She's gone. His muse, his inspiration, the love of his life. Gone. It had been such a long day for everyone. They tried to brace themselves for her funeral, but it was even harder than they'd imagined. They'd all ran out of tears by the end of the day. Friends, loved ones, and even people that she had given closure to said their condolences, "She'll be missed" and "I can't believe she's gone" were among the popular sayings. Rick, Alexis, Martha, Javier, Kevin, Lanie, Victoria, Jim, Jenny, and Tory sat together. They stayed as a group the entire day, an immediate family with each member in desperate need of support. By sunset, they were the only ones left mourning the loss of Kate. Following Jim, the group walked to her tombstone. It sat beside her mother's, Johanna Beckett, which was almost too much for Jim to handle. First his wife, then his daughter. He stood in front of both for a couple of seconds, everyone behind him in complete silence, giving respect to the man who lost his everything. The entire world seemed still as he placed his hands on both tombstones and walked away, too much for him to bear. Each person said their final goodbyes before returning to a world of uncertainty. What happens after you lose your best friend, colleague, daughter, mentor, wife? After what seemed like hours, just the Castles were at her grave. Alexis broke down, shaking, screaming. She and Kate had become so close. They'd finally had a real relationship and now she's gone. She finally began to think of Kate as the mother she never had. But she lost her. Martha, trying to put on a brave face, carried Alexis away, with tears streaming down her face.
"I'll meet you at home, mother," said Castle.
Chocked with tears, Martha could only nod her head and keep going forward.
Home, could it really ever be home again?
"Kate, I love you. I miss you," he said, almost expecting a response back. "She's beautiful, just like you are. She was healthy, 8 pounds 7 ounces. My blue eyes and your smile. She smiles so much babe, especially when I read to her. It reminds me of you everyday." It was dead silent. "God, I wish you could just see her. That you would've just stayed with us long enough to see her." Tears started to trickle down his cheeks. He hadn't cried all day, until now. Now that they're alone. If only she had survived the birth. "I have a surprise for you. I haven't shown anyone, it's only for you, for us." He pulled out a small notebook and flipped to the last pages. "It's my last book, Kate, well the end of it. I don't know if I'll get it published or not, but this is for you, it's all for you." He sat directly in front of the tombstone, criss-crossed legs like she was sitting with him. He began to read out loud, struggling to get the words out. When he was finished, it was darker and the sky twinkled its silvery glimpses of light. "Remember, it's like I said, the stars above us..." He didn't have the heart to complete it. He rose from the ground, the night air feeling oddly a bit warmer, kissed the notebook and placed it on the grave. "This is because of you, because of us, always."