Enjoy the new chapter, everyone!

"Okay, big development," Olivia stated as she and Blake went back into the squad room. "There's a chance that our victim, Lily Romanova, is someone in WITSEC." She turned to Blake. "Your time to shine, hotshot."

Blake mentally rolled his eyes before turning to his team. "Damian was using Morse Code while waiting for his lawyer, and he mentioned someone named Paul de Luca."

It was Carisi's turn to go wide-eyed. "Paul de Luca? As in the nephew of Tommy 'il diavolo' de Luca?"

"Unfortunately, yes," Blake admitted, "and if this little shit stain is involved, then that means that the feds are gonna be involved shortly."

Amanda couldn't hold back a smirk at Blake's insult against the boy. "We don't have to call them just yet though, do we?"

"I'm gonna have to soon," Olivia sighed. "But on the other hand, Blake said that he had a contact back in Minnesota that's familiar with this guy, so we're gonna contact them first, and then go from there."

Blake looked up from his phone with a smirk. "Cap, you might want to call Ms. Novak and set up a meeting at her office - my contact wants to talk to the three of us together."

"A conference call?" Olivia questioned, earning a nod from Blake.

"Yes, at Ms. Novak's office," Blake clarified. "She said she'll wait until we're done interviewing the suspect first."

"Just how much did you tell her about this case?!" Carisi demanded, giving Blake an icy blue glare.

"Only mentioned to her that our current case crossed wires with one of hers," Blake admitted. "I know better than to share details with other departments until we meet face to face, or have a conference call."

Olivia merely shook her head and turned to Fin and Carisi. "You two interview Damian. Rollins, Cameron and I are gonna head to the DA's office. Keep me posted on what the kid says."

"We got you, Liv," Fin vowed before getting out of his seat. "C'mon, let's see what this kid knows."

"Right behind you," Carisi nodded, giving Blake one last quizzical look as he followed his partner to the interrogation room.

Once the pair was out of earshot, Olivia turned to Blake and gave him a warning glare. "This lead better be legit, Cameron. I'm not gonna have the DA's office or our squad going on a wild goose chase."

Blake merely grinned. "Trust me, Captain - I've worked more than enough cases to know when a lead is legit and when one is, as you called it, 'a wild goose chase.'" He threw his jacket over his shoulders before grabbing his keys. "I'll meet you two there - I have to stop by my place for something."

Blake rolled to a stop outside of the DA's office and pulled into the nearest parking spot, his heart slamming against his ribs. It had been a few years since he'd gone with his CO to talk to an ADA about a lead, and even longer since he'd spoken to his "contact." Swallowing hard, he looked at his phone one last time, his caramel orbs scanning the message from his contact:

I'm not surprised that the kid is involved in something awful. But you're gonna have to call in the feds at some point, especially if the vic and/or suspects are somehow tied to the case against il diavolo. Until then, let me do the talking with your Captain and the DA's office in New York.
"Dammit, love…" Blake exhaled sharply. He felt as if he was being sidelined by his contact, whom he'd known for nearly fifteen years. He released another sigh before he got out of his car, resisting everything within him to slam the door. Control yourself, his subconscious ordered. This is an entirely different scenario than the one with that kid back in LA. He locked the car and practically sprinted up the steps to the courthouse, his mind now solely focused on the case. He all but crashed into the courthouse lobby and came to a stop mere inches from Olivia and Amanda. "Hey… sorry I'm late."

"It happens," Olivia dismissed. "C'mon, Novak's waiting for us in her office." She led Blake and Amanda to an elevator and pressed the button for the third floor, now more anxious than ever about the impending conference call with Blake's "contact." She picked up on Blake's own anxiety and gave him a raised eyebrow. "Blake, are you alright?"

"Yeah," Blake answered softly. "I… I haven't met with a DA or ADA face-to-face in a while. That was always something that my boss did."

"I understand," Olivia responded. "Hell, in all of my years as a detective, and these last few as the commanding officer of this unit, there hasn't been a single time where talking to the ADA wasn't at least a little nerve wracking for me."

Blake found comfort in Olivia's revelation and gave her a small smile. "Thanks, Captain." The trio reached the third floor in a matter of moments, and Blake felt a knot form in his stomach as he followed Olivia and Amanda out of the elevator and down a long hallway. The last time he'd been in an ADA's office, it had been to receive an arrest warrant for a suspect with a violent history, and it hadn't ended well. Don't think about that, he ordered himself. You need to focus on this case. He let out a long breath when he, Amanda, and Olivia came to a stop outside of a door with the letters "C. Novak, Assistant District Attorney" plastered to the glass. Here we go… Stay calm, Blake.

Olivia rapped on the door to Novak's office. "Case, it's Olivia. I'm here with Detectives Rollins and Cameron."

"Come in," a husky voice answered from the other side of the door. Olivia pushed the door open and led Blake and Amanda into the office, still in a little shock that her friend had returned as the ADA for SVU. "Hello, Captain Benson. What can I do for you?"

"Hey, Casey," Olivia greeted. "You've met Detective Blake Cameron; this is his partner, Detective Amanda Rollins."

"Nice to meet you," Casey grinned, her eyes shifting on Blake for a moment longer than she would've dared admit. "Now… what can I do for you?"

"Well," Olivia began calmly, "Blake and Amanda brought in Damian Williams, our first suspect in our current case, after they found a weapon on him. He invoked his rights while in the back of Blake and Amanda's squad car, but when he was waiting for council, he started communicating with us with Morse Code."

"I remember that," Casey nodded. "Has he done anything else since then?"

"No; I sent Fin and Carisi to talk to him after his lawyer arrived," Olivia explained, earning an eyebrow raise from Casey. "But I'm still wondering why he'd communicate with us in Morse Code instead of waiting for his lawyer…"

"Even if we talk to the guy that Damian mentioned, we'd have to get another angle to get him to mention it in front of his lawyer. Morse Code is inadmissible in court," Casey reminded her friend. "We can't use that for anything in court, even with forensics confirming that he was using it."

"Even if one of us translated it?" Blake interjected, earning a raised eyebrow from Amanda. Right, she wasn't there… He passed his notepad over to his partner. "During our 'conversation,' he mentioned someone connected to il diavolo - Paul De Luca."

Amanda's eyebrows shot up on her forehead at the mention of the name. "Blake, that name holds some serious weight in the Midwest, California, and Boston. Even if it's just one or two guys, it'll become a federal investigation in a heartbeat."

"I know, Amanda," Blake responded, "and that's why I reached out to a contact of mine that's more than familiar enough with both Paul and Tommy 'il diavolo' De Luca."

Casey locked eyes with Blake, doing everything that she could to not lose herself in his gaze, "and what does your contact have to do with this?"

Blake felt pangs of irritation hitting his heart. "My contact is one of the officers that helped nail that prick to the wall, Ms. Novak. When I told her that Paul's name came up, she said that she'd like to speak to all of us tonight." He locked eyes with Casey, caramel eyes staring into green. "Getting info from her will give us an edge before having to drag in the feds - especially if Paul hasn't yet crossed state lines to start anything."

Casey found herself impressed with the new detective's conviction, and amused at him cursing. She cleared her throat to compose herself. "Be that as it may, Detective Cameron, this translation is purely circumstantial at best, and most likely a wild goose chase."

Blake had barely opened his mouth to respond when his phone rang. He recognized the ringtone immediately and smirked at Casey. "Let's see what my contact says first." He hit the answer key and put the phone on speaker. "Hey, Rose, I'm here with Captain Benson and Detective Rollins from Manhattan SVU, and ADA Casey Novak. Everyone, this is Detective Rose O'Neil, Burnsville PD. Thanks for getting back to us so quickly, Rose."

"You know I'd do anything for you, Blakey," Rose answered warmly. "So, you said that the nephew of a certain cold hearted, power hungry maniac of a mobster came up in an investigation of yours at Manhattan SVU?"

"Yup," Blake confirmed, "but that's not the worst of it."

"... what could possibly be worse than the possibly literal embodiment of the devil being tied to your case?" Rose inquired.

Blake glanced at Olivia for approval and received a nod. "Rose, do you remember a girl named Sonja Isaacs?" The silence that followed could've been sliced with a butter knife. "Rose..?"

"Blake, Sonja was put into protective custody once a date was set for the trial," Rose stated painfully. "Her dad put in a transfer request to a different station, too, but somehow, De Luca found out and sent a team after him and Sonja. They were executed not even thirty-six hours after the jury convicted him, and nobody knows who pulled the trigger."

Blake shared an alarmed glance with Olivia. Oh shit. "Rose, Sonja might not be dead at all." He took a deep breath and did what he could to soothe his anxiety. "We think she's in WITSEC under a different name, and was dating Paul De Luca at one point."

"Blake, Sonja Isaacs is dead," Rose fired back firmly. "Even if she wasn't, there's no way in hell that she'd date anyone related to the man that held her hostage, beat and starved her, and left her to die because he realized that we were hot on his heels."

"Detective O'Neil, this wouldn't be the first time that someone has come back from the dead in a high profile case," Casey interjected. "We had it happen years ago for the trial of a cartel leader and his hitman."

"Liam Connors," Rose sighed. "I remember reading about that cocksucker's trial and conviction, both of which included your beloved friend, Alexandra Cabot."

Casey gave Blake a very questioning look, receiving a shrug in return. "Detective O'Neil, we don't yet know for sure if Paul or Tommy de Luca are involved in this case directly, or if it's just some coincidence."

"This is exactly where I prove to you that calling me was a good call," Rose smirked. "I just pulled up his file, and oh, does this guy have a rap sheet as long as Blake is tall."

Blake couldn't help but chuckle at his friend's words. "Alright, Rose, what's this guy been charged or convicted for?"

"I'm going down the list here, starting from when he was... oof, just fourteen! God, that's horrible..." They could hear Rose tapping away on her keyboard. "Let's see here… at age fourteen, he was charged with accessory to attempted manslaughter and possession, receiving, and distributing narcotics. But he took a deal by rolling on his friends, and the DA dropped the manslaughter charge, resulting in him getting probation for the narcotics charge. At fifteen, they named him as a suspect in an attempted murder case, along with an assault of a fourteen-year-old boy, but the accessory charge was ultimately dropped. He was once again given probation instead of doing time in juvie. Jump to age seventeen, and - oh dear."

Blake bit back a cringe when Rose's tone changed from slight amusement to extremely nervous. "What is it, Rose?"

"An ex-girlfriend of his lives in Upper Manhattan, and she got a restraining order against him last year for attempted sexual assault," Rose cringed. "These are some really heavy charges for a seventeen year old, and- okay, that's some fucked up shit."

Blake knew fully well that Rose swearing whilst on the job was a sign that something didn't sit well with her. "Talk to us, sweetheart - what'd you find?"

"...I just found a nasty post on his social media that you need to see," Rose lamented. "This kid is really possessive and vengeful."

"Okay, before we deviate from the matter at hand, tell us about these posts," Olivia encouraged. "How possessive is he? What's he saying?"

Blake felt his phone vibrate in his hand and noticed that Rose had sent him the aforementioned screenshots. "Did he mention his uncle at all, or maybe some friends?"

"He's not exactly shy about his feelings about his ex at all since his posts are public and very, very degrading." Silence followed for a few seconds. "He's pretty upset that she ended things and has vowed to get back at her, her late father, and - oh no… I gotta call you back later. Get the feds on the phone, and whatever you do, don't let Lily, her family, or Damian Williams out of your sights."

"Rose? ROSE!" Blake shouted as the line cut off. "Shit!"

Rollins placed one hand on Blake's arm. "Talk to us."

Blake bit his lip and pulled up the messages from Rose. "Judging by Rose's tone, and suddenly ending the call, de Luca might be after her or someone from her unit, Lily, or Damian. We gotta pick this kid up now."

"Whoa, Blake, let's not get ahead of ourselves here," Olivia pointed out. "We don't know for sure if it's a credible threat or not."

"Captain, this guy is the nephew of an organized crime boss - one that, among other atrocities, kidnapped, tortured, and held a young girl that looks a hell of a lot like Lily Romanova," Blake pointed out heavily. "He shot a police officer as well, and wasn't apprehended until a few months later during a hostage situation. SWAT managed to take him down and barely avoided any casualties! Who's to say that he hasn't somehow connected Sonja Isaacs to Lily Romanova, and might be coming up with a way to instruct this kid to do something as payback?!"

Olivia had barely opened her mouth to respond when her phone rang. "Excuse me…" She left Casey's office to take her call, leaving the ADA all alone with Amanda and Blake - the latter of whom had begun to prove himself as more of a headache than Olivia had hoped. "Benson."

"Hey, Liv, Blake's theory checked out," Carisi informed. "Damian Williams mentioned a guy named Paul De Luca possibly targeting Lily Romanova as payback for an old grudge."

Olivia let out a sharp exhale. Okay, maybe Blake is onto something here. "Carisi, did he mention any social media posts or other evidence to prove that this kid may be after Lily, her family, or maybe even Damian himself?"

"Oh yeah, quite a lot of it," Carisi confirmed, "and based on the screenshots that he took, this kid is one twisted dude. It's a miracle that his posts haven't been flagged, or that he hasn't made headlines for being arrested for this kind of stuff."

"Yeah, you're telling me," Olivia sighed. "Thanks for the update, Carisi. I'm gonna let Novak know what you and Fin found and see if we can get a warrant."

"No problem, Liv. Fin or I will call you if we find anything else. See you and the others back here later."

"Sounds good." Olivia hung up her phone before going back into Casey's office, finding the redhead in a stare down with the dark haired detective.

"Counselor, this kid's posts point to a nasty motive here," Blake stated firmly. "He's talking about getting back at her, her family, and 'that bastard cop that put away the wrong guy.'"

"Detective, that is purely speculation." Casey held a clipped sternness to her voice. "Focus on your current suspect, and if he brings up Paul de Luca again, give me a call. Until then-"

"You must be a psychic, Casey," Olivia shrugged. "Carisi just called; our suspect told him and Fin about Paul de Luca wanting to hurt Lily, and he showed them screenshots from his social media."

Casey glanced between the three detectives and contemplated her words carefully. "Okay, bring Paul in for a quick chat and find out what he knows." She looked Olivia dead in the eye. "Liv, forward those screenshots to me - there's no way that I'll be the one that can't nail this bastard to the wall myself."

"Oh, we're definitely bringing him in to talk," Olivia vowed, "especially now that he's threatened Lily, her family, and the team that put away his dad." She turned her attention to Blake. "Amanda and I will meet you back at the precinct, Blake."

"Got it," Blake nodded. "But be careful out there, Liv - this family isn't one that you want to fuck around with, and the last thing that this team needs is for this asshole to blindside us."

"See you later, Blake." Olivia led Amanda out of the office, taking care to close the door behind her.

Casey let out a sharp breath before meeting Blake's gaze, her breath hitching in her throat when she saw ferocity beginning to burn in his caramel colored orbs. I haven't seen that since the Honey Rapist case years ago... She pushed the thoughts from her head and sat down in her chair. "If Detective O'Neil calls back, call me right away."

"I will." Blake felt his heart begin to pound. Is this fear, or something else? He bit his lip to bring himself back to reality. "Actually... do you want me to bring you to the precinct with me?"

"That won't be necessary, Detective." Casey responded. She felt his gaze further intensify and raised an eyebrow. "Detective Cameron, are you suggesting that I can't handle myself?"

"...I most certainly am not suggesting that, no," Blake stated, doing his best to not betray his concern. "But since Rollins went with Liv, and we're going to meet at the same place, I figured that I'd offer to take you over there with me. I can bring you back here right after we're done talking to this de Luca kid."

Casey folded her arms over her chest. What is with this guy? One phone call with a friend of his leads to some crucial info and out of nowhere, he might be thinking that I can't handle myself? "While I appreciate the gesture, I'll drive myself over there. See you in a bit."

Blake gave Casey his most professional nod. "Alright… See you in a bit, Counselor." He left Novak's office and managed to find his way out without getting lost, something that impressed him greatly considering that this had been the first time he'd visited the courthouse. His caramel colored eyes burned somewhat when the glare of the early afternoon sun caught his eyes when he exited the courthouse. Damned glare... He removed his phone and checked his messages once more, noticing that he'd received a voicemail from Rose. Maybe she found out more about this de Luca kid... He clambered into his Interceptor and buckled up before checking his voicemail.

So, sh*t may or may not hit the fan soon..! Read on to find out more!