Law and Order: SVU is the intellectual property of Dick Wolf. The use of the characters, settings, and plotlines is not malicious. This is a work of fiction.
In the very last booth, in the back corner of a dimly lit diner, Elliot sat beside Olivia, his arms tight around her. He sat, staring across the table at his captain and Sergeant Tucker. He kissed her forehead, his eyes closing briefly, and he pulled her even closer. He eyed Cragen, but didn't give a shit anymore if he saw anything; she mattered more to him than anything. Her, and their safety, were his priorities at the moment. "What the hell happened?" he asked harshly, eyes narrowing and nostrils flaring. "I thought you were sending Haven on a wild goose chase two states away! How the hell did he find us? What the fuck are we supposed to tell Montgomery's wife? Darcy had kids!"
"Please," Tucker said, holding up both hands, palms out. His own eyes were closed in regret and, if he was honest, fear. "I don't know how he found you. We had people tailing him, but he...he evaded them on the highway when..."
"He evaded a bunch of cops? Who the hell have you been hiring?" Elliot fumed. "Let me guess, you pulled a bunch of snot-nosed, green kids from the academy and gave them the job, huh?" He slammed his open palm on the table, holding Olivia tighter with his other arm when she jumped. "God damn it, I haven't seen my kids in a week, and I don't even know who the hell we're running from, anymore, because someone who knows where the fuck we are is obviously trying to help the asshole kill us!" He raised his hand, balled it into a fist, and pointed one,thick finger at Tucker. "You keep telling me the only two people who really know that...are you two."
Cragen balked and raised one eyebrow. "Are you accusing us of..."
"Damn right I am!" Elliot barked back. "You have told us, over and over, that the only two people who know specifics about where we are and what we're doing are the two of you, so what the hell am I supposed to think when no matter where we go, he finds us?"
Tucker smoothed a hand along the surface of his stubble-peppered cheek and said, "We, uh, may have an answer for that." He looked at Olivia, who seemed to be in a daze, staring at nothing as she nestled herself into Elliot. He smiled sadly to himself and then looked back at Elliot. "Someone bugged Cragen's office."
Elliot laughed. It was the only thing he could do to keep from landing a hard punch to Tucker's jaw. "Of course," he said with a shrug. "Why wouldn't that happen?" He scratched at his chin, sighed, and dropped another kiss to the top of Olivia's head. "Where do we go now?" he asked. "If you think I'm getting on a bus to Podunk, Iowa or some shit, changing my name to Vince and pretending I'm a stock broker, leaving my kids behind, you can fuck the fuck off."
"Witness protection is not even an option," Tucker said dismissively, "Because, you know, that's for protecting witnesses." He rubbed his eyes. "As far as we know, you two haven't really witnessed anything. You wouldn't even know what the asshole looks like if you didn't have his eight-by-ten pinned up in your squad room."
"Well, thank God for small favors," Elliot hissed with gritted teeth. He looked around and then huffed, "And where the hell is the waitress? We haven't had a decent meal in days."
As if only to prove she was conscious, Olivia said, "Judging by the looks of this place, we won't be getting one tonight, either."
The momentary break from seriousness was welcome, and the table broke out into soft chuckles. Elliot looked down at Olivia, smiling, and told her as softly as he could that he loved her. He looked back up at his captain, suddenly realizing the last week seemed to age him a year. "You okay, Cap?" he questioned, and he silently admitted to himself that it felt so good to ask that question to someone besides Olivia.
"You want the pragmatic answer or the truth?" Cragen breathed. He looked down into his empty coffee mug, bitterly glaring at it and wishing it would refill itself. "I'm scared shitless."
Olivia's head popped up at that, and she looked like a confused cocker spaniel. "Why? You're not the one..."
"I've never had to worry about the two of you," Cragen interrupted, still boring into his ceramic cup with his eyes. "Never had to question my call to send you into the field, always confident you'd get the job done, whatever it was. I never had to wonder if you were okay, because I just knew...if you were together, you would be. Now, I...there's nothing I can do, nothing, but sit in my office and pray that we find this son-of-a-bitch before something happens." Finally, he lifted his bleak and bleary eyes and looked into Olivia's. "I don't know what I would do if..." he stopped, refusing to let any sort of human emotion escape.
Tucker looked at him and nodded in understanding. "Yeah, that goes for me, too. I know I ram you up a lot, but let's be honest, you deserve it. You threw the rule book out the window years ago, and from the looks of things, you haven't exactly gone out to find it." He saw Elliot smirk, watched him kiss Olivia again, and he rolled his eyes as he spoke again. "But professional pain-in-the-ass aside, I don't want to see either of you hurt. Not...not like this. So please, I know it's painful, and I know I've never given you a real reason to, but I need you to trust me."
Elliot bit the inside of his cheek, almost hard enough to draw blood. "You never answered my question. Where are we going? We should probably stay away from safe houses. They haven't exactly been safe."
Cragen looked at him, tilted his head, and said, "You're staying the only place I know for damn certain you'll be out of harm's way."
"Cap, uh," Elliot looked at Olivia and then shifted in his seat. He pulled her close again and cleared his throat. "With all due respect, I don't think you want me and Liv at your place right now. We've been dealing with a lot, we're both pissed off and uncomfortable, and I don't think we..."
"I meant the station," Cragen said with a grimace, knowing where Elliot was heading with his innuendo. "You'll stay in the bunk room, you know there's no way Haven would get in, and..."
"Are you serious?" Olivia said with a mild hmph.
Cragen looked at her, wondering if he should tell her what had happened to her apartment, the truth behind why he wanted them closer to his watchful eye. He settled for giving her a small smile. "There's really no other option."
Tucker exhaled sharply, and with a shrug and a frown, he said, " Yes, there is."
Peace and Love
Jo
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