A/N... I love Munch/Fin banter! It's all coming together. Thanks for sticking with me! Enjoy!
Wednesday, September 24th, 2008
7:25 am - SVU
"The nor'easter is now centered 150 miles east of Boston, Massachusetts. This morning, the National Weather Service in Taunton issued a gale warning for the Cape Cod Bay area after one coast guard official reported wind gusts of 55 mph…."
Fin groaned as he reached the security desk that morning and overheard the latest storm update from the officer's computer speakers.
The officer removed a can of Diet Coke from a nylon lunch bag, opened the can and quickly sipped the lid to keep the drink from spilling over on a stack of papers. He nodded in Fin's direction, and returned his attention to the news report.
A minute later, Fin entered the bullpen.
"Can anyone talk about anything but the damned weather?" Fin complained to Munch as he approached their desks that morning. He turned on his computer and waited for a second to be sure it had started the boot-up process.
"David Blaine wants to hang upside down for 60 hours," Munch quipped while he scanned the newspaper. As he finished, he folded it twice and tossed it on his desk. "What's the matter, cranky pants? Didn't sleep very well last night?"
"You're perky for someone who spent most of the night in a parked car," Fin remarked, referring to the fact that Munch had caught the latter part of the night's watch. "I guess I don't have to ask if you want coffee," he added. He picked up his own mug and waited for John to respond.
"Nah, I'm good. Had three cups already," Munch told him.
"No wonder you're wide awake." Fin rolled his eyes. "It's the caffeinated 'Munch punch,'" he scoffed as he walked past John's desk headed for the coffee station.
Munch ignored him and opened up his inbox to read a new email message.
Olivia walked back to her desk with a cup of coffee in her hand, nodding to Fin as she passed him by, and sat down at her computer which was already on.
x x x
Last night…
Elliot and Olivia had spent the bulk of the night sifting through records on several of the teachers and staff at Tyler Elementary.
Olivia updated Cragen on Melinda's report and now the SVU began to focus more on the staff at Tyler than on Greg or Aidan. Around 4:30 am that morning, Cragen released Munch from keeping watch on Aidan until they had further reason to pursue him as a potential suspect.
Between Elliot and Olivia, they were able to locate five teachers and staff who took Klonopin regularly. Three of them were teachers, one worked in the administrative office, and the other in the cafeteria.
Elliot began to wonder if someone inside the school was merely acting as a cover for someone on the outside. Someone there definitely knew more than they were letting on, he concluded.
It sickened him to think about the loophole that allowed scum like this to work with children. Several times, as his kids were growing up, he'd considered home schooling them. He and Kathy had done their best to keep up with their kids' friends, the parents of some of the friends, teachers, coaches, and whomever they maintained some contact with regularly. Dickie and Elizabeth were a couple of years away from graduation. He just had Eli to bring through the school system and then he might begin to sleep a little better at night.
Although he couldn't recall the last time he'd slept through the night at all.
They worked steadily through the night until 3:00 am, when they both realized they needed a break. Olivia took a two hour nap first, and as Elliot was about to head for the crib to take his two, his cell phone rang. He mumbled something to Olivia about meeting Kathy in Brooklyn for a minute and said he'd be right back.
x x x
7:30 am
Olivia glanced up as her partner walked through the doors of the bullpen.
"Hey, El," she greeted him. Immediately noticing his red-rimmed eyes, she realized something was wrong.
He confirmed it when he didn't acknowledge her or Fin, who had returned from the coffee station about that time and taunted him about using the last of the milk.
Elliot ignored him and walked between Olivia's desk and Fin, who stood looking at him puzzled. He passed a trash can, discarded a convenience store coffee cup and walked briskly toward the stairs. Taking two steps at a time, he reached the top in seconds and headed for the crib.
He walked through the door, shoved it closed behind him and grabbed the first bunk he saw. He stretched out on the bunk with his arms folded behind his head and tried to settle his nerves.
Staring blankly into the darkness above his head, Elliot hoped and prayed he had finally done the right thing.
x x x
He had dozed off.
Somehow, he didn't recall relaxing his body, especially his nerves, enough for sleep to take over. His head began to hurt fiercely on the way back from Brooklyn, so he grabbed a couple of Aleve pills from a bottle Olivia left in the passenger seat. He dispensed a couple of pills in his hand and washed them down with a few sips of barely-warmed coffee that had the taste and consistency of paint thinner. Fortunately the pills had done the trick.
The only proof that he had dozed off was when he stirred out of a trance-like state at the sound of someone coming in. His eyes worked to adjust to the darkness while a sliver of light slipped in from the hallway.
He knew it was her before she even spoke.
"El?"
When he didn't answer, she walked over and sat on the bunk bed next to his.
She sat quietly for a minute or two, giving him the opportunity to either ask her to leave or else to speak up. Normally he would have wanted to be alone. Lately, however, he was less afraid of letting her in. Having her there was comfort. Although as soon as he spoke up, Pandora's box would unleash several months worth of truths he didn't yet want to face.
Her patience astonished him sometimes. Women were known for patience, but she had more where he was concerned than anyone else who dared to enter his world.
He could at least acknowledge her, he figured. Slowly his eyes glanced over until they met hers. He saw her concern as she searched for some words to lend her support.
"You don't have to tell me what it is, El. I just came here to tell you that Aidan Boase may have skipped town," she said.
Elliot took a second to translate her words and then quickly sat up. A pain gripped his middle back, and he silently cursed himself for not selecting a different bunk. He ignored it and adjusted his eyes to the darkness, so he could focus on his partner.
"When?" he inquired.
"Munch called his work, and they said he never made it in. Neighbors saw him leave his house like he was headed for work. No one has seen him since."
"Sonofabitch!" he exclaimed. "Just after Cragen released Munch, I'll bet."
Olivia nodded.
He looked at her again with a different question that she read without him asking. "Munch is trying to reach family or any other contacts, and Fin went to talk to Greg Morgan," she informed him.
He nodded. Letting out a deep breath, Elliot shifted his feet over the bed and sat across from Olivia. He tried to shove the personal matters in his life aside and readied himself to stand up pushing both fists down against the mattress. Suddenly, he glanced up at his partner.
Seeing his face as he sorted through things, she looked back at him with concern. Elliot was amazed that it was so easy for them to maintain eye contact and not glance away at the awkwardness. He'd never known anyone else he could communicate with so easily. Especially a partner.
"We'll talk," he told her, knowing how many times he had said that before, and yet still wanting her to believe it. He raised his hand up to rest on the back of his neck. Feeling a slight strain on his neck from the pillow, he lightly rubbed the tension out. "I'm sorry it's been like this," he added.
She smirked, partially rolling her eyes. "Timing has never been our strong suit, has it, El?"
How appropriate, he thought, as he considered her last comment. He shook his head and laughed, dropping his hand back into his lap.
She reached out her hand, and taking his arm she pulled him upward until they were both standing. Now face to face, they exchanged a smile while they hoped to come up with something to reassure the other about the situation. A myriad of unspoken expressions passed between them.
Finally, Olivia decided that something needed to be said. She opened her mouth to speak, but froze when the door suddenly opened up further, allowing more light into the room.
Both quickly turned their heads toward the door.
"Elliot, Olivia," Cragen began. He stood in the doorway with his hand on the knob. He flipped on a light switch and looked between them curiously.
"Just updated Elliot about Aidan," Olivia explained. She backed away from Elliot and allowed him to step out first from between the bunks. They walked over to where Cragen stood.
He nodded. "I need you both to head over to St. Vincent's."
"What is it, Captain?" Elliot asked.
"Kaleb Knight. He was just admitted."
x x x
10:15 am – St. Vincent's Hospital, lower Manhattan
Elliot and Olivia stepped off the elevator and headed for Kaleb's room.
Kaleb, like Trinetta, had been found in Central Park. An off-duty officer discovered him there, barely conscious but breathing, and brought him to St. Vincent's. The officer recognized him as one of the missing children from Tyler and contacted the SVU.
When they got to the door, they were met by Fin.
"Hey Fin. When did you get here? I thought you were meeting Greg Morgan?" Elliot asked.
"I got nothin' out of Morgan," he began, annoyed. "So I left there and heard the beat that one of the Tyler kids was brought in. I was close by so I just stopped in."
"How's Kaleb?" Olivia asked.
"Probably more traumatized than anything else. They've got him on some pretty mean sedatives and he's going to make it, but he hasn't said much."
"What did the doctor say?" Elliot asked. Just as he spoke, Dr. Kim approached the group with an x-ray in his hand.
"I'll let him tell you," Fin said, gesturing to the doctor.
They turned to face him and Elliot extended his hand. "Hi Doc, I'm Detective Stabler, and this is my partner, Detective Benson," he said. Both removed their badges and showed the doctor. "We're with the Manhattan SVU. How's Kaleb?" Elliot inquired.
"Hi Detectives," he greeted them with a nod. "Kaleb has some deep bruising, where he may have been shoved or punched, and several scratches on his arm where he probably tried to get away from his attacker but was caught by some tree branches or bushes in his path," the doctor stated. He sighed and continued. "Kaleb was molested. There is bruising near his pelvic region as well. He's on sedatives and he'll need some rest, but he's going to be fine," he told them.
"Thanks Doc," Elliot responded as he mulled over what was just said.
"Did anyone reach his parents?" Dr. Kim asked.
"Our captain has been trying to track his mother down," Fin answered. "No information on his father."
Olivia stepped back from the group, took out her cell phone, and scanned through her past calls. When she reached the cell phone number Rita had given to her, she pushed the call button. She listened for a few rings, and the voice mail picked up. Olivia left a brief message and ended the call.
She walked back to Elliot who had been on the phone as well. The doctor left to check on a patient and Fin leaned against the doorway, looking in on Kaleb. She overheard Elliot finishing a call with Cragen, and he turned to face her. "Voice mail?" he asked.
Olivia nodded her head. "Any word on Aidan?" she asked, assuming that was his intent for the call to Cragen.
Elliot folded his arms and took a step toward his partner, lowering his voice as he spoke. "He was pulled over on the Garden State Parkway by a Jersey cop for speeding and reckless endangerment. He's being detained in Bergen County," he reported.
Olivia sighed, and brushed a strand of hair away from her face.
"Fin's going to stay with Kaleb and see if he'll say anything when he wakes up. Captain wants us to keep trying to track down Rita Knight."
x x x
11:30 am – St. Vincent's Hospital
Kaleb lay on his stomach in the hospital bed, with his head turned toward Fin, who sat in a chair next to him.
"I want my mommy," he cried softly.
"I know. We're going to find her, Kaleb," he said assuredly.
Thirty minutes earlier, Kaleb awoke out of a nightmare, screaming and shaking. Fin jumped out of a chair in the hallway and rushed in to comfort him. After a few minutes with Fin there, he began to settle down. When he began to ask him questions about the nightmare, all Kaleb could recollect was running in the park from a man whose face he could not see.
Fin began asking more questions about what happened after he was kidnapped and tried to get him to talk about the attack. He said he couldn't remember anything except being at the playground. Fin continued, pushing him wherever possible, hoping he'd recall something. The doctor came in with more medication and said Kaleb needed to sleep.
Although he was distressed, Kaleb seemed glad to have Fin there.
At one point, just before Fin was getting ready to head back to SVU, Kaleb told him that he reminded him of his Uncle Ted; someone that Kaleb hadn't seen in over a year. He adored his uncle. The uncle was stationed in Iraq and had only met Kaleb once while he was home for a short break, but the two hit it off quickly.
Kaleb soon got attached to Fin. He slept off and on through the afternoon and each time he woke up, he'd ask the nurse if Fin had come back yet. He was convinced that Fin would locate his mom.
x
Rita Knight struggled greatly with her son's disappearance. She was prescribed anti-depressants and the doctor's office contacted her regularly.
Rita told Olivia that she had a daughter a few years before Kaleb was born who had also disappeared and turned up dead three weeks later. Her daughter's death became a cold case and the killer was never found. This further complicated her ability to cope with Kaleb's disappearance.
After her son's disappearance, Rita had been in touch with Olivia and the SVU several times. The last time anyone had heard from her, however, was Monday. The regular calls to Olivia, usually several times a day, had abruptly stopped.
The detectives tried several numbers they had for her, her friends and family members, but no one had seen her. Given the circumstances, Olivia recommended that a missing person's report be filed if she didn't turn up by the end of that day.
x
1:00 pm - SVU
"Hey John, check this out! Some dude strapped a camera to his cat!" Lake chuckled as he read one of the bizarre news stories on a website while he ate lunch at his desk.
Lake was still having back problems, and his doctor had begun to suggest surgery as an option. As a result, Cragen mostly kept him on desk pending the outcome of his next appointment. If the doctor decided he definitely needed to have the surgery, given the weeks of rehabilitation to follow, Cragen discussed the option of a temporary transfer into computer crimes. Lake wasn't happy, but said he'd consider it.
The other detectives were appreciative of his new role, especially since it meant that he picked up some of their paperwork from time to time. In turn, they kept him involved in certain aspects of the case whenever possible.
They were supportive toward him throughout the time he had been on restricted duty.
At least to a certain extent.
On lunch breaks, or off times, if he opted not to leave the bullpen, he'd stay at his computer and surf the web for silly or just completely bizarre news stories. Because he continually brought up what he read and discussed it, the other detectives, particularly Munch and Fin, were getting tired of it.
"Hey, this cat is funny! Check this out, John. It looks like he's trying to squeeze into a drain pipe or something," Lake chuckled.
Munch ignored Lake. Instead, he studied a background check on one of the new teachers at Tyler Elementary. Lewis Holmes, whose name Elliot had come across earlier as someone who took Klonopin, had only been there for three months. Lewis taught second grade, and Derek Morgan was one of his students. While employed at a different school in the district, he had been cited for his outbursts and for throwing items in his classroom several times. A frantic parent once accused him of abusing two students, and given his history, he was arrested and detained. Because of the citations on his record, he agreed to go for counseling and attend an anger management course. Once the course was completed, he was cleared and allowed to return back to work. He later transferred to Tyler Elementary School.
"Some dude blew up his apartment while spraying for bugs? Weird!" Lake read.
Olivia rolled her eyes and got up from her desk to refill her water bottle.
Elliot sighed deeply, rubbed his eyes and tried for the third time to focus on a profile he was sent via email. He was rapidly losing his patience with Lake, and the lack of sleep wasn't helping either.
"Lake why don't you go surf somewhere else!" Fin responded to Lake's last comment, annoyed. Fin had left St. Vincent's, giving Kaleb time to rest, but told the doctor he would be by to check on him later that afternoon.
"Maui's got some good waves, I hear," Munch quipped without looking up.
Lake ignored both of their comments. "Oh my god!" he gasped. "Some kid set his- Set his-" he paused, making a face as he read it. "Some kid set his 'you-know-what' on fire!"
"Glad I got back in time for that one," Olivia remarked sarcastically, as she sat down at her desk.
"Man, Lake just shut up!" Fin snapped.
A minute later, Cragen, George and Casey walked out of a meeting in Cragen's office and over toward the detectives. "Hey everyone," he greeted them. They stopped beside Fin's desk. "Fin, how is Kaleb?" Cragen asked.
"He's not saying much, Captain. He had a nightmare while I was there and had trouble remembering what it was about, but at least he wasn't afraid to talk about that. With the sedatives and all, he may just be too traumatized right now, but could be ready later on," Fin suggested.
"We have to keep encouraging him to talk."
"I know, Captain." He nodded in agreement, realizing their time constraint. "I'm heading over there again this afternoon."
"George will go along with you, but you still may be the best hope for getting him to talk. It's good that he's comfortable with you. I called over there a little bit ago and apparently he keeps asking for you," he said.
"Yeah, he's a neat little guy," Fin smiled fondly.
"Um, hey guys, you may want to take a look at this!" Lake said nervously, briefly interrupting their discussion.
"What Lake, another stupid news story? No thanks," Fin said, irritated.
"No!" Lake answered hastily. He slowly got up from his chair, holding his lower back as he stood. He turned toward them, looking primarily at Captain Cragen as he spoke. "It's CNN! You all need to hear this!"
They exchanged a puzzled look between them, and then all seven made their way over to gather around Lake's desk. Lake shoved his chair out of the way to make room for them. He turned the volume up on the computer speakers and stepped back from the group.
They were watching a real-time news broadcast.
x x x
"…We will keep you posted with updates as soon as they become available.
Once again, the latest out of the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
It is now confirmed that Hurricane Lilith, the category 3 storm will make landfall. Our hurricane experts report that central and northern New Jersey and the entire New York City metropolitan area are now in the path of this storm.
Given the low-lying coastal regions of New York City and New Jersey, and risk of wide-spread flooding, this is a potentially dangerous situation. While evacuation orders have not been issued, residents from Perth Amboy, NJ to Long Island, NY, are strongly urged to begin making plans to leave the area…"
Silence fell over the bullpen.
x x x
Next Chapter: Hurricane Watch
A/N… Those were actual weird news stories that a former coworker of mine used to like to search for. I found a couple and decided to have fun with Lake. ;)