Author's note: Thank you, everyone for the awesome support. I have a couple of things to clear up. First, to JJ, the previous chapter did not feature a victim from the show, or anyone from the story thus far. She was merely someone who Olivia had been helping prior to the start of the story, whose attacker was sentenced sometime during the story's events. She was just there to vent to Olivia and tell her what had happened. Also, I'd like to say that I am considering introducing someone into the story, someone to shake up Casey and Olivia's life in a good way, but we will see. I have to see where the story goes. Anyway, thanks for the continued support, and anytime you have any questions, feel free to let me know. Thank you.

Casey stood in a closed conference room, pacing back and forth nervously. She couldn't believe what had just happened. Defense attorneys relished finding every little loophole they could, whether it could, realistically, help their client or not. But this one was low. This stunt was beyond infuriating, and Casey was trying her hardest not to let her personal feelings interfere with her judgment. Hadn't she just sworn to her boss that her personal life wouldn't affect her work life in any way? Still, this was insane. The fact that she was supposed to be back in her office, preparing for another case after her arraignment, rather than here, was quite irritating.

Casey had just reached the other end of the table when the door opened, and Olivia entered. The older woman shut the door behind her. "Casey, what's wrong?" she asked. "Are you okay? The baby?"

Casey nodded. "Yes, we're both fine," she answered. A million questions swarmed in her mind, but they had more pressing issues at the moment. "This isn't personal," she said truthfully. "Judge Allen has called an emergency hearing on the Monroe case."

"An emergency hearing for what?" Olivia asked. "The trial is already underway."

"It is." Casey sighed, leaning against the wall. The overpowering scent of wood and potpourri in the conference room was beginning to make her nauseous. Had it always smelled like that? She shook her head, trying breathe through her nose without smelling anything. "You know Buchanan. He's known for his last minute Hail Marys."

Olivia sighed deeply. "What is he doing this time? Claiming his client is too ill to continue?"

"Claiming police misconduct," Casey answered. Olivia had been the one to arrest, interrogate, and book Monroe, so the fact that Buchanan was alleging misconduct, particularly from Olivia and so close to her potential promotion was particularly grating.

Olivia barked out something that resembled a cross between a grunt and a growl. "Excuse me? Which part, exactly, is he alleging misconduct for? What is it that I did that infringed on his client's rights?"

Casey folded her arms across her chest. "From what I could gather, he's asserting that you tricked him into a false confession. They are claiming that you shut the video recorder off for a few moments and bullied him into confessing, and that you yelled at him until he broke down and confessed...by which point, you had turned the video recording back on."

"This is the entire point of recording confessions," Olivia replied. It was clear that her anger was mounting, and Casey was torn between calming her down by being the girlfriend she needed right now, and remaining where she was, rooted in place as merely the prosecutor on the case. Olivia sighed deeply, massaging her forehead. "Casey, even if I had wanted to do that, it is inconceivable to think that I could have turned the recording on and off without anyone noticing, or that no one would have noticed how choppy the final recording was. Buchanan and his underhanded tactics are trying my last ounce of patience."

"I know," Casey said quietly, biting her bottom lip. "And any reasonable person would understand that, too. But Buchanan managed to convince the judge that the confession was coerced, and the judge is demanding an emergency hearing to further review the evidence. They are calling you to the stand first, and then Rollins, since she was observing the interrogation." She checked the clock on the far wall. "We need to get in there," she murmured. She looked at Olivia for a moment. "Don't worry. We will win this. You know how defense attorneys are. By the time I'm through with him, Monroe will beg for a life sentence."

Thirty minutes later, Casey tapped her pen silently against her notepad as she listened to Buchanan question Olivia. She had always hated when people compared defense attorneys to sharks who smelled blood in the water, but the thought rushed through her mind anyway. Buchanan hounded Olivia, circling the witness stand in a way not unlike a dog circling its next hydrant. "Sergeant Benson, can you explain why my client's confession is so explicit?"

"I am not sure what you mean," Olivia answered calmly.

Buchanan, holding a paper that must have been a copy of the confession, read from a couple of visibly highlighted passages. "By my client's admission, he broke into Miss Davis' home, bound her with her favorite pink handcuffs, and raped her from one fifteen in the morning to four thirty two."

"Yes, that is what he confessed," Olivia replied.

Buchanan scoffed. "Sergeant, in your experience, are suspects typically this explicit in their recall of their attacks?"

"We usually ask them to be as detailed as possible, and-"

"And you don't find it the least bit unlikely that Mr. Stevens was simply confessing to a crime he didn't commit, because he was caught at the scene, and chose to make the best of it? By his own admission, he will do anything to get on television."

"Objection," Casey interjected. "Calls for speculation."

"Sustained," Judge Allen answered. "Move on, Counselor."

Buchanan flashed a smirk that could only be described as evil. "Yes, Your Honor." He turned back to Olivia. "Sergeant, will you admit that most of the details in this supposed confession can be found in various newspapers from the day after the crime was committed? Isn't it likely that Mr. Stevens synthesized these details into one statement?"

So that was his angle. Of course this was all a publicity stunt. Casey couldn't believe she had actually bought their cheap argument that the confession had been coerced. They had never planned to claim it was elicited under duress, but rather, to paint Olivia as incompetent by asserting that she was too stupid to realize that the details were coming from various news sources. Casey quickly jotted down a couple of notes.

Olivia shook her head. "Some of the details may have been taken from the news, but the detail of the pink handcuffs was never released to the press. At that time, that would have only been known by the police, the victim, and the perpetrator."

"Ah, but you are forgetting that my client was caught at the scene. By his own admission, he was in the room to find some jewelry. Couldn't he have seen the pink handcuffs on Miss Davis' wrists? Didn't he, at the time of his arrest, shout that he hadn't raped her, but had instead walked in on the scene and called the police himself?"

"Yes, he did," Olivia answered. "But we could not find any evidence that a third person had ever been in the room."

"And you wouldn't have. Exactly how much effort did the police instill into finding a third suspect once they realized that my client had been there with the victim?"

"Objection," Casey said again. "We are not here to discuss the investigation itself. This hearing relates specifically to the validity of Mr. Stevens' confession."

Buchanan shrugged. "Your Honor, if the police demonstrated such misconduct from the beginning, it would have carried through to the time of the confession."

Judge Allen shook his head. "Ms. Novak is right on the money, Mr. Buchanan. The People's objection is sustained."

"No further questions," Buchanan answered.

Casey studied her notes for a moment, then stood, walking over to the witness stand. "Sergeant Benson," she questioned, "the defense has claimed that you switched the video recorder off to eliminate any possibility of being caught in your efforts to force Mr. Stevens to confess. They have first claimed that you bullied him, and then stated that he was tricked. But what does the detailed nature of the confession suggest to you, regarding, specifically, the detail that no one but the perpetrator would have known, and the way in which he described the assault?"

"I attribute those details to the fact that Mr. Stevens is, indeed, the true perpetrator of this crime," Olivia answered. "He was able to discuss Miss Davis' brutal assault with the air of someone discussing a pleasant trip to the beach."

"Could this, in your experience, be the act of someone who merely sought a press appearance, and, as the defense has claimed, sensationalized the story?"

Olivia shook her head. "Not in my experience," she responded.

"And how do you answer the charge that you encouraged the confession or otherwise falsified it?"

"The entire investigation was by the book. The interrogation was long, but not otherwise stressful. It was fully recorded, and I was also being observed by Detective Amanda Rollins."

"And, therefore, what is your opinion about the confession itself?"

"Objection!" Buchanan shouted. "We are not here to debate Sergeant Benson's personal thoughts on the matter."

"Overruled," Judge Allen answered. "Answer the question, Sergeant."

Olivia shifted in her seat. "The confession is valid," she stated simply. "There was no police misconduct."

"Thank you," Casey murmured.

After a few more rounds of pointless questions by Buchanan, Judge Allen leaned forward in his chair. "I called this hearing to consider the possibility that the confession in this case could have possibly been faked or unduly influenced. There have been too many reports of corruption in the media, and it is this court's opinion that the police should be held to the highest standard. However, after considering all testimony and comparing the confession to the details of the case at hand, I do believe that the interrogation was legal and unedited. Therefore, I am ruling the confession valid. The trial will continue in two weeks. We are adjourned."

After the hearing, Casey and Olivia again stood alone in the conference room a few doors down. Casey smiled softly. "I find it odd that Buchanan didn't bother to call Rollins, despite her being on the witness list. I had planned to call her, but Judge Allen never gave me the chance. I suppose he was tired of Buchanan's pomposity, too."

Olivia chuckled softly. "I suppose so. I am just glad that he ruled in our favor. Buchanan couldn't seem to decide whether he was questioning the investigation, the interrogation, or grasping at straws to try to save his client."

"I don't think he can ever decide," Casey murmured. "But no one in their right mind could ever find that confession invalid." She checked the time again. "I have to go," she said quietly. "I have to take care of a couple of things at the office."

Olivia nodded. "I'll see you at dinner," she said as Casey buttoned her coat and brushed past her. They paused, their gazes locking. Electricity sparked between them, and Olivia leaned forward as if to kiss Casey, but they quickly pulled apart, remembering, at the exact same moment, the presence of cameras in the room.

"See you at dinner, Sergeant," Casey answered, her hand on the door handle. As they shared one last smile, Casey opened the door and quickly rushed out. This time, her nausea couldn't possibly be blamed on the potpourri.