Chapter 10. The Storm

Rollins and Bell wasted no time. Within minutes there were phone calls being made, and interpol had confirmed Tia Leonetti was a part of a team sent to the states with the help of CIA to track down a lead on terrorist activity.

"Terrorist activity?," Bell questioned as she, Reyes, Rollins, and Fin headed to the parking garage. "What does that have to do with my detective, who by the way, is incapable of any crime as he is suffering a serious brain injury, and your men could have killed him by pulling him from the hospital."

They all listened in the quiet elevator as the agent on the other line spoke to Bell.

"No. That doesn't make me feel better that he's in a prison hospital! Please give me the address, and the name of your supervisor," she puffed as angry as a bull. "No, no! That's not how this works here. I don't care if that's how Italy wants it, you're in the US, you play by our rules. Elliot Stabler is not a terrorist, and as far as we know you didn't even have a warrant for his arrest. He has the right to representation before you take him off of hospital machines. I need his location, now." she pinch the space between her eyes and sighed heavily waiting for the man on the other end to get them a location. " This allegation is bogus," she muttered. Rollins touched her arm to calm her. "The address please?"

The man gave her an address and Rollins wrote it down as she listened intently.

The elevator doors opened and they headed to their squad cars.

"Oh, you'll be hearing from Elliot's lawyer," and with that she hung up on him and signaled for everyone to grab a car. "We're going downstate to a Federal maximum security medical facility.

Rollins yelled across the parking lot. "I'll have a lawyer ready for him."

By the time Velasco got Olivia out of her apartment, she had an entire todo list for him and orders to go back to the precinct.

"Cap, that's not what Fin-"

"I have to pick up my step son."

He had no rank to dispute her.

"Okay, but you aren't allowed to work on this case."

"Like hell, I'm not," she said looking out the window.

"Why are you…trying to make this hard?"

"Velasc, I appreciate you following orders, but I have not been revoked of my title or my badge. I can technically send you to desk duty when we get back, and take on this case by myself."

"And when you do find a suspect they'll walk because you aren't in your right mind to be arresting people!," he spit out, surprised at his own response.

"You want to play this game with me?"

Velasco cracked his neck to release the tension building up from her stubborn persistence. "No, I don't. You of all people should know better. Look what happened with Elliot and Wheatley."

The name sent a chill down her spine and she froze. "Wheatley…"

"Yeah, remember that. And all of the people who died because you and Elliot wouldn't just-"

"No, it couldn't be," She interrupted him. "We never found a body."

He looked at her wild eyes, the wheels turning behind them.

"What," he asked.

"When we get back to the station I want you to work with Jet. Relook at everything and I mean everything, that could be linking Wheatley to any of this."

"That's crazy," he said. "No way that guy survived that fall."

"Yeah, and there's no logical reason for Elliot to still be alive, but here we are. So how crazy is it…really," she looked at him, and he nodded in agreement.

She continued while he drove. "His daughter. His ex wife. System hacks. DNA. Facial recognition security cameras. Anything and everything that could remotely tie Wheatley to any of this."

The wheels also turned with excitement now in his mind as he grabbed his phone, dialed Jet's number, and slammed his foot on the ignition.

When they got to the precinct, Olivia found Eli waiting in the break area.

"Eli, are you okay," she rushed in and quickly hugged him as she grabbed a water bottle and a protein bar.

"I'm fine," he hugged her back awkwardly.

"I have a little bit of work to do-"

"Did you find my dad."

She was so manic she had almost forgotten. "Oh! No. But. Yes, we are on that. Rollins is on that. I might be here awhile. It's not safe for you to leave," She said through the peanut butter protein bar she was quickly eating over the trash can.

"Velasco is checking on the status of your dad. Velasco," she yelled to the other room, her mouth full. "Get a status on Elliot before you go to OC."

"Got it," Velasco yelled back. He too was ferociously bringing action to their theory. He clicked and sifted threw his notes on the case.

"Stay put….for now," she stopped and nodded at Eli.

"Okay, fine," he mumbled.

She quickly searched her desk for the necklace, just to make certain it wasn't there. It wasn't. She unlocked her desktop computer before heading into the case room. Through the corner of her eye she noticed Raffiel Barba walk past her office and into the back room. She dropped her computer and followed him.

"Raffa," she spoke first.

His back was to her. He was standing in front of a bulletin board with Elliot and Olivia's case pictures and details pinned all over it. He jumped at the sound of her voice.

Liv."

"What are you doing here?"

"There was a call to my firm. Said that Stabler needed a lawyer. So I volunteered."

"I see," she said with a distrusting tone to her voice. "You shouldn't be in here."

"I heard about Amelia."

"How would you know about Amelia," she asked. "It hasn't gone public yet."

His eyes blinked with hurt and he looked away. "Ah…Office chatter." He looked at her, truly concerned. "Are you okay? I'm so sorry that this is happening to you." She was coldly glaring at him and he looked back at the bulletin board again to avoid her eyes. "It looks like you may have some suspects."

She was not in a calm state of mind, but his presence in that room triggered the very core of her intuition.

"Yeah, I might have a few suspects," she walked by him, questioning her gut, in disbelief that Raffa could be one of those suspects. After almost 30 years at SVU she had learned to trust her gut over everything else and to never be surprised by anything. So there she stood, wondering if one of her most loyal friends would stoop to murder or conspire to it, and why.

She tested him.

She walked over to the board and pulled the picture of Amelia's lifeless body in her livingroom from the pin. Her hand was shaking.

She mustered up a few tears. It was easy to do when your whole life was on display in front of you bruised and bloodied.

"I walked into my living room last week...to this. A scene…I had spent a decade overcoming and ….a woman, who I will only remember as a frightened 12 year old girl, was there. Her young life ended in the most horrific way. The smell of vodka…the bruise over her eye the same way he…bruised…me. The burns on her chest and arms. Look at it. It's exact…precise."

Raffa got close to her and handed her his handkerchief. "Liv, don't…"

"Don't what? Don't go through the details with you…again." Raffa paced away from her and looked out the window. He was fidgety. It was unlike him. She could smell the guilt pouring off of his skin. He was hiding something.

She continued. "Details that were locked in a box never to be gone through again. I could have burned that box…and I should have. As soon as that monster was dead, I should have burned every single thing about him until he was truly gone forever. I should have made it my job. But I didn't. Why? Because someone...a dear friend...at least you used to be...a dear friend, told me that I was better than that. That I didn't need to ….how did you put it….'Liv, you don't have to do what Elliot Stabler would have done. You're better than that. You can follow the rules and overcome those demons"...I think…I think that's exactly what you told me. Wasn't it?"

He turned to look at her. His eyes were hollow and she noticed it looked like he hadn't slept in weeks. Still there was a warmth in him that she couldn't ignore. "Liv, I'm so sorry you had to relive those details. If I could go back in time, I would have burned the evidence with you. Some rules are meant to be broken."

She ignored his genuine attempt to love her.

"But it wouldn't have mattered if I had burned that box," she composed herself. "Details that only a handful of people would have known or needed to memorize were all over Amelia's body. Details that only a select few would have remembered. My bruised face," she touched the top of her eye and her lip. "The burn marks here," she pulled down her shirt collar. "And here."

"Liv," he backed up. "Those were in your hospital report."

"No, those I took out. Those were mine to destroy after everything was signed, sealed, and delivered. Cragen, gave me those pictures, and I made sure to destroy them. So tell me...how would this perp know about the details of this case," She put the picture to his face. "Ameila has identical markings. Identical bruisings from being choked."

"I...I don't know….," he uncomfortably squirmed and looked in the hallway to see if someone was going to save him from this. "I should… find Rollins."

"Rollins isn't here," she smirked and then frowned. "But this is hard for you to see again, isn't it?"

He grabbed the picture from her hand and placed it face down on the table top. "It is, Liv."

"Why?"

"I don't know what you're insinuating," he wiped a bead of sweat from his brow and stepped away. "But yes, Liv, it's hard for me to see that Ameila went through this. It's hard for me to know that you're going through this….and that I can't help. I …I wish I could do something more than show up and be a coward lawyer. But I am helping in the best..way that I can. I'm here aren't I."

She stopped to study his body language. Unable to figure out what was going on with him. He was off. "You are. You're here. My faithful lawyer," she didn't take her eyes off of him. He took in a gulp of air and undid his tie a bit.

"It's hot in here. I should get…some air."

Olivia closed the door. "In a minute. You want to tell me what's going on?"

His eyes grew wide. "Ah, I'm here to help Elliot."

Olivia pushed him against the wall hard and started to put her hand around his throat.

"Do you know what it feels like to get choked, Raffa?"

"Liv, stop this."

"Did you have to hire someone else to do it or did you break into my apartment all by yourself?"

"Liv, I had nothing to do with this. You have to know that," he said as he touched his glasses and pointed to a tiny camera on the side of it. Her face was close enough now that she started to notice his silent cry for help. It confused her at first and she backed off of him, but he touched her hands with his and placed a finger on his mouth to give her the hint they were being watched.

"Sometimes things aren't what they seem, and sometimes we need help. We need to help each other. Let me help you."

She nodded trying to follow his lead.

He was gentle, his fingers were ice cold, and his breath was rank. Now that she really took him in, he didn't look good. He was gaunt, his suit was baggy, and his hair was greasy. Together they were a sight for sore eyes. And then she noticed the bruising on his wrists.

"What-" she started to ask about the marks and he pulled her hard against his chest in a grip that was half hug and half survival hold, and he whispered with panic into her ear.

"Help me."

Olivia tried to pull away, but he wouldn't let go of her. He grabbed her hand and placed it onto his chest where there was a wire and what seemed to be a small explosive attached to his heart.

She stopped and tried to look at him and he pulled her face away from his glasses and into the side of his check.

"It's okay," he pretended. "I know you've been through a lot. You're not thinking straight. I know how that feels."

"Right. I'm…not thinking," she played along and then led him to the double mirror and pressed the intercom on and turned the volume up in hopes that Velasco would hear it. "You wouldn't hurt me…or Elliot. I'm not in my right mind."

"You're tired." He squeezed her hand to let her know she was safe with him. And then she had an idea and hoped that he was with it enough to follow her lead.

"So tired, I'm probably missing something. Maybe you can help me." She pulled him back to the bulletin board. "Here, sit down and look at the board for a moment, while I get coffee. Just look at the board. Sometimes you have to stare at it for a moment."

"Okay," he said slowly sitting.

Olivia left him in the room alone and Velasco stood confused. "Jet is on her way. What is happening?," he whispered.

"Call the bomb squad. He's being manipulated by someone. They have a camera and a microphone on his glasses and a small explosive over his heart."

"Jesus," He nodded dumbfounded.

"Go," she said and then walked in as cool as a cucumber with two empty paper cups. "Coffee's gonna be a minute. How about water while we wait."

Elliot opened his eyes to a dingy room with bad fluorescent lighting and old looking hospital surroundings. The last thing he remembered was Tia at the hospital with a group of CIA in vests and helmets. She whispered into his ear he would be safe before she put some kind of sedative into his IV.

"Tia," he growled angry and half awake. "Tia! Where I am? Hello!"

A door opened and Tia rushed in.

"Elliot," she hushed him. "Elliot, I'm here."

"Where is here?"

"You're at a maximum security medical facility for terrorists."

"What!? Why?"

She grabbed his hand with one of hers and smoothed the side of his face. "Elliot, the drugs are not worn off yet. Please relax. I can't explain in front of these CIA clowns. When you wake I will explain."

He blinked and tossed around. "Don't touch me. Why am I here, Tia?"

A man from the other room came in with another syringe.

"No, no," she stopped him. "Give me a minute with him."

The man nodded and walked back out of the room.

"Elliot, you are here, because the CIA thinks that you were the mastermind behind a terrorist threat on Rome."

He squinted his eyes and smashed his hand into his face trying to wake up from the drugs and understand what she was saying.

"W…why would they think that?"

She whispered into his ear. "Because I used AI to make them believe our suspect was you."

"You…you did what?! Why would you do that!?," he puffed looking around for something to grab, but his body was tied to the bed. His arms were in handcuffs.

"I will explain soon, but you have to tell me one thing, where did you get this," she asked as she pulled the compass from her pocket.

"Olivia's necklace. Where's Liv?," he panicked.

"She's fine," Tia grew upset. "Where did you find this necklace," she seethed close to his face.

"I got it…I don't know. It was a long time ago. A jeweler near my office."

With that she left his bedside and headed to the door.

"Where are you going?"

"I'll be back," she said to both Elliot.

She opened the door and nodded for the man with a syringe to continue. "You should sedate him again, he's being uncooperative."

"Tia," he pulled hard at the straps on his wrists, but he was weak from being in a hospital bed for a month. "You can't just leave me here! Tia! HELP!," he screamed. "Help me! Help! I'm not a terrorist! She's lying!"

Velasco called Rollins for a fifth time and she finally answered.

"Velasco," she whispered.

"Where are you guys? I've been calling you for an hour."

"I'm going to text you a location. We're at a hospital for inmates. Waiting for the CIA to give visitation permission. Bell is jumping through a lot of hoops. It might be a good idea to have Olivia and Barba come together."

"Ah...well" Velasco panicked. He ran his hand through his hair and looked at all of the empty desks in the squad room. His eyes stopped on Muncy's old desk. "We have a situation over here with Olivia and Barba. I could really use some back up. Bomb squad is on their way."

"Bomb squad?! You had two orders. Take Liv and Eli to a safe place, what the hell happened?"

Velasco quickly went through everything with Rollins and then paced behind the glass wall as he watched Olivia and Raffa.

She stood behind him and went through the case one picture and detail at a time. As they talked through it, she lifted the back of his shirt out of his pants and traced the wire that was strapped around his torso. He was bruised and thin like he'd been tortured for months. She tried not to let her horror show in her voice.

"Ah…then…then the guy with the hoodie…we thought it traced to Bx9, but the logo is…." she paused at the explosive and almost lost herself. There was blood around the small box and it was actually connected to his heart.

"It wasn't the right logo though?," he tried to finish for her.

"Yeah…no…it was-we traced it to an old Ukrainian mafia clan."

Behind Olivia, entered a man from the bomb squad. He nodded to her silently and handed over safety gear for Olivia to shield herself with and the opened small tool box. He slowly looked at the wiring and the explosive.

She backed up as she continued.

"The Mafia seemed random…still doesn't connect with Amelia's death or Elliot's shooting or BX9."

Raffa kept as still as stone. His face was serious and tense as the man messed with his chest. He tried to give her clues without saying too much. "Accept that they're yours and Elliot's worst cases repeated. There's the Bx9, and Flutura, Elliot's sex trafficking girlfriend, and Louis, and then last but not least Jenna, the girl that still haunts Elliot. She was shot in the head. So your suspect shot him in the head."

Olivia stepped forward. "Jenna?"

"Yes, Elliot shot Jenna, and so the hit was based on that case-"

"No…maybe... you could be confusing those-," she stopped herself.

"Ah," Raffa grunted at the man tinkered with the wiring still. "Yeah, maybe I...was" Raffa said and turned his head to look at her unconsciously or maybe because he was nervous. "that's not on the board yet is it."

As soon as he said the words and look at her and the man behind him, he knew it would be his last breath. Olivia watched the life fall from his face as the explosion went off inside of his chest.

She screamed and flinched. Her ears rang. He fell to the ground and she ripped the glasses from his face.

"Why are you doing this? Who are you? Show yourself, you coward! Stop these games and show yourself!," she screamed.

Velasco pulled her away and they took the glasses to be examined by Jet, who had gotten there just after the bomb squad.

Tia met Bell and Rollins in the lobby of the hospital.

"Bell."

"Tia," Bell nodded with a scowl on her face. "You wanna fill me in or is this another off the books situation.

Rollins gave Bell a confused glance.

"You'll find out soon enough that Detective Leonetti makes up her own rules."

"Ah," Rollis nodded. "Well, I guess I understand why she and Stabler get along so well.

Tia ignored them. "I don't have time for small talk. Walk with me."

The three women followed her to the parking lot where she took a debugger device and ran it up and down both of their bodies.

"Is this really necessary," Bell grumbled.

"You're clear," Tia continued and then revealed Olivia's necklace.

"This necklace was bugged," she said showing them the tiny micro chip she pulled from the back of the locket.

"Olivia's necklace," Rollins asked as she took it from Tia's hands.

"Yes, I need you to take me to that jewlery store near your office."

Bell's mouth fell open and she grabbed at her own necklace out of fear. "Jesus. Okay. Let's go."