Kate set her phone on the end table, went in search of Castle, and found him outside, placing their suitcases in the car. The apartment was nearly empty, with only cleaning left to do.

"So, how's the gang?" he asked when he saw her approach.

"Good," she replied rather generically, then elaborated, "They're appropriately offended on my behalf and have abandoned any goodwill toward federal agents that my brief conversion might have engendered. In short, all is right with the world once again."

That left him chuckling and wrapping an arm around her shoulders while they walked back into the apartment. He wasn't the least surprised her former colleagues rallied around her without an iota of ridicule — they were, after all, her truest friends. But knowing how hard it was for anyone, let alone the indomitable Katherine Beckett, to admit failure, he wisely refrained from even hinting at an "I told you so."

Instead, he offered, "Then let's wrap this up and get back home as soon as possible."

"Sounds good to me," she agreed readily.

The next few hours were spent vacuuming and wiping down counters, walls, and appliances a final time. Castle had wanted to hire a cleaning crew, but Beckett argued that those agencies always overlooked the spots that shifty landlords used as an excuse to keep security deposits. "One time, I had a landlord refuse to give back my deposit because I didn't clean under the burners on the stove," she said by way of justification.

So they did their own cleaning, hitting all the tell-tale spots and leaving the place even cleaner than they'd found it. And for Kate, the process was surprisingly cathartic, almost as though she was scrubbing clean her conscious even as she scrubbed the bathroom floor.

At eight o'clock, they left the key on the kitchen table, per the landlord's instructions, and closed the door behind them a final time. It had never been home, but the little apartment had a lot of potential Kate had never taken the time to tap. Maybe the next occupants would.

"Has it really been less than two days since all of this started?" she asked, still somewhat bewildered by everything. She collapsed into the rental car, flung her head back against the headrest, and tried not to let it overwhelm her.

"Do you want to get something to eat or drink?" he asked, realizing it had been every bit of eight hours since they'd eaten a potluck lunch, primarily intended to help empty the perishables from her fridge.

"Can we just get something to take back to the hotel? I'm not really dressed — or in the mood — to go in anywhere."

They settled on a familiar place not too far away that both agreed was well on its way to becoming their D.C. equivalent of Remy's. While waiting on their order, Kate noticed Castle playing with his key ring — and one key stood out to her.

"Is that the key to the place you bought for us here?" Her voice was quiet and uncertain, a reflection of her sudden emotions.

"Yeah," he confirmed, "I didn't have time to take care of everything today. I told the Realtor I'd be in touch to decide what to do with it."

Her eyes fell to her lap. "I'm sorry this is causing you so much trouble."

"Hey," he said, drawing her eyes back to his, "Partners, remember? Your trouble is my trouble. Now tell me what this is about."

She chewed her lip for a second, debating what she truly wanted to do. Finally she asked softly, "Can we go see it?"

His eyes widened almost imperceptibly. He really hadn't considered she'd want to, but he wasn't about to stop her. "Yeah, of course."

Both fell silent until the woman at the counter produced two bags full of burgers, roasted veggies, and fries. It smelled divine, and Kate's stomach growled when they got back into the car and the interior filled with the mouth-watering aromas.

It was a slightly longer drive to the apartment than to the hotel, but Kate enjoyed seeing the neighborhoods shift and change, from posh and trendy to more Bohemian and artsy. When they finally pulled up in front of a late 19th-century building on the outskirts of DuPont Circle where the trendsetters hadn't yet ventured, Kate was shaking her head in a mixture of disbelief and admiration.

"How did you manage to pick the perfect neighborhood?"

He smiled, pleased that she approved of his choice. "Given where we both chose to live in New York, it wasn't hard to figure out we needed an area with some history, architecture, and eclectic diversity. This fit the bill."

She leaned over and planted a smacking kiss on his lips before grabbing the food bags and making her way up the walk.


Just FYI — two chapters to go.