"Morning," Elliot said absentmindedly, brushing past Olivia as he looked through Samara's case for the fifth time that morning.

"Hey," Olivia replied, slightly amused by her distracted partner, "What are you doing?"

"Looking through everything we've gathered so far," he answered, glancing up at her briefly, "Dickie gave me some new leads this morning; he informed me that Samara is in his history class."

"Well if she knows Dickie I'm surprised she didn't pick up on your last name." Olivia said, taking the file from him, "Stabler's not exactly a common last name."

"Not to mention he's looking more and more like me every day." Elliot said.

"Just with more hair," Olivia smirked.

"Har har," he retorted, but grinning at the truth, "Those were Kathy's same exact words, too."

"Ah, well great minds think alike I suppose."

"Olivia, Elliot," Fin called, "Captain's looking for you."

XxxxX

"What have you gotten so far from Ms. Lauff and her sons?" Cragen asked, sitting down behind his desk, observing his two detectives as they took the seats across from him.

"Well, with the newfound information we know that Samara had reported the first rape to Ms. Lauff the night that it happened; her parents didn't even realize she didn't come home that night, they both claim they were working late but we haven't looked to see if their alibis check out yet. Jason and Samara both say the same as before, they haven't spoken in years and you saw the fight between them. Plus, Samara attacked him…Jason didn't lay a finger on her and he doesn't have a scar. James, her other son, was charged with identity theft, credit card theft, and assault a few years ago. And about a month ago he lost his license for a D.U.I." Elliot listed them off; Cragen nodded and turned to Olivia as she spoke up.

"James has a scar but not on his face; he's not charged for possession of drugs but from our visit it looks like his dealer is on speed dial. James works at a bar in Queens, he recently dropped out of college in his sophomore year, and he also overheard Samara talking to his mother about her first rape."

"And some new leads have come up," Elliot said, "It seems that my son, Dickie, has history with the victim. He also mentioned that Samara gets bullied by her peers constantly; one guy by the name of Andrew Clallum, the guy they fought about in questioning the other day, claims he had sex with her and a girl, Sara Dryer had said some things about beating her up until she can't walk. Mostly empty threats from the girl and a false rumor for an ego-boost for the guy…none of it has been put into action but I think we should bring them in for questioning anyway, set the story straight and maybe get some more information. Apparently a lot of students have witnessed and or taken part in the taunting. Samara doesn't think they'll care that she was raped because half of the guys claim that they've either beaten, or screwed her."

"Samara also told us about each of her encounters with the perp, in as much detail as she can remember. The beatings, the rape, the stalking…" Olivia handed the file to Cragen and he looked through it, approvingly. "We asked Samara if she kept the sheets from the rape, but she tossed them. She had her room altered to try and erase the memories so fingerprints are out of the question for now."

"Alright, go down to the school and get some statements from the peers and teachers," Cragen replied, closing and giving the file back, "Ask the girl if she still has the clothes from any of those encounters and if you find out anything more report back to me and we'll go on from there."

XxxxX

Essex Street Academy
350 Grand Street, New York, NY
Monday, January 13

"Hello, how can I help you?"

"I'm Detective Elliot Stabler, this is my partner Detective Olivia Benson, we're here investigating the case of Samara Williams. We need to speak with a few of your students."

"Samara Williams. She's a senior, star pupil. Great girl…did something happen to her? Is she alright?" The woman questioned, a hint of worry rising on her face.

"She's alright," Olivia nodded, "but we need to interview a couple students who may or may not be a part of this case. Nobody's in trouble we just need to ask them a few questions, get their statements in and we'll be on our way."

"Of course, which students in particular? I can send them down here to my office and you can ask them in there."

"Thank you. We're looking for an Andrew Clallum and a Sara Dryer." Elliot said.

"I'm sorry, Andrew transferred to Regis High School about two years ago…he still hangs around with old friends when he cuts though. You might just catch him around here somewhere. As for Sara, I'll send her right down." She left them as she made the call to Sara's teacher.

"That seems a little convenient, don't you think?" Elliot whispered to Olivia, who nodded in agreement, "The boy transfers before we can even question him…he's not off the hook that easily."

"Detectives, she'll be right down. Would you like to wait in my office?"

XxxxX

"Why am I down here?" Sara asked nervously; she looked pale, almost like she was scared to death.

"Are you alright? You look a little ill," Olivia asked, moving away from the window.

"No, I'm fine," her voice broke and she tried to swallow but her dry throat didn't allow it. Elliot cocked an eyebrow at her odd behavior and turned to face her completely. She was definitely hiding something.

"Are you sure? You seem almost…guilty of something," Elliot accused, sitting down on the edge of the large, mahogany desk. "What is it? Maybe you should get it off your chest…let your conscious rest a little while."

"Can you just tell me why I'm down here?" Sara pleaded, forcing herself to look strong.

"Well, we were told by an anonymous witness that you threatened Samara Williams with violence. You claimed you would 'beat her up until she couldn't walk'. That seems a little far-fetched, especially for some school bully to a star pupil who hasn't done anything wrong to you."

"Oh that bitch," Sara smirked then, standing up. She crossed her arms over her chest and laughed, "She did nothing wrong to me? She's beat me out in every class and almost took my boyfriend from me!"

"Almost doesn't count," Elliot replied.

"Figures you'd side with her…since she's suddenly some victim of some fruitless threats." Sara rolled her eyes and breathed out heavily, "Samara is top of the class…in every class I have with her, even gym! Like what kind of pride do you get out of being the top peer in gym? That's why everyone makes fun of her, because she's some straight A+ freak from Pennsylvania," Sara laughed bitterly, "I can't believe she ran to the cops for some stupid, meaningless threats."

"Well threats can be taken seriously," Olivia said in a stern tone, "Especially when everyone is against one person."

"So I'm under arrest for threatening her?" Sara demanded.

"Are you in handcuffs? No, so you're not arrested." Elliot snapped, "Now if you cooperate with us and answer, truthfully, all of the questions we ask we'll let you go."

"Just be thankful the school hasn't turned on Richard for his father being a cop," Sara hissed, glaring at Elliot as he glared back.

"What are you? The ring leader?" Elliot asked rhetorically; Sara rolled her eyes again but returned to her seat and sighed obnoxiously.

"Let's get this over with, I have lunch with my friends in twenty minutes."

"Fine. We need to know names; do you know of anyone who talked about really hurting Samara?" Olivia asked slowly. Sara shrugged for a moment.

"Well…I know some of the guys claimed they bedded her," Sara answered, "Most of them are pigs…definitely not guys she'd let in her pants, by any stretch of the imagination. There was Andrew Clallum who had a pretty convincing story about her…and him, you know, doing it."

"We're hearing a lot about Clallum…can you tell us about him?"

"Captain of the football team, sleazy man-whore…druggie…partier" Sara commented, examining her nails as though they were suddenly interesting, "…liar…Andrew was nice to her once, but it was like someone turned off the nice switch and he just completely turned on her. Made her look like a slut and turned the whole school against her."

"Has Andrew talked about hurting her?"

"Not really hurting her…I mean, he has his disgusting fantasies that no girl deserves to mentally star in but he mostly just talks about hooking up with her on weekends to satisfy his needs and make her feel special."

"Thank you Sara, that was very helpful," Olivia nodded, smiling slightly. Sara stood up, walking towards the door. She turned to face them with a remorseful look.

"Um, look…about me calling her a bitch…it's just jealousy, or whatever." Sara said suddenly, "and whatever happened to her, if she's alright soon I want to apologize to her…I don't know why, but just being here, being asked about her…Samara used to be my friend and I would hate to see her get hurt. I didn't mean anything I said against her."

"That was strange."

"And yet I don't know if I believe her fast transition," Elliot said, skeptically.

"Well, we know that Samara and Sara were once friends…she's heard Andrew, possibly along with many other students, that he's supposedly had sex with her every other weekend…to make her feel special."

"How sick can this kid get?"

"Rapist sick?" Olivia suggested, Elliot shrugged but upon hearing about the boy's reputation, he didn't put the thought past him. "Let's head back to the precinct and see if we can get more of a story out of Samara."

"Or Ms. Lauff. She still needs to answer our other questions about that night."

XxxxX

"Find any more information?" Munch asked as Olivia and Elliot entered the precinct.

"Actually yes. It seems Andrew switched schools about two years ago, probably around the same time Samara's perp got his scar. And from what Sara's told us, it seemed he had fantasies, all of them starring Samara. Maybe he finally let his urges get the best of him; from his reputation, rape doesn't seem too out of his range." Elliot explained, sitting down at his desk. Olivia sat on the corner, handing him a pen from hers. He began to write down the new information in the record.

"It also came to our attention that Sara was once friends with Samara; she showed us a sudden change in heart towards the girl," Olivia said.

"Maybe out of guilt?" Fin asked.

"Maybe," she agreed, "but when we first brought her in she definitely seemed guilty of something."

"You don't think she set this perp on the girl, do you?"

"I don't think so," Olivia replied, "no woman asks for rape, nor sets a man on another woman. Every woman in against it, there is no way she would find that as a reasonable way of revenge."

"Didn't she threaten Samara with violence?"

"She did, but Samara told us she only threatened, she never actually did it. And her rapist is the one who beat her up each time." Olivia said, "once in the school stairwell, so it was someone who knew how to get in and out of the school without being noticed."

"And since Andrew transferred, cuts school often, probably goes out for a few smokes, he knows his way in and out," Elliot concluded, "it fits…it works for me and everything about him just adds to it. It's not looking good for him. Especially since he left two years ago and Samara mentioned that the perp got his scar a couple years back. Nobody aside from his friends at Essex have probably seen him, so if he does in fact have a scar on the right side of his face, from his eye to his lip, then he's our guy. Case closed, and Samara can live in peace again." Six pairs of stunned eyes looked up at Elliot; his problem solving was intricate and almost perfectly figured out, but it needed to be proven first.

"Do we even need to work today?" Fin asked, "it seems your partner, Liv, has got all the answers."

"If they are correct," Olivia said.

"Well I think Liv and I should check out this Andrew kid before he slips our grip."

"Detectives…" They turned around to see Sara standing there with the same guilty look on her face, "Can I speak to you again…I—I wasn't completely honest back in the principal's office." The four exchanged a curious glance before Olivia and Elliot led her into a question room.

"Okay, Sara…" Elliot said, sitting down across from the girl, "what do you need to tell us?"

"The moment you mentioned Samara, I knew why you were asking."

"Sara, are you saying you know who attacked her?" Olivia asked as they were both on edge to hear her answer. Sara shook her head.

"That I don't know, but I did see her get attacked."

"When?" Elliot asked.

"It was February 6, 2009," Sara said quickly, "I only remember the day because that was the day—uh, night that I just spaced on everything but what I saw. I was out for a walk with my brother and my dog and my brother, Alex, told me to wait outside the pizza shop with Cassie, our yorkie, while he locked up…it was close by, only down the road from the café that she was attacked at," she swallowed, her eyes watering, "I…I saw Samara but I didn't know it was her at first. There was a hooded guy who came out of an alley and he pulled her into a couple of bushes. She started screaming, but then she grew quiet and I didn't know if he killed her or what. My brother was taking a really long time inside and when I asked him what he was doing he said he lost his key and had to go up to the office. But before he came down, the guy got out of the bushes and was closing his fly as he ran away in the opposite direction. We didn't stick around and I wanted to go back but I didn't think I could. If…if he killed her, my stomach wouldn't have lasted and I realize how selfish that is now. I would have tried to stop him but I saw the knife in his hands and I just panicked…I could only watch."

"You witnessed Samara getting raped, but you didn't call anyone?"

"I know! I should have! I should have gone to her but I didn't!" Sara sobbed, "And I will forever be sorry for that! But then the next day I saw her at school and she actually looked okay…but she was afraid of every guy who came near her. She pushed her friend Jason away. Her brother committed suicide the week after that and she just looked so lost. I don't even know why I hurt her like everyone else…she was so broken. I didn't help her at all. And that was around the time that Andrew got close to her. I don't know why, but he tried to comfort her after her brother died. I just assumed it was because his father did the same thing when he was eight."

"Do you know why Andrew transferred schools?"

"Uh, he got expelled for drug possession and drug dealing on school property." Sara answered, "If this case goes to trial, am I going to be put up in front of the jury?"

"If you want to testify. We can't make you, but you're a witness which would help Samara's case greatly," Elliot explained, "this was a lot of information you held back."

"Well I knew, afterwards, that whatever I told you would remain confidential…you know, until the trial."

"Well thank you, Sara. We'll keep your statement on file."

XxxxX

Elliot knocked on Cragen's office door impatiently; they backed up as he opened the door and glanced between the two of them. "We've got some new information, and a witness that should help the case a great deal."

"You found a witness?" Cragen asked, surprised.

"She just confessed to what she had seen the first night Samara was raped." Olivia replied, "We just need the perp and we've got a solid case. And from what we've gathered, we have a sneaking suspicion about Andrew Clallum. He was arrested two years ago for drug possession and drug dealing on school property. He transferred to Regis High, and Elliot has a theory."

"And what's this theory of yours, El?"

"Andrew Clallum, his reputation around Essex has not been good; he used to constantly torment Samara, making her look like a teenage sex-machine with little, to no self-esteem. From what we've heard, she was the number one star in his fantasies that go beyond the R rating. From drug dealing, it's possible he could be sporting a nice scar that he could have gotten right after he left and transferred to Regis High. This perp knew how to get into the school, and though that might not prove much, Andrew was known for cutting school often, maybe going out for a few smokes or drinks. He would need to get back into the school somehow. Only his good friends at Essex have probably seen him recently and because they respect him they're less likely to rat him out."

"Perhaps you should bring him down here for questioning. Check to see if your theory is correct and if it is, we have our case," Cragen said, "and for once, I strongly believe in this theory."

XxxxX

"Andrew Clallum! Is there an Andrew Clallum here?" Elliot asked, jumping out from the driver's side with his badge already out.

"Oooh, you just missed him," a kid replied smugly. "Can we ask who you are?"

"Detectives Stabler and Benson. Where'd he go?" Elliot demanded.

"Don't know…the boss has got a busy schedule, we can't keep up with him or catch him unless we got a big amount of cash."

"Where is he?" He repeated, impatiently.

"I don't know. What? Are you deaf, Detective?" The cronies surrounding the kid snickered, and Elliot glared around at them for a moment.

"If he's skipping town and you know about it, I won't hesitate to arrest you for being an accessory." There was a chorus of 'oooh's as Elliot stepped off the sidewalk and got back into the car with Olivia. "That son of bitch isn't here."

"And we have no way of finding him now." Olivia sighed, "It seems like this kid doesn't exist yet his name comes up everywhere."

"What are we going to do, Liv?" Elliot asked, pulling out into the road.

"Maybe we should get Samara back down to the station and ask her if she could explain Andrew a little mo—," Olivia was cut off by the ringing of her phone; she picked it up instantly, "Captain? Yes…no, we didn't get him yet…" Elliot glanced over at her and she looked up, meeting his gaze with a look of horror, "Okay, we're on our way."

"What's wrong?"

"Samara's parents found her in her room…Captain just said she killed herself. He wants us down there right now."