Chapter 9:
New York, 16th precinct, same day
Elliot Stabler had always known life was hard. That it at times even was dark, hopeless. But none the less hope had always been a strong presence throughout his days. Hope for the future. Hope for the victims he met through his job. Hope for justice.
When he'd first learned of the unknown deceased daughter that he apparently had, he'd at first been weary. Shocked. But that had slowly given away to determination to find out the truth. The search for it led him to Dawn Summers. The half sister to his "daughter". He hadn't wanted to believe that it was true. That he'd had a daughter out there growing up without him there to see it, to participate in her life. He'd told himself that Dawn Summers had to be wrong about it all. Either that or that she was trying to fool him.
But the moment he met the young brunette his certainty had faded and he'd suddenly found himself unsure. Perhaps he was wrong. Because the brunette's eyes reminded him of a woman a long time ago. A woman named Joyce with enchanting eyes and a killer smile. And in that moment he knew that the letter had been real. That Dawn was telling the truth.
His colleagues had been doubtful. Which hadn't come as a surprise. After all that they'd seen and been through, trust didn't come easy to any of them. But they did understand instinct. And when they'd asked him why he believed Dawn and he replied that his instinct told him she was telling the truth, they reluctantly backed off. He still felt their eyes on him, their doubt. But Elliot refused to let them sway him. Refused to listen to their comments. Instead he threw himself into finding out about his daughter. The girl named Buffy Anne that he'd never had the chance to know. And as more and more questions surfaced, Elliot found that he desperately wanted more answers.
Answers as to how and why his daughter was six feet under the ground. He wasn't an easily fooled man. He'd realized Dawn was avoiding to answer his question the moment she spoke. But he hadn't questioned it at the time. He'd assumed that she still found the memories painful. A logical assumption since it'd been clear from the beginning that she loved her older sister. And that she was still reeling from the loss of her.
But days later Elliot was no longer sure. As time had passed he'd gone over the meeting with Dawn in his head over and over again and had come to realization that a lot of her answers had been careful. As if she'd thought them over and rehearsed her answers. Almost as if to make sure that she wouldn't say too much. She hadn't let things slip. He'd conducted enough interviews with grieving victims to know that grief caused strange reactions, yet a seed of doubt was planted in his mind as to why Dawn had acted the way she had. It wasn't something he'd shared with his partner. Or his family. No, Elliot desperately wanted to believe Dawn's story. He didn't want to doubt her. And admitting his suspicions to someone else would be doing just that.
So he had kept quiet. But the moment he saw Dawn once again step through the doors to SVU along with another brunette, something made him believe that she truly hadn't told him everything. Because the look in her eyes as she met his gaze told him that she was leaving. And he suddenly had the feeling that he wouldn't see her again. Ever.
TBC…