Summary: When their world literally crumbles around them, will the members of the 12th Precinct be able to rise like a phoenix from the ashes?
Rating: This fic is rated T for "mild course language."
Disclaimer: I do not own Castle, Castle characters, or locations.
A/N: FYI... Please be aware of times and locations at each segment break, the story jumps around a bit, but is clearly marked!
"Like a Phoenix From The Ashes"
By DeBo81
Chapter 1
Tuesday, April 30
The Ryan's Apartment
3:45pm
Jenny Ryan raced in the front door, tossed her purse on the floor, and veered directly to the bathroom, where she knelt in front of the toilet only seconds before her stomach emptied its contents. She had gone all day without getting sick, (for the first time in over a week) but the gyro her cabbie had been enjoying, taunted her nose until she went from hungry to queasy in seconds.
Once her stomach settled again, she wandered back to the living room to pick up her things, but first made a detour to the kitchen for a snack. After all, the joys of pregnancy often had her mutually sick and starving. Within several minutes, she plopped down onto the couch with pretzels and cheese, grabbed the remote and flipped on the TV. Between the crazy morning at work, her OB appointment, and her foot race to the bathroom, Jenny was ready to curl up with Judge Judy and People's Court for a couple hours.
She scanned through the channels looking for her shows, but when she found the right network, instead of seeing a sassy judge in her black gown, the screen flashed with the red and blue emergency lights of police cars, ambulances, and fire trucks. "Breaking News" scrolled across the bottom of the screen, and the reporter pointed backward, down a smokey city street, toward a building that appeared to be reduced to a giant pile of rubble.
Jenny turned up the volume, as her adrenaline began to pump. As the wife of an NYPD officer, she couldn't help but wonder if her Kevin or anyone else she knew, was involved. It wouldn't be the first time that she watched the news and saw someone she cared about on the scene. But nothing could have prepared her for what she was really seeing.
Her entire body grew cold as her blood seemingly drained completely away. Hot tears filled her eyes while she scrambled for her phone. But the reporter's words never stopped echoing in her head. "Once again, if you're just tuning in... We are live at the scene of an explosion, where what remains of the NYPD's 12th Precinct, now lies smoldering."
XXXXXXXXXX
Tuesday, April 30
Manhattan bakery/coffee shop
8:15 am
Castle held out Beckett's coffee cup toward her, as he returned from the bakery's counter, but she didn't seem to notice.
"Kaaaaaaaaaate" he called in a sing-song way. "Earth to Beckett!"
"Hmmm?" she asked while taking the steamy drink.
"Everything OK? I know you haven't had your morning jolt of caffeine yet, but you're looking especially spacey this morning."
The couple left the small shop, side by side, and headed out to the busy New York sidewalk.
"Yeah, I'm just preoccupied, I guess."
"The Webber case?"
"It must be. I've just had an odd, nervous feeling all morning. It's like I can feel that something's wrong. I don't know if I'm just missing something that's nagging at me or what. It's very weird."
"You think it's a little of the PTSD? The guy did take a long range bullet to the heart. Maybe that's affecting you more than you realize."
"But it wasn't from a sniper rifle." Kate took a long sip from her cup, and thought about the possibility "I don't know. I don't think so. But I guess it's possible."
Rick switched his cup to his left hand so that he could take her hand in his. "Maybe, ya know, if it doesn't go away in a little while, you might want to talk to your therapist. I know you've said it's been a while since you've had any panic attacks, but if that's whats happening, maybe you can work things out before they reach a breaking point."
Kate shrugged dismissively, but didn't tell him no. To be honest she'd thought about it already, but hadn't yet decided if she'd follow through. Right now she just wanted to get to work and see if maybe revisiting the evidence, or lack thereof, would clear anything up.
XXXXXXXXXX
Tuesday, April 30
Alexis' Columbia dorm room
3:25 pm
Alexis Castle pulled her tennis shoes out from under her bed, and plopped down on the floor to put them on. With her afternoon history class cancelled, she planned to meet up with several friends to play volleyball in the student athletics center.
While looking for her filtered water bottle, her phone began to blare Fergie's "Glamorous".
"Hey Gram!" she answered sweetly.
"Alexis darling, where are you?"
The tone of Martha's voice captured the co-ed's full attention. "In my room. Why? What's wrong?"
"I... I don't really know details. But I'm on my way to come get you."
"Gram, you're scaring me. What's wrong? Is there something going on here on campus."
"No, no. Just please grab a jacket and meet me outside. I'll be there in ten minutes."
Alexis hurried to her laptop and opened her web browser while her grandmother spoke. Martha heard the familiar sounds over the phone though. "Please listen to me, stay off the computer. Don't turn on the news. I'll be there soon and we can talk then."
The teen ignored her grandmother's plea and pulled up a local news page. "Is it Dad? Did something happen? Did..."
But Martha never had a chance to answer. The girl's panicked gasp for air told her she'd found the headlines.
"Oh my god, the 12th!? Was he there!? Was he in there!?" Fear and tears choked her, making it almost impossible for her to get her questions out. Her head began to swim. She couldn't read the article. She couldn't look at the pictures. She just silently begged her grandmother to assure her that all was alright.
"I don't know. Jim Beckett called me when he heard. He's tried Beckett's phone but hasn't got an answer. And your dad's phone is going straight to voice mail." Before the girl could add anything, Martha rushed on, trying to give them both some hope. "That's no reason to assume that they're hurt though. Maybe they aren't there and have their phones off. Maybe they're helping others at the scene. Maybe their phones are just damaged or lost. We'll know more once we get down there. Jim is already on the way and promised to call me if he found out anything."
Alexis tried to be strong but hot tears ran down her face unchecked. "I'll, I'll meet y-you outside," she stuttered. As soon as she hung up, she typed out a rapid text: DAD, TELL ME YOU'RE OK.
XXXXXXXXXX
Tuesday, April 30
The 12th Precinct Bullpen
2:20 pm
"OK, that was Lanie," Det. Beckett announced to the three men standing near her. "She's on her way to a scene uptown, but she's gonna stop by with some x-rays of our vic, that she says, quote/unquote will, 'Surprise the hell out of us'. But she didn't elaborate further. Ryan did you get anywhere with Webber's financials?"
"Yeah, no red flags there. Everything was in order and accounted for."
"Espo, how about you? Did you finally get a hold of his boss?"
"Nothing there either. Webber was a hard working, mild mannered, creature of habit. I've talked to his employers, his land lord, his neighbors, brother and even an ex; the worst thing I've heard about him is that he was afraid to take chances, and was almost anal about checking and double checking that everything was safe, regulated and orderly."
Castle perched on Kate's desk. "Any history of OCD or other psychological conditions?"
Kate shook her head, "None that we know of."
Just then, Gates stuck her head out of her office. "Beckett, I called in a favor and got you a meeting with McDaniel, but you gotta get there in the next twenty minutes. You're not going to get another chance at this, so make it good and see if you can tie him to Webber. If so, we may have a new lead."
"Yes Sir!" Kate stood and grabbed her jacket from the back of her chair and nodded at Castle who was already following suit. "You boys stay and see what Lanie has for us, then text me. And Javi, see if you can get more out of the insurance company. I feel like they're not giving me 100%."
"As you wish" the tough man answered with a slight bow.
Esposito went to his desk and picked up his phone. Kevin Ryan went to the white board and began updating the notes. And Castle and Beckett headed toward the elevator, their footsteps completely in sync.
"We still on for dinner tonight?" Rick asked as soon as the doors slid shut behind them.
"Yeah, I was thi..."
The elevator shook briefly at the same moment a muffled explosion sounded from somewhere below them.
Castle grabbed Kate who braced herself against the wall.
"What the hell?" He gasped. But before Kate could answer, the small space was plunged into total darkness.
Beckett never did answer him, she was too busy listening. A low rumble seemed to travel up from the ground below, until it become a deafening roar.
"Castle!" Kate screamed and groped in the darkness for her boyfriend, because suddenly they were both falling.
X
X
X
X
X
A/N: Hello guys! Glad to see that you're still reading. By this point, one of my betas was already threatening me for putting our favorite characters in such a perilous situation. And to be honest, I just laughed, cuz I love to get reactions!
The good news is that I've finished writing the entire fic (8 chapters) and am in the editing process. The better news is that I fully intend on posting EVERY DAY. So you should have the entire story in a little over a week, and not have to wait long between updates. See? I do care enough not to leave you in suspense for too long.
So, if you'd like to leave me a note, I would love to read it.
But otherwise, I'll see you again tomorrow!
Happy Reading, Debo81