A/N: I'm glad you all enjoyed the chapter. :) I hope you enjoy this one as well.
"If you take the kids and go
I can't blame you for the things you know
And when I'm out there on the road
I think of you and those kids at home"
10,000 Weight in Gold by The Head and the Heart
Casey stood in her bathroom looking at herself in the mirror. Inspecting herself for any flaws. She needed to look perfect today for two reasons and two reasons only.
A potential verdict, and mediation.
Her trial of the century was finished with the exception of the jury's answer. If the defendant was found guilty it would have life changing possibilities for her. Doors would open to show her the way to the District Attorney position. Sacrifices she'd made in raising her children would instantly be worth it. However, if she lost...
She shook her head clear. She couldn't afford to think that way. Not today, not ever.
Looking back into the mirror she fixed the hairs she'd caused to go astray, finished applying her lipstick, and sprayed some perfume. Now she looked complete. She was ready for war.
Turning to leave the marbled room she looked to Charlie's side. To the cabinet where his medicine stayed when he left. It was so unlike him to be so careless. End of marriage or not, he'd never been that careless. She truly hoped he was taking care of himself. Frowning, she realized she'd know for sure today just how he was doing.
It was a hard pill to swallow, not caring for the person she considered her best friend. Yes, at one point in life they'd been lovers, but for her, that had ended before the conception of Kate. An affair, two kids and a decade could change so much.
Trying to leave the painful thoughts behind, she walked into her room, making her way to the closet. The apartment seemed so quiet. It was a nice change to the chaos that had been occurring while Rosita was out. The blessed nanny already had the kids en route to school.
Casey had almost gotten used to Danny playing on the floor of the closet while she dressed in the morning. And, she definitely missed Kate's scowl from her bed. All while Alex had tried to play caregiver.
A smile suddenly spread across her face at the thought of the blonde. Even if their relationship had been a little bumpy over the last week, Casey was forever thankful to have the stubborn Ice Queen back in her life.
Finally locating the right heels, Casey slipped them on and looked at herself once more in the mirror. She felt so prepared, but was at the mercy of everyone else today. It was how it tended to go for an attorney, but the fact that Charlie held all the cards today made her paralyzingly uneasy.
"Are you ready, yet?" Kim's curt voice stopped her thoughts instantly.
Turning to face her sister in law, Casey replied a steady, "Yes."
"I'm glad," the brunette sighed as she placed her hand on her burgeoning belly.
Casey smiled, but knew more was to come.
"You should have let me file for custody for you."
There it was. Clear as day.
"Charlie said we'd sort it out today," Casey started only to be interrupted.
"He's unpredictable!" Kim snapped, "Even Alex agreed with me. What are you going to do if he argues that you are too absent to be a parent?"
"He travels numerous months out of the year," Casey countered, "I live in the same city as them. It will never stand."
"Job's change Casey, and he's been there primary caretaker until this occurred."
"Knock, knock!" Came Alex's voice from outside the bedroom interrupting the argument at the perfect time. "I let myself in because you two were obviously arguing too loud to hear the door."
"You hit that nail on the head," Kim grumbled as she turned to leave, "And your brother agrees too!" She yelled as she exited.
Alex smirked at the clearly angry redhead, "Fun morning?"
"You can never agree with her again," Casey answered before kissing the blonde hello.
"No deal," Alex whispered before kissing her again, "You might become a dictator if that happened."
Casey laughed for the first time that morning. Even when they were stressed Alex could find the perfect words to cut the tension.
The drive to the courthouse was too easy that morning. Casey didn't know if it was a good sign or a bad one though. She had court until four in the afternoon unless a verdict came in earlier. Then she had mediation at four thirty.
It would be a roller coaster day. Court would be easy for the most part. She'd sit in the ADA conference room until called for a dismissal for lunch and then later the day. Mediation would be the rough part. It would be the first time she'd see Charlie in weeks, only to end their marriage and wreck their kids lives.
Taking a deep breath, she tried to calm herself as Alex led the way from the parking garage to the elevator and eventually into the courtroom. Then she'd worn the appropriate game face until dismissed to the conference room.
In a way, the redhead felt like she'd been on autopilot. She barely even remembered the journey. She didn't even remember sitting in a chair near the window or have any recollection of how long she'd been there.
Suddenly, Alex touched her arm and brought her back to earth. "Would you like some water?"
Green eyes locked onto blue, and Casey found herself suddenly so fearful. "Do you think I made a mistake?"
At first Alex thought she meant the case, but then she recognized the look in Casey's eyes. It was pure terror. "Case..."
"Fuck," she exclaimed as she leaned forward placing her head on her knees, "How bad?"
Alex rubbed her back, "If it becomes a custody battle we will pull every string in the book. But right now, look me in the eyes."
Taking a hard breath, Casey sat up and looked at her girlfriend as tears streamed from her eyes.
"You can't worry about it right now. You just can't. You can't go back in time and change it now. You just have to wait till four thirty."
Casey nodded and whispered a meek, "I know," before wiping her cheeks, "I just can't lose them completely. Not now. I have so much -" her voice cracked as a sob broke free.
"I know-" Alex began before a knock came at the door. It was a bailiff.
"Ms. Novak," he started before seeing her state and diverting his eyes back to the hallway, "You are needed back in court."
A verdict was in.
Again, as if on autopilot, Casey's mind stopped focusing. She cleaned herself up, fixed her makeup and hair, and made her journey again back to court. Game face fixed, she tried to be her usual demanding and strong self. It was a total contrast to the way she felt. Inside she felt as it she was being violently torn to pieces.
The day couldn't end quickly enough.
The bailiff from the hallway appeared at the doorway to the judges chambers and bellowed, "All rise for the honorable Judge Petrovsky." Eliciting a small jump from Casey who was still trapped in her head.
Alex sensing Casey's disconnect attempted to make her laugh. "Yay, our favorite," she whispered before they stood. She loved seeing a small smile form on Casey's lips.
Trying to focus, Casey responded, "Let's play ball."
Casey's eyes were glued to the petite older judge as she walked to the bench. Most of Casey's SVU career had been bringing cases before this woman. And the fact that a case of this magnitude had been brought before her was terrifying.
Petrovsky was known for being firm and sometimes brutal. Everyone at the DA's office had panicked when she'd been selected even Jack McCoy. However, Casey had been her usual cocky self and not batted an eye at it. She knew the system and what to say to win a jury quickly. However, she hadn't anticipated they would take five days to deliberate. That had caused huge concern and lots of whiskey to be consumed at night. She'd known that they needed to hurry up and make a decision before the elder judge called a mistrial. Casey was completely shocked that it hadn't come two days prior.
Maybe Petrovsky was going soft. Or maybe Casey had one the judges opinion during court.
Taking her seat, Petrovsky began, "You may sit, it seems the jury has finally reached an agreement."
The sudden cacophony that erupted was quickly squashed by the elder judge and her gavel. "Quiet in my court!" Silence befell, and she continued, "Bailiff, is the jury ready?"
The man nodded, and left the room. The defense began whispering to Mr. Hamilton. Casey couldn't help but shoot the evil man a smirk of disapproval.
"It's showtime," Alex whispered as the door reopened.
Again, Casey's head was buzzing. It must have been adrenaline overload. All she could recognize was Petrovsky's lips moving, they were standing, and suddenly the elected juror speaking.
"We the people of the jury find the defendant, Marcus Hamilton..."
The familiar clicking sound of her heels moving swiftly across the floors of the courthouse was all Casey could register. The people that parted before her, like the Red Sea had for Moses, seemed to have gone mute. Between the clicking and her pulse in her ears, Casey was momentarily deaf. She knew people were talking to her. She knew she should respond to Liv and Elliot, to everyone who'd supported her through this messy case, but she couldn't. Now was her time to address the press.
As her hand took the door to push it open, she looked back at Alex who waited for her to exit. It was that look that said this is your moment. She nodded an understanding and pushed hard, letting the blast of cold air envelop her as she exited the historic building.
The moment she exited reporters were screaming her name. All sound instantly resumed in her head, and the world was howling at her. Walking forward down the first set of steps, she positioned herself at the top of the landing.
Taking a deep breath she began, "Good afternoon, I am Senior Assistant District Attorney Casey Novak. I was the head prosecutor leading the case against Mr. Hamilton, and I am here today to announce that the state is pleased to inform the public that the jury found Mr. Hamilton guilty on all charges of first degree rape and murder, and felony embezzlement."
The uproar of the crowd of reporters was phenomenal. She'd addressed the press after wins before, but had never received this sort of feedback. Looking back towards the courthouse she saw her support. A smiling Alex. Those blue eyes lit with approval. In that moment, Casey knew without Alex her moment to shine like this never would have been possible.
She'd won more than a case. She'd won her moment to win public approval. Every sacrifice she'd made was finally worth it.
Now, she just had to win her kids, otherwise this monumental moment wouldn't be worth it.
Four thirty came all to quickly. By the time she finished with the press, returned to the DA's office to be congratulated by everyone including the Murray the security guard, laughed off suggestions of running for Mayor, and finally made it to her office, it was time to head back to the courthouse. Today was insane to put it simply.
She and Alex had snagged a cab to the DA's office, and were now grabbing one to return to the courthouse. Standing silently side by side, Casey could feel her heart rate begin to accelerate again. Clearly worse this time. Placing a hand to her chest, she took a sharp inhale.
Alex turned to look at her. "Are you okay?"
"It's anxiety," Casey admitted, "normally, I'd pop a Xanax, but I need my wits about me. If I don't, Kim might beat me up later." She was attempting to make a joke regarding her hormonal sister in law, but even she didn't laugh.
The blonde played along and gave a weak smile, "I know we turned the officers down on a celebration tonight, but pending everything goes well, I think we should crash their party."
As a cab pulled up to them, Casey frowned, "I don't think either way I will feel like partying."
Alex opened the door but stood in its way, "Are you sure you want this?"
At that moment, Casey finally pieced the puzzle of Alex's feelings together. "Is that what this is? You think I regret my decision to get divorced?"
"Yeah, I worry about it. Not originally, but since this last week I suppose -" she found her words being cut off my Casey's lips instantly pressed to hers. It was quick, but full of passion. When she pulled back, Alex couldn't help but want for more.
"I don't regret the divorce. I hate that it's hurting my kids, and my best friend. I may not romantically love Charlie, but I love him like family. And I hate that he's hurting the way he is...I hope you can understand that," she admitted.
Alex gave her a nod and stepped aside. Casey climbed in without another word and Alex joined her. Giving the cabbie their impending location, the couple began discussing the upcoming changes.
"What do you want to do about your housing?" Alex asked sympathetically as she took Casey's hand in hers. She wanted to invite them to move in with her, but she felt that wasn't a long term wise decision for the kids.
Casey hummed, "I hate shopping for real estate. Honestly, I haven't even begun searching. I wanted to know my final financial situation before I launched myself down that road."
Looking outside the window at the darkening sky and cold streets Alex nodded in understanding, "Well, finances aside, what would you like? Maybe I can help you search."
Casey looked at the woman sitting next to her. Her black overcoat, bright blonde hair, black framed glasses, pale white skin and rosy cheeks. She was gorgeous always. Especially in this moment.
"A warehouse apartment. Lots of rustic windows, open floor plan. Loft area for the kids, with bedrooms upstairs. I want to stand in the kitchen look up and yell for them to quiet down. A small balcony patio setup. Lots of white washed bricks. I want a real family looking space." She confessed. "That's what I've dreamed of since Danny was born. A space that was me."
Seeing the courthouse come back in to view, Alex replied, "Then that is what I will look for." Addressing the cabbie, she continued, "Will you please pull around the back, we are going to enter through the attorney entrance."
"Thank you," Casey responded. She'd had enough of the press for the day. The excitement for her win was fantastic, but she didn't need that before sitting in a judge included mediation.
Standing in a fifth floor conference room of the courthouse Casey felt a bit awkward. She wasn't use to being on the family court level. As a matter of a fact, the last time she was on this floor was two years prior when a kid had been shot to death in front of her.
Forcing those memories away, she turned to her sister in law. "So, this is your show, what do we do?"
"Well, first and foremost, Alex," Kim addressed, "You will wait here for us to return. It would not look favorable for you to join. Second, Casey, I need you to remember you are not acting as your own counsel. You leave that up to me."
Biting her bottom lip, she nodded in agreement, "Okay," she eventually answered, "No pulling an Alex."
"Hey!" Alex exclaimed, "I only did that once."
Rolling her eyes, Kim continued, "I have a few tricks planned if the custody goes astray. You need to let me run that show. Stay calm at all times. Do you promise me?"
Casey winced at these words, Kim used to be a hothead back in her prosecution days, which were short lived thank god, but she was a very successful divorce attorney. "Fine, you have my word."
A big smile formed on the pregnant woman's face, "Fantastic, that's what I love to hear!"
Again came a knock at the door, and again a bailiff said it was time. Once more, Casey felt as if she were on autopilot. Maybe it was her body's way of keeping her safe today.
As the door to the small intimate court proceedings opened, she was surprised to find nothing more than a table and chairs. It was nothing like her courtrooms downstairs. Clearly she needed to explore the old building more.
From the other side, Charlie's attorney, Bruce Coffey, entered with another young man that Casey didn't know. It must have been one of his apprentices here to see an easy case. Yet, there was no Charlie.
Then the bailiff again secured their attention with an all rise for the Honorable Judge Anne Sciola.
Shit, Casey thought to herself. It was the same judge from that horrible day on this floor. What were her chances?
"Good afternoon," she addressed as she took her seat at the head of the table, "And I think we should all say a quick congratulations to Ms. Novak on her win today."
Kim gave Casey a knowing nod, as the other counsel added a, "Here, here."
The judge continued, "So, today we are looking over the dissolution of marriage between Charles E. Williamson and Casey D. Novak, however, I see Mr. Williamson is absent from the proceedings today, why is that?"
Casey perked up, she was just as curious in this matter especially since they were supposed to be hashing out custody arrangements. Kim swapped a folder with another on the table as opposing counsel prepared to explain. Watching the movements Casey promptly felt like she'd made a deal with the devil.
Clearing his throat, Bruce began, "Mr. Williamson was unable to meet his connecting flight on his return trip from Hong Kong. He wanted to make it here your Honor, but the matters were out of his hands."
"Well," Judge Sciola began in a frustrated tone let's take a look at things, "I see the couple has agreed on all terms accept custody, is that still true for all agreed upon terms?"
"Yes, your Honor," Kim answered, quickly followed by opposing counsel.
"Good," The Judge continued as she stamped and signed off on the dissolution of marriage, "Then I declare you divorced. Now as for custody of the minors?"
Kim hesitated, she clearly wanted to know what Charlie had in mind before she made her attack. Casey felt like she was watching a shark circle it's wounded prey. She couldn't help but wonder if opposing counsel felt the same.
Bruce cleared his throat again, "Mr. Williamson is requesting primary custody of the minor children. Preferably a 90/10 split. He is offering Ms. Novak an every other weekend arrangement only. He is also requesting that he get the children on all holidays and make all primary decisions regarding their care. He would like this arrangement to go in effect immediately. The children in the meantime will be transported by their nanny to Mr. Williamson's family residence until Ms. Novak's next available time sharing."
Casey instantly felt as if she'd been gutted like a fish. She was sure she looked as if all color had drained from her skin. It was almost an out of body experience for her to hear what followed.
"On what grounds does Mr. Williamson have for making such an outdated plea of my court?" The judge had questioned.
"Mr. Williamson is the primary caretaker your Honor. Ms. Novak could not even find time to care for a child sick with the flu the past few weeks-" Bruce attempted only to be cut off by Kim's attack.
"I object your Honor," She began as she forcefully slid her swapped folder across to the judge. "Ms. Novak, as you know is one of the states lead and may I add best prosecutors. She may not always be free to sit at home and care for her children when they are sick, but are we now a community that punishes working mother's? Let her record stand for itself, she goes above and beyond to ensure that all victims get justice. Are we suggesting all parents to quit their jobs and stay home?"
Removing her hand from the file to allow the judge to take it, Kim continued, "We are requesting that Ms. Novak be granted sole custody from henceforth until Mr. Williamson return to set up a new arrangement. He left town abruptly, and has not contacted his children once since leaving. I beg to wonder how he was even informed of his son's illness."
The air was suddenly still in the small room, and Casey couldn't even be sure if she was breathing. She felt blindsided by Charlie. Even if everyone had warned her, she didn't think he'd actually try to dismember their family like that.
Her thoughts were interrupted when Judge Sciola continued, "After hearing Ms. Greylek's appeal, and listening to her argument, I concur. The minor children, Katherine and Daniel Williamson should be placed into the sole custody of their mother until further notice."
"Your Honor!" Bruce interjected only to be stopped.
"Mr. Coffey save it for when your client is again stateside. He clearly has shown no regard in there care in the last few months. Furthermore, I find it astonishing that he would request that the children be removed from their mother's care when he himself is not even in the country at this time. And I do find his argument of her parenting quite archaic." With that the Judge signed whatever order Kim had prepared before court.
As she stood to dismiss, she turned to Casey, "Ms. Novak, I am sure today has been a tumultuous one for you. I want it clear," she looked towards Bruce, "for the record," before locking eyes again with Casey, "you have my personal permission to go celebrate if you wish. I again congratulate you on helping to keep our city streets a little safer."
With that Judge Sciola left.
And Casey suddenly had sole custody of her children. The last thing she'd ever expected to have...