Chapter 12

"Hi Akiko, glad to see that you have some company," Olivia smiled at the woman. Admittedly, the younger woman looked much brighter than the other day and the Captain was glad to see she was on the mend.

"Captain Benson, has there been a development?" Akiko asked.

"You know what? I'm going to get a coffee," Scott gave her a smile and stood from his seat next to her bed.

"Excellent, I could really use a cup. Mind if I join?" Elliot asked him.

"Sure. I know where the nurses hide the good stuff," Scott chuckled. The two men left the room leaving the three to talk.

"I'm George Huang. I'm consulting with SVU," the former FBI agent introduced himself.

"It's nice to meet you, George. Is Amanda ok? I haven't heard from her," Akiko said. She seemed concerned that the detective wasn't reaching out but Olivia understood. Detective Klass was trying to absorb it all plus she was on duty.

"She's helping us with the case. We have a lead and some questions," Olivia explained.

"Do you know who did this?" Akiko asked.

"We believe we do but we also believe that they had help. What is the nature of your relationship with Caitlin Williams?" The Captain just went for it. She hoped that this would help Akiko open up about her other friends without prompting.

"You found Caitlin?" Akiko's eyes went wide.

"Well as part of our investigation we need to look at your life to see if anyone you know could be trying to harm you," Olivia said.

"Oh," Akiko seemed to shrink into herself.

"It's not a reflection on you, we just need to make sure that no one from your inner circle could be a part of anything," George spoke up.

"Caitlin and I… we fell out. She can't stay clean and when she started asking about Betty, I told her to stay out of it. We had an argument and that was it. I told her that she either get clean or she stay away forever," Akiko admitted.

"Where did you meet Caitlin?" Olivia asked.

"When I first came to America, I was still reeling from my parents' deaths. There's a process, you know. I didn't get to do any of it. There was no point in going over their will as their house was swept away and everything in it was lost. All of our photos, the shrine, my grandparents…" her eyes were welling up and Olivia reached out for her hand. Akiko took it and with her other hand wiped her eyes.

"I found a local group that was meeting to discuss grief and I thought that it would help me. I met some great ladies and we connected. We'd all lost someone. Some resorted to other things before the group but we were all struggling in one form or another. Most of us have managed to pull ourselves up and out but Caitlin… she just refused to. It was like she couldn't stand to see that we, the others and I, were able to conquer at least some part of our grief," Akiko explained.

"What do you mean?" George asked.

"Well, we'd tried to get together as a group and Caitlin could never make it. Then she'd try to split off one of us or make plans that she knew part of the group couldn't do. Now it didn't mean that we couldn't just meet up one on one, that's not it. She would split off and then bash one of us. It was just toxic," she told him.

"Sabotage almost," George said.

"Yeah. It was something that I did not expect but the drugs… they do stuff to you," Akiko shook her head and then regretted it.

"Easy," Olivia told her.

"I almost forgot there for a minute," she admitted.

"Just one more question and then we'll let you rest," George promised.

"Ok," Akiko said.

"Why didn't you tell Detective Klass about your friends? You two are friends, right?" George wanted to know.

"We are. I just… it's my own shame. I suppose one of those Japanese traditions," Akiko heaved a sigh. George nodded. He wasn't sure that was the whole answer but he certainly understood it.

"You get some rest. We'll be in touch," Olivia promised. The two stood up from their seats and headed out into the hallway. Elliot and Scott were there sipping their coffee.

"All good?" Scott asked.

"She gave us some good information. Thanks," Olivia smiled.

"Good. Thanks for the coffee, Detective Stabler," Scott winked and then headed back into the room.

"So, Caitlin Williams…" Elliot gave them a look.

"Oh, she definitely could have had a hand in this," George said.

"Let's see what Fin and Klass have to say. They're back at the precinct," Elliot let them know.

To Be Continued…