Chapter 11

"Hey Cap," said Fin not turning around from the screen he was looking at. He had been going through the footage of the party for the last two hours. "Come take a look at this."

Cragen pushed himself up from the bed he was lying on.

"What is it?"

"Okay the guy Carl just seems to have spent the night throwing as much alcohol as possible down his neck until he staggered upstairs looking for a bathroom. He staggered into the main bathroom and then came out looking all confused. He opened the door to Elliot's room saw the bed stripped off and then hit the bed face first passing out. He has been there ever since….. However this guy Mark is a bit different."

Cragen pulled up a chair and sat beside him. "How come?"

"He doesn't seem to socialise with the rest of the guys. He stands with them and drinks but doesn't really interact much. He does however seem interested by the women in the room. He moves around the room trying to chat to them. Some of them talk for a while others just blank him straight away turning their back to him or just walk away. He stood and watched Olivia, who was stood watching Elliot and Rollins for a full twenty minutes before talking to her. Then when Olivia goes to get them a drink, and doesn't return because Elliot takes her outside to talk, he stands by the window and watches them the full time when they were in the garden."

"What about when they come back in?"

"He stands mainly in the corner with the other guys but he seems to have his eyes fixed on them all the time. When Rollins goes to leave Elliot follows her out and a few seconds later he goes out the back door."

"Maybe he just went for some fresh air."

"Maybe, but he came in the front door a few seconds after Elliot returns."

"You think he was watching Stabler and Rollins."

Fin shrugged.

"What about when everyone was leaving where was he then, he told them he was on the phone outside?"

"Watch," said Fin pressing play on the screen. "He is first out the door when the cabs arrive. Everyone else stops when that guy falls over and Elliot goes to help him. A few minutes after everyone leaves and Elliot comes back him, he then comes in the back door and asks where everyone had gone."

"And none of you noticed this earlier?"

"There was a lot going on Cap. Elliot and Olivia wouldn't have noticed it as they were in the kitchen area."

Cragen took out his phone.

"Amaro, get onto that Marks phone company I want to know the times of all the calls he made tonight and who to. What info we got on him up to now."

He listened as Amaro relayed all the information he had so far.

"He lives alone….. You're sure?" asked Cragen. "And what about a girlfriend…Okay, keep on it."

"Cap?" asked Fin.

"He lives alone, and no girlfriend registered at his address."

"Captain, Fin," said Munch who had been sitting quietly watching the live feed from the house. "You better see this."

Fin and Cragen moved quickly to look at his screen.

"What the hell is he doing?" asked Cragen as they all watched Mark climb on a chair and reach up to the over head light, taking off the shade and unscrewing the bulb. They all watched him for the next twenty minutes as he worked quietly and in the dark, before climbing down and lying back down on the couch, smiling to himself.

"What the hell?" asked Fin.

"He just wired up a small camera to electricity supply," said Munch. "Staying over was just a plan to fix up the camera."

"Did he go into any other rooms tonight?" asked Cragen.

"No Cap," said Fin. "I have already followed his every movement. If he left the room I checked the other rooms he didn't go in them."

"Well check the footage from their bedroom and bathroom again, and you keep the camera on him at all times," Cragen told John as he took out his phone.

"Their bedroom," Munch smirked. "Thought it was just Olivia's?"

"You know what I mean, Fin get hold of a tech team we need to find a way of finding out if these cameras also have sound."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Elliot turned from his side and onto his back and sighed as he stared at the ceiling. He had tried his best to sleep but he couldn't not with Olivia lying next to him, their bodies almost touching. He turned his head and looked over to her. She had turned over in her sleep and was now facing him.

"So beautiful," he mumbled unable to take his eyes off her as she slept peacefully.

The room lit up green and he turned his head towards the bedside table where his phone was. He reached over and picked it up looking at Cragen's name on the screen.

"Yeah," he said quietly trying not to wake Olivia, and listened as Cragen told him about Mark."What the hell do you mean he has fitted a camera?" he asked sitting up. "Is there only the one?"

"For now," said Cragen. "Fin and Munch are going over the footage again to double check. We have been in touch the tech team they are working on a way to find out if it is recording sound aswell. But until we know for certain you and Olivia need to act as a married couple the full time, and act as normal as you can around him."

"As if it wasn't bad enough having you guys watching us," he said turning towards Olivia when he felt the bed move.

"What's happened?" she asked him resting up on her elbows.

"Tell you in a sec," he told her and she nodded sitting up and resting against the headboard as he listened to Cragen as he told him about the checks being run on Mark. "What about Carl?"

"He just went upstairs found the bathroom and then passed out on the bed, he was only posted in 4 months ago so we have ruled him out."

"Okay well keep us informed," said Elliot hanging up.

"Well?" asked Olivia as he put the phone and sat back next to her. He told her everything Cragen had just told him.

"I knew there was something off about him," she said when he was done.

"We just need to be careful what we are saying until they hopefully find out if there is no sound, we can't risk blowing our cover," said Elliot lying back down and yawning.

"Might stop us fighting for a while," she smiled as she copied him and they both lay on their backs looking up at the ceiling.

"Good, cause I hate fighting with you," he sighed.

"Really?" she asked turning her head on the pillow and looking over at him. "Cause you seemed to be going out of your way to piss me off."

"Yeah well, you were being a complete bitch," he smirked. "And after all these years together I know what buttons to press to make you explode."

"Like I said your such a Dick," she laughed.

"I know, you have said quite a few times over the last few weeks."

They fell silent for a while.

"I'm glad we are talking again," she said softly. "As much as fighting with you is a good stress relief, I hated it."

"Yeah, me to," he said before turning on his side and facing her. "I never liked fighting with you."

"Really?" she asked lying down and turning to face him. "Because some days it felt like you didn't want to be near me."

"Yeah well you could be really annoying at times."

"What and you weren't, with all your brooding and moods, hating the world and everyone on it. You weren't the easiest person to get on with."

"Yet, you managed for 12 years," he smiled.

"Well someone had to, who else would put up with you."

Elliot smiled at her."No one I guess."

"Well apart from Dani Beck," she said not looking at him and she heard Elliot sigh.

"Maybe it's time we talked about that," he said as she looked back up and met his eyes.

"What is there to talk about?" she asked him.

"You tell me Liv? You're the one who keeps bringing her up all the time."