Chapter 3: Fire
Previously on Castle... Behind him Espo might've hollered but the wind and the groaning of the car as it shudders forwards drowns out any definitive cry.
Castle whips around and stares, frozen for a moment, as the car shudders further over the icy precipice. Snapping out of his stupor Castle makes his way around the car, eventually locating the twisted remnants of the tree that had saved their lives. Silently thanking the heavens for sending him the crazy idea to attend sailing camp -despite not owning a sailboat, nor particularly wanting one- because all those knots are about to come in handy.
Deciding that the writer was listening to his directions Esposito turns back towards his injured brother. Before he can do anything to help the younger man another gust of wind sweeps through the broken car and -to the former soldier's horror- the car begins to move closer to certain death for the two brothers.
"CASTLE!" The vet hollers one more time -praying that the writer heard his call to 'get his ass moving'- before returning his full attention to the Irishman dangling above him.
Esposito positions himself underneath his brother's body bracing himself amongst the steel of the ruined car before giving a final yank with his army knife, releasing his brother from the leather restraints and into his arms.
Ooff!
The air gusts out of his body with the sudden added weight of the unconscious Irishman. Sucking in much needed air, Javi's lungs tingle with cold from the bitter, smoke tinged wind as he secures part of the rope around Ryan's waist, sliding the loop up to the man's shoulders before tightening it and tying himself in.
Espo tugs on the rope, trying to signal Castle, as the car begins to slide forwards at what seems to be an increased pace. No response. Then, if things couldn't be worse, small red orange flames escape from under the ruined hood.
The smoke had just turned to fire.
After triple checking his knots one last time Castle blunders hurriedly back around to check on the condition of the younger detectives he now thought of as brothers. He wouldn't admit this to anyone but in some ways the two younger detectives were more than his brothers. When Lockwood had them captive and when they'd been trapped in that fire the surge of anger at the people responsible, the desire to protect them and the overwhelming fear that he'd never see them again was akin to a feeling he'd only experienced with Alexis. Until that point on time he hadn't realized how much the junior detectives meant to him. They were more than his brothers, his partners, his family, they were like sons to him. So as he blunders through the blinding storm the sound that reaches his ears next chills him to the bone more than the wind ever could. Fire. The car was on fire.
Javier Esposito was a battle hardened soldier, but he was no stranger to PTSD. He'd experienced in first hand and then again in the aftermath of Beckett's shooting. And now, sitting it the wreck of his car with his best friend unconscious on his chest, the sight of the deadly flames creeping towards them brought back bad memories. The fire he and Ryan had been trapped in only a few months ago...
"Javier? You're gonna name a white, Irish kid, Javier?" He'd asked Kevin that question after his partner's heartbreaking goodbye to his wife Jenny, in truth he'd been truly touched and honored by what they'd thought would be one of Ryan's last actions.
"What? You gonna bust on me now for being sentimental?" His partner had tossed back.
"Figured it's my last chance," had been his comment and maybe it was the craziness of the situation, but in the face of death they'd both laughed, a weak, sad chuckle. He remembers barely lifting his head and not hearing what Ryan said next, later he was told he'd passed out. Castle, he remembers annoyed, had been happy to inform him that Kevin proceeded to run over shouting his name before putting his head on his chest for a moment before passing out himself.
And now here they were stuck in danger of either being smashed into sludge or roasted alive in a freaking snowstorm no less, talk about ways to go. Not the hail of bullets he'd always pictured. In his mind, after meeting Kevin, his death had always been in a storm of bullets, side by side with his partner, protecting each other till the wheels fall off. But no, here they were, about to die unless Castle hurried his ass up, life just threw you curveballs like that sometimes, especially if you spent everyday with Richard Castle. If they all got of this Javier swears to himself that he'd make Castle base his next book entirely on him and Ryan, without the whole underlying "Roach" thing Castle had been delighted to share with them via fanfiction.
By the time Castle reaches the back of the car, it's so far over the cliff's edge he has no idea how it's still suspended. Carefully approaching the now flaming car Castle squints down, searching for his friends through the snow and smoke, "ESPOSITO?! RYAN?! Can You Hear Me? The Rope's Secure! Now What? Javier?! Kevin?!"
Castle can't see them at all and as he strains to hear or see anything he stumbles back after a particularly violent gust of smoky wind shoves him back. It's then the car rips free of the mangled tree and topples over the cliff. Castle hears a sudden inhuman scream of pure unadulterated agony before it vanishes. "NOO!"
To my reviewers...(sorry I forgot before)
Guest1: I fixed it, but you already know that. Thanks for the tip and I hope you find this again.
Genevieve Kelly: Thanks for both reviews and I'm glad you like it! It's not just me then, I torture my fave characters so... hence this story. I look forwards to hearing from you again.
Guest2: I don't know if you're the same guest as chpt 1, but if you are again thanks for the tip and I'm glad you found this again. If not, a sorry for the confusion and b, I will avoid that from now on, thanks for the tip and I hope I haven't deterred you off this story.
Reviews make my day and I look forward to hearing from everyone who reads this again. Like Castle/Ryan? I have other fics. Special thanks to Genevieve Kelly!