Notes on An Aftermath
Chapter Ten: Down
The coppery smell of smoky blood immediately fills the heavy, humid air.
Chester had quickly crouched down to shield himself from the spray of blood, causing him extreme pain. He tries to push himself up, but he can't, and he stumbles back.
In the semi-darkness, he sees the figure he'd spotted behind Bill with a gun trained while he'd been taunting him, slowly approaching. For a moment, Chester's heart speeds up, not knowing if it was back up finally, or if it was Dave Foster, mutinizing his leader. The figure gingerly steps over Bill Janssen's dead body and comes closer and closer. He closes his eyes.
When he feels a soft hand caressing over his cheek, he is relieved.
"Casey…"
"Hey," she says softly, quietly as she sets the gun down onto the floor and puts her free hand on his other cheek. "It's okay…everything's okay."
She pushes her hair behind her ears then she sits against the wall very close to him.
He reaches his left hand over and he puts it on her abdomen.
"I'm okay," she whispers, tears falling down her face. "We're okay…"
He drapes his arm over her waist and she wraps her arms around him as he rests against her shoulder. He grunts from the pain and he keeps moving, tying to alleviate some of the pain, and she holds him tightly with a strength she's never known before.
"Stop moving, it'll only make it worse," she says softly.
He stops moving and she holds him.
She looks straight ahead down the hallway. It is darkness down to the other end too, only a few dim lights flickering.
After what seems like hours upon hours of waiting, sirens can be heard outside. It takes another twenty minutes they can hear SWAT trotting down the hallway. They see a few senior members at the junction and they turn and shine their flash lights, spotting them.
"We found 'em," a member says, lifting up his hood as he approaches Chester and Casey. "We're clear. We need paramedics in here. Ma'am, are you injured?"
Casey shakes her head.
Another SWAT member checks Bill Janssen for a pulse.
"He's dead," he reports.
Olivia, Elliot, and Cragen all enter the hallway, flashlights pointing straight ahead, and Casey shields her eyes.
"Case, are you alright?"
Casey nods, words just being too much for her right now.
The paramedics rush in and they begin to aid Chester. Casey holds onto his hand after he is put on the back board. She kisses his hand and their hands hold tight to each other. She is in the way and she doesn't realize it.
"Ma'am, I'm going to have to ask you to move," a paramedic says politely.
Cragen sees that Casey is in need of help herself and he gently touches Olivia's elbow.
"Go get Casey and take her outside," he says.
Olivia nods and she goes over to Casey.
"C'mon Sweets," she says in a soft, motherly tone, putting her hands on the younger woman's arms. "Let them take care of Chester. You're both safe now. C'mon."
Casey reluctantly lets go of his hand and Olivia escorts her on their way out of the factory.
/\/\/\/\/\
Elliot comes up to Olivia, who is near the ambulance where Casey is being examined.
"Well, Bill Janssen is dead," he sighs. "And Dave Foster is in custody. Casey really beat the shit out of the guy."
"Good girl, Casey," Olivia grins a bit, before turning serous again. "How's Chester doing?"
"He's stable," he says. "Beaten up real bad, though. What about Case?"
"She's okay," Olivia sighs, looking over to the other ambulance where Casey is verbally berating the paramedic. "Being stubborn as hell."
"How many times do I have to tell you?" Casey huffs. "Read my goddamn lips. I. Am. Fine. The blood on my shirt isn't mine…leave me the hell alone."
"Ma'am, I have to examine you," Harrison, the paramedic, says. "It's part of our protocol."
"I don't give a shit about your protocol," Casey hisses. "Don't lecture me about protocol!"
Harrison, the paramedic examining Casey, is getting frustrated with her stubbornness and refusal to answer his questions. He goes over to Olivia.
"Detective, can you please talk to her?" He asks. "She's not cooperating, and I just want to do my job."
Olivia nods, then she goes over to the ambulance gets on and she sits down opposite Casey.
"Case," Olivia says softly. "I know that you're in a haze right now, but can you please just let the man do his job?"
Casey frowns. "I'm fine…Liv, can you please tell that asshole to stop harassing me?"
"Casey, you need to get checked out," Olivia says firmly. "For the baby's sake."
"No, just leave me alone!" She hisses as she gets off of the ambulance.
Casey is dizzy, and she feels her legs turn to molasses.
Harrison catches her just in time before she hits the ground and he helps her to sit down again.
Olivia steps off and she puts her hands on Casey's shoulders.
"Case, you're pregnant," she says. "You need to be reasonable, and let the paramedic examine you."
"Just leave me alone, Olivia!" Casey yells as she gets up again.
"Case-"
"No," Casey interrupts harshly. "I'm fine and I'll get checked out when we get to the hospital. Leave me alone. Please."
With that, Casey pushes past Olivia and she goes to the ambulance that Chester is in. She climbs in and she takes his hand in hers.
/\/\/\/\/\
The ambulance ride was the longest ride of Chester and Casey's lives, and she never let go of his hand the entire time. They finally pull up to the emergency room of the hospital, and Casey is relieved.
"Thirty five year old male, name: Chester Lake, he's a detective with NYPD, unconscious," Jacobs, the paramedic reports as they roll Chester into the ER. "BP is dropping, blunt force trauma to his head, possible concussion, several broken ribs, possibly a punctured lung, pulse ox is dropping, he's got a GSW to his right leg, left shoulder, and right elbow and possible internal bleeding."
Dr. Gillison snaps on a pair of gloves. "I'm gonna need a CT scan, also X-ray, get Dr. Martinez down here…"
Casey's heart is pounding within her now, after hearing just how serious Chester's condition is. She is forced to let go of his hand when the nurses take him into the ICU. She begins to go in, but she is stopped by one of the nurses.
"Ma'am, I can't have you in here," the nurse says softly, calmly.
"But I-I have to be with him," Casey says tearfully. "He needs me with him."
"Ma'am, I understand, but I can't have you in here right now," the nurse says. "I promise you, we'll take good care of him, alright?"
With that, the nurse walks through the double doors and then they close after that.
Casey doesn't know what to do with herself now and she stands there in the middle of the hallway helplessly, pathetically, as if she were still trapped in that damned room, cuffed to the furnace. She feels ridiculous too; she is in her pajamas, and she feels naked almost because she has no bra on under her spaghetti strap shirt, and she feels like she's revealing herself to the entire staff in the hospital as they walk by. She embraces herself and rubs her arms, feeling cold. She feels dirty and grimy, and she can still feel the way Foster's tongue slid along her neck; she can still feel the coldness of his vile saliva on her skin. She can still feel his body pressed up against hers, she still feels his hand on her breast, squeezing, she can still feel his hand in her pants, touching her between her legs through her panties…
She's never understood the feeling before, being sexually harassed or being touched by another against her will. Because all of the places Foster touched her, those are places she allows Chester to touch. She allows Chester to lick, nip, and kiss her neck, she allows Chester to press his body against hers, she allows him to touch, massage, and squeeze her breasts, she allows him to touch her between her legs…it's pleasurable when he does those things.
But having Foster's hands touching her…she feels tainted having been touched in such a vile, perverted manner.
And the way Janssen had leered at her, and stared at her body.
Now Casey kind of understands what Olivia went through at Sealview. It's the intention that makes it worse. She knows that whenever Chester touches her, he doesn't mean her any harm, he wants to please her and comfort her.
Foster and Janssen had wanted to destroy her soul and her body.
Harris had done that to Olivia.
He intended to hurt Olivia with his disgusting mouth and hands and his…
Casey didn't let it happen to her. She didn't let Foster or Janssen violate her any further than they already have. She still feels dirty because what was in his mind had touched her, and she doesn't want that on her. But she'd have wanted to die if he'd gone any further; at that moment, all she could think was that she couldn't let either of them do anything inside. Inside, is not only her soul, but her baby.
"Ma'am?"
Casey jumps and turns.
"It's alright," a nurse by the name of Jennifer says softly. "Ma'am, do you need any help?"
Casey's heart is pounding within her.
"Um…" Casey begins in a quivering voice, looking at her top. "I need something else to change into…do you have showers that I can use?"
Jennifer looks at her.
"Is there anything else you need?" Jennifer asks, looking at her knowingly.
Casey looks at her, and shakes her head.
Jennifer inspects Casey carefully, then she nods. "Alright…why don't you go down to that exam room down there, okay?"
Casey nods. "I-I'm pregnant…"
"How many weeks?" Jennifer asks.
"Almost ten," Casey says.
"Okay, we'll check you out," Jennifer says then she heads off.
Olivia walks into the hospital, and she sees Casey standing at the end of the hall. She approaches her friend.
"Casey," Olivia says.
The younger woman looks at her.
"Sweets?" Olivia asks.
Casey begins to sob. "Olivia!"
Olivia hugs Casey tightly and Casey cries into her shoulder.
/\/\/\/\/\
Casey lets the hot water wash over her body. The nurse she spoke to had been gracious to her. She gave her a room and gave her a pair of scrubs and a sweatshirt to wear.
She runs her hands over her hair again before she grabs the soap and begins to wash herself. She hasn't spoken to a doctor about Chester's condition, and she is worried because he was brutalized by Janssen and Foster. She'd witnessed some of it, heard more of it. Her heart broke in that moment because she thought about the conversation they had a few evenings before. She'd been so angry at him, and in that moment, she wished that she'd just embraced him instead of remind him of all the mistakes he'd made. She should have forgiven him and not said all those things to him. She knows his heart, and he wants to be with her just like she wants to be with him. Now she may lose him.
The first time he'd gotten shot, she'd been so afraid because of the argument they had earlier that same evening. Casey now knows that it wasn't fair of her to stop Chester from pursuing his case. He'd called her a hypocrite, and he'd been right because she remembers all the times that she's pursued cases just to assuage her own guilt. It was unfair for her to expect him to just let it go.
It's over now, the case, everything.
Now it's time for her life to start again. She's got to reset her priorities now.
Casey steps out of the shower and she dries off. She uses the little bottle of lotion then she gets dressed. She puts her dirty, bloodied pajamas into a bag before she throws them away. She steps out of the room, feeling a little better, but she still can't wipe away the feeling of Foster's hands all over her. It makes her stomach lurch to think about it, and she shakes her head of it, focusing on finding out Chester's condition. She pushes her damp hair behind her ears as she walks up to the front desk.
"Excuse me," she says and an older nurse turns to her.
"How may I help you?"
"I need to speak to a doctor," Casey explains. "About my boyfriend…he was brought in about an hour and a half ago…I-I need to know how he's doing."
"What's his name?"
"Chester Lake," Casey says.
The nurse picks up the phone and calls the ICU and speaks with the charge nurse.
Casey drowns out the noise around her. She prays that Chester will be alright because she knows that she won't be able to handle it if she lost him. She loves him so much, and she's so afraid of being alone.
"Ma'am, Dr. Gillison will be out to see you in a moment," the nurse says. "There's a sitting area over there."
"Thank you," Casey says as she goes over to the waiting area and sits down.
Olivia comes back into the hospital, that after going outside to speak with Cragen. She puts her cell phone back into the holder before she spots Casey sitting in the waiting area. She goes over and sits down next to the younger woman.
"Hey," Olivia says softly. "Are you alright?"
Casey sighs. "Yeah, I'm fine. The baby's okay…"
"That's good," Olivia grins. "I'm happy for you, Sweets."
Casey puts her hands on her abdomen.
"I'm gonna be a mom," she smiles tearfully and Olivia smiles too. "Can you believe it?"
"Yeah, I can," Olivia says. "You're going to be a great mom, Casey. This baby will be so blessed to have you and Chester for its parents."
Casey bites her bottom lip, sniffling. "Do you think we'll be okay, Liv?"
"What do you mean?" Olivia asks.
Casey swallows thickly. "When they took me…they set my house on fire. It's gone, isn't it?"
Olivia sighs. "Yeah."
"We've lost the lives we've known," Casey says, beginning to cry. "Everything that's made us comfortable and everything that we know is there and can rely on is gone. My whole life was in my house, Liv. I had pictures, keepsakes…my mother's hope chest…it's all gone. There are things that are irreplaceable. And I know I should be grateful that I'm here, and I am. I thank God that Chester and I are here, but I just don't know what to do."
"Sweets, you'll figure it out," Olivia assures her.
Casey nods.
"Dave Foster is in custody now," Olivia says.
"Good," Casey says flatly.
Olivia looks at Casey.
"Did they…hurt you?" Olivia asks.
"No," Casey says. "But Foster…he touched me all over…but I didn't let him go any further."
"You did kick his ass real good for him," Olivia says.
Just before Casey can say anything else, Dr. Gillison comes into the waiting area.
"Ms. Novak?"
"Yes," Casey says. "How's Chester?"
"Well, he's stable right now," Dr. Gillison begins. "But he's going to need surgery. He's got a punctured lung and the beating also ruptured his spleen. We were able to remove the bullets from his leg and shoulder, and the wound in his elbow was minor. He's also got several broken ribs, and he does have a concussion."
Casey begins to cry again.
"Will he be okay?" Olivia asks.
"With the surgery, getting his ribs set, and plenty of rest, he should make a full recovery," Dr. Gillison says. "Ms. Novak, the prognosis looks good, so there's no need to worry."
Casey sniffles. "Thank you."
He nods then he heads back into the ICU.
"Casey, you should go to Chester's place and get something to eat then rest," Olivia advises.
"I have to be here," Casey says. "I can't leave Chester alone."
"Sweets, he'll be in surgery for the better part of the morning," Olivia says. "It's almost six now. You're exhausted, and you need to get some sleep."
"I don't want to be by myself," Casey says quietly.
"Well then you can stay with me at my place," Olivia says. "We'll swing by Chester's place and pick up a few things, and you can stay with me. You want to do that?"
Casey nods.
They get up.
"Wait, I have to go see Chester before he goes into surgery," Casey says.
She goes into the ICU and she asks the nurse where Chester is then she goes over to him. She takes his hand in hers and kisses it softly before she smoothes over his hair.
He wakes up a bit.
"Casey…" he says in barely above a whisper.
"Shh," she says softly. "It's okay…everything's going to be fine. You're going to be alright. I promise you I'll be here when you wake up. I love you."
She leans down and kisses his lips before she pulls away.
The nurses come and Casey lets go of his hand and gets out of the way as they roll him to the OR.
Casey goes out of the ICU and Olivia looks at her.
"Ready?"
Casey nods.
/\/\/\/\/\
After a restless night because of so many things going through her mind, Marion Kralik decides to get out of bed and go have a cup of coffee. On the way to the kitchen, she grabs the remote and turns on the television and puts it on the morning news.
"Good morning, this is Manhattan Eleven it is a little after six thirty, this is Heidi Goodlight."
Marion goes into the kitchen and takes out the coffee.
"Some stunning developments coming from earlier this morning," Heidi begins. "We've learned that over night, assistant district attorney Casey Novak was abducted from her home in a Queens suburb by what we have now confirmed were two NYPD officers. Shortly after taking her from her home, it was set ablaze."
Marion drops the can of coffee.
"Thomas Lowe is at the warehouse where ADA Novak and Detective Lake were rescued with the details. Thomas."
"Thank you Heidi," Thomas says. "Yes, a bizarre set of events that this reporter is still trying to work through led up to the brutal beating of NYPD detective Chester Lake by fellow officers Bill Janssen and Dave Foster. So far, the police and Internal Affairs have not given us too many details other than the fact that one officer Bill Janssen is dead and Dave Foster is in custody."
"Thomas, has the NYPD or Internal Affairs disclosed the motive for ADA Novak's abduction?"
"So far Heidi, I've learned that this was indeed retribution over the trial and subsequent murder of Thomas Crane," Thomas explains. "ADA Novak was the prosecutor in the case. We believe that she and Detective Lake were targeted by Bill Janssen and Dave Foster."
"What is their condition?" Heidi asks.
"ADA Novak escaped with only minor injuries, but I've jut been told that Detective Lake is stable but in serious condition and he's currently in surgery at St. Catherine's Hospital. The doctors are optimistic that he'll pull through."
"Alright Thomas, thank you," Heidi says, shaking her head. "Again, we've confirmed that one NYPD officer, Bill Janssen, is dead, the cause a gunshot wound to the head, the other, Dave Foster is in custody, and the victims, ADA Novak and Detective Lake are both alive at this hour. Very, strange, twisted story, and Manhattan Eleven will continue to update you as more information becomes available to us. In other news…"
Marion puts her hand over her mouth as she begins to sob.
/\/\/\/\/\
Casey didn't realize that she didn't have the key to Chester's apartment until she arrived at the door.
"Shit," she huffs.
Her key had been in her purse in her house, which is now a pile of rubble. She leans her forehead against the door, and she breaks down again. Olivia puts her hand on Casey's back.
"Sweets, it's okay," Olivia says. "Just stay here, I'll go get the landlord to open the door for you, alright?"
Casey sniffles and nods.
Olivia goes downstairs and Casey wipes her tears and then she turns and leans her back up against the door. She closes her eyes and she thinks back to when she and Chester had come back to his place after completing some mundane task. She leaned up against the door just like she is doing now, only then, she'd been laughing and Chester kissed her softly.
It was one of many moments that she has filed away in her head.
She feels nauseous, and it's about that time for her to vomit. She can't wait for this morning sickness to pass because she hasn't eaten a filling, decent meal in many weeks. The other day she'd had a craving for a steak dinner, complete with mashed potatoes and corn on the cob, but she could only stomach some soup and a slice of bread.
Olivia arrives with a duped key to the apartment, and Casey takes it quickly.
"Thanks," she says as she quickly turns the lock and opens the door.
Casey rushes inside and makes a beeline to the bathroom, her hand over her mouth.
Olivia grimaces when she hears Casey throwing up and she goes into the kitchen and finds a glass and pours some water into it. She then begins to look around for some saltines for Casey to eat and a plastic bag on the ride over to her apartment because Olivia doesn't want Casey getting sick in her car. Olivia knows that Casey can't stand piddling around her kitchen, but technically, it is Chester's kitchen, so Casey has no room to talk.
Olivia is quite surprised to find that everything is in order, labels out, everything in its place neatly. It is the same throughout the rest of the one bedroom apartment. His apartment is nice, comfortable furniture, plenty of bookshelves, everything is compartmentalized, and there isn't a single thing out of place. There isn't a stitch of clothing or even shoes scattered about to be found, and Olivia grins a bit. She thinks Casey might have found her soul mate in Chester after all. Casey is a very neat person as well, and Olivia wonders if they've ever clashed, especially over the kitchen. But they look like they get along because her things have blended seamlessly with his. Although, if Casey moves in to this place with Chester, she doesn't know how long this zen will last once Casey has the baby. The place is nice, Olivia doesn't know how things will be with Chester, Casey and a screaming newborn all inhabiting the place. Olivia knows that Chester is ridiculously optimistic and that he will find a way to take care of his family for the time being in this little place, but Casey…she's seriously downgrading because her house had been optimal space wise, and just the simple fact that Casey decorated that house from top to bottom.
It hasn't hit her yet, which at the moment is a good thing because Casey's got other priorities at the moment, but the reality that everything she had, all that work she put in is completely gone hasn't set in yet. She's got to see it for herself.
"What are you looking for?" Casey asks in a peeved tone when she sees Olivia rummaging around in the kitchen. "Stop it."
Olivia sighs as she stops looking through the cabinets. Correction. It is Casey's kitchen, no technicalities there.
"Saltines," Olivia says. "And a plastic bag for you."
"Why a plastic bag?" Casey asks.
"In case you get sick in the car," Olivia says. "Believe me, it comes in handy. When Elliot was sick one time, I had plastic bags in our car…he fought me tooth and nail, but he did eventually use them that day."
Casey is now in a foul mood, which Olivia can understand. She goes over and opens up a cabinet and takes out the box of saltines and then she opens up the cabinet under the sink and retrieves a plastic bag.
"I have to go get some clothes," Casey says as she picks up the glass of water Olivia poured and she pours it out in the sink, washes it out quickly and sets it into the drain out of force of habit. "I'll be ready in a minute."
"Take your time, Sweets," Olivia says.
Casey nods and heads back to the bedroom. "Out of my kitchen, Liv."
Well, Olivia is comforted that Casey still has her wits and habits about her. The night she'd just been through had been very traumatic, and so it is a minor miracle that Casey isn't completely breaking down. Olivia picks up the saltines and the bag then she goes and sits down on the couch.
In the bedroom, Casey brushes out her now wavy hair and then she pulls it back with headband. She takes off the scrubs she'd been given at the hospital and she puts them in the hamper at the end of the bed. She takes out a bra and a pair of panties and she pulls those on before she opens up the drawer. She takes out a pastel green button down blouse and then she goes over to the closet and takes out a pair of jeans. She pulls on her clothes then she finds a white sweater and pulls it on. Outside of work, Casey is no fashionista. Most of the clothes to go out and about or just hang out in are hand-me-downs. Her, her mother, and her sister are all remarkably the same size and at some point every year, she gets a box delivered with nothing but old clothes. She doesn't mind because she hates shopping and she hates labels.
Casey takes out a bag and she packs a couple more pairs of jeans, a few more blouses, underwear, one more sweater, and some hygiene things. Once she has everything she needs, she goes out of the room.
Olivia stands up.
"Do you have everything you need?" Olivia asks.
"Yeah," Casey says.
Olivia hands Casey the saltines and the plastic bag and they head out.