DISCLAIMER: The copyrighted characters of any TV program, movie, or published work of fiction are the property of their owners/creators. In this case, Law and Order SVU and Dick Wolfe. No copyright infringement is intended and nothing is being made. The original characters, situations, and story are the property of the author.

AUTHOR'SNOTE: Feedback is greatly appreciated (good or bad). Single quotes indicate thoughts. The subject is sensitive and I will stick to the medical facts as best I can.

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OUT OF NEW YORK

Chapter 14: Hanging around flat

The crowd stood in awe. The plume of dust rolled towards them. A few ran, but most just stood there and watched. Covering their mouth and nose and on only shutting their eyes when they could no longer take the sting of the sift collecting in their eyes. The horror of what occurred far eclipsed the earlier devastation.

Somehow, she was not sure, but Alex managed to grab the one thing near her that did not get sucked into the large crater. It protruded out of the rubble just enough that the she could feel the sun on her face. Even through the dust, the fingers of light caressed her face. Her eye still closed, she was unaware of the state of the rest of the building. Her brain, however, was working, rapidly.

"Olivia." She said through dry lips. The dust settling now, she opened her eyes. Blinking, she managed to put together a clear visual of her state. No longer dangling from a sliding floor, she found herself able to firmly plant her feet and stand. She looked around and saw figures running towards her.

Elliot blinked. And then he did it again. Still not believing what he saw. He nudged Abbie, who herself was having difficulty believing what was in front of her.

The building released her from her grave. She laid there in a void, battered and broken. A small slab of concrete was her bed. She was lucky, just a foot more and her fate would have been sealed in the large creator. Steel and wood protruded like a child's toy from the gape.

She was conscience when she descended. She watched the timbers and concrete roll off her body leaving trails of pain in their wake. And now, she sensed the freedom from her restraints, but the loom of helpless still wove around her. With her eye just slits and her throat dry she took a deep breath a let out a scream. But she heard nothing. All went dark.

"I am alright. I'm alright". Alex repeated to the rescuers. Mostly for her own reassurance.

"We'll have you out in just a minute, ms Cabot. ".a fireman said as he finished tying the rescue harness around her torso. He tugged on it a few times until he felt certain it was secure. He motioned to the crane operator and he gently lifted Alex. Once the chain was taunt and fireman checked once more to insure she was well secure in the harness, " you can let go of the bar now, Ms. Cabot." He told her.

" Are you sure?" her voice shaky.

" Yes mam. You're safer then a turkey at Thanksgiving."

" Not funny." With hesitation, she slowly released her grip on the steel rod. She seemed to just float, yet she was still covered by building debris. A paramedic flashed a penlight in her eyes. " You're in shock. I am going..."

" Of course I am in shock. First the building falls on me and next poof! It retreats."

The paramedic shook his head in agreance, but he was not paying attention to what she was saying. He inserted the tubing into the saline bag and shook it. He made sure the clear liquid flowed through the tubing before placing it back into his kit.

"Can you give me you left arm please?"

Alex tried to lift it but the pain made it impossible. "No. You,ll have to use the right arm.".

He rolled up the torn sleeve, the skin beneath it was still pale from being suspended holding onto the steel beam. He began rubbing his hands on each side of her arm to warm it.

"Chester, you gotta move faster. I'm not sure howl long this will be stable.". His battalion chief yelled to him.

" Just a few more minutes. I need to get the IV in."

" Hurry, you may not have a few minutes."

Satisfied that the skin was pink enough, he went on the hunt for a good vein. Within seconds he has the IV in place and signaled to the chief below.

"Ms. Cabot. I am going to cover you with this silver blanket. It's to keep you warm and minimize the amount of debris from hitting you as we pull you out."

"Okay. Then what?". Alex was beginning to shake. Her body was cold and her mind was becoming foggy.

"Then Stan here," he pointed to the first firefighter. " he's going to signal for them to pull you from here slowly." He check her pulse again, it was weak but active. He signaled that they were ready. " I will attach my harness to the cable and then hold onto you you as they pull you to safety." He looked at Alex to verify that she heard him. He began to wrap the harness around his torso. He gave one last look of assurance. Alex smiled weakly. She began to rise.

"Olivia. You saw her?" Elliot was sitting in the back of the ambulance has it flew towards to hospital.

"Yes. She was only a few feet from me." Alex closed her eyes. She could see Olivia trapped. "I was trying to reach her when the building began moving again."

"Where was she?"

"To my right just on the other side of a beam." Then Alex realized what happened. "I was grabbing onto the beam to get to the other side when the building moved."

"So she was on the other side of that beam?" Elliott's face was just inches from Alex's face.

"Olivia, quite dreaming. You're going to be late for school." her mother stood at her bedroom door. Her white billowy dress flowed has she walked down the hall. "I am leaving to 10 minutes."

"Too tired to go to school, Mom." Her arms and legs felt heavy. "I think I'm sick."

"Lay there for a while my sweet daughter." Her mother bent to kiss her. "Let your soul relax. It will move you to the right path."

"Yes. She was alive Elliott. Do you think she still is?" Tears began to spill down her face. She shut her eyes. She could see Olivia just on the other side of the beam. She felt helpless.