214.

By morning, Noah's sniffles had become a full blown cold, and he was a sneezing, congested mess. Olivia plied him with over-the-counter medications and set him up on the couch with tissues, juice, and the remote control. "You and Daddy are going to have a sick day today," she said as she tucked blankets around him.

Gasping after taking a long drink of juice, Noah asked, "Where ya goin?"

"I'm going to take the twins to school and then I'm going to see Amanda Rollins. Remember her? Jesse's mom?"

"Oh yeah," Noah's eyes brightened at the memory of the girl he'd played with a few times earlier in his life. "She's nice."

"She is."

Ed meandered into the room and Olivia studied his face. The color

was back and he certainly looked more alive than he had yesterday, but there was obvious swelling. "I'll bring you some soup back for lunch," Olivia said softly.

"Thanks," Ed mumbled. He gave Olivia a very soft kiss on the lips. "We'll take it easy, right bud?"

"Right, Daddy."

Olivia ushered the twins down the hallway after they gave hugs goodbye which she tried to prevent but couldn't. It was inevitable that everyone in the home would eventually contract the bug, and it was probably for the best that they avoid making Noah feel like a leper. She glanced over her shoulder before closing the door and the sight of Ed and Noah huddled together and looking slightly pathetic warmed her heart as did the spectacle of the twins racing to slap the elevator's down arrow.

"Mama, hurry!" Wyatt said when he heard the elevator approaching.

"I'm hurrying, Wyatt Edward," Olivia said, quickening her pace.

"Hey!" Maggie snapped, contorting her face, "We f'get No!"

Olivia smiled and tapped Maggie's nose, "We didn't forget him sweetie. Noah's sick so he's staying home with Daddy today. So you two are going to have to do all the learning for the family."

"We le'coloring!"

"I cannot wait for more pictures," Olivia replied. She and Ed now had several albums full of artwork dating back to Noah's early day care days. Brooke and Sonny mentioned digitizing the prints, but Olivia preferred to have the real things around even if they took up a lot of precious closet space.

The doorman noticed Noah's absence, too.

"Missin someone?" He asked.

"NO SICK!" Maggie exclaimed.

"Uh-oh, well, he's in the best place then. On the couch?" He asked Olivia.

"He and Ed."

"Let me know if you need anything from us."

"Thanks," Olivia replied.

"Bye, Juggy!" Wyatt called as his mother ushered him out of the door.

"Bye, Tucker twins! See ya later."

"La'er gay'er!"

The door slammed closed, but Olivia was sure George returned the obligatory after while crocodile.

…

Walking into the precinct felt weird. It had since the minute Olivia retired. She was used to feeling a rush of power and deference from others when she strode inside. Now she felt like an interloper. No faces looked familiar. The reception chairs and tables she remembered had been swapped out for newer, modern versions. Even the smell was different. But when she reached SVU's floor, she was greeted with an immediate, albeit hushed, chorus of Hey Livs. Fin, himself in the last months of his police career, gave her a businesslike hug. Fletcher grinned. Pushing thirty now, he nevertheless resembled his teenage self. Rollins walked out of what used to be Benson's office and waved Olivia in. This part was surreal. Amanda had not done much redecorating, but the pictures and plaques on the walls and the credenza were all Rollins. Of course they were. It still seemed weird, eerie even.

"They found the kids," Rollins said under her breath even though everyone else except for Carisi was in interrogation and couldn't hear them.

"Who's that interviewing them?" Olivia asked.

"The local precinct detective who tracked them down."

Muscles tense, Olivia asked through clenched teeth, "Why aren't you in there?"

"They've been together since Albany," Rollins said calmly with a shrug, "Judgement call."

Acknowledging it wasn't her place to object, Olivia nodded and listened. The Latimer children favored their father in their publicized photographs, but in person the resemblance was even more pronounced. Had Olivia forgotten Brent's face, one glance at his son and daughter certainly would have jogged her memory.

"They found them in Albany?" Olivia asked.

"Champlain."

"What?"

"Yeah," Rollins said, "They stopped to eat. According to his son, Latimer got up to pay and go to the bathroom, and he never came back."

"My God." Olivia stared at the children. The boy was, contrary to initial reports, a little older than Noah, maybe nine or ten, and the girl was probably around four. Well-dressed and clean-cut, no one would have taken a second look at them if they were with their father. "Champlain…"

"He either forgot their passports or didn't want to cross into Canada with the kids," Rollins muttered.

"Do they know their mother is dead?"

"No."

Silence fell across the room and Olivia listened further. She was annoyed the kids hadn't been separated, but they both seemed forthcoming. According to their account, they'd been woken in the middle of the night to go to their lake house upstate, which wasn't uncommon. Latimer's son explained his father worked late, and when they were going to spend time at the house he often preferred to drive at night than fight daytime weekend traffic. Only, this time, they hadn't known the trip was planned and did not know their mother had traveled separately.

"There was a 'mergency," the girl had added softly.

Olivia's heart broke. Her chin trembled and tears welled in her eyes. These two children had done absolutely nothing wrong, and their lives had been indelibly changed by their monster of a father. Latimer's son was sharp-he knew something terrible had happened-but his sister had not yet picked up on the gravity of the situation. Yet, she'd uttered the word emergency as if it had come up before.

When the kids got tired, Rollins let them camp out on her sofas and she and Olivia went into interrogation. "I pulled the old files," Rollins said, "And the trial transcripts. And everything else I could find. This guy...he gets away with everything. Every time he's accused of something, from college until Mia, he gets away with it."

"I don't know how much help I'm going to be," Olivia said, "The case against him was pretty clean cut. The jury...well...Mia wasn't there to speak for herself and they ate up his charm. But his kids...they're old enough...they know something more. They need to be interviewed, when they're fresh, by someone who knows what they're doing. Kids…"

"...I know," Rollins murmured, "They know more than anyone gives them credit for."

Olivia nodded. She thought about Noah who was one of the most perceptive people, adult or not, she knew. He could tell when she or Ed was slightly off for whatever reason. It made her shudder, but she wondered if he had ever wandered over to their bedroom only to find the door locked and amorous sounds coming from inside. Noah witnessing them kissing or hugging or touching was common and Ed and Olivia had both explained that Mommy and Daddy loved each other and that was the reason for their frequent displays of affection. Noah expected his parents to outwardly express their love for one another. The Latimer kids most likely anticipated the opposite.

Abruptly, Olivia stood up. "I better go," she said. "I've already seen and heard too much."

"You were on the case...we always follow up with-"

"-cold cases," Olivia said, "We bring in retirees for cold cases, new evidence, this...this is the same guy, another crime, the same crime he committed the first time. And he'll be found. I'm...I'm glad the kids are safe. Hopefully there are people who will take care of them."

Stunned, Rollins said nothing and only watched Olivia leave the room.

"Well shit," she said, tossing her pen on the stack of folders.

Minutes later, Carisi came in. "So where're we at?"

"We wait," Rollins said.

"Where'd Liv go?"

"I guess home?"

"She wasn't any help?"

"No," Rollins replied curtly, "I know you have this tendency to call her whenever she might be of assistance, but this was a swing and a miss."

"It was her case all those years ago," Carisi protested, "No harm done."

Rollins recalled the anguish in Olivia's eyes as she watched the detective interview the kids. "Yes, there was harm done, just not the kind you understand."

…..

Olivia's eyes fluttered open. She saw the first glimmer of daylight through the slit between the drapes and felt Ed's body next to her. At some point during the night he slung an arm over her and found one of her hands which he was still loosely holding. She peered down and saw his fingers looped around hers and smiled. Moments like these helped her block out all the job's ugliness and helped her focus on and acknowledge the love surrounding her.

As much as she wanted to cuddle with her boyfriend, Olivia could hear Noah rustling around down the hall in his own bed and she slowly began to extract herself from the covers.

"Noah up?" Ed rasped sleepily.

"He is," Olivia replied and leaned back toward him for a kiss. "Ready for a fun day?"

"There's more?"

"Yes there is," she kissed him again, "Take your time. We don't have to leave until closer to lunchtime."

"Okay."

Olivia grabbed Noah and brought him to the couch for juice and snuggles. She asked about his dreams and talked about the plans for the day while taking great comfort in the view of the Sequence game she and Ed left on the table late last night. Noah asked about Ed, and, seconds later, as if on cue, the shower started and Noah grinned.

After his shower, Ed helped Olivia clean up the kitchen and living room. They nibbled on fruit and drank coffee, anticipating their early lunch on the water. Olivia unfolded the entire weekend piece by piece, wanting to surprise Ed as much as possible, so he didn't know about the mini golf plans. They had to pass the course on the way to their lunch spot, but the pier was bustling and Ed was busy chatting with Noah who always seemed to become more conversational when Ed was around. Or, maybe sitting atop Ed's shoulders with a bird's eye view filled the little boy with the confidence he needed to verbalize his thoughts.

The restaurant was situated on an old fishing boat, and their table had a gorgeous view of the Hudson and lower Manhattan. Noah pointed at the skyline and said, "Bi'bil'ing!"

"Yeah, bud," Ed replied, "That's One World Trade." He pointed out a few other skyscrapers and then nodded across the river. "And over there's Jersey City."

Noah crinkled his nose. "Di'New'York!"

Ed chuckled. "I think Sarah's been getting to him somehow."

Olivia smiled. "I don't think I've been to New Jersey in two years."

"For a case?"

Olivia nodded.

Ed slapped his mouth with his palm. "Sorry. No work weekend."

"That wasn't technically work," she said, grinning, "So you're forgiven."

"WHOA!"

Even before the server set the tray of oysters down, Noah was impressed with the presentation. The oysters themselves were huge, but the large lemon wedges and other accompaniments were so impressively arranged the toddler took note. He was equally thrilled with the plate set in front of him-lobster bites and french fries. Noah rose to his knees and hovered over the food, smiling broadly.

"Hang on," Olivia took out her phone, "Let me get a picture." She snapped a few of Noah and then turned to the server. "Will you take one of the three of us?" After the photos were taken, Olivia eagerly inspected them. "They're so nice," she said, showing the screen to Ed, "He even got the skyline in the background. So nice…"

Choked up for a second, all Ed could do was nod and raise his bloody mary glass. Finally, he was able to speak. "Cheers," he said, "To a beautiful day with beautiful people."

"Cheers," Olivia said, "And it doesn't end here."

"No?"

"No."

"Pay'in GOFF, ED!" Noah exclaimed.

Olivia started laughing.

"Golf, huh?"

"He kept the secret long enough," Olivia said, "Yes, mini golf next, just up there."

"A little friendly competition?" Ed said with a smirk, "Perfect." He reached over for her hand, "Thank you, Liv. I needed this weekend."

She kissed his knuckles and winked. "I know."

…

"Daddy, am I gonna be able to go trick or treating?" Noah asked, sounding miserable. The medication was wearing off and Ed was waiting for Olivia to reply with instructions for a second dose.

"You will, bud," Ed assured him. "You'll be back to one hundred percent in a day or so. Plenty of time to get ready for Halloween."

"I don't LIKE bein sick!"

"I know. It's no good. But we're lucky, we're not sick a lot. Every once in a while we get a cold."

"And you got your tooth taken out with surg'ry!"

"Yep."

Noah cocked his head and squinted at Ed, "You still hurtin?"

"A little bit," Ed answered. "It's startin' to just feel a little weird now. Like I have a hole in my mouth."

Noah giggled. "You feel like da food's gonna spill out?"

"Kinda, yeah."

Noah continued laughing and Ed hugged him. "It's good to hear ya laugh, bud. I don't like it when you're not feeling good."

"Yeah…hey! Can we call Gramma and ask her to make us cookies? You can dunk yours so you don't haveta chew."

"Sure, bud." Ed grabbed his phone and dialed his mother. After two unsuccessful calls, she picked up.

"Sorry, Eddie," she said, "I'm outside raking."

"Ma, we hire a kid for that."

"I know, but I like to do a little. Good exercise. What's going on? How's the mouth?"

Ed smiled. As much as Caroline loved her family, a call in the middle of the day was unusual and she knew it. "The mouth is getting better. I'm here with 's got a little cold and stayed home from school today."

"I'm SNIFFLY, GRAMMA!" Noah said, pressing his face against Ed's.

"Oh my God." Ed heard Caroline drop her rake. "Dear boy, what do you need Grandma to do? Do you need some soup? Some pot roast? Soda bread? Oh, I know, cookies?"

"YES!" Noah fell backward, erupting into a throaty, congested cough.

"Well, he doesn't seem critical," Caroline said. "But he sounds like hell. Get him a hot toddy."

"I think he'll be okay without booze," Ed replied, "But we wouldn't mind some cookies. And...Liv's bringing soup, but…if ya don't mind and if ya have time..."

"Yes, Eddie, I'll whip up a shepherd's pie for you, Jesus, Mary, and Joseph you'd think I'm running a pub outta this house!"

"Well, we could look into that," Ed sassed, "What else ya got goin on?"

"Well, for once someone's being born and not dying. I'm making bread for a christening this weekend. Ten loaves in my itty bitty oven."

"We wanted to get you a double oven a couple years ago…"

"Ah-my oven cooks the best food."

"Sure you have time for cookies?"

"Eddie! My son and grandson are infirm! Everything stops!"

"Thanks, Ma."

"You're welcome. Put Noah on the phone, please."

Ed handed the phone to Noah. A few minutes passed before he said "I love you too Gramma. Bye" and handed the device back. "Gramma said Justy or Sare Bear or both can come and get da food for us tonight. She's gonna text 'em. So we're all set."

"Sounds like we are," Ed replied, smirking.

"You know what, Daddy?" Noah bunched his blanket under his chin and snuggled into Ed's chest.

"What's that?"

"I'm startin' to feel better."

"Me too, pal."

"But I'm kinda tired."

"Let's take a little snooze," Ed suggested, "And when we wake up, Mommy will be here with some good hot soup."

Noah yawned. "Good plan."

"Love you, pal." Ed kissed the top of Noah's head.

"Love you Daddy."

….

Olivia sent instructions to Ed but learned Noah had fallen asleep, so she walked back in the direction of the twins' school rather than take a cab or the subway. On the way she called Brooke who was surprisingly in Manhattan and offered to meet her at the twins' school. Olivia agreed and invited Brooke to lunch. An hour later, the four of them were at the pub. Olivia joked she was happy the weather was cool and they were seated inside. This way, Wyatt's fans couldn't stop and ask for pictures.

"They did that?" Brooke asked.

"Yes. I politely declined but I'm sure they got a picture from afar."

"Who walks by and notices a kid who's been on a show a few times?"

"A crazy fan."

Brooke shook her head. "Unbelievable."

"Exactly."

"What did you do?"

"Honestly, I was so shocked...I was far nicer than you can imagine."

"Wow…"

"So," Olivia folded her hands in front of her, "Where's Sof? What's going on?"

Brooke smiled. "She's with Sonny's mom. I had to meet my mom's estate lawyer and sign some things."

Confused, Olivia cocked her head and waited for Brooke to explain further.

"Yeah, these estate things, when you don't have a clear will or plans? Well, they take forever."

"What's going on?"

"Well, for starters, my mom and Dave weren't legally married."

"What?"

"Yeah. Apparently my mom wanted Dave to sign a prenup and he refused. She brought this up, of course, with the absolute worst timing, so what Sarah and I remember as a wedding was really a commitment ceremony. I didn't think twice about the house being in her name and Dave not wanting to have anything to do with it, I mean, the whole thing happened so quickly and unexpectedly. I didn't know which questions to ask. Sarah and I just figured mom didn't trust Dave...not even with Aidan, which, as it turns out, was spot on."

"Oh my god...Brooke…"

"It's really okay, Liv. It's just been a waiting game. Probate court moves at glacial speed. So now, finally, everything can be buttoned up and closed, or, in Aidan's case, I can start working on his trust. It's not much, but he deserves to have it."

"And all of this...legal maneuvering...Brooke, I wish you would have said something."

Crestfallen, Brooke stared at her hands. From the beginning, Sarah had been uninterested in anything having to do with their mother's estate, and Brooke assumed the legalities were hers to navigate alone. Angela had been intentional about being distant. And she'd tricked Sarah into getting the drugs that eventually ended her life. Sarah could not forgive her mother, and, to boot, she regarded anything and everything she touched as fruit of the forbidden tree. Even Aidan, a human being, could not be absolved from his mother's crimes. Sarah tried, but she could not separate Aidan from his mother. In therapy and on her own, Brooke had unpacked the inevitable, ironic truth, that Brooke had had an unremarkable and undramatic relationship with her mother, but Angela's afterlife had thrown her a slew of daunting complications.

"But I get why you didn't," Olivia added softly.

"If I've learned anything," Brooke said with a smile, "It's to make sure you have everything in order if you die. Sonny was freaking out, but I made us do it all...will, power of attorney, DNR, life insurance beneficiaries...all of it."

"It feels morbid," Olivia said, "But it is the best thing to do. For everyone's peace of mind."

"Yeah…" Brooke heaved a sigh of relief, "Now I need to bring Aidan back into the fold. One thing down. Next project to go."

"Remember that it can be a team effort."

"Thank you for that."

"Of course."

"Now," Brooke grinned, "Can you please tell me the rest of the story about the girl wanting Wyatt's autograph?"

Olivia laughed and glanced at Wyatt. He and Maggie were drawing on the paper menus and placemats and paying the adults no attention. "Wyatt, honey, can you sign your name for Brooke?"

He grinned, nodded, and scribbled on Olivia's placemat. "Deyago!"

Olivia handed the placemat over, "That's what she got. A one-of-a-kind Wyatt Tucker print that she'll never be able to verify...not that anyone will ever need to ask."

"You never know." Brooke laughed and folded the placemat, "I'm going to hang onto this one just in case."

Olivia thought of the overflowing albums of toddler artwork taking up significant real estate in their home. "Don't worry," she said, "There's plenty more where that came from."

…

As his sentence required, Noah woke up early so he could be to school at the appointed six a.m. hour. Worried about him on the subway alone, Ed drove him to the building. Noah hadn't said a word on the ride which Ed could not remember ever happening before, and he mumbled a barely audible "see ya later" before trudging inside. It killed Ed and Olivia to see their son grapple with various questions of morality and loyalty. They respected his decision to take the punishment, but they knew he was worried about what long-term repercussions lay ahead. Since kindergarten, Noah boasted a stellar reputation with the school's teachers, staff, and students. Would this one little mistake tarnish it?

Ed drove slowly back home, enjoying the commute on the near-empty streets. He pictured Noah with a mop and a rag scrubbing the school bathrooms with his friends under the watchful eye of the facilities manager. Ed wondered if Noah's friends had agonized as much as Noah had over this whole thing. He guessed not.

At home, Maggie and Wyatt were sitting at the island finishing their breakfasts, and Olivia sipped coffee. She handed a cup to Ed and they locked eyes, silently rehashing the ride to school. As the years passed and the kids grew up, these nonverbal "conversations" became a staple of their marriage and their role as parents. With a few seconds' eye contact, Ed and Olivia could exchange a great deal of information and convey the level of seriousness, or humor, in certain situations. Today, Olivia understood not all was well, but their son would eventually be okay.

"Alright, what's on tap for today? Homework done?" Ed asked cheerfully and with a smirk because if homework was not done it wasn't going to get there.

"Didn't have any," Wyatt said.

"Me neither," Maggie added, which was unnecessary because the twins were in the same class. "I hope Noah gets those bathrooms nice and clean and refills the toilet paper 'cause I hate it when they're out."

Olivia regarded her sternly. "I think he's working in the upper school only," she said, "And let's not make fun of your brother."

Maggie groaned.

"You girls must use too much toilet paper," Wyatt remarked.

Maggie rolled her eyes. "More than you, DUH!"

"Okay," Olivia said calmly, "Let's get a move on." She patted Ed's chest. The two of them usually took the twins together, but she offered to go solo since he'd already completed a trip.

"Nah," he said, "I'm going and then how 'bout you and I go for breakfast at the diner we used to go to?"

Olivia grinned. They hadn't been to the 24 Hour place since Ed was on the job, but she knew exactly what he was talking about. "Are they still open?"

"They have to be."

"LUCKYS!" Maggie said, "We gotta go to school and you get to go out to eat and have fun all day!"

"Nope," Ed replied, "We're goin' out to eat but we have no fun until you come home from school."

"Liars."

"It's true," Olivia said, grinning at Wyatt. His eyes twinkled-they always did when he picked up on an inside joke or fib or exaggeration. "We reserve all fun for after two-forty-five. It's a pretty boring day before that."

Maggie groaned and hopped off the stool. It took the twins a few minutes to gather their backpacks and put on their coats. Ed leaned on the island and flipped through the news alerts on his phone. As he did several times a day, he absent-mindedly checked their email account and saw a forwarded message from Noah's counselor.

"Liv, c'mere."

They read the message together. The counselor hadn't written much, only that she was proud of him. Below the note was an email Noah had apparently sent early this morning. In it, he confessed to knowing more than he let on. He didn't name names, but he asked that whoever wanted the information communicate with him via email "for obvious reasons." Lastly, he apologized. Next time, he promised, he would be "the bigger man" and try to stop such shenanigans before they started.

Olivia gasped and covered her mouth with her hand.

"He figured it out," Ed replied, "He managed to do the right thing and save face with his buddies."

"Yes he did."

Ed put the phone down and wrapped his arms around Olivia's waist. "I'm proud of him."

"So am I."

"Are we gonna tell him we saw the email?"

"No, let's not," Olivia said immediately. "Let's give him that little bit of space...even though I do appreciate them letting us know."

"Yeah…" Ed kissed her head, "He's an amazing kid, Liv."

"Yes he is. I...I hope he still believes that about himself."

"He does...or he wouldn't have sent that email."

Olivia smiled and kissed him on the lips. "Very true, Ed Tucker."

"Now let's see what kind of trouble the twins can get into today."

Olivia laughed and gave him a shove. "I think we've had enough trouble for one school year," she said, "But if we don't leave now we're gonna have a tardy problem times two."

"Then we better go."

…..

Olivia and the twins returned home with soup and spent the rest of the afternoon watching movies with Ed and Noah who were doing better, but still not at one-hundred percent. Justin stopped by with cookies and shepherd's pie, and, after eating, they face-timed with Caroline to send their thanks. She took the call in her kitchen which was, simply put, a total mess. Caroline good-naturedly repeated the story about baking bread and running an Irish Pub, and Olivia professed their profuse thanks and promised to bring everyone over soon. It ended up being and early night-everyone was bathed and in bed by eight o'clock. Ed and Olivia skipped the couch and opted for mindless television in their bedroom.

"How are you feeling?" Olivia asked. She was sitting cross-legged on the mattress across from Ed who was stretched out, dead center, so Olivia had no choice but to cuddle up to him when she eventually lied down.

"Mouth still aches," he said, "But I also feel weak. I don't think I've eaten enough."

"Want me to warm up more of the pie?"

Ed shrugged. "Rather have something sweet."

"Ice cream?"

"Yeah...that sounds good, but, maybe later? I just wanna be with you for a little bit."

"Should I turn the TV off?"

"Yeah."

Olivia killed the power on the screen they'd turned on minutes ago and laid down with her back to Ed's chest. He draped an arm over her, kissed her cheek, and held her hand. "I love you," he said, "Thank you for taking care of me."

"You're welcome, but I was gone most of the day. And you took care of Noah."

"Team effort."

"You have no idea how much I love being a part of Team Tucker."

"You're its heart and soul." Ed squeezed her fingers, "We love you."

…

#Tuckson

Happy Thanksgiving! If you have some extra time, go back and revisit Holiday Trilogy to celebrate turkey day with the Tuckers/Bensons!