The Mysteries of Crystal Cove

Chapter 1

The Beginning

"Castle?" Kate called into the darkness, her vision obscured by faceless shapes and nameless entities. She staggered a few feet further into the miasma and called again. "Rick?"

"What?" His voice was close, closer than she anticipated.

"Shit! Castle! What the hell!?" Kate shrieked and jumped backward as he emerged from the behind the row of hanging jackets.

"Kate? What's…" He leaned past her and flipped on the light switch. A wide smile spread across his lips and amusement threatened to burst from every pore.

"Do not laugh," she ordered.

"I'm not laughing. This is me, not…" He turned from her, unable to keep the smirk and hilarity under wraps. "Yeah, no, I'm laughing." He breathed in and out in an effort to control his response, but it was so damned funny. She had jumped back into the arms of the banished Boba Fett and was now trying to untangle her bra strap from the assassin's grasp. "Maybe if you had gotten dressed already…" They were on the verge of running late and Kate took delight in torturing him that morning by getting ready leisurely. She planned on dressing last, in an effort to test his control and just in case he couldn't control himself any longer. She didn't discount the possibility of a hurried bout of 'we're so gonna be late but it's for a good reason' sex.

"I'm serious, Castle. Help me out of this thing." She was twisting and turning and winding the elastic tighter.

"Hmm, help you out of your bra? I think I can do that Beckett." She glared at him. He immediately started to unwind his fiancée from the hulking figure. "Oh…okay…just…ho, um just stop…" She had started to panic, and shrugged her shoulders out of the bra, unable to dislodge herself from the slimy clutches of the evil clone. Castle, highly entertained, would have been happy to watch her shimmy the rest of the way out of the undergarment; it might have even taken the panties with it. He closed his eyes, briefly and breathed again. What was it about this woman that always, and he meant always, had him on the cusp of arousal? Always. This morning she had simply been cruel. He had to finish a chapter and email it before they could go away for the weekend, but she did everything she could to distract him. It wasn't a lot; she could walk by in a burqa and he still would have had an issue concentrating.

"Kate," he chuckled again. She glared again. Even in the semi-darkness of the depths of the closet, he knew he was in trouble. He assessed her position again which was difficult given her constant efforts of freeing herself. "Seriously," he said but his face was anything but, "if you want...me to… undo…Ow! Twisting my ear will definitely delay your rescue. I think I've figured out a way. Now…just…staaaay…still." Bending over to get a better purchase, he reached behind her and demonstrated his proficiency at blindly unhooking her bra, one-handed, in the near dark. Because of the tautness of the elastic and spandex it shot around her body on a fated trajectory that smacked Castle in the face.

"Oh God, are you okay?" She stumbled, her naked chest toward him.

Rick actually didn't feel any pain; he was eye level with her breasts; a place he could die happily. He let out a breath, stood and rubbed his cheek. "It stings a bit."

"Good," she huffed, retrieved her bra from its perch on his shoulder, and stomped out of the closet. He grinned again.

He followed her out into the bedroom. "Kate…"

"What in the hell were you doing in there in the dark?" She turned to him.

'Eyes up, eyes up. God she has stunning…eyes,' he thought, 'yeah eyes, not breasts, well eyes, too. But her breasts are truly stunning too. Oh my God.'

"Rick! She unwound her bra. "Up here." He met her eyes, finally.

"You have to know how distracting this is for me," he pled. "God Kate, you've been walking around in your underwear all morning."

She scowled. "All morning? Jeez Castle, it's been what an hour, since I got out of the shower, and it wasn't just my underwear; I had your shirt on for some of that time."

"First, you wearing my Green Lantern tee shirt is not any less distracting and second, you should know Beckett, that an hour is an eternity to some creatures; an entire lifetime. If I were a Mayfly, I could be dead in that hour."

"Well you're not a Mayfly, but keep talking and you could still end up dead." She smiled coyly. "Now, why were you in the dark?" She eyed him. "You were trying to get me in the mood for this trip. You wanted to jump out and scare me."

A broad grin appeared on his face against his will. He hadn't actually planned it that way, but he'd take the credit or consequences. "Well, I wouldn't exactly say I put that much thought into it; it was more of an in the moment inspiration than and evil plot. Besides, I thought you were looking forward to the trip."

"I'm looking forward to getting away with you and everyone else, but not necessarily our destination."

"What? I thought you were excited about Crystal Cove."

"No Castle, that's you. I'd be excited if we were going to Crystal Cove State Park in California, not Crystal Cove, Connecticut in October. I already have goose bumps."

"That's because of me."

"What the venue or the goose bumps?"

"Well, both," he leered letting his gaze freely linger on her chest. He was rewarded when he saw her swallow nervously. He smiled lecherously and victoriously. "Crystal Cove, Connecticut is the most hauntedest place on Earth. It's October, Beckett: Halloween, ghost stories, unsolved mysteries. It'll be epic, besides, I'll keep you warm."

"Hauntedest isn't a word."

"I don't write their tourism advertising copy." He looked at his watch and tapped it twice. "We're going to be late picking up the boys if we don't hurry."

They'd finished packing and Beckett got fully dressed, much to Castle's disappointment, but it was quickly replaced by his excitement about their trip. They along with Lanie and Espo, Ryan and Jennie were headed for a long weekend to Crystal Cove. The place had more haunted mojo and unexplained happenings than anywhere else. The whole town was a giant haunted house; ground zero, spook central and Castle couldn't wait. He had always loved getting the bejeebers scared out of him. Zombies, monsters of varying type, the occult, aliens, anything unexplained or mysterious had always fascinated and thrilled him, since he was a kid. It was one of the main reasons he did what he did. It was the major reason he was so good at what he did. His mind worked through the distracting scary parts of a situation to see through to the heart. It's why crime scenes didn't bother him. He could see past the blood and inhumanity to see the pattern of events that told the story and more than likely led to the perpetrator. Castle had had many years of experience blocking out the disturbing visions to let his mind figure out the puzzle. He was successful; most of the time. He had never figured out the first puzzle; the one that started him on this path; the one in the woods. It was the one he never tried to solve.

"Rick?" Beckett's concerned tone and gaze greeted him as he stood at the back of his truck. He had been loading their overnight bags and stopped all activity when he got lost in the memories. Some would call them nightmares. He didn't bring them to the surface very often, and never on purpose, but every so often, something would trigger their appearance and he was instantly eleven again and in the woods.

"Yeah," he mumbled, slowly extricating himself from the powerful images that at one time in his life threatened to destroy everything.

"Everything okay?" She tilted her head, trying to get a read on him. "You looked like you were in another world. What are you thinking about?"

"Mm, nothing, really," he lied as he smiled reassuringly, closing the door on the phantoms and their bags. He broadened his smile to include his eyes and leered at her. "Guess I'm a little tired from all of that ogling this morning." Block and redirect.

She pursed her lips and swatted his chest. "Do you need me to drive?"

He shook his head in disbelief. "Seriously, Beckett? You can't even let me drive my own truck?"

"I was only suggesting that if you were tired…you know, from all that ogling." She had wiggled her way in between him and the hatch of his SUV.

"You are going to kill me woman." He rubbed his hands over her shoulders, clad in plaid flannel, and leaned down to kiss her. "I'm fine to drive. Might be inclined stop to get a coffee after we pick up everyone else. Speaking of which," he looked at his watch again.

He followed her to the passenger side and held the door and her hand as she climbed into his truck. Kate sunk back into the soft ebony leather of the seat and buckled her seatbelt as he closed her door. His 'truck' was a top of the line Range Rover with more bells and whistles than she could count. It was a huge purplish black SUV with seating for eight and space behind the last row of seats for their luggage. Not only was it luxurious, it was also a fuel efficient hybrid with four wheel drive. She had always been uncomfortable with an excessive display of his wealth, but his truck felt wonderful. It enveloped you in comfort and he looked so hot driving it. She sighed contentedly as he climbed into the driver's seat.

He plugged in his iPod and selected a playlist on the command center, as he called it, computer's display. "Ready? He glanced over toward her.

"Yep, what's Hal playing for us today?" He frowned. She called it Hal because it bugged him.

"My truck's computer is not called Hal. We've discussed this. The Hal 9000 tried to kill its human master. I don't think you want our truck trying to kill us, do you?"

"Relax, Castle, regardless of what name we call it, the truck is not going to try and kill us." With perfect and practiced comedic timing, she added, "You're the driver; it will try to kill you."

"Really? Et tu?" He pulled up and out into the Manhattan traffic from the underground garage. "Let's review the history, shall we?" Beckett rolled her eyes, but nodded; she knew his argument would be entertaining. "First; your reference to 2001: A Space Odyssey, the Hal 9000 was a dependable member of the crew…until it went crazy and killed dozens and attempted to kill Dave. I would be Dave, Beckett; me. I," he dramatically paused in an imitation of Shatner's Kirk, "am…Dave." He shook his head in mock disappointment and took a breath and continued, "The truck in Duel."

"That wasn't a possessed vehicle, it was the driver," she countered.

"Yes, but you never actually saw the driver. The truck was evil." He slashed across the space between them with his right hand. "Maximum Overdrive; a virtual car-pocalypse where every vehicle on the planet rises up against the humans and then there's nothing left but bloody asphalt." He glanced to his right to see if she was still listening. Kate sat there with a tolerant but enrapt look on her face. The unbelievable amount of useless knowledge this man held was, well; unbelievable. "The black Lincoln in The Car: a demonically possessed car who is terrorizing a small desert town. The only one who recognized its evil was a sheriff, who, now that I think about it, looks a lot like my dad." He narrowed his eyes and she could almost picture him comparing the two men in his mind. "Huh." He was thoughtful for a moment and the said, "The Wraith."

"As in a ghost?"

"No as in a really horrible 80s B movie, but the car, a Dodge Turbo Interceptor, by the way, was terrifying. And then there's the granddaddy or maybe grand-mommy of them all, my friend Stephen's classic; Christine. Holy crap, I walked everywhere for a month after I read that."

"Castle."

"So, okay? Let's try not to invoke the demonic powers inherent in all vehicles. We don't need that kind of…Karma."

"Oh my god, was all of that just for that joke?"

He grinned proudly. "Yeah, but wasn't it…punny?"

Beckett rolled her eyes; less at him than at herself for falling for it. "Oh my God!"

He double-parked in front of Lanie's building. "You want to call up and see if they're ready? If they're gonna be more than a couple of minutes, I'll circle the block."

Kate slid her phone out of her jeans and called as requested. She had just pushed the icon when Espo came out of the front door with a backpack and two overnight bags followed by a distracted medical examiner who was trying to get her phone out of her bag. Finally retrieving the device, she swiped the face and then looked up at Kate, with an expression that read, 'really?' Kate smiled apologetically at her friend and pointed at Castle.

Castle hopped out of the truck to help Javi with the bags. The two men, temporarily reverting to grade school buddies, fist bumped a greeting. After securing the bags, he turned to Lanie, "Doctor Parrish, you're looking lovely."

"Hey, Castle," she answered and as he bent for a hug, she planted a kiss on his cheek.

"Do I need to be worried?" Beckett asked from the front seat.

"Nah, girl," Lanie said as she climbed in the back with Castle's help. "He just smells so good. I wanted Javi to get some of whatever cologne it is, but my cheap boyfriend is an Old Spice Man. Hmm."

"It's very expensive. I need to make car payments, not cologne payments."

Kate bit her lip in amusement. Castle sat back in the driver's seat and located Lanie in the rearview mirror. "So let me get this straight, you kissed me so you could smell me?"

Lanie arched an eyebrow and puckered her lips as if she'd tasted something sour. "So?"

Castle blinked at her reflection in the mirror. "I think that's a perfectly acceptable way to begin our trip."

"That's what I thought you said."

Highly amused and slightly terrified, he pulled back into traffic.

Kate had turned sideways in her seat to speak to Lanie. Espo was catching up on his email on his phone and Castle rocked out to Time Warp on his Halloween playlist as they drove to the Ryan's apartment.

Pulling up, Kevin and Jenny were waiting inside the front door of their building. Jenny was holding Sarah Grace. Castle glanced at Kate. "I thought they were getting a sitter." She shrugged just as Jenny handed the baby off to an older woman who had to be Jenny's mom. The woman kept her eyes glued to the truck. Rick recognized what was happening. He'd seen a fan before.

Hopping out, he headed to the door to help Ryan with his luggage and heard; "Oh my God, Jenny."

"Hey Ryan's, ready?" He asked cheerfully. He smiled his best media smile and approached the woman holding Sarah Grace. "Hi," he said. "May I hold her?" The woman, dumbfounded looked to Jenny who nodded.

Smiling, he took his honorary niece and proceeded to make faces which got the nine-month-old giggling.

"Rick," Jenny said, "this is my mom, Evelyn O'Malley. Mom, Rick Castle."

"Oh…oh my god. You do know him," the flustered woman said to her daughter while clutching her arm. "You are my biggest fan," she said to an amused but affable Castle.

He switched Sarah Grace to balance her in his left arm and returned her enthusiastic handshake. "Mrs. O'Malley, it's a pleasure. Are you sure you're Jenny's mom, I could swear you were her sister." Ryan, standing behind Evelyn, rolled his eyes at the writer's cheesiness while his mother-in-law giggled. Castle raised an eyebrow and smirked at him. "It's always nice to meet a fan, and to meet a fan, who's also part of the family, is remarkable. You've made my day." Jenny's mom blushed three shades pinker until she was practically glowing like a neon ballet studio sign.

Ryan announced, "I think it's time to go, huh Castle?"

"Oh yeah." He lifted Sarah Grace and blew raspberries on her belly, who shrieked delightedly before he handed her back to Evelyn. "Ready?"

"Oh Mr. Castle," Evelyn said timidly as she reached into her bag. "Would you…" she let her question drift. She pulled out a hardback copy of Frozen Heat. It had been well read with cracks along the spine and dog ears spoiling the corners of dozens of pages.

Castle smiled again and reached into his jacket for a pen. He always had a pen and his moleskin notebook: he never knew when inspiration would hit him and had forgotten too many things not to write notes to himself. He took the book from her and scribbled a note and his book signature, which was different from the one he used to sign legal papers and the like. "That should do it," he said, handing the book back to her. Checking his watch, he said, "We really need to go, or we'll hit the weekend traffic." Ryan and Jenny said their goodbyes to their daughter and Castle seized Evelyn's hand and brought it to his lips. "It truly was a pleasure, Mrs. O'Malley. I hope we'll cross paths again." He turned and grabbed a bag from Kevin's shoulder and followed him to the back of the truck. Everything secure, he waved to her once again before settling in his seat, smiling the whole time.

"Jeez, Rick you didn't need to do all that."

"All what, Jenny?"

She sighed and explained, "My mother has been a fan of yours for years, Kevin let it slip that we were going away with everyone and you…"

"Thanks for the distinct separation."

"No problem, bro," Ryan interjected.

Castle grinned to his image in the mirror.

"No, I mean she really wanted to meet you. It's been kind of embarrassing."

"Wait Jenny, I was at your wedding, she was too, right? I mean being your mother; she would have had to have met me already at the wedding."

Jenny shook her head. "Yeah, she was there, but every time she saw you she made this god-awful squeaking noise and ran and hid." Ryan nodded his confirmation in the mirror.

A familiar saxophone intro filled spewed from the speakers and Castle raised both eyebrows, looked at Beckett and then grinned that arrogant, I've the ego the size of the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man in Ghostbusters grin. "Hey Beckett," when she turned to him, he asked, "Who ya gonna call?"

She did her best to hide her matching grin, but then gave in when she glanced around to the anticipatory faces in the back seats and then all of the occupants shouted, "Ghostbusters!"

As if on cue, Ray Parker, Jr.'s voice flooded the truck's cabin and they were off to their weekend.