Ten

Today was one of those days that Olivia was sorry she'd ever been a detective. Or, at least, that she didn't have the detective's strong curiosity. But maybe it wasn't just her curiosity. Maybe it was also another annoying trait: she was completely incapable of saying no to a Stabler child.

In the last week, Olivia had reconnected with the four older Stabler children again. Kathleen had called her the night after the ceremony, crying an apology for the flowers and the last ten years of silence and begging for the chance to see her in person again. Olivia had agreed without any hesitation. She had missed the Stabler kids a lot, and she'd never been angry at any of them.

The next day, Olivia and Noah had met Maureen, Kathleen, Dickie and Lizzie at a park Noah loved. Maureen had brought her three-year-old twins, Kieran and Seamus, and they adored each other right away. Noah gladly led them to the sandbox to play while the group of five adults caught up with each other. Numbers and addresses had been exchanged, and they soon joined the kids in the sandbox and gotten to know Noah, too. By the time Olivia had brought Noah home, he was begging her to invite them all to his next dance recital.

Then, yesterday, Olivia had gotten a text from Maureen.

My mother has something she wants to give you. Would you meet her for coffee tomorrow? If not, that's ok. I can come instead.

Olivia, at her desk, had contemplated what her answer would be for the rest of the afternoon. In the end, her curiosity won out, and she had texted Maureen a time and place for the following day.

She had chosen a café within easy walking distance of the precinct. It was a place Olivia often went on days when she just needed to get out of that building (like days when McGrath would swing by or days when it felt like every lead on a case didn't pan out). She liked the people that worked there, and their blueberry muffins were to die for. Today, however, her only focus was just to get this over with.

Olivia walked into the café and immediately spotted Kathy at a table near the back. The café wasn't really crowded (it being the middle of the morning) so it wasn't hard. As she approached, Kathy stood to face her. Olivia got a good look at her as she got closer.

Her mind went back to a distant memory, to the first time she had met Elliot's mother. Bernie had told her, "I can see why you scared the pants off of Kathy." Olivia had never understood that comment because Kathy was a beautiful woman. Looking at her now, she still was, possibly even more so than she had been ten years ago. Her skin was more golden, her hair was a richer and darker blonde, and she'd maintained her slim figure.

Her facial expression and body language were another story. As Olivia approached her, Kathy reminded her of someone waiting in front of a firing squad. Despite the anger still pumping through her veins, Olivia found that she was glad that Kathy had come. That she had not hidden behind Maureen or another one of her children. That she had not just run back to Italy after the bombshell she dropped the night of her ceremony.

It only took her so many years, thought Olivia, her anger hardening again.

Kathy broke the silence. "Thank you for coming." Her voice was quiet, trembling a little, strained as if trying to keep it from breaking. She was clearly nervous. "I won't keep you long."

"Maureen said you have something for me?" Olivia asked, crossing her arms and coming straight to the point.

Kathy nodded and sat back down, reaching into her purse. Olivia sat down, too, but didn't let herself relax. She had no idea what to expect from this woman. And what Kathy pulled out of her purse and placed on the table in front of Olivia rendered the captain speechless.

It was a photo album of black leather. Inscribed on the cover were the words For My Godmother, and inserted in the middle of the cover was a photo that was very familiar to Olivia that now rested in a box with his father's name on it: a picture of her and Eli at his baptism.

Olivia looked back up at Kathy, who was staring at her with tears in her eyes. "The kids helped me put it together. It's not just pictures of Eli the past ten years, but all of the kids the past ten years. Maureen's wedding, when the twins were born, graduations, silly photos. Because you really are godmother to all of them, Olivia, and have been ever since you came into our lives."

Kathy stopped talking to clear her throat and wipe her eyes, controlling herself. Olivia, to hide her own tears in her eyes, looked back down at the album.

Taking a deep breath, Kathy gathered herself and continued speaking. "I know…I know that there is nothing I can say or do…to make up for the last decade…what I did, but especially what I didn't do. An apology feels worthless, and you have no reason to believe me. You have my deepest apologies, for whatever they're worth, and I don't expect your forgiveness. Thank you for embracing my children again, and when Eli comes back to the states…I would love for you to see him again. I'll make sure to stay out of your way."

Olivia still said nothing, still didn't move, just sat and stared at the album. Kathy took that to mean that Olivia had nothing more to say to her. So Kathy grabbed her purse and stood up from the table. But before she could pass Olivia, the captain shot out her hand and took her arm, gently but firmly, stopping Kathy in her tracks.

With her free hand, Olivia pulled out her phone and called somebody, still keeping her other hand on Kathy's arm. "Hey, Fin," she said into her phone, her voice calm and official. "I need to take the rest of the day for personal reasons…No, Noah's fine, this is about me…I'll check in later…Thanks, Fin."

Olivia then ended the call and looked up at Kathy. She stood up from the table and spoke in a sad but firm tone. "We need to talk, Kathy. And I mean really talk. Too much damage has been done through silence."

Kathy nodded, because she absolutely agreed.

At the same time, Elliot was parking his rental car in front of Kathleen's building in Brooklyn. While Kathleen's apartment was on the fourth floor, the apartment door he approached was on the ground floor. The door was soon opened after he knocked, for the occupant was expecting him.

Bernie Stabler took one look at her son and tears formed in her eyes. "Oh, baby…"

In the next moment, Bernie was holding her big, tall, muscular son as though he were small again, and Elliot held her just as tightly back. Once, he couldn't imagine ever being able to trust his mother like this again. Now, he was so grateful that he could turn to the one person who had always believed he could be more than what life expected him to be.

A/N: The next chapter will be the conversation these two women need to have. I understand how angry you all are at Kathy – Olivia is, too – but please remember that she's only human, not a monster or an evil bitch, and we never saw her POV nearly as much as Olivia's and Elliot's. To Olivia, monsters and evil bitches are the people she tries to get off the streets, and that's not Kathy. This story was inspired by a duet from Chess between two women, in love with the same man who hurt both of them and are trying to find a way forward. The next chapter will really reflect that.