A/N: This is part 2 of the previous chapter and there will probably be a 3rd part to it as well. I don't own any of the characters except my own.
Critical – Part 2
The next morning, Erin got up and went to see what she could find for breakfast. There wasn't much there other than cereal. Olivia got up and went to the bathroom before she went downstairs.
"Anything for breakfast?"
"Cereal."
"We'll go out. I'll make sure Noah is up."
Olivia went upstairs and Noah was awake.
"Morning."
"Hey, Mom."
"How's your ankle?"
"It still hurts. How's your hip?"
"It's still there. The most comfortable position to sleep in was on my right side. We're going out for breakfast as soon as you're ready."
"Ok. I need a quick shower."
Noah got up and went in to the bathroom to take a quick shower, while both Olivia and Erin got dressed. Olivia got a text from Elliot asking if she had time for breakfast. She said they would pick him up, since they were heading out for breakfast anyway. She would let him know when they were on their way. Once Noah was out of the shower and dressed, they left to pick Elliot up. Erin drove to the hotel and Olivia texted him to let him know they were on their way. When Erin arrived, he was waiting outside for them. He got in on the other side.
"Hey."
"Hello."
"Hey, kiddo."
"Hey, Uncle Elliot."
Erin drove to the restaurant.
"Liv, how well do you know Chicago?"
"I'm getting better with it. Why?"
"I wouldn't mind a tour."
"That would be Erin's thing. She knows this city like the back of her hand."
"We could probably do that before we head to the hospital."
"Great. Neither of you stayed at the hospital last night?"
"Mark said he'd stay. When are you going back?"
"This afternoon. Ayanna told me that Whalen died and I have to go undercover again. It could be for a few months."
"Sorry about Whalen."
"I was too. The rest of the unit is takin' it pretty hard. Do you know how long you'll be here?"
"No idea and I don't care what McGrath has to say about it either. Fin knows how I feel about it. I need to be here."
"That's understandable. If you need me for anything though, contact Ayanna and she'll know how to get a hold of me."
"I haven't talked to Fin yet today but I will let him know that you said you'd help out with SVU if he needs you to."
"I told Ayanna that too and she said it was fine."
"Also, I'm ok with you handling your own sexual assault cases if they come up."
"That way we won't have to keep botherin' SVU. What exactly does Intelligence do?"
"A little bit of everything: murders, kidnappings, sexual assaults, Mob-related cases, drug related cases."
"Detective Upton isn't too talkative."
"She can be but she's just going through a lot."
They arrived at the restaurant and then they went in. They looked at the menu and then they had their order taken. They talked while they waited for their food. After breakfast, they took Elliot on a tour of the city and showed him a lot of the landmarks.
"This is the first time I have ever been here, so thanks for doin' this."
"No problem."
"I caught some of the Mets game last night."
"They're here, aren't they?"
"Yep. Do you think Hank would be ok if I stopped to see him?"
"I don't see why not. He still has a chest tube and breathing tube in though."
Erin drove to Med and then they all went in. They got their badges and went to his room. Hank was awake and Mark was there as well. Olivia went in and kissed Hank's forehead.
"I love you."
Love you too.
"How are you feeling?"
Like crap.
Mark got up and let Olivia sit down. He went out to the hall and kissed Erin. Noah came in and hugged Hank.
"Hey, Dad."
Hey, kiddo.
Hank wrote something on the paper and told Noah to give it to Elliot. He thanked him for being there for Olivia when she was shot.
"No problem. I owed it to her for being such a crappy friend for the decade I wasn't around. She told me about what had happened with that Lewis guy too. I'm glad we had the chance to work together again."
Hank nodded acknowledging what Elliot had said.
Anything on Daniel?
"I haven't heard anything."
"Me neither."
Mark texted Charlie and Erin texted Olive. Erin heard back from Olive first. She said he should be going in soon and she would let them know what was going on.
"He should be going in soon and she'll let us know what is going on."
Mark's phone rang, so he took the call. Once he was done, he hung up.
"That was my little bro."
"I heard back from Olive."
"He said Olive replied to your message. He said they talked and she's ok with making the move to New York. They included Daniel in the decision and he's fine with it. He also talked to Mom and Dad. They're planning to head out that way too if Charlie, Olive and the kids are leaving. Olive knows they probably can't move too soon with Daniel's recovery but she wants to be relocated by the time he starts school in the fall."
"You can't blame her for that."
"No, you can't. I need to see if I can get him an interview."
Mark called to see when he could get Charlie an interview. They told him they could set one up online first and then if things went well, they would bring him in for one in person. Mark gave them Charlie's contact information and they told him they would give him a call in a couple hours to set up the online interview. Mark hung up and called Charlie back. He told him someone would call him in a couple hours to set up the online interview. Crockett had come in to check on Hank.
"He's doing surprisingly well. If I continue to see enough of an improvement, maybe later today or tomorrow the breathing tube could come out."
"That's great!"
When can I get out of here?
"Let's not rush things, Sergeant. You need to get up and moving around first. Once we take the tube out, then we can get you up."
"How long until he can travel?"
"Maybe a month to 6 weeks depending on how things go. I know he's leaving Chicago at the end of June. He should be able to travel by then. I'll check in with you later."
"Thanks."
Crockett left.
Who's staying with me once I get out of here?
"Most likely, me."
You have your squad to worry about.
"I take my marriage vows seriously and I need to be here with you. I'm sure Fin can handle things and I'll check in with him regularly. Elliot said if I need him to, he can help out with SVU and Ayanna said it was fine but he needs to go undercover again."
For how long?
"She said maybe a few months. I have to go back to New York this afternoon, so I can spend some time with my kids and my mom before I'm unavailable. Some cases are definitely better than others."
They usually are. I won't miss this crap I retire.
"You do know you probably won't be going back to work, right?"
Yes, Dear. What happens with Noah while you're here?
"I'll have to figure it out."
"He can probably stay with us."
"His last day is June 9th, so it wouldn't be for very long."
"As far as I know, I don't have to go anywhere in the next few weeks. If Amanda can get him after school, I can get him from her."
"I still have to call and put in for family leave."
"I actually get time too, so I will take my leave when you're both in New York."
"I'll do what I can too especially on my days off."
"That will help. Thanks. If Chief McGrath doesn't like that I'm taking time off, then he can kiss my ass."
"I need to get a shower. Babe, do you want to come with me?"
"Sure."
"I need my stuff."
"Do you need a ride to the airport?"
"If you don't mind."
"No problem."
"Stay safe."
"I'll try. Let me know if you need anything."
"I will."
Elliot hugged Olivia.
"Take care of yourself, Hank."
Thanks.
Elliot shook Hank's hand and then he left with Erin and Mark. They took him to the airport and then headed to Hank's, so Mark could take a shower. Olivia left Noah with Hank, while she went to contact her squad to let them know what was going on. Chief McGrath had been there as well, so she filled him in as well. He was more supportive than she expected him to be. Once Chief McGrath left, she was able to talk to Fin more. He told her to do what she had to do. He had everything under control. She made the call about needing to take family leave. They emailed her the form to fill out. When she got back to Hank's room, Trudy was there.
Everything taken care of?
I need to fill out the form and email it back. My laptop is at the house and I think Erin and Mark needed sometime to themselves anyway.
Use my computer at the District.
"Erin took your SUV."
"I can take you and bring you back."
"Ok, thanks."
"Sure."
Hank wrote his login and password down for Olivia.
Here.
"Thanks. I'll be back."
Take your time.
"Noah, are you ok?"
"Yeah. I'm fine."
"Ok."
Olivia kissed Hank's forehead and Noah and then she left with Trudy. When they arrived at the District, Trudy parked in front and then they went up to Intelligence.
"Hey, everyone."
"Hey, Captain. How's Voight?"
"He's still feeling pretty lousy but Dr. Marcel said he's doing well considering. If he continues to improve, the breathing tube could come out later today or tomorrow. Once the breathing tube comes out, then they'll get him up and moving around. He knows he probably won't be coming back to work."
"That occurred to us too."
"I'll do what I can. I'll take over on the paperwork for right now."
"Thanks, Sarge."
"Sure."
"Having Antonio or Jay here would make things so much easier."
"Yeah, I know but they're not, so we have to deal with this on our own."
"He was planning to leave at the end of June anyway."
"Yeah, I know. I'm in charge when he goes to New York for the weekend or when you're here for the weekend and I was in charge when you two got married and went on your honeymoon. I know what I have to do but I don't want to disappoint him. If he had left at the end of the year like he was supposed to, this wouldn't have happened."
"I'm sure he knows that. I was disappointed when he had to postpone his retirement but I understand that he needed to be able to prepare you for what was to come, since you were now the next in command after Jay left. Fin wasn't necessarily thrilled them I wanted him to take the Sergeant's exam but after a few years, he finally did it because he liked the idea of a pay increase. He leaves me alone when Hank comes for the weekend unless it is absolutely necessary."
"We'll all pitch in and help out the best we can."
"I appreciate that, you guys."
Olivia went into Hank's office and logged into his computer. She then logged into her email account and printed out what she needed. She filled out the form, scanned it and emailed it back.
"Do you have any boxes? I wanted to take his personal stuff home."
"I'll check downstairs."
"Thanks, Trudy."
"Sure."
Trudy went downstairs and looked for some boxes. She found a few and took them up to Olivia.
"Thank you."
"Yep. Need help?"
"Sure."
Trudy helped Olivia go through Hank's stuff. It didn't take long before they were done.
"Captain, how long are you planning to stay?"
"Dr. Marcel said Hank should be able to travel by the time he was planning to leave Chicago but I'm planning to stay that entire time. I told Fin I would check in with him regularly and my Chief knows as well. Erin said she would take time once we're back in New York. She didn't say how long she was planning to stay now. They offered to keep Noah and she said as far as she knows, she doesn't have to go anywhere."
"Are Olive and Daniel comin' in?"
"No. Daniel fell at school yesterday and broke his elbow. He's in surgery right now. However, Mark said that the Physical Therapy group they deal with was looking for people and he asked Charlie if he'd be interested. After talking to Olive about it, he said he was interested. They'll be doing an online interview and then if that goes well, he'll do one in person. Olive's main concern would be to be moved by the time school starts up again. I guess Mark and Charlie's parents would come to New York as well. It will be nice to have the entire family in one city."
"Is Olive working?"
"She worked full-time until Ashley was born. Now, she just fills in when she needs to. That way she can help out with Daniel's class if she needs to. Charlie doesn't care if she works or not but she enjoys being able to spend more time with the kids."
"Do they have a house?"
"No. Charlie had an apartment and then he eventually moved into Olive's condo. It's a 3-bedroom, so they still had room by the time Ashley came along. They've been talking about wanting to get a bigger place though, since we're figuring they'll be having another baby before too long. New York is more expensive but if they get a condo, there is a lot of space."
"How's your new place?"
"We love it so far. This is the first place I have owned. I love that the place has 24-hour security, indoor and outdoor pools and a heated parking garage."
"That would be awesome."
They talked for a little while and then everyone had a case, so they left. Trudy took Olivia to Hank's, so she could drop Hank's stuff off at the house and then they went back to the hospital. Trudy dropped her off and headed back to the District. Olivia went back to Hank's room and only Noah was there.
"Hey."
"Hey, Mom."
Dr. Charles came to see me while you were gone.
"That was nice of him to stop to see you."
He said he'd come back once the breathing tube comes out, so we can talk.
"Then you need to talk to him. You'll have PTSD from this I'm sure."
I know.
"I put all your personal stuff from your office in boxes and took it to the house."
Ok, good. One less thing I'll have to do.
"Erin and Mark were not there, so who knows where they are."
They were taking Elliot to the airport.
"I know but they would have done that first.
True. Maybe they stopped to eat.
"Mark probably had to eat. Erin, Noah, Elliot and I stopped before we came here."
I'm hungry.
"I'm sure you are."
"Mom."
"What?"
"Can we go to Portillo's for lunch?"
"Sure."
Then Erin and Mark came back.
"We went to the cemetery."
"Good. Noah wants to go to Portillo's for lunch."
"That sounds good."
Noah got up and went to the washroom, so Erin came in and sat down.
"When are you planning on going home?"
"Probably next week sometime."
"Noah and I are leaving on Sunday."
"He's off on Monday."
"That's right. I forgot Memorial Day was coming up. Did you want him to stay another day?"
"No. It's probably better if he goes home. Amanda is off anyway and Carisi should be around, since the courts are closed. Thank you for being here."
"There's no other place I would rather be."
Noah came back, so Erin got up. Noah sat back down and put his foot up.
"I know you're off on Monday but are you ok with leaving on Sunday with Mark?"
"Yeah, that's fine. We can talk on video chat anyway. My foot hurts."
"It probably will for the first few days. Did you take anything last night?"
"No and I slept ok."
Olivia looked through her purse.
"I have something you can take if you want it."
"Maybe I should."
"Erin, can you go get a soda?"
"Sure."
Erin went to get a soda and then she brought it back. She handed it to Noah and Olivia gave him the pain relievers, so he opened the can and took them. Mark got a call from Charlie, so he went to the waiting area, so they could talk. After he got off the phone, he came back.
"Is everything ok?"
"That was Charlie. He called to let me know that the online interview went well, so he'll be coming out to New York next week sometime. He asked if he could stay with us. I told him it wasn't a problem."
"That's fine."
"Anything on Daniel?"
"Not yet. He said they'll let us know when he's in recovery."
"Ok. Poor kid."
"Yeah, really. He wanted to be here instead. Olive said he was not happy that he couldn't come see Papa."
"It totally sucks that Daniel couldn't be here. Maybe we can talk to him later."
"That's possible. He could come out of the anesthesia pretty quick but then again, he could be groggy for the rest of the day."
"Maybe we could wait until Dad's tube comes out, so he can talk to him too."
"That's true. Hopefully that'll be soon."
"I hope so too, Sweetie."
Hank gave Olivia a thumbs up. She took his hand and laced their fingers together.
"Can I come back once I'm out of school?"
"We'll see what happens by then."
"What's gonna happen with Daniel missing school?"
"I think Olive has said that his teacher lives in the same complex as them, so she may work with him. I think."
"That would be nice."
"I think his last day is the same as yours. You need to go do some homework."
"I worked on some of it when you went to the District."
Hank nodded his head in agreement.
"Can I go to the cafeteria?"
"That would be ok. Just don't talk to anyone unless it's someone you know."
"I know."
"We'll come get you in a little while for lunch."
"Ok."
Noah got his stuff just as Sharon was checking in.
"How is everyone today?"
"Not too bad."
Hank gave her a thumbs up.
"Noah is headed to the cafeteria to work on his homework."
"If you sit in the back part, it's a little quieter there. Here's the wifi password if you need it.
"Thanks, Ms. Goodwin."
"Sure."
"Someone will come get you when we're leaving for lunch."
"Ok."
Noah left and went to the cafeteria to do his homework.
"He's a good kid."
"Thank you. It hasn't been easy. He can't wait for Hank to be with us full-time."
I can't wait either. A part of me wishes I had retired at the end of last year like I had originally planned.
"What were you gonna do, expect Upton to handle things on her own without any guidance from you? Jay is an idiot for doing what he did."
I get why he did it but he handled things poorly with Upton. What was the point of getting married when he just left the way he did? I was finally trusting him enough to let him lead the squad but he pretty much handled things when I would take time off to spend time with you. I think Upton will be ok though. A part of me still wishes Antonio was still here, since he was always my #2. If a certain former detective, who is now with the FBI was still in Chicago, I probably would have left her in charge.
"Trudy said she would help out in any way she could especially with paperwork."
Ok, good.
"Erin, he would have left you in charge if you were still here."
"I don't doubt that. A part of me would have loved to have worked with you at some point."
"I would have loved to have had you join the squad."
You're the reason why I had no problems with her going to New York because I knew you'd around for her.
"I think our relationship got stronger when Erin moved to New York."
"I think so too. I always saw you as more of a mom to me than Bunny ever was. I'm just glad that Bunny finally came clean with who my real dad was.
Me too, kid.
"He is too."
Sharon left and went to her office. A little while later, Mouch came in.
"Hey."
"Hey, Mouch."
"Trudy wanted me to give all of you a break."
"Thanks. We were planning on going to lunch anyway. Noah wants to go to Portillo's. With the breathing tube, Hank is communicating by writing for right now."
"Ok. Everyone at 51 sends their well wishes."
"Tell them thank you."
"I will."
Olivia got up and kissed Hank's forehead. Erin came in and kissed his forehead as well. Mouch came in and sat down and then Olivia, Erin and Mark left to get Noah, so they could go to lunch. Once they got Noah, they walked to the SUV and headed to Portillo's. When they arrived, they ordered their food and went to sit down, while Mark waited. Once Mark got the food, he took it to their table.
"Thanks."
"No problem. I'm glad Noah suggested this. I love the food here. This is always one place I have to eat at when I'm here or in Arizona."
"I wish we'd get one in New York. My friends would love this place."
"I love that you can order it and have it shipped anywhere. I did that for Rollins and Carisi after they got married. I ordered hot dogs, Italian beef and Italian sausage and had it shipped to them. The girls loved the hot dogs and Carisi eats pretty much anything. I already knew Rollins liked it, since she tried it one of the times she was here."
"That was actually a good idea."
"I wouldn't mind that for a wedding gift."
Erin rolled her eyes at Mark and Noah shook his head.
"I hope Dad gets his tubes out and moved to a regular room soon."
"I hope so too, Sweetie. I know you want to be able to talk to him before you go back to New York on Sunday."
"Exactly."
They continued eating and then once they were done, they left and headed back to Med. When they got to Hank's room, the squad was out in the hall.
"We were just here to tell Voight that both Samantha and Callum were arraigned. They're both being held until their trials. Assistant State's Attorney Chapman said that she thought Callum would go after other CPD officers for the death of his grandfather. We were all there and he glared at Atwater again. The Judge definitely noticed that. We think Ruzek may be a target as well, since he was the most involved with the case. That could mean Kim and Makayla."
"That's good to know."
"Hailey, did you know about Will?"
"I did. He told me before he resigned and he said he would still be in contact with me. I'm glad he followed his heart. I have talked to him about wanting to file for a divorce and what Jay said. He said he doesn't blame me for wanting to end the marriage and he thinks Jay should have handled things with our relationship better than he did. I need to move on with my life. I now need to focus on being the leader of Intelligence."
"I told Jay when I finally contacted him after I left that he needed to move on with his life. I now see why Hank didn't want us involved. I had someone I work with now ask me out and we did go out a few times but he wanted more. I basically told him that I've been in a relationship with someone I work with and sometimes that did put a strain on our partnership, especially when we started having issues with our personal relationship. I didn't want to do that again. He understood and we're still friends. In fact, Mark and I set him up with one of the nurses Mark works with and they seem to be getting along great."
"It's hard for us sometimes too. Adam goes undercover, I worry. I get shot, he worries."
"I have to say that Ruzek has definitely matured a lot since Olinsky's death."
"I agree. He's more committed to me than he was when we were together before. He loves Makayla as much as I do and even though he's not officially her dad, he's still very much involved in her life. He bought his dad's house for Makayla when he moved to Florida, so we're there as a family."
"I know I've matured more since Olinsky has been gone. I still miss him though."
"We all do."
"Is he asleep?"
"He is. So is Mouch."
Kevin took a picture of Mouch and sent it to Trudy.
"Did you send that to Platt?"
"I did. She just replied back laughing."
"Ok, guys, I think we need to get back."
"Ok."
"Thanks for the update."
"No problem."
The squad left and then Olivia went in. She gently shook Mouch's shoulder to wake him up.
"Hey. I wasn't asleep."
"Yeah, sure, Mouch."
"I guess I'm more tired than I thought I was. I slept for a little while when I got off shift."
"Go home."
Mouch got up and left. Noah went in and sat down.
"I think we're gonna go to the house for a while. Do you want us to take Noah?"
"That would be great."
"I'm tired anyway."
Noah got up, hugged Olivia and then after Erin and Mark hugged her, they all left. Olivia kissed Hank's forehead again and then sat down. She shut her eyes and drifted off to sleep. She missed the text from Olive saying that Daniel was out of surgery and everything had gone well. Hank had woken up just as Crockett came in.
"How are you feeling, Sarge?"
Hank nodded his head.
"I would like to get some pictures of your chest to see what your lung looks like. If it looks good, then the tubes can come out."
Hank gave him a thumbs up as Crockett woke Olivia up.
"Olivia."
"Huh?"
"It's Dr. Marcel. I need to get some pictures of Hank's chest to see what his lung looks like. I need you to step out into the hall."
"Ok."
Olivia got up and left the room as the tech brought the portable xray machine in. He took a few pictures of Hank's chest and then left.
"We should have the results shortly."
"Thanks."
Crockett left and then Olivia sat back down.
"I got a message from Olive. Daniel is out of surgery and everything went well."
Good. I just want this damn tube out of my throat.
"Don't be so feisty. You may not want to talk right away."
I wanna kiss my wife.
"Oh, is that all you want to do?"
Among other things.
"That won't be happening for a while. I can't do anything too strenuous for 2 weeks and I'm sure it'll be longer for you. I don't want to kill you. I haven't been your wife all that long and I would like to have a long life with you."
I want that too. Where are Noah, Erin and Mark?
"They went to the house for a while. Noah's foot is bothering him today."
How's your ass?
"It's sore but I am finally feeling a little bit better. I'm driving more than I probably should be. I drove to and from the airport yesterday when we picked up Mark and Noah but Erin has been doing most of the driving today. I need you to listen to what Dr. Marcel tells you to do."
I will. You have my word.
"Then I know you mean it."
A little time past and Crockett came back in.
"Ok, everything looks good. We're gonna take the tube out of your throat but we may still have to keep you on oxygen. Your throat may be sore for a while. On three, I'll start pulling it out but I need you to cough."
Ok.
"One…two…three."
Crockett started pulling the tube out as Hank coughed to help it out.
"How do you feel?"
"Ok."
"Good."
Crockett put the nasal cannula in, so Hank was getting oxygen and set it at whatever level he had to set it to.
"If you need more, we may have to put the mask on but right now, your levels seem to be pretty good. Someone will check in with you later and we should be able to get you up tomorrow. You should probably be moved to a regular room by tomorrow."
"Ok. Thanks."
"No problem."
Crockett left.
"Love you."
"I love you too."
Olivia texted Erin and Noah to let them know Hank had his breathing tube out. She also said she had heard from Olive. Daniel was out of surgery and everything went well. Erin replied back that she heard from Olive too and she was happy to hear that Hank had his breathing tube out. Both Noah and Mark had fallen asleep.
"Erin said the boys both fell asleep."
"Good. I'm thirsty."
"Let me see what I can do."
Olivia went out of the room and Crockett was still out there.
"He said he's thirsty. Can he get some water?"
"Yeah, sure. He can eat something maybe a little later. Like soup or something simple."
"I'm sure he'll appreciate that. He told us earlier that he was hungry."
Olivia went back into Hank's room, while the nurse went to get Hank some water.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome. Just press your button if you need anything."
"Ok."
The nurse left and Olivia poured water into a cup, put the straw in it and handed it to Hank. He then took a drink.
"Better."
"Good. Dr. Marcel said they will give you some soup or something simple a little later."
"Ok. Kiss."
Olivia kissed Hank.
"Better now?"
"Uh huh."
The rest of the day seemed quiet. Erin, Mark and Noah came back after a while. Hank had some soup for dinner, while the others went out to grab a bite to eat. Olivia stayed with Hank, so Erin, Mark and Noah went to the house.
The next day after Olivia got back from taking a shower, Hank was up and walking around. By the afternoon, they moved him to a regular room. After Hank was settled in his room, Erin did a video call to Olive, so they could talk to Daniel and Olive got to talk to Hank as well. The squad came to visit and the group from 51 came to visit too. Dr. Charles had also come back, so he and Hank could talk.
The rest of the weekend was pretty much the same. Erin was taking Mark and Noah to the airport, so they had stopped at the hospital to see Hank. When they got there, Hank was up walking around.
"We just wanted to stop by before we headed to the airport."
"Thanks for bein' here."
"You're welcome. Like I told Olivia, there is no place that I would rather be."
"Noah, I want you to behave yourself."
"I know that Mom."
"Don't sassy with me."
"I'm not."
"I'm planning to drop him off at Amanda and Sonny's tonight, since I have to be at the hospital early tomorrow morning. I talked to them last night and they were fine with it."
"Ok. I hope everything goes well."
"Thanks. Charlie will be there by Thursday and his in person interview is on Friday. If he gets it, they'll have to come in to look at places. Mom and Dad will probably stay with Daniel and of course Ashley."
"At least Daniel should be able to go home soon."
"They keep saying probably tomorrow."
"Dr. Marcel said this guy should be able go to home Wednesday."
"I can't wait. I can't sleep because they keep wakin' me up."
"I'm leaving Wednesday, so are you gonna be able to take me or should I find another way to get to the airport?"
"It depends. If it's early enough, I can."
Then Trudy came in.
"Hey, Hank."
"Hey."
"Do you miss us yet?"
"No. I see everyone pretty much every day."
"Are you gonna miss them or me more?"
"Probably you."
"That's what I like to hear."
"You're really the only one I have left here who I would actually consider a friend. After I go to New York, can you take flowers to the cemetery?"
"Consider it done."
"Thanks."
"Ok, guys, it's time to head to the airport."
Noah hugged his parents and then Mark hugged them both as well before they left for the airport with Erin.
"Just for the hell of it, I contacted Meredith but she didn't seem to be too concerned."
"After everything I did to get Al exonerated, so she got his pension, she still treats me like crap. I'm sure she'd be happy if I had died. I get she still blames me for what happened to Al but I never asked him to do what he did. Erin said she has even talked to her and took the blame for what happened. She reminded her that Al would have done anything for me. If I could have switched places with Al, I would have."
"I'm glad you didn't."
"You were the one that got me through that and I'm grateful you supported me with what happened with Bingham. I didn't expect you to, since I know you're by the book."
"Like I have told you, I don't blame you for doing what you did."
"I don't blame you either and yeah, Olinsky would have done anything for you. I've told her that too."
"I'd do the same thing if it was Noah."
"I would too."
"No, you wouldn't. I know you better than that."
"I'm just glad you're ok. I honestly don't know what I would have done if I had lost you."
"A part of me felt like I deserved it after everything I've done. I'm tryin' to be better for you and Noah."
"You didn't deserve it."
"Have you heard from Stabler in the last week?"
"No but he was supposed to be going undercover again. At least he told me this time. Sometimes he just disappears for a while."
"It seems like he has accepted us."
"He told me he did and he wanted me to be happy. He wants to be in my life in any capacity he can. He's the one that offered to come here with me. I said I needed someone with Noah but then he said I didn't need to be by myself. He said he owed it to me for the 10 years he was gone. I appreciated the support. He even offered his daughter if I needed someone to stay with Noah if Amanda couldn't do it."
"I'm willing to get to know him better for you."
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Olivia's phone rang and she noticed it was Fin, so she answered it.
"Hey, Fin."
"Hey. How are things?"
"Pretty good. He's getting stronger every day and will hopefully be able to go home in a few days. Erin is taking Mark and Noah to the airport as we speak and then Mark will take him to Rollins and Carisi's, since he has to be at the hospital early tomorrow. How are things there?"
"Not too bad. Phoebe and I have Jaden for the weekend."
"That's good."
"How's Daniel?"
"He's doing really well. He should be able to go home tomorrow. Charlie will be in New York on Thursday for a job interview. The Physical Therapy group that Mark deals with was looking for people, so he contacted his brother to see if he would be interested. After talking to Olive, he said he was. They did the online interview and that went well, so he has to do one in person. If that goes well, then he and Olive will have to come out to look at places to live. It sounds like Mark and Charlie's parents will be coming too. It'll be nice to have the whole family in the same city."
"I'm sure it will. I guess Stabler went undercover again."
"He told me."
"Whose idea was it to have him help us out?"
"Actually, his. If it comes to that, it's probably better to get someone that knows what they're doing and he said Ayanna was fine with that. I did tell him that if Organized Crime gets any cases involving sexual assaults, I'm ok with him handling it on his own."
"I agree 'cause we don't always need to be involved. I doubt we'll need him. Velasco and Churlish have stepped it up these last few days and Bruno has been helpin' out too."
"If you should get any victims that are hearing impaired, call Lieutenant Dixon."
"I remember that from when she helped out with that other case. Are you still plannin' to take time off after Voight is here?"
"Erin will take the time off then. I just don't want to leave Hank by himself. I may need to go to appointments with him though."
"You gotta do what you gotta do."
"I appreciate your support."
"I got your back, Liv. I always have."
"It sounds a lot better coming from you than it does Elliot. You've never let me down and you're the one that never left me. When he said he was coming here with me, he said it owed it to me for the 10 years he was gone. He said it was shitty of him to do what he did. At least he has accepted that I'm happy with Hank."
"I think he does regret it."
"I know he does. I finally told him about Lewis and he didn't know what to say. He said Tucker was the one that told him about the liaison job in Rome. Tucker had also told him about our relationship. He said the two of them talked like civilized adults. He even said with as much as he never liked Ed, he didn't deserve to die the way he did."
"I can't disagree with that. I'll let you go."
"Ok."
"Say hi to Voight."
"I will do that. Love you."
"Love you too, Baby Girl."
Olivia hung up.
"Fin says hi."
"That was nice of him."
"Have they set a date for the trial?"
"I haven't heard anything. The others may know more."
"I'm just hoping it doesn't interfere with us going to New York."
"Because of your time off?"
"Exactly. Dr. Marcel said you should be able to travel by then but you don't need to keep going back and forth either."
"I know I don't."
They kept talking and then a little while later, Erin came back. Not too long after Erin came back, Trudy left. Erin was meeting the group from Intelligence for dinner and Olivia was planning to stay at the hospital anyway, so Olivia went to grab a bite to eat before Erin left.
The next day, Assistant State's Attorney Chapman came to see Hank. She said the trial for Callum was next week and she obviously needed him as a witness. He told her everything he could remember about what had happened. Erin was there and she had hoped the kid would be locked up for what he did to Hank. ASA Chapman said if she has her way, he will be.
During the next couple days, Erin left to go back to New York and Hank was released from the hospital. Olivia was happy that Hank was home. She contacted Olive to let her know and they all talked to him. The rest of the week was spent preparing for the trial.
The trial arrived and the entire squad was there. Throughout the trial, Callum was glaring at Atwater. He hated that Atwater killed his grandfather. He was full of hate. Things had gone well for the Prosecution. When it was the Defense's turn, the Defense Attorney put Callum on the stand. Hank and Olivia had not been in court that day, since it had been too tiring for Hank to be there every day. He went off on Atwater and how he should be charged for killing an innocent man. The Judge had warned him multiple times. He had gone back to his seat and but ended up grabbing the Court Officer's gun. He shot and injured the Court Officer, the Judge, ASA Chapman and then aimed at Atwater. Everyone else ducked out of the line of fire. The entire Intelligence Unit had pulled their weapons as well. Atwater had his weapon aimed at Callum as they both glared at each other. Callum pulled the trigger. As Ruzek pushed Atwater out of the way, he pulled his trigger as well. The bullet from the gun Callum had struck Adam in the shoulder and the bullet from Adam's gun struck Callum and killed him.
"Ruz, you good?"
"Yeah, Kev, I'm good. My shoulder hurts like hell though."
"You saved my live, Bro."
"And I would do it again in a heartbeat. I wasn't about to let that little bastard kill you. It's bad enough that he almost killed Voight and that should have been me in the first place.
Kim applied pressure to Adam's shoulder as the others went to help everyone else. Hailey had called to get several ambulances and the Medical Examiner to the Courthouse. After everything had been cleaned up, everyone had gone to Med to check on Adam. His injury wasn't serious, so he would be able to be released that same day. The others had to have surgery. Once they found out what was going on, Hailey went over to Hank's. She rang the doorbell and Olivia answered the door.
"Hey."
"Hey. Come on in."
"Thanks."
Hailey came in, so Olivia could shut the door. They then went into the living room.
"Hank is asleep."
"Callum tried shooting up the Courtroom. He took the Court Officer's gun and shot the Court Officer, the Judge ASA Chapman and Ruzek, who was protecting Atwater. Fortunately, none of them were fatal but Ruzek shot and killed Callum."
"I'm not too upset by that and I doubt Hank would be either. I'm glad we weren't there today. I can live with the outcome knowing that he can't hurt someone else. Erin would be fine with this too."
"We all are too."
"How's Adam?"
"He's good. He'll be able to go home but the others had to have surgery. Callum went off on Atwater and kept saying that he should be locked up for killing an innocent man. The Judge gave him several warnings."
"It actually sounds similar to a couple times SVU has been involved in shootings in the Courtroom and one of those times, was a white supremacy thing."
Olivia told Hailey about those cases.
"It does sound like what happened today."
"When Munch was shot, he said he was a pain in his own ass. Fin had to remind me of that when I was shot in the ass."
"Before this one, have you been shot before?"
"Actually, no. I find it weird that Hank and I were both shot on the same day. This is the second time in a year that Hank has been shot."
"Yeah, it is. Emotionally, how's he doing?"
"His PTSD is obvious right now. After he testified in court, he's been kind of restless at night because I think he's remembering more about the incident. This hit him harder than what happened with Anna last year. He's been talking to Dr. Charles though. I may eventually have him go to my Therapist."
"Dr. Charles is definitely good at what he does."
"He is. I told Hank he needs to let this out. I know how he was after he lost Justin and after he lost Al. I also know he blames himself for what happened to Anna a year ago."
"True."
Then the doorbell rang again, so Olivia went to get it. This time is was Charlie.
"Hey, Charlie. I'm surprised to see you. Come on in."
"Thanks. I've been in New York this whole time."
Charlie came in.
"How did your interview go?"
"It went great. I got the job. I was looking at places."
"I thought Olive was planning to help with that."
"She was but she's been feeling kind of crappy lately."
"Is she pregnant again?"
"You sound just like Erin and yes, she is. She said it was ok to tell everyone. She's 15 weeks."
"Well, congratulations!"
"Thanks."
"How's our boy?"
"He's doing great. We're glad his teacher lives nearby. She's was over to work with him quite a bit because she didn't want him to get behind."
"Did he go back to school?"
"He went back at the beginning of the week. He's done by the end of the week anyway. Mom and Dad have been staying at the house with me gone. I took Erin when I went looking at places and I had Olive on video chat while we were looking. She said she trusts my judgement and I figured Erin knew her pretty well."
"Did you find anything?"
"We did and they accepted our offer. We're getting a unit in your building."
"That's great! That'll be great for Hank to have Daniel and of course Ashley so close."
"I told Olive I was planning to stop here before I came back, so I have something for Hank, actually."
"He's taking a nap right now."
"Do you mind if I stay here?"
"Not at all."
"You're staying until the end of June?"
"I am. I'm on Family Leave right now and then once we're out there, Erin will take some time off."
"That's what she said. Once we're out there, Olive said she'll do what she can to help out too and so will my parents. We close in mid-July and can move any time after that. I start at the end of June and I'll stay with Mark and Erin until we close. Mom and Dad are moving in with us. How's Hank?"
"He's doing great but he gets so worn out."
"That's pretty normal. Is he moving around though?"
"Oh, yeah. We take walks, which seems to help me too."
"How's your hip area?"
"It's doing better."
"Good."
"Noah is still hobbling around from what he said."
"He is. I told him I would work with him to strengthen it more and I'll eventually work with Daniel. One of my colleagues is working with him now."
"That'll be great. Daniel's in a cast, isn't he?"
"He is but it's his right arm, so he's had to learn how to do everything with his left hand. He does pretty well with eating but he's not too comfortable writing with his left hand even though he's getting better with it."
"I completely forgot it was his right arm."
Charlie pulled something out of his bag.
"These are for Hank from the kids."
"That looks pretty good."
"He's just so frustrated with himself sometimes though."
"I get it. When I had my ankle surgery, I was frustrated with myself too because I couldn't drive or anything like that. I'm glad Hank took off the time he did to stay with me and my friends were great too. You remember Hailey Upton, don't you?"
"I do. Hey, Hailey."
"Hey. I need to get back and check to see how everyone is."
"I'll let Hank know what happened."
"I appreciate that. Thanks. Nice to see you again, Charlie."
"Yeah, you too."
Hailey left and then Olivia and Charlie talked for a while. A little while later, Hank woke up and came downstairs.
"Charlie."
"Hey."
Charlie got up and gave Hank a hug. Hank then sat down.
"These are from the kids."
Charlie handed Hank the cards the kids made for him.
"That was nice of them. Thanks."
"You're welcome."
"We can put these with the ones from Jesse and Billie. Hailey was here. She said Callum went off on Atwater and said he should be locked up for killing an innocent man. He shot and injured the Court Officer, the Judge, ASA Chapman and Ruzek, who shot and killed Callum."
"Is everyone ok?"
"Ruzek was hit in the shoulder and able to be released. He took a bullet meant for Kevin. Everyone else had to have surgery. I'm not too upset by the outcome, since he can't hurt anyone else."
"I'm ok with this, since he got what he deserved. I'm ready to focus on the next chapter of my life, which is bein' in New York with you and Noah."
"We're looking forward to that too."
"How'd your interview go?"
"It went well. I start at the end of June and we close on our new place in mid-July."
"He's staying here tonight."
"That's fine. Where's Olive?"
"Arizona. She never came to New York. She's been feeling pretty crappy lately and yes, she is pregnant again. Everything that's been going on with you and Daniel doesn't help matters. She's at 15 weeks. Erin went with me to look at places but I had Olive on video chat."
"Congratulations! Where will you be living?"
"In your building."
"No kidding. That's great! Are your parents comin' too?"
"They are and they'll be living with us, since there's plenty of room. We both agreed that 4 kids was a good number but it would be nice to eventually have one of each, so Daniel gets a brother and Ashley gets a sister. If I'm only meant to be a girl dad, I'm ok with that too."
"No doubt Daniel would love to have a brother but he has Noah as well."
"He adores Noah. Noah called him the other day. He told him he can't wait for us to move to New York, so they can hang out together every day. Daniel told him that he is looking forward to being able to see him dance in person. He has a point. We've only seen his recitals in videos."
"He's even better in person. Noah adores him just as much."
"Are you stayin' with Mark and Erin?"
"That's the plan. I want to get as much done as I can before I have to head to New York, so Olive isn't doing it all on her own."
"Erin did quite a bit here before she went back to New York. I don't want Hank to have to do anything. We've been going though stuff and sorting it in piles. We have stuff that he's donating and the stuff he's taking. We bought all new furniture for the new place, so he's donating all of his. Erin is coming out with Noah at the end of the week, since he's done with school. He'll stay here then until we leave at the end of June."
"Are you planning to drive out then?"
"Probably. Most of what he's taking are his clothes, CDs and DVDs, so there should be room for the 3 of us in his SUV."
"My parents are planning to keep their place in Arizona, so they can go out there in the winter. They'll leave their car out there. They're down to one anyway, so that's not a big deal. If they need one, Olive's will be around."
"I love the parking garage in our building. It's heated and two spots for each unit."
"I liked that too. Daniel is excited because it has the pools."
"That's what Noah liked about it too. Noah has friends that live in the building and some of them have siblings around Daniel's age, so I'm sure Noah would introduce him to them."
"I'm sure he'll like that. He makes friends quickly. He'll miss his friends when we move but we told him that we'll still visit. I'm sure we'll spend time out there when my parents are out there in the winter. They'll probably leave right after Christmas until spring. Olive is due in late November or early December, so we may not go. They may decide to deal with winter to help out with the baby. We haven't really talked about it."
"If they go out there, I'll be able to help out."
"We appreciate that. Even if Mom and Dad hadn't decided to come with us, we'd still be ok because we'd be around family in New York anyway. We'd have the 3 of you and Erin and Mark."
They talked for a while longer and then they decided what they were doing for lunch. After lunch, they went out for a walk, so Hank could get his exercise. They went out for dinner and then spent a quiet evening at the house. Charlie left the next day and by the end of the week, Erin had come back with Noah. After Erin stayed for the weekend, she went back to New York, while Hank, Olivia and Noah finished up the packing and got the house ready to be put on the market.
To be continued…
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