A big thank you to all my readers and reviewers!!! I really do appreciate each and every one of you!!!
DISCLAIMER: The only thing I own relative to this story is the plot and the characters of Megan Charles, Michelle Thomas-Flanders, and Martin Flanders.
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"Elliot!" Olivia squealed after being dunked under water for the third time.
"What?" He faked surprise.
"Trying to drown your partner?" She laughed.
"No witnesses," he said looking around the empty room, "makes it easier."
"Very funny. We should get back to work soon."
Olivia climbed out of the pool and walked over to where her towel sat. As she picked the towel up to wrap it around her waist she saw her phone flashing that she had a new voicemail message. Pressing the button to call her voicemail and entering her password she heard Fin's voice.
"Liv, good news and bad news for you. Michelle Thomas did in fact marry Martin Flanders, eight months ago. He was reported missing six months ago though. I'm still checking into things. Will call when I have more. Seize the moments alone."
As Olivia was finishing up listening to her message Elliot was getting out of the pool. He walked over and picked up his own towel just as Olivia ended her call.
"One of the girls?" He asked.
"Even better, Fin. Michelle Thomas married Martin Flanders eight month ago, he went missing two months later." She told him.
"So, he's around for Megan Charles' murder, marries Michelle Thomas, disappears, then his wife gets murdered." Elliot said, sinking deep into thought.
"Let's take this upstairs."
Olivia slipped her flip flops on before heading for the elevator, Elliot trailing a couple of feet behind her. He caught up once the reached the elevator. They both got in and headed to their suite in silence.
"I'm going to jump in the shower, wash all this chlorine off." Olivia let Elliot know as they entered the room.
Elliot let out a low groan as Olivia undid the ties to her bikini top just before stepping in the bathroom, exposing her bare back to him. She'd been wrong earlier at the pool. He wasn't the one trying to kill her. No, she was definitely trying to kill him this weekend. Slowly and painfully.
Slinking out of the bathroom in shorter than short terry cloth shorts and a tight lavender camisole Olivia tried to play it cool. She walked over and sat down on the sofa next to Elliot.
"So tell me your theory of the crime?" She said, tucking her legs underneath her.
"I think the connection is Martin Flanders. I figure he's an ex-boyfriend of Megan Charles. I'm just not entirely sure if he's our perp or someone trying to get back at him for something is."
"Okay, so let's say he's our perp. Flanders gets angry at Megan over their break up, cons her into showing up at the stables on her time off, rapes and murders her." Olivia begins.
"Alright, so far I'm with you." Elliot agrees.
"He hooks up with Michelle, perhaps during the grieving process after Megan's murder. They have a rushed courtship, and get married impulsively. They end up fighting, she threatens divorce. Again, we're back to a scorned Martin who again cons Michelle this time into arriving at the track early and attacks her." Olivia adds.
"That doesn't explain the fact he's been missing for the last six months though."
"We need to get out of here and get back downstate. Start focusing on finding Flanders and then we'll have our answers."
Before either one could say anything Olivia's phone rang again.
"Benson."
"How's my favorite back woods traveler?" Casey asked.
"You're not funny Case."
"Okay, okay, seriously then, how's it going?"
"We think we've got our connection and a possible reason for the murders and possible suspect." Olivia happily told her friend.
"All in half of a day huh?"
"Benson and Stabler Tag Team Brain Power, what can I say?" Olivia chuckled.
"Speaking of Stabler…"
"We will speak of no such thing."
"Liv, you know as well as I do that the man is attracted to you. This is your opportunity, away from the city, away from the interruptions."
"You make it sound like we're on vacation Casey. This is work you know."
"I know. From the sound of things though you two are pretty much just killing time there until you can convince their sheriff it's just a coincidence that this happened up there." Casey reasoned.
"We do just need to get jurisdiction back to the city. Get you boyfriend working on it." Olivia laughed.
"Fin's got him looking into Flanders. They're trying to find him."
"Well hey, I'm gonna head to bed. Tell Chester we said hi." Olivia said before letting out a yawn.
"Will do. How many beds?"
"One. Goodnight Casey!"
"Goodnight Liv! Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Casey laughed as they both ended the call.
"So how is Mrs. Lake?" Elliot asked, chuckling.
"You know she'll kill you if she ever hears you call her that. ADA, she'll probably get off too." Olivia teased.
"Mental note made. Let's get to bed." He said, gesturing towards the king sized bed in the middle of the room.
"El?"
"I..I..I got the sofa bed of course. I didn't mean together." Elliot stammered out.
"Goodnight Elliot." Olivia said with a slight laugh.
"Goodnight Livvie."
The two settled in to their separate beds and shortly thereafter both fell asleep.
The next morning the detectives were awoken bright and early at the crack of dawn by the phone ringing.
"Stabler." Elliot mumbled, half asleep.
"Detective Stabler, it's Sheriff Howard. I wanted to let you know we just got a call in. A witness claims to have seen a man snooping around the crime scene last night."
"Description?" He asked, sitting up in bed.
"Dark blond hair, 6'5" or so, around 240lbs, blue jeans, black sweatshirt."
Elliot stuck his hand over the mouth piece to talk to Olivia.
"Call the squad, see if we can get a photo of Flanders. He might be in town still." Elliot told her.
"Crime scene still secure?" Elliot asked, turning his attention back to the hotel phone.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the room Olivia was dialing New York City.
"SVU, Lake."
"What are you doing in this early? Casey actually let you leave?" She asked.
"I don't sleep, remember? So, what are you doing up so early?"
"Did we get a photo on Martin Flanders yet? We think he may still be in town." Olivia explained.
"I'll have it emailed over in five. Good luck!"
"Thanks Chester!"
Olivia ended the call and turned towards Elliot who's just gotten on the phone as well.
"Stables are locked up, no sign of entry. Chances are he couldn't get in and ran. How's it going on the photo?"
"Lake is emailing it to me in five. Howard want us in?"
"I ran our theory by him, he's very open to believing it since there is a clear connection to Megan Charles. He's ready to release the case to us if we either catch Flanders here and file for extradition or prove he was the one trying to pull the B&E last night and chase him elsewhere." Elliot told her.
"That's a load of bull, you know as well as I do that no matter what this isn't really Tioga County's problem." Olivia huffed.
Just then the new mail icon appeared on Olivia's computer and she called Elliot over to take a look with her. He sat down on the bed, his bare knee brushing up against Olivia's bare knee that was poking out from under the blanket. He felt the shock of electricity short through him and nearly jumped off the bed.
"That looks like our man." He said, trying to avert attention back to the case.
"Call Howard back, tell him we've got our man and see if CSU pulled any prints."
Elliot got up from the bed, walked over to the phone and called Sheriff Howard back to tell him what they'd found out.
"Prints found at the scene?" He could be heard asking.
"There were, we've got the state troopers crime lab running then now. Is this Martin Flanders in the system?"
"We printed and swabbed all the employees at Miller Farms back working the Charles case hoping eventually something would turn up. It never did." Elliot sighed.
"This just might be the break in your case then Detective Stabler."