Kate heard the click before she saw him. She froze, rooted in place as she saw a shadowy figure step out from one of the many campaign billboards. Kate raised her gun. She had chased him down this far, and there was no way he was evading her tonight.
"What did you think of my speech?" he asked, striding into the light. Kate glared as she saw what he was holding: a 9 mm trained at her chest.
"A lot of empty words, Candidate Bracken," she spat. "Still parading around your notions of the 'great things,' I see," Kate said mockingly.
Bracken smirked. "Too bad I'm the one holding the cards here, Ms. Beckett. I suggest you lower your weapon before I have you arrested for threatening a federal politician," he said, keeping his own gun fixed on Kate's torso.
Kate steadied her own weapon. "Like hell I will," she said, matching his stance. "We're even now. Why should I believe that you won't shoot me as soon as I drop my gun?"
They stood in a standoff, glaring at each other from several yards away, both refusing to lower their weapons. Bracken took a step back and shrugged his hands. He snuck his hand around the back of his pants and shoved his gun in place.
"All right, fine. You win. But before you shoot me, wouldn't you like to know the full story about your mother's death?"
"I know enough!" Kate exclaimed. She took a few steps towards Bracken. "I know your motive, and I know who was involved. I'm not interested in bartering."
Bracken strode up to meet Kate, bumping the barrel of her gun into his chest. "How would it feel to kill me before knowing what her last words were?"
Kate blinked as she realized what Bracken was saying.
"You don't think she died instantly, do you? Dick Coonan told me some very interesting information about her dying wishes," Bracken said, staring at Kate.
Kate shoved her gun into his chest. "Shut up!" she cried out, unable to stand the picture that was forming in her head. She pushed Bracken away with the barrel of her gun. "I'm not interested in your lies," she growled, steadying her gun on Bracken's forehead.
Bracken smirked. "Your loss," he said. "But think about what you're going to do. Murder a politician in cold blood? That won't look so good on your resume."
Kate took a step and covered the short distance between them, her hand grabbing Bracken's collar. She let the arm holding her gun fall to her side as she pulled Bracken inches away from her own face.
"I'm not going to kill you," she spat at him, staring into his eyes. "I've moved on. I have a life now. I'm not interested in bargaining with a scumbag like you."
She pushed Bracken away by the collar and took a step back. "I'm not like you," Kate stated. "I don't kill to silence the things I've done." She made a wide gesture with her hands. "This…this is over," she emphasized. "If you ever come after me again, I will have no problem releasing the file. How do you think your presidential campaign will fair after that?"
She holstered her gun and took a menacing step towards Bracken and pointed at him, gesturing along with her words. "As far as I'm concerned, you and I are no longer associated with each other," she said as she turned away from him.
"Ms. Beckett," Bracken said lightly. "How am I supposed to believe that you are just going to drop the whole thing?" he asked. He started after her. "You have been pursuing me for most of your adult life. Why should I believe that you aren't going to release the file anyways?"
Bracken reached around and grabbed the gun from his waistline, training it at the back of Kate's head as she walked away. "I suggest you stop moving," he said flatly. "Turn around."
Kate turned slowly, her hand drifting towards her holstered gun.
"Don't even think about it," Bracken said, cocking his own gun. "I'm afraid you're a loose end, Ms. Beckett. And you know what I do to loose ends."
Kate stared at him, her heart pounding in her chest. She thought the file was blackmail enough, and now she was out of ideas.
"Other people know what's going here besides me," she said, refusing to beg from Bracken. "You'll never get away with this."
"You mean Mr. Castle, don't you?" he asked. A smirk spread across his face. "Do you really think I'll have a problem tracking him down after I've finished with you?"
"You don't have to," a voice said. Castle stepped out into the light with a pistol aimed at Bracken. "Drop your gun, or I swear to God I will put a bullet through your brain," he growled.
Bracken smirked, and Castle saw a flick of his wrist. Kate closed her eyes as she heard the shot go off. Bracken fell before her, a bullet through his skull. Castle dropped his gun and ran to Kate, wrapping his arms around her.
"It's over now," he whispered into her ear. "You're safe." Castle dropped his head, and Kate could barely hear his words as he whispered, "I'm sorry that I was the one to kill him. It should have been you," he said.
She tilted his chin up and looked at him. "I had the opportunity to, but I couldn't do it. I couldn't lower myself to his level," she said. "Thank you for saving me," she said, softly planting a kiss on his cheek.
"Always."