Trying to be perfect was always a hard thing for Casey to do. She wanted to look like her world was perfect on the outside, but on the inside, she was broken and filled with darkness. She can't even remember the last time she truly smiled, but she was sure that it was probably when she was spending time with Olivia and Alex.
"Casey?" A man's voice questioned, and Casey felt the pain of what happened before.
"Yes?" She asked as she turned to look at her husband, Lucas. He stood there, looking completely perfect but no one knew what happened between closed doors, not even Casey's best friends.
"Are you going to come to bed?" He asked as he ran his hand through his hair. He seemed perfect even in his loose pajamas.
"No, I think I'm going to stay up and work longer." She breathed, but she regretted it as soon as he walked into the room. He ran his fingers over her shoulders and dug them in a bit as he reached her back.
"Come to bed." He breathed, and she felt the anger washing off of him.
"Okay." She mumbled. She shut her laptop off, before standing. Lucas grabbed her hand and pulled her to the bedroom, where once again she'd get her punishment for even thinking about making her own decisions.
Lucas opened their bedroom and listened for a long moment before shutting it. He didn't want his sons to wake up and witness him beating their stepmother, and Casey didn't want that either. She loved those boys like her own and didn't want them to be scarred for life after witnessing a brutal beating that left her crying.
"I'm sorry, Lucas," Casey whispered, her voice sounding even more gravely since she was holding back tears.
"You disobeyed me, Case. Just don't scream, because if you do the boys will wake up and I'll have to tell them that you tried to hurt me." He smiled.
///
Casey dropped her stepsons off at school, before going to the hospital. She hadn't been able to move her arm since last night, and she knew that either her shoulder was dislocated, or her arm was broken.
As she was walking into the hospital, gripping her arm because it moving just a little bit made her want to get sick, she saw Olivia and Elliot standing outside discussing a case.
"Hey, Casey!" Olivia exclaimed as she walked towards her best friend. She stopped short though when she saw the pain covering Casey's face. Her friend usually looked like she was on a mission, and if she didn't get what she needed to get done, done, she'd be pissed off. But now she looked like she could start crying at spilled milk.
"Novak?" Elliot questioned when he saw the exact same thing that Olivia had seen.
"I'm sorry, I'm busy and have to get in there." She mumbled, before moving past them, but Olivia grabbed her bad arm, and Casey cried out in pain.
"Don't touch me!" Casey cried, but breaking down into painful sobs. She quickly turned into Olivia and clung to her with her good arm.
"It was Lucas. I can't stay quiet anymore. He hurts me."
///
Casey regretted spilling the secret that she'd been keeping for the past three years she's been married to Lucas. It started after she miscarried their child, and he got so angry because of it that he just started to beat her for fun. She tried to tell herself that it was because he was just as heartbroken as she was, but deep down she knew that he was just violent.
"Is the medicine working?" Olivia asked as she walked into the hospital room that Casey laid in. They had found more injuries while examining Casey, and they said she had to stay for a day at the least.
"For the pain, yes. But not for what I'm thinking about or feeling." Casey mumbled as she looked at her friend.
"When did it start?" Olivia questioned. She had sent Fin and Elliot to go and arrest Lucas, and now she needed to get the victim report from Casey.
"Please don't, Liv. Be my friend and not a cop for like ten minutes." Casey groaned as she shifted in the bed. She hated how she had to have her arm in a sling across her chest since they popped her shoulder back into place.
"Alright. Do you want to talk about it?" She replied awkwardly. In times like this when her friend's get hurt, Olivia didn't want anything to do with the whole be a friend thing, she wanted to be a cop and help her friend before talking to them and being the supportive friend.
"God, just ask your damn questions." Casey sighed, as she sat up. Olivia pulled out her phone and started to record the conversation.
"Alright, when did it start..."
"When I lost the baby."
"Ca-"
"Detective, just question me before I break!"
///
Casey was sleeping in her hospital bed that night when she felt the bed shift under barely any weight, but since her medicine had worn off a bit, she felt the pain in her body and woke up. When she looked up, she noticed her stepsons sitting on either side of her bed, their hazel eyes filled with tears.
"Dean. Landon. What are you two doing here?" Casey whispered, as she reached her hand out and ruffled the reddish brown hair that covered Dean's head.
"Olivia came and got us from school. Where is Daddy?" The youngest, Landon questioned as he played with the edge of Casey's blanket.
"Uh-" She started, but then she turned and saw Olivia standing in the doorway.
"Boys, your father hurt Casey." She breathed. Their eyes went wide as they looked their beloved stepmother over. They could see the bruises that they didn't notice this morning.
"Where do we go?" Dean asked, as he reached out and grabbed Casey's hand in his.
"You are staying with Casey," Olivia spoke, and Casey felt tears well in her eyes.
She couldn't even think about how they were going to stay with her. She isn't their biological mother, and Lucas has a mother who would take them.
"How?" Casey whispered.
"Because a judge gave you temporary custody until we can get in contact with their grandmother. No matter how many broken bones you have, or dark nights you have suffered through, these boys kept you going and they will be with you through this all."
Hey guys, I apologize for this crappy one shot. But thanks for reading. Please vote and comment all of your feedback below! :D