A Bigger Fire 🔥

Chap 9 "Case Ruins Events"

Nick's POV
"Alright, let's go," I sighed.
"Ladies and gentleman, the mother lode of SVU is leaving," Munch stated. "Was it something I said?"
"No, it's everything you said," Hailee smiled.
"Well, I haven't even gotten to the Cassidy jokes yet," Munch put his hands up.
Hailee and I left through the front door. "Hey, you okay?" I asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Hailee nodded. "It's not about me."
"So, what's going on?" I asked.
"Do you remember Sarah Walsh?"
"The piano student, the one whose rapist got off."
"Yeah, she just texted me. She thinks she was raped, again."
"She thinks?"
We went to Sarah's apartment and she kept talking. "I think I was drugged. I don't remember anything," Sarah explained.
"Slow down, honey," Hailee nodded. "Things might start coming back to you. You -- you think you were raped?"
"I mean, I woke up naked," Sarah sighed. "My clothes were on the floor. I mean, I -- I'm sore down there."
"Hold on, what --" I moved her hair from her left ear. "What happened to your ear?"
"I think he pulled my head down by my earring," Sarah sobbed.
"Oh, it's okay, Sarah," Hailee nodded. "Something happened."
"Again," Sarah stated.
"What's the last thing you do remember?" I asked as I looked around her apartment.
"I--I met my friend, Nicole, an her fiance, Matthew," Sarah sighed.
"Where and when did you meet them?" I asked.
"The meatpacking district," Sarah nodded. "Eight o'clock a-at the Brass Monkey. I mean, we -- we were playing jenga."
"And drinking?" I asked.
"One beer," Sarah nodded. "Maybe two."
"Bottle or glass?" Hailee asked.
"Glass," Sarah looked at Hailee. "I'm so stupid. I should've have gone out. I mean --"
"Take it easy," Hailee stopped her. "Have a seat." They sat down. "Listen, it is nothing that you did."
"Do you remember leaving the bar?" I asked.
"Uh, um, yes, um, Nicole and Matthew, they walked me out," Sarah calmed down. "After that, it -- it's -- it's a-a blur."
"So you don't remember how you got home?" Hailee asked.
"No. Oh my God," Sarah stood up. "Oh my god! It was -- it was him."
"Who?" Hailee asked as she stood up.
"Michael Wedmore," Sarah looked at us.
"Wait, the man who raped you two years ago?" I asked. "You saw him last night?"
"I think so," Sarah nodded. "I mean, he -- these past few weeks he's been following me."
"In your neighborhood?" I asked. "You sure? It's like three in the morning right now."
"It was him," Sarah crossed her arms. "I mean, that -- that grin. I mean, I don't forget that."
"Okay," I nodded. "We're going to go back to the precinct and tell the team so they can check up." We went to the precinct and waited for sunrise to tell the team who they were to do. Finn and Amanda go and check on Wedmore's job. Liv walked in. "Hey Liv."
"What details do you have?" Liv asked as we followed her into her office. "Come on."
"We got her to do a rape kit," Hailee nodded.
"Hospital confirm that Sarah was assaulted?" Liv asked.
"Torn earlobe, bruising, and trauma consistent with dot, dot, dot," I nodded.
"She's not crying wolf," Hailee sighed.
"Neighbors see or hear anything?" Liv asked.
"No, and no signs of forced entry," I nodded. "No security cams in the elevator or lobby."
"Really?" Liv asked. "No security after what happened to her?"
"It's been two years," Hailee looked at the file. "She doesn't want to live in fear."
"How do you know Sarah?" Liv pointed at Hailee.
"She played piano for a movie I was lead role in," Hailee nodded. "Sarah and I were close. I told her she could count on me for anything. When I became a detective, I told her." I looked at Hailee. "Sarah told me what happened to her the first time around too."
"Where's Wedmore?" Liv asked as Finn and Amanda walked in.
"At a church retreat in Atlanta," Finn replied. "He left early this morning."
"That's convenient," Hailee sighed.
"It was scheduled a while ago," Amanda nodded.
"We talked to his mother. She alibi'd him for last night," Finn looked at us. "They were working together at Brooklyn Mercy."
"Even if he was at work, her apartment is right near the hospital," Hailee looked at Finn.
"Hailee," Liv stopped her.
"Wedmore's mother alibi's him?" Hailee asked. "Last time she said that he was a saint."
"Hold up," Amanda looked at her phone. "Rape kit came back. Sarah was drugged. GHB in her urine." I looked at her. "No semen. No DNA."
"Yes, last time, he used a condom," Hailee nodded. "It's him."
"Well, maybe, but the timeline -- Sarah doesn't remember anything after ten in Manhattan," I replied.
"Well, doesn't mean that we was drugged there," Hailee shrugged. "Memory loss can be retroactive."
"Still, he met her on her way home, drugged her, dragged her upstairs -- all the while he's on a break?" Amanda suggested.
"Sarah said she met friends in the city," Liv sighed. "Talk to them. Maybe they put Wedmore at the bar."
"And in the meantime?" Hailee asked. "He's still out there. He's violent. He will go after her."
"I'll see if the precinct can put a squad car on her block," Liv nodded.
"Okay," I sighed. "Hailee, come on." I took her to the break room. "You need to calm down." She calmed herself down. "Okay, okay. Good. Now, let's go talk to Sarah."
We went to her apartment just as CSU was leaving. "Just like last time," Sarah sighed. "I'm gonna have to get another new mattress."
"Is there anybody else that you could stay with?" Hailee asked.
"I mean, I haven't told my parents," Sarah nodded. "I can't. But Nicole called me. I was at a party and Michael Wedmore -- he was there?"
"Well, we reached out to him," I explained. "He let us check the GPS on his phone. We don't think so."
"But it has to be him," Sarah replied. "I mean, I saw him. He was following me."
"He works in the neighborhood since before you moved here," I sighed. "His supervisor and co-workers confirm he was at work Saturday night."
"Okay, well, then he's lying," Sarah looked at us. "I mean, he must have left work, broke into my apartment, and--and drugged me."
"The timeline doesn't fit, and it's not his MO," I argued. "When Wedmore assaulted you, he used a gun. No drugs. He was brazen. This was a different kind of predator."
"Different?" Sarah asked. "What are you saying? Th-that I was raped twice by two different men?"
"Yes, Sarah," Hailee sighed. "We call it re-victimization, and it happens more than you'd think. This is not your fault."
"Not my fault?" Sarah repeated. "Twice in two years? What, do I have a sign on my head?"
"Sarah, it's not you," Hailee tried to explain. "It's -- predators, they -- they have this sixth sense. They pick up on vulnerability."
"So, it is my fault," Sarah nodded. "I am a target."
"No, no, it's just that sometimes, victims don't want to be perceived as fearful," I added.
"Okay, so I let my guard down and set myself up," Sarah sighed.
"Sarah, please, stop," Hailee sighed. "Let's focus on catching this guy now."
"And what if we do catch him?" Sarah looked dead into Hailee's eyes. "Michael was on trial, and he what? He's still out there. I see him wandering around free, laughing at me."
"I know how hard this is for you, and I'm so sorry that --"
"Why--why don't I just go out there again, and you guys can follow me, and that way we'll catch a lot of rapists," Sarah cut Hailee off. Hailee crossed her arms. "Forget I even texted you. I don't want to know who he is. You know what?" Sarah opened the door. "Go." We looked at her. "Leave...me...alone."
"Okay," Hailee stated as she stormed out.
I stopped at the door and looked at Sarah. "You were the one that texted her and we had to leave our little girl's birthday party for you," I stated. "We didn't even get to see our daughter cut her birthday cake for her seventh birthday. Hailee's trying to help you because we have a daughter and we want the streets to be safe." Sarah looked at me. "If you change your mind, you know how to get a hold of us." I went back to the precinct and Hailee was there. "You got out of there pretty fast."
"I know," Hailee sighed as she sat down. "I told Liv and we're investigating. Amanda and Finn went to the underground party to see if they can find anything."
"Nick, Hailee," Liv sighed. "Go home and get some rest. Keep your computer and phone close by. You'll work from home."
"Really?" I asked.
"But this is my case," Hailee replied.
"You need to spend some time with your daughter, okay?" Liv nodded. "I'll make you a deal. Come in to work tomorrow and work while Hailee's at school. Fifteen minutes before school ends, you guys clock out and go pick her up. I must say that you are off this case. That's an order."
"Thank you," I sighed. We got into the car and I drove us home. We walked inside and Oliver was on our couch. "Zara alright?"
"Yeah, she's out like a light," Oliver nodded.
"Liv is cutting us a deal," I replied. Hailee disappeared to our room. "And Hailee isn't handling it very well. We also got cut from the case."
"A case that the victim asked Hailee for help," Oliver stood up.
"The victim wants to pull her story back," I sighed as I sat down. "Nothing we can do to make Liv change her mind."
"What can we do to change Hailee's mood?" Oliver asked.
"I'm going to take some time off work for now and you get Hailee to this movie set that she got a role in," I sighed as I handed Oliver the file. "This is the script and just make sure she is in your sight at all times. I don't need her to break and fall apart on me." Hailee walked back into the living room with her hair up in a messy bun and she was in her pajamas. "You okay?"
"Yeah," Hailee nodded as she sat next to me. "I am feeling up to a late night movie." She grabbed the remote and started searching Netflix for a good movie. "Especially since I have to be on the set in a couple days."
"Three days," I nodded. "Oliver is more than happy to go with."
"I'll have a limo take us to that set," Oliver nodded. His phone rang and he looked at it. "Oh, I gotta go. Chloe needs me for this thing."
"Go," Hailee nodded. "We'll be fine here." Oliver left. "Nick, I feel like we're losing our jobs...again."
"We're not losing our jobs," I sighed as I put my arm around her. "That's a promise. But I am taking how ever long it takes for you to finish this role off to take care of Zara." Hailee looked at me. "Oliver's going to be with you and I'll watch Zara. It's alright." There was a knock on the door. "I got it." I got up and opened the door. "Barba," I looked at him, "what are you doing here?"
"Liv told me about Hailee and I've come by to check on her," Rafael nodded. "Do you mind if I speak with her for a minute?"
"Nick, who's at the door?" Hailee called.
"It's Barba," I replied. Hailee walked up to the door. "I'll leave you two alone." I walked to the kitchen and poured me a glass of water. "Nick, calm down. You know Hailee and Rafael are old friends." I was talking to myself. "It's okay. I'm okay."