Hi, guys! This is my first story, so please bear with me! Any feedback is appreciated. I'm rating this T because it will be in the future. No, this whole thing will not involve a case. This is just my way of getting them where I need them to be. Obviously, this takes place a month after the freezer incident, so Montgomery is still alive. Pretty much this whole thing is AU. PLEASE leave ideas as to what you might want to see happen and what you liked/disliked about this first chapter. Stick around if you want to find out what Castle's big plan is to get her out of this funk she's in!

**I obviously don't own the characters, the show, or anything involved in this. I DO, however, own my little shipper heart and want Marlowe to put these two together soon! Ha.

The streetlights were still humming quietly outside Kate Beckett's window when a very familiar noise disturbed her slumber. Without even consciously thinking, she grabbed her cell phone off of her bedside table. Groggily, she answered with her usual, "Beckett."

"Ay Becks. We gotta body." Esposito's voice rang out of the receiver, with the similar sleepy tone that hinted her own.

Kate sat up then, knowing there was no more time to get her rest; a family needed her help finding justice. Sighing slightly—she hadn't been getting much sleep, or at least not restful sleep recently— she swung her legs over the side of the bed. A quick chill went down her spine as the cold dawn air hit her bare skin, leaving her warmth and cocoon of blankets.

"What's the address?"

"352 Park", the other detective stated.

"Alright. Be there in 20."

As soon as she got off the phone, she turned to see the glow of her alarm clock. 3:42AM. Should she wake Castle? It was pretty early, and she was sure he was up writing pretty late that night after they had parted their separate ways. His deadline was quickly approaching, and Paula has been breathing down his neck for the past three weeks to get some new material. But she knew the writer, and these murders make his days brighter. So she hit her speed dial and waited while throwing on some makeup to cover the bags that were forming under her eyes. No time for coffee, and none of the shops were open this early anyways. This was going to be a long day.

When she pulled up in front of Castle's building, she barely had to wait a minute before she saw him bounding outside, pulling his coat tighter to his chest. She noticed he had a few things he was clutching onto, and she was still trying to identify them when he opened the door and climbed in hastily. When she gave him a questioning look, he threw her one of his eye-crinkling smiles and reached in the bag to reveal two thermoses and…was that…? Oh, yes! The man had brought her a bearclaw! As he unscrewed the lid on one of the thermoses, the detective got a whiff of some amazingly strong smelling coffee. She inhaled in appreciation as he handed her his offerings.

"Castle, how…?" He held up a hand, as if trying to get her to stop talking.

"Well, I sort of have had…Uh, well, it must have been three cups of this tonight. Haven't slept a wink. Paula would be so proud." He gave another fake wistful look, but then seemed to genuinely get distracted, before pulling himself back to the present moment.

"No, but anyways. I figured you would need this if you expect to solve a homicide, and as much as I love to be around grouchy, groggy Beckett, I'd prefer my head NOT to be bitten off today." Castle continued on with another typical smile.

With that, Kate huffed and gave him one of her signature glares combined with an eye roll. A hint of a smile shone through as she brought the thermos to her lips, and after taking a long sip, nodded her head toward him in thanks. They rode in silence for the most of the ride, with the occasional fiddling of the radio controls by Castle. Something told him that his detective wasn't herself though, as he glanced over at her to steal peaks. Her face was strained somehow, as if she hadn't gotten a good night's sleep in a month at least. Was the freezer incident affecting her after all? Of course when Castle mentioned it a few weeks ago, she had said it wasn't, but what else could be the reason for her obvious restlessness and exhaustion? At the station, she hid it well from the others, but when it was just the two of them, she unconsciously lets a guard down and her true emotions show on her face. Maybe to anyone else, she may seem fine, but not to him. He knew that face like it was ingrained on the inner side of his eyelids. As he looked over again, he hesitated for a moment and rested his hand on top of hers that wasn't on the steering wheel.

"Hey, you okay?" Castle tried to sound fairly casual as to not spook her with the intimacy of the sudden contact. A quick flash of panic shone through her eyes, which he inevitably saw but didn't draw attention to.

"Hmm? Oh, yeah. Just tired, I guess. You know, getting a call at 3:45 in the morning can do that to a person, Castle. Well, a person that isn't on a constant sugar rush."

She tried to use her humor to throw him off the subject and believe that she was, indeed, fine. But she wasn't. He knew that as well. Sometimes, he wonders if she knows just how accurate he can read her. Despite knowing that she obviously wanted to drop the subject, he needed to get something out.

"You know I'm here if you need me, right? I went through the same thing as you. I still have trouble sleeping sometimes. Just because things didn't work out with Josh," he practically spat out the name, "doesn't mean you're alone in this. I'm here if you need anything. Even if it's just a coffee break."

Kate locked eyes with him for a moment, letting the emotions seep in for a moment before breaking the connection. Something about that man's eyes were mesmerizing to her. She slowly nodded.

"I know, Castle. I'm fine." Castle looked at her with a quizzical expression. "Really. Thanks, though." Kate replied quietly as she shut off the engine. They had been sitting in the alley for a good minute now. People were going to start asking questions if they didn't get out of the car, most importantly her boys and Lanie. He seemed to understand that, and reluctantly got out the vehicle as well.

Kate ducked under the tape, mystery writer in tow. Lanie greeted them with a quick glance and a nod, obviously not happy to be out of bed at this hour either. The wind picked up then, just the slightest breeze, but still causing the detective a slight panic at the reminder to what had happened almost a month ago now. Sensing her discomfort he almost subconsciously moved closer to her, wanting to both shield her from the cold and any potential emotional hurt she may be experiencing. Suddenly, a light went off in his mind. He had an idea as to how to help her through this. It'll be hard to convince her, though. But that will have to wait.

"What do we have for us this morning, Lanie?" Beckett asked, trying to be lighthearted. She looked down at the disheveled body in front of her. The girl couldn't be more than 30, with light brown hair descending down her shoulders. Her eyes were closed due to two black eyes.

"Well, Jane Donelton here seemed to go through a bit of hell. Multiple compound fractures in both arms, slashes on her legs with what looks like a dull blade, and the obvious damage to her face. Bruising indicates it was all perimortem." Lanie said in disgust.

"Wait, then what exactly killed her?"

"The fatal injury was a puncture wound to her femoral artery. But I doubt she was conscious when they finally killed her. Poor thing, though. Definitely looks like someone was trying to get some info out of her. I'd say it happened between two and four hours ago. When we get her back to the morgue, I'll be more thorough in the patterns of the injuries and will test for a tox screen."

"Alright. Thanks. Hey, Espo. Ryan. Any witnesses?" Kate turned her attention to the two standing slightly to the side.

"Uh, yeah, a passerby named Stan Michaels. Said he saw two darkly-dressed men running as soon as they saw him." Ryan answered, looking down at his notes.

"Okay. Ryan, can you contact the family? See what you can find out from them." Beckett turned to Esposito. "Can you pull her financial records? Let's see if anything unusual turns up."

Esposito and Ryan nod and walk off to handle their new assignments. She turned to Castle.

"We'll pull the telephone records. Maybe she could give us some obvious clue so we can wrap this one up quickly. CSU should be here soon anyway."

Back at the station, it was mid-morning before the telephone company was open for the day and they were able to access the reports of Jane Donelton. Castle and Beckett sat with highlighters and their forth cups of coffee at their usual spots. Neither looked alert though, despite the obvious attempt to hide that from each other and those around them. Both were in their own worlds when Ryan came in with a notepad full of scribbles. He stopped when he saw both Castle and Beckett with paperwork.

"Whaa…? Castle is doing paperwork? What did you do to him, Becks?" the Irishman joked.

Castle made a faux-upset face and scoffed a laugh.

"Thanks, Ryan. Appreciate the support. I was just trying to be helpful." He responded. The writer didn't say the real reason for why he was still there. Montgomery was still in a meeting and he was waiting patiently for the man's availability. If Kate knew any of this, however, questions would be asked; questions the writer wasn't ready to share until he knew his plans could take form.

Kate glanced over and rolled her eyes slightly. "Found out anything from the family?" She asked hopefully, turning her attention to the other detective.

"Oh, uh, yeah. Vic's sister said she was acting jumpy for the past few weeks. Said she tried to brush it off as stress from work, but I talked to some of her colleagues at her firm who said she has been extra secretive and unlike herself recently."

"Did they say if she mentioned anything informative or suspicious?" Beckett looked towards Ryan.

"The only thing they said was that she and her boyfriend seemed to be on the rocks lately."

"Okay. Let's have uniforms get him in here for questioning." The female detective said.

"On it." Ryan replied as he walked toward his own desk, with his phone in hand. Beckett stood up and went towards the murder board to fill in some information. She let her eyes trace over the board, seemingly mesmerized by its contents. Although she does this often, Rick noticed a subtle sadness and lethargy behind the walls of guards she kept up around her that was not usually present.

Just when he was about to delve into thought, Montgomery emerged from his office, shook hands with two men, clad in suits, and walked them out. As soon as the captain had returned to his office, Castle jumped up and headed towards the hall heading to the captain. He looked over his shoulder, calling to Beckett that he's taking a bathroom break. Kate barely heard him, deep in thought, but waved him off hap-hazardly.

"Captain? Can I speak with you for a moment?" Castle knocked on the door lightly, despite the fact that it was open.

"You don't usually ask before doing so, but sure, go ahead. What's on your mind? How's the case going?"

"Oh, the case is alright. But that's not why I wanted to talk. I'm worried about Beckett. But I might have a solution. I'll need your help though."

Montgomery sat back in his chair, and listened to the writer's proposition.

And so this ends our first chapter :) Please tell me what you think. Should I continue writing? Does it keep you captivated? I'm curious.