A/N: Hello everybody! I'm not new to the world of fanfiction but I am new to the world of Castle fanfiction and Castle in general. I only started watching all the episodes online about a month ago but now I'm hooked and this idea got into my head. I'm not sure how well I was able to capture the characters since this is my first Castle fanfiction so I'd appreciate any feedback.
It was a frigid, cold morning when they got the call.
Esposito and Ryan were the first ones to arrive at the spotted the body where the anonymous called had said it would be.
The victim was on his stomach, his arm strategically placed to cover his face, his blood staining the dark coat he was wrapped in and the pavement below him.
The two detectives circled the body trying to survey the damage and catch a glimpse of the victim's face. Esposito's eyes narrowed at the familiarity of the victim's heavy build and the thick black hair that covered his head. He shared a look with his partner; Ryan had noticed it too. Behind them a car door slammed signaling Lanie's arrival.
Esposito pulled on a pair of gloves and knelt down in front of the victim. Holding his breath, he very carefully moved his arm out of the way of his face. A sharp gasp and a curse escaped his lips and the limp arm hit the ground with a small thud. His wide eyes lifted to meet Ryan's and he nodded curtly, confirming their worst thought.
"Alright boys, what do we have?" Lanie asked once she reached the scene. Her frown deepened when she saw the panicked looks on each other faces. "What is it?" She stared at the two men for a moment longer before slowly walking over to stand beside Esposito. Her stomach dropped at the sight of the victim. "Oh damn." She muttered, slowing dropping into a squat. She slipped on her own gloves and gently pushed his arm away from his face, shaking her head with a heavy sigh.
"Maybe its not him..?" Ryan suggested, his voice squeaking with the doubt he knew his question held.
Esposito and Lanie snapped a scolding glare to him and he bowed his head in defeat.
Lanie slowly ran her fingers along the body, searching for a wallet or any other possessions on his person.
Another car door slammed in the deafening silence as the three shared a panicked look. Esposito rose to his feet, nodding his head towards the sound and Ryan nodded and the two detectives stepped away from the body, leaving Lanie to inspect it. They slowly walked toward Beckett as the female detective quickly approached them.
"I couldn't get a hold of Castle." The female detective snapped with a slight roll of her eyes. "What do we have?" She motioned to the body behind them and the two men subtly stepped in the direct line of view, blocking the body from her sight. She raised a pointed eyebrow at them, a small smile tugging at her lips.
"Is there something wrong Detectives?" She questioned mockingly. The two men shared another hesitant look and she scoffed trying to move past them. Esposito shot out his hand in front of her chest, stopping her, and furrowed his brow shaking his head.
"Beckett, I really don't think that's a good idea."
She sighed heavily shooting him an exasperated look. "I'm a big girl Javier, I can handle whatever mutilated body is behind you."
"Beckett you don't understand -" Ryan tried to protest but Kate pushed her way through their makeshift barrier making a beeline towards the body.
She caught the pitying look in Lanie's eyes first and only had a second to ponder it before she caught a glimpse of the victim's face.
All at once she felt, and heard, all the air leave her lungs in a long 'whoosh', her heart skipped a beat and then proceeded to thump almost painfully loud against her ribcage, her body froze instantaneously and she felt heavier, glued to the ground by some unnamable force.
"Kate.." Somewhere in the distance she heard her best friend's voice call to her. For a moment the world around her seemed to move in a blur of slow motion and color.
Ryan and Esposito quietly and slowly approached her from behind, sharing worried glances with Lanie. They paused momentarily behind her and then Ryan reached out carefully, his fingers brushing against her shoulder briefly until his hand came to rest in a firm but gentle hold.
"Beckett?" He coaxed her gently and the detective remained still for a second longer, staring stony faced at the victim. Ryan gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze and she began to blink; Her head shook lightly as means of clearing her head and she turned to look at Ryan. His throat tightened at the slight glistening in her eyes and he once again tried to block her line of sight to the body by standing in front of her.
"Beckett, why don't you go home? We can take this case." Ryan assured her and Esposito came around to stand next to Ryan, nodding his head in agreement.
"No." She whispered sternly, removing his hand from her shoulder and stalking past them slowly, swallowing hard as she approached the body.
Both men sighed heavily and reluctantly followed Beckett towards the body. Lanie tried to catch Kate's eye but Kate had her gaze firmly fixed on the victim's face, her features set in a deep frown.
"What have you got for me, Lanie?" Kate asked in a dull monotone.
Lanie frowned as she stared at her friend. "Kate, you don't have to-"
"What have you got for me?" Kate repeated through slightly clenched teeth, still never taking her eyes off his face.
With a small sigh Lanie answered, "Gunshot to the chest, minor contusions around the face, from the looks of him I'd say the death is only a couple hours old."
Kate closed her eyes tightly for a fleeting moment, cleared her throat and then nodded.
"Is that his wallet?" Esposito questioned lowly, pointing to the wallet lying on the ground next to him.
"Yeah." Lanie whispered, tearing her sympathetic gaze away from Kate to glance down at the the leather object. "Positive i.d."
The air was still around them as they waited to hear the confirmation that they already knew.
"Richard Castle."