Codes and the Crown - Chapter Three
The letters continue over the course of the next few weeks, growing longer and more complicated as their adventure builds. Every few days, Lily tweaks the cipher, dropping clues as to the changes she's made, but saying nothing more than that. Each time she receives a new message, Kate does her best to crack the code and respond – complete with her own challenge, of course – before she heads to bed, but there are some evenings when she's just not able to; nights when she works late and is too exhausted to think about secret codes once she finally makes her way home, or when she just needs to spend the time holding her kids or resting with her ear pressed to the steady beat of her husband's heart instead of burning the midnight oil in the office. She thinks Lily understands the occasional delay, but she still does her best not to disappoint the girl, going as far as to bring the notes and Lily's book of codes to the precinct with her to pour over on her lunch break when it feels like too many days have passed since they exchanged their last message.
The second time that happens, she makes sure to hide the note in their agreed upon drop box when she gets home, pretending not to watch her daughter duck into the office between dinner and breaking out the board games. Lily returns a few minutes later, kissing Kate's cheek and leaning into her arm.
Kate lifts a hand to keep the girl close, turning her face to hide a smile in her daughter's temple. "Ready to kick some butt at Scrabble, little flower?"
Lily nods, her grin bright. She slides a leg over Kate's, climbing into her lap. Kate wraps an arm around the girl's waist once she's settled, pressing her cheek to her daughter's.
"Okay, Castle, get ready to lose," she teases, watching her husband's eyes flare. He's gotten better about his propensity for sulking whenever he's defeated at – as he says – a wordsmith's game, but his competitive spirit hasn't faded. Even when they play with their daughter, he takes it seriously.
"You're on," he rumbles, sneaking a kiss from Lily first, then coming for her. "But just for that, the boys are on my team."
Kate grins against his lips. The boys are sacked out on the couch, their mouths half-open and their hair wild from the odd ways they're sprawled.
"Crack team you've got there," she hums, wiggling her eyebrows. Lily giggles from her arms, rubbing her palms together with glee.
"Daddy's going down," her daughter announces. Kate echoes the sentiment, brushing her foot against Rick's as they get the game started.
There's another note waiting for her in their drop box when she gets home the next night. Except for Branislav, her entire family is at a movie with Alexis, so she dives in, ready to tackle Lily's most recent communication. Even though Lily's cipher has grown in complexity, Kate's able to follow along. At least until the message she has translated just doesn't make sense.
She tries again, starting from scratch and using Lily's book as a guide to make sure she hasn't made a mistake somewhere. It comes out the same, a puzzling phrase that makes her brow furrow.
"Is this another code," she asks Branko after she's spent almost ten minutes studying the message, "or are we going to have to work on her spelling some more?"
Branislav stands, stretching his back before circling the desk to rest his head on her leg. Rubbing her hand over his ears and down his back, Kate takes a deep breath. Branko's been so good for them, their sweet boy since the day just a few months after Lily's first birthday when Castle had found him on the street and brought him home, and just the act of stroking his fur helps clear her mind.
"Okay, Branko. Let's go for a walk and then we'll come back to this."
He seems more than happy to accompany her for a few blocks before they turn around and head home, sticking close to her side as they stroll down the sidewalk. By the time they make it back to the loft, she has concluded that there is no secondary code, it's just an unfortunate error in spelling that's tripping her up. After all, Lily's still shy of seven; it's impressive that she's been as good as she has.
With that mystery solved, she takes her seat again, rubbing Branko's head when he makes himself comfortable beside her, and gets to work using the context of the rest of the message to understand that they're arranging a meeting by a particular tree in their fantasy forest. She's just finishing up her reply when the front door clatters open, and pats herself on the back for the timing.
"Momma, we're back! Lexi came too, and we brought ice cream!" Lily calls, lowering her voice a second later to add, "Oops. Sorry, Peanut Butter. Sorry Jelly."
Kate laughs into her hand, watching the dog get to his feet. He's so very eager to get to his girl, he doesn't even look back as he trots through the doorway, leaving Kate to make her way from the office on her own.
"Hey, Alexis," she says, offering the redhead a smile. "Did he fall asleep on you?" she asks, noticing Jake's dark head on his eldest sister's shoulder.
"Hi, Kate. He's almost there," she murmurs, twisting so Kate can see Jake's heavy-lidded eyes. "Reece is, too. Dad has him."
Kate nods, dipping her head to kiss Lily hello before doing the same for the others. She lingers at Rick's side, allowing him to steal a second kiss and swiping a hand up his back. "Did I hear something about ice cream?" she asks after a second, watching her daughter light up.
"Uh huh!" Lily says. "We got so much, and then PB and J started falling asleep, so I dunno if they're going to eat it."
"We'll save them a little and eat the rest," Alexis assures, offering her sister an exaggerated wink. "In fact, Kate, why don't I give you Jake, and Lily and I will get everything set up while you and Dad put the boys to bed?"
Kate nods, stepping closer to lift her son from his sister's arms. "We'll be down in a few minutes," she promises, tapping Lily's nose. "Don't eat all the ice cream, little flower; I want my portion."
Her daughter grins, skipping into the kitchen. "Nah uh, I'm going to eat it all!"
Kate laughs, shaking her head. "I'll get you if you do."
She starts to mention the office and the letter that's waiting for her daughter on the desk, but stops herself. No doubt Lily will duck in there on her own at some point; she won't ruin the intrigue – or burst the bubble of imagination – by calling attention to the game.
Sure enough, as she makes the turn at the top of the stairs, Kate looks back to see Lily darting between the bookshelves, Branko on the girl's heels.
It's bittersweet the day the king and princes are saved and their quest comes to an end. They've spent the better part of the summer cocooned in a world of their own creation, a world where an intrepid princess from a distant land and a queen-turned-closest advisor can save a kingdom, and the thought of it being over is enough to send a pang through her. She and Lily might not talk about their codes, but it's been something that's theirs and theirs alone, and Kate's not sure she's ready to give that up.
So when she decodes Lily's final message, a letter of congratulations and commendation for her bravery, Kate decides it won't be the end. There are ways to keep the fun going; it will take work, but she'll make it happen to keep the smile on her daughter's face.
On Lily's first day of school, Kate slips a coded message wishing her well from a grateful kingdom into her daughter's lunch box. The next day, she finds a new cipher tucked into her briefcase as she settles into a briefing.
She doesn't decrypt it during the meeting, but the code certainly occupies her thoughts – and the notes she makes on her legal pad. She makes quick work of it once she returns to the precinct from 1PP, giving the bullpen a cursory glance before rereading her daughter's sweet reply.
Queens, princesses, and protectors of the kingdom always stick together. Even when they're on other quests.
The code and its translation goes into the top drawer of her desk for safekeeping, where it stays until she turns off her computer and begins to pack up for the evening.
Her home is anything but silent when she steps into the loft a little while later. Her sons scramble down from the couch (by way of the pile of pillows on the floor, of course), their socks slipping on the hardwood in their haste to get to her.
"Mama!" they call as one. Sort of.
"Hi boys," Kate says, steadying them with sure hands, pressing kisses to their cheeks. "You look like you're having fun. Did you have a good day?"
They beam, barely stopping to take a breath as they tell her everything they'd done in preschool that day. When Jake trails off, Reece picks up, adding bits and pieces to the story until she's up to speed.
"Well it sounds like you had fun," Kate murmurs. "I can't wait to see your art. I'll go find your backpacks once I change my clothes." They giggle and squirm until she releases them to continue their game.
"Their bags are over here," Rick calls, waving from the table by the window where he sits with Lily. Kate grins, getting to her feet again, eager to greet her daughter and her husband.
"Homework?" she asks, stepping between them at the table. Her arm winds around Lily's shoulders, drawing her daughter into an embrace.
Lily nods, wrapping her arms around Kate's waist. "Math today," she explains, gesturing to the papers spread on the table in front of them. "Daddy's helping me."
"She's just humoring me; she doesn't even need my help," Rick boasts, getting to his feet, impatient for his own greeting.
Not that Kate blames him. With the kids back in school, she'd been looking forward to having him come into work with her for a few hours, but they both know there's no point to it on days when she goes downtown. Tomorrow, though, he'll be back with her and she can't wait even a bit.
Beckett grins, patting his chest and leaning into his kiss. "She's a smarty, babe."
Castle chuckles upon retreating to his seat. "That she is. How was 1PP today?"
"Good. Gates says hello," Kate says, rubbing Lily's shoulder. "She wanted me to wish you luck at school this year."
Lily nods, pressing her cheek to the lapel of Kate's blazer. Her daughter loves everyone in their NYPD family, but Gates has always been special to the girl. "Thanks."
She hums, dotting a kiss on her daughter's head. "What do you guys want for dinner? I'll get it started in a minute or two."
Rick's fingers tap her arm drawing her attention back to him. "I picked up some chicken at the store earlier," he says. "The boys were begging for mac and cheese, but I convinced them to wait until Friday, so I figured we'd liven up some veggies tonight and treat ourselves at the end of the week."
"Stir fry?" she offers, cocking her head in thought. "We should have everything for that, right?"
He nods, glancing sideways at the boys. Kate breathes a sigh of relief when she follows his gaze and finds her sons have abandoned roughhousing on the couch in favor of roughhousing on the floor. "They'll eat it."
"What about the rice, Momma? Can you make that? It's so good when you make it. Please?" Lily asks, looking so hopeful Kate knows she's going to agree. It's not that much extra work to make fried rice, after all, and her kids do love it.
She nods, thumbing Lily's arm through her shirt. "Sure, little flower. Chicken stir fry and fried rice for dinner."
Her daughter beams. "Can I help?"
"After you finish your homework. Then I'll put you to work." She kisses Lily's head, releasing her a second later.
"What about me?" Rick asks, his smile in his eyes. "Once we're done with homework, of course."
"You relax," she murmurs, looping her arms around his neck, using the kiss she steals as an excuse to whisper, "I have plans for you later." She squeezes him, stepping away before he's able to drag her back in and convince her to give him a preview of those plans.
Lily joins her in the kitchen a few minutes later. "Daddy checked my paper – I got everything right."
Kate grins, dropping a kiss on her head. "I knew you would. Now, what would you like to do? Measure our spices and pour them in when we need them, or stir the chicken and the veggies once I put them in the wok?"
Lily taps her lips in thought. "The spices. I like that job."
"Perfect." Beckett pulls a stool over, pats it in invitation.
Lily climbs up, bouncing in her excitement to help, taking the measuring cup Kate offers her without a sound.
They make a good team; Lily's careful with the ingredients, meticulous in her measurements, and unfailingly eager to taste test to make sure nothing is going awry in the process. Once everything is in the wok, they take turns stirring, sharing grins when Rick attempts to swoop in to sneak a taste of the rice for himself.
"Daddy, just wait," Lily instructs, gesturing with her wooden spoon.
"Yeah, Daddy," Kate teases. Snagging him by the waist, her fingers lace at the small of his back and she pulls him in close. "Just wait."
He slips an arm around her in return, brushes his thumb against her shoulder blades. "But I'm hungry."
"Oh, you poor thing." Her lips brush his, tasting his smile. "I think you'll survive waiting another five minutes until dinner."
"Yeah, Daddy, it's just five minutes," Lily parrots, beaming at Kate's answering laugh. "You'll survive. We promise."
"It's not anywhere near fair that you two team up against me, you know," Rick says, though there isn't a trace of displeasure in his voice.
"What else would we do?" she asks, thinking about a summer spent growing closer to her kid. Lily's message from earlier in the day flashes in her mind, and the truth in her daughter's words warms her veins. "We've got to stick together after all."
Thank you all so much for your wonderful, kind words on this story! Only the epilogue to go.