Chapter 2 is up! A resolution of the cliff-hanger of the last chapter is coming up! But the danger doesn't stop there…enjoy!

He skidded to a stop next to the vic and looked desperately down at her face. With a jolt of relief, he realized that it wasn't Olivia. "Know her?" An angel's voice said from behind him, and he whipped around, seeing his partner walking towards him. She had obviously seen his sprint, and he sighed in relief, striding over to her and shaking his head, saying,

"Nah, just, just thought I did. Never seen her before."

"Me either." Olivia replied, a sad tone in her voice that Elliot always saw when they had a new victim.

"We got a name yet?" Elliot said, turning to face Melinda, and Melinda said, "Her ID says Melina Emerson."

"Thanks," Elliot said, turning back to face Olivia and asking, "Up for the notification?"

"We'd better." She said with a sigh, and the pair walked back to the car. When they got in the car, Olivia said, "You sure you're okay? You seemed a little freaked out there."

"I'm fine," Elliot said, looking over at her before backing out and driving.

"Yeah right. You left before you even got her next of kin."

"I know," Elliot said quietly, and kept driving. His tone of voice made Olivia keep quiet, knowing something was bothering Elliot deeply, and he would tell her as soon as they got wherever they were going. Olivia was a bit surprised when he pulled up at their favorite coffee shop, but she didn't complain as he got out, and she followed him. They walked in silently and sat at their normal booth, and the waitress brought them coffee. After the waitress left, Elliot stared into the coffee that was the same color as Olivia's eyes. He started talking, saying, "I had a dream last night, and it was exactly like what happened this morning. We went to a scene that we knew nothing about, and you weren't there. We pulled up and went to see the vic. But the vic wasn't Melina Emerson."

"Who was it? One of your kids?" Olivia asked gently, her hand reaching across the table for his.

"No," He said slowly, raising his tortured eyes up to meet his. "It was you."

Olivia's eyes widened with shock, but then softened as she stood up, tossing some money on the table for the coffee. She kept a hold of Elliot's hand and led him past the car and he remembered that Olivia's apartment was only a few blocks away from the coffee shop. She brought him up to her apartment and opened the door. He walked in, barely keeping his emotions in check as she shut and locked the door. He turned around and suddenly found Olivia's arms wrapped around his neck. He encircled her waist gently as she said quietly, "I'm still here, El. I'm alive."

"I know. I think I know." Elliot said quietly, and then felt the first of the tears fall. He fought them like hell, but they fell anyways, and he crushed Olivia's body to his, needing to know that she was living and breathing and still in his life. A sob ripped from his throat, and Olivia held him tighter as he broke down in her arms as they stood in the middle of her living room. She brought him to her place, in private, because she knew her kick-ass partner all to well. He wouldn't want to be seen breaking down, not at the stationhouse or in public.

It was killing Olivia inside to hear her strong-as-steel partner break down, but she said nothing, knowing that her mere presence was all he needed, not words. Her hands rubbed soothingly on his back as his sobs subsided, but the tears continued to flow. She realized that it wasn't just his nightmare; it was a buildup of the past year. Kathleen getting into trouble, Dickie getting into trouble, all the fights with Kathy and finally, the divorce, which had been finalized about a month before. Kathy had taken Eli, Dickie and Lizzy to Miami, where she was now living. Kathleen had stayed behind, as Kathy believed Elliot could help her more than she could, and Maureen chose to stay behind, as she was going to college in New York. Kathleen and Maureen lived in Maureen's apartment, and Elliot lived alone, as he could bring himself to live in the same house where three of his kids and his now-ex-wife had lived. It was too heart-breaking for him. And on top of all that, he had dreamed that his partner had been killed.

Elliot managed to stop the tears and drew back a little, wiping his eyes. "You gonna be okay?" Olivia asked gently, and Elliot nodded once, looking her straight in her eyes and said quietly,

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it. You obviously needed that." She said, her hands resting on his arms. He nodded with a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

The partners turned and walked out, going to finish the rest of the case and catch the evil bastard who had killed Melina Emerson, as it turned out he was a serial killer, and just killed women who he saw and took a liking to. That's what made him so dangerous, he could strike at any time, and the detectives had no way of knowing who he was going to grab next.

After a few months and more than 10 women had turned up, they finally caught a break. The killer had gotten a little bit sloppy and left a drop of semen in his latest victim, Virginia Harlem. Melinda sent it to the lab, and SVU finally had his name: Jonathon Erikson. They searched his apartment and car, and found his scrapbook. It was a book, with two pages for each woman, the first was the woman doing everyday things, proving he followed them, and the second page had the woman bound, gagged, and then with her throat slit. It was more than enough evidence to send him to jail for the rest of his life, if he was lucky. Alex was planning on going for the death penalty, and she felt sure she could get it: as long as they found him. This was not going to be an easy task. At least, before he killed another victim. George had predicted that Jon was building up, which meant he was heading for his 'big finish' and then be done. But what they were scared of was the 'big finish'.

A week passed, and no new victims showed up, for which SVU was grateful for. They worked all week, trying to either catch Jon in a trap or figure out where he could be hiding. They searched over a dozen apartments during that week, and all of them had come up empty. It was also during that week that Olivia noticed someone was following her.

When she revealed that suspicion to George, he immediately started worrying. "That's what I was afraid of. Jon's going after you for his 'big finish', raping and murdering a cop would give him a thrill unprecedented to the others, and then he'd retire."

"Well, then, this is great, right? Set a trap for him, he's finished," Olivia said, pushing the slight tremor of fear away and thinking positive. They were going to catch this guy, no matter what.

"I suppose so..." George replied, and then called Don, who almost ordered protection detail on Olivia, but then realized that would tip Jon off. Instead, he had Elliot stay with her in her apartment, and had a few undercover cops take positions temporarily as Olivia's building's new door opener and a magazine vendor near the back. A few days passed, and Olivia was feeling like she had absolutely no privacy.

One morning, Elliot woke up to his alarm and got up, hearing the shower running. He figured Olivia was in there, so he started breakfast. It was their routine, whoever got up first got in the shower, while the other made breakfast. Elliot had eaten, and the shower was still running. Worry began to trickle through Elliot's mind, and though he felt like a total peeper, he carefully opened the door and peeked inside. He saw the shower curtain was pulled closed, and though it made him feel really bad, he cleared his throat and called, "Liv? You okay?"

When he didn't get an answer, he walked over to the curtain and pulled it open with a tug.

She wasn't there.

Yet another cliff-hanger! I'm sure you all hate me for leaving you hanging like this, but I promise, I'll update as soon as I get this next chapter written! Thanks so much for reading, and adios for now!