Bargaining Chip

Disclaimer: Not mine.

A/N: This is an AU fic. A little over three years ago, Casey had a one night stand and she now she has a son named Michael. I hope you enjoy, and if so please review.

"Mama!" Casey Novak woke up to the familiar excited scream of her two and a half year old son Michael as he did a running dive from the door of her room and landed on her bed right beside her "Mama, morning," he smiled.

Casey rolled over and yawned. She looked at the alarm clock. It was 6:30am. Michael was punctual as always. She never needed to set the alarm; Michael always knew when they needed to get up. She smiled at her little boy, running a hand over his straight brown hair "Sure is pumpkin," she chuckled as she sat up "Let's get you dressed."

Michael ran off down the hall ahead of her and into his room. Casey caught up with him just in time to see him pulling clothes out of the drawers of the dresser in no particular order. He held up an arm full and smiled "Clothes," he grinned.

"Yes," Casey took the pile from her son "These are clothes but I don't think you need so many of them for one day."

"S'cold out," Michael told her "S'very cold."

"How did you know that sweetie?" Casey asked as she bent down to his level.

Michael ran to the window and pushed it open, letting in a rush of cold air "See Mama," he grinned "S'cold."

"Michael Jacob Novak," Casey reprimanded as she came over and shut the window "What have I told you about opening this window?"

"Sowwy," Michael said, putting on his best innocent face "I forgotted."

"Come on you," Casey picked her son up and carried him over to his bed "Let's get some clothes on you," she picked out a shirt with a train on the front of it and a pair of navy blue sweat pants. She helped him to take off his red footy pajamas and get into the fresh clothes "There we go," she smiled when Michael stood on the bed in front of her, fully dressed.

Michael reached his arms out to his mother "Up?" he asked.

"Sure thing," Casey hoisted her little boy into her arms. She was amazed at how fast he was growing; it seemed like every time she turned around, it was time to buy new clothes for him. She walked into the kitchen and sat Michael in his highchair "What do you want for breakfast?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

"Cheros!" Michael said excitedly.

Casey smiled as she took a bowl from the cabinet and filled it with cereal. She placed the bowl in front of Michael. She had no idea that she would enjoy motherhood this much. The schedule might have been hard to work out but it was all worth it in the end. She would have never thought three years ago that she could balance her life the way that she did. She would have never imagined that she would spend her lunch hour cloistered in her office, on the phone with the daycare center so that she could listen to Michael tell her that he loved her. She would have never pictured herself dragging a small child through the SVU squad room when ungodly hours called for her to be present at an interrogation. It wasn't easy but Michael was worth it.

She poured herself a bowl of cereal and sat down at the table across from her son "What's the plan for today?" she asked. Today was a change of pace and she wanted to make sure that Michael was comfortable with all the details.

"Uncle Munch's birfday!" Michael said through a mouth full of cereal.

"Yeah," Casey smiled softly. The surprise party had been planned for months. Many a meeting had been held at her apartment and Michael had over heard a lot of the planning. Elliot had bought his silence with a piece of candy and Michael had promised not to say anything.

"Aunty Liv pick me up at daycare," Michael continued. Michael loved his 'Aunty Liv', sometimes to the point where Casey found herself a little jealous. Olivia had been assigned to pick Michael up because Casey would be finishing decorating her apartment with Elliot and Fin's help.

"Then what do you do when you get home?" Casey asked.

"Hide and yell surprise!" Michael smiled.

Casey grinned "Yep," she stood up and put her empty bowl next to the sink "Okay," she told Michael "I'm gonna get ready for work," she pulled Michael into a standing position in his highchair "Wanna watch Sesame Street?" she asked as she carried him into the living room.

"Sesme Stweet!" Michael said excitedly as Casey set him down on the couch and turned on the TV for him.

Casey changed quickly and returned to the living room to see Michael bouncing up and down on the couch excitedly "What's up pumpkin?" she asked as she got closer.

"Elmo world," Michael was singing along with the TV.

Casey looked at the clock on the VCR and saw that she had fifteen minutes before she had to leave so she sat down beside her son on the couch and watched TV with him. The hectic schedule did sometimes leave very little time for her to bond with Michael so she took every minute that she could.

When the show ended, Casey stood up and turned off the TV "Okay," she told Michael "Time for us to get going."

"Wanna stay here," Michael whined "Wanna stay wit you."

"I know sweetie," Casey bent down and hugged him "But if we don't get going soon, Mama's gonna be in a lot of trouble with her boss."

"Otay," Michael said reluctantly.

Casey grabbed Michael's shoes and helped him put them on. The shoes had been a gift from Don. They were adorable little sneakers. Casey then helped Michael slide his arms into his jacket; an old hand me down that had once belonged to Elliot's son, that Michael was incredibly fond of. It was red, Michael's favorite color. Casey then pulled the red mittens that were clipped to the sleeves of the coat over Michael's tiny hands. Last but not least, she pulled his hat down over his head. Olivia had bought it for him along with the mittens because she knew how much Michael loved the color red. No matter how hard Casey looked, she had never been able to find red mittens or a red hat and Olivia had been a real lifesaver.

Casey smiled softly at Michael "Ready?" she asked.

"Yeah," he responded, looking down at his shoes "Gonna miss you," he whispered.

Casey pulled him into her arms "I'm gonna miss you too kiddo," she smiled as she rubbed his back "But I'll see you later, I promise. Don't forget, it's a big day today."

"Uncle Munch's birfday," Michael said, less enthusiastically than before.

"That's right honey," Casey told him. She stood up, still holding Michael in her arms. She grabbed her car keys and purse and headed out the door "Hey," she whispered when she got a good look at Michael's still sad face as she strapped him into his car seat "This weekend it'll be just you and me," she promised.

Michael smiled "Cool."

Casey got into the driver's seat and headed for the daycare center. She didn't notice the man who was standing outside her apartment building watching her and her son.

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"Have fun today," Casey told Michael as she stood with him just inside the door of the daycare center.

"Mama," Michael became teary eyed and clung to his mother "Don't go."

His behavior surprised Casey. Michael didn't like it when she had to work but he always had fun at daycare. She gently removed his arms from around her neck "I'll see you later sweetie."

"No Mama," Michael begged "Don't go."

"I have to sweetie," she whispered. She placed a kiss on his cheek and stood up "I love you, have fun." After telling Miss Hannah that Olivia would be picking Michael up, she left, trying not to have her heart ripped in two by Michael's sobbing.

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"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury," Casey stood in the courtroom, making her opening statement against Nicolas Tyler "Mr. Tyler held Samantha Grace captive for three days. He beat her, raped her and tortured her mercilessly-"

"You bitch!" Nicolas Tyler stood up and lunged at Casey "I'll teach you the lesson that that little slut couldn't learn."

"Councilor!" Judge Andrews banged his gavel as the court officers sprung forward to restrain Tyler "Please explain to your client that it doesn't help his case to assault apposing council."

"We'd like to request a recess your honor," Nathan Samuels, the defense attorney said breathlessly.

"Granted," the judge banged his gavel again "Twenty minutes."

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"Are you all right?" Elliot asked as he and Olivia met up with Casey in the hallway of the courthouse.

"Me?" Casey asked as if she hadn't really heard at first "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine."

"Maybe you should ask Branch to give this to someone else," Olivia suggested.

"No, no," Casey said quickly "I can handle it," she changed the subject quickly "How's Samantha doing?"

"A little shaky," Elliot replied honestly "But she should be able to testify."

"Good," Casey sank down onto a bench. She looked up at Olivia "You're sure it won't be a problem for you to pick up Michael this afternoon?" she asked. All of a sudden all she wanted to do was hold her son in her arms. If it wasn't for work, she would be at the daycare center right now, trying to forget what had just happened. Her life had quite literally flashed before her eyes in one brief terrifying moment and all she could think of was Michael.

"It's no trouble at all," Olivia said, sitting beside her friend and putting a comforting hand on the other woman's shoulder.

Suddenly shots rang out in the hallway. People screamed as they took cover. Elliot pulled both women off the bench and shielded them while he tried to figure out where the shots were coming from. The shooting stopped and Olivia stood up "No," Elliot protested "You stay here with Casey."

"But," Olivia began to object but when she saw how Casey was shaking she sat down beside her friend "Be careful," she called after Elliot as he moved along the wall with his gun drawn.

Elliot peaked around the corner and saw it "Oh Lord," he muttered as he fell to his knees beside Samantha Grace's lifeless body. He felt for a pulse, pressing his jacket to the wound in her chest "Stay with me Sam," he murmured as someone else called 911.

"Did anyone see who did this?" Olivia asked as she and Casey joined Elliot.

Casey dropped to her knees beside Samantha "Oh dear God," she whispered.

A very visibly shaken woman spoke up from where she stood leaning against a far wall "A man came up to her and pulled a gun. It all happened so fast," she collapsed into tears.

"Did you see where he went?" Olivia asked as she came up to the woman and tried to comfort her.

"He ran out the front doors," the woman managed to say before she completely lost it.

"Okay," Olivia whipped out her cell phone "I need road blocks set up around the courthouse. We can't let this guy get away," she walked back over to where Casey, Elliot and the paramedics stood around Samantha's body. They all had very grave looks on their faces.

"She's gone Liv," Elliot whispered sadly.

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"We have until Monday," Casey stood in the middle of the squad room "The judge is allowing Samantha's grand jury testimony as long as we can prove that her murder is connected to Tyler in some way."

"How can it not be connected?" Elliot asked, infuriated "She was shot to death in the courthouse during Tyler's trial."

Olivia nodded in agreement "Andrews is a fool. What more proof do we need? According to the witnesses, the shooter was aiming only at her."

"I know," Casey sighed "But unless we can tie the shooter directly to Tyler, we're screwed."

"Okay, so do we have any leads?" Munch asked. He hadn't been in the courthouse but he was more than eager to catch the bastard who had murdered Samantha Grace in cold blood. He remembered the night that Samantha had made her way into the squad room. She had been so pale and it looked like the slightest breeze could knock her over. He couldn't believe that after all this woman had been through, that she would be murdered in plain sight.

Olivia threw her notes on her desk "We've got nothing," she said in pure frustration.

"No one could give us a clear description of the shooter," Elliot half growled at the notepad in front of him.

"Damn it!" Fin spat "God damn it!" Munch's surprise party was now the furthest thing from their minds.

Michael however wasn't far from Casey's mind. She caught a glimpse of the clock and sprang to her feet "I have to go pick up Michael," she explained.

"Damn," Olivia muttered as she remembered about the surprise party "You'd better get going," she told Casey. Olivia could see by the time that Casey was an hour late for picking up her son.

"Elliot?" Casey asked as she headed for the door "Do you think Maureen would like to sit with Michael tonight?" She could tell that it was going to be a long night and she wanted a backup plan just in case.

"I'll call her," Elliot pulled out his cell phone "But I don't think there'll be any problem."

"Thanks," Casey called back from the hallway.

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"Hi," Casey smiled apologetically at Miss Hannah. The daycare center was empty; Casey figured that Michael was probably sleeping in one of the back rooms.

"Came back for Michael's picture?" Miss Hannah smiled cheerfully.

"What?" Casey was confused.

"He was so proud of it," Hannah smiled as she went over to a table and picked up a brightly colored drawing "He said it was a birthday present for his uncle."

Casey looked at the picture "That's very sweet of him," she paused and looked up at Hannah "Where is Michael?" she asked.

The smile disappeared from Hannah's face instantly "His father picked him up an hour ago," she said hesitantly.

"What?" Casey whispered in utter shock "He doesn't have a father… or at least his father doesn't know he has a son. There must be some mistake. He has to be here. He has to be," she began to ramble as her world spun out of control.

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Elliot and Olivia came to the daycare center to pick Casey up; she was too distraught to drive. They pulled up in front of the building and saw Casey standing out front, shaking uncontrollably with tears cascading down her cheeks. The two detectives got out of the car and headed towards their friend. Elliot was the first to speak "Casey," he said in a gentle tone "We're gonna find him."

Olivia offered her friend a comforting hug "It's gonna be okay," she told her. Casey barely acknowledged the presence of her friends and simply continued to cry.

Elliot turned to Hannah Calvin angrily "How could you let this happen?!" he screamed. The whole squad loved Michael as if he was their own and Elliot as a parent could understand the pain that Casey was in at that moment. He could find nothing in his heart but hatred for this woman who stood in front of him.

"I wasn't the one who let that man take him," Hannah protested.

"Who was?" Elliot took a step closer to the now shaken daycare worker.

"I don't know," she told him.

"You don't know?!" Elliot was if possible, more angry now than he had been before "You're supposed to be looking out for these kids and you just let a complete stranger walk off with a two year old boy! I should arrest you right now for child endangerment!"

"Elliot," Olivia said softly as she cradled a sobbing Casey in her embrace "This isn't getting us anywhere."

Elliot turned to her and nodded. He turned back to Hannah "I want a list of everyone who works for you," he hissed "And you can bet that there's going to be a full investigation into this place." Hannah nodded and retreated to get the list for Elliot. Elliot took the list and glared at Hannah "Thank you," he said gruffly.

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"Okay," Olivia said, reading the names from the list "We've got a Marsha Potter who lives in midtown. Kayla Ryan, is her roommate and also works at the daycare and then we have a…" Olivia paused, reading the last name "Savannah Tyler."

"Tyler?" Elliot inquired "You don't think…?"

"Let's check it out," Olivia stood up quickly and slammed her hand down hard.

At that moment Munch walked into the squad room "Hey," Elliot greeted him "How's Casey holding up?"

Munch sighed, holding up a child's drawing "She's…" he placed the drawing on his desk and sank into the chair, letting his head rest in his hands "She needed to be sedated," he whispered.

"We're gonna find him John," Olivia said firmly, although deep down she was afraid of what might be happening to Michael at that moment, she tried to hide it and keep going; it was Michael's best chance.

"Liv," Elliot tapped her on her shoulder.

She nodded "We'll be back soon," she told John. She turned and started to walk out of the squad room after her partner when the phone on her desk began to ring. She doubled back quickly and picked it up "Special Victims Unit, Detective Benson."

"We have Michael Novak," a synthesized voice came through the phone. Olivia quickly switched the phone to speaker so that everyone in the room could here what the voice was saying "If you want him back in one piece, Nicolas Tyler must be released and all charges against him dropped. You have twenty four hours," the line went dead, leaving Olivia, Elliot and John all staring at one another in stunned silence.

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John entered the room where Casey sat, practically catatonic, in a chair. He sat down across from her. He needed to tell her about the phone call. He cleared his throat "The kidnappers made contact, just about fifteen minutes ago. I came here as soon as I could," he said quietly.

Casey looked up at him with watery eyes "What do they want?" she asked. Whatever the price for the safe return of her little boy, she would pay it.

"The caller," John began as he took one of Casey's hands "Said that we have twenty four hours to drop all charges against Nicolas Tyler and release him," he looked down momentarily before adding "We think that whoever took Michael was involved in Samantha's murder."

"Oh God," fresh tears spilled down her cheeks "My little boy," she whispered "John, they have my little boy."

John gathered her into his arms and held her tight "I know Casey. We're gonna get him back," he ran a hand through her hair "Elliot and Olivia are following up with one of the daycare workers. We're gonna find him Casey."

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"Savannah Tyler," Olivia called as she knocked on the door of the apartment. Elliot stood beside her, trying to reign in his anger. He couldn't jump the gun on this. He lost his temper too easily and it wouldn't help them if he lost it now.

"Coming," the muffled response from inside came. Moments later, the door of the apartment opened and Savannah Tyler stood before them, looking completely disheveled "May I help you?" she asked in a slightly breathless voice.

"Detectives Benson and Stabler," Olivia introduced quickly "Can we come in?"

Savannah obviously recognized the names of the two detectives because a look of hate crossed her face "You two are the ones who arrested Nick. Go to hell," she slammed the door in both their faces.

"She has such a winning personality," Elliot remarked as he knocked on the door again "Miss Tyler? We need to ask you some questions."

The door opened again "I have nothing to say to the two of you bout Nick. I haven't seen him in years if that's what you're wondering."

"Actually," Olivia interjected "We need to ask you some questions about Michael Novak."

"Why?" Savannah asked "Is something wrong?"

"He was kidnapped from the daycare center where you work," Elliot said in a tone that bordered on harsh "You wouldn't happen to know anything about that would you?"

"Why would I?" Savannah asked defensively.

"Because," Olivia began to explain "About an hour and fifteen minutes after he was taken, we received a call saying that your cousin would need to be released if we wanted him returned safely."

"I'm not Nick's only family you know," Savannah almost spat.

Olivia heard a noise and tilted her head "Do you have any children Miss Tyler?" she asked.

"No," Savannah responded curtly.

Elliot could here it too now "May we come in?" he asked, stepping forward and pressing his weight against the door slightly.

"I'm sorry," Savannah's voice began to rise "You can't come in here."

Then all three could hear it, plain as day "Aunty Liv! Uncle Elliot!"

"Please step out of the way Miss Tyler," Olivia said firmly as she pushed Savannah back.

Elliot grabbed Savannah's arm "Let's go see what that noise is," he said to Olivia as he kept a grip on Savannah.

Olivia followed the sound to the bedroom of the apartment. She pushed the door open.

"You can't go in there!" Savannah protested loudly "I know my rights!"

"Shut up," Olivia hissed as she ran into the room and picked Michael up off the bed. She held him tight and ran a hand over his hair "It's okay sweetie," she whispered.

"Want Mama," Michael sobbed.

"Okay," Olivia soothed as she moved past Elliot and Savannah "Let's go see your Mama."

"Savannah Tyler," Elliot began as he handcuffed her "You are under arrest for the kidnapping of Michael Novak. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law…"

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John separated from Casey briefly to answer his cell phone "Munch," he listened intently for a moment "Yeah, hang on," he took the phone away from his ear and handed it to Casey "There's someone who wants to talk to you," he told her with a small smile.

Casey wiped her eyes and cleared her throat. She held the phone to her ear "Hello," she said in a voice that was hoarse from crying.

"Hi Mama," Michael's voice came through the phone.

"Michael, honey," Casey whispered in shock "Where are you honey? Are you okay?"

"I fine," Michael answered "Aunty Liv find me."

At that moment, Olivia took the phone back from Michael "We're headed to the hospital to get him checked out. See you there."

"Okay," Casey was overcome with relief "See you there," she hung up the phone and turned back to John "They found him," she cried with relief "They found him."

John smiled "I told you they would," he hugged her tight "Come on, let's go see him."

Casey nodded and followed John.

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"Mama!" Michael squealed when he saw Casey and John entering the reception area of the emergency room. Olivia set him down on the ground and he ran directly into his mother's arms.

"He's in perfect health," Olivia smiled as she joined her friends.

"Thanks so much Olivia," Casey whispered through tears of pure joy as she held her son tight; she didn't think she could ever let him go again.

Olivia's voice dropped in volume as she added "Savannah Tyler is being booked right now. CSU found a gun in her house, they aren't sure but it looks like the kind used to kill Samantha Grace."

Michael looked over his mother's shoulder at John. He smiled and waved as he gleefully exclaimed "Happy birfday Uncle Munch!"

John patted the little boy on the head as his eyes welled up "It sure is little guy. It sure is."

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Casey stood beside her son's bed, just watching him sleep, for a terrifying time that day, she thought she would never get a chance to do something so simple ever again.

"He's a resilient little boy," John whispered as he came up behind Casey and wrapped his arms around her.

Casey turned in his embrace "I think he's too young to really know what happened to him today. We're lucky."

"Yes we are," John kissed Casey gently "We're all very lucky."

Casey was surprised by John's intimate gesture "What was that for?" she asked.

"Let's just say, a foolish old man learned something today," he smiled "You and Michael are the most important things in the world to me," Michael may not have been John's biological son but John considered him as such.

"What are you saying?" Casey smiled in spite of her confusion.

John dropped to his knee in front of Casey "I'm saying that I want to wake up next to you every morning. I want to be there for you and Michael all the time. I want your son to call me Dad," he pulled out a plastic ring from inside a party favor "Will you marry me?" he asked.

Casey smiled "Well first," she bent down to face John "Do you think you can get yourself out of that position on your own old man," she chuckled softly.

John nodded and stood up "What's your answer?" he asked eagerly.

Casey kissed him deeply "Yes," she whispered.

A chorus of applause erupted from the hallway. Casey turned and whispered a harsh "Shhhh, you'll wake Michael."

The applause quieted down to a few enthusiastic whispers of "Yay."

Casey giggled and reached for John's hand "I think we should get back out there before they all come in here."

John nodded and headed out of the room, scowling at Elliot, Olivia and Fin who stood in the hallway "You guys have no sense of decorum," he informed them.

Elliot flashed Olivia a mischievous grin "You got us in trouble," he teased "I think you promised me that if I went along with this you-"

Olivia silenced him with a finger to his lips "Shhhh, we'll discuss payment later," she grinned.

Before Casey followed him, she checked all the windows in the bedroom. She needed to assure herself that there was no way that anyone could sneak in and take her son away from her again. When she was satisfied, she bent down and brushed a feather light kiss on Michael's forehead "I love you," she whispered before straightening up and heading out to the living room where her friends where waiting to congratulate her on her engagement.

THE END

A/N: I might write other oneshots in this alternate universe that I have just created. I need to know what all of you think. If you want me to write more oneshots that follow this story, I promise that there will be eventual EO and if you guys have any ideas, I'd love to hear from you. So please review.