AN: A 'What if'. Canon up to the episode, then AU from there. Three chapters plus epilogue.
All characters belong to ABC/Andrew Marlowe.
One:
Richard Castle laughed and took another swig of his beer as Javier Esposito told another embarrassing story about his time at the 12th precinct. Javi and Kevin Ryan, his partner had been his 'work brothers' as he thought of them for the two years that he had spent working with the NYPD. Not only did he respect their abilities as detectives, he considered them friends.
The impromptu send off had been hastily put together by the two after he announced that the case that they had just wrapped would be his last one - for at least the summer. Rick had used the excuse that he was under pressure from his publisher, who was also his ex wife, to complete his latest Nikki Heat novel. The pressure from his publisher part was true. He was always behind schedule to hear her, but he could have finished it without having to sever ties with the NYPD.
Everyone in the room knew the real reason behind his sudden departure. Their captain, Roy Montgomery, medical examiner Lanie Parish and the two detectives had watched him follow her around for nearly two years waiting for her to decide he was worthy of her interest. Anyone with a functioning pair of eyes could see that he was crazy about his 'partner'. The group had watched as Castle brought her a token of his affection for this woman on a daily basis in the form of a cup of coffee made exactly the way she liked it. He had dedicated the first Nikki Heat novel to her and told the world that he thought she was extraordinary. Castle even went as far as paying $100,000 in an attempt to catch her mother's killer.
Yet for whatever reason, Kate Beckett decided to either ignore, or simply dismiss these gestures of his feelings for her. While none of them thought that she owed Rick anything for these gestures other than a modicum of respect, she seemed to want to punish him for something.
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Things had been going well until a month ago, when her team was ordered to work with the robbery division on a case. Their lead detective Tom Deming seemed to hit it off with Kate from their first interaction. Once the case was over, Deming started spending more and more time hanging around Beckett's desk and soon the two were dating, much to the chagrin of one Richard Castle.
Rather than quietly withdraw, Rick decided to stick around. After all he could still continue to work cases, even if they weren't anything more than friends. But with each passing day, Deming became more and more critical of Castle's presence at the 12th, openly criticizing his theories as stupid and constantly reminding him of how he wasn't a cop. The worst part was Kate heard everything, and yet said nothing in Rick's defense. Rick began to retreat, spending most of his time sitting with Ryan and Espo instead of his 'partner'.
Rather than admit defeat, Rick decided that one last attempt to make Beckett see that he was there for her was in order. The Memorial Day weekend was approaching and both Martha and Alexis would be out of town. Normally, the three would celebrate the holiday together at his home in the Hamptons, but Martha was off doing summer theatre and Alexis was heading off to Princeton for their summer program, leaving him alone. They had just picked up a case where it looked as if a spy had been murdered and Castle decided to make her the offer of spending the weekend with him in the Hamptons.
Rather than immediately reject his offer, she flirted with him, accusing him of simply wanting to see her in her swimsuit. Seizing the opportunity, he returned the flirting banter by telling her that she didn't have to wear a swimsuit at all if she wanted. But then her expression changed and she tells him that she can't get the time off as she had used up her vacation time looking for a new home. Castle never questioned her story as he had no idea how much vacation time she was allotted by the NYPD and dropped the subject.
That was until he happened to walk in on Kate and Tom together in a loving embrace and he reminds her about their weekend getaway. Of all the things that Castle could ever imagine Kate Beckett being, a liar would never have made the list. The two broke from their embrace and Tom walked away, leaving an embarrassed Kate facing him.
"So, you and Tom?" Castle inquires while trying to mask the hurt he felt at the moment.
"Yeah..." The look of betrayal and hurt on Castle's face, along with the silence became too much to bear. "I didn't want things to become awkward between us..." Was all she could offer as an excuse for her actions.
Not knowing how to respond to her comment, Castle decides that it's time for him to admit defeat and withdraw from her completely. "Well uh, I've got some good news for you... You know how my publisher has been on me about being behind on the latest Nikki Heat novel... I've decided to take a break from the NYPD and try to get caught up on my writing... I'm sure that you'll appreciate not having to listen to my stupid theories..."
Rick was actually surprised to see what appeared to be a look of shock on Kate's face as he told her about his departure. He honestly had expected her having a hard time not breaking into a huge smile at the thought of finally being rid of him.
"How long are you going to be gone?" Kate asks in a timid voice, afraid she already knows the answer.
Hating to tell her the truth that he's done with playing cop forever, he decides on a partial truth. "At least the summer. I'll be leaving for the Hamptons as soon as we wrap this case..."
For the briefest of moments Rick had thought that Kate would ask him to reconsider, but her expression seemed to be one of acceptance and quickly morphed to a frown as Ryan broke in to inform them that the lead he was following had turned out to be a dead end. If Rick wasn't so depressed by the day's events, he would have really enjoyed working this case. It had it all - spies, secret identities, and murder. The remainder of the day was spent with each member of the team working alone on a possible lead.
Rick had to leave earlier than the others as he was hosting his poker game for his fellow writers. He wished everyone a good night and promised to arrive early the next day to make up for his early departure. The poker game was a much needed distraction and helped Castle from having to deal with the future for at least one more night. The cards and conversation flowed freely and Rick was up a few hundred dollars.
Rick started telling the other writers about the case that he was working with Beckett and her team. They liked the twists with the fake spies and missions, but thought the idea that the murderer was someone involved in the game didn't make for a good story. It was Patterson that suggested that the murder had nothing to do with the spy game at all, but simply provided the opportunity. Rick had to admit that his idea made for a better story and would run the idea by the others tomorrow.
Their conversations returned to their current efforts in writing and Rick had to admit that he was feeling the heat from his publisher as he was later than usual. The others joined in teasing him about only putting out one novel a year, calling it pretty weak and questioning if working with his 'muse' was helping or hurting his writing. Castle assured his poker buddies that he was going to resolve that problem. He just failed to mention how or why.
The game ended with Castle still up a few hundred and everyone seemed to have a good time. Rick decided to clean up immediately after in an attempt to work things out in his mind. He knew the other writers were correct, he had been focusing less and less on his writing and more on a certain NYPD detective. A woman that up until a month ago, he was sure could become something more than a work partner. If he was honest with himself, Rick knew that he'd been in love with Beckett for several months. But Kate had chosen, deciding that Tom Deming was whom she needed and not him, in spite of all of his efforts.
Castle knew that the honorable thing to do was withdraw and let Kate and Tom have the chance for their relationship that he would never have. Up until this morning, Rick had clung to the foolish notion that he and Kate could continue to work together, but that came crashing down watching the two of them locked in a lover's embrace.
What disturbed Rick the most was why Kate felt the need to lie to him about going off with Deming for the weekend. Sure it hurt when she failed to defend him when Tom was making fun of his theories and reminding him that he wasn't a cop, but at least she didn't openly agree with him. Honesty had been one of the things that he admired the most about Kate. She never had a problem with telling him the truth, even if it hurt his feelings. Now she lies and when caught has to add insult to injury by telling another lie, saying that she didn't want to make things awkward between them?
No, he knew that leaving her and the NYPD was the right thing to do. Things would forever be awkward between them and he still clung to a little pride. For the briefest of moments he considered asking the mayor or the commissioner if he could work at another precinct, but decided that wasn't what he wanted either. No, the smart thing to do was walk away and hope that in time he could move on with his life.
True to his word, Rick arrived early and was working at Espo's desk when the others arrived. Out of the corner of his eye he watches as Kate arrives with Tom by her side. You didn't have to be Sherlock Holmes to figure out that the two had been together all night and the kiss between the two of them as they parted left little doubt. Beckett sees Castle sitting between Ryan and Esposito discussing something and then looks at the top of her desk expecting to see her coffee, but finding none.
Fighting back her disappointment, she walks back to where the three men were still arguing. She greets the men as if everything was normal and asks what they were talking about.
"Castle here is convinced that the murder had nothing to do with the spy crap, but simply provided the opportunity..." Espo replies before Rick could elaborate.
"I was doing some digging and I discovered that the victim's business partner was nearly bankrupt... He can sell the car dealership they own now and get out of debt..." Rick replies.
Kate actually seems pleased that Rick had given them another place to look for a suspect. "Good work Castle. Ryan, you and Espo drive up to Connecticut and bring the partner in for questioning."
The two detectives simply nod and grab their jackets as they make their way out of the bullpen, leaving Rick and Kate at Espo's desk. The two remained in their positions, Kate standing and Rick sitting for several seconds, frozen in place. Castle returns his attention to the computer screen that he was looking at before she appeared, not knowing what else there was to say to her. Somewhat hurt by his apparent indifference and the lack of the cup of coffee he normally provided for her, she quietly slips away walking back to her desk.
Espo and Ryan return about three hours later with the business partner. Kate decides to extend an olive branch of sorts asking Rick if he wanted to sit in on the questioning of the suspect. He quickly agrees and the two of them begin their interrogation. For a brief moment, all of the hurt that he had felt over the last month was forgotten as the two worked in sync getting the suspect to admit that his alibi for the time the victim was murdered was the dead man's wife with whom he was having an affair. Ryan and Espo were sent back to Connecticut to retrieve the wife, who verified the alibi.
It was then that Castle suggested that maybe the victim was having an affair also and suggested that they look at the woman that was playing spy with the victim. It was Ryan that found the key piece of evidence when he looked at the victims financial records again. His search revealed that the victim paid for himself and another person's fee for their spy adventure. A quick call to the agency confirmed that the fee was paid for the woman that was acting as his foreign spy counterpart.
Rick and Kate made the drive to New Jersey to confront the woman in almost total silence. Other than a few comments about the evidence they discovered and the weather forecast for the weekend, nothing was said. Even though he was sitting beside her, Beckett felt as if he was already gone by the lack of communication and his body language.
They arrived at the suspect's home and began to talk to her again. To her credit she stuck with her story about how she had raised the money for the spy adventure by clipping coupons. When Kate confronted her with the evidence that proved she was lying, she admitted to the affair and begged the two to not tell her husband. Rick confirmed that it was too late for that as he already knew just as he appeared in the room.
Beckett then revealed the evidence they had that her husband owned the same type of gun that was used to kill the victim and that he owned the same color car that had ran the victim off the road. At first the husband tried to deny any involvement, but ultimately relented, admitting that he had murdered the would be spy.
The ride back to the precinct was spent in complete silence, neither feeling the need to even try to make small talk. The captain was waiting for their return and congratulated the two for solving the case. Rick was about to gather up his few belongings and make a hasty retreat as planned when Montgomery asks Castle if he could come in tomorrow for an impromptu send off that he and the others wanted to give him as a way of showing their appreciation. As badly as he wanted to decline, Rick appreciated the effort put forth by the people that he had grown to believe were his friends. He said that he had to take Alexis to Princeton for her summer program, but would show up before the end of the shift. He thanked the captain for the gesture and bid he and Beckett a good night before quickly leaving the floor.
Montgomery gave Beckett a wary look as she appeared to be shocked by Castle's behavior and returned to his office shaking his head. Ryan and Espo had been watching from their desks and waited until she was alone at hers before approaching.
"So, last case for Castle..." Espo speaks first.
Somewhat puzzled by Javi's comment, Kate simply replies. "Yeah, but he'll be back in the fall."
"You don't really believe that, do you? He's done enough research to write a hundred books, why would he come back?" Espo counters, earning an angry glare from her in response.
"For the last month, you've let your 'boyfriend' dismiss Castle's theories as stupid and ridicule him because he wasn't a cop." Kevin added in support of his partner.
"You guys ridicule his theories all of the time and it's true that Castle isn't a cop." Kate quickly replies in her defense.
"Yeah, but we're part of his team and he knows us." Espo replies just as quickly. "You let Deming shove Castle away from you and said nothing... Either you want to get rid of him..." Expo pauses, reconsidering if he should continue with this train of thought and then shakes his head in defeat. "I'd bet that whatever reason he kept coming in had nothing to do with watching you making out with Deming like a couple of high school kids..."
Kate was about to provide some form of rebuttal, when the two see Deming appear as the elevator doors open. "Speak of the devil." Javi mutters with a scowl, knowing his chance to speak to Beckett has passed.
Both Ryan and Espo turn and walk away from her desk just as Tom approaches. They return to their desks and watch Kate and Tom together, knowing that they had given it their best shot. Both men knew that Deming wasn't the man Beckett really wanted, but couldn't figure out why she was with him. But they were sure if Kate let Castle leave without saying anything to give him hope, he would never return.
The two detectives watched as Kate and Tom left the precinct together. Beckett cast a remorseful looking glance in their direction as she left, making them wonder if she realized what was really happening.
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