"Katherine Houghton Beckett, will you marry me?"
It was so unexpected. She had anticipated his anger, could understand why he felt betrayed by what she had done. As they had talked she had been sure that he was breaking it off, the bitter part inside of her saying that this was always going to happen, her eyes starting to fill with tears as he stood up to leave. Suddenly he is kneeling before her, expression serious but eyes full of nervous hope, and the rush of relief that spreads through her is so unexpected that it takes her breath away.
What happens next though, is something that she definitely did not see coming.
The shot rings out across the playground, harsh and clear in the still winter-like air. It feels like she's been hit by a truck and for a split second all Kate can think is that a proposal shouldn't feel like this, and then she is falling and hitting the ground with a jolt that sends white-hot pain shooting through her chest. It's only when Castle brings his hands to her shoulder and she sees the blood running through his fingers that she realises she has been shot.
"Kate, oh god, oh Kate stay with me stay with me Kate…"
All she can do is stare at his face, the panic and horror showing there making her realise that this is serious; she wants to tell him that everything is fine, it feels different to last time, she can't even feel any pain right now, just a tight numbness that is slowly moving across her body. Sirens howl in the distance, Castle is yelling at her now but she can't hear him. She hasn't felt this tired in a long time, and it would be so easy to just fall asleep here.
"Kate please, just keep your eyes open! I love you, always, please…"
She can feel the last of her energy disappearing, and manages to open her eyes long enough to whisper his name before she falls into the blackness that hovers at the edge of her vision.
He bought the ring only an hour before their meeting at the swings, after a morning spent wandering moodily through the streets of New York; finding himself outside a small jewellery store had felt like fate, and he had made up his mind in a split second. Seeing her walk towards him in the playground, Castle knew that it was the right choice. He was completely hers, and he wanted to show her that she could be his too, for the rest of their lives.
The sound of the shot made him jump and look behind, then turn again as he heard Kate cry out as she fell to the ground, a sick feeling settling in his stomach as he struggled to comprehend the blood spreading across her black jacket. Then seeing her eyes start to close, hearing the confusion in her voice as she said his name, her body relaxing as she loses consciousness. It's only five minutes until the paramedics arrive but it feels like a lifetime to Castle, his tears blurring the image of the woman he loves bleeding to death before him. They have to pry his hands away from the wound in her shoulder, all he can think is that they have to keep the pressure on, but someone is gently pulling him away and he is crying harder than he ever has before.
He goes to the hospital in a squad car, the police officers in the car silent and grim at the thought of one of their own being taken down. It is chaos when they arrive and it takes some time before he finds out that she's been taken to surgery. The news that she is still breathing is the best thing he has ever heard; he was sure that Kate Beckett had died beside him in that park.
The next two hours pass in a blur, as Ryan and Esposito arrive, their faces tense and frightened; Castle imagines that his own expression mirrors theirs. Lanie appears, hugging him for a long time. It helps more than he lets on. Finally Jim Beckett walks through the waiting room doors, his face weary and his eyes red. They sit together in nervous silence, hoping that their friend, girlfriend, daughter can pull through this time.
When the doctor appears and makes a beeline for their group they all get to their feet, staring at him desperately. The man clears his throat and Castle knows what he is going to say before he even speaks.
"I'm very sorry to inform you that Detective Beckett didn't make it through the surgery."
The first thought that crosses her mind when she comes to is that Castle must have left the light on last night; it's so bright in the bedroom that all she can see is a disorientating blur. As her vision clears, she realises that she is not in bed with Castle but in a small bed with white sheets, and the beeping sound that she mistook for her alarm is actually a heart rate monitor. Confusion sets in as she squeezes her eyes shut tightly to try and rid herself of the dizziness still present in her mind. She opens them again as she hears the door opening, her confusion growing when she sees Jordan Shaw standing in the doorway.
"Kate," Jordan says softly as she approaches the bed, her expression serious and her eyes compassionate, "there's something I need to tell you."
Kate swallows, noticing for the first time the bandages on her shoulder, the twinges of pain through her chest. Memories flash through her mind – the park, the swings, Castle. The proposal… oh god, the shot, and the knowledge that she was dying right there in the dirt.
"What? Is – is Castle okay?" Kate manages to ask, her voice hoarse.
"He's fine." Jordan assures her and pauses as if trying to work out what to say next. "But we had to make sure that whoever shot you thought that they had finished the job Kate, and that meant everyone else had to believe it too."
Kate tries to take this in, an uneasy feeling rising in her stomach as she processes Shaw's words. "Kate," Jordan says gently, "As far as your friends and family know, you died three days ago in hospital."