Chapter 7
"This is a shit-show, isn't it?" Rollins asked her Captain as she entered her office. She made sure to close the door before sitting down in a chair across from Olivia's desk.
"That's Bronx SVU. Though Duarte knowing about those trees and not doing something about it before now…" Olivia frowned. She was sifting through the piles of paperwork on her desk.
"He in Gangs. He gets the gang busted up, then that all stops. He's looking at the big picture but admittedly, that takes years to do, and a lot of patience. Meantime, innocent people are getting hurt every day," the blonde said.
"It's just a band aid, I get it. Doesn't mean I have to like it," the frown hadn't left her face.
"Well, you got Albert to open up a little didn't you?" Amanda switched gears.
"A little. We need to find his mother," she said.
"I'm already on finding her. When I do find her, I'll grab Velasco and we'll bring her in. She has to be going out of her mind. I mean Albert hasn't been home in almost a week," the blonde figured.
"Given what they've been through, maybe she's afraid when he comes home, he won't be alone," Olivia gave her a look.
"There is that. BX9 is definitely a scourge. We'll get them. How's Noah?" Amanda wanted to know.
"Safe and happy with the McCann's. The apartment is so…" Olivia paused.
"Empty? It's better that he's safe for now and he'll be home before you know it," her friend winked and then stood from her chair.
"I'll keep you posted," she promised.
"Please do," with that the conversation was over and Olivia was once again alone in her office. Instead of reviewing the paperwork in front of her, her mind began to wander. A lot had happened over the last few days. Her life was not only in physical turmoil but emotional turmoil as well. The almost kiss with Elliot played over and over in her head. On the one hand, her emotional side was screaming for her to give into him. It had been something that she'd dreamed about. There was nothing standing in their way now, especially since they'd had a chance to talk, but her logical side... It screamed at her to stop, despite talking. She'd moved on with her life. He'd unceremoniously left her with only an explanation from her Captain. He hadn't reached out. So, she did what she'd always done – pulled herself up by her bootstraps and made a life for herself, without help from much of anyone. Had there been romantic relationships, sure. Had she maybe even loved some of them? Absolutely. Still there had always been something holding her back and as much as she hated to admit it, she knew what it was – Elliot.
She had dated as a younger woman, but the fact was, Elliot was the first man to do things and never expect anything in return. He stood up for her, he had her back, no matter the circumstances. Hell, the two of them broke rules and got into trouble a bunch of times but he never flinched once. He was all in and he didn't do it to get into her pants. There was also a level of understanding that he brought to their partnership. Somehow, they gelled so well that they could anticipate each other's thoughts, moves, and intentions.
When she joined the force, things were so much different. She was different. She hated the man who had been nothing more than a sperm donor, taking what wasn't his to have. The relationship with her mother was rocky at best. Serena had taught her to hate men her whole life, but she'd also taught her that love had a price. No matter how much Olivia wanted love from her mother, she wasn't ever sure if she got it. What she got was violence fueled by drunken rage on most nights. There were good times, sure, but the bad times often outweighed them. Things didn't get much better when she told her mother that she was joining the NYPD.
She put herself into a career where she had no choice but to spend her time and energy trying to impress all of the men around her, in a job where she was someone who was few and far between. The rank and file were almost all men, the number of women small, compared to today's NYPD. The only way to survive was to impress and to work twice as hard to prove that she belonged there. Elliot never once expected that of her. She was his new partner and yet he just accepted that she'd earned her stripes to be at SVU. Never did he make a comment about her getting the job because she was a woman or because she kissed someone's ass to make detective. Instead, he assumed her to be a competent detective, one that could handle herself, if need be. That enabled her to drop some of her defenses. Now instead of trying to impress, she was able to flourish and show that not only could she do her job, but she could also do it well. Their closure rate proved that it was not a one partner did everything and one was just there for good looks relationship. There was a level of trust between them that allowed her to be a cop and a woman – not just one or the other.
A knock on her door broke her thoughts. She bade for the person to enter without looking up from the paperwork on her desk, hoping no one had noticed her little sidestep. The person who entered the room announced his presence,
"Hey Captain."
"Carisi, good to see you. Checking up on the missus?" Olivia teased him. The ADA and Rollins were dating and she knew about it. She only made jokes when the three of them were alone.
"You know me, but I can't say that was my only reason for visiting. You'll never guess who called me this morning," he smiled.
"Why do I feel like this is not a good thing?" Olivia gave him a look.
"It is a good thing. They found Mario Taglietti," Carisi promised.
"Where?" She was surprised that she hadn't gotten a call given the fact that the warrant was out from the NYPD, not the DA's office.
"A family member convinced him to come into the DA's office and give himself up. I'm supposed to be meeting them in a couple of hours. I'm assuming you want in on that conversation," he said.
"Oh, indeed I do," she told him.
To Be Continued…
