Disclaimer: They ain't mine... Dang you, Dick Wolf! Dang you!!
Well a hammer fell down on a forty four primer
Now there's one last problem in New York City tonight
Wrong or right
My name is Elliot Stabler, and I've been a cop for nearly fifteen years in New York. I thought I had seen it all. Until a case put everything into perspective for me.
That night, I pulled up in front of a house where I had been called to investigate a report of screams and gunshots. As I walked up to the front door, I prepared myself for the worst. But this? This was beyond what I had been expecting.
When I walked into the house, I saw a petite woman with brown hair and soft brown eyes crying. I approached her cautiously and said, "Ma'am, what's your name?"
"Olivia Benson," she whispered, closing her eyes and bowing her head.
"My name's Detective Stabler. Do you know why I'm here?"
"I killed him."
She said it so softly, I wasn't sure I had heard her correctly.
Then I saw the gun on the floor a few feet away.
"Killed who?" I prodded gently.
"My boyfriend, Brian. I shot him," she replied, looking up at me. It was then that I saw the scars and bruises adorning her face.
She just looked at me as she finished her tale
And her blank expression went another shade pale of grey
There was nothing to say
In the shadows of the face I saw the scars
That you get when you live where love is hard
"Olivia, why did you kill him?" I asked softly, gently touching her shoulder.
She suddenly pushed my hand away and said, "You don't know what it was like! You have no right to judge me! I had to protect her."
And she said "Don't you sit and judge me
From some high and mighty seat
Don't you shrug it off until you've walked
A mile in my bare feet
Cause there are people that you pass by everyday
With harder cards than yours in life to play"
"Who?" I probed. "Who did you have to protect?"
"Emma. I had to protect my baby."
She let out a shuddery sigh and asked, "What'll happen to her?"
I couldn't answer. I hated to do this, but I gently grasped her shoulder and pulled her to her feet. Then I put the handcuffs on her and walked her out to the car. As she sat down, I caught another glimpse of the scars underneath the hollow eyes, and I sighed. Some days, I really hated this job. After shutting the car door, I walked back up the steps and back into the house.
Well I put the cuffs on her and I put her in the car
I walked inside, he was on the floor stone dead
Shot in the head
There was whiskey bottles and dope by his chair
And a starving baby with nothing to wear but tears
You know the picture was clear
I took another look around the house, and I suddenly saw it in a new light.
Walking around the living room, I saw the boyfriend on the floor. He was definitely dead. One bullet to the head.
There were empty whiskey bottles on the floor, and a small bag of white powder by his chair. I didn't need another look to know what it was.
A snuffling noise made me whirl around, and I saw a playpen in a corner of the room. As I came closer, I saw a small child look up at me with trusting brown eyes. Suddenly I was sick.
He had finally pushed her farther than the line
And the badge I wore had lost all of it's shine
As I looked at her, my mind whirled. This child doesn't deserve to be caught in all of this. This world can be so cruel.
Then Olivia's words played through my mind again.
And she said, "Don't you sit and judge me
From some high and mighty seat
Don't you shrug it off until you've walked
A mile in my bare feet
Cause there are people that you pass by every day
With harder cards than yours in life to play"
Staring around the room, I thought about how blind justice was. And I made up my mind. Walking out of the house, I approached the car slowly.
Well I stood there thinking how justice was blind
But I couldn't see any, and I could see just fine
And I made up my mind
Without a word, I pulled Olivia out of the car and took the cuffs off of her wrists, then I led her back inside. As she made her way to the crying baby, I picked up the gun and I wiped it on my shirt. Then I knelt on the floor and wrapped the gun in the dead man's right hand.
So I took the cuffs off her and I took her back in
Then I picked up the gun and I wrapped it in his right hand
Where it should've been
As I stood up, Olivia looked up at me. Her eyes said it all. With a nod and a smile, I walked back out of the house and climbed into my car. I went home that night smiling. At least I could make some difference.
The next day, I looked at my morning paper. On the third page, something caught my eye.
Man Commits Suicide In Front Of Girlfriend And Child
And the morning paper told in black and white
"Just another senseless case of a suicide"
Oh, just a suicide
Under the caption was a picture of Olivia and Emma. I smiled at her soft brown eyes, then I put the paper down and got ready for another day of work.
Oh but don't you sit and judge me
From some high and mighty seat
Don't you shrug it off until you've walked
A mile along my beat
Cause there are people that you pass by every day
With harder cards than yours in life to play
My name is Detective Elliot Stabler. I've been a cop in New York City for fifteen years. And I've seen everything. Right and wrong aren't always clear, but last night, justice wasn't so blind.
Yeah, a hammer fell down on a forty four primer
Now there's one less problem in New York City tonight
THE END
A/N: So, what do ya'll think? Another one of my early stories. The song is Harder Cards, by Collin Raye.