I promised you another chapter so here you go! And for those waiting…patiently and impatiently…for the M rating, it's coming. These things take time. Please leave a review.
EOEOEOEO
"Amy's friend went crazy. She attacked me." Jason stopped pacing and turned back towards Fin and Munch. He touched his face. "She's the one that did this to me."
Olivia rushed around Cragen and burst into the interrogation room. "You're a fucking liar!" She yelled as she crossed the room towards Jason. "I didn't touch you!"
Jason backed up against the wall as she got closer. "See what I mean? She's a psycho!" He held up his hands in a defensive gesture but Olivia pushed him up against the wall.
Olivia could hear Fin and Munch telling her to stop but she was in a rage. She was standing in front of Jason, and even though she wasn't touching him anymore, her face was inches from his. "I didn't touch you, you son-of-a-bitch. And you know it!"
"Olivia!"
She heard Elliot's voice behind her and the next thing she knew, he had his arm wrapped around her waist and was hauling her away from Jason. "Liv!"
"Tell me what you did to her!" Olivia continued screaming at him as Elliot hauled her away. "Where is she?"
"What do you think you're doing?" Elliot hissed into her ear as he backed out of the interrogation room with her back to his chest.
Olivia was furious…she dug her fingers into his arm, trying to free herself. "He knows where she is! You have to let me back in there!"
"Olivia! Stop it!" Elliot wrapped his free arm over hers, pinning them against her body as he carried her out into the squad room. He stood and held her there, her feet slightly suspended above the ground. He could feel her anger and her outrage, but she was out of control and he didn't know what else to do. He moved his mouth closer to her ear. "Stop." He whispered. "Stop and I'll let you go."
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Cragen yelled as he stormed into the room.
Elliot loosened his grip on Olivia and she slid to the ground in front of him. The minute her feet hit the ground, she flung his arm aside.
"He needs to tell us where she is, and Fin and Munch weren't getting anywhere." Olivia said as she stalked towards Cragen.
"So you attack him? You think that's the answer?" Cragen jabbed a finger at her. "You stay away from him."
"You don't believe him, do you? You can't believe that I did that to him?" Olivia asked incredulously.
"I don't know what to believe." Cragen said.
"Captain." Elliot said. He couldn't believe Cragen's words. Did he honestly think Olivia had attacked Jason?
"There are only three people that know what happened, and that's you, Jason and Amy. And right now, I need to get his version of the story and I need him to tell us where Amy is. Then maybe we can figure out this mess." He shook his head. "I need you to go home. And stay there until I call you."
"Captain…" Olivia sputtered.
Cragen looked at Elliot. "Take her home." He turned and walked back towards the interrogation rooms.
Olivia stood rooted in place, torn between following him and defending herself, and turning to yell at Elliot for pulling her out of there. She went with the latter. "Whose side are you on?" She spat out as she turned to face him.
"I can't believe you're asking me that." Elliot said. They had backed each other's play so many times he couldn't begin to count. He couldn't believe she was questioning his alliances.
"You shouldn't have pulled me out."
"You shouldn't have busted in there in the first place." Elliot put his hands on his hips. "Why would you give that asshole any ammunition? You know better than that. You'll be lucky if Cragen doesn't suspend you."
"I didn't do that to him. I told you exactly what happened." Olivia said. She let out a deep breath…she had to let the anger go. Elliot wasn't the enemy here.
"I know that." Elliot said. "I believe you."
"So what am I supposed to do?" Olivia asked, more to herself than to Elliot. "I can't just go home and wait around until maybe Jason decides to tell us where she is." She stood staring at him, silently willing him to help her. She needed him on her side…to understand how she was feeling right now.
Elliot stood and looked at Olivia…he really wanted to take her home as Cragen had demanded. He saw her wince when she spoke, and he knew that her head was probably pounding. It hadn't even been twelve hours since she'd been injured, and the doctor's orders ran through his mind. But he knew Olivia…and he knew himself…neither one of them would be able to rest knowing Amy was out there somewhere. "Let's retrace your steps from last night."
"Thank you." She said quietly.
"One condition though." Elliot said, taking a step towards her.
"What?" Olivia asked cautiously.
"You have to keep calm." He closed the space between them so he was standing right in front of her. "I know you're still hurting." He gently lifted a piece of hair and brushed it back behind her shoulder. "I'm worried about you."
Olivia's heart skipped a beat at the sincerity in his tone and the gentleness of his touch. "I'm f…"
"Stop. I know you're not fine. I don't want to hear that anymore. OK?"
Olivia nodded, and winced slightly at the pain that stabbed through her head. "OK." She looked up into his eyes. "Before…I didn't mean…I know you have my back. Thank you for being on my side."
"I'm always on your side."
EOEOEOEO
Elliot and Olivia returned to Chaos, but none of the waitresses or bartenders from the night before were even there. There were no credit card receipts for Jason Logan. They walked out of the club, deciding to come back later tonight if they still didn't have any leads. Elliot asked Olivia to show him the direction she had walked and she told him about all four of them leaving, and Chloe and Jamie taking the first taxi.
"How much had you had to drink Liv?" Jason's words echoed in his mind. They were drunk. He knew Olivia rarely had more than a few drinks, but it had been an unusual night for her. Maybe she had let loose a little.
"I wasn't drunk Elliot." Olivia said, indignation in her voice.
"Impaired?" Elliot asked. "Did you drink more than you usually do?"
Olivia remained silent as they continued to walk towards the spot where they'd had their altercation with Jason.
"I'm not judging you Liv. I'm just trying to understand what happened." He knew her blood test at the hospital would tell the whole story, but he wanted to hear it from her.
"Fine. I maybe drank a little more than usual. But really, I wasn't drunk."
"And Amy?"
Olivia nodded. "Yes, she was really drunk. I was helping her walk…and I wasn't paying attention to what was going on around us." She stopped at the spot where Jason had approached them. "He was just there."
Elliot placed a hand on her shoulder as she stared at the ground.
Olivia could see it all play out in her mind and she tried to figure out what she could have done differently. "I remember thinking that I wish I had my badge and gun."
"I'm glad you didn't." Elliot shuddered at the thought. It could have been so much worse. Alcohol and guns weren't a good mix.
"Maybe I could have stopped him."
"Olivia." Elliot turned her body towards his. He put his hand underneath her chin and lifted it up until she was looking at him. "I don't know how many times I have to tell you to stop blaming yourself. You didn't do this. Jason Logan did this. Tell me you understand that."
"I understand."
"But you don't believe it."
"I'm trying." Olivia said. It was much easier said than done. She felt Elliot pulling her into his body and she wanted to resist…told herself to resist. But she couldn't. She knew this was dangerous. She couldn't let herself get used to this. She would miss it too much when things went back to normal.
But for now, she couldn't seem pull away.
"Liv?"
Olivia lifted her head. "What?"
"Is that your shoe?"
Olivia pulled herself from Elliot's arms and looked to where he was pointing. She saw her shoe lying there, scattered amongst the trash on the ground. She stood there and stared at it…last night seemed like so long ago, but there it was. Proof of what had happened. She didn't know why the sight of it shook her, but it did. Elliot walked over to pick it up, but just as he leaned over, she yelled at him to stop.
"Just leave it."
"What?" Elliot said, straightening up. "Why?" He bent over again and plucked the shoe off the ground.
Olivia walked over to where he was standing and snatched it from his hand. She chucked it into the trash bin a few feet away. "I'll never wear them again."
"Liv…."
Olivia didn't know what he was going to say, but before she could tell him to save it, she heard her cell phone ringing. She fished it out of her pocket and answered it, expecting an update from Cragen.
"Hello?" she answered in a rush.
"Olivia?"
Olivia nearly dropped the phone, but she quickly regained her senses. "Amy?" Olivia looked up at Elliot, and she saw she had his attention. "Amy, are you OK?"
"No. I'm not OK. My head is killing me and I feel like I'm gonna puke. What the hell happened last night?"
Olivia was confused. "That's what I need you to tell me. Where are you? Tell me and we'll come and get you. Do you know where you are?"
"I'm in my room." Amy said.
"What? Where?"
"At the hotel. Although I have no idea how I got here. I thought you were going to stay over with me."
Elliot had heard Olivia say Amy's name, and he stood and waited eagerly as she asked questions.
"Amy, you're not making any sense."
"Olivia, just get back here and bring me coffee and some Tylenol."
Olivia heard the line disconnect and she stood there, trying to process what she'd heard.
"Well?" Elliot asked. He was confused by the side of the conversation he had heard.
Olivia looked down at the phone and then back up at Elliot. "That was…" She furrowed her brow, wondering briefly if was dreaming, but knowing full well she wasn't. "It was Amy. She said she's at the hotel."
"What?" Elliot didn't understand what she was telling him.
"She said she's at the hotel. She wondered where I was…why I left…"
"That doesn't make any sense. We had cops crawling all over the hotel. Are you sure it was her?"
"Of course I'm sure."
"What did she say?" Elliot asked.
"She told me to bring her coffee."
"That can't be…" Elliot said. He knew that the detectives had scoured every inch of the hotel and her room with CSU overnight.
"We need to get to the hotel." Olivia said.
"We should call Cragen." Elliot said.
Olivia turned and headed towards the car. "Call him on the way."
EOEOEOEO
Elliot glanced over at Olivia as he drove. He could see her leaning forward slightly in her seat, as if in anticipation. He was still trying to get over the shock of Amy being at the hotel, and he wondered if she would really be there when they got there.
He glanced over at her again, and questioned the wisdom of waiting to call Cragen as she had suggested. It didn't make any sense. None of this did. "Are you sure you remember everything that happened last night?"
Olivia turned her head sharply towards him and scowled. "I told you what happened." She didn't appreciate the fact that Elliot was questioning her again. She was doing enough of that herself.
They remained silent for the rest of the ride. When Elliot pulled in front of the hotel, he had barely put the car in park before Olivia was out of the car. He followed quickly behind her, flashing his badge at the parking attendant as he passed by.
He caught up to Olivia at the elevator and followed her in. Olivia stabbed the button for the 12th floor and then pushed the door close buttons repeatedly. Elliot put his hand over hers to try to calm her, and she didn't resist, letting him tangle his fingers with hers as he let them fall between them.
"I don't know what's going on El."
"I know."
The elevator door opened and Olivia pulled her hand from Elliot's as they walked out. "Room 1216." Olivia said quietly as walked down the hall.
Elliot and Olivia could see the signs that CSU had been there as they approached the room. There were dark smudges on the doorframe and on the door handle, and a notification from the NYPD plastered on the door.
Olivia ignored all of it as she knocked on the door loudly. "Amy! Open the door!" She cursed the fact that she hadn't stopped at the front desk and gotten a room key. "Amy!" She pounded again in frustration when Amy didn't answer.
The door opened so suddenly that Olivia almost fell. And there was Amy…standing right in front of them.
Olivia stared at her for a second. She was standing there with the bedsheet wrapped around her. Her hair was a mess, her make-up was smudged and her eyes were bloodshot, but she looked wholly unscathed.
"Jesus Christ. What happened to you?" Amy asked, her jaw dropping open.
Olivia had almost forgotten about her bruise and her black eye, but she ignored her question. She strode into the room and flung her arms around Amy, pulling her close. "Thank God you're OK."
Elliot walked in behind her and let the door close. He saw the confused look on Amy's face and knew there were a lot of questions that needed to be answered. He opened his phone and hit Cragen's number on speed dial.
"Cap'n." He said when Cragen answered. "We found Amy." He walked into the room, past the two of them, as he started to fill in the story. He turned and watched as Olivia pulled away from Amy and started peppering her with questions.
"Liv." He said, putting his hand over the mouthpiece of the phone. "Cragen wants you to wait until he gets here."
"But…"
Elliot shook his head. "No." He nodded again and hung up the phone.
"What the hell is going on?" Amy asked, looking between Elliot and Olivia.
"Last night, when we left the club…"
Elliot walked over and put a hand on Olivia's arm. "Liv. We can't say anything until Cragen gets here."
Amy kept looking back and forth between them again, and let out an exasperated sigh. "Seriously?" She focused her attention on Olivia. "Olivia? Please tell me what's going on."
Olivia could hear confusion in her friend's voice, but she knew she couldn't say anything. She put a hand on her shoulder. "Why don't you get dressed." She said. "The police will be here soon."
"But…" Amy said.
"Just get dressed." Elliot said. He knew this must be confusing for Amy, and he felt bad that he couldn't tell her more. But Cragen was adamant that they not question her until they got there. And even then, he knew that he and Olivia wouldn't be part of the team that got to hear her side of the story. Not until it was over.
"OK." Amy said quietly. "I'm just going to take a shower."
"I'm sorry, but you can't do that either." Elliot said, and Olivia shot him a sharp look. She knew that although Amy appeared to be okay, except for a hangover, they had no idea what had happened to her in the hours that she was separated from Olivia. She would have to undergo a physical examination.
"You're really scaring me." Amy said, putting a hand to her throat.
"It's OK." Olivia said. "It's all going to be OK." She forced a small smile on her face as she wrapped her arm around Amy's shoulders. "Just get dressed and then the Captain will be here and we will sort this all out." She watched as Amy disappeared into the bedroom.
Olivia looked back at Elliot. "I don't understand. How could she be here? They searched the hotel…" It made no sense to her. She had seen Jason take Amy. They had searched the hotel…checked video. Amy hadn't been here. She was starting to question her own memory.
Elliot walked over to where Olivia was standing. "It seems like she's OK." He said, wanting to try to ease her concern.
"Yeah." Olivia said, unconvincingly.
"Cragen's not going to let us be here when they question her you know."
Olivia nodded.
As if on cue, they heard a knock on the door. Elliot raised an eyebrow, and Olivia knew he was asking if she was ready. She nodded again and Elliot opened the door. Cragen strode past him, with Fin and Munch right behind him. A couple of uniforms were behind them, and they propped the door open and stood poised there.
"Where is she?" Cragen asked.
"She's getting dressed." Olivia said.
Cragen looked towards the bedroom and then turned back towards Olivia. "You didn't question her, did you?" He asked, looking at her and then at Elliot.
Elliot walked back and stood next to Olivia. "No. Of course not." He said, glancing over towards Olivia and then back at Cragen.
"OK."
"Olivia Benson."
Elliot and Olivia's heads snapped up as their attention turned towards the door. They saw Ed Tucker stride into the room. Elliot took a step forward, as if shielding Olivia, as Tucker repeated her name.
Elliot took a step closer as Tucker paused a few feet away. "What do you want?"
"I need to speak to Detective Benson."
Olivia stepped around Elliot. "About what?" She hadn't done anything that would require questioning by IAB. She looked at Cragen, and saw he wasn't surprised by Tucker's presence. "Captain?"
"You need to go with him." Cragen said.
"What for?" Elliot said, trying to put himself between Olivia and Tucker again.
"She's under investigation." Tucker said, his tone flat. "For assault."