Hey everybody! Here is the new chapter, and I know it had taken me ages but my only excuse is I didn't really know how to end it so I just kept writing and writing and this is sort of longer than the previous ones...So, I hope you will forgive me! :)

Also, wow guys! Thank you so much for all the feedback on last chapter! I was seriously over the moon when I read your reviews and saw the alerts... So really thank you! Your words and thoughts are real inspiration! And to those of you who read and don't review, thanks for reading and I really hope you like the story! Although, to be fair I'd prefer you writing a few words as well... ;)

All right, on to the chapter! Hope you'll enjoy it!

Disclaimer: As much as I wish I did, I don't own this amazing show...

Chapter 3

Kate Beckett woke with a startle the next morning. She had a horrible dream about a bus hitting Richard Castle's adorable daughter with Kate trying to save her but failing in the last moment. She woke up drenched in sweat and tears threatening to escape her eyes.

She shook her head as she slowly got out of her bed, cursing her brain that was unable to forget the image of the girl even though she only saw the picture of her for a moment. Kate had to kill her father today and the last thing she needed was a dream full of the girl's desperate screams…

She took a long shower, trying to get rid of the images from her dream. It was more or less helpful and as she dressed she felt a bit more confident. It was just another job, she could do it without getting guilty. She just had to stop thinking about that girl... She had to stop thinking about Richard Castle as someone's father, a person. He was a target, no more.

She made herself a coffee and her eyes found the box that arrived yesterday. With a big breath she opened it and reached for the folder inside. She scanned the information again, trying to memorize all of it in case she would need it. But of course she wouldn't. Why would she need his hair color or his weight when she was going to shot him with one bullet straight to his heart? It was easy and fast, just what she needed.

She went back to her bedroom and stepped on the floorboard under which she kept her sniper rifle. She carefully removed it then put the wood back in place. She put the rifle on her bed and started to disassemble it piece by piece. When she was done she pulled her backpack out from under her bed and packed all of the pieces in it.

She looked at her watch and saw that it was ten past eight. She needed about half an hour to get to the place where he lived so she got ready and left her apartment.

She rode down the old elevator with a couple who were shooting dreamy looks at each other all the way down and Kate couldn't wait to escape from the lift. She rushed through the entry hall and burst out the door into the early day crowd on the street. People going to work, mothers pulling their kids after them because they were already late from school, and old ladies walking lazily on the side.

Kate quickly managed to blend in and she turned left at the end of the road to get to the closest metro station. It was rather close but also very stuffed, she didn't like using the subway when she was carrying a bigger weapon but she kind of didn't have any other choice.

She only had to wait a few minutes and when she got on the metro she stood next to the door. She put her backpack between her feet and looked out the window, watching as stations flew by. The blur of people and lights and signs giving her a comfortable feeling but also making her super aware of the rifle at her feet.

As soon as the car stopped at Canal street she was out of it and making her way to the escalator. She slalomed between a class of children to cross the street and walked swiftly towards Richard Castle's building.

It was a beautiful, tall building with huge glass windows at the top floors. She eyed the house across the street and found the fire escape on the side of it. The metallic ladder ended in a narrow alley. She would use that to get to the roof and there she would look for a spot that had the best view of Castle's loft.

Kate was glad that the alley was dark and empty, this way she didn't really have to worry about being seen. She adjusted her backpack before she started to climb then she quickly made her way up, floor by floor. She was careful and quiet and when she was at the middle of the fire escape she stopped on a landing and glanced back down at the street. No one even noticed that she was up there so she took a breath and continued her upwards without hesitation.

When she stepped onto the roof she stretched her back and let out a sigh. She walked around and watched Castle's house, fixing her eyes on the penthouse loft which was his home. Then she set up her vantage point, putting together the rifle and pulling the binoculars out of her bag. Although there was a small telescope attached to her weapon she always preferred the bigger and technically more developed one that showed a better and detailed picture. She scanned the building across the street and searched for any signs of people in Castle's loft. He must have been at home, right? It was only quarter to nine. Kate imagined Richard Castle to be lazy and careless, sleeping till noon to be able to go to fancy parties at night.

She finally spotted a moving form in one of the windows, in a room that seemed like a living room. It was a tall, thin redhead moving around with familiar ease. Kate's eyebrow shot up as she ran the infos about Castle through her head again... There wasn't anything about a wife in his file. So should this woman be his girlfriend then? Or just the lucky lady of last night? But no, she seemed way to carefree and comfortable. She looked like somebody who was home...

Without letting any judgment seep into her mind Kate zoomed in a bit and an understanding hum left her throat when she saw that the woman was at least fifteen years older than Castle. That meant she had to be his mother!

Beckett watched her face for a minute thinking about why the hell was the woman so familiar to her... But then chased the thought away instantly, thinking that she certainly didn't need to be thinking about that before she shot her son. She didn't want to have another nightmare with Richard Castle's relatives in it.

So she moved her binoculars to the next room, which had smaller windows and Kate guessed it was some kind of an office. Might be where all those worldwide loved, famous novels were written. Suddenly a form moved swiftly through the picture and she zoomed out to see a bigger image. The person, of whom she had only seen a blur a moment ago, was a man. A man in his early forties, tall, broad shouldered with brown hair. He seemed like he was in a big rush. It couldn't be else but the one and only Richard Castle.

She took in his appearance curiously, wondering why would anyone want him dead. His hair was standing at all directions and he was just buttoning up a dark blue shirt as he sped towards the kitchen. He looked innocent, almost childlike. He reached for a mug and took a sip then grimaced and spit it back. Kate couldn't help but grin at his widened eyes and pout as he tried to cool his mouth. She guessed his morning coffee must have been too hot.

Beckett knew it was the perfect time to do it, one move of her finger on the trigger and it would be over but she couldn't bring herself to take that move. It was only a moment of hesitation and Kate didn't know if it was because his mother was in the room too and she couldn't stand the thought of her seeing her only son collapsing on the floor in a pool of blood or because she couldn't figure out why somebody wanted him dead. Or maybe because for the first time she sort of enjoyed getting an insight to someone's life. She watched them like a movie, with Castle's silly and clumsy hurrying movements and his mother's dramatic gestures as she talked. Kate found herself intrigued…
But she knew that by the time she got a grip on her sudden feelings and moved to adjust the rifle, forgetting or at least repressing her thoughts about his mother seeing him die, she was too late. To Beckett's chagrin the man was jogging out of her eyesight and soon his mother disappeared from the kitchen too. She waited a few minutes, hoping that he would come back, even glad that his mother was out of sight since it would be easier to pull the trigger like that but he never appeared. Kate huffed in annoyance and decided she would just wait for him to get back. At some point he had to drink that coffee after all…

She looked down at the street curiously, watching as people went by unbeknownst of her up on the roof with a weapon that could kill any one of them. She stared at them blankly deep in her thoughts about the mystery around her newest assignment until she saw a movement from the corner of her eye. Someone was in Castle's living room again and she reached for the trigger with a relieved sigh only to find out that it was his mother. She had a stack of papers in her arms and she flicked her red hair over her shoulder as she stood in front of a mirror. Kate regarded her for a minute and suddenly she realized why she was so familiar to her. She was Martha Rogers, the actress on Broadway. Kate used to go to her plays with her parents on every other Friday night. They would eat dinner then watch the play and after that they used to walk along the streets, enjoying the night. Sometimes Kate brought one of her friends of a boyfriend with them… But that was long ago, and she had a melancholic feeling in her heart from thinking about it.

She averted her eyes and got back to gazing down on the street when she suddenly noticed Castle down there. She moved behind her weapon once more and targeted him, the small cross on the lens of the telescope right on where his heart was supposed to be. She waited one more second for a runner to pass by him then she couldn't keep a quiet laugh inside when she noticed his posture. He had his hands on his hips and he looked like a superhero. She grinned as she put her finger on the trigger and bit her lip when he seemed to realize the same thing and quickly changed it. Instead he crossed his arms over his chest and Kate rolled her eyes since his arm was right where she wanted to shoot at. A woman with a stroller went by him and she decided to wait until they were around the corner, just not having the heart to cause that poor mother a heart attack by killing someone so close to her…

When her attention got back to Castle he was peering around, observing the people on the street. She took a breath and half pulled the trigger, only waiting for a moment to make sure that nobody would run accidentally in front of him and get the bullet meant for him. Just as she was about to shoot Castle turned his head nervously around and Kate's eyes widened. She was sure she wasn't visible from the street but still she had a feeling Castle was going to look at her any minute. He was looking around wildly, searching for something or someone. Beckett knew she had to pull the trigger when his eyes snapped to the building she was on top of. He couldn't notice her!

She got ready but without any warning a car stopped right in front of his building. His eyes settled on the door and a beam lighted up his face as somebody started to get out.

"Crap!" she muttered and pulled away from the rifle. She grabbed the binoculars again and watched as a young red haired girl got out of the car and was pulled into Castle's arms.

Kate was surprised to see that his daughter was older than on the pictures from the internet. She was slim and her hair flew around her head in the slight breeze. They hugged for a moment and Kate had a chance to take in his face. His eyes were sparkling and he had small wrinkles around them caused by a bright smile on his lips. He was rather handsome and the way he was looking at his daughter made him even more irresistible.

Beckett growled, uncomfortable from the growing feeling of uncertainty inside her stomach. She couldn't kill him in front of his daughter. She couldn't cause that poor girl this kind of horror. Not when she knew how the mere fact that her father was dead would affect her life. Not when she knew from experience how much it hurt to lose one of your parents. And even worse to see the corpse...

The fact that she was one of the bests in the job wasn't important as Kate realized that she wasn't cruel enough to kill Castle when his daughter or any of his relatives for that matter were around. She couldn't bear the thought that they would have to watch the life slip out of him in seconds. It was a too big loss.

She knew it all too well. That's what made her an assassin...

It happened thirteen years ago when her mother was murdered. It was a cold winter night and Kate could never forget the chilly air that ran along the street as she hurried towards the restaurant. Her father was already there and he greeted her with an affectionate peck on the cheek and a warm hug. They settled down and started talking, knowing full well that Johanna tended to be late because of work. However, Kate couldn't dismiss the weird anxiety pulling at her gut, making her squirm and glance to the entrance every other minute. But her mom never showed up. Her father still thought it was all about work, he made a joke that he couldn't compete with a bunch of criminal files but Kate was on the edge. She pulled out her phone and dialed her mom only to hear the sound of her voicemail.

By the time they got home she was sweating and nervous. When she saw the detective at the door she knew. She knew it couldn't mean any good and she decided to shut it all out. It was easier not to understand. She could only grasp a few words. Gang violence. Mugging gone wrong. Do everything we can. Sorry for your loss...

Same old clichés. Kate didn't need any of it. She saw the shock on her father's face and the childish hopefulness with which Jim snapped his head towards the door every time something moved. Still hoping that she would come bursting through the front door, laugh at them and tell them that it was all right.

Of course it didn't happen. And when the detective left Jim had no better idea than to pour himself a shot of whiskey and try coping with it. To drink himself to oblivion.

Kate just sat in her old room with her knees pulled up to her chest. It was dark around her and she felt like she was alone in the world. Silent tears ran down her cheeks and she kept asking why. Why her mother? Why them? Why now? Why couldn't someone help her? Why did they kill her? Why were the cops not investigating this? Why didn't they catch the killer?

She sat on her bed, musing and feeling her world shatter around her. The pieces floating away, her old life disappearing as if it never existed.

All of a sudden she was a new Kate. She was tougher and cooler. She had locked up her feelings safely behind her new walls. She grew up. She changed. Because the old Kate couldn't have handled this situation.

From that day she was obsessed with Johanna's murder. She tried to track her mother's steps and get the answer for her questions. It wasn't an easy job but Kate found out that she was really good at it. She could convince anyone to share the information she needed with her and she could do her thing without anybody noticing her if she wanted to stay unseen. She broke into the storage room of a precinct to steal the files from her mom's case. When she saw the pictures from the crime scene though she threw up. It made her insides flame with anger and it drove her further into chasing whoever was responsible for the murder. She wanted justice for her mother and she wanted revenge for herself. She couldn't look at those pictures without feeling dizzy and nauseous again.

Staying under the radar and never rushing anything she got to the man who actually killed Johanna. It was her first job as an assassin even if at the time it wasn't like that at all. She was driven by pure anger and grief. It was the first life she took. She didn't even think about it twice when she pulled the trigger of the gun she bought from a guy in a club.

With hard and both physically and mentally exhausting work she finally managed to get to the man who ordered the murder of her mother and so many other innocent people. Kate killed him from a distance, the first time she used a rifle. Her shot had been sharp and lethal.

During her search she had gotten into a world she didn't even know existed and she found it easy to fit in. The shadowy clubs and doubtful people who she got to know somehow shared the kind of pain she was going through. Some of them even understood it. But most of all, they never asked questions. There was a way of solving things in that world and for that they didn't need to know who she was, or where she came from. She was successful and she got what she wanted.

Kate realized she could turn this new found revelation to her advantage and she started to toy with the idea of becoming someone of that world. A spy, a dealer, an assassin…

She ended up with the latter, going to a training where she had learnt how to properly use any kind of weapon and getting some combat training from a retired detective.

She became the best and she never looked back until reality hit her again. Her father who had used alcohol to forget his pains had become an addict and he hit rock bottom.

Kate's carefully built walls seemed to crack at the thought of her own father's suffering. She realized how selfish she had been, only thinking about her own pain and never thinking about what would happen to her father. She was too immersed in her grief and revenge to notice him. The new life she had didn't have any emotional attachments though. She couldn't think about anybody she loved while on a chase. She couldn't do it with the risk of losing someone. So she shut everybody out and no matter how hard it was she lived lonely. Of course, she had some fleeting romances with guys she met here and there. They didn't mean anything, they were fun and that's what Kate was searching for.

However, when she heard about her father's troubles she wavered. She loved her father, oh how she loved him. But it was too painful to be with him, to talk with him like in old times. That would remind her of her mother too much.

Kate realized that what she had been doing, building a new life and hiding in the shadows was exactly what Jim done too with the alcohol. And now she had to help him!

So she went to him and took him to a rehab. He was protesting with all he had, demanding she answered his questions but Kate had none of it. And from then on she visited him once in a while, always taking care not to be suspicious and never staying too much. But over the years they managed to recreate some of their relationship. Jim had no idea what Kate did for a living but he never asked questions because he had to find out in the beginning that he wouldn't get anwers. It wasn't ideal, but it was something. It was more than Kate had hoped for when she decided to become an assassin. At the age of twentythree that was her only human relationship with real emotions beyond it. And even though that sounded empty and miserable that was her way of coping...

She was thirtytwo now and things had barely changed. She had a few distant friends, no one particular, nobody really close. But she didn't really miss those feelings since she had learnt that having a loved one was a weakness. And being an assassin she couldn't afford having more than one...

So as she crouched on that roof, watching as the happy father-daughter duo made their ways inside she felt bad. She couldn't pull that trigger because she couldn't take the father away from that girl. Especially not when she was right there next to him...

She was mad at herself because she was the best, it was her job, she had to do it. And she was also helpless because this has never happened with her before. She had never had second thoughts about her targets. She was especially good in that, keeping her distance and building walls to protect herself. But somehow Richard Castle and his redheads got to her. And as Kate accidentally got a tiny look into their lives her doubts began to surface. Why would anybody want him killed? And more importantly, would she be able to do it?

And this was it! What do you think? I'm really curious about your thoughts and opinions about Kate's backstory and how she watched the Castles... I can't wait to hear from you guys, so pretty please write a review! I'd love to hear what you thought about this chapter! Just know that all your words are treasure to me! :)

Thank you for reading and reviewing!

Next chapter will be up in a week and I promise I will try to be faster this time, but sometimes I have terrible writers' block at the worst times...!

Anyways until then, xxx