A/N: This story is going to be a bit darker than my last, but I wanted to try something a little different. Also, I'm not sure if Melinda is actually still with the ME's office, but for the sake of this story she is.

Olivia dropped her bag on her living room floor with a sigh. "We made it. Finally." She tilted her head from side to side, trying to to loosen the tension in her neck that had developed after several hours in the car.

"Thank God." Rafael let his own bag hit the floor with a thud as he closed her apartment door behind them. "Remind me next time that in the summer everyone goes to the Hamptons for the weekend which means that everyone is coming back from the Hamptons on Sunday night."

Traffic had been hellacious coming back into the city and their journey had taken them hours longer than it should have.

She desperately wanted to drop an "I told you so," but she resisted.

After the particularly stressful and emotionally draining Zach Cahill case, they'd decided to go on their first weekend away, just to relax and be together as a couple, leaving behind the Lieutenant and the ADA. Olivia had suggested going upstate, but Rafael didn't "do rustic," so they'd gone to the Hamptons instead.

Olivia had been nervous at first, worried that outside of the city, outside of their jobs, that they'd find that they didn't have much to talk about, but her worries had been unfounded. She found that even though they'd known each other for years, and been friends nearly as long, that there was still much to learn about Rafael Barba, and she'd enjoyed spending a couple of uninterrupted days doing just that.

"Thank you." He pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"For what?"

"Not saying 'I told you so' even though I know you really want to."

She laughed, enjoying the fact that he knew her so well.

"It was a great weekend though, right?" He nuzzled her neck, placing kisses near her jawline.

"Oh yeah," She tilted her head back, giving him better access to her neck, remembering how fantastic their beach rental had been. They'd made excellent use of the king size bed, the couch, the floor, the kitchen table…

"Noah?" He asked, still working on her neck.

"At your mom's until tomorrow."

"Good." He spun them so that he had her back pressed up against the apartment door, his hands resting on either side of her. His lips worked hers hungrily, only pausing to pull her tank top over her head. Olivia was starting to work his belt buckle when her phone began ringing in her purse. "Ignore it." He told her breathlessly, his lips working their way across her collarbone.

"I can't, what if something's happened with Noah?"

He couldn't argue with that. He moved out of the way so she could cross the room and pull her phone out of her bag. Her brows knitted, a mix of confusion and concern, when she saw the screen. "Chief?"

Hearing this, Rafael looked up. She wasn't supposed to be on call this weekend, so it must be something important.

"Lieutenant." Deputy Chief Dodds didn't sound happy. "I know you're technically still off duty, but I need you to get down here."

"Okay. Where's 'here'?"

"I'll text you the address. Oh," Dodds added as an afterthought. "And I'm sure Barba is there with you. Tell him to get his ass down here too."

Olivia badged the uniformed officer standing near the caution tape that was keeping nosey pedestrians back from the crime scene. "He's with me." She tossed her head toward Barba and the uni nodded, raising the tape and allowing them to duck under.

She'd noticed the ME van as she pulled up, so she knew she wouldn't be speaking with the victim. CSU had already arrived as well. They were combing the alleyway and taking photos, aided by portable lights that had been set up to illuminate the dark alley. Olivia spotted Dodds off to the side talking on the phone, so she walked straight to the body that was on the ground in the middle of the alley, covered by a white sheet.

Rafael hung back a little, busying himself on his phone. He'd been to a few crime scenes and his share of autopsies over the years, but he wasn't altogether comfortable being in close proximity to dead bodies. He still wasn't even sure what he was doing here.

"What do we got?" Olivia asked a uni nearby. She noted his nametag, Bradley. He barely looked old enough to be out of high school, let alone the academy.

"Busboy found her when he was taking out the trash after closing." Officer Bradley nodded toward a doorway that Olivia assumed was the back door to a restaurant. "Looks like she was strangled."

"I'm here, so I assume there were signs of sexual assault?"

"Well, she's nude, and well, um…" A flush rose over the young officer's neck and cheeks. "She has a knife in her, well, you know…"

"Jesus." Olivia said before she could stop herself. Just when she thought she'd seen the worst of the worst, there was always some sick bastard willing to up the ante.

"Lieutenant." Dodds was finally off the phone and he approached her, looking tired. Officer Bradley wisely took this chance to step away.

"Chief. What's this all about?" The crime was brutal, but it was something any of her detectives could have handled and definitely didn't seem to warrant the presence of the Deputy Chief, or Barba for that matter.

"The vic's an ADA, out of Brooklyn."

Rafael's head jerked up when he heard that. "What?" He stepped closer as Olivia knelt down and pulled back the sheet. His stomach rolled. "Jaclyn?" He turned to Dodds with fire in his eyes. "What the fuck, Dodds? You could have warned me."

"Watch it, counselor." Dodds warned Barba before turning to Olivia. "Jaclyn Moore."

"You knew her?" Olivia looked up at Rafael.

He nodded grimly. "Yeah, she started maybe a year before I left."

Olivia turned back to the body. Even in death she was pretty, soft features and caramel colored skin that now had a gray tint to it. One of the tech lights hit something shiny and she pulled the sheet back further. Her ADA's badge was laid open across her stomach. Olivia had wondered how they ID'd her so fast, but now she had her answer.

It was a tragedy in and of itself if a woman, who happened to be an ADA, was brutalized and killed in such a manner. It added a whole other layer if she was targeted because she was an ADA. It was looking like this was the latter.

"Whoever did this wanted us to know immediately." Dodds shook his head. "I've already heard from the commissioner, the mayor, and the DA. Barba, he said you're at my disposal. If there's anything you're working on that can be handed off, do it."

Rafael nodded his agreement, doing his best to keep his gaze off of his former colleague. Olivia noticed this and dropped the sheet, covering Jaclyn up again, much to his relief.

"Does she have family?" Olivia asked, standing fully.

"Her mom's in Jersey." Rafael answered before Dodds could.

Chief Dodds gave Rafael a look before turning to Olivia. "The Brooklyn DA is doing the notification. I just hope he makes it there before the press gets wind of this."

"Lieu." They looked up and saw Carisi making his way toward them. "Sorry it took me so long. What do we got?"

As Olivia gave Carisi the rundown Dodds looked over at Rafael. The ADA was looking a little peaked. "You can handle this, right Barba? Because if you're too close to this tell me now and I'll call someone else."

Rafael's eyes narrowed. "I can handle it." He said forcefully.

"Good. 'Cause we gotta nail this son of a bitch. Fast."

"Is Brooklyn gonna push to take over this?" Carisi asked once he was filled in. "She was one of theirs."

"Maybe." Olivia once again looked down at the sheet. "But she's ours now."

"I have to go to the station, do you want me to drop you at home?" Olivia asked Rafael an hour later as she maneuvered her car out onto the street.

"I could go with you." He offered.

"There's not much work for you at this point. And one of us should get some sleep."

"Then, yeah, I guess home's fine." He acquiesced.

She looked over at him, the streetlights bouncing off of his handsome face. A handsome face that now seemed troubled. "Were you close to her? Jaclyn?"

"We were friendly, flirted a bit I guess." He answered honestly. "Had drinks a few times, but nothing ever happened."

Olivia knew that the jealousy that bubbled up in her was ridiculous and unwarranted, but it bubbled all the same. They were quiet for a few blocks, but then she spoke again. "You stopped receiving threats, right? I mean, you told us you did, but that wasn't just so we'd lift your detail?"

He smiled just because he knew that was something he'd do, and if the threats hadn't stopped with the arrest of Felipe Heredio, he probably would have. "Yes. Well, mostly." He added in the interest of complete honesty.

"What do you mean, mostly?" She braked for a red light and turned to look at him, worry clouding her features. Worry, and a little bit of anger, he decided.

"The blatant, consistent ones stopped, but I'm an ADA, Liv. I get threats, but it's all just the regular stuff. Putting people in prison tends to piss them and their loved ones off." He shrugged like it was no big deal. "Just because an ADA was killed doesn't mean there's some guy out there targeting all ADA's."

"It doesn't mean that there isn't." She countered, putting the car in motion when the light changed. It had been one of her first thoughts once it became apparent that Jaclyn's job played a role in her death. What if Rafael was a target? She couldn't bear the thought.

"It was probably someone she put away, or someone in connection to someone she put away, you'll see."

"Actually, you will. I need you to go to the Brooklyn DA's office with Carisi in the morning. You still have connections there. They might give up her files more easily with you there."

"Okay." He agreed, and not just because he'd been ordered to by the DA and Dodds. Jaclyn had been a great lawyer and a friend. She didn't deserve what had happened to her and he would do everything he could to make sure the person responsible paid for it.

She pulled up in front of his apartment building and put the car in park. "I'm sorry this is how our weekend ended."

The corner of his mouth ticked up. "I almost feel like it wouldn't be us if it didn't end like this." He unbuckled his seatbelt and leaned over, kissing her softly. "Be safe, mi guerrera."

"You too." She said softly.

He reached for the door handle, but her voice stopped him. "Raf?"

"Yeah?" He asked, turning back toward her.

"Are you okay? It's hard enough when the victim is a stranger, but..."

Rafael sighed. "I'm...sad." He decided that the most basic of emotions was all that could be used to describe how he was feeling. "We know these sick fucks are out there, we deal with it every day, but…" He shook his head. "Sad and pissed." He amended. "But yes, I'm okay."

"Well, I'm here if you need me." She didn't want to press too hard. He'd just began acting like himself again, finally able to begin moving on from Melanie Tullis's tragic suicide. She knew she mostly had Cahill's conviction to thank for that, but she hoped she played a small part in helping him heal.

"I know, mi amor. Thank you." He gave her another quick kiss before getting out of the car. She waited, watching as he walked into the building. Max, the weekend doorman, gave her a small wave as he held the door open for Rafael. She waved back and then put the car in gear, merging into Park Avenue traffic which was still going strong late on a Sunday night.

"Melinda." Olivia said when she and Fin walked into the autopsy suite the following morning. "What are we looking at?" She knew it was probably too soon for Melinda to have much, but Carisi and Rafael had gone to the Brooklyn DA's office and Amanda was with CSU tossing Jaclyn's apartment. She couldn't just sit on her hands and wait for them to come up with something. She needed to be on the ground, working the case.

"I'm just getting started." Melinda put down the scalpel she'd just picked up in preparation to make the standard Y incision in Jaclyn's chest.

"I know, but this is an important one. What's your preliminary?"

Melinda was well aware that this was top priority, it was the reason the young ADA had skipped to the front of the line. There were several other bodies waiting in drawers who had come in first, but just as Olivia and Barba had their orders from the top, the doctor did too.

She chose not to voice this, as from the look of Olivia's tired eyes, the Lieutenant had been working all night, and she knew she didn't need a friend snipping at her over something petty. Instead she picked up a clipboard where she'd taken notes during her preliminary examination of the body.

"Based on body temp at the scene, time of death was somewhere between 7 and 10pm last night. External examination puts cause of death as strangulation. Most likely from a rope of some kind." She gestured to the ligature marks on the Jaclyn's neck. "No defensive wounds which is strange for a ligature strangulation."

"She didn't even try to pull at the rope?" Fin asked.

"Doesn't seem like it." Melinda answered. "CSU scraped under her fingernails, so maybe we'll find something, but look." She picked up one of Jaclyn's hands to show them. "Her manicure is intact. Not a chip. I have to wait for the tox screen, but my guess is she was drugged before she was strangled."

"Most rapists who strangle their victims get off on the struggle. What's the point if they're already out cold?" Olivia questioned.

"Well, it wasn't a rape, if that helps."

"I thought you said she had a knife inside her?" Fin asked Olivia.

"She did." Olivia turned to Melinda, confusion on her face.

"Well, yes, in the strictest definitions she was raped by a foreign object, the knife." Melinda walked over to a side table and picked up an evidence bag.

"Is that a…" Fin looked closer. "A steak knife?"

Melinda nodded. "You might see if your victim is missing one from her home." She sat the knife back on the table. "But there were no other signs of sexual assault, at least at a glance. The knife did some damage so it's possible that's obscuring things, but I don't think so. It was almost like an afterthought."

"Afterthought?"

"Yes, based on blood flow, or lack thereof, she was already dead when he inserted the knife. And usually with this type of mutilation the victim is assaulted repeatedly, but the knife was simply inserted and left there." Melinda explained. "I'd say someone went out of their way to turn this into a sex crime."

"Which means they wanted us to catch it." Fin concluded.

The thought filled Olivia with dread. This was all carefully orchestrated and she was afraid that it was just the beginning.