A/N: Slight whoopsie to note - Mindy Smith's lawyer is not a public defender if her parents hired him. I have updated the chapter to reflect the mistake. Hope you enjoy this update. :)
Chapter 27
"You know something is bothering me and I think we need to talk," Nick said to Elliot over the phone. The elder detective was in the kitchen setting the table for dinner.
"What's bothering you? It about the case we aren't supposed to be working anymore? Or the mole at the precinct?" His partner wanted to know.
"All of it," Nick answered.
"Well why don't you come over for dinner? Liv and I just finished talking to Calvin about his mom and I think he could use another friendly face," Elliot admitted.
"Sounds good. I can be there in twenty," his partner told him.
"Great so will the pizza," Elliot said. With that the call ended and the Stabler turned to his wife who was shaking her head. Calvin had gone off to wash up for dinner.
"Hey it'll be ok Liv," he put her hand on her shoulder.
"I just don't know how he does it. He's had to grow up so quickly. I never wanted that for him," she admitted as she leaned into his touch.
"I know. Some things you can't change but he's still that little boy he needs to be. Especially when he's playing with Charlotte," he smiled.
"Very true," Olivia smiled. As if on cue, Charlotte let out a wail.
"Somebody is hungry or she needs to be changed," Olivia's eyes went wide.
"She knew we were talking about her," Elliot chuckled.
"Mom!" Calvin called from down the hall.
"Twenty bucks she needs more than her diaper changed," Elliot said as he helped her up off the couch. Olivia chuckled and shook her head before making her way down the hall. She was almost as fast on her crutches as she was walking before the incident and that made him smile. She'd be getting rid of those blasted things soon.
A little less than twenty minutes later, Nick showed up with the pizza delivery boy on his heels. Elliot paid the man and they headed into the kitchen.
"Where are Liv and the kids?" Nick wanted to know.
"Charlotte had to have an emergency bath. Liv is just putting her down for a nap," Elliot explained.
"She feeling ok?" Nick was concerned about the toddler.
"She has a slight fever but nothing we can't handle. Seems that lunch didn't agree with her," Elliot sighed.
"Uncle Nick!" Calvin said excitedly as he exited the hallway.
"Hey kiddo!" Nick gave him a hug.
"Good to see you Nick," Olivia smiled as she followed behind her son.
"Good to see you. Now how about some pizza?" Her former partner smiled back.
"Sounds good," she said. They all sat down and enjoyed their meal. Afterwards, Calvin went to check on Charlotte before heading to do his homework. Olivia, Elliot, and Nick cleaned up after dinner and then got down to business.
"So what is your concern? I know that tone of voice," Elliot said.
"Well I've just been pouring over it and something doesn't add up," Nick admitted.
"A lot of it doesn't add up. I mean we know that Vivian was trying to get back at SVU and we know that Simpson also wanted to get back at us. Price was supposedly only along for the ride and of course someone in the precinct was helping Simpson," his partner told him.
"Sure except for the fact that Tucker didn't find any evidence of someone inside our unit using their computer to look up badge numbers. No one used their desk phone to call in information about the squad's next move. Everything is clean," Nick said.
"How do you know?" Olivia asked.
"Tucker called me to tell me that he and Cassidy didn't find anything and he wanted to know if I had seen someone using a cell phone that they wouldn't have normally used or anything like that. I told him I hadn't. He seemed frustrated and then mentioned that the FBI was granting the two of them a chance to talk to Price," the younger man explained.
"Hard to find a mole that doesn't want to be found. Someone could have used a burner phone while they were in the locker room. As for the computer search, nothing says that they didn't even use a computer. I mean somebody filing the reports could have gotten the badge numbers off of those," Elliot pointed out.
"True but something that Tucker said bothered me," Nick said.
"Everything he says bothers people," Elliot smirked.
"Yeah but he said he wasn't sure how someone could do everything and not leave a trace or slip up or leave a witness. He's right. Vivian supposedly orders Price and Simpson to do what they have to do to pin things on SVU. She slips up somehow and gets herself killed. Simpson slips up and is killed by Price. Price slips up and robs some restaurant at a hotel. All through everything, magically the cop on Simpson's take, never slips up? He never leaves any evidence he's been there? No one is that careful. Even somebody who is trained to be careful makes a mistake eventually. Mindy Smith was the only loose end. She's still alive but she isn't talking. Tucker said she didn't know the guy she had been talking to was a cop but she won't tell them who it is so they can get him off the force," the younger detective pointed out.
"She's that afraid of this guy?" Olivia was beginning to figure something she wished she hadn't figured on.
"Yeah," Nick said.
"I know that look," Elliot said.
"She's that afraid because it's someone she's encountered since her arrest," Olivia told them.
To Be Continued...