Kate burst through the doors of the emergency ward and ran up to the reception desk. Her mouth dry and sweat running down her sides, she asked the nurse at the front desk where to find Castle. The nurse indicated to the emergency operation room down the hallway to the right of Kate.

A sharp breath escaped Kate as she saw two people waiting there nervously. It was Martha and Alexis. How was Kate going to explain this to Alexis? How was she going to tell Castle's young teenage daughter that her father had pushed her out of the way to receive three bullets that were meant for her? A wave of guilt swept over Kate as she thought about this. Thanking the nurse Kate turned and started to walk down the hallway. She struggled to keep a lid on her emotions. She had to present herself in a reasonable condition to Alexis. She was sure that there would be many questions that were going to be fired at her; mainly from Alexis.

Kate stopped dead in her tracks as she saw Alexis rise from the seat she had taken. Their eyes met and locked. Kate could see deep in Alexis' eyes the pain and anger. Seeing it brought tears to her eyes but, she forced it back as she remembered that she had to be strong, for Castle.

It was Alexis that spoke first.

"How could you let this happen?" She asked innocently but, her voice shaking.

It was a small and simply sentence yet the words fell out from her mouth like sharp stones; each word cutting a scar into Kate. She could see the young teens eyes flare up and tears fill them up.

"I trusted you Kate," Alexis cried, "I trusted that you look after my dad. Beside Grams, I have no one in my life! You hear me Kate? No one! After him, I have no other father! He could die Kate!"

Alexis made up the distance between her and Kate and looked at her straight in the eyes.

"How could you?" She sobbed on; bashing her hands on Kate's chest. Kate had to put her hands in front of her to guard herself. She couldn't do it anymore. She couldn't keep the lid on her emotions anymore. She started crying with Alexis but, it was here that Martha stepped in. She pulled Alexis away from Kate, holding her back, reassuring her that everything would be just fine. Alexis struggled and started crying even more. Martha looked at Kate, her eyes red with sorrow. 'Help me Kate' Martha asked her with her eyes.

Quickly wiping the tears from her eyes, Kate grabbed Alexis' two hands and held them in her own; like a mother would when their child was in distress. Thinking of a way to comfort the young woman, Kate did the only thing that she thought would calm her down. It was the only thing that Kate's mother would do to calm Kate down. In a quick movement, Kate embraced Alexis into a hug; a hug that only a motherly figure could apply. Kate could feel how surprised and shocked Alexis was when she hugged her but, immediately felt the hug being reciprocated. Kate could see Martha smiling in the background at how beautifully Kate had filled the roll of a mother in Alexis' life.

Letting go of Alexis but, still holding her hands, Kate looked Alexis straight in the eyes. Still seeing the pain and anger in her eyes, Kate knew she had to say something to make Alexis feel better.

"Alexis, please believe when I say this but, I am so sorry. I never meant for any of this to happen. I am as worried about your father as you are. He is also," She paused for a moment, "my life."

Seeing that Alexis realized what Kate was trying to saying, made Alexis smile and bury herself deeper within Kate's arms and hug her even more tightly. Kate smiled and closed her eyes. Right now this is what she needed. She needed someone who was in the same position as her. A person who was about to lose someone they loved. Having Alexis and Martha made her feel that much more better.

Alexis let go of Kate and looked her in the eyes once again. This time the pain and anger could not be seen, only sorrow.

"I'm sorry Kate," She said, "I should't have acted like that."

Kate just simply smiled back at the young girl and Alexis knew that she was forgiven.

"How is he doing?" Kate asked; the smile slowly fading from her face as she turned to face Martha.

"They took him straight into emergency surgery. I heard them say that the bullets were causing a significant amount of internal bleeding and that they had to stop that immediately. The main doctor had come out a little after that and said that they had removed the bullets but, the internal bleeding was still too much. He went back in quickly to help stop the bleeding."

Martha finished the sentence with the worry being heard. Kate put her hand on Martha's shoulder and pulled her into an embrace.

"I'm sure he will be fine, Martha." She said, "He has been my partner for three years and he has got to be one of the toughest ones I have ever had."

Martha nodded, acknowledging the attempt Kate had made to comfort her.

It was then the doctor came out of the operation room. The bottom half of his clothes were covered in blood and he looked worried and tired. Alexis and Martha rushed to the doctor before he could even get out of the doorway of the emergency room. They bombarded him with questions regarding how Castle was doing.

"He is fine and in a stable condition." He replied and a sign of relief could be heard from all three of the women there.

"You may go and visit him now but, please go one at a time. He has been through a lot and has lost quite a majority of his blood so the last thing he needs is to be covered with visitors. Most of his body will be aching at the moment as we had to put a lot of stitches into him to close up the bleeding. Touching him right now might not be the most comfortable thing for him now."

The doctor smiled and looked at each one of the women. Happiness succeeding every one of their faces, Kate could see that the doctor knew that his mission was accomplished.

"He woke up after the operation and asked for a Detective Kate Beckett," the doctor said looking at Kate, "I assume that, that is you?"

Kate cheeks flushed red and nodded. The fact that Castle woke up after the operation and asked for her first made her feel special; like she really did actually mean something to him.

"In that case," the doctor said; sensing the conversation was over, "I will leave you to fight for who sees him first."

Smiling the doctor walked away, leaving the women looking at each other. Without really even talking they all knew that it was going to be Alexis that saw Rick first.

Before anyone could stop her, Alexis had already ran into the room; the door swinging closed behind her. Kate smiled. The teenager that she had always cared for still had her father and he was fine. Most importantly she still had her partner. The thought of Castle being fine made her smile even more. She looked towards Martha and smiled.

"Thank you Kate," Martha said. "I don't think Alexis would have been fine if you didn't come here. You sometimes really feel in the place of her mother well. It really is a shame that you aren't."

Looking into Martha's wise eyes, Kate smiled and acknowledged the compliment. After the events of today, she really did wish that she was the wife of Castle and the mother of Alexis. Closing her eyes and resting her head on the wall behind her, Kate left the events of the rewind through her head. She wasn't worried or stressed anymore, she was happy and content. She had Castle. Nothing had happened to him. He was fine.

A/N: Sorry for the delay. Had so many things happening at school that I just didn't have the time to write. There most likely wont be another chapter for another week due to the fact that I am leaving home for a while. Anyway, I hope you are liking where the story is going. I do need a beta reader so if you are interested please PM me and we can talk. If you have any ideas on where this story should go, please PM me once again and we can talk. I would love to hear what my readers are thinking. As always, don't forget to review as it keeps me motivated. The more reviews, the more chapters.