Helpless

(Chapter Six: Never Alone)

Olivia took a deep breath and tightened the towel around her as she opened the bathroom door and walked back down the hall toward the bedroom where Elliot still laid sleeping. She watched him for a moment then moved to her duffel bag in the bedroom floor. She pulled out a pair of blue jeans and a black tank top and slipped into them then pulled her damp hair back into a pony tail.

She zipped it up and tugged the strap of the duffel bag over her shoulder and headed for the front door. In the living room she searched the coffee tables and kitchen counter tops until she found her car keys, then turned to leave.

"You weren't even going to say good bye?"

She exhaled and turned to see Elliot standing behind her.

"I just have to go, El. It's time for me to go. I have a few things I have to take care of."

Elliot leaned against the kitchen counter and stared at her.

"You can't go back there, Olivia."

She shifted her eyes quickly to his for only a second before she stared at the ground. He could read her like a book.

"In case you have forgotten, we are not even allowed to leave the city until after this goes to trial." He watched her waiting for a response.

She exhaled loudly showing her frustration with him. It had always annoyed her that he was able to tell what she was about to do, before she had even done it. But she had this same power over him.

Without a word she turned and headed for the door.

"You're insane!"

"Elliot! Just back the Hell off!"

"You cannot seriously be considering this!"

"Look," she turned to glare at him and he watched her for a moment as she prepared her defense, "the funeral is in three days. I can't not be there. I'm not asking you to help me. I'm not even asking you to cover for me. I'm just asking you to stay the Hell out of my way and let me do what I need to do!" With that she grasped her car keys in her hand and stormed out the apartment door.

Olivia climbed into the drivers seat of her car and slammed the door shut behind her. She flipped down the visor and reached for her sunglasses. She looked into the mirror on the back of the visor and questioned the woman staring back. What the Hell was she thinking? She flipped the visor back up and took a deep breath to try and relax a little bit.

Just then the drivers side door swung open and she stared up speechless.

"You are completely crazy if you think for one moment that I am going to let you do this!"

She sat there breathing heavily for a moment trying to think of something to say as his blue eyes pierced hers. "Elliot, you can't stop me!"

"I know," he said leaning down to her, "but I'll be damned if I let you do this alone!"

Olivia stared at him shocked and confused.

"Scoot over," he demanded.

She raised her eyes to stare at his. She slid across the front seat and stared at him as he climbed into the car.

"If we're doing this, I'm driving." Elliot opened his hand in front of her. Olivia stared at him in shock then raised her palm and dropped her car keys into his hand. Elliot slipped the key into the ignition, but hesitated before he started the car. She stared at him nervously. "Seat belt," he said as he turned and looked at her. Olivia nodded and buckled her seat belt, then Elliot started the car and headed across town.

"Stubborn ass," she remarked from across the car as she shifted her eyes to him.

"I might be. But it just might be my stubborn ass that keeps your stubborn ass alive!"

Olivia smiled at him from the passengers seat. "I need to run by my apartment before we leave town. Were you not going to bring any clothes?"

Elliot shifted his eyes to the seat behind them. Olivia turned to see his duffel bag laying in the back floor board of the car. "I figured you might try something like this."

Olivia smiled at him and shook her head. "You know how much trouble you are getting yourself into if we get caught?"

"The way I see it my ass is had either way. If Casey finds out you left and I am still here, she is going to kill me. So I might as well tag along and make sure you don't get into any more trouble. Open the glove box."

Olivia reached down in front of her and opened the glove box of the car. Tucked inside was Elliot's off duty weapon.

"You really thought this through, didn't you?" She asked looking into his eyes.

"Someone had to. I knew you would be acting out of emotion." She shook her head again and turned to look out the window. "It is my job to make sure you are safe Olivia. That job doesn't stop just because we are off the clock. These guys may be after you. I didn't expect you to miss Kate's funeral without a fight. I know you better than that. Besides, I don't think you should have to miss it. But we have to be safe about this. You show up at that funeral, you might as well paint a target on your back. If these men recognize you, they will come after you. You don't leave my sight, you understand that?"

"Yes, sir."

"This isn't a game, Liv. These men have already killed four people that we know of. Not to mention the local police are not all that fond of us."

"It wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing if they did recognize me. I mean at least if they came after me we would know who they were!"

"No way!"

"Elliot, I can do this."

"There is no this, Olivia. We go there for the funeral. We show up, pay our respects and we are on our way back here. Immediately. That is it."

"Okay."

"I mean it."

Olivia nodded her head, trying not to smile at his best attempt to father her.

"No funny business!"

She shook her head cracking a small smile.

"Olivia," Elliot said fighting off a laugh himself.

She smiled and laughed and he couldn't help but join her. She took a deep breath and looked at him trying to regain control of herself. "I swear," she said softly.

Elliot slipped her fingers between hers and squeezed her hand for a moment as he smiled at her.

"Thank you," she mouthed across the car.

"You're welcome," he mouthed back as she smiled a shy smile and quickly turned to look out the window.

They stopped by her apartment so she could grab a dress for the funeral and a few more things. She opened the trunk of her car to put her things inside and smiled as she looked down onto his nicest black suite. He really had thought of everything. Sometimes he knew her better than she knew herself.

She picked up the suit by the hanger and placed her bag inside, then closed the trunk. She moved around to open the back door of the sedan and hung his suit next to her dress on the garment hanger.

"Are we ready?" He asked her as he approached the car. "I still need to stop for gas and I want to get a map."

Elliot opened the car door to see an atlas laying in the passengers seat. He looked up at her over the top of the car.

"What? If you're driving, I get to navigate. Besides, I know you don't trust my GPS."

Elliot smiled at her then climbed in the car and closed the door. Within a couple of hours they were miles outside the city and she was asleep with her head leaned against the window and his jacket covering her shoulders.

Elliot grinned and brushed some dark hair from her face, tucking it behind her ear. The early morning sunlight beaming through the car window danced off her hair igniting the gold and copper strands that were normally hidden under dark layers of brunette. He tucked the jacket in around her, then focused his attention back to the road ahead of him.

The trip from Manhattan to Seattle was nearly three thousand miles and a forty three hour drive, according to the GPS mounted on the dashboard of Olivia's car. It would take them just over two days to get there and by the time they stopped to sleep and shower and refuel the car, that would put them arriving just a few hours before the services began. This was not Elliot's preferred means of travel on long distance trips. But to fly would leave a trail and make them easier to locate and bring back. Driving bought them a little more time. So far they had succeeded in slipping away unnoticed. The longer it took Casey and Cragen to realize that they were gone, the better their chances were of getting away with it.

Elliot knew he was hanging himself by going along with her. But he would never allow Olivia to do something this dangerous alone. The truth was he knew she would go, with or without him. He knew that she could really use his friendship to help her through this tough time in her life. Liv was a lot safer with him there by her side than she would have been alone.

Besides, he had seen these men and was sure he could recognize them if he saw them again. If they came anywhere near Olivia, he would be there to protect her. He liked those odds a lot better than if she had gone back alone.