Again, thanks for reviewing. You guys are great. And hopefully the POV markers will show up this time.
Disclaimer – Still don't own Castle or write for the show. Marlowe and ABC do. This is just for those little plot bunnies that pop into my brain at night when I'm trying to sleep and then multiply.
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The Call – Chapter 2
The first thing that Kate noticed was all of the air being sucked out of the room and she thought she was going to suffocate. She spent several moments wheezing, just trying to catch her breath, before Gonzales pushed her down in a chair and stuck her head between her knees to keep her from passing out.
Yes, his instincts were still good – these two were definitely an item. They had run a preliminary background check on Castle before inviting Beckett on the interview, and it had come back clean for terroristic behavior. As for the other behaviors noted in the report, he would reserve judgment until he met the man in person.
"Agent Beckett, are you all right?" Gonzales asked after a few minutes.
Kate slowly sat up and ran a hand through her hair. "When – when did it happen?"
Gonzales paused a minute before responding. "Approximately seven weeks ago. His daughter only discovered it last week when she returned from a trip out of the country. The NYPD has been on the case since then and Jordan Shaw asked us to step in a few days ago because of the multiple jurisdictions that may be involved."
"Who's working this?" Kate asked, gearing up to answer any questions they had, thinking of what she had to do first.
Gonzales sat on the edge of his desk. "Agent Beckett, for the record I have to ask you what your relationship to Richard Castle is."
Tucking her hair behind her right ear, Beckett thought a moment before replying. "Before I came here, he asked me to marry him. But we postponed that decision for a while."
"Then you're not in a legally-binding relationship, such as a common-law marriage," Gonzales stated, "and you are not an immediate family member."
Kate stared at the man, not sure what he was getting at. "No," she said finally. "We're not and I'm not, but what difference does that make?"
"Then, I'm sorry, Agent Beckett, I cannot discuss any further details of this case with you. At the request of the family, we are only discussing details with the various agencies assigned to the case and immediate family members."
Shocked, Beckett sat there a moment longer. "But, sir," she pleaded.
"I'm sorry, Beckett – those are the rules." Gonzales walked back to his chair and sat down. "However, I suggest you take the rest of the day off. And, Agent Beckett, this is a direct order not to contact our agents working the case. Doing so could lead to immediately dismissal from this agency."
Beckett sat there for a few more minutes, trying to wrap her head around what Gonzales had just said, and then walked out of his office and, a few minutes later, the building without looking back.
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The trip to the hotel she was staying at had been quick and uneventful. She was supposed to be looking for a more permanent place to live, but hadn't had time yet with training and meetings. To tell the truth, everything had just felt wrong also – she didn't feel at home here.
Beckett quickly picked up her phone and pushed one of the speed dial numbers. She needed answers and she knew who to call for them.
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Espo looked at the caller ID on his phone as it rang and glanced at Ryan. "It's her," he said as the Irish detective walked over to Espo's desk. They understood that she thought she had moved to a more desirable position and the power that came with it, but it still stung a little that she didn't talk with them first and gave them less than a week's notice about the change. And it just wasn't the same without her and Castle around, annoying as he could be. They also knew that things had ended badly between them, especially when Castle didn't show up at the Old Haunt for the impromptu going-away party they had for Beckett the night before she left.
The few phone conversations they had since Kate had moved had been brief and almost pointless. Kate would inquire how things were in New York, how Jenny was feeling, and they'd ask her about D.C., but she hadn't done much other than work which she couldn't discuss and they in turn couldn't discuss their cases with her.
"Hello, Agent Beckett," Espo answered formally, setting the tone for the call and putting the call on speaker phone.
"Javi, why didn't you tell me about Castle?" Kate demanded, gathering the top of her hair back in her hand as she paced the room.
"You're not an immediate member of his family," Espo said, leaving out the part that she could have easily been. "And apparently you're not working the case for the AG; otherwise you wouldn't have called."
"Look, Javi, don't give me that. Is Ryan there with you?"
"What can we help you with, Agent Beckett?" answered Ryan.
"Kevin, not you too?" Kate questioned. "How long have you known?"
"Known what?" asked Ryan.
"You know what I'm talking about. Castle – and you didn't call me?" Kate implored. "They won't give me the files here. How can I do anything if I don't know what's going on?"
"Kate…" Ryan waffled, only to be given the eye by Espo.
"Javi, Kevin," Kate pleaded, "we've done this before. Ignored orders when it made sense. How is this any different now?"
"That's the problem, Agent Beckett. It is different now," Espo stated plainly. "You're not family any more. You're a federal agent and Castle's not your partner. So, no, we won't send you the files or talk to you about this case. If that's all you need, Agent Beckett?"
Kate stared at the phone for a moment before her temper got the better of her. "I tell you this right now, Javier Esposito and Kevin Ryan," Beckett said in the dangerously quiet tone she used with recalcitrant suspects. "Castle is my partner and I will move heaven and earth to find him." The line went dead.
Ryan and Espo looked at the phone for a moment and then high-fived each other, smiling.
"Good job, bro – thought you were going to cave there for a minute," Espo said, sitting back in his chair. This didn't mean that he'd let Beckett off the hook any time soon – her departure had stung and left a hole in their team – and he would make sure that she knew.
But the FBI and AU agents assigned to the case were moving too slowly in his opinion. Now that Beckett had gotten her butt thoroughly kicked, something was bound to shake loose.
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Later that night, it was no surprise to Captain Gates to find Beckett sitting on her front porch, waiting for her to come home.
"Sir," Beckett said, standing up to meet her. "I want my job at the precinct back."
Gates regarded her for a long minute. "I assume you've thought about what you're giving up."
"Yes, I know what I'm giving up, and no, I'm not giving up anything," Beckett said, shaking her head. "I'm going to get back what I've lost."
Gates nodded slowly. "Then report to the bullpen tomorrow morning, Detective Beckett. And it's good to have you back."