man in his early twenties asked nonchalantly as he was forced to sit down on one of the chairs in the interrogation room. He looked at Olivia who was studying him intently until she made him feel uncomfortable. The man turned his head to see Elliot stood behind him. "Look, I haven't done anything wrong." He claimed.
Liv just continued to stare at Nathan Hale. She could tell right away that he was Zoe's father. The little girl who had stole her heart not only shared her deceased mother's features. She also had the same nose and chin as the scum before her. Therefore she was certain that he not only fathered the child but that he also had killed Alexa Jones.
"We thought you might want to take a look at your handy work." Elliot said darkly into his ear as he slapped down an open folder which contained pictures of Alexa's mutilated body.
"Oh no way, dude. I didn't do that." Hale insisted as he looked away from the gruesome photographs.
"We know that you were the last person to see her alive. Alexa's pimp said you were one of her regulars. What happened? She try to bleed you dry for child support so you thought the only way out was to rape and torture her to death?!" Olivia exclaimed as she stood up from her seat and leant across the table so she was right in his face. What she really wanted to do was was punch him in square on the nose. He was guilty and nothing he, or anyone else, said or did would change her mind.
"I told the bitch that the kid wasn't mine. She couldn't say for sure who knocked her up...she slept with plenty of guys in her line of work. I wasn't about to pay her shit!" Hale got up so that he would be eye level with Liv but Elliot was too quick as he shoved him back down in his chair.
Elliot then circled around to be beside Liv who stood up straight only for her husband to take her previous position on the table. "The child's name is Zoe. There's no way you can deny that you're her father. She looks just like you. As soon as the ADA gets the go ahead, we will get a sample of your DNA and it will come back as a match to Zoe as well as the semen we found inside Alexa."
Hale stared Elliot down before saying with a smirk, "I want a lawyer."
Olivia threw her hands up in the air and shrugged. "Trust me, Honey. No lawyer in the world is going to able to help you." She quipped before she and Elliot left the room.
Cragen approached his two detectives, a proud look on his face. "Good job on holding back that information about his DNA being under Alexa's fingernails." He said. Not only had Warner found semen, she had also discovered skin cells under Alexa's fingernails.
Elliot shook his head. "Who does he think he's kidding? We could clearly see the scratches on his face from where our victim scratched him."
"Any update from Cabot regarding the warrant for his DNA?" Liv asked as she watched Hale through the one way window. He was pacing the length of the room – a sure sign of guilt and anxiety over being caught. The man was clearly on edge about something.
"She's on her way with it now. We should wait for his lawyer to get here before we make our next move though. I want this all done by the book." Cragen told them as he looked between the husband and wife duo.
A couple of hours later, Olivia and Elliot were sat in the squad room waiting for the DNA results. They didn't have to wait much longer though as soon enough, Melinda Warner was walking into the squad room waving a piece of paper.
"Well done, Detective's you've found your killer and Zoe's biological father." The ME announced.
Elliot took the paper from Warner and examined them briefly before turning to his partner and giving her a nod of confirmation. The two detectives then thanked Melinda before heading off to the interrogation room where their perp was waiting with his lawyer.
They didn't waste any time in barging into the room and approaching the two men. Of course, Trevor Langan was on another one of his pro bono kicks and thought he could set his newest client free on some sort of technicality.
Langan huffed as he looked between Liv and El. "This is ridiculous. Let my client go unless you have some evidence to arrest him." He told the pair, his ego as big as always.
Elliot smirked as he thrust the paper towards the lawyer. "Looks like your client is a match to DNA found on our victim's body."
Olivia was now standing behind Hale and forced his hand behind his back. "Nathan Hale, you are under arrest for the rape and murder of Alexa Jones," She continued to read him his Miranda Rights as she and Elliot led him out of the interrogation room so they could take him down to central booking.
The trial of Nathan Hale was pretty much over before it began. Langan tried to use the feeble defence that Alexa was a prostitute who enjoyed rough sex. However, once the jury learned that Hale had fathered Alexa's child and that she was blackmailing him for child support, they had no other choice but to find him guilty. Nathan Hale was sentenced to twenty five to life with no chance of parole due to the way in which he had brutally killed the Alexa.
Olivia and Elliot, as well as the rest of the squad, were relieved once the trial was over. Liv and El more than the others as it meant they could once again approach Irene Miller and request to adopt Zoe. The day after the trial ended, the husband and wife went back down to ACS to speak with the social worker.
"Good morning, Detectives." Miller greeted the couple as they sat down in the chairs across from her. "I heard that you caught Alexa's killer and that he was found guilty."
Olivia smiled the tiniest bit and nodded. "We did. Nathan Hale also turned out to be Zoe's father and we still haven't found any blood relatives to take her in." She hoped she had made it clear in her statement as to why they were there once again.
"I see." Miller said slightly nonchalantly. "We here have also been unable to track anyone down. At the moment she's in a foster home – they're a really nice family."
Olivia and Elliot looked at each other for a few moments as they held tightly onto one another's hand. They then focused their attention on the social worker. "We're still interested in adopting Zoe." Elliot spoke up.
"I thought that might be the case. We're going to have to set up a home inspection and we're going to need some references from people who you know." Miller told them.
Olivia held up her hand to stop her from continuing. "We are well aware of the procedures. We already have one adopted child who we took in nearly a year ago." She didn't bother mentioning that she had adopted Maria alone at first – that was all a matter of public record. "This weekend will be perfect for the home inspection and we can have the references waiting for you right there and then."
They spoke with Miller for a while longer before they left the ACS building. They had set up the inspection for that Saturday at one pm. The social worker also requested that she be able to speak with Maria a little which Olivia and Elliot had no concerns about. However, they realised that they should probably speak to their daughter and let her know that she might become a older sister sooner than any of them thought.
Olivia and Elliot decided to speak to Maria about the possible adoption at bedtime which rolled around a lot quicker than they anticipated.
Maria was tucked into bed and looked up at her mom and dad who was sat on either side of her in a position so that they could read her facial expressions during their little talk. She knew they wanted to talk to her about something important just from the way they were looking at her.
"Have I done something wrong?" The six year old asked worriedly as she tried to think if she had done something naughty recently.
Olivia smiled softly at her daughter and moved a piece of hair from Maria's face and stroked her cheeky lovingly. "No, Baby. You aren't in trouble. Daddy and I just need to talk to you about something." She assured her.
Maria frowned and looked at her father hoping to get more information from him. Elliot gave her a smile and tapped her nose. "How would you like to have a new friend?" He asked.
The little girl's eyes widened. "Are we getting a puppy?!" She asked.
Olivia and Elliot chuckled a little before Liv shook her head in the negative. "No sweetie. What your daddy was meant to say is...don't you think it would be really cool to have a little brother or sister?"
Maria thought for a moment before nodding a little. "I guess so. Is there a baby in your tummy?" She enquired as she innocently looked at her mother's stomach for any sign of a bump.
"No, Sweetie. I'm not pregnant. You remember how we became a family?" Liv asked only to receive a single silent nod. "Well your daddy and I have been thinking it would be nice to give another little girl a new home – someone who really needs a family."
Their daughter was silent for another moment or two before giving them an unsure expression. "But I can still live here right? You'll still be my mommy and daddy too?"
Elliot lifted Maria's chin slightly and looked her in the eyes. "We will always be your mommy and daddy. And if you do get a new sibling, we will love you both equally. That's what it means to be a family. You can never, and will never, be replaced." He promised firmly.
The parents were left relieved when Mara smiled widely. "Then...I can't wait to be a big sister!"
Olivia then told Maria that a nice lady would be coming to their house that weekend to check some things out. She then let her child know that the lady wanted to speak to Maria herself, which the girl seemed to be ok with.
"Now, do you want a story or would you like Daddy to sing your special song before you go to sleep?" Liv questioned once they were sure Maria really was ok with the idea of expanding their family. Olivia and Elliot always tucked her in together but then gave her an option to be read a story by Olivia who sung to by Elliot. This way they each had some alone time with their child – they felt it made her feel special.
"Hm, I want Daddy to sing!" Maria decided.
"Ok, goodnight, Baby. I love you." Olivia said before giving Maria a kiss on the forehead. She then stood up from the bed as Maria responded in kind allowing her mother to leave the room.
It didn't take long for Elliot to get Maria off to sleep and before long he went looking for his wife. At first he looked in on their room but saw that she wasn't in there. Then an idea occurred to him once he was back out in the hall. He opened the door to the guest room to see Olivia looking around the reasonably sized space.
"What's on your mind?" El whispered in her ear as he stood right behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.
Olivia laid her hands on top of her husband's and jerked her head towards the double bed. "That can go into storage and Zoe's bed can go there. I saw the perfect one whilst browsing online. It was white with unicorns on the head and foot board and I saw a bedside table to go with it." She commented and then gestured to the walls. "I was thinking a lilac colour for the walls and dark purple curtains."
Elliot tried to imagine what the room would look like as he placed a tender kiss to one of Liv's sweet spots on her neck. "Sounds like the perfect room for a little girl." He commented before he turned Olivia around to face him. "But don't you think you're getting a little ahead of yourself?"
Olivia pulled back from him slightly, a questioning look in place. "What's that supposed to mean?" She asked, although her tone wasn't angry but more confused.
El sighed and cradled her head in his hands. "We haven't been approved to adopt Zoe yet. I just don't want you to be disappointed." He admitted. Of course, he was also excited for the new journey they found themselves on. He would be just as crushed as his wife if they were denied the opportunity to claim the little girl as their daughter.
"I hear what you're saying, El. I really do but something deep inside me is telling me that little girl belongs here with us. As soon as I saw those blue eyes of hers, I felt a deep connection with her. It reminded me of the first time I saw Maria. You can't tell me you didn't feel like that either. I saw the way you looked at Zoe that night." Olivia's tone was adamant as she refused to accept that anything could go wrong in this situation.
Elliot couldn't help but agree with what she was saying. "I suppose you're right. Now what else was you thinking regarding the décor?" He asked and listened intently as Olivia told him of her plans for the room. They continued to discuss everything and anything for a while longer before they decided it was time they called it a night and headed off to bed.
Saturday came around fast and as they waited for Irene to arrive, Elliot watched as Olivia paced up and down the family room. He sighed before standing up from the couch and stood in front of her. "Olivia, please relax. You're making me dizzy." He told her.
Olivia went to reply but snapped her mouth shut when there was a knock on the door. "She's here." She pointed out as she stared out into the hallway apprehensively.
Elliot nodded in agreement and rubbed his hands up and down her arms. "Why don't you go get Maria while I invite her in?" He suggested and Olivia only nodded before heading for the stairs to get their daughter who was in the playroom.
Elliot walked over to the front door and took a deep breath before opening it, a pleasant smile on his face. "Good afternoon, Ms Miller." He said as he stepped aside to allow the social worker into his home.
Irene Miller looked around briefly before returning his smile. "Good afternoon, Detective."
"Please, follow me into the kitchen. Olivia has just gone to fetch our daughter. Would you like a cup of coffee? Or we have tea and juice?" Elliot asked politely as he led her towards the back of the house.
"Coffee is fine thank you." Miller said. She was constantly examining her surroundings as she walked through the Stabler residence, looking for any signs of the home being unfit for a young child.
"As you can see, our home is well equipped for a reasonably sized family. Just before Alexa's case, we considered having a baby but then we met Zoe." Elliot shrugged as he prepared a pot of coffee. He raised an eyebrow when he saw Irene examining the backyard through the sliding glass doors that was right by the dining table.
"That's an impressive backyard you have. It's a good size." Irene commented as she accepted the mug of coffee Elliot held out towards her.
"Maria, our daughter, loves to play out there. It's completely secure and you can only get to it through these doors here." Elliot told her as he gestured towards the doors in front of them. He knew that she was looking for a way of entry at the back of the yard. "Of course, there is always someone to supervise when she's using the play equipment." He added.
"El?!" Olivia's voice was heard before Irene could respond.
"Back here!" Elliot replied as he and the social worker turned to see Olivia and Maria make an appearance in the entryway of the kitchen-dining area. "Ms Miller, I would like you meet Maria. Maria, this nice lady is Ms Miller. She's the lady we spoke to you about the other night." He introduced the pair as Olivia led a suddenly shy Maria towards them.
Irene smiled and held her hand out towards the little girl. "It's so nice to meet you, Maria." She said.
Maria shook the woman's hand as was expected. "Hello, Ms Miller." She said politely before stepping back into Olivia who rested a comforting hand on her shoulder. Liv was well aware how shy Maria could be around new people. Especially if the stranger was some sort of official or authoritative figure.
"Shall we go and take a look around? You can bring your coffee with you." Olivia said before leading the way.
Once they were out by the staircase, Liv pointed towards the door under the stairs. "That door leads to the basement. It's always locked and the key is kept somewhere safe so little hands can't get to it." She said before stepping into the formal living room. "This is where we have formal gatherings. Although we have yet to use the room. We only just moved in a couple of months ago."
"We like to call this the family room." Elliot said as they stepped into the more casually furnished living room. It was decked out with a TV and entertainment system and there was a cosy looking fireplace. Above the fire place was a family portrait which was taken on Olivia and Elliot's wedding day. On the mantel was also a few other pictures including a school picture of Maria and a couple were from Maria's recent birthday.
Once they were sure Irene was done examining the family room, the couple led the social worker on the rest of the tour. Throughout the whole process, Miller was constantly making notes on a notepad and Olivia and Elliot couldn't help but feel like they were being scrutinised. Of course, that was the whole point of the meeting but they still felt as if they had done something wrong.
The tour was soon over and after speaking with Olivia and Elliot, it was Maria's turn to have a talk with Miller. Liv and El excused themselves and left their daughter alone in the formal living room with the social worker.
"So, Maria, we're going to have a little chat. Is that ok?" Miller asked as she sat down by Maria on one of the leather couches.
Maria shrugged and then nodded. "I guess so."
"Ok, so tell me about a normal day for you." The social worker decided to start off with an easy topic.
"Well, during the week I go to school. Mommy and Daddy drop me off everyday and then Abbie picks me up after school is finished. Mommy and Daddy usually get home in time for dinner but sometimes they come home at bedtime." Maria explained. "Then at the weekend, they take me to all kinds of fun places. Last week we went to the aquarium and saw lots of fishies and I got a new stuffed toy. It's a dolphin – I chose that because I love dolphins."
Miller nodded along as she listened intently. "That sounds really cool but...do you get sad if you mom and dad aren't home in time for dinner?"
Maria shook her head. "Not really. I know that sometimes they get really busy but that's just because they're really good at helping people. They're detective's!" She sat up straight as she beamed in pride. "That's how mommy found me. She saved me from a bad man. No one believed me but she did."
"Ok. Maria, have your parents told you why I'm here today?"
The six year old nodded. "Because you want to make sure that they're good at taking care of kids. They love me lots and they're real good at making sure I'm safe. Mommy and Daddy said I'm going to be a big sister."
"Do you want to be a big sister?" Irene questioned as she studied Maria's demeanour.
Maria once again nodded - this time rather enthusiastically. "Yep! I'm really excited to have someone else to play with. Mommy and Daddy said that my new brother or sister will make our family stronger and that they would love us both equally."
Irene continued to somewhat question the child until she was satisfied she had all the information she needed. Herself and Maria then went into the family room where she knew the potential adoptive parents were waiting.
Olivia and Elliot immediately stood up from the couch and looked at the social worker expectantly. Maria hurried over to them only to have Olivia run her fingers through her hair. When Irene didn't say anything, Liv looked down at her daughter. "Honey, why don't you go play for a little while? When Ms Miller leaves we'll take a trip to the park."
Maria studied her parents and shrugged when El nodded slightly as if to say 'go on'. "Ok!" She agreed before running for the stairs.
Once the child was out of earshot, Irene decided to speak. "Well, I'm happy with what I've heard and seen today. You have a lovely home and you're obviously very loving parents." She paused briefly and took a deep breath before giving the couple an approving smile. "I'm going to have a meeting with my superior later this afternoon and recommend you be approved to adopt Zoe."
Olivia and Elliot breathed a sigh of relief and smiled broadly. They then spoke with Irene and the three decided amongst themselves that the best course of action was to set up a few outings so that Zoe and Maria could both get used the idea of becoming siblings.
As soon as they had closed the door behind the social worker, Olivia leapt into Elliot's arms. He wasted no time in supporting her as she wrapped her legs and arms around him as they kissed rather passionately right there in the hallway.
When they lost the ability the breath, they reluctantly parted and Elliot lowered his wife down onto the ground. They took a few moments just to soak up the news they had received as they gazed into each other's eyes.
"We did it. Zoe is ours." Olivia gushed before once again pouncing onto her husband.
A/N: Not entirely sure if I proof read this chapter so apologies for any mistakes. x