She had only seen this occur in movies. Never thought this could happen, let alone happen to her. But here she was. Standing between two lives. Two families. One that started as a lie, but became her truth. The other has always been her life. She had to choose and she had to do it now. But, how can she? How can she choose between love and law? Looking to her left she looked at her squad. The ones that have always had her back. Always looked out for her. Always loved her.

Glancing to her right she locked eyes with her lover and family. The man that loved her beyond her lies. Her past. Her betrayal. Beyond what she truly was. And his family, who took her in as one from the start. Watched out for her in ways she never experienced. Who loved her more than simply being the new woman.

Both families called to her. Both waiting for her to choose. Taking a step towards her choice, she took the hand waiting for her.

ONE YEAR EARLIER:

Craigen went over the file for what seemed like the hundredth time. Dodds had walked in a few hours ago, with a new case. A case that had everything you could imagine rolled up in a chaotic ball of thin string and tossed it to him. You had gangs feuds, murder, drugs, illegal gun trafficking, sex trafficking, and everything in between. Dodds had given him the file and told-no ordered him to deal with it. This was out of his and his squad's job description. This wasn't an SVU case.

But then again his squad has gotten used to rouge operations during his absence.

Opening the file, he went through page by page. He looked for any way they could get out of it, but no matter how hard he looked and re-read Craigen knew what needed to be done. He was going to have to send his people in. One that can win their trust and report back to them. Hating this as much as he did, he had just the right person. Running a hand down his face, he took in a deep breath and composed himself.

The rest of the team was gathered in the bullpen. Carisi and Amanda were busy chatting about some movie they watched last night to the others. Elliot had just walked in from his day in court. Based on the grin on his face, it went well. Olivia was busy making herself a second cup of coffee with Amaro. As for Fin, the man had yet to show up.

"Hate to disturb this rare break in the morning, but I need you all in the screen room now. Amanda, Dodds sent some files to your laptop. Pull them up please."

"On it." Amanda was a blur of colors, as she hurriedly grabbed her laptop and pulled up the file on the screen.

As they made their way towards the area, Fin finally decided to show up.

"Glad you can join us." Elliot laughed.

Fin simply fixed his shirt, brushing who knows what off it. "Traffic jam."

Olivia walked out from the coffee station and grabbed a hold of his shirt collar. "Yeah sure, that's why you have lipstick on your collar."

Fin sighed. "You mind?" With another laugh, she grabbed a wet towel and cleaned it off. "Thank you."

"No problem, now let's get moving befo-"

"Fin! Olivia!" Craigen's voice boomed throughout the bullpen.

Once everyone was settled in and Amanda had set up the laptop, Craigen began. "Earlier this morning Dodds handed me a case file. This isn't our usual type of case. This is more of a UC case."

Elliot raised his hand. "UC?"

Grabbing the control, he aimed it at the screen and clicked it. A picture of a man popped up. He was leaning against a staircase rail unaware of being photographed. He was good looking there was no denying that. He had a beard just enough to cover his jawline and around his mouth. Short dark brown hair, but what caught their attention was his dark green eyes. They held nothing, no emotions whatsoever. They were empty and vacant.

A green abyss.

"Meet Rafael Barba, head of Los Angelico's." Craigen began. "Where there are guns, drugs, and trafficking, he is involved one way or another. The officials want him gone. The reason we are asked to take over this case is because others have failed to do so. They want this done clean and by the books." Craigen paused, letting that bit sink in. His squad was known to go rogue. "Last month, a detective from GTF was suspended after it was discovered, she planted drugs on Damon Barba. Rafael's oldest son. He walked and so did any and every evidence they had on them up to that point. Which means we start from scratch."

"GTF?" Olivia asked. "New division?"

Craigen nodded. "In a way. GTF stands for Gang Task Force. Run by Captain Chapel. The team is built by one agent of each alphabet and is funded by each head of said alphabet."

"What are we to do?" Amanda asked.

"Dodds had every agency send us everything they had. Turns out there is a new drug on the market. Fish scale. Suppose to be better than any other drug on the market. Rafael Barba has the first and only product and is looking to distribute it across the state. Now we have another problem." Clicking the remote once more, pictures of another gang appeared. "A war between Los Angelicos and BX9 has broken out. There are pictures of the aftermath from their last encounter are in your tablets." Craigen didn't need the whole squad room seeing the pictures. "Local PD has had death's every day between these two, last I heard Barba was leading by three."

"What started it?" Fin asked. "I know a bit about each one, we did a sting during my narcotics days. I have had a few run-ins with both gangs. They have always been at war, but nothing like this."

"Not to mention they aren't precisely neighbors, so it's not a common run-in." Olivia swiped at the pictures on her tablet. It was a massacre. The streets were bathed in the blood of Lords and Angelico's. She stopped swiping when the picture of a little girl clutching her backpack covered in blood appeared. Collateral damage. "Based on the pictures, they are exterminating each other and whoever gets in the crossfire. Who did what?"

"Better yet, who pissed of Los Angelico's. I have never met Barba, but I have studied him and his way of leading." Amaro added. "I don't admire him, but I do have some respect for the way he does things."

"BX9 members ambushed and shot Damon Barba 27 times. The boy lived, most of the bullets hit the car, but doctors said he is to spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair." Craigen replied.

"Karmas a bitch." Elliot mumbled.

"Did they catch the ones who did it?" Amanda asked.

"They did." Craigen brought up three pictures. "But they were ambushed and killed in the prisons yard." Three new pictures of the dead prisoners appeared. "Each stabbed 27 times."

"Same number of shots given to Damon." Carisi said. "This was payback."

Amaro shook his head, at the clear overkill. It was impossible to distinguish anything from the photos. "By who?"

"No one has spoken up. Even the prison guards said they saw nothing. They claimed, the prisoners waited until they were gone to attack." Craigen replied. "Word is Rafael is not finished yet. He currently has men looking for the BX9 leader's son."

"Eye for an eye." Amanda scoffed.

"Where is the boy?" Olivia asked.

"Custody protection, we have him in lockdown." Craigen said. "Now our job is to go in and take them down from the inside." He raised his hand to stop them from arguing. "I don't like this any more than you do. Two of you will be going in and gathering as much as you can. Get close to Rafael and his people, earn their trust and report back."

"Who's going in?" Carisi asked. Deep down he was hoping it wasn't him. The last time he went undercover, it was a disaster.

"Amanda, you are going in as a new business partner. Looking to buy a new product from him. In the process try and become his friend." Craigen said. "Elliot will be with you, consider him your right hand."

Amanda nodded, grabbing her file. "Understood."

Craigen took in a deep breath and handed the second file to Olivia. "You have worked undercover many times. I need that experience now. You will have to gain the trust of not only Rafael but of his family as well. He is looking to hire a caretaker for his son Damon. All paperwork has been done and reviewed by him. We just got the word you have the job." Craigen stated. "Start with Damon, then move to the others. Leave Rafael until last. The man is no stranger to undercover cops. Move too fast and he will discover you. Move too slow and..."

"And I am dead." Olivia took a shaky breath. "Alright."

Craigen placed a hand on her shoulder, giving her a small squeeze. "You up for this?"

Opening the file, Olivia scanned through the few words. It has been four years since she has taken up any undercover job. Now she must jump in and become friends with one of the most feared gang lords in the state. Taking a deep breath, she tried to relax. She can do this. No biggy. "I got this Captain."

"Alright." Craigen offered her a small smile, before continuing with the briefing. "The Barba family is a large one and it seems to only be getting bigger." The picture of said man popped up on the screen once more. "Rafael Barba, 43 years old. Barba has been the founder and head of Los Angelicos since he was 18." A picture of a young female blond appeared on the screen. "5 years ago, his wife Jess Barba was killed by a rival gang. It was rumored the killing was a message to him and his family. This was the first time we got to see what he was really capable of. Rafael hunted them down, only he didn't go after the ones responsible for the killing." Multiple pictures of crime scenes popped up on the screen. It was hard to distinguish anything from them, but a few things were made out. "He went after the wives. Killing each one the same way his wife was killed. All wives had broken bones and throats slit. The wives' ring fingers were removed and mailed to the husbands. The only similarly they were spared was the sexual assault. None of this was able to be pinned back to him."

Olivia had to pry her eyes off the screen. It was too much. The pictures were a bloody massacre. The wives lay splayed on the bloody beds, throat slits, and fingers missing. "How in the hell was he never caught?"

Craigen had hoped he didn't have to bring this up. "Rafael is no rookie when it comes to the law. In his younger age, he worked as DA in California."

Elliot scoffed. "You have to be joking."

"No. He knows the law and how to work his way around it. Don't underestimate him." Craigen aimed his sights at Amanda and Olivia. Clicking the remote, three new pictures appeared. "Damon Barba 20, Jack Barba 18 and Allison Barba 15. These are his three children. Damon had - until the shooting, been Rafael's, right-hand man. Jack moved from the family business and became a real estate agent, but that does not mean he is out of the loop. He also works for the bank, so let's keep a close eye on that. Now Allison is the youngest of the three and there for Rafael keeps a real close eye on her. She is always with someone. Either friends or a guard. Still in school and never leaves the house alone. Olivia, get close to her."

Olivia nodded. "Yes sir." She looked to be about Noah's age. So innocent in a dirty world. Noah! "Captain."

"Yes?"

"What about Noah? I can't simply leave him and we don't know how long this will last." Olivia was not about to leave her son. She was all Noah had.

Craigen paused for a moment. He had completely forgotten about the boy, but he couldn't allow Olivia to take him. "We will come up with something, for now, let's focus on this. Okay?"

Olivia wasn't convinced but knew better than to argue with him. "Okay."

"Alright, now Javier Barba is Rafael's adopted younger brother by two years. Javier is the one to do all the dirty work. He is what we would call the working dog. Attacks when ordered and kills when told to. Keep an eye out for him, like Rafael he is no stranger to cops. Javier is a washout cop, released for excessive force on duty." Shutting the tv off, Craigen placed his palms on the table and exhaled. "I know this is not something we do, nor is it going to be a walk in the park, but we have no choice. Dodds and the others want him gone and done for. Rafael has killed many innocent and not so innocent people. In those killed are cops and agents." Standing back up, he ran a hand over his head. "What I am asking from you two is hard I know, but I also know I am asking the right ones. If you can't or don't want to do this, let me know now. Judgment free."

Olivia and Amanda glanced at each other, debating the pros and cons of this assignment. But in the end, they knew what needed to be done.

"I'm in." Amanda assured.

Craigen nodded, glancing towards his detective. "Olivia?"

Olivia glance up at him, unlike Amanda she would be living with them. Day in and day out. She would have contact with all of them. See what really goes on in there. Deal with their problems. Become one of them. If not her then someone else would take this assignment and she didn't want to disappoint her Captain. But better yet, she didn't want to put anyone else in danger. Not to mention that the only other option was Fin and Olivia didn't see that working out. So, sucking in some air, she stared her Captain straight in the eyes. "I'm in."

Craigen gave her a small smile. "Good. Olivia, you are to arrive the day after tomorrow at the Barba's resident. Amanda, you have a meeting with Rafael in a month."

Both Olivia and Amanda nodded at his instructions. Sharing a look between them, they stood up and left.