Chapter 1 – Her Separate Lives

Kate groaned as her alarm went off. Surely it wasn't time to get up already? She rolled over, and then got up pulling on some clothes without really looking at them. She padded slowly out of the bedroom and across the hall where she slowly and quietly pushed open the door to the bedroom opposite hers.

Lying asleep under a pile of blankets, her light reddish brown hair tied back into a messy pony tail was a thirteen year old girl. Kate's daughter Olivia; more commonly known as Livie. After smiling at her peaceful expression Kate carefully closed the door; Livie was a typical teenager, loving to sleep, she let her have as long as possible in bed in the mornings.

She made some coffee and was just looking through the cupboards, making a mental note to buy food when Livie entered looking exhausted.

"Morning mom" she said with a small yawn. "Morning kiddo" she replied. The 13 year old girl stuck out her bottom lip in a pout at the name before she pulled a box of cereal out of the cupboard, and slowly helping herself to breakfast.

Smiling Kate leaned against the counter watching her daughter. Apart from the sleep, Livie was different to most teens, she wasn't in to makeup, and guys yet. She looked a lot like her mother, with long light brown hair and warm mahogany brown eyes. She was a little fighter too, and she had the same no nonsense attitude that her mother had, she loved reading.

After she had finished eating Livie stumbled back to her bedroom to get dressed for school whilst Kate packed her bag for the day running through her mental checklist, frowning as she tried to remember what she had forgotten before it clicked and she grabbed her purse and headed to her daughter's bedroom knocking on the door before she pushed it open.

Livie was sitting at her desk packing her bag for the day looking slightly more awake than when she had woken up and her hair was now pulled back into the required school ponytail. She looked up when she heard Kate knock and gave her a smile. "Hey" Kate said "lunch money before I forget." "Thanks" Livie said taking the money and carefully slotting it into her own purse.

"So how is things at school" Kate asked leaning against the doorframe realising with a guilty feeling in her stomach that with all the cases she had been dealing with recently she hadn't seen that much of her daughter. Livie shrugged "it's ok" she said. "Only ok" Kate prompted and Livie looked up at her giving her a very Beckett look, "a lot better than the last one if that is what you are worried about" she said "it's fine, I have friends, don't worry about me mom ok." Kate smiled "I'm your mom, it's my job to worry about you" she said and Livie rolled her eyes at her.

Their morning ended in its usual rush and it wasn't long before they were running late and she was dragging her daughter out of the apartment cursing how disorganised she was.

XO

When she arrived at work she was running slightly late, but her team was used to that now, they had learned not to ask her why she now ran late. Ryan and Esposito and the rest of her team had no idea that Livie even existed. The only person who knew was her best friend Lanie.

She replied to all the greetings called out to her as she slipped to her desk, she had barely sat down before a cup of coffee was placed in front of her and her annoying partner / follower, dropped into the seat next to her desk, causing her to jump.

"Jeez Castle, are you trying to give me a heart attack" Richard Castle gave her his brilliant 100Watt smile that made every other woman in the precinct swoon, much to his disappointment she knew, it didn't have the same effect on her. Yes she liked Castle, but only as a friend.

"Why would I want to give you a heart attack, which would mean I would have no Nikki Heat inspiration, and no gorgeous detective to follow round" Castle responded his eyes glinting mischievously. Kate rolled her eyes, before giving him a push, "shut up Castle. Why are you even here, we don't even have a case" "Ah but I predict we will'' he said and settled down in his chair watching her to paperwork.

"Quit staring Castle" she said finally "I don't need to be supervised doing paperwork" "I'm not staring at you" he protested "I was staring into space, thinking."

"And what has got you thinking so early in the morning?" She asked "Alexis" he said grumpily "she and her boyfriend are getting way to close for my liking."

Kate shook her head "isn't that what teenage girls do, meet boys, get close, go to college with them, then drop out and marry their first true love'" Castle's head snapped up "marry" he gulped "oh relax Castle I was joking jeez"

Castle leaned forward and looked at her "ok say you had a teenage daughter" Kate shifted uncomfortably in her seat "and she was going out with some guy, talking about him all the time and coming home later than usual, wouldn't you be worried?"

Kate thought about that "well as long as the guy really loves her and is not just using her and she is happy, I would give her my blessing, it's all part of letting them grow Castle." He raised his eyebrows "sounds like you know what you are talking about there Kate" "you have no idea" she muttered not loud enough for him to hear, though he looked at her oddly.

She was saved by the sound of her phone ringing which she answered "Beckett" she listened before saying "thanks we'll be there soon" and hanging up she looked at Castle "how do you always know when we have a case" she asked before calling Ryan and Esposito and heading off to the car with Castle at her heels.

XO

The crime scene was a small ally between two skyscrapers; it was a perfect place for a crime, dark and long, with big piles of trash under which you could hide a body. Beckett moved forward to see the body of a young girl; Lanie was already crouched next to her.

"Hey Beckett" she greeted before looking around and lowering her voice ''how's Livie'' she asked. Kate smiled "she's good, lots of work at the moment, she seems happy though" Lanie smiled and then began to talk hurriedly about the dead girl in front of them. "The victims name is Jenni Caine, aged 22, student, according to her ID" she passed the little plastic card to Kate before continuing "judging by the state of rigor I would say she has been dead at least 24 hours, cause of death most likely to be from the knife wound through the heart." She finished showing them the large opening in the girl's chest.

"She was so young" Kate whispered. It was scary, this girl Jenni was only 9 years older than Livie and only a few years older than Alexis yet her life was already over. Her life cut short by a knife through her heart. She swallowed, hating whoever had done this to someone so young and innocent. They all looked around the crime scene for anything else. After a thorough search they found her purse still full of money, so they ruled out robbery gone wrong.

After they had determined that they would find nothing else useful in the ally, Kate sent Ryan and Esposito back to the precinct to run her credit cards and telephone history while she and Castle went to the university where she was attending to ask her teachers if there had been a problem with her.

XO

Two hours and a number of interviews later found Kate and Castle walking through the corridors of the university. Both were surreptitiously eyeing the place up, evaluating whether it was a good school for their own children. They had spoken to most of Jenni's teachers and a few of her friends. They were currently searching for her best friends Lauren and Emily, hoping that they would be able to tell them if Jenni had a boyfriend.

"Eyeing this place up for Alexis, Castle" Kate teased, "Yeah" he said not even trying to hide it, he looked rather glum. "Come on Castle I'm sure Alexis would love to go to college, not run off with her high school sweetheart" Kate said trying to cheer him up, he shrugged but didn't respond so she dropped the subject and they walked in silence to the classroom to which they had been directed.

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Mysticgirl