Telling her boys
by RGoodfellow64
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Disclaimer: Not mine.
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Kate walked back into the precinct with a feeling of trepidation, something she wasn't very familiar with at all. After talking to Castle and the events in the park, she had to come back, not only because she was still technically on the clock, but she knew her team deserved to hear it from her.
It was almost as if they were awaiting her return, for when she walked out of the elevator they were sitting at their desks watching, and she saw the change in their expressions as she walked into the bullpen when the doors opened.
Catching their eyes, she walked past them towards the small conference room near the back, and she heard them get up from their chairs to follow her. She still didn't know how she would tell them, or what their reaction would be and this sense of the unknown helped fuel the queasy feeling that suddenly seemed to develop in her.
As she walked into the conference room and made her way inside, she heard them follow her in and the door quietly close behind them. She took a deep breath and turned around.
"Something came up last week, something big and potentially life changing."
"Yeah, we figured that," Esposito said. "You acting kinda weird and Castle not being here for a couple of days,"
"What's going on Beckett?" Ryan asked.
Kate looked them both in the eye and said, "A job."
"A job?" Esposito asked. "What kind of job?"
"Remember Agent Stack?" Kate asked.
"That super fed from the Attorney General's office?" Ryan said.
"Yeah, him. He put a bug in my ear."
Esposito gave her an odd look and asked, "What kind of bug?"
"Before he left he asked to speak to me and we talked," she looked around the room and added, "In here as a matter of fact."
"Yeah…" Ryan said, dragging the word out. "Talked about what?"
"He asked me where I saw myself in five years. What I'd be doing, where I'd be. Then he told me about his job. What he does and how he was picked…" she paused a moment and added, "The same way he was picking me."
"Picking you for what?" Esposito asked with a hint of frustration in his voice.
"Picked me for a job with the AG's office," Kate replied, a feeling of relief that she finally got it out. A moment later she was shocked as both Ryan and Esposito had smiles on their faces and Ryan actually laughed in relief!
"What are you smiling and laughing about?" she asked with a touch of anger in her voice.
Ryan looked at Esposito who shrugged his shoulders and turned back to Kate, "We were worried when you mentioned a job, but with the AG's office? Please."
As the surprise was evident on her face, Ryan added, "Come on Beckett, there's no way a great cop like you would want to work for a Mickey Mouse outfit like that."
Kate found that her mouth was open in shock. "Huh? What do you mean 'Mickey Mouse outfit', this is the AG's office, they're the…" she stopped as both men still had huge grins on their faces.
"They're what, the best of the best or something?" Ryan asked.
"They couldn't find their way out of a closet," Esposito added.
Now she was getting angry, "Guys! This is the opportunity of a lifetime for a cop. These offers come only once or twice in a career…" but once again she stopped speaking as they were chuckling at her words.
Seeing the look on her face, Esposito stopped laughing and asked, "Wait a minute, you're not seriously considering this, are you?"
At that Ryan also stopped smiling and looked at Kate who said, "Yeah, of course I am, it's an amazing opportunity. The chance to do more and work with the best the government has."
"The best?" Esposito sputtered, "Are we talking about the same group? Agent Stack is one of the best?"
"Yes! Guys, they work on the big picture, national security, the major problems that face the nation and they don't accept applications…they select you if you're good enough."
"Good enough?" Ryan said while Esposito asked, "What's gotten into you Kate? This is a fed bureaucracy here, everyone walks the same, talks the same, dresses the same, hell they even think the same. You want to be one of those losers?"
"Losers!" Kate was shocked. This was the top federal agency in the nation. Working for the Attorney General she would be handling cases that cops like her could only dream about.
As she was thinking Ryan and Esposito were watching the emotions cross her face when Ryan quietly asked, "Kate, do you consider Stack one of those best of the best agents?"
Pulled out of her thoughts Kate answered, "Of course, didn't you see what he did when he was here?"
"Yes we did Kate," Esposito said, then asked, "Did you?"
"What do you mean by that?"
"Kate, we ran rings around him and the Attorney General." Ryan stated.
"Huh?"
"Kate, here are the facts," Esposito said. "One, Stack was following you and you not only spotted him, you took him down and disarmed him."
"And he's one of the best of the best?" Ryan asked.
"I surprised him," Kate said. "He didn't expect it."
"Thing is if he's that good he should have." Ryan said.
Holding up two fingers Esposito said, "Two, he was so sure of himself, so sure that his agency, the Attorney General, would force you to let him go…"
"To put you in your place," Ryan interjected.
"And instead you put him in his place and forced the Attorney General to make a deal."
"So far your super agent and super agency aren't so super," Ryan said.
Kate tried to come up with an answer but couldn't. As she was thinking Esposito added another finger and said, "Three, with all their high tech gadgets…"
"All their resources…" Ryan added.
"And all their super agents, they couldn't find one guy for over a year."
"Over a year, Beckett!" Ryan emphasized.
"Super agent Stack gives us a name," Esposito continued.
"Just a name…" Ryan agreed.
"And we…"
"Javi, me, you and Castle…"
"Find the guy in two days…"
"And solve the case…"
"While your super agent Stack did nothing but watch!" Esposito finished.
Kate was still trying to come up with something, but their tag team effort was making her think of what had happened and she began to realize that they were correct, Stack didn't find Warburg, they did. In fact, now that she was thinking about it, Stack used them as a resource without even bothering to let them know!
"All that agency is good at is obstructing justice. All they did was block us at every turn and play us to keep us from finding the truth and giving closure to the family of the deceased." Ryan paused and added, "They didn't solve a damn thing Beckett, we did."
"Guy probably couldn't find his was out of his bedroom without a GPS," Esposito mumbled.
"Guys…" Kate started but Esposito interrupted. "Beckett, I was in the service. I saw action. I've seen and met the best of the best and this agent Stack," he shook his head, "He's not good enough to tie their shoes."
"He's not good enough to tie your shoes, Kate." Ryan added softly.
"So please, tell me, you're not actually thinking of talking to these people, are you?"
Kate looked down at the floor, "Ummm…"
"Beckett?" Esposito asked
Kate looked up and said, "Well…"
"You already met them?" Ryan exclaimed. "When did you…"
Esposito snapped his fingers and said, "The other day, you were late coming to the crime scene, that's when you met with them…in Washington?"
"You flew to Washington?" Ryan asked.
"Had to bro," Esposito said, "Castle came in and…oh no. Kate, tell me you didn't."
Kate looked at him and saw the same disappointment in his face that she heard in his voice.
"What?" Ryan asked, confused.
Esposito shook his head, never taking his eyes off of Kate and said, "She went to Washington for an interview and never told Castle."
Ryan turned his head, stared at Kate and exclaimed, "What!? You didn't!"
"Guys…"
She never had the chance to finish as Esposito said, "Kate, you know I have your back, but that was wrong. Wrong in so many ways."
"I thought you and Castle were tight," Ryan added. "After all these years you both finally got it right and now you…you what?"
Esposito said, "Kate, you're my partner and so is he, and Ryan and me know that in the case of a divorce, you get custody; but this is the guy who stood beside you till the last second while you stood on a bomb. The guy who ran into a burning building to save you…"
"The guy who beat the crap outta one of the best hit men money could buy…" Ryan added.
"We saw him holding you in that freezer, keeping you alive…"
"He stood by you with the dirty bomb and saved us all when he pulled the wires…"
"And he tried to take a bullet for you when you were shot," Esposito finished.
"Why would you ever think that going off for an interview in another city should be kept from him?" Ryan asked. "I thought you were as much a couple as Jenny and I are, I'd never do something like that to her. My lack of trust in her alone would break her heart."
Esposito snapped his fingers again, "He found out, didn't he?" he rhetorically asked. "That's why he hasn't been around." He looked at Kate, demanding an answer.
Kate ran her hand through her hair and said, "OK guys, I screwed up. I know that. More importantly, Rick knows that too."
"So where is he?" Esposito asked. "When you said you had to talk to someone else first, it was to him, right?"
Kate nodded her head, "He went back home after we talked."
"And?"
Kate gave a small smile and said, "We're in a good place now Javi, we talked for a good while."
"What about the job?" Ryan asked.
"I'm not taking it," Kate replied. "A few years ago I probably would have but now, now it's not where I want to be in five years."
"Where do you want to be in five years Kate, do you know?" Esposito asked.
A smile came on her face and slowly grew before she answered, "Oh I know exactly where I want to be Javi, no doubt about it."
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AUTHORS NOTE: I found it ridiculous that Kate stood up when the AG called her. Some stupid politician calls and she stands at attention? Please, regardless what party is in power, the AG is just another political appointment. The super agency and agents? What a joke, all they did was obstruct the NYPD from doing their job, and despite their attempts to stop the team, Beckett and her boys managed to solve the case despite the government interference. Lucky for me, Ryan and Esposito knew that and allowed me to write it down.
By the way, my lovely bride made a suggestion so here is her idea for an alternate ending for the story…
"I'm not taking it," Kate replied. "A few years ago I probably would have but now, now it's not where I want to be in five years."
"Where do you want to be in five years Kate, do you know?" Esposito asked.
As she discreetly twirled the ring on her finger, a smile came on her face and slowly grew before she answered, "Oh I know exactly where I want to be Javi, no doubt about it."
SON OF AUTHORS NOTE: Now isn't that how we all would like it to be! ;-)