AN: More hearty thanks for all these reviews! I hope the story continues to be worthy of such praise.

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Olivia knocked heavily on the door, noting the shiny new lock set with mild satisfaction. Maybe they'd get an excuse to break it down again.

"Mr. Holden, it's the police!" she called through the thick barrier. It was just past five, so curious neighbors peeked out in their robes. They didn't look long, quickly returning to the safety of their apartments.

She started to turn to Elliot for permission, more than ready to vent her growing frustration with a solid kick to the latch. But the man inside picked that moment to stir, and they finally heard footsteps approaching the door. There was a brief pause as he looked out the peep hole, then the door swung open to the limits of the chain.

"What the hell do you want now? Haven't you done enough?" Holden's voice was dangerously low. Olivia eyed him through the gap in the security chain. He was shirtless, but had come to the door in a pair of black jeans.

She gave Elliot a look of 'do you believe me now?' and he frowned in response. Elliot then turned back to Holden. "There was an incident this morning. Where have you been?"

"I've been here all night. Not satisfied, trying to pin something else on me too?"

"You violated the Order of Protection, Mr. Holden. That wasn't very smart of you," Olivia said.

"What? I did no such thing! She's lying! I want you to leave, now!" He started to shut the door, but Elliot caught it with his foot.

Elliot shook his head. "Go get a shirt, Mr. Holden. You're going to have to come in with us until we get this all sorted out."

"I'm calling my lawyer."

"You can call him at the station," Olivia replied.

Holden grumbled all the way to the interrogation room. When they placed him inside, Alex Cabot poked out of the observation room. She fixed the two of them with a withering stare. She nodded her head to the room she had come from.

"A word, detectives?"

They followed her into the observation room, cautiously. Alex stopped by the window looking in on Eric Holden. After a quick study, she turned back to Olivia and Elliot.

"What's wrong?" Elliot asked.

"Don called me in when he got the word you were bringing in Holden. So you found me some proof?"

Olivia stepped forward. "Sara told us that when she saw him he was wearing dark jeans. That's what we found him in when we went to talk to him."

"And?" Alex prompted, incredulous, "you found me a witness, a fingerprint, a strand of hair, a confession? Something that puts him out on that street?"

"She did describe him," Elliot replied.

"And he claims never to have been there. You want me to wake up a judge on Sunday with nothing more than a pair of pants?"

Olivia started to argue. "Alex..."

"It's a coincidence," Alex retorted. "Circumstantial at most. I'll be laughed out of chambers, if I'm not skinned alive first."

"She saw him."

"Maybe she did, and maybe she just thinks she did. Either way, there's nothing I can do without something solid. Any lawyer will argue that of course she knows what clothes he owns. If her own mind dreamed it up it only stands to reason she'd describe him in something familiar. As long as he denies it, all we've got is he-said-she-said."

Alex's expression softened to sympathy. Olivia knew that she wanted to help, she was just bound by the rules of court. That knowledge didn't stop her from being angry. He wouldn't cop to it, she knew that much, and his lawyer was going to have a field day when he got there. And sometime after the circus she knew was to come, she'd have to tell Sara that her father was still walking about freely.

"While I have you here..." Alex paused, uncomfortable with whatever she had to say. "The sexual abuse itself is not an open and shut case."

"What are you saying?" Elliot demanded.

She sighed. "When his attorney gets here, I'm going to offer a plea."

"He deserves the full bit!" Olivia felt her stomach clench and her hands ball into fists. This was completely ridiculous.

"I agree, but I'm not confident a jury will see it our way. The condom was never recovered. I don't want to take the chance he'll get off. A reduced charge is better than nothing at all."

She wanted to scream, but instead she turned on the heel and left the room, slamming the door behind her. Olivia couldn't believe how everything started to circle the drain so fast. The people walking the halls gave her wide berth, the anger plainly visible on her face. She stopped for no one, and no one was foolish enough to ask her to. She neither knew nor cared where her legs were taking her.

Eventually she found herself ascending the stairs, pushing open the door to the roof so hard it slammed against the brick. She kept walking until she got to the railing, staring across the skyline that was dominated by various buildings. The wind blew against her and sapped the heat from her body. Her thin shirt offered minimal protection, and she felt her cheeks start to burn from the cold.

Olivia knew that Eric Holden was guilty, knew it to the very fiber of her being. Everyone she worked with knew it too. If only knowing equated to solid proof. Hadn't they seen enough of these types of cases for their gut feelings to have some weight? Just because she knew she'd be arguing with that very opinion if she weren't so damn angry didn't make her feel it any less strongly. At least for the time being.

And here she was feeling sorry for herself, rather than the person who actually deserved sympathy.

Olivia's leather coat slapped against the railing as Elliot set it in front of her. She wondered how she missed the sound of the door opening.

"I don't think hypothermia is going to solve anyone's problems," he said. His gaze mirrored hers off into the distance.

She glanced down at the garment, not sure what it represented. Despite the fact that she was shivering, she had to know before she'd accept the offering. "If you came up to say I told you so, you can just turn right back around."

Elliot laughed. "I came up to make sure you didn't turn into a popsicle."

Sighing, Olivia finally put on the jacket. Rubbing her arms, she tried to chase away the numbness that had settled. Then she turned around and leaned her back against the railing.

"I told her we'd find something. Put him away."

She saw him nod out of the corner of his eye. "And he should be. But we both know things don't always go as they should."

Far too often. If she got started, she could go on all day listing the cases that had gone horribly wrong. Perps that were on the streets killing far longer than they should have, or ones that had gotten away with it altogether. So why was she so surprised when it was happening again?

"With the plea he'll be out in a couple years," Olivia said, finding the thought very hard to swallow.

"Yeah, but Sara will be somewhere else. Get a chance at a new life. Sometimes we just need to take what we can get."

She wasn't really interested in being placated, so she just gave Elliot a noncommittal nod.