Thanks again for all the reviews. I know cliffhangers are evil, but I felt like being evil for once. ;) I am glad no one was too angry with me for it. I apologize for not getting this post up sooner. I am really struggling with finding writing time. Hopefully I will get better at managing my time and have the next update ready for you soon.
Enjoy! I look forward to hearing what you think. :)
February 12, 2015 7:30PM
Elliot was knocking on the door, worried that no one was answering. He could hear Noah crying on the other side and his first instinct was that Olivia was sick again. He knew her morning sickness had eased up the last time he'd been there, but he'd been gone for two weeks and there was no telling how her body had changed in that time. "Liv…" he called out, "Are you okay in there? Let me in!" No one came to the door, and he shook the handle, preparing to do something as drastic as breaking it down when the door quickly came open and he was face to face with a young woman, holding a sobbing Noah in her arms. "Where is Olivia?" he asked, his voice more frustrated than it should have been. He looked at the babysitter and forced a smile, "I'm sorry…" he said, realizing how harsh he sounded. "I was just worried when no one answered the door…" He looked at Noah, stroking his tear-stained cheeks, "What's the matter buddy…"
Lucy shook her head, "I don't know where Liv is," she admitted. "She told me she'd be home by 6:30…I've been calling…" she looked panicked. "I can't get the baby to stop crying…it's like something's wrong with him and he can't tell me what."
Elliot reached for the little boy and she reluctantly handed him over. She'd only met Elliot one other time and it had been brief, but she knew he was a friend of Olivia's. "Do you miss Mommy?" Elliot held the boy close to him and Noah settled a little. Elliot looked at Lucy, "Did you call the station?" he asked.
Lucy nodded, "They said she left a while ago," she sighed and glanced down at her phone. "I had a date tonight…"
Elliot nodded, "Go ahead…I'm sure she'll be here any minute. She probably had to stop for something…"
"She always calls," Lucy's voice shook with worry. "She's pregnant…" her eyes widened when she realized she'd revealed her bosses secret. "I shouldn't have said that…"
"It's okay…" Elliot smiled. "I know she's pregnant…" he motioned toward the door. "Why don't you go on your date. I'll take care of Noah. Liv probably stopped for some weird food craving or something. Last time I was here she wanted grilled cheese and wouldn't stop talking about it until she got it. I'm sure its just something silly like that…"
"I'm not supposed to leave the baby," Lucy said, "She never said I could leave him with you."
"No, of course," Elliot's phone rang and he handed the baby back to Lucy, glancing at it and seeing Olivia's name pop up on the screen. "Ah ha…this is her now," he laughed, answering the call, "Liv…where the hell are you? I thought we were having dinner…" but before he could finish the voice on the other end let him know it wasn't Olivia.
"Elliot…" the man's voice was weak and Elliot was instantly more afraid than he could ever remember being before. "This is Nick…Amaro…remember…" he was stalling and Elliot knew it.
"Yeah…of course I do," Elliot's voice shook remembering the last time Olivia had given Nick her phone to call him…the time she was bleeding and went to the hospital. Everything turned out fine that time, but this time…they weren't going to be so lucky and Elliot could feel the uneasiness settling in his bones. "What's wrong?" he asked.
"Uhm…I'm sorry…" Nick was breaking down, and even though he wanted to be strong, had thought he was strong enough to make this call, he was beginning to think he couldn't do it. "There was a shooting…and Olivia…she's…"
"No…" Elliot gasped. "That's not possible…she's on desk duty…" but he knew it was the truth regardless of his denial.
"She was on a domestic call," Nick continued, but Elliot cut him off.
"Is she alive?" he asked bluntly.
"She was," Nick said honestly. "When they brought her in. We haven't heard anything new. I had to use her phone to call you so I could get the number…I'm so sorry…"
"What about the babies?" he asked, trying to remain in control but feeling himself slip. "Are they okay?"
"I don't know," Nick told him. "All I know is she was shot…"
"What the hell was she doing going on a domestic call?" Elliot yelled. "She's on desk duty! I…I'm on my way…" he hung up the phone and looked at Lucy who was staring at him with a ghostly white realization on her face. "It's Liv…she's hurt…" Elliot struggled to keep the tears in his eyes. "Can you stay with him?" he looked at the baby who had stopped crying and was sucking his thumb against the sitter's chest and the sight of Olivia's son was the final straw for him as his eyes blurred and his tears fell. "I'll call you when I can with an update…" he said, rushing out the door.
February 12, 2015 8:15PM
Elliot ran through the double doors of the emergency room and looked around, trying to find a familiar face among the unusually large crowd of people. "Stabler…" he heard someone call out and he turned to see Nick Amaro standing against the far wall by the men's room, his own face gray and warn from the experience.
Elliot walked over to him, "Where is she?" he asked.
"She's in surgery…" Nick answered, his voice void of any emotion. "Something about her shoulder…"
"Her shoulder?" Elliot asked, a touch of relief in his tone. "That's all…"
Nick shook his head, "She lost a lot of blood…and they're not sure where the bullet is lodged. She was in and out of consciousness…"
Elliot ran his hand along the back of his neck, his face red with anger, "Why the hell was she on a domestic? And why didn't you protect her…you're supposed to be her fucking partner!"
"You need to calm down," Nick said, trying to keep himself from blowing up.
"Calm down?" Elliot grabbed him by the collar and pulled his face close to his, "She could be dead…my kids could be dead…and you want me to calm down. This is your fault…you didn't have her back…you let her go out on a fucking police call when she's pregnant…"
"I wasn't with her!" Nick pushed Elliot away from him, hard enough that he saw him stumble back against the wall, and the shock of his strength seemed to calm Elliot some. "She went to take a victim home…she wanted to convince her to get some help."
"Of course she did," Elliot sighed, shaking his head anxiously. He caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye and saw Lieutenant Tucker…his biggest nemesis from IAB, walking toward him. "What the fuck is that son of bitch doing here?" he groaned, looking at Nick with frustration. "They sure as hell aren't going to pin this on Olivia. She didn't do anything wrong."
"He's here for Fin," Nick answered, not sure how Elliot would take the news. "He shot the guy…the one who shot Liv…"
"Fin shot him?" Elliot asked.
Nick nodded, "He was the one with Olivia…when it happened."
"Fin…" Elliot gasped. "Fin was with Olivia…and he let her get shot?"
"He saved her life. He shot the guy and he kept pressure on her gunshot wound until the paramedics arrived," Nick told him, but Elliot wasn't listening. He was rushing toward Lieutenant Tucker, his body shaking with rage.
"Well…well…if it isn't my favorite former detective," Tucker sputtered. "Should've known you'd show up here eventually when Benson is involved. Funny, I thought you would've been here before now…she's been through far worse in the last few years…"
"Where's Fin?" Elliot asked, ignoring Tucker's arrogance.
Tucker looked curiously at him, "Detective Tutuola is signing his statement," he told him. "We offered to take him back to the station to do it, but he didn't want leave the hospital and said he had nothing to hide. We'll make a decision in a day or two, but to be honest it looks like a good shoot…unlike some other's we've investigated over the years." He was trying to rattle Elliot, with no luck. He was too focused on his anger to worry about Tucker's harassment.
"A good shoot…" Elliot shook his head. "If it was a good shoot he would have killed the mother fucker before he shot a pregnant woman…"
Tucker's eyes widened in realization, "Oh…" he said knowingly. "You and Sergeant Benson are still close I take it? They're saying the damage is mostly to her shoulder…her babies…your babies?" he looked for confirmation from Elliot, but continued when he didn't get it. "The babies…they seem to be okay…at least for now. There's some concern about blood loss…" Fin walked into the room, disheveled from the whole ordeal and his shirt covered in blood that could have been Olivia's or that of Donald Marling. Tucker nudged toward him and gave a smirk to Elliot, "I guess I'll leave you two alone…" he said as he walked off.
Fin didn't see Elliot until he was face-to-face with him, and then it was too late as Elliot's fist smashed into his face with such force that it took a moment for him to recover and realize what was happening. "You son of bitch!" Elliot screamed, raising his fist for one more punch, just as Fin managed to get a straight shot at his nose, forcing blood to spurt everywhere and Nick pushed the two of them apart. "Fuck you!" Elliot screamed, wiping the blood from his nose and pulling himself away from Nick. "How could you?" he glared at Fin. "She's pregnant…You let her go out on a domestic call…and you let some son of a bitch, wife-beater, shoot her?"
"I didn't let her do anything," Fin argued, wanting nothing more than to take another shot at Elliot's face. "She's my damn boss. I do what she says…" he shook his head angrily, choking on his words. "I tried to save her…"
"How the hell did that asshole get to her?" Elliot asked.
Fin's voice quivered as he recalled how quickly everything went down. How did the guy get to her? He wasn't even sure. "I don't know…" he admitted. "I checked everything…there was no sign of anyone…inside or outside the house…" He was shaking, and he couldn't remember the last time he'd felt like this…so powerless and alone. Everyone blamed him…and he knew they had every right to. "She knocked on the door…and then…I heard the shot…"
"You did what you could," Nick tried to assure him, but he knew his words were falling on deaf ears. Neither Fin nor Elliot were going to admit that Fin was innocent in all this.
"She lost too much blood," Fin said, his own face paling at the memory. "I tried to stop it…but there was so much…"
"She's gonna lose the babies," Elliot said with a somber certainness that hung heavy in the room. "Did she know…I mean…" he cleared his throat, "Was she conscious enough to realize what was happening?"
Fin nodded, "She asked about the babies…I told her they would be okay. They might be…the bullet was nowhere near them."
Elliot screamed, raising his fist once more and Fin was sure he was going to hit him, and he didn't even care anymore. He was going to let him if that's what it took to make amends for what had happened. But Elliot smashed his fist into the soda machine instead, busting a hole in the plastic machine casing and not even caring that his hand was cut and bleeding or that it was turning an unattractive shade of purple.
"Elliot…" Nick said seriously. "She wouldn't want this. She'd be pissed at you for standing out here making a scene…and you know that." He looked at Fin and then back at Elliot, "There's nothing we can do but wait and see…"
February 12, 2015 9:30PM
Elliot hung up the phone. He'd called Lucy to check on Noah and fill her in on what was happening at the hospital. So far they hadn't let him see her, but a nurse did come and tell him Olivia was out of surgery and a doctor would be with him soon. She was alive, and even though he had no other details it was all he could cling to in the moment. Olivia was alive.
Nick walked in from the cafeteria, offering him a cup of coffee and Elliot reached for it with his good hand. The one he'd smashed into the vending machine was obviously broken, but he'd refused to be treated for it until after he talked to the doctor. Olivia and the twins were more important than his hand.
Nick sat next to Fin, offering him the other cup of coffee and Elliot walked over and sat by them. He was still angry, but he knew he couldn't keep blaming them for decisions Olivia made herself. "Why did she go?" he asked, looking at them and keeping his expression even. "On that domestic call? Why did she go? She's on desk duty…"
"She's not on desk duty," Fin told him. "She's been on cases since the pregnancy…just less dangerous ones. And this one didn't seem dangerous…we didn't know the guy was there…"
"She told me she was on desk duty," Elliot admitted. "Why the hell did she lie to me?"
"She probably didn't want you to worry," Fin said, taking a drink of his coffee and making a face at the bitterness. "And I think if the bosses had their way she would be on desk duty. They can't force her though...the law says she can work until 30 weeks or until it becomes dangerous to the safety of herself or others. You know Liv…she's not gonna sit around and do nothing, even if she is pregnant."
"She was trying to take it easy though," Nick insisted. "Less cases, working less hours, more office work and less in the field…"
"If she loses the babies," Elliot felt himself tear up and he didn't want to cry, especially in front of Nick and Fin. "She won't be able to handle it." He sighed, "I was coming up here to take her to dinner…she said the doctor told her at her appointment today that one of the babies is a boy…" He shook his head in defeat, "My son…" he closed his eyes, "I didn't even act happy about it. She told me…and my mind was on other things…and I got mad that she found out the sex of one of the babies instead of waiting…"
"A boy, huh?" Fin asked, unable to mask his smile, "I hope he doesn't get your temper…"
Elliot couldn't help but laugh at that, "Hell…me too…I couldn't handle a kid with my attitude."
"Olivia told me she was raising them alone," Fin questioned. "That you were a donor…I knew that wasn't the truth. You two…there's always been something between you…"
"Something…" Elliot sighed, "But to hell if I know what that something is…"
"Excuse me…" a young surgeon walked up to them. "I'm looking for the emergency contact for Olivia Benson?"
"That's me," Elliot stood up. "I already talked to the nurse…she said Liv was out of surgery. How is she?"
"What's your name, sir?" the woman asked, looking at her chart, pen in hand. "And your relationship to the patient."
"I'm Elliot Stabler…" he said.
"Relationship to the patient?" she asked again.
"Uhm…I'm her partner…" he looked at Nick who was giving him a knowing glance. "And I'm the father of her babies."
"Follow me," the woman motioned and he walked slowly behind her toward the recovery room.
They pushed open the door, and he was faced with Olivia laying still on the hospital bed, her face nearly as white as the crisp cotton bed sheets. She wasn't moving, but her chest rose and fell slowly and he was relieved to know she was breathing. "Is she okay?" he asked. "She looks okay…"
"The bullet entered close to her right shoulder and was lodged. We removed it." She said. "She's going to be sore…and she'll need some physical therapy to regain full movement on the shoulder…she lost quite a bit of blood…"
"I can donate blood for her," Elliot offered. "We're the same blood type."
The doctor nodded, "We don't like to do blood transfusions during pregnancy, but we had no choice this time. We gave her blood already, but if it looks like she needs another transfusion we can let you donate."
"How are the babies?" Elliot asked.
"So far…they seem to be doing well," the doctor told him. "Good heart beats. We're monitoring them…she could start having some contractions…from the trauma…and if so I'm not sure we could stop it at fourteen weeks…"
"So…she might lose them?" he asked tearfully.
"We're keeping a close eye on all three of them," the doctor promised him. "On Olivia and the twins…try not to worry…"
"When is she going to wake up?" he asked, brushing away the tears that were sliding down his cheeks.
"She's sedated," the doctor said, "a couple of hours probably."
"Can I sit with her?" he asked.
"Of course," the doctor smiled. "Buzz for the nurse if you need anything…or if she wakes up…"
Elliot sat next to the bed, watching her sleep and his heart was broken. He'd been mad that Fin hadn't protected her, but in his heart he knew he was the one who should have been there…he was the one who should've protected her…and he'd let her down…he'd let his children down…and he could never forgive himself for that. He stood up, leaning over the bed and carefully brushing the hair from her face. She was bruised, probably from hitting her head when she fell, and he kissed her forehead gently, "I'm sorry…" he whispered. "I'm so sorry…" he cried. Then he moved his hand to the swell of her stomach, letting it rest gently against the firm roundness beneath her hospital gown. She was bigger than the last time he'd seen her…two weeks seemed to make a world of difference in a twin pregnancy, and he swallowed the lump in his throat, bending down and whispering to his unborn children, "Hey you two…" he cried. "This is your daddy. I know you're probably scared in there…but you got to hang on…for Mommy…she needs you…" he sobbed. "I need you too…I love you," he sat back down, grabbing Olivia's hand and holding it tight. He was never going to let go.
More to come...