"More marriages might survive if the partners realized that sometimes the better comes after the worse." –Doug Larson

Castle opens the door to the marriage counselor's office and sees Kate already sitting there. He has to stop himself from running up to her and gathering her in his arms. Two nights ago, his wife called and told him what he already knew, that she had chosen her addiction over him. She then apologized and asked him to take her back. A part of him wanted to ask her to come home immediately, spend the rest of the evening exploring her body and remembering why they fell in the love in the first place.

Unfortunately, a whole other part of him was terrified. His wife had chosen a case over him. How could he fully put his trust in her again? As Kate listened to his fears, they both agreed that they would ask Dr. Burke for a recommendation to a trusted marriage therapist. Kate would move back home this weekend and they would start the process of healing and rebuilding a life together.

As Castle took a seat next to his wife, the therapist handed a few sheets of paperwork to him.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Montoya, if you could sign these confidentiality forms; we can go ahead and begin the session."

Castle read through the forms as quick as possible and then signed his name to him. He was eager to get this started.

The doctor began speaking, "I am a little familiar with why you are getting marriage therapy with me today because of the referral information you both gave me. Why don't you tell me what you feel is the most difficult barrier in your relationship right now?"

Kate fumbled with her hands, playing with her wedding ring, "About a month ago, I left my husband. There was a case I was involved with that I felt was too dangerous to work with him on. I understand now that I was a chasing an addiction and need help with that."

Dr. Montoya gently nodded at Kate and then turned her head to Rick, "Why don't you tell me about your biggest barrier?"

Castle had thought a lot about what he wanted to say during their first session, he didn't want to hurt Kate in any way, but he knew that he had to dig under the surface to start the healing process. Knowing that what he was about to say would be difficult, he put his hand over Kate's."

"I don't trust my wife," he felt Kate's hand tense as he held onto to it tightly "I know that she loves me. But I don't trust her to be my partner anymore. I fear that one day she will deem another case more important than me and run away. What if one day we have children and I have to explain to them why their mother didn't come home one evening, why she decided that chasing justice was more important than them?"

Until he completed what he had to say, he had avoided meeting Kate's gaze. Now that Castle was finished, he met her eyes, seeing two tears falling down her face. Nothing made his heart break more than seeing his wife cry. But this was their future. If they weren't honest with each other, nothing would be left to fight for in their marriage.

His thoughts were interrupted by Dr. Montoya's next question, "It sounds like some difficult barriers are in place. Once trust is broken in a marriage, it's a lot of work to get that marriage back on track. But the beauty of a marriage that has been tried by fire is that it remains, and usually burns brighter than it ever did. Kate, can you tell me your response to Castle's fears?"

Kate's lower lip trembled, her other hand reaching to grab Castle's so that she could face him.

"I know I screwed up, I get that now. I don't think I realized how much of a hold this addiction had on me until my dad talked to me. I thought when we got together that I was fixed and would never have to deal with it again. Babe, I'm so sorry that I gave up on us, even for a moment. I'm willing to do whatever it takes to rebuild this life with you."

Castle eyes fall over his beautiful wife. He knows that she means what she says right now. He knows that she believes she loves him. Everything about her shows that she wants them more than anything. But something is missing, some piece of the puzzle that has never quite been put to rest.

"We need to visit your mom, Kate," Castle says almost at the same time he realizes it, "You need to tell her what this has done to you. You need to take her off the pedestal and realize that both of you not only share a desire for justice but also an addiction that supersedes your family. Kate, your mother loved you and was a great woman. But she also was a big cause in the problems you have today. If we are going to move forward with our future, you have to make peace with the person that she actually was, not just the hero that you have in your mind."

Kate lets go of Castle hands and sits back on the couch. He could tell she was pulling away from him.

Dr. Montoya spoke up, "Kate, what are you feeling right now?"

"Angry," Kate said. "How could you ask this of me, Castle? You know how I feel about my mom. How can I be angry with her? She died alone." Kate's voice dropped and she continued, as if understanding something for the first time. "She left me alone just because her quest for justice was more important than I was. It was more important than our family." As Kate felt the words fall out of her mouth, seemingly without permission, her whole body trembled. "

Castle, how you can ever love me again? I did the same thing."

Castle put his arm around his wife and let her tears fall.

"I will be with you every step of the way. I'm not letting you go. When you are weak, I will be strong. I won't let you choose this quest over our family."

Kate's tear stricken eyes meet Castle's.

"Let's go to cemetery."