Law & Order Special Victims Unit s10e11 Episode Script
Stranger
In the criminal justice system, sexually based offenses are considered especially heinous.
In New York City, the dedicated detectives who investigate these vicious felonies are members of an elite squad known as the Special Victims Unit.
These are their stories.
Help! Help! Anthony, what's wrong? Save me, Mommy! Anthony! Baby, what happened? Are you okay? What are you doing? Honey, it's all right.
It's just your silly Aunt Nikki.
Take a pill, Erica, we're just playing.
Hey.
Oh, no, Anthony.
Wait.
No.
No, that's icky.
Let me see.
Bring it, bring it Pizza's on the way up.
Has anybody seen my purse? What are you talking about? You're a guest here.
You don't pay.
Oh, but, Daddy Oh, Erica, don't argue with your father.
His blood pressure's already up 'cause I'm kicking his ass.
Hey.
Language.
Oh.
Hey, Anthony.
Pinch-hit for grandma.
I'm going to go get our dinner.
Okay.
It's me and you, buddy.
It's me and you.
Let's see what you got.
Go ahead.
You got nothing.
You got nothing.
Okay, there's no way Oh, I'm sorry.
We thought you were the person with the pizza.
Can I help you? It's me.
Excuse me? You don't remember me.
Oh, my God, Mom.
It's Heather.
Heather Hallander, vanished four years ago when she was 14.
This is her entire Missing Persons file? Yeah.
450,000 kids run away every year.
Teenager don't want to be found, there's not much we can do.
Why did she run away? She didn't.
But that's how it looked.
The week she disappeared, she was fighting with her parents.
They were planning to ship her off.
Reform school? Fat camp.
Not an ounce of fat on her anymore, though.
Went on a four-year killer diet.
Being held as a sex slave.
She's back in her old room.
We left it exactly like it was, so hopefully that will help.
Heather? Sweetheart? The police are here to speak to you.
I already talked to the police.
Has she given you any details? No.
No.
Excuse me.
Heather.
It's Detective Olivia Benson.
I know this is painful to talk about, but right now, the time is critical.
Why won't she cooperate? Nikki, please.
Go back to your room.
You're Heather's sister? The screw-up middle child, not the sainted, older one.
Nikki.
Heather's disappearance was very hard on Nikki.
Because it was all my fault, right? What makes you say that? Ask Heather.
Ask her what I called her to make her cry and run out the door, never to be seen again.
Nikki, stop it.
This is not about you.
I used to call Heather "heifer.
" I never blamed you, Nikki.
Not once.
I swear.
She's already showered.
Three times.
Hope nobody else needed hot water.
I was first chair clarinet.
He grabbed me the day before the spring concert.
Who grabbed you, Heather? A man.
What was his name? I don't know.
Were you with him this whole time? Yeah.
In four years, you must have called him something.
He made me call him Daddy.
Where did he keep you? In a concrete room.
Do you know where? Do you have an address? I don't know.
Heather, how did you get away? He was drunk.
He forgot to put the padlock on the door, so I ran.
So it was somewhere in the city.
I came out into a basement, up some stairs and onto the street.
I ran until I couldn't run anymore.
I didn't know which way I was going until I got to the park.
When was the last time that he sexually assaulted you? Yesterday.
Okay.
We need to get you to a hospital so you can get examined by a doctor.
Then we'd like you to come along with us, see if you can lead us back to where he kept you.
Are those the clothes you wore? Yeah.
Do you have your underwear? He never let me wear any.
How did he get you? After I ran out of the apartment, I cried for, like, three blocks.
Then I noticed a man was walking next to me.
He said I was too pretty to be crying.
We got to his van and he said he had something that would make me feel better.
You went into the van.
No.
He put a handkerchief over my mouth with some kind of chemical on it.
That's all I remember before I woke up.
Where was that? On a concrete floor.
It was pitch-black.
And I didn't have any clothes on.
I stood up and felt along the walls.
Screaming for help.
I got to a metal door and I started pounding on it.
There was a mattress.
I laid down on it and cried.
I must have fallen asleep.
I woke up when he came in.
He put a combination lock on the inside of the door.
He got on top of me.
I kicked and screamed and hit.
He said he'd come back when I was ready to be sweet.
He said if I couldn't be nice, he'd let me starve to death.
I thought I made it about a week without eating.
He said it was only two days.
And he kept you in this room the whole time? Yeah.
Were there any windows? No.
Running water? There was one of those Old-time bathtubs with the legs.
A claw-foot tub.
It wasn't hooked up to anything, though.
When he wanted me to bathe myself or brush my teeth, he'd lower a garden hose down through a hole in the ceiling.
What did you use for a toilet? A lawn chair with the seat cut out over a bucket.
Can I go now? I just really want to be with my family.
Heather, we know you've been through a lot, but there's a chance that he could snatch another girl to replace you.
Can you hang in there with us just a little longer? Maybe help us find him? This is the first spot I remember knowing where I was.
Which way did you come from? Did you cross 5th Avenue? Do you remember seeing a fountain? No.
No, I came from over there.
I remember the green awning.
I could smell the flowers as I ran by.
Well, you sure it's this one? A lot of these places sell flowers.
No, I'm positive.
I turned down at the corner.
There's a funeral home at the end of the block.
Come on.
It's only six or seven blocks from here.
And it was what? Like, a brownstone? I don't know.
It was dark.
I just ran.
Did he wear any kind of uniform? Anything with a business name on it? No.
Did he have a gun? No.
You think I'm disgusting for not escaping sooner, don't you? Hey.
I don't think that at all.
I dreamed about finding something to stab him with every time he was on me.
But when he came in that room, he put the combination lock on the door.
He said if anything happened to him, I'd die down there.
No funeral home.
What? No, there has to be.
Well, it's okay.
Maybe it's another block down.
No.
No.
It was on the same block.
Maybe we went the wrong way back at the subway.
I don't know! Heather.
Heather, calm down.
It's okay.
It's okay.
I can't do this.
Why don't we go back to the car? Let's go back to the car.
I just We're going to sit someplace quiet for a second.
No worries.
Okay? Can we just do this tomorrow? I just I want to see my family.
I want to go home.
Don't worry about it.
Yes.
Please.
I just want to see my mom.
Okay.
We'll come pick you up tomorrow at 9:00.
Okay? Okay, remember, anything between now and then, Heather, I want you to call me.
Any time.
Sorry I was so useless.
It's hard to think.
My body aches.
The doctor said you have a quite a vitamin D deficiency from lack of sunlight.
Heather Hallander! Heather over here! Oh, God.
It's Harris from the Ledger.
Come on.
Did he just take my picture? Heather, can I get a quick statement? Call the DCPI.
They'll give you everything you need.
Do you have any words Are they going to print my photo? as a sex slave? Not if he has a conscience.
Heather, what was the lowest point of your four years in captivity? You take a step in that building, I'll arrest you for trespassing.
You.
Be a human being.
Erase the photos.
What world do you live in? Cute middle-class white girl held as a sex slave.
The story is huge.
I asked you nice once.
Come on.
I'm asking you nice.
Son of a bitch! That's a shame.
Looks expensive.
$4,595 for one and the Ledger is demanding disciplinary action be taken against you.
I never touched the guy.
I just can't believe the vultures got a photo off that memory card.
Classy.
Used to be no one would ever publish a rape victim's photo.
Well, that was before newspapers started going the way of the dodo.
I'm sure readership will be up today.
Sorry, Captain.
I've got Heather Hallander's sister out here and she's not too happy.
She wants to talk to the person in charge.
Let her in.
How could you have let this happen? Hasn't my sister been through enough torture? Has Heather seen it? No.
I called my parents and told them to make sure she didn't.
Good.
I promise you, we'll do everything we can to keep the press away from her today.
Look, she is scared to death safe at home with her own family.
What are you thinking, dragging her through the city? We're trying to find her abductor.
You're worse than the Missing Persons detective.
All he ever did was call us once a month to see if we'd heard from her.
I had to start my own website asking for tips.
Did you get any that we might be able to use? No.
I was at the apartment the day it happened.
She ran right by me out the door.
I should have gone after her.
That was Heather's father.
She's not feeling well.
The drive-along is off.
She saw the paper.
They tried to keep it from her, but the sister, Nikki, slipped her a copy.
The brat sister isn't helping at all.
You ask me, we bring Nikki in here for a sit-down.
What are you? A social worker now? Hardly.
The day Heather ran out after Nikki called her fat, Mom sent the brat after her to apologize.
Nikki never found Heather.
Yeah.
So she claims.
Nikki was 16 years old.
What did she do? Sell her younger sister as a sex slave? No.
But maybe she saw her get in the van.
And never said anything? Nikki admitted that she tormented her little sister.
Maybe she was glad to see her go.
Parents said that she's been on a downward spiral ever since.
Sounds like guilt to me.
Or acting like a teenager.
Anything back from forensics? Scarring from long-term sexual abuse.
Munch.
But no DNA on the rape kit.
Well, Heather scrubbed herself clean.
We kind of expected that.
The lab found semen on the dress.
They're working up a DNA profile now.
If we're lucky, the perv is already in the system.
Hang on.
Guys, I got a tip from a concerned citizen.
Divine intervention.
I was conflicted whether to call you or not.
I prayed for guidance and then I flipped a coin.
Listen, Father, you point us in the right direction, we'll keep it between us and the confessional.
The seal of the confessional is sacred and absolute.
It's nothing I heard.
It's something I witnessed.
In that case, it's kosher.
This girl, I've seen her before.
Where? At Mass, the last four Sundays.
Are you sure it was Heather? Did you talk to her? I tried.
In a sea of faces, the ones in true spiritual crisis always stand out.
I wanted to talk to her, but they always came late and then left immediately after the service.
They? An older gentleman.
Fifties.
He's attended over the years intermittently.
You have his name and address? He's not on our membership rolls.
I'm not comfortable dropping a dime, but the paper said another girl could be at risk.
Would it help if I talked to Heather? Thanks, Father, but we need someone who can report a confession.
Heather, the man that was holding you, did he ever take you outside? No! Never! I've told you that.
We have a chance to catch your abuser.
That's why there's no reason for you to hold back any important details.
Like what? Like Saint Francis Cathedral.
I don't know what you're talking about.
Based on your reaction, I would say that you do.
Somebody saw you there.
They saw you with an older man.
They're lying.
I really want to help you.
But I can't unless you're honest with me.
I want you to go now.
Heather, please, listen.
Go! He raped me every day! He stole my childhood from me! And if you don't believe me, then get out! Okay.
Well, outbursts of rage aren't unheard of in a sexual abuse victim.
If she was abused.
Well, for all we know, she ran off with a boyfriend.
When it's time to come home and face the music, she concocts a story that gets her sympathy.
Even if it was a boyfriend, she was 14.
It's still stat rape.
And the doctor confirmed a vitamin D deficiency.
She was definitely locked up away out of the sun for years.
Not necessarily.
When the hole formed in the ozone layer, skin cancers increased, opening up billion-dollar dermatology and sunscreen industries, which, in turn, have caused a mini-epidemic of vitamin D deficiencies.
So our choices are bone disease or skin cancer.
You can't win.
Well, there's always moderation.
Okay, Doc.
Was she abducted or not? I wouldn't rule it out.
Even with the lies about her field trips to church? After four years, he's established total domination over her.
Heather's programmed to follow orders blindly and without question.
The ultimate test of his power is taking her out in public.
Well, that does bother me.
I mean, he took her to a church.
You got 200 people there.
It's a sanctuary.
Why not scream? Ask for help? Because his control over her was so complete, she couldn't.
I once worked a case in Rochester where the perp took a victim who he had kept for two years to a karaoke bar.
They got up and they sang a song together.
No one suspected.
Heather is safe now.
Why isn't she helping? Extreme Stockholm syndrome.
She's bonded with her captor as a survival mechanism And now has this misguided need to protect him.
Detective Benson.
Where are they taking her? I'm on my way.
Heather slit her wrists.
Heather Hallander? They're bringing her in now.
She's tachy at 160.
Lost a lot of blood.
Grab a suture kit.
We're in the hospital now, honey.
Everything's going to be okay.
Do you know her blood type in case we have to transfuse her? God.
I don't know.
A, we're both type A.
Type and cross three units of A.
You'll have to wait here.
Good morning.
I heard you're feeling better today.
Yeah.
Life's great.
Heather, I'm sorry.
I didn't mean to upset you.
I didn't do this 'cause of you.
Then why did you do it? 'Cause all these years, I dreamed of being back with my family.
But I'm a freak.
I'm never going to belong anywhere.
Heather.
That's not true.
Your family couldn't bear to lose you again.
Nobody's comfortable around me.
Nikki hates me.
My mom can't even look me in the eye.
Listen to me.
You're having a hard time adjusting.
It's going to take a little time.
And counseling.
I don't know what to do.
I know you don't believe it right now, but bringing your abuser to justice is going to go a long way in helping you heal.
Now, you may have blocked out some details, but you just tell me when you remember, okay? Heather? Okay.
Heather's stable now, but I'm putting her on a 72-hour psych hold for evaluation.
Now, you know that we're trying to track down her abductor.
Yeah, the nurses showed me the story in the Ledger.
We can't find him without her.
I'm sorry, but it's for her own safety.
When she was on painkillers, did she say anything that could help us? No.
Anything that seemed off? I don't know if it's relevant, but when we determine a child's blood type through their parents, we always pull the mother aside to make sure the father is the father.
In case mom cheated.
Mrs.
Hallander told me she didn't.
They're both type A, which means Heather can only be type A.
Right.
Good thing we always confirm with a rapid agglutination test to cover our asses against malpractice.
Heather is type B.
She's not their child.
I don't know what to say.
They said Heather wasn't adopted.
Maybe Mrs.
Hallander stepped out for a little strange.
She didn't.
Dr.
Manning said with her blood type, there's no way she gave birth to Heather.
That leaves one possibility.
Heather is not Heather.
It doesn't make sense.
How could her own family not recognize her? The age difference helped.
Weight loss didn't hurt.
How many of those before-and-after pictures in the diet ads does the bikini model even look like the lady in the muumuu? I'm not convinced it always is.
But check this out.
When I overlay the photos, the forehead is larger.
In one, the jawline is square.
In the other, it's oval.
I don't understand how a mother wouldn't know her own child.
Yeah, but Mrs.
Hallander didn't recognize this girl until sister Erica saw that tattoo on her wrist.
Munch, zoom in on the ink.
Put them up side by side.
Looks the same to me.
Except they're mirror images.
On this one, the stem curves to the right.
On this one, it curves to the left.
The girl is a con artist.
Then why would she try to kill herself? Maybe she knew the game was up.
Who's going to break it to the Hallanders that their real daughter is still missing? Let me talk to Heather first.
Liv, she's not Heather.
Hi, Olivia.
My dad thinks I should go to college, so he dropped off these study guides to get me started.
That's nice.
Is that my clarinet? It is.
I thought you could play something for me.
I don't think I'd remember how.
You were first chair.
Why don't you try putting it together and see what comes back? I don't really feel like it right now.
You must have gotten that tattoo when you were young.
What's the story? There's no story.
I just got it.
Where? A tattoo parlor.
No, you didn't.
The boy Nikki was dating bought a kit on eBay.
They convinced Heather to let him give her a tattoo.
The Hallanders were furious.
Nikki never saw the boy again.
Heather was grounded for a month.
I'm Heather, I'm Heather.
When Heather went missing, the lab took DNA from her toothbrush.
We're going to run the DNA from your rape kit.
In a few days, when the results come back, we're going to compare the two.
I'm so sorry.
Who are you? Nobody.
Was any part of your story true? The basement? The rape? It doesn't matter.
Can you please just forget it? No, I can't do that.
Tell me.
Do you even know the real Heather? No.
No, I don't.
I just saw her on the Internet, and we had the same hair.
Why would you do this? Because Because I needed a family, and they needed a daughter.
I didn't hurt anybody.
Do you have any idea what you've done to these people? No.
That rancid bitch.
I knew it.
You knew it wasn't Heather? Not for sure.
But I knew she came back wrong.
There was a connection missing.
I thought it was my fault.
I thought I was a bad mother.
Who is she really? What's her name? We don't know and she's not talking.
Her prints aren't in the system.
She didn't act like Heather at all.
But we just assumed it was because of what she'd been through.
She knew so many details.
Well, some she got from the Internet, others from Heather's room after she got here.
From scrapbooks, albums And our Heather? Where is she? I'm sorry, but there's no new information.
That piece of garbage knows where she is.
I don't care what you say.
She knew way too much.
She must have met Heather.
We don't think so.
So who's paying for the comfy hospital room she's sitting in? Not our insurance.
She isn't even a relative.
There has to be a law against what she's done, right? There is, but we believe she's an EDP.
What's that? An Emotionally Disturbed Person.
I don't care if she's the Queen of Sheba.
We want her arrested.
Now.
Docket ending 26041.
"The People v.
Jane Doe.
"One count Identity Theft, one count Fraud.
" How does your client plead? Not guilty, Your Honor.
Please.
Please don't do this to me.
Counselor, control your client.
As to the matter of bail? People request $20,000.
Why not a billion? My client is indigent, Your Honor.
She has no family, no friends.
No name.
Perhaps if the defendant provided us with one, the People would consider her less of a flight risk.
Young lady, this nice prosecutor is opening a door for you.
Would you care to tell the court your name? You realize that does make it harder to trust you.
Your Honor, my client is currently under a 72-hour psych hold.
She's not going anywhere.
Then let's make sure she doesn't.
Bail is set at $20,000.
The defendant is ordered to complete her psychiatric observation at the Bellevue Prison Ward, and then be transferred to The Tombs for processing.
The Tombs? Court Officer, escort the defendant.
I don't understand.
How am I supposed to get money for bail? Next case.
Wait.
She knows where my sister, Heather, is.
You have to make her tell us.
You need to talk to the prosecutor.
No, please.
Just put her under oath right now and make her tell.
Erica, she doesn't know anything.
If you can't control yourself in my courtroom, I'll have you removed.
Please don't let her leave this room without telling us! Erica, we'll talk after court.
No, ask her! Court Officers, remove this woman.
Why are you doing this to us? We took you into our home.
We trusted you.
Where is Heather? What has happened to her? You have to tell us! I know she knows.
Show her what you found.
Okay.
This girl needed to assume a new identity.
First, she logs on to the American Center for Lost and Exploited Children website.
She enters female, New York, and missing within four years.
There's so many.
She cursors down until she finds one she could feasibly pass herself off as.
Heather.
She googles her and finds your website.
You've been blogging about her for years.
Friends have logged on and shared stories about her.
She prints a close-up of her tattoo and gets the same one.
She got all the information she needed from me.
Not Heather.
Great.
Can you describe him? Perfect.
I'd like you to fax over his credit card information.
Erica, I want you to know that we're taking over your sister's case and we'll be doing everything we can to find her.
Thank you.
El.
We called every tattoo parlor in the city.
She got a four-leaf clover at Tito's Tats.
Okay, but what are you doing? She already admitted that she made everything up.
I know this girl was abused.
The man with her paid with a credit card.
His name is Carl Vasko.
He matches the priest's description of the man that was with her in church.
So if he's her abuser, why would he buy her a tattoo so she can pose as someone else? I don't know.
Let's go ask him.
Whatever you're selling, I'm not interested.
We're not selling.
We're collecting.
You.
Carl Vasko, we have a warrant for your arrest.
Arrest? What the hell for? Well, like you don't know.
Remember her? We got a runner! Vasko, stop! We got a dropper.
You're under arrest.
You have the right to remain silent.
Liv? Liv! What are you doing? I thought I saw Vasko go this way.
He tried to evade arrest.
Anything we find during the commission of a crime is fair game.
It's the steel door she described.
The wall's got to be She could have been trapped down here her whole life.
No one would have ever heard her scream.
What? Are you waiting for an invitation? Just thought we'd give Vasko a taste of his own medicine.
I think he's familiar with the tactics of breaking someone.
All you're giving him is time to lawyer up.
And buying ourselves some.
You got something? It's too soon for DNA results, so I ran an Individual Specific Auto-antibodies test on Mr.
Vasko.
It's not admissible in court yet, but it only takes two hours.
Well, how did we get a court order for his DNA already? We didn't need one.
Vasko ran, Fin clothes-lined him, bloodied up his nose on Fin's sleeve.
And Fin was kind enough to pass it along to me.
He's a match for the semen on your girl's dress.
That's all we need.
Hold on.
I'm not finished.
I did get the DNA results from your Jane Doe's rape kit.
She's not Heather.
We figured that one out ourselves.
Did you know her name was Kristen Vucelik? What? She's in the system? No, in CODIS.
She was abducted in Ohio six years ago.
Her mother, Marcie, was certain it was a parental kidnapping.
By her ex-husband, Carl Vucelik.
AKA Carl Vasko.
He changed his last name.
And then held his own daughter in a dungeon to rape her for six long years.
I'm a good man.
I mean, I pay my taxes, I go to church, I do volunteer work.
I mean, I'm a pillar of the community.
Just ask anyone.
How about your ex-wife, Marcie? Marcie's a shrieking, man-hating, ball-busting bitch.
I know that type.
Then why did the court award her sole custody of Kristen after the divorce? Because she filled that sweet little girl's head with lies about me.
Yeah.
And I'm sure they're completely baseless.
Look, are you going to let him talk, or are you going to keep up with the smart-ass remarks? Screw you.
Let the man tell his story! Look, she was raising Kristen to be a shrew, just like her.
I couldn't let that happen.
You knew Kristen would be better off with you.
Exactly.
I saw the lovely little rumpus room you made for her in your basement.
I couldn't let her whore of a mother take her back.
I had to hide her.
Yeah, for six years.
How long until you started raping her? Kristen's a good girl now.
She would never say a word against me.
You really think you have complete control, don't you? That's why you didn't run away after she escaped.
There was nothing to escape from.
Kristen was free to leave at any time, but she didn't.
Well, he is right.
I mean, for the last month, she did have full access to the house and the computer.
That's amazing to me.
There's always that little piece of their mother that's left in them.
How did she manipulate you into getting her that tattoo? No, that was my idea.
She showed me a picture.
I wanted her to have it.
For good luck.
Well, it worked.
She needed it to pass herself off as another person.
She ran away to another family.
Complete strangers are better than you, you disgusting piece of filth.
Where's Kristen? I'd like to see her.
And I would like to see you castrated with a rusty steak knife.
Neither are going to happen, but we can both dream.
You know something? I think you need a sick day.
You're obviously on the rag.
Touch me again, and I will sue you for sexual harassment.
That was a little too convincing.
It was brilliant.
Elliot's going to sucker a full confession out of that idiot.
While you do what? Kristen's 72-hour psych hold is up.
I've got to get the Hallanders to drop the charges before she's transferred to The Tombs.
Liv.
I checked.
Kristen's already on her way there.
Well, I've got to get her out.
Munch and Fin went to talk to the Hallanders.
Where's Greylek? She's tracking down Judge Andrews at a black-tie event.
You didn't see that basement.
I cannot let this girl sit in a cell all night.
It may take a couple of hours, but I'm going to get you out of here.
I always knew I'd die in a cell.
Kristen, I know it doesn't feel like it, but this nightmare is over.
Your father's going to prison, not you.
It doesn't matter.
It's not like there's good anywhere in the world.
Oh, Kristen, that's not true.
Is that why you cut your wrists? All those years in the basement, all I dreamed about was getting out and being part of a real family.
How perfect life would be.
It's never perfect.
But it will get better.
Nikki kept hinting that she knew that I wasn't the real Heather.
And I was afraid that if they found out, they'd kill me.
I'd escape a rapist just to be murdered? But that didn't happen.
You did escape.
How? I gained his trust.
He started letting me out into the house last summer and when I didn't try and run, he started giving me more freedom.
So why didn't you escape then? Because he said that if I tried anything, he'd kill me.
It took me forever to work up the courage.
And I finally did.
Why didn't you turn him in? 'Cause the Hallanders already thought that I was their daughter.
If I told, everyone would know that I didn't belong.
Plus, he's my father.
Kristen, why didn't you go back to your mother in Ohio? My mom died three years ago.
Is that what he told you? He showed me the announcement in the paper.
Kristen, that was fake.
Your mother's alive.
And she hasn't stopped looking for you all these years.
Kristen? Kristen! Mom! Good news.
The slave master is now the prisoner.
Carl Vucelik was denied bail at arraignment.
He's sitting in a cozy little cell at Rikers.
I hear you two bonded.
Oh, yeah.
We're going to stay pen pals.
Kristen and her mom are going back to Ohio today.
I'm gonna let them know that they don't have to worry about Carl anymore.
Marcie, it's Detective Benson calling.
When is she due back? I will check right now.
Something happen to Kristen? She told her mother that she needed to talk to somebody before she left.
The Hallanders are the only people she knows.
Her flight leaves in an hour.
She never came back.
No.
She didn't come here.
Well, has Kristen tried to contact you at all? No.
I haven't seen her since that day in court.
Anthony, go in the other room and watch TV.
Okay, Mommy.
Mom, what are you talking about? We were across the street in the park.
I saw Kristen leave here with Nikki.
No.
Nikki was in her room.
She couldn't have heard anything that Kristen said to us.
You said that she hadn't been here.
Why are you lying to us? Mrs.
Hallander.
What did Kristen tell you about Nikki? For God's sake, Mom, you've made excuses for Nikki her entire life.
What has she done now? Kristen came here to tell me that Nikki had said some bad things to her.
What? What did she say? What did she say? She Nikki said that she knew that she wasn't her sister.
And that she had better leave before the same things happened to her that happened to the real Heather.
Oh, my God.
Nikki killed Heather? Oh, Erica.
I am so sorry.
You knew? You knew the whole time? No! No, not until much later.
But, sweetheart, what was I supposed to do? Oh, my God.
Heather was gone.
I couldn't lose two daughters.
If she does one thing to harm Kristen, you're going away as an accessory to that murder, too.
Where did she take her? I don't know.
Do you know where Nikki killed Heather? Please don't make me do this.
I believe you! No, you have to climb all the way to the top, so you can see what happened to the real Heather.
Kristen! Don't do it, Kristen.
What are you doing here? Kristen, come down off the ladder.
I was just showing her the view.
Tell them.
No! She told me that I had to come! I didn't have a choice! She's lying! Nikki, let her go.
Don't make this any worse.
I didn't do anything! She came here of her own free will.
Just like Heather did.
Stay back.
You made Heather climb that ladder.
You pushed her into the stack.
No.
It was an accident.
Stop it! We know the truth.
She caught me doing drugs.
She was going to tell Mom and Dad! Kristen, come down.
Nikki, I need you to come down from there.
Listen to me.
You don't want to hurt yourself.
I didn't even know I was doing it! I didn't mean it! No, Nikki! Don't! What do you care? You've always hated me.
The whole family has.
That's not true.
Nikki, please.
I don't want to lose you, too.
Come on down.
The police gave up looking for Heather a long time ago.
Why did you pick us? Come on.
In New York City, the dedicated detectives who investigate these vicious felonies are members of an elite squad known as the Special Victims Unit.
These are their stories.
Help! Help! Anthony, what's wrong? Save me, Mommy! Anthony! Baby, what happened? Are you okay? What are you doing? Honey, it's all right.
It's just your silly Aunt Nikki.
Take a pill, Erica, we're just playing.
Hey.
Oh, no, Anthony.
Wait.
No.
No, that's icky.
Let me see.
Bring it, bring it Pizza's on the way up.
Has anybody seen my purse? What are you talking about? You're a guest here.
You don't pay.
Oh, but, Daddy Oh, Erica, don't argue with your father.
His blood pressure's already up 'cause I'm kicking his ass.
Hey.
Language.
Oh.
Hey, Anthony.
Pinch-hit for grandma.
I'm going to go get our dinner.
Okay.
It's me and you, buddy.
It's me and you.
Let's see what you got.
Go ahead.
You got nothing.
You got nothing.
Okay, there's no way Oh, I'm sorry.
We thought you were the person with the pizza.
Can I help you? It's me.
Excuse me? You don't remember me.
Oh, my God, Mom.
It's Heather.
Heather Hallander, vanished four years ago when she was 14.
This is her entire Missing Persons file? Yeah.
450,000 kids run away every year.
Teenager don't want to be found, there's not much we can do.
Why did she run away? She didn't.
But that's how it looked.
The week she disappeared, she was fighting with her parents.
They were planning to ship her off.
Reform school? Fat camp.
Not an ounce of fat on her anymore, though.
Went on a four-year killer diet.
Being held as a sex slave.
She's back in her old room.
We left it exactly like it was, so hopefully that will help.
Heather? Sweetheart? The police are here to speak to you.
I already talked to the police.
Has she given you any details? No.
No.
Excuse me.
Heather.
It's Detective Olivia Benson.
I know this is painful to talk about, but right now, the time is critical.
Why won't she cooperate? Nikki, please.
Go back to your room.
You're Heather's sister? The screw-up middle child, not the sainted, older one.
Nikki.
Heather's disappearance was very hard on Nikki.
Because it was all my fault, right? What makes you say that? Ask Heather.
Ask her what I called her to make her cry and run out the door, never to be seen again.
Nikki, stop it.
This is not about you.
I used to call Heather "heifer.
" I never blamed you, Nikki.
Not once.
I swear.
She's already showered.
Three times.
Hope nobody else needed hot water.
I was first chair clarinet.
He grabbed me the day before the spring concert.
Who grabbed you, Heather? A man.
What was his name? I don't know.
Were you with him this whole time? Yeah.
In four years, you must have called him something.
He made me call him Daddy.
Where did he keep you? In a concrete room.
Do you know where? Do you have an address? I don't know.
Heather, how did you get away? He was drunk.
He forgot to put the padlock on the door, so I ran.
So it was somewhere in the city.
I came out into a basement, up some stairs and onto the street.
I ran until I couldn't run anymore.
I didn't know which way I was going until I got to the park.
When was the last time that he sexually assaulted you? Yesterday.
Okay.
We need to get you to a hospital so you can get examined by a doctor.
Then we'd like you to come along with us, see if you can lead us back to where he kept you.
Are those the clothes you wore? Yeah.
Do you have your underwear? He never let me wear any.
How did he get you? After I ran out of the apartment, I cried for, like, three blocks.
Then I noticed a man was walking next to me.
He said I was too pretty to be crying.
We got to his van and he said he had something that would make me feel better.
You went into the van.
No.
He put a handkerchief over my mouth with some kind of chemical on it.
That's all I remember before I woke up.
Where was that? On a concrete floor.
It was pitch-black.
And I didn't have any clothes on.
I stood up and felt along the walls.
Screaming for help.
I got to a metal door and I started pounding on it.
There was a mattress.
I laid down on it and cried.
I must have fallen asleep.
I woke up when he came in.
He put a combination lock on the inside of the door.
He got on top of me.
I kicked and screamed and hit.
He said he'd come back when I was ready to be sweet.
He said if I couldn't be nice, he'd let me starve to death.
I thought I made it about a week without eating.
He said it was only two days.
And he kept you in this room the whole time? Yeah.
Were there any windows? No.
Running water? There was one of those Old-time bathtubs with the legs.
A claw-foot tub.
It wasn't hooked up to anything, though.
When he wanted me to bathe myself or brush my teeth, he'd lower a garden hose down through a hole in the ceiling.
What did you use for a toilet? A lawn chair with the seat cut out over a bucket.
Can I go now? I just really want to be with my family.
Heather, we know you've been through a lot, but there's a chance that he could snatch another girl to replace you.
Can you hang in there with us just a little longer? Maybe help us find him? This is the first spot I remember knowing where I was.
Which way did you come from? Did you cross 5th Avenue? Do you remember seeing a fountain? No.
No, I came from over there.
I remember the green awning.
I could smell the flowers as I ran by.
Well, you sure it's this one? A lot of these places sell flowers.
No, I'm positive.
I turned down at the corner.
There's a funeral home at the end of the block.
Come on.
It's only six or seven blocks from here.
And it was what? Like, a brownstone? I don't know.
It was dark.
I just ran.
Did he wear any kind of uniform? Anything with a business name on it? No.
Did he have a gun? No.
You think I'm disgusting for not escaping sooner, don't you? Hey.
I don't think that at all.
I dreamed about finding something to stab him with every time he was on me.
But when he came in that room, he put the combination lock on the door.
He said if anything happened to him, I'd die down there.
No funeral home.
What? No, there has to be.
Well, it's okay.
Maybe it's another block down.
No.
No.
It was on the same block.
Maybe we went the wrong way back at the subway.
I don't know! Heather.
Heather, calm down.
It's okay.
It's okay.
I can't do this.
Why don't we go back to the car? Let's go back to the car.
I just We're going to sit someplace quiet for a second.
No worries.
Okay? Can we just do this tomorrow? I just I want to see my family.
I want to go home.
Don't worry about it.
Yes.
Please.
I just want to see my mom.
Okay.
We'll come pick you up tomorrow at 9:00.
Okay? Okay, remember, anything between now and then, Heather, I want you to call me.
Any time.
Sorry I was so useless.
It's hard to think.
My body aches.
The doctor said you have a quite a vitamin D deficiency from lack of sunlight.
Heather Hallander! Heather over here! Oh, God.
It's Harris from the Ledger.
Come on.
Did he just take my picture? Heather, can I get a quick statement? Call the DCPI.
They'll give you everything you need.
Do you have any words Are they going to print my photo? as a sex slave? Not if he has a conscience.
Heather, what was the lowest point of your four years in captivity? You take a step in that building, I'll arrest you for trespassing.
You.
Be a human being.
Erase the photos.
What world do you live in? Cute middle-class white girl held as a sex slave.
The story is huge.
I asked you nice once.
Come on.
I'm asking you nice.
Son of a bitch! That's a shame.
Looks expensive.
$4,595 for one and the Ledger is demanding disciplinary action be taken against you.
I never touched the guy.
I just can't believe the vultures got a photo off that memory card.
Classy.
Used to be no one would ever publish a rape victim's photo.
Well, that was before newspapers started going the way of the dodo.
I'm sure readership will be up today.
Sorry, Captain.
I've got Heather Hallander's sister out here and she's not too happy.
She wants to talk to the person in charge.
Let her in.
How could you have let this happen? Hasn't my sister been through enough torture? Has Heather seen it? No.
I called my parents and told them to make sure she didn't.
Good.
I promise you, we'll do everything we can to keep the press away from her today.
Look, she is scared to death safe at home with her own family.
What are you thinking, dragging her through the city? We're trying to find her abductor.
You're worse than the Missing Persons detective.
All he ever did was call us once a month to see if we'd heard from her.
I had to start my own website asking for tips.
Did you get any that we might be able to use? No.
I was at the apartment the day it happened.
She ran right by me out the door.
I should have gone after her.
That was Heather's father.
She's not feeling well.
The drive-along is off.
She saw the paper.
They tried to keep it from her, but the sister, Nikki, slipped her a copy.
The brat sister isn't helping at all.
You ask me, we bring Nikki in here for a sit-down.
What are you? A social worker now? Hardly.
The day Heather ran out after Nikki called her fat, Mom sent the brat after her to apologize.
Nikki never found Heather.
Yeah.
So she claims.
Nikki was 16 years old.
What did she do? Sell her younger sister as a sex slave? No.
But maybe she saw her get in the van.
And never said anything? Nikki admitted that she tormented her little sister.
Maybe she was glad to see her go.
Parents said that she's been on a downward spiral ever since.
Sounds like guilt to me.
Or acting like a teenager.
Anything back from forensics? Scarring from long-term sexual abuse.
Munch.
But no DNA on the rape kit.
Well, Heather scrubbed herself clean.
We kind of expected that.
The lab found semen on the dress.
They're working up a DNA profile now.
If we're lucky, the perv is already in the system.
Hang on.
Guys, I got a tip from a concerned citizen.
Divine intervention.
I was conflicted whether to call you or not.
I prayed for guidance and then I flipped a coin.
Listen, Father, you point us in the right direction, we'll keep it between us and the confessional.
The seal of the confessional is sacred and absolute.
It's nothing I heard.
It's something I witnessed.
In that case, it's kosher.
This girl, I've seen her before.
Where? At Mass, the last four Sundays.
Are you sure it was Heather? Did you talk to her? I tried.
In a sea of faces, the ones in true spiritual crisis always stand out.
I wanted to talk to her, but they always came late and then left immediately after the service.
They? An older gentleman.
Fifties.
He's attended over the years intermittently.
You have his name and address? He's not on our membership rolls.
I'm not comfortable dropping a dime, but the paper said another girl could be at risk.
Would it help if I talked to Heather? Thanks, Father, but we need someone who can report a confession.
Heather, the man that was holding you, did he ever take you outside? No! Never! I've told you that.
We have a chance to catch your abuser.
That's why there's no reason for you to hold back any important details.
Like what? Like Saint Francis Cathedral.
I don't know what you're talking about.
Based on your reaction, I would say that you do.
Somebody saw you there.
They saw you with an older man.
They're lying.
I really want to help you.
But I can't unless you're honest with me.
I want you to go now.
Heather, please, listen.
Go! He raped me every day! He stole my childhood from me! And if you don't believe me, then get out! Okay.
Well, outbursts of rage aren't unheard of in a sexual abuse victim.
If she was abused.
Well, for all we know, she ran off with a boyfriend.
When it's time to come home and face the music, she concocts a story that gets her sympathy.
Even if it was a boyfriend, she was 14.
It's still stat rape.
And the doctor confirmed a vitamin D deficiency.
She was definitely locked up away out of the sun for years.
Not necessarily.
When the hole formed in the ozone layer, skin cancers increased, opening up billion-dollar dermatology and sunscreen industries, which, in turn, have caused a mini-epidemic of vitamin D deficiencies.
So our choices are bone disease or skin cancer.
You can't win.
Well, there's always moderation.
Okay, Doc.
Was she abducted or not? I wouldn't rule it out.
Even with the lies about her field trips to church? After four years, he's established total domination over her.
Heather's programmed to follow orders blindly and without question.
The ultimate test of his power is taking her out in public.
Well, that does bother me.
I mean, he took her to a church.
You got 200 people there.
It's a sanctuary.
Why not scream? Ask for help? Because his control over her was so complete, she couldn't.
I once worked a case in Rochester where the perp took a victim who he had kept for two years to a karaoke bar.
They got up and they sang a song together.
No one suspected.
Heather is safe now.
Why isn't she helping? Extreme Stockholm syndrome.
She's bonded with her captor as a survival mechanism And now has this misguided need to protect him.
Detective Benson.
Where are they taking her? I'm on my way.
Heather slit her wrists.
Heather Hallander? They're bringing her in now.
She's tachy at 160.
Lost a lot of blood.
Grab a suture kit.
We're in the hospital now, honey.
Everything's going to be okay.
Do you know her blood type in case we have to transfuse her? God.
I don't know.
A, we're both type A.
Type and cross three units of A.
You'll have to wait here.
Good morning.
I heard you're feeling better today.
Yeah.
Life's great.
Heather, I'm sorry.
I didn't mean to upset you.
I didn't do this 'cause of you.
Then why did you do it? 'Cause all these years, I dreamed of being back with my family.
But I'm a freak.
I'm never going to belong anywhere.
Heather.
That's not true.
Your family couldn't bear to lose you again.
Nobody's comfortable around me.
Nikki hates me.
My mom can't even look me in the eye.
Listen to me.
You're having a hard time adjusting.
It's going to take a little time.
And counseling.
I don't know what to do.
I know you don't believe it right now, but bringing your abuser to justice is going to go a long way in helping you heal.
Now, you may have blocked out some details, but you just tell me when you remember, okay? Heather? Okay.
Heather's stable now, but I'm putting her on a 72-hour psych hold for evaluation.
Now, you know that we're trying to track down her abductor.
Yeah, the nurses showed me the story in the Ledger.
We can't find him without her.
I'm sorry, but it's for her own safety.
When she was on painkillers, did she say anything that could help us? No.
Anything that seemed off? I don't know if it's relevant, but when we determine a child's blood type through their parents, we always pull the mother aside to make sure the father is the father.
In case mom cheated.
Mrs.
Hallander told me she didn't.
They're both type A, which means Heather can only be type A.
Right.
Good thing we always confirm with a rapid agglutination test to cover our asses against malpractice.
Heather is type B.
She's not their child.
I don't know what to say.
They said Heather wasn't adopted.
Maybe Mrs.
Hallander stepped out for a little strange.
She didn't.
Dr.
Manning said with her blood type, there's no way she gave birth to Heather.
That leaves one possibility.
Heather is not Heather.
It doesn't make sense.
How could her own family not recognize her? The age difference helped.
Weight loss didn't hurt.
How many of those before-and-after pictures in the diet ads does the bikini model even look like the lady in the muumuu? I'm not convinced it always is.
But check this out.
When I overlay the photos, the forehead is larger.
In one, the jawline is square.
In the other, it's oval.
I don't understand how a mother wouldn't know her own child.
Yeah, but Mrs.
Hallander didn't recognize this girl until sister Erica saw that tattoo on her wrist.
Munch, zoom in on the ink.
Put them up side by side.
Looks the same to me.
Except they're mirror images.
On this one, the stem curves to the right.
On this one, it curves to the left.
The girl is a con artist.
Then why would she try to kill herself? Maybe she knew the game was up.
Who's going to break it to the Hallanders that their real daughter is still missing? Let me talk to Heather first.
Liv, she's not Heather.
Hi, Olivia.
My dad thinks I should go to college, so he dropped off these study guides to get me started.
That's nice.
Is that my clarinet? It is.
I thought you could play something for me.
I don't think I'd remember how.
You were first chair.
Why don't you try putting it together and see what comes back? I don't really feel like it right now.
You must have gotten that tattoo when you were young.
What's the story? There's no story.
I just got it.
Where? A tattoo parlor.
No, you didn't.
The boy Nikki was dating bought a kit on eBay.
They convinced Heather to let him give her a tattoo.
The Hallanders were furious.
Nikki never saw the boy again.
Heather was grounded for a month.
I'm Heather, I'm Heather.
When Heather went missing, the lab took DNA from her toothbrush.
We're going to run the DNA from your rape kit.
In a few days, when the results come back, we're going to compare the two.
I'm so sorry.
Who are you? Nobody.
Was any part of your story true? The basement? The rape? It doesn't matter.
Can you please just forget it? No, I can't do that.
Tell me.
Do you even know the real Heather? No.
No, I don't.
I just saw her on the Internet, and we had the same hair.
Why would you do this? Because Because I needed a family, and they needed a daughter.
I didn't hurt anybody.
Do you have any idea what you've done to these people? No.
That rancid bitch.
I knew it.
You knew it wasn't Heather? Not for sure.
But I knew she came back wrong.
There was a connection missing.
I thought it was my fault.
I thought I was a bad mother.
Who is she really? What's her name? We don't know and she's not talking.
Her prints aren't in the system.
She didn't act like Heather at all.
But we just assumed it was because of what she'd been through.
She knew so many details.
Well, some she got from the Internet, others from Heather's room after she got here.
From scrapbooks, albums And our Heather? Where is she? I'm sorry, but there's no new information.
That piece of garbage knows where she is.
I don't care what you say.
She knew way too much.
She must have met Heather.
We don't think so.
So who's paying for the comfy hospital room she's sitting in? Not our insurance.
She isn't even a relative.
There has to be a law against what she's done, right? There is, but we believe she's an EDP.
What's that? An Emotionally Disturbed Person.
I don't care if she's the Queen of Sheba.
We want her arrested.
Now.
Docket ending 26041.
"The People v.
Jane Doe.
"One count Identity Theft, one count Fraud.
" How does your client plead? Not guilty, Your Honor.
Please.
Please don't do this to me.
Counselor, control your client.
As to the matter of bail? People request $20,000.
Why not a billion? My client is indigent, Your Honor.
She has no family, no friends.
No name.
Perhaps if the defendant provided us with one, the People would consider her less of a flight risk.
Young lady, this nice prosecutor is opening a door for you.
Would you care to tell the court your name? You realize that does make it harder to trust you.
Your Honor, my client is currently under a 72-hour psych hold.
She's not going anywhere.
Then let's make sure she doesn't.
Bail is set at $20,000.
The defendant is ordered to complete her psychiatric observation at the Bellevue Prison Ward, and then be transferred to The Tombs for processing.
The Tombs? Court Officer, escort the defendant.
I don't understand.
How am I supposed to get money for bail? Next case.
Wait.
She knows where my sister, Heather, is.
You have to make her tell us.
You need to talk to the prosecutor.
No, please.
Just put her under oath right now and make her tell.
Erica, she doesn't know anything.
If you can't control yourself in my courtroom, I'll have you removed.
Please don't let her leave this room without telling us! Erica, we'll talk after court.
No, ask her! Court Officers, remove this woman.
Why are you doing this to us? We took you into our home.
We trusted you.
Where is Heather? What has happened to her? You have to tell us! I know she knows.
Show her what you found.
Okay.
This girl needed to assume a new identity.
First, she logs on to the American Center for Lost and Exploited Children website.
She enters female, New York, and missing within four years.
There's so many.
She cursors down until she finds one she could feasibly pass herself off as.
Heather.
She googles her and finds your website.
You've been blogging about her for years.
Friends have logged on and shared stories about her.
She prints a close-up of her tattoo and gets the same one.
She got all the information she needed from me.
Not Heather.
Great.
Can you describe him? Perfect.
I'd like you to fax over his credit card information.
Erica, I want you to know that we're taking over your sister's case and we'll be doing everything we can to find her.
Thank you.
El.
We called every tattoo parlor in the city.
She got a four-leaf clover at Tito's Tats.
Okay, but what are you doing? She already admitted that she made everything up.
I know this girl was abused.
The man with her paid with a credit card.
His name is Carl Vasko.
He matches the priest's description of the man that was with her in church.
So if he's her abuser, why would he buy her a tattoo so she can pose as someone else? I don't know.
Let's go ask him.
Whatever you're selling, I'm not interested.
We're not selling.
We're collecting.
You.
Carl Vasko, we have a warrant for your arrest.
Arrest? What the hell for? Well, like you don't know.
Remember her? We got a runner! Vasko, stop! We got a dropper.
You're under arrest.
You have the right to remain silent.
Liv? Liv! What are you doing? I thought I saw Vasko go this way.
He tried to evade arrest.
Anything we find during the commission of a crime is fair game.
It's the steel door she described.
The wall's got to be She could have been trapped down here her whole life.
No one would have ever heard her scream.
What? Are you waiting for an invitation? Just thought we'd give Vasko a taste of his own medicine.
I think he's familiar with the tactics of breaking someone.
All you're giving him is time to lawyer up.
And buying ourselves some.
You got something? It's too soon for DNA results, so I ran an Individual Specific Auto-antibodies test on Mr.
Vasko.
It's not admissible in court yet, but it only takes two hours.
Well, how did we get a court order for his DNA already? We didn't need one.
Vasko ran, Fin clothes-lined him, bloodied up his nose on Fin's sleeve.
And Fin was kind enough to pass it along to me.
He's a match for the semen on your girl's dress.
That's all we need.
Hold on.
I'm not finished.
I did get the DNA results from your Jane Doe's rape kit.
She's not Heather.
We figured that one out ourselves.
Did you know her name was Kristen Vucelik? What? She's in the system? No, in CODIS.
She was abducted in Ohio six years ago.
Her mother, Marcie, was certain it was a parental kidnapping.
By her ex-husband, Carl Vucelik.
AKA Carl Vasko.
He changed his last name.
And then held his own daughter in a dungeon to rape her for six long years.
I'm a good man.
I mean, I pay my taxes, I go to church, I do volunteer work.
I mean, I'm a pillar of the community.
Just ask anyone.
How about your ex-wife, Marcie? Marcie's a shrieking, man-hating, ball-busting bitch.
I know that type.
Then why did the court award her sole custody of Kristen after the divorce? Because she filled that sweet little girl's head with lies about me.
Yeah.
And I'm sure they're completely baseless.
Look, are you going to let him talk, or are you going to keep up with the smart-ass remarks? Screw you.
Let the man tell his story! Look, she was raising Kristen to be a shrew, just like her.
I couldn't let that happen.
You knew Kristen would be better off with you.
Exactly.
I saw the lovely little rumpus room you made for her in your basement.
I couldn't let her whore of a mother take her back.
I had to hide her.
Yeah, for six years.
How long until you started raping her? Kristen's a good girl now.
She would never say a word against me.
You really think you have complete control, don't you? That's why you didn't run away after she escaped.
There was nothing to escape from.
Kristen was free to leave at any time, but she didn't.
Well, he is right.
I mean, for the last month, she did have full access to the house and the computer.
That's amazing to me.
There's always that little piece of their mother that's left in them.
How did she manipulate you into getting her that tattoo? No, that was my idea.
She showed me a picture.
I wanted her to have it.
For good luck.
Well, it worked.
She needed it to pass herself off as another person.
She ran away to another family.
Complete strangers are better than you, you disgusting piece of filth.
Where's Kristen? I'd like to see her.
And I would like to see you castrated with a rusty steak knife.
Neither are going to happen, but we can both dream.
You know something? I think you need a sick day.
You're obviously on the rag.
Touch me again, and I will sue you for sexual harassment.
That was a little too convincing.
It was brilliant.
Elliot's going to sucker a full confession out of that idiot.
While you do what? Kristen's 72-hour psych hold is up.
I've got to get the Hallanders to drop the charges before she's transferred to The Tombs.
Liv.
I checked.
Kristen's already on her way there.
Well, I've got to get her out.
Munch and Fin went to talk to the Hallanders.
Where's Greylek? She's tracking down Judge Andrews at a black-tie event.
You didn't see that basement.
I cannot let this girl sit in a cell all night.
It may take a couple of hours, but I'm going to get you out of here.
I always knew I'd die in a cell.
Kristen, I know it doesn't feel like it, but this nightmare is over.
Your father's going to prison, not you.
It doesn't matter.
It's not like there's good anywhere in the world.
Oh, Kristen, that's not true.
Is that why you cut your wrists? All those years in the basement, all I dreamed about was getting out and being part of a real family.
How perfect life would be.
It's never perfect.
But it will get better.
Nikki kept hinting that she knew that I wasn't the real Heather.
And I was afraid that if they found out, they'd kill me.
I'd escape a rapist just to be murdered? But that didn't happen.
You did escape.
How? I gained his trust.
He started letting me out into the house last summer and when I didn't try and run, he started giving me more freedom.
So why didn't you escape then? Because he said that if I tried anything, he'd kill me.
It took me forever to work up the courage.
And I finally did.
Why didn't you turn him in? 'Cause the Hallanders already thought that I was their daughter.
If I told, everyone would know that I didn't belong.
Plus, he's my father.
Kristen, why didn't you go back to your mother in Ohio? My mom died three years ago.
Is that what he told you? He showed me the announcement in the paper.
Kristen, that was fake.
Your mother's alive.
And she hasn't stopped looking for you all these years.
Kristen? Kristen! Mom! Good news.
The slave master is now the prisoner.
Carl Vucelik was denied bail at arraignment.
He's sitting in a cozy little cell at Rikers.
I hear you two bonded.
Oh, yeah.
We're going to stay pen pals.
Kristen and her mom are going back to Ohio today.
I'm gonna let them know that they don't have to worry about Carl anymore.
Marcie, it's Detective Benson calling.
When is she due back? I will check right now.
Something happen to Kristen? She told her mother that she needed to talk to somebody before she left.
The Hallanders are the only people she knows.
Her flight leaves in an hour.
She never came back.
No.
She didn't come here.
Well, has Kristen tried to contact you at all? No.
I haven't seen her since that day in court.
Anthony, go in the other room and watch TV.
Okay, Mommy.
Mom, what are you talking about? We were across the street in the park.
I saw Kristen leave here with Nikki.
No.
Nikki was in her room.
She couldn't have heard anything that Kristen said to us.
You said that she hadn't been here.
Why are you lying to us? Mrs.
Hallander.
What did Kristen tell you about Nikki? For God's sake, Mom, you've made excuses for Nikki her entire life.
What has she done now? Kristen came here to tell me that Nikki had said some bad things to her.
What? What did she say? What did she say? She Nikki said that she knew that she wasn't her sister.
And that she had better leave before the same things happened to her that happened to the real Heather.
Oh, my God.
Nikki killed Heather? Oh, Erica.
I am so sorry.
You knew? You knew the whole time? No! No, not until much later.
But, sweetheart, what was I supposed to do? Oh, my God.
Heather was gone.
I couldn't lose two daughters.
If she does one thing to harm Kristen, you're going away as an accessory to that murder, too.
Where did she take her? I don't know.
Do you know where Nikki killed Heather? Please don't make me do this.
I believe you! No, you have to climb all the way to the top, so you can see what happened to the real Heather.
Kristen! Don't do it, Kristen.
What are you doing here? Kristen, come down off the ladder.
I was just showing her the view.
Tell them.
No! She told me that I had to come! I didn't have a choice! She's lying! Nikki, let her go.
Don't make this any worse.
I didn't do anything! She came here of her own free will.
Just like Heather did.
Stay back.
You made Heather climb that ladder.
You pushed her into the stack.
No.
It was an accident.
Stop it! We know the truth.
She caught me doing drugs.
She was going to tell Mom and Dad! Kristen, come down.
Nikki, I need you to come down from there.
Listen to me.
You don't want to hurt yourself.
I didn't even know I was doing it! I didn't mean it! No, Nikki! Don't! What do you care? You've always hated me.
The whole family has.
That's not true.
Nikki, please.
I don't want to lose you, too.
Come on down.
The police gave up looking for Heather a long time ago.
Why did you pick us? Come on.