When she woke up, Olivia groaned. The couch was not the best place in the world to sleep. After running a hand through her hair, she started to sit up, but felt something hinder the process. She looked down and saw that she was handcuffed to the leg of the couch.
After a short chuckle, Olivia picked up the piece of paper that was next to her hand. In long scrawling print, Alex wrote 'Two can play Detective.' Under the note Olivia noticed the key and picked it up, unlocking her wrist.
Alex woke up about an hour later, her medicine causing her to sleep a lot later than usual. After freshening up in the bathroom, she searched the apartment for Olivia, only finding a note from the detective next to a hot pot of coffee in the kitchen. 'The coffee is for you. I had to go to work. You can use my car if you want to leave. The keys are on the hook next to the door. Just don't hurt her. If all goes as planned I'll be back around six. If you're not tired of me yet maybe we could go dinner without my mother.' Alex laughed because the world 'without' was underlined.
After drinking some coffee, reading the newspaper on the coffee table, and watching a little TV, Alex stated getting restless. She didn't like doing nothing for very long. So she got dressed in some of Olivia's clothes, choosing a pair of snug jeans and one of the few sweaters that wasn't a v-neck. After putting her hair up, Alex grabbed her purse, the keys to Olivia's car and walked out the door.
As she walked down the hallway of the precinct with the intention of taking Olivia to lunch, she looked at her wrist that had been restrained last night. It was still a little red so she pulled the sweater sleeve over it. She wondered, with a slight smirk, if Olivia's wrist suffered the same fate.
When she stepped into the SVU section of the building, she saw Olivia was the lone detective in the room. Cragen had his arms crossed, apparently squaring off with her.
"I'm going to go see if any of the girls know what happened," Olivia stated, "I don't need Elliot to go with me."
Cragen seemed to think it over. Then she spotted Alex standing in the doorway. "Hey Alex."
"Hi Don," Alex stepped over the threshold, something taking over her demeanor, making her Prosecutor Alex instead of Olivia's friend Alex.
"It looks like it's your day off but would you accompany Detective Benson to interview some potential witnesses?" Cragen asked.
Alex nodded, "Of course."
Olivia's jaw dropped open. She turned on Cragen, "So I need a babysitter now?"
"You are very attached to the case," Cragen even headedly explained, "And if there are two of you, it'll be quicker."
Olivia looked to Alex who looked as though she couldn't care either way. She looked back at Cragen, "Fine." She grabbed her jacket and started walking out the door leaving Alex to follow her.
They silently walked out of the precinct, Alex leading the way to the car. When they got in, Alex looked over at Olivia who got into the passenger's seat without a word. "Where are we going?"
"Forty-third and Eighth," Olivia stated still a little pissed as having a babysitter, even though it was Alex.
Alex mentally drove there before turning the car on, only able to think of one place around there that would contain 'girls' as Olivia had put it before.
When Alex parked a block away from their destination, she started to get out, but Olivia's voice stopped her, "I'm sorry for how I reacted earlier."
Alex looked softly at the detective and nodded, "I understand." With that she got out of the car and followed Olivia, who explained what was going on. A serial rapist was targeting strippers in the Midtown and after almost no leads and no cooperative witnesses, Olivia was grasping at straws trying to keep the case alive.
Just as they were outside the lasted strip club targeted by the serial rapist, Alex's phone rang. She looked at the screen and let Olivia know that she'd be in right behind her.
Olivia badged her way in. Inside was dark sans the lit stages and purple lighting that bordered the whole club. There were only two people that worked there visible. The one that looked the least busy was a bartender who was wiping down the counter. When she saw Olivia walked up, she smiled, "What can I get you?"
Olivia flashed her badge and the smile immediately disappeared from the bartender's face. She looked down at the bar and resumed what she was doing.
"I assume you already know what happened two nights ago," Olivia offered, trying to get the bartender to cooperate.
The bartender just nodded.
Olivia sighed, knowing it wasn't going to be easy to get the bartender to talk.
Just as she opened her mouth to ask another question, she heard the bartender call, "Alex!" The bartender jumped over the bar and trotted to the ADA who just walked in.
Once again, Olivia was shocked by Alex, who beamed and absorbed the excited hug that she received from the bartender.
"What are you doing here?" the bartender asked, "It's been forever."
"I actually came for work," Alex explained and gestured to Olivia, "I promise I'll come for a social visit soon."
"Yeah I've heard that one before," the bartender teased Alex.
Olivia waited patiently at the bar while Alex quickly caught up with the bartender and then walked her over to talk to Olivia.
While the detective interviewed the bartender who was much more cooperative, Alex wandered around the club. Soon she was stopped by a stripper who hopped off of the stage to give her a hug. It wasn't long before Alex was sitting with a group of women in robes, who Olivia guessed were strippers. A few minutes later a man walked out of the back dressing in a white chef uniform to see her.
Olivia covertly watched as Alex's phone got passed around and everyone's number was put it in while she put her number into a number of phones.
"Thanks Taylor," Olivia smiled to the bartender who went happily on her way after answering every question Olivia asked.
The detective decided to go see if Alex found anything out or if she was just socializing with the workers. Another huge, burly man had joined the group and there was now a file in Alex's hand. Just as Olivia walked up, Alex closed the folder and stood.
"Do you really have to go?" one of them asked.
Alex nodded, "I'll be back later. Maybe this weekend."
"Maybe you could get up there and show them how it's done," the huge man chuckled.
Alex swatted him with the folder before giving everyone a hug. One of the girls called after her, "You owe me a date Alexandra!"
"Friday," Alex answered with a grin, "Call me."
At that, Alex walked out with Olivia gawking behind her.
Once they got into the daylight, Olivia asked, "What was that?"
The blonde smiled coyly and handed the folder to Olivia. "DVD of surveillance the night of the rape and statements of where everyone in the club was the time of and around the rape, plus all the contact information for the victim."
"That's great," Olivia glanced inside confirming that everything Alex said was there. "But what was that in there?"
"I used to work there."
"You what?!" Olivia stopped dead in her tracks, "No way."
Alex nodded, "But as a bartender and occasional back up dancer."
"Back up dancer?" Olivia asked, still floored and unable to move.
The blonde laughed, "Yes. Some people had to pay their own way through law school."
"I just…" Olivia stammered, "You at that…dancer?…This is a lot to process at once."
"Sorry to shake up your world," Alex chuckled, "Now you can ask all the questions you want, but I'm starving so it'll have to be over lunch."
Olivia dumbly nodded and followed Alex back to the car, "Didn't the girl back there tell you, you owe her a date?"
Alex nodded with a sly grin before opening the car door, "Yeah, I stood her up a few years ago."
Olivia who was normally not shaken by much was reeling. "Who are you and what have you done with the Alex I know?"
The blonde just laughed again and got in the car.
A shell-shocked Olivia got into the passenger's seat and just look at the blonde who changed everything she ever thought about her over the course of two days. All Olivia could do is shake her head and wait for the next surprise.