It's still April, 2017, picking up right where the last chapter left off.

New Realities

Sarah flounced about the apartment Sunday morning showing no outward anxiety about her impending divorce or her first day at the new accounting firm. She inspected the front closet, shelves, and kitchen cabinets in an effort to estimate how many moving boxes they would need. Neither Olivia nor Ed asked her to do this, but she arrived early and had nothing else to do at the moment. Noah was still finishing his breakfast and Ed and Olivia were getting ready.

"Not that I don't like being next to you, but," Ed spit out a mouthful of toothpaste, "But it will be nice to have the double sinks."

Olivia concentrated on her eye makeup. "Agreed."

"But I will miss this shower."

"We can get the same fixtures."

Ed swished mouthwash, spit again, and splashed water on his face. "We've had some good times in that shower," he remarked naughtily, giving her a little nudge.

Olivia gave him a hand towel, "Yes, we have. And the new shower is even larger, so…"

He pressed against her, "So…"

The contact caused Olivia to lose control of the eyeliner, "Ed."

"Sorry," he said, not sounding terribly remorseful, "Here, lemme help you." He looked around, found the wipes, and dabbed at the stray black line crossing her temple.

Olivia smiled at him in the mirror, "Thank you. Now, will you please get out of here?"

"Probably for the best."

"It is."

"Hey," he rubbed the small of her back, "one more thing."

"What?"

He kissed her cheek, "You were unbelievable last night."

"So were you," she replied sweetly.

"Seriously. Thank you."

"You're welcome," she gave him a gentle shove towards the door, "Now go, or else we're going to have to tell Sarah to leave."

"We can do that. She can take Noah to the playground or something, and…"

"Ed."

He held up his hands, palms facing her. "Ok, ok. I'm going."

Ed dressed in khaki shorts and a black polo and went to the living room where Sarah was now dancing to Beyonce with Noah. He was shaking his little body along to the music, imitating Sarah's movements. Sarah strutted over to Ed and grabbed his wrist. "Dance with us, Daddy!"

He wrestled out of her grip, "That's ok. Will you turn that down?"

Sarah shut off the music altogether, "Oh, you're no fun."

"That is not true." Ed motioned to Noah, "C'mere, bud." Noah toddled over. Ed placed him on the counter and wiped his face and hands with a washcloth. "You ready to shop with the girls?"

"Uh-huh. We buy Brookey's birdday present today."

"I know, whatcha gonna get?"

"Pizza and a bracelet."

Sarah laughed, "We're gonna take her out for pizza on her birthday, Noey! We can't wrap up a pizza!"

Noah giggled at the thought.

"What are you doing today, Dad?" Sarah asked.

"Scheduling movers, going to take some measurements, and maybe, if I have time, check out some paint colors and hardware."

"Do you want to meet us for lunch?"

"Depends on where you are and where I am, but let me know."

Olivia, dressed casually in jeans and a plain white t-shirt, sauntered in. "Ok. Are we ready?"

"Ready, mommy!" Noah announced and tried to slide himself off the counter before Ed put him down.

Sarah collected her oversized handbag, "Time to shop til we drop!"

"Shop til we drop!" Noah repeated.

Olivia kissed Ed, "Have fun today. Call me if you need me."

"I will. Love you."

"Love you, too."

Sarah took Noah's hand and walked him towards the door. "I think mommy and daddy need another minute, No. Let's get outta here."

Ed rolled his eyes and gave Olivia another kiss before nudging her towards the door.

…..

"Sarah, we can put him in the booster seat."

Noah, perched on Sarah's knee, picked at his sandwich and Sarah ate her salad one-handed. She hugged Noah mid-bite, and peanut butter and jelly smeared across his chin.

"Whoopsie, Noey-boey," she wiped the mess she'd caused, "Sorry baby. And, we don't want to put you in the booster seat do we? You love sitting with sister Sarah."

Noah's expression was nonchalant as he chewed. Whatever you say.

After trudging through Chelsea shops for most of the morning, they finally found gifts for Brooke—the bracelet, some clothes, and underwear. The underwear was Sarah's purchase and it was way sexier than anything Brooke owned. She and Olivia kept laughing as they wandered through the store with Noah in tow. Brooke probably would never wear the lacy garments, but Sarah didn't seem to care.

Olivia noticed Sarah trying to prove she was fine by being extra bubbly and energetic, and she was a tiny bit glad Ed couldn't join them for lunch. Even though Sarah was keeping her father in the loop as far as her personal life was concerned, Olivia knew he wouldn't press her for details. He also would take her insistence that she was fine at face value.

"So…big day for you tomorrow," Olivia remarked.

"Yep! You have no idea how happy I am to be back here and with that firm. Making real money. Just you wait, No, I'm gonna be buying you the best birthday presents this year."

"It's Brookey's birdday." Noah corrected her. "Then my birdday."

Olivia grinned at her son, "Still a long time until your birthday, sweet boy," she focused her attention back on Sarah, "That's good. It's important to like your job. And if you want to stay in Manhattan, you'll definitely need the money."

"I know, right? I don't know how I'll ever buy a place here unless I bust my butt and get promoted."

"There's a goal for you."

"I guess," Sarah replied unenthusiastically, "But I won't have a life. Then I'll be old."

Olivia didn't know what to say. For a young woman who outwardly had everything—looks, intelligence, a sense of humor—Sarah seemed so lost.

"You're twenty-five years old, sweetheart. You have your whole life in front of you."

Sarah sighed, "It's just…it feels like every decision I make, now, it's permanent. When I was in college and all, things started over. New semesters, new roommates…and now? Everything just…stays, and it's like the same thing over and over again."

"I get it," Olivia sympathized, "But I also know, after a while, you'll crave that stability."

Sarah summoned the waiter, "I need a drink. You want something?"

"Not yet."

"Whatever the house chardonnay is," Sarah ordered and then sighed again. "At least, now, I don't have Jeff to worry about."

"Jeff coming here?" Noah asked.

"Uh-uh," Sarah said, "No Jeff anymore, Noey."

"So you're definitely done? I thought you were doing a trial separation for a few weeks?"

"That's what I told him, but I pretty much think it's over. And, honestly, I'm ok with that. I feel like a failure, but I don't miss him. Is that bad?" Sarah gave the waiter a grateful look as he set the wine down in front of her.

"I think you're doing the right thing," Olivia said gently, "And don't be ashamed because it didn't work out. Things…don't always go as planned."

"I feel so guilty though," Sarah complained, "I put everyone through all the wedding stuff, and we're divorced six months later? It's embarrassing."

"Look," Olivia leaned forward, "You have a family that loves and supports you. We don't see you as a failure. I think you're brave."

Sarah smiled, squeezed Noah again, and kissed his cheek, "I love you guys. Thank you, Livvie…for everything really…you always make me feel better."

Olivia returned the smile, "It helps to have someone you can talk to. And, you know, I'm always here for you."

"Thanks." Sarah seemed to brighten a bit, "You know, when Dad told us about you, Brooke and I were like, yeah right, because he's always been, so, grumbly. We had a hard time believing he was dating someone and being romantic and everything. Then, we saw your picture, and I remember texting Brooke, I probably still have the text, I never delete them, and I told her wow holy, you-know-what, because, well, you've seen my mom, and you're so, not her."

Olivia couldn't help but laugh at the last statement. Even she had to admit that she and Ed's ex-wife were not exactly twins.

Sarah continued, "Anyway, I guess what I mean is that, I know it sounds weird, I'm not a little kid, but you're, like, the mom I always wanted."

"You're never too old to need a mom's advice," Olivia thought of Serena, "And…my own mother, well, we had our issues and she died before they were resolved. So, I'm so glad I can be here for you and Brooke, and, of course," she reached over and stroked Noah's cheek, "You, my sweet boy."

"I don't even think my mom cares that we hate her."

Olivia disagreed. "I'm sure that's not true."

"Brooke told you the whole story, right? About her and Dave?"

Olivia remembered the conversation she had with Brooke on the day of the engagement party, "That, ah, she got remarried a little…too quickly?"

"Yeah," Sarah rolled her eyes, "She totally cheated on Dad. I know it. She knows I know it. So…in addition to being strict and not understanding, she kept her distance. Very adult of her," Sarah added sarcastically. "Maybe someday we'll talk and hash it out. And, maybe Dad was gone a lot. But he wasn't a bad husband or a bad father. He was just working and even when he tried to fix things, she just…left. And took us. And tried to blame it on him."

Olivia shook her head. Ed told her the whole story about the breakdown of his marriage, and he, too, speculated his ex-wife had been unfaithful. Hearing it from the girls' perspective was more heart-wrenching.

"And, you know, Dave? Her husband? Well, he's the brother of Dad's old partner."

"Yeah, he said something like that."

"Ugh," Sarah broke into a wry smile, "Families."

"Well, like I said, we love you and we're here for you," Olivia said, looking straight into Sarah's eyes, "So if you need us…call, come over, whatever. Any time."

"Thanks, Livvie," Sarah finished her wine, "Now. Noey. We have to wrap these presents. Wanna pick out wrapping paper with me?"

"We haveta get yellow paper for Brookey. Or red. She likes red, too."

"We'll get yellow, it's more springy."

Olivia set out her credit card for the waiter and checked her phone. "Your Dad is at Benjamin Moore and he's officially gone crazy with the paint." She flipped through multiple photos of paint samples.

"Liv, I'll take Noah for a little while if you want to go meet him. Can I have your keys, though? Noah and I can wrap presents at your place."

"Yeah, ok. Thank you. I think Ed's a little…overwhelmed." Olivia dug around in her bag searching for the keys. She found them and handed the ring over to Sarah.

"And I promise you, we will not eat any junk. No cookies. No ice cream."

Noah looked disappointed. "We eat Oreos, Sarah."

"Shhhh," she whispered, "You gotta learn to keep some things to yourself, buddy."

…

Ed and Olivia chose paint colors for all rooms in the new apartment, white for the most part, but a lighter blue for Noah's room and gray for the office. Next, they stopped and browsed through a few other stores and took pictures of the faucets and light fixtures that caught their eyes. Ed entertained Olivia by his thorough examination of each piece. It was clear he wanted their new place to be perfect down to the most minute detail.

"You want to go over there?" Ed asked.

"We haven't closed yet. How do you have the keys?"

Ed grinned, "I have a way with realtors."

Olivia put her arm around his waist and hugged him to her side as they walked along Ninth Avenue. "Seriously, how do you have them?"

"I have them for today and tomorrow to let the contractors in for estimates."

"That was nice of them."

"So…let's go over. Did you tell Sarah a time that we'd be back?"

"No."

"So we have all night."

Olivia laughed, "Let's not take advantage of her."

….

Ed opened some windows when they entered, saying the place needed to air out. He was right. It had been unoccupied for several months and the stale air and older carpeting combined to give off a musty scent. The rooms were devoid of furniture, and their footsteps reverberated as they traversed their new digs. They talked about what would be fixed, changed, and updated. In what would soon be their bedroom, they lingered against the window sill, taking in the view.

"It seems like a lot, but I think everything can be done in a couple weeks," Ed mused.

Olivia thought he was underestimating, but she let him hold on to his optimism. "Did they give you a closing date yet?"

"Supposed to call tomorrow." Ed moved behind her and put his arms around her waist. "You know, sometimes, I still think about how incredible it is that we're married." He slowly kissed the back of her neck.

"I do too," she replied.

"Is that, uh, healthy?"

She leaned her head way back so she could kiss his lips. "I think so. I certainly don't take it for granted."

"Do you remember when I first said I love you?"

"Of course. Right after we were both reinstated." She would never forget the moment when Ed uttered those three words to her for the first time. They were settled in on the sofa after having had celebratory dinner and drinks. Ed sincerely thanked her for standing by him. He looked like he was nearly in tears as he explained how he thought he could possibly lose her and that he would have been fine with losing anything or anyone but her and Noah. Then, he gazed at her with those irresistible baby blues, smoothed her hair, and said it. Liv, I love you.

"I was nervous," Ed admitted, "I didn't want you to say it back because you thought you had to, but I really wanted you to say it back."

"And I did," she replied, "And I meant it."

"I was nervous when I asked you to marry me, too. I thought you would say no."

"Why?" Olivia didn't want to bring up the fact that he'd really proposed by accident the day Noah called him Daddy for the first time.

"It had come up before, just the idea, and you never seemed, well, really into it."

She turned around, "Have I convinced you that I'm into it?"

"Absolutely." He kissed her and pulled away quickly, but immediately latched onto her lips again, backing her against the sill a little more forcefully than he intended. "Oh, sorry, are you ok?"

"I'm fine," she murmured, kissing him back with equal fervor. She wiggled out of her lightweight trench and it fell to the floor in a heap. She ran her hands under Ed's shirt; he reacted by shoving his tongue deeper into her mouth, opening his lips wide as if he were trying to consume the lower half of her face.

When she yanked at his belt, he reciprocated by unbuttoning her jeans and, not bothering with the zipper, slid his hand down and inside her panties. She moaned and he chuckled a little.

"Like that?"

She responded by frantically removing his jeans and boxer briefs. He stepped out of the garments and guided Olivia away from the window, so the sill wasn't cutting into her back. She shimmied completely out of her pants, wrapped one leg around him, and hissed, "I need you right now."

….

Before they entered the apartment, Ed and Olivia inspected one another. They thought they'd cleaned themselves up and were presentable, but they could have easily missed something in the dimness of the late afternoon.

"I think we're fine," Ed said, "But, you're still kinda…flushed."

Olivia reddened even more, "Well, I can't do anything about that right now, so, let's go in."

They would have had a chance to change clothes. Neither Sarah nor Noah stirred at the sound of the door opening. Sarah was flat on her back and Noah was wedged between her body and the back of the sofa with one arm draped across her waist. The end credits of Beauty and the Beast were just starting to roll, and Ed used the remote control to turn off the television and DVD player.

"Where'd we get that movie?" Ed asked.

Olivia shrugged, "Maybe Sarah brought it?"

"Probably." He grinned as Olivia snapped a picture of the snoozing pair. "Should we wake them up?"

She shook her head, "No, let them sleep."

"What are we going to do?"

There were tons of things to do, but the laundry, the work she'd brought home, and the packing could wait. "Shower?" She suggested.

Ed looked her up and down seductively. "This must be my lucky day."

…..

Monday.

The phones at SVU rang incessantly. If the call wasn't summoning them to the scene of a new sexual assault, it was one of the detectives phoning in updates of prior attacks and victims. At one point Olivia held her cell to one ear and her office phone to the other. Ever since Rollins was promoted to Sergeant and allowed to replace Dodds, a series of sub-par detectives had come and gone. Benson grew increasingly frustrated and preferred to operate short-staffed rather than have to clean up messes created by incompetence or a lack of compassion.

During a late-afternoon lull, Olivia called Ed with disappointing news. "Hey," she said, "I don't think I'm going to make it to dinner tonight. I feel terrible, but we're swamped."

"Don't worry about it," Ed replied, "We understand."

"If I get a few minutes I can run over there."

"Ok, hey, where are the presents?"

"I put them in the closet, behind the vacuum."

Ed sounded like he was rifling through the cluttered closet. "I don't see them. And I don't see the vacuum."

"Are you in the closet by Noah's room?"

"No."

Olivia smiled, "That's why."

A few seconds passed.

"Ok, I got them."

Olivia saw Carisi and Rollins come marching in. "Hey, I have to go. Kiss Noah and the girls for me, and I'll see you later tonight. Love you."

"Love you too."

Olivia hung up and used her few seconds of solace to gaze at her lock screen photo—the three of them in the park taken by either Sarah or Brooke.

"Lieu, you're gonna love this one," Carisi said.

"Your tone makes me think otherwise," Olivia replied dryly.

Rollins held out her phone, "Remember him?"

Olivia peered at the photograph. "Anton Andrechenko. The Ukranian, what, trillionaire, who does…what?"

"Father was in the oil business," Carisi said, "But with those guys, who knows what they really do, ya know?"

"Right," Rollins added, "So much corruption there and in Russia, but, he's the owner of the penthouse at 432 Park. A neighbor tipped off the local precinct about suspicious activity. They raided it and called us. At least ten girls, suspected of being underage, but limited English and no IDs."

"Where are the girls now?"

"On their way here."

"Great. I'll call Fin back. He was at Bellevue with the vic from the Lower East Side."

"They catch that guy yet?" Carisi asked.

"No," Liv responded, "We'll have to wait for the rape kit. She couldn't describe him."

"Lieutenant," Rollins said, "Any word on another detective?"

Olivia frowned, "I told the Chief not to send anyone else unless I vetted them first. And he hasn't sent me any names. We'll get somebody. Soon, hopefully."

"Got it." Rollins left the office, and as she and Carisi awaited their visitors, she noticed him paying more attention than usual to his phone. "Everything ok?" She asked him.

"Yeah, everything's fine, just had something to do tonight, and it looks like it's not happening."

"Well, I can cover for you if you need to get away for a few."

"Nah, not necessary. I'm good. Oh," he motioned towards the elevators, "Looks like they're here."

…

While Olivia and the squad were gathering information from the girls rounded up in the raid, the rest of her family settled in at a neighborhood Italian joint. Ed and Sarah decided to leave the presents at home so they could open them later with the hopes that Olivia could join them.

"How was your first day?" Brooke asked Sarah after they toasted with glasses of Pinot Grigio.

Sarah fluttered her arms around, "Ah, first day, just met a bunch of people whose names I'll forget, met my team, went to lunch, got a rather large binder of materials to get me up to speed on this current project, went for drinks, and now here I am."

Ed raised his eyebrows, "How many drinks have you had?"

Sarah looked towards the ceiling as she thought out loud, "Let's seeee, had a glass of wine at lunch and then two or three Jack and Cokes. Four drinks, Daddy."

"Do you really think you should've been drinking at lunch on your first day?" Brooke asked.

Sarah, annoyed, retorted, "Brooke this is not public school. This is finance. The boss bought the freaking drinks. It would've been worse if I'd refused." Her blue eyes, identical to Ed's blazed at her sister.

"Who took you out after work?" Ed asked.

"The guy who leads my division."

"A different boss?"

"Yes."

Ed wanted more information, but he backed off. Sarah being in a male-dominated environment concerned him, but, his unease was tempered a bit by her spunk. She could take care of herself, but she also had trouble drawing lines and exercising control when it was needed. He looked at Brooke in a silent plea for help.

"How's he?" Brooke asked.

"The division manager?"

"Yes."

"A big fat dork."

Brooke laughed and so did Noah who repeated "fat dork" a few times.

Sarah maintained a serious expression, "I'm not joking. Ok, he's not that fat, but he does wear the suits that skinny men wear, you know, like Sonny. And he needs to just wear a regular suit. But, he's really nerdy. Very, very nerdy. He will not be my rebound guy."

Ed and Brooke exchanged amused glances.

"Speaking of Sonny," Sarah said, "Where is he?"

Ed answered before Brooke had a chance, "I don't think he or Olivia will be here."

Brooke swallowed a sip of wine, "He texted me. Apparently they just caught a major case, or, what will be a major case. He's probably not leaving for a while."

Sarah pouted, "Well, darn. That means Livvie won't be leaving for a while either. Ugh. You people with these twenty-four-seven jobs."

"Yeah," Ed sniffed, "Not all of us can drink all day and still make a hundred grand a year."

"I don't make that much," Sarah replied, but then screwed up her face. "Or, do I?"

Ed and Brooke groaned simultaneously. For what seemed like the millionth time in his life, Ed wondered how his younger daughter could possibly be his child.

…..

Even with translators, the squad was getting nowhere with the girls.

"They're not Ukranian," Rollins informed Olivia. "The translator has tried Russian, too, but he says it's either Croatian or Serbian, depending on the girl."

"Those are languages?" Fin asked, genuinely stumped.

Everyone gave him his or her own version of a strange look and Olivia banged on the window, summoning the translator and one of the precinct detectives who was sitting in on the interview.

"Will it do us any good to get someone in here with Serbian or are they just not talking?" She asked both of them.

"They're scared," the translator replied.

"Look at them," Rollins said, moving towards the glass, "they can't be more than fifteen. And they're in a foreign country, can't speak the language, and they have basically no identity. Let's get them processed and maybe we'll get a hit on the prints."

"Processed for what?" Carisi asked. "They're obviously victims."

Olivia narrowed her eyes as she joined Rollins, "We have one being held for operating an illegal gambling establishment. Other men there are being held as accessories. These ladies can join them."

"After we try the other translator?" Fin asked.

"Sure," Olivia turned to the two outsiders, "Thank you for your help gentlemen. How long will it be before a Serbian translator can get here?"

"Could be a while."

"Put them in holding until then," Olivia directed. "Who else was picked up there?"

Carisi read from his notes, "Five other women, all older, had U.S. passports but had heavy accents. Sounded eastern European to me. Claimed they were relatives."

"In addition to the men they picked up playing blackjack and roulette, there were three others. They were gone before we got there, and, according to the local precinct, they're not talking."

"Johns? Or…customers?"

The precinct detective answered, "Two coulda been customers. The other one? Designer suit, shoes…definitely some kinda high-level pimp or enforcer. You could tell…he and the guy running the tables…they were in charge."

Olivia rubbed her forehead and spoke to her squad, "Well, guys, we're here until we know what this is. Bring the guys in."

"Got it, Lieutenant."

The precinct detective questioned Olivia, "You want all the guys, or should we turn over some of them to organized crime?"

"All of them," she said reluctantly. "Full house tonight."

…..

Ed and his kids gathered back at the apartment after dinner and Brooke opened her presents. She saved Noah's gift for last and invited him into her lap to help her tear off the bright yellow wrapping paper. She opened the box carefully and gasped dramatically for Noah's benefit.

"Oh wow, Noah!" She held the silver cuff bracelet in the air, "I love it! You picked this out all by yourself?"

"Uh-huh, I buyed it with Mommy and Sarah. We have the same. See?" He held out his wrist.

"Olivia said he thought of the idea all by himself," Ed informed her proudly.

Brooke kissed Noah, "You are such a sweetheart," she cooed.

"Hey, No, where's the card?" Ed asked him, remembering it just then.

Noah clambered out of Brooke's lap, dashed to his room, and returned within seconds, "Here, Brookey. Here's da card."

She took it out of the envelope and read it aloud. "Happy Birthday to my dear sister." She opened it and read the inside message, "no one deserves a happier birthday than you." She smiled as she examined the drawing and Noah's scribbles. "Is this us, No?"

"Yep," he pointed, "See? You wear yellow."

"I'll keep it forever. Thank you, sweetie." She hugged him again.

Sarah, slurring her words a bit, gushed, "I just love you, Noey-boey. I could be your nanny. Maybe I'll say to hell with the new gig and move in with you."

Ed sternly stared at Sarah more so because of her language than her silly and irrational career change; however, he fought the urge to admonish her. "I thought you told Olivia watching him freaked you out when we were in Key West?"

"Well yeah," Sarah explained, "Because you guys were gone. If something happened it was all on me."

"You're not going to be our nanny," Ed said flatly.

"She knows," Brooke said, annoyed, "She just has no idea what she wants."

"What I want, I think, is my bed. I have to get up early and start reading that crap they gave me today. If I read it tonight, I won't remember a thing."

Brooke stood up, "Alright, let's go. Dad, thank you for everything and I sent Olivia a text, but hug her and thank her again for me."

"Will do. Happy Birthday, baby."

Sarah swayed as she gathered herself, "Hug her for me, too! But you'll probably do way more than that."

Brooke gave her a playful swat on the back, "Sarah."

Ed chewed the inside of his mouth as he watched his daughters leave.

"What?" He heard Sarah say as he locked the door. "You know I live vicariously through them."

"You are so…odd." Brooke retorted. "And a little, wrong."

Sarah said something else in protest, but Ed couldn't make it out. They must have been entering the elevator. He returned to the living room where Noah was randomly opening apps on the iPad.

"Well, bud, it's just the two of us tonight. Your crazy sisters are gone."

Noah giggled and repeated, "Crazy sisters. Crazy Sarah. Crazy Brookey."

"Yeah," He mussed Noah's hair, "We men have to stick together."

"Noah and Daddy crazy, too?"

"No, we're not. We're a team."

"Daddy Noah team!"

"What about Mommy?" Ed asked, "Can she be on our team?"
"Mommy's a girl."

"Yeah, but we have to have her on our team."

Noah shrugged, "Ok." Then, he looked up at Ed, "We go see Mommy now?"

"No, bud. It's late. We have to get ready for bed. Mommy will be here in the morning. Let's send her a good night message though after we get our PJs on."

…

When Olivia pulled her phone from her pocket, she expected the message to be from the Chief or the Deputy Commissioner or, perhaps, the precinct captain from the squad that originally busted the penthouse party, but, to her delight, it was a text from Ed. Attached was Noah's goodnight message. She waited until there was a lull in the interrogation, asked Rollins if she would fill in for a few minutes, and excused herself to her office.

She hit play.

Noah appeared on the screen, sitting in his bed with Bernie, and dressed in his black-and-gray robot pajamas. She heard Ed's voice prompt him that he was now being recorded. "Say goodnight to mommy, bud."

Noah swallowed and looked upwards as if he were remembering rehearsed lines. "Hi Mommy! We read three books, Daddy said only two, but it was three."

Ed turned the camera on him and smirked, "The third one was a short one," he interjected and focused back on Noah. "Ok, No, tell her night night."

"G'night, Mommy. Love youuuuuuuuuu!"

"Blow her kisses."

Noah did, using both hands.

Ed flipped the camera again, "Love you, Liv. See ya later." Then, he blew a kiss of his own and the screen faded to black.

She watched it one more time, smiling, before she went out to the squad room. She'd only been gone a few minutes, but Fin, Carisi, and Rollins were now gaping at the three men being escorted to the interrogation rooms by uniformed officers.

The first two were unfamiliar.

The third man, the well-dressed one the precinct detective described, was known to all of them.

Declan Murphy.

…

Note about the Sergeant: I cannot decide who I think will replace Mike. On one hand, Fin has experience, reputation, etc., but he's reluctant and I just don't see him comfortable in a more administrative role. But, then again, maybe he'll change as he becomes a grandfather. Rollins has some dings in her jacket, but she has expressed interest in the past. I also kind of like the one-two female punch, and I think she's good at her job even though she's had her share of loose cannon moments. Perhaps more power and responsibility will transform what was recklessness into creativity? Who knows…in this fic, I'm going with Rollins!