Fin rolled his head around in an attempt to stretch the tightening muscles of his neck. He was getting too old for this shit, and if it were anyone else, he would put this interview off until morning. But this wasn't just anyone. This was Stabler's kid, and that made her family. He could—and had in the past—lose sleep for family.
Churlish, however, checked out a couple of hours previously. Bruno was the next detective on call, and he was better at applying pressure in interrogation.
After their surface questioning, Bruno dug in. "Look," he pointed at the still frame on the iPad screen, "we know she was talking to you." He shook his head. "Come on, man. You were in love with this woman. I don't think you wanted to hurt her, but you were the last person who talked to her that night. You gotta know something."
Brandon shook his head adamantly. "I don't know anything! I wasn't there. I don't know what happened!"
"Maybe you didn't mean for this to happen," Bruno suggested. "Maybe you were hurt and angry, and things got out of hand."
"No." Brandon insisted firmly.
Bruno sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Look, man. I want to believe you, but you sound like you're hiding something, and I can't let this go until I know what it is."
"Fine," Brandon said, his voice dripping with defeat. "You want to know why I feel guilty? Fine. I'm guilty because I'm the asshat who cheated. I'm the one who lied to her for months when I knew things weren't going to work between us." He cleared his throat. "And that night? Yeah, she called me, but I was too pissed to drive down there to get her. She called me for a ride. She hated me, but she still called me, and I just…" He dropped his head into his hands. "I told her that she could figure it out herself. Like, God, I'm the one in the wrong, and she asks for help, and I just…"
His head remained in his hands. "I kicked her while she was down because I was mad about shit she said, stuff that was true, and she got hurt. She could have been killed, and I just brushed her off. Do you have any idea how crappy that makes me feel? Like, what kind of shitty person am I?"
Fin suppressed a snide comment.
Bruno sat for a moment in the heavy silence that followed. Fin waited to see what direction the younger but well-seasoned detective would take.
After an excruciating eternity, he spoke. "Then help her now." Bruno set the tablet on the table, locking the screen so the grainy still shot of Elizabeth blacked out. "You were the last person to speak with her. Do you remember anything abnormal? Did she say anything about anyone, or did she tell you why she wanted a ride? She could have gotten a Lyft or Uber, but she called you. There had to be a reason."
Brandon closed his eyes and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose nervously. "She said she walked alone and worried about getting back to Katie's place." He opened his eyes and shifted his eye contact between Bruno and Fin. "She sounded a little buzzed, but not super drunk," he shook his head. "Lizzie doesn't usually get blackout drunk." He swallowed, "She always said her dad drilled that as one of his safety rules." He shook his head. "There were a lot of 'em, but she usually kept them all. She said Katie had gotten into enough trouble, and she didn't want to do things that might, I don't know, I guess she didn't want to put any more strain on her parents." He shook his head as if he realized he had drifted off topic. "I guess I'm just saying she was always insanely careful and safe when she went out. I guess that's why I thought she would be fine. She knew what to do, and I honestly thought she would get home fine."
Bruno nodded. "Do you remember anything else?"
"It was loud on her end. I couldn't hear her super well. She said something about not calling Katie and that she'd figure it out. Before I hung up I heard her talking to someone. Said that she, uh, that she didn't need help, that she had a ride coming."
"Did you hear the other person's voice? Man? Woman?" Bruno asked, and Fin knew he was trying not to seem overeager.
"I…I'm not sure. Man, maybe? It was loud, and I could hear much," Brandon reiterated.
Bruno clicked his pen a couple of times before glancing in Fin's direction. He nodded. They got what they were going to get from Brandon. They would talk to Evan to double-check his alibi, but Fin was convinced.
Brandon had nothing to do with Lizzie's assault.
-000-
Olivia's phone buzzed on the nightstand and woke her from what turned out to be a fitful sleep. She glanced over her shoulder to see Lizzie sleeping soundly. She snagged her phone and rolled out of bed, trying not to wake Liz.
Despite her efforts, the slightly jostling of the bed caused Lizzie's eyes to pop open.
"Go back to sleep," she whispered. "It's early. I have to answer this."
"Okay," Liz responded before rolling back over.
Olivia hurried from the room, leaving the door cracked behind her. Once in the hallway, she swiped her phone and answered the call.
"Did you get anything from him?" She asked without any formal greeting.
Fin dove right in. "Not a lot. He feels guilty for not picking her up. He said the bar was loud, but he heard her talking to someone; he thought he was a man."
"Do you believe him?" Olivia asked. She fully trusted her sergeant's judgment.
"I do. He was pretty wrecked over it all. Seemed genuine to me."
"Alright," Olivia pinched the bridge of her nose. "I ended up at Elliot's place tonight. Lizzie had a flashback. She still doesn't remember their faces, but she thinks she would remember one of the men's voices if she heard it again."
"Maybe we can get a voice ID down the line."
"That's what I was thinking," she replied. "You know how it goes. She will probably remember more details as time passes."
"Unfortunately. For her, I mean."
"I don't know, Fin. Sometimes I think it's worse not knowing for sure. It leaves you unsure if what happened really happened at all." She shook her head. "It hurts, but it's better to remember and deal with the damage than not remember and never know the truth."
Fin sat on the other end of the line quietly. "I guess you would know more than anyone."
She took in a slow breath. "Yeah. I do."
"Are you okay?"
She groaned. "I'm fine. I'm not the one we need to worry about."
"You know it's possible to worry about more than one person without taking away something from the other person, right? I'm allowed to worry about Liz and I'm allowed to worry about the toll all of this is taking on my friend." His voice bordered on defensive.
"I'm okay," she promised. "I could be better, but I'm dealing with it."
More silence.
"Really, Fin. I'm okay. We deal with this shit every day."
"This is different, Liv. You know that," he scolded.
She sighed. He was right. Every day she dealt with the horrors of humanity, but she could compartmentalize that and keep it away from her personal life. This situation hit far too close, and the spillover into her personal life had her spinning. Things she thought she had dealt with had bubbled up once again, and she found herself struggling to keep Lizzie's head above water while doing the same for herself. It was difficult, but not impossible.
"I know. I do. I'm dealing with it. I have an appointment scheduled with my therapist, but I'm doing well enough. Believe it or not, Elliot is, well, he's showing up. He's," she shook her head, "He's trying, and that's enough to keep me afloat."
"'Bout time."
She almost scolded him for his cynicism, but it was true. "I know." Pivoting the conversation, she said, "We need to get that shady as hell bartender in for questioning."
"That's what I was thinking. I'll get Velasco on it first thing in the morning." She heard him yawn on the end of the line.
"Thanks, Fin."
"Just doin' my job."
She shook her head. "It's more than that. Thanks for taking the lead on this. I need… I need to be here. Just thanks."
"Yeah, yeah." He brushed off her gratitude with minor embarrassment.
"Go get some sleep, Sergeant."
"Finally," he breathed out, and she laughed.
"Call me when you get the bartender in. I want to listen in on that one. If things are under control here."
"Yep." He said simply.
"Bye, Fin."
He grunted goodbye before hanging up.
She leaned against the wall for a moment and tried to gather her thoughts. She nearly jumped out of her skin when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
"Damn it, Elliot!" She whispered.
"Sorry," he said sheepishly in return. "Was that Fin?"
She glanced down at her phone. "Yeah." She gave him the watered-down version of everything. "He doesn't think Brandon has anything to do with it."
Elliot nodded slowly. "And he's sure?"
"Yes." She said firmly. She knew that Elliot wasn't intentionally trying to second guess Fin's judgment, but she wanted to be clear in her confidence in her oldest friend's abilities.
"Okay," he breathed out. She felt his rough fingertips brushing up and down her upper arm. "Did you sleep?"
She closed her eyes and leaned her head against the wall. "A little." She opened her eyes to see him studying her carefully. She knew he was a second away from calling her bullshit. "Fine," she conceded, "I couldn't sleep. I kept watching her, waiting."
He seemed to understand. She was waiting for the nightmares while simultaneously avoiding her own.
He lifted his hand, brushing the backs of his fingers over her cheekbone. "Why don't you take my bed? I'll sit with Lizzie."
She opened her mouth to protest, but he spoke first. "It's 4am. She's never been a late sleeper. I'm sure she will be awake around 6." He cupped her cheek, and his thumb followed the line of her cheek. "I'll call for you if she wakes up and needs you, but you need to get at least a little sleep." His blue eyes held hers. "Take my bed and get some sleep."
Her limbs felt heavy. She knew she was exhausted, and she needed to get at least a little sleep if she was going to be any use to anyone.
"Okay," she agreed.
He lightly grasped her upper arm, tugging her in the direction of his bedroom. Once inside, he took her phone from her hand and plugged it in to his charger before setting it on the nightstand.
He flipped the comforter back, and she eagerly climbed between the sheets. The space was still warm and smelled like him. She burrowed further into the covers as he tucked the comforter over her. The whole ritual felt foreign. She was the one who took care of people, and she wasn't used to others taking care of her.
He tucked her hair behind her ear before leaning down and kissing her temple. "Get some sleep. I'll come get you if anything changes."
Her eyelids already felt heavy. "Thanks." She mumbled.
He shook his head with a gentle smile. "You're incredible, you know that? I drag you here in the middle of the night. You take care of my daughter like she's your own and then thank me for letting you finally get some sleep?" He shook his head again. "Absolutely incredible."
She closed her eyes while he turned off the bedside lamp. She wasn't sure how to respond to his heartfelt compliment. She thought she mumbled out a "thanks," but her eyelids felt so heavy.
His footsteps carried him to the door, and somewhere in the distance, she heard the words float over her. "I love you, Liv. So. Damn. Much."