As soon as Rick rushed through the propped open door of his loft, he was faced with the vision of Alexis holding her boyfriend as she stood in absolute shock. Her face was ghostly and her body was trembling. Beside her, on the kitchen stool, Maddie sat cradling Sophie close to her chest. The moment the girls caught a glimpse of him, Maddie and Alexis both turned away. This time, it was Alexis who chose to keep the level head. Mike did the speaking for them. "Mr. Castle, they would rather not see you right now."
"Mike, you're a good kid, but you need to stay out of my family business," Rick said, standing taller than the boy.
Mike didn't back down. "I respect that this is your family and your business, but I think the girls are old enough to decide when they don't want to talk to you."
"No offense, but they have to talk to me. I'm their father."
"Sir," Mike began.
He was cut off. "Dad, just- work your case. We're fine. We will talk later when mom's out of the hospital and our lives aren't under attack." Alexis remained silent, but agreed with her sister's every word. Rick breathed, watching the girls, watching them ignore every word which slipped from his lips. He couldn't blame them for not wanting to see him. He knew he put them through Hell. But- he had to work the case. He had to make sure they were all alright. So, he turned toward the body he knew would be there.
That was when he saw her. Kaylin was dress exactly how Kate had been dressed when he found her hanging on that board. The message was clear. The threat was received. Back off or this all happens again. The moment he saw Kaylin like this, the moment he relived pulling his wife down, the moment he remembered the deal, a shockwave rushed over him. All he could wonder was if this was all worth it. All he could do was wonder if risking their lives was worth it. At the moment, that answer seemed like a big fat no.
Then, he looked further than the message, and saw the woman on the bed. He remembered everything Kaylin Murphy had proved herself to be. A stubborn jackass without the charm or restraint needed to make that a good thing, but- she was strong. She was understanding. Kaylin wasn't just a good cop, she was a young kid, in love with Harris as much as she was in love with her work. She had a future. She had dreams. She was a friend... And now... she was dead. And if he didn't get out of the deal he made, his hands would be as blood-stained as their's were.
Still, seeing the boys' cribs reminded him of what was at stake. He then reverted to the cop mode Kate generally kept for herself. When Lanie got close to finishing her exam, he questioned, "What was her cause of death?"
"Suffocation," Lanie replied, refusing to look at him.
Castle continued, "How long ago did she die?"
"Not long ago. I'm putting time of death around one A.M."
"She- she wasn't killed here, was she?"
Lanie put down the chart and finally looked at him. "See those flecks of blood on that pillow over there?" Rick looked at the only pillow Kaylin wasn't laying on. "That tells me yes, she was smothered in here with that pillow only a couple feet away from your babies' beds." Rick swallowed hard. "So, I guess the message you got was loud and clear."
Rick let this pass and allowed the air to settle before he dared to ask, "How long before that DNA is ready?"
"At least another ten hours," the woman stated, returning to the paperwork.
"Lanie...," he said in a way which called her attention. She sighed, barely interested by his pain, and put the chart back down against her thighs. "Is there any way to speed this up?"
She harshly batted, "No, Castle. Don't you think I would have done everything I could to make this go faster?"
"I didn't mean to imply-."
"Well, you did. It's moving as fast as it can. I suggest you go to Gates with what you've got and hope to god she can get this ass off the streets."
"We need his ground guys too," Castle explained.
Lanie said, "Well, they are your friends, aren't they? Call them up. Maybe if you tell them you want to put them in Rikers, they'll understand and go willingly. That might be fun, huh? Let's see how fast you get killed."
Castle didn't respond. He simply shut his eyes and breathed. It was then that clarity overcame him. Invite them to jail, Rick's mind echoed, Invite them to jail.
With that up his sleeve, Rick started out into the front room with a look on his face that caught the attention of all four people who had sent him on his way. Alexis was the first to coo a simple, "Dad?"
"What are you doing," Maddie questioned in collaboration.
The man quickly turned to them and stated, "I'm ending this."
"How," Maddie continued in total disbelief.
He writer replied, "The way I should have gone about ending this last time. I'm going to talk with Gates."
"I think that woman would sooner shoot you than help you," Maddie simply stated.
Alexis then asked, "Safely, right? I mean, you're not going to do anything that's dangerous, are you? Gates wouldn't let you do anything dangerous."
"I'll be fine," the man stated. He then saw the fear in his eldest daughter's eyes. He came closer telling her, "I'm not going to do anything wreckless, I swear." She didn't look like she believed him, and instead studied the floor beneath her feet. He came a bit closer, laying a kiss on her forehead and backed away. "I'll be fine."
"Does mom know you're doing this," Alexis questioned.
He sighed, looking between them, telling them both, "There's no reason to tell her. She can't do anything to help, and all she'll do is worry. There is no reason your mother needs to know anything about this. Alright?"
Seeing the mild desperation evident over her father's face, knowing he was absolutely right, Maddie agreed without another thought. When he looked up at Kate for an equal statement of understanding, she was far more hesitant. She had been around this block far too many times to not realize when her father was hiding something from someone, it was because he was doing something stupid. She couldn't agree to what he was asking. Not with her whole heart. But then, seeing Maddie watch her, seeing her innocent belief in her father's statements, she couldn't say no. She couldn't disobey. She simply swallowed down on her hestiation and agreed to what he asked. As soon as she did, after a pair of hugs for each girl, Rick jolted out the door and out toward something they both knew was far more dangerous than he let on.
☆●☆●☆●☆●☆
Back in the hospital, James had finally woken up. Kate cradled the boy to her chest softly, fighting the slight remainder of pain radiating through her abdomen brought on by moving. In theory, having a C-section sounded like it was going to be something that was far less painful than ejecting twins from her body, but- the surgical searing was definitely worse. Still, it was a pain she was able to ignore for the sake of her boys, and to her, that was all that mattered.
Holding James up to her chest may have solved her physical pain, but-... It did nothing for the pains she'd not felt so intensely for four months. It was to her as if her assailant had risen from the past and seeped into her present, standing right there in the doorway, telling her yet again how difficult it was to not beat again her stomach. It was as though she was back to being owned by the memory of him. It was Hell reborn. It was agony. And all of that was before Maddie and Alexis finally got to the hospital, Mike and Sophie waiting outside where the boy felt they belonged.
When Kate caught a glimpse of Alexis' flush face and Maddie's distant statue, she was left with only one question. "What happened?"
The girls looked between each other, Maddie still obedient to her father's request and Alexis still stuck on pleasing her younger sister. Maddie replied, "Nothing."
Kate's eyes slimmed down. "Maddie, what happened?"
"Nothing," Maddie insisted.
Beckett then sternly stated, "I'm a cop. I know nothing when I see it, and this is not nothing. Now, either you tell me what happened, or I call your father and ask."
"I doubt he'll pick up," Alexis stated. She then realized what she just said, and she shifted.
"Why wouldn't he pick up?"
Maddie covered, "No reason. He's just working the case."
"No reason, huh? Why do I get the feeling I could call Martha or Lanie and get a different story?"
"I don't know," Maddie replied, "Maybe those new-mom hormones are screwing with your cop senses."
Beckett rolled her eyes and then said, "Fine. If you won't tell me, perhaps your grandmother will."
"Fine, call her," Maddie bluffed. "She's just going to tell you exactly what we are. Nothing's happening. Nothing's going on."
Kate continued to watch Maddie, knowing fully well that she was lying. Still, she sighed and told the girl, "Alright. I just hope you girls know that no matter what happens, I'm here to talk. I'm here to help, and that's all I want to do. There's nothing you girls couldn't tell means nothing that's going to make me ever stop loving either of you, or your father. And there's nothing we can't fix between the three of us. I hope you know that."
This didn't seem to crack much off of Maddie's shell, but Alexis hadn't withstood the guilt trip as well. Guilt was not a tool Rick or Martha or anyone in Alexis' life had ever dared to wield because they had never had a reason to do so, and if they had, the affect would be so massive that it was nearly unimaginable to inflict that kind of weapon on her. Had this not been a dyer situation, had it not been that, given the events of the past week, anything bothering these girls would be something she needed to know, Kate wouldn't have even dared to use it.
Alexis swallowed, looking at Maddie with shame in her gaze, telling her younger sister she was going to do what needed to be done. Maddie's eyes widened, and she shook her head. Alexis sighed and started, "Dad-."
"Is fine. Nothing happened."
"Maddie," Alexis protested,
"He's fine! Nothing's wrong!"
"She deserves to know."
Maddie shifted to face her sister and insisted, "There's nothing to know. Dad's fine."
"Girls," Kate chastised, drawing their attention. "Maddie, let your sister say what she's trying to say."
"No!"
"Why not," Kate questioned. "If nothing's wrong, what could she say that you don't want me to know?"
Maddie switched feet, thinking a moment before telling her mother, "He told us not to."
"Maddie, that's exactly why I need to know," Kate said softly to her daughter, knowing her husband kept nothing from her if it wasn't something horrible. Maddie was silence, and when Kate looked to Alexis, the red head told Kate everything. She left nothing out. Everything Kate didn't already know, she made sure was one hundred percent available to the woman on the bed. But not even Alexis saw everything. She didn't know about Benjamin Gerick. She didn't know that Tanner's case was about tobe thrown out. All she knew was Murphy was dead and her father was headed to the one place he might actually be able to get help. Unfortunately, that was the one place in the world where he was the least wanted, and that was the one place in the world where he was in the most danger.
☆●☆●☆●☆●☆
Under any other circumsances, given what the writer had done, Gates would have had him thrown out onto the streets before he could even step through the doors in the lobby, but that wasn't a luxury she could afford given the clock she was fighting. Murphy died in his home. He made a deal he was now desperately trying to ammend. Now, they needed someone as desperate as he was. They needed someone willing to do anything. And most of all, they needed someone who actually understood these criminals on a deep, corrupted level that one could only understand by being dragged through hell the way he had been.
So, as retracted as she was from the words she had to speak, she asked the writer, "What do you want?"
"I- I think I have a way to catch these people, but- in order to do it, I have to have help for the NYPD."
"After everything you've done, after everything you've put us through, why on earth would we help you, Mr. Castle?"
The writer breathed. "Because no one else can help me with this, and you know these people won't be taken down any other way. I already have the call in. All you have to do is wait for a cue."
"Mr. Castle, we are not your puppets."
"No, you're not, but these people are making you look like you're theirs. Now, please, all I'm asking for is a little back up."
"I know what you're asking for, but that would put even more officers at risk than are already in the hospital because of you. And in case you haven't noticed, these people aren't exactly messing around. This isn't as easy as you think it is."
"Captain, the only person who will be in any danger is me."
"Until the squads go in," the woman agreed.
He stated, "That library is so small, there is no chance that they can get out or overwhelm any unit, and your men will be in full cavilar."
"And if they're expecting us? If they see us?"
"Captain, what if we don't do this and Ryan and Esposito die? You think these people will stop with there? No! Whatever happens next, lives will be on the line. I'd just assume try to work for a target rather than lose innocent lives because we couldn't catch these assholes."
"Mr. Castle, what you're suggesting-."
"Will work. Is no different than any other set up the NYPD might create."
"Is more dangerous than I feel I can allow," the woman stated over him.
Rick then raised his voice, now screaming, "For whom?!"
Gates looked at him and replied with a much more calm manner, "For our officers. For the public. And while I couldn't care ess about anything but the paperwork and how this would affect my best detective, assuming she's even able to come back, this is dangerous for you! Have you even thought that through?! You have a wife, two new born sons, and two daughters who are going to need their father now more than ever! I can't in good conscience put you on the front lines!"
"Yes you can! Captain, I'm the reason this went this far in the first place. I'm the reason this got so far out of hand. And if I die, if somehow this goes wrong, at least my family will know I died to protect them. At least they will know I died doing something right for a change. And my daughters, my wife will make it through this. They still have each other. They will still have family. They don't need me. They need to feel safe, and if we don't do something, they will never feel safe again."
Before him, Gates breathed in and out, fire seeming to fly from her lungs as she watched him, knowing that every word he said was true. Plus, it was her job to catch these sons of bitches, and the writer was right. Under any other circumstances, this would be the ploy they would set up to smoke these guys out. This would be the way they finally caught these people. There was likely no other way to do this safely, and they were running out of time.
She then looked down at the desk before her, breathing in and out every ounce of air she needed before releasing it and telling the man, "You're sure you're willing to do this?"
"Yes," the writer said severely.
The woman then breathed and told him, "Fine, but we do this exactly how I say and we don't take any extra risks. Is that understood?"
"Yes, s-...," Rick started before he was interrupted by his phone. When he looked down at the screen, it was the last person he thought would be calling. Looking up at Gates, he told her, "It's Kate, I have to take this." The woman rolled her eyes as she nodded, waving her hand for him to go out into the bullpen. He answered, "Hello?"
"Kaylin Murphy is raped, murdered, and left in our bed in the exact same clothes I was wearing when I was attacked, and you didn't think you should tell me?! Instead you send the kids over to distract me?! What the hell is the matter with you!"
Rick breathed and questioned, "They told you?"
"Of course they told me, Castle. They're worried about you. I'm worried you. What's gotten into you?! What made it suddenly okay for you to keep secrets?!"
"What made it-," Rick started, catching himself starting to scream before realizing Gates was watching. He then walked forward, telling her in a stern but hushed voice, "What made it okay? Are you forgetting that you nearly died because you couldn't decide for yourself whether you could handle this case or not?!"
"I'm fine now, Rick. And you can't be keeping secrets from me," she stated feircely.
Castle then snapped. "You're not fine, Kate! You nearly died more than five times in the last two weeks! You're not strong enough to handle the world. You're not strong enough to handle this case, and at least one of us needs to make it out of this alive."
"One of us? What are you talking about? What are you doing? Rick, you and I are both going to be fine. You-... We both swore to those girls that we would be fine and- you swore you wouldn't do anything reckless."
"I'm not," he stated without his heart in his words. "I'm doing what I have to, Kate. I'm doing the only thing I know will put these assholes behind bars."
The woman swallowed, asking in a distant tone, "Why do I get the feeling you're about to do something stupid?"
"I'm not."
"Rick-...," she tried to gain composure. "Rick- promise me right this second that no matter what happens next, you're coming home."
He breathed, looking down at the floor and shifting in his place, holding back every word of denial he could. There was no way he could tell her what was happening, and there was no way to guarentee he was coming home safely. As he opened his mouth to answer her question dishonestly, Gates showed up in the doorway with an air about her that made it obvious something was wrong. He then breathed, tremors coursing over him as he told her, "I love you, Kate, but- I have to go." Before he could hear her say another word, he hung up. She was in no condition to hear the truth, and he was in no condition to lie.
When he got off the phone, the woman before him said, "There's something you need to see."
Rick swallowed the fear consuming his words and asked, "How bad?" It was in her lack of response that he knew it was bad enough.
☆●☆●☆●☆●☆
"Rick?!" Kate called into the phone. She then heard the other end drop and knew he wasn't answering. Shaking, forcing herself to breathe, Kate closed her eyes and hung up the phone, closing her eyes the moment her finger hit the end call button. Biting hard on her lips, trying to hold in her pain, the woman swallowed back on every emotion present in her body, and with a greaat deal of effort she calmed her body as best she could. She steadied her breathing. She stopped her tears. Then, with nothing else on her mind but the good of her family, she lifted herself from the bed.
The moment her feet hit the floor, searing pain ripped through her stomach, but she fought it. The moment she was able to bend down, she did so and lifted her bag from under her bed. Breathing through the aches and silently dressing herself no matter how much she would rather just fall to the floor and sob, Kate fought every instinct in her body to reach her goal. By the time she was completely ready to go, she looked down at her sons and told them both how much she loved them. Then, hitting the call button on the side of the wall, she waited for a nurse to come in.
When the woman in scrubs came in, Alexis and Maddie followed, and Kate confidently told the woman, "I have to get out of here. I have to."
"Mrs. Castle, you're still recovering from a very brutal surgery," the woman began.
"I know," Kate interupted. "I know, and I wouldn't leave if I didn't have to, but I have to go right now. I just- I need someone to take the boys to the nursery. I- I can't- I don't have the car to take them home yet, but- I- I have to go."
Maddie then stepped up. "Mom, you're still healing. You're clearly in pain."
"Yeah," the woman agreed, "Yeah, I am, but Maddie, I have to go help your father. I- I have to talk him out of whatever it is he's doing."
"Ma'am, we can't discharge you," the woman said.
"I know, I know, just- I left against medical advise. I know the risks, but- I can't sit around and do nothing anymore. I- I have to help my husband. Now, please, just- I have to go right now. Please, you have to let me go."
The woman looked at the detective before her and sighed, shaking her head and telling her, "There's paperwork you need to fill out."
"I'll fill it out later."
"You can't-"
"I can. And I wouldn't be telling you I was leaving if I didn't need someone to watch my boys. Just- let me leave and I swear I will come back." The woman swallowed hard, seeing the desperation and honesty in her patient's eyes. After taking in a breath, the nurse agreed and offered to wheel Kate downstairs. That was an offer she didn't refuse. When they got down there, Alexis grabbed her car and the two drove off toward the precinct.
There, the detective got out of her car, telling her step-daughter and Maddie, "If I were either of you, I wouldn't go back to the house. I don't much care where you go, just- text me when you get there and let me know that you're safe every now and then so I don't have to worry, alright?" Both girls nodded and agreed. Kate then closed the door and started toward the precinct.
When the elevator doors opened the the bullpen she knew well, she never expected to see a meeting of cops sitting before her captain and her husband after what had happened. Then again, when they all turned to find out who was getting off the elevator, they never expected to see her coming off, looking like a ghost. Still, the pale faced woman was the first to make a sound. "Castle?"
"Kate, what the hell are you doing here?" He was instantly walking toward her, forgetting a moment about what they were discussing.
She answered, "You were being cryptic and- I just- I needed to make sure you weren't doing anyrhing stupid." He then turned the corner and came into her full view as she asked, "What is this?"
Gates replied from afar. "Your husband's plan."
"Plan?" Kate was speechless. "What are you talking about?"
He breathed. "I told you I knew how to take these people out."
"Rick, what on earth are you talking about?"
"Look, Kate, everything's under control. You- you shouldn't be here. You should be in the hospital with the boys." A thought then dawned on him. "The- the boys are still at the hospital, right?"
Kate rolled her eyes. "No, Rick, I'm such a horrible parent that I would rip my premature newborn sons out of the hospital because I thought you were doing something reckless. Of course they're still at the hospital."
"I- I didn't mean anything by that," Rick started.
Gates then told Kate, "Detective, we have work to do."
"What work," Kate asked, looking from Rick straight to the other cops.
Rick then pulled her attention back by telling her, "Just case work, alright? It's fine. You can go back to the hospital. It will all be fine."
"Yeah, right, cause everything is always fine," Kate said, shifting and looking over her husband's shoulder. She then sighed, looking over at her boss and asking, "What is this, cause it certainly isn't a regular run down." Even for as weak as she was and as much pain as she was in, her demands were still unquestioned.
Gates told her, without a second thought, "Your husband has volunteered to set up a meeting with our suspects to go through with a sting."
"What," Kate said, looking at her husband and then her boss. "You can't let him do this."
"She's not letting me, Kate. This is my choice. I have to do this."
"And if something happens to you?"
"Nothing's going to happen," Castle said in exasperation.
Beckett then stated, "You don't know that, Rick, and no one here can guarantee it. It's too dangerous."
"Kate."
"Rick. You have a family to think about."
"And so did you when you went into that school five months ago. You can't ask me not to do this any more than I should have asked you not to do that."
Kate stared at him, telling him fiercely, "This is different and you know it."
"Yeah, it is different. Doing this doesn't just save innocent people who have no part in this, but it saves you and the kids and the boys. I'm not going to just sit around when I could do something, Kate. Not now, not ever."
"And if this turns out as well as your deal did," the woman shot back.
"Then at least I know I was trying to do the right thing this time." Once again, the conversation was cut off by Rick's phone. The writer looked at the screen and told Gates, "It's him."
"Speaker," the woman said. The writer complied, walking closer to the officers after looking his wife over and choosing to do what he felt was right.
When he answered, Benjamin Gerick's voice came through. "Mr. Castle, I'm afraid we're moving our meeting this evening."
"Moving it," the writer asked, "Why?"
"Tanner's case was stalled yet again, so we've decided to pay one of our friends a visit. See, your initiation with Jackson still hasn't occurred, and we still ask that it does, but- someone needs... persuading and no one can persuade him better than you."
"Someone," the writer asked.
"Yes, I believe you know him. Judge Hail. You and he had a nice little chat this morning," the man sneered.
Everyone looked at the writer but Gates. "Yeah, he and DeVroye wanted to discuss something about the prosecution. I couldn't say no."
"And what was the discussion about?"
"Esposito's reappearance on the stand. They wanted to see if I could answer any of the questions they were giving him in order to proceed," the writer lied on his feet.
The man went silent for a moment, and then agreed, "Well, Mr. Castle, it's about time we show you how to be a man."
"Just give me a where and when," the write replied.
The man on the other end laughed mildly to himself, and replied, "Right here, right now."
"What do you mean," the writer questioned.
The man on the other end then asked, "Do you know where we are, Mr. Castle?"
"No. If I knew, we wouldn't be talking on the phone."
"Well, I'm with all of our dear colleagues in a restaurant at the center of one of New York's largest attractions."
Rick shifted, somehow knowing instantly, "You're at Coney Island."
"Yes! See, I knew we picked you for a reason. Now, Mr. Castle, I'm going to need you to bring your wife down here without those detectives sitting beside you, and you two are going to have to convince me of something, because right now, it's either you two or all these people."
"You're going to kill everyone on Coney Island if you don't get us," Rick asked, holding no faith in that threat.
The man then explained, "I pulled an old card out of Isa's playbook, Mr. Castle. In two hours, this place will be gassed if you and your wife don't come and play. So, hurry up now. I wouldn't want to have to lose out on this quality time." The man then hung up, leaving the writer and his wife to stare into each other with absolute terror and shock. They both knew what they had to do, but- neither realized what they were actually getting into, and neither knew that after this moment, their lives would forever be changed one last time.