Title: Bank On It
Summary: Castle and Martha are hostages in bank. What goes through the mind of a woman who loves them?
Disclaimer: I don't own most of the characters I write about. If you recognize a name, odds are it isn't mine. But seeing as this is a fanfic website, you probably knew that already.
Thanks again to Sunshiny-Kate, the best beta a writer could ask for!
A bank is being robbed. There are hostages, and two of the people she cares about the most are among them. One had been trying to get a loan, the other was bored out of his mind. A simple errand had become a life or death situation.
She wanted to help, but there was nothing she could do. They were trapped in the bank, and she was stuck outside. How did this happen? One minute, she was happily enjoying her day, even though she had a lot of paperwork to finish. Then with one simple phone call, her world was turned upside down.
All she could do now was stay strong and have faith. That's what he would want her to do. Think positively and never give up. She tried to hide her feelings so she could focus on the situation, but she was slowly breaking down.
A promise had been made for their safe return. Failure was not an option, she kept telling herself. But for every positive thought she had, a dozen terrifying scenarios went through her mind. Two stood out though, as they were the worst possible outcomes. What if one of them died? Losing either one would be devastating. And what if they were both killed? She didn't think she'd ever recover from a loss like that.
She was on the phone when she felt the explosion. It rumbled under her as her heart stopped. She felt as if she was moving in slow motion as she moved to look at the bank.
Dust and debris filled the air. She couldn't even see the doors anymore. She didn't know much about bombs, but she didn't know how anyone could survive such a blast. She wanted to cry, but the tears wouldn't come. Her whole body was frozen, including her emotions.
She felt totally numb as she waited for the entry team to get ready to go into the building. The mood of the crowd was somber, from the curious onlookers to the law enforcement and first responder teams. No one knew what awaited them inside, but they were all prepared for the worst.
It seemed like an eternity passed before she saw them. She was scanning the group of now freed hostages when her eyes fell on her target. They were next to each other, both looking tired and dirty, but no worse for the wear, considering what they had been through.
She took off towards him, calling out as she ran.
"Daddy!"
"Alexis!" He smiled as he responded.
Castle opened his arms as his daughter reached him and wrapped her up as tight as he could. A moment later they were joined by Martha.
"Grams." Alexis whispered as she hugged her too.
From where she stood embraced between the two of them, she caught sight of Detective Beckett. Her tears finally began to fall as she thanked her silently for saving them. Her hero nodded slightly, letting her know that her thanks was understood, and Alexis knew at that moment that Beckett would always be there for her.
Relief rushed through the teenager as it fully hit her that her family was safe. They would all be a little extra worried about each other for a while, then things would go back to normal. Well, as normal as they could be in her wonderfully dysfunctional family. And she wouldn't have it any other way.
A/N - I was re-watching 'Cops and Robbers', and I couldn't stop thinking about how similar Alexis and Kate's thoughts could be as they watched from the sidelines. So, I wrote it.
