Chapter four

Elliot

Hospital

September 23rd 2013

We land and practically run off the copter to the hospital where a doctor and nurse staff is waiting.

"What do we have?"

"Caucasian female; Detective Benson; 33 years old; with a GSW to the abdomen."

"Any allergies?"

I nodded, "Yea, Penicillin and latex." He immediately backed off his hands in the air.

"I NEED NEW GLOVES! NO LATEX!" as soon as a nurse stripped him of his gloves and replaced them with the purple latex free gloves the other nurses changed theirs. The nurses started hooking her up to all sorts of machines. Olivia just laid there, completely unresponsive while they cut the remaining clothes from her body. One nurse walked over to me and handed me her gun holster. The surgeon rushed her back through the doors towards the OR.

I just stood there, staring at the doors she went through. What if she didn't make it out? What if there was some sort of brain damage because I didn't get her heart started quick enough? I really can't lose her, and neither could the kids. Especially the twins, Dickie was such a Momma's boy and that little boy could do no wrong in her eyes. Liv was such a good mother to them, it would kill them if she doesn't make it through this.

I jumped a little when I felt a hand on my back, "Sir, could you fill out these papers please," she asked sweetly and I nodded taking the papers.

Just as I finished the last papers Casey came running in.

"Elliot, oh my god that's a lot of blood." She stammered. "Uh yeah, anyway here, put these on. I just got the twins to calm down after they freaked out from all the blood on their clothes."

I took the clothes and quickly changed and washed my face. I put the soiled clothes into the plastic bag and walked out to the waiting room.

"DADDY!" all four kids ran to me. I picked Lizzie and Dickie up and we all walked back over to the chairs.

I sat down with the twins in my lap and Mo and Kat on either side. We sat for hours waiting for news. I went up to the nurse's station to ask for any word.

"Can you tell me anything about Detective Benson?" the nurse looked up at me.

"Are you family?"

"Sorta, to an extent." I replied.

"What do you mean by sorta?" she asked nicely.

"Daddy, Mama otay yet?" Lizzie ran up to me. I picked her up and set her on my hip.

"I don't know yet pumpkin." She laid her head down on my shoulder and looked at the nurse.

"Is she Ms. Benson's daughter?" she asked. I decided right then and there that lying was probably my best option.

"Yes, and so are the other three over there." I pointed behind me.

"Ms. Benson is still in surgery." She told me and then looked at Lizzie. "A doctor will be out as soon as they can sweet pea." Lizzie nodded.

"Thank you," I responded.

"Come on pumpkin, let's go sit with Uncle Fin and Aunt Casey until the doctor comes out." We walked back over to the group and I looked at the kids.

"If anyone asks you if Liv is your mom, you say yes. We get answers when we say she is your mother." I instructed.

"She's more a mother than Kathy ever was." Maureen stated and Kathleen agreed.

"Daddy," Dickie called.

"Yes buddy," I answered.

"That mean wady that hurt mama, is mama?" he cocked his head confused.

"Well, yea technically buddy." He continued to look at me confused.

"Kathy is your real mommy." His eyes got wide and shook his head real fast.

"NO!" he yelled at me. I was a bit shocked, he has never told me no before, nor has he yelled.

"Richard, don't yell at me," I scolded.

"I want mama!" he cried for Liv, and it wasn't long before his sister started crying too. I couldn't blame him for wanting Olivia. She has had them just as much as I have since they were only four months. She is the only mother they know, or want.

"I know you want mama buddy." I hugged him tight and pulled Lizzie up with us, calming their crying down.

Dickie finally settled but Lizzie was still antsy. Dickie reached out to Fin who was sitting close. "Uncle Fin," he held his arms out to him and Fin just looked at me unsure of what to do. He took a big breath and lifted Dickie from my lap. Dickie snuggled right into him and Fin relaxed. I could see the shock on Fin's face. He wasn't much of kid person. I know he loves to help kids, but having anything to physically do with them was out of his skill set.

Three hours later a doctor finally came out. "Family of Olivia Benson," he called.

"Here!" we all answered. He pulled up a chair and sat down in front of us. "Well Ms. Benson is most definitely a fighter. The bullet went through her abdomen and ricocheted up through her diaphragm. In the end we had to remove her spleen, and appendix. We repaired her collapsed lung and the nick in her aortic valve. That was her main bleeder; I was surprised when she came in. From what I was told it took almost twenty five minutes to get her here. By all rights, she should have been DOA; instead she was stable and came out of surgery amazingly well."

"So is my mom going to be okay?" Maureen asked scooting forwards in her chair. The doctor softened his look when he spoke to her.

"She should make a full recovery."

"Should?" I asked.

"Well there is always a chance for infection or unexpected bleeding but I don't see that happening. I give her a 99% of full recovery."

I nodded and sighed relieved. "Thank you,"

"We sees mama now?" Dickie asked still sitting in Fin's lap.

"Sure thing pal," he turned to me, "If you all will follow me," we all stood up and followed the doctor upstairs. He stopped in front of room 419 and looked down at his folder.

"She has one Elliot Stabler listed as her next of kin,"

"Yea that's me," I stepped up Lizzie still sleeping in my arms.

"I want to speak with you for a minute," he looked down at Lizzie "alone."

I shook my head, "don't worry about her, she's a heavy sleeper."

I followed him a few feet away, "before we go in I want you to know that she looks a lot worse than she really is. She is doing remarkably well though. She is attached to many IV's but she is breathing very well on her own and after her collapsed lung that's a great sign."

"Okay," my voice shook. We walked back over he the group and he asked, "Is everyone ready?"

He opened the door and I momentarily stopped. The bed was sitting at a 35 degree angle so she was partially sitting up. She looked so vulnerable, so broken and frail.

"I have a feeling that no one is leaving anytime soon so I will have a roll-a-way brought in for the little ones."

"Thank you.

Everyone took their turns talking to her, except Cragen and I. I just sat with her and Cragen just stared. After a little while Munch, Fin, and Casey went home, leaving me and Cragen with the kids. Lizzie, Dickie, Maureen and Kathleen had fallen asleep on the roll away. Cragen was sleeping in a chair in the corner. Dickie was very anxious the whole time we were in in here and he had only just fallen asleep a short time a go. He paced for an hour, literally walking back and forth from one side of the room to the other. Nothing I did made him sit still. I tried reading books on my phone, movies, I even tried giving him the whole freaking phone to get him to calm down and get his mind off things but he just shook his head and kept walking.

Being that it was quiet I took my chance to talk to her.

"Hey Liv," I ran the back of my hand gently down her face. "You have to wake up Liv. Everyone here is waiting for you." I took a deep breath. "I love you Liv, I need you. I can't raise four fully functioning kids by myself. I have one very distressed little boy here and he is having a hard time. We both already know he is a momma's boy, and you're his momma Liv." I kissed her forehead again and felt something pull at my pants. I looked down and Dickie was looking up at me.

"Daddy, bad dweam." He rubbed his eyes and I scooped him up and laid back in the recliner next to Olivia's bed.

TBC