Disclaimer: Still not mine... though one day Mr Wolf and I may come to some arrangement.

Thanks for the tremendous support in chapter one. I truly appreciate those who have taken the time to leave constructive reviews.

xoxoxinnocencexoxox

The nearly blown globe in the street light, did little to disrupt the darkness of the early hours as Fin pulled his sedan in behind Elliot's and turned off the headlights. Munch climbed out of the car and headed to the driver's door of the other car which was opening as Elliot stepped out. Only a nod was exchanged as Munch slid into the cold car and Elliot headed back to Fin, he and Lake had been told nothing, other than the substitution was being made.

"What's wrong?" Elliot asked, shutting the door and fastening his belt. Fin flicked the headlights on and pulled the car back onto the road. Despite having no traffic to contend with, Fin kept his eyes firmly on the road and headed back towards Olivia's trying to delay things for as long as possible. "For fuck's sake, Fin, what happened?"

"I have orders not to say anything until we're back at Olivia's," he said, his calm, even voice belying the anxiety he was feeling.

"Olivia's?" he said alarmed. "Is she okay? What happened to her?"

"Nothing," Fin replied with a shake of his head, still watching the road ahead.

"Cragen pulls a switch on a covert surveillance at three in the fucking morning, you bring Munch out so you can take me back to Olivia's but say there's nothing wrong and I'm supposed to sit here like a fucking idiot and just go with it?" Elliot spat, his nerves tested.

Fin indicated for his left turn and navigated the corner before speaking. "There was an incident tonight at your house, Elliot, and the twins are with Olivia," he said slowly, hoping it would buy him some time.

"What sort of incident? Fire? Burglary? What?" Elliot's stress levels rose dramatically as he turned in his seat to face Fin.

"None of those," Fin answered, his eyes straight ahead, not even daring to glance at his passenger.

"I spoke to them at eight, when did Olivia go get them?" he questioned, none of it making sense.

"She didn't. We ... ah... we pulled up at her building at midnight and they were there?" Fin explained, busying himself by adjusting the heater.

"By themselves? They went there, at that time, by themselves?" he yelled, his voice ricocheting around the sedan.

Fin picked up speed as he travelled along the quiet streets, they were still twenty minutes from Olivia's and he was about two minutes from the truth. "And where the fuck was Steve in all this? He was supposed to be looking out for them while Kathy was away," Elliot growled, more to himself than Fin. "Did something happen with Steve? Was there an accident?"

Not prepared to let his good friend and colleague suffer anymore, knowing it would kill him to be in the same situation, Fin decided to go ahead.

"El, the kids were really upset," he began, not too sure how he was going to break the news. Then he decided he'd just go with the plain truth. "I'm really sorry, man, but Steve assaulted Lizzie tonight," he said, gripping the steering wheel tighter.

"He ... did ... what?" Elliot asked in disbelief.

"He, um, he got into bed with her and was touching her and stuff," Fin said, not really wanting to elaborate at this stage.

"I'll kill the bastard," Elliot muttered, cracking his knuckles. "He's a fucking dead man."

"I'll get himm, El," Fin said quietly. "You take care of your little girl." It was enough to bring Elliot back to his daughter.

"Did he … did he rape her?" Elliot whispered, afraid to hear the answer but needing to know. His stomach churning at the very prospect it was a possibility.

"She said he didn't, just touching and stuff … she's pretty upset and she just wanted Liv," Fin said, looking across at him for the first time.

Elliot nodded slowly. There had been numerous times in the two years since his divorce when things had gone bad and he wanted nothing more than Olivia, to find comfort and solace in her arms, but he had never been brave enough just to turn up on her doorstep as it seemed his twins had done.

There was a tense silence until Fin pulled the car up in front of Olivia's apartment block and grabbed Elliot's arm as he went to jump out.

"El, hang on," he said pulling him back. "I think the kids were more scared about you finding out than anything else … watch your step," he cautioned. "Okay?" he prompted when Elliot hadn't responded; he nodded. "I'll take care of the bastard, man, you take care of them." He gestured up to Olivia's.

It took him three minutes to race up the stairs to Olivia's apartment, he considered beating the door down but even in his current state he realised it wasn't going to help matters. He willed himself to settle and took a few deep, calming breaths before quietly rapping on the door. When there was no answer he fished out his key ring and found the key to her door, the one he'd held for years in case of an emergency but never had to use.

Letting himself in he scanned the apartment to find no one there. He moved to the guestroom and opened the door, and found his son sleeping restlessly. He moved to the boy and woke him gently.

"Dad!" Dickie gasped, sitting up. "I'm so sorry, I tried to stop him … honestly I did … I hit him and kicked him … I … oh, dad, I'm sorry."

"Hey, son, it's alright," Elliot said embracing him. "It's not your fault; it's not your fault."

"But when you left you said I was man of the house … you said…" he gushed, tears choking his voice.

"It's okay, it's okay," Elliot soothed. "We'll talk about it tomorrow, okay?" Dickie nodded through his tears. "Where's your sister?"

"In with Liv," he said quietly.

"Okay," Elliot said, leaning in and kissing his head. "Go to sleep now, son." He told himself he'd stay with Dickie a while longer until he fell back to sleep but the reality was that he waiting for his emotions to settle so he wouldn't burst into tears the moment he saw his baby girl.

Fifteen minutes later he drew a deep breath and headed to Olivia's bedroom. In all the times he had dreamt or fantasised about entering her room in the middle of the night, not once did it involve the trauma of his daughter being attacked. As the door opened Olivia stirred, Liz still held tightly to her. Sleepily she opened her eyes and tried to focus on the form heading towards her.

"El?" she whispered.

"Yeah, it's me, Liv," he whispered in response.

"Come on over," Olivia instructed, holding out her hand. With some trepidation, Elliot moved and stood beside the bed, there was enough ambient light for him to see Lizzie sleeping beside his partner. He stood for a few moments, not too sure what to do next. He knew how to handle his daughters, he knew how to handle victims, but he had no idea what to do when they were one in the same.

Every instinct told him to grab hold of her and hug her endlessly, the same way he'd dealt with scrapped knees, sprained wrists and broken hearts but the cop in him, the one who had dealt with young girls who had been violated, knew his touch may cause more harm. Tears stung his eyes at the very thought his youngest child was in pain and he didn't know what to do for her.

Olivia's hand found his and drew him to the bed. "Come sit," she whispered. "It's okay." He sat on the edge of the bed, his eyes never leaving his daughter's face. Elliot moved his hands so his fingers were laced with Olivia's; he had never needed her more than he did right at this moment.

"How bad?" he whispered, glancing at Olivia.

"She'll be okay, El," she replied, watching Elliot's face and wishing she could do more than just offer words.

"Was she … did he …" Elliot was finding it extremely difficult to ask the questions which were part of his daily working life. "I mean, Fin said she wasn't but I thought maybe he was just saying that because … well, maybe …"

"Liz wasn't raped, El," Olivia said gently. "There was no need for a rape kit."

"Oh, good," he nodded. "Well, not good that he did it but good that …"

"I know what you mean," she said, squeezing his hand.

A few more minutes went by, the silence strained.

"Lizzie," Olivia whispered, moving her hand up to caress her face. "Honey, wake up for me." Slowly she woke up, fighting the fatigue claiming her body and mind.

"Mmmm, Liv," she mumbled.

"Lizzie, your dad's here," she said and the girl's eyes sprung open, her breathing increasing instantly. "It's okay, honey, it's okay."

"He's gonna kill him and me," Liz said, gripping onto Olivia's pyjama top.

"No, he's not, Liz. Your dad's not going to kill anyone. He's right behind you …" Lizzie froze at the thought.

"Lizzie," Elliot finally spoke. "Baby." Her eyes opened wide, still fixed on Olivia, too scared to even breathe. "It's okay, baby," he continued, his tears threatening to spill.

"You're safe, Liz," Olivia reassured her. "I promise you, you're safe." Lizzie nodded.

"You gonna stay here?" she said breathlessly.

"Of course," she promised.

Slowly, Liz turned over and her tears started to fall the moment she saw her father's face. "Daddy," she whimpered, sitting up. With paternal instincts overriding the policeman in him, Elliot embraced his now sobbing daughter and held her tightly, gently rocking her. Her tears seemed to ease but his began, large, silent tears rolling down his cheeks and into his daughter's hair. Olivia sat up in her bed watching the scene. Moving towards the pair she began to gently rub Elliot's back knowing he was doing the best he could not to break completely, his children were his world and she knew this was killing him.Somewhere around 5:00 AM Liz drifted back to sleep still in her father's arms.

Gently Elliot placed her back down into the bed and covered her up. He looked across and saw Olivia sitting there extremely exhausted but resisting the desire for sleep.

"Thank you," he mouthed as she smiled at him wearily.

"What for?" she yawned.

"For this," he said, looking back at his daughter before yawning and scrubbing his hand over his face. He looked back at Olivia, then Lizzie before dropping his head into his hands.

"Hey, El," she whispered, climbing out of bed and moving around to him. "Come out here." She took him by the hand and led him to the sitting room.

Sitting down on the sofa, Olivia kept hold of his hand and gently tugged him to sit beside her. Elliot did but sat hunched, his elbows on his knees and his fingers laced behind his head which was inches from his legs. Gently Olivia rubbed circles on his back and waited until he was ready to talk. It didn't seem to come.

"El," she said quietly, moving closer to him; her hand moving across to his other shoulder, her arm resting on his back. "Talk to me."

It took a while for his to speak but eventually he did.

"She's fifteen, Liv … fifteen. She's still a kid and he … he's supposed to be the 'step father' in her life … I know we deal with this stuff all the time and I know we can never figure out was possesses someone to do such things but he's not some perverted scumbag, he's an educated man … good family … and she's not just some random victim … she's my… my daughter." He stopped to finally look up at Olivia, tears staining his face.

Tenderly she brushed away his tears before leaving her hand on his face.

"She'll be okay, El," she whispered, before leaning in and placing a kiss on his head. Elliot nodded and she pulled him to her, his head resting on her shoulder. "She'll be okay," Olivia soothed, leaning back and bringing him with her. They sat locked together in silence for a long while until Liz screamed.

"Honey, sweetheart," Olivia called running into her room, Elliot close behind. "It's okay, Lizzie." She wrapped her arms around the trembling teen and sat beside her on the bed, holding her close. Elliot sat on the other side of his daughter and put his arms around them both, before kissing her head as Olivia whispered to her.
"You're okay, baby," she soothed. "It was just a dream, Lizzie, you're safe now." She kissed Liz's head, before raising her hand and wiping her face. "You're okay," she repeated, when Lizzie finally made eye contact with her.

"I'm okay," Liz repeated. "I'm okay."

"Yes, you are, baby," Elliot echoed, kissing her head, she visibly stiffened in response. Elliot went to pull away but Olivia kept him in place.

"You're safe with your daddy, Liz, you know that, don't you?" Olivia asked quietly, brushing her hair back from her face. "He would never hurt you."

"I know," she replied hesitantly.

"He loves you very much," Olivia continued and Lizzie nodded again.

Slowly, Lizzie turned around and came face to face with her father.

"You'd never hurt me, would you, daddy?" she asked almost mournfully.

"Never, baby," Elliot said, unable to keep his tears at bay at the fact his youngest daughter even had to ask him the question.

"And do you … do you still love me?" she sobbed.

"More than ever, Lizzie," he soothed, placing a kiss on her forehead.

"Do you think mom will still love me?" she whispered, almost afraid to ask.

"Yes, honey, of course she will." He pulled her closer and kissed her head again.

"Can you guys sleep here, with me?" she mumbled into her father's chest. Elliot's eyes darted to Olivia's; it was a lot to ask of her.

"Of course," Olivia answered.

While Liz was in the bathroom and Olivia was back in the living room turning off the lights, Elliot removed his shoes, jacket and belt before sitting on the edge of the bed, not to sure how this was going to work. He knew his daughter wanted him nearby but he also knew she wouldn't want him too close, which only meant one thing.

Olivia came back into the room and moved over to him.

"What's up?" she whispered.

"Nothing," he replied, shaking his head.

"Sure?" she asked, using her index finger to raise his chin to make him look at her.

"Yeah, I was just, um … just trying to figure out the … um … sleeping arrangements," he said. Olivia looked from him to the bed. Just as she was about to reply the bathroom door opened and Liz emerged.

"All ready for bed?" she asked Lizzie instead.

"Yeah," she said looking between the bed and the adults nearby. "Um, Liv, do you think it would be okay if … um …" Her voice trailed, she didn't want to ask, not in front of her dad.

"If what, honey?" Olivia prompted.

"Um, nothing, never mind," she said quickly.

Olivia looked between father and daughter and it suddenly made sense. "Okay then," she said as she climbed into the bed. "You two don't mind if I sleep in the middle, do you?" she asked as she rearranged the pillows.

"No," they answered in unison.

Before long, as the time neared 6:00 AM, the trio finally lay settled in the bed, Lizzie was curled into Olivia, Olivia's arms wrapped around her. Elliot lay behind her, facing her. While he lay still and silent, Olivia knew he wasn't asleep. She waited until Liz was asleep before gently extracting herself and turning to face him, not surprised to find his eyes opened.

"Why aren't you asleep?" she whispered, bringing her hand to rest on his upper arm.

"Not tired," he lied, his dark, heavy eyes telling the truth.

"No, you're exhausted," she said, rubbing his arm. "Are you uncomfortable in here? With us? With me?"

"No," he replied quickly. "Well, maybe a little bit."

"Just relax, El," she said, stroking his cheek. "It's just me."

Elliot grinned wryly, that was indeed the problem. As he went to speak Lizzie stirred and Olivia turned back to her. But instead of leaving Elliot alone, she took his hand as she rolled and wrapped it around her waist, pressing back into him just to let him know she was there for him too.

xoxoxinnocencexoxox