Disclaimer: I don't own Castle or its characters - I just love them!

In the Quiet

Castle and Kate walked wordlessly into the silence of the loft. They had spent the better part of the day at the precinct, talking to police and FBI, recounting the last time he had spoken to Alexis, trying to retrace her steps, looking for some clue as to who could have taken her and why. Both were exhausted, emotionally drained, and wishing they could start this day over again, hoping they could make it end differently.

When they entered the loft, they were struck by the overwhelming silence. Most days when Castle returned, he was never sure what he would find when he opened the door; Martha reenacting some scene from Shakespeare, or music blaring from his daughter's room. But not tonight. No, tonight, he was met with nothing but silence.

As he and Kate entered, they realized that indeed, Martha was there, sitting quietly at the kitchen island, a cup of tea in hand, simply staring off into space. Kate took Castle's coat from his arm, and turned to put it along with hers in the closet. Castle strode to his mother's side, and when Kate had finished putting their things away, she turned to see Castle and Martha, arms around each other, whispering quietly. She stayed back, not wanting to interrupt this moment between mother and son sharing their mutual grief at the situation. Martha then reached up, took Castle's face in her hands and placed a kiss on his cheek. Before she headed up the stairs to her room, she walked to Kate, wrapping her arms around the younger woman, breathing a sad sigh. "I'm glad Richard has you with him right now, darling. He needs you, you know?"

Kate pressed her lips tightly together and gave a slight nod as Martha released her and headed up the stairs. Kate watched Martha as she ascended, then turned her attention back to Castle. By now, he was slumped in the chair, elbows on his knees, head in his hands. Watching him from a distance, Kate thought her heart would break. She had never seen him look so defeated, small and vulnerable. Softly, she made her way towards him. As she walked up behind him, she gently placed her hand on his shoulder, giving it a slight squeeze. She walked around in front of him, and sat down on the coffee table so that their knees were touching, and placed her hands on his legs.

Castle looked up at her then, his eyes full to the brim with tears, some of them spilling over and running down his cheeks. "Oh, Rick," Kate sighed. "I wish there was something I could say or do to make this all better. I don't know how to help you."

Castle placed his hands over Kate's, squeezing them lightly. He took a deep breath, mustering all the energy he could find, and began to speak, his voice ragged and rough with emotion. "Kate, you are helping. You're helping by being here with me. I couldn't do this without you. You're a part of my life now and I need you. You don't need to say anything, or do anything else."

Kate pulled one of her hands out from underneath Castle's and pressed it to his cheek. He leaned into her touch and closed his eyes for a moment, trying to draw some strength from her, as his own seemed to be completely sapped. She moved her thumb under his eye and over his top lip to wipe away some of the tears that had run down his face. He opened his eyes then and looked at her, knowing that he had never felt this close to another human being than he did at this moment. Kate leaned in then and placed a soft kiss to his cheek and another to the corner of his mouth, then tipped her head forward so that their foreheads were touching. "Castle," she whispered, "you need to go to bed for awhile. You're exhausted."

"Bed? I couldn't sleep - not when my little girl is out there somewhere. Not when I don't know where she is or who has her," he replied with a sob.

"Well, at least lie down for awhile, rest, close your eyes. You need to at least rest. You'll be no good to Alexis if you collapse from exhaustion. You're going to need all your strength to face tomorrow," Kate replied quietly.

Castle looked into Kate's eyes again, and seeing only love and concern there, he pressed his lips into a tight line, and nodded his head a couple of times. "Stay with me Kate. Don't leave me tonight, please?" he asked.

Kate's lips curled slightly into a small smile. "Of course I'll stay with you Rick. I have no intentions of leaving you tonight. We're partners. Well, ... more than partners now. This is exactly where I belong." she answered confidently.

"Thank you," Castle whispered.

"Always," she whispered back.

She stood then, and held out her hand to him, waiting until he lifted his to meet hers. She gave a slight tug and pulled him along with her towards his room, turning off the living room lights as they went. When they reached his room, she released his hand and moved to turn on the bedside lamp. When she turned back around, Castle sat motionless on the corner of the bed, staring off into space, making Kate wonder if he even knew where he was or how he had gotten there.

Kate came to stand in front of him, and touching his shoulder, she asked, "Need some help?"

"Hmmm?" he replied, looking up at her.

Without answering, she squatted down and started to unbutton his shirt. He sat, trance-like, while she finished. Then she stood and pulled him up by his elbows. "Here," she said, "let's get you out of these." She pushed his shirt down over his shoulders and off his arms, then opened his belt, and the button and zipper on his jeans, while Castle seemed oblivious to what was happening. Kate slid his jeans down over his hips and legs, Castle managing at least to step himself out of them once they reached his ankles. Kate then turned down the blankets on the bed and guided Castle towards it. He sat on the edge, and with a little nudge from Kate, pulled his feet up and into the bed. She then pulled the blankets up to cover him, while he lay motionless on his back, staring up at the ceiling.

Kate slipped quietly into the bathroom, where she quickly removed her makeup, along with her shirt and pants. She entered the bedroom again and, after turning off the lamp, slid softly into the bed, moving over beside Castle, who still lay in the same position as when she had left him. He had one hand behind his head, while the arm nearest Kate lay across his stomach, and Kate knew his eyes were wide open, staring at the ceiling. She began to wonder if he was even aware of her presence, as he made no move to even touch her. Lying on her side, facing him, she simply put her hand on his arm, sliding it along until it came to his hand that lay on his stomach under the blankets. When her hand found his, though, he spread his fingers, and pulled hers in between his, linking them together, so she at least knew she had not lost him completely to some dark place in his mind.

"Kate," Castle whispered into the quiet of his room.

"Mmm," she answered back.

"I know I said this before, but ... thank you ... for being here ... with me. I don't know how I would do this without you."

"Well," she whispered, "you're not going to have to find out, because I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere. We're in this together, Rick. I promise you that. And tomorrow, we'll figure something out. We'll find a clue or something that will lead us to Alexis. We're going to find her, I know we are."

"I hope you're right, Kate," he replied, "because I need my little girl back. I need her to be safe."

"She will be, Rick. You have to believe that. Now please close your eyes and try to rest. For me?"

"Well, when you put it like that. Fine, this is me, closing my eyes. No promises on the sleeping, though."

"Good." She placed a light kiss on his shoulder, then laid her head back down on the pillow. "Night, Rick."

"Night Kate."

Author's note: This was just a little scene that came into my head as I was reading all the spoilers for the upcoming episodes and watching those amazing sneak peeks. I hope we get something like this tomorrow night! I tried to work in a couple of ILYs but it seemed like it was getting too wordy, and I wanted to keep it fairly simple, to keep with the "quiet" theme. Thoughts?