Author's note: I was listening to Nine Inch Nails, oddly enough, when the idea for this story presented itself as a simple question: What if Castle had to lie to Beckett? To save her life?
So, here is my answer to that question.
Alexis Castle had grown up to be a very neat teenager. Her belongings all had designated places to live and they could always be found there. Her bed was made every morning by her own hands, a habit she developed years ago, as soon as she had grown tall enough to do it for herself. Anyone who knew her family knew her father wasn't going to do it for her. Her tidiness wasn't a habit her father had encouraged- not that he had discouraged it, either. He just wasn't particular about chores he could hire someone to do for him and his daughter.
This morning though, Alexis's bed was rumpled and messy; most of the items on her night stand had been knocked to the floor. At the sight of that bed, Richard Castle knew something was wrong.
At the sight of his little girl's bed, still rumpled from her night's rest, Castle knew the ransom note was true. Alexis had been taken.
Castle dropped onto Alexis's messy bed and dug the heels of his hands into his eyes, fighting the emotions that had his throat constricted and his eyes stinging uncomfortably.
His little girl was gone. Taken from him. From his own house.
In his social life, he was known as fun and charming, but most of all, aloof. He had fun and showed his many dates a good time, but he kept them at arm's length. He let women believe he was shallow and non-committal, but what no one knew was how deeply he did love when he finally let someone in.
The moment Alexis had entered this world- maybe even for months before then if he was being completely honest- his little red headed baby had captured his whole heart. He never knew he could love someone as much as he had instantly loved that noisy, smelly, perfect little baby.
And now she was gone, taken by people who would harm her if Castle didn't give them what they wanted.
Money, he thought in disgust. Some creep wanted money in exchange for his daughter. Maybe because he had so much of it, or maybe because he had never known what it was like to live without it, but Castle was not obsessed with money the way many people seemed to be. And these kidnappers wanted money in exchange for the most precious thing he possessed.
Before the emotions building in him had a chance to spill from his eyes, Castle recalled the ransom note's demands. Two million dollars. He could do that. If they wanted money, they could take it. Take it all and he'd be glad so long as they returned his daughter. If they had demanded his life, he'd give it, if that's what it took to protect Alexis. There was nothing he wouldn't do for her.
He stood quickly, resolved to get Alexis back, when his phone rang.
Without looking at the caller ID, just assuming it would be the kidnappers demanding their blood money, Castle answered the phone, barking, "Where is Alexis?"
"Hi to you too," the familiar voice of Kate Beckett responded, sounding confused. "Isn't Alexis at school this time of day?"
"Beckett," he replied, dumbly. "Hi."
"What's going on, Castle?"
He looked down at the note, clutched carelessly in his hand. More specifically, the line that read, "If you tell that pretty little detective you've been panting after, or any other pig cop, the girl dies. Slowly."
"Castle!?" Kate barked after his too long pause. "What's happening? Where is Alexis?"
Castle finally regained enough composure to chuckle, and almost sound like he meant it. "I'm overreacting. Meredith is in town, and I bet she took Alexis shopping or something. I just got a call from the school saying she was missing, and I guess I panicked a little."
"Oh," Beckett replied hesitantly. She detected something in his voice that she couldn't name, but she didn't like at all. "I'll make some calls. We'll find her for you."
"No!" Rick shouted, then caught himself quickly and cleared his throat. "I mean, it's okay. I know you guys are busy. You only ever call when there's been a murder."
"It's not an issue. We'll find her." Trying to lighten the strained mood a little, she added, "the dead can wait an hour or two while we track down Alexis."
"No," he replied firmly, sounding less panicky and making Beckett regret her unfortunate joke when Castle didn't immediately joke back. "I'll just call Meredith. Like I said, Alexis is probably off with her."
"Okay. Let me know if you need anything," Kate said, then immediately felt embarrassed. But not wanting Castle to catch on, she added in her stern voice, just to be clear, "Help finding Alexis, I mean."
"Sure," he said, distant now. "I need to call Meredith now, Detective Beckett. Bye."
"Bye…" she began, but trailed off when she heard the dead air signaling that the call had been ended.
Kate stared down at her phone for a moment, considering. She couldn't decide whether to risk letting Castle think she actually cared, or let the whole thing go.
After a tortuous moment, she hit the send button on her phone, automatically redialing Castle's number. When the call was sent to voice mail, she huffed an irritated breath and jabbed the end button before the beep.
Confused and surprised, Kate studied her phone for a long minute as if it held the answers to Castle's odd behavior. He hadn't made one suggestive comment or flirty aside. He hadn't called her on her embarrassment, or made any jokes about the body or, well, any jokes at all. He even ignored her call.
And that had Detective Kate Beckett very worried.