CHAPTER 9
Her eyelids began to droop. Her body felt so heavy, listless. She no longer had the energy nor the will to battle the sluggish lethargy of her mind.
Her hand flopped – the fingers that had been curled into the soft material of Castle's shirt, now loose - as she joined her fiancé, drifting off into a dreamless abyss... the dark, menacing forest swallowing them whole.
Her nose twitched of its own volition when a single cold, wet drop splashed against her sensitive, bruised cheekbone, trickling along the contours of her face, down her jaw.
Moments later, another drop exploded against her eyelid, followed by a third contacting the back of her hand.
Her eyelashes fluttered as she groggily returned from her mindless oblivion, a steady thumping pulsating in her ear.
As another droplet spattered against her chin, her eyes shot open, recollections of a dark forest flooding her mind.
Drugged… Vales… abandoned… Castle...
A murky ink spilled over the surrounding trees - the spindly, top branches stretching up into the heavens, disappearing into the opaque, unfriendly clouds over-head - the ominous rumbling of angry thunder getting louder.
This was definitely not what Beckett needed right now.
"Castle," she murmured into his ear while she gently tapped her fingers against his chest in an effort to rouse him. A few more raindrops pelted her from above, the droplets beginning to fall at a hastened interval.
She quickly glanced around as she called his name again.
There was a hint of embryonic sunlight attempting to eke over the horizon, but the world was still quite dark and sombre, awash in grim shadows, most of the early light shrouded behind the thick, grey cloud-cover.
But there was enough light for her to see that the tree they were leaning against was going to give them absolutely no shelter what-so-ever from the imminent downpour.
"Castle…" A quiet moan gurgled from the back of his throat as she ran her curled fingers along his temple. "Babe, wake up..."
"Kate?…" he muttered as his eyes stayed closed, the sound of her voice causing a light smile to tease the edge of his mouth. "Did you make coffee?"
"Sorry. Fresh out of espresso beans," she remarked, quickly surveying the dusky forest for a nearby, sheltered area. "It's about to pour. This tree isn't gonna give any cover. C'mon… We gotta move."
"I don't like the timber in your voice," he smirked as she attempted to help him up.
"Cute," she scoffed, gingerly wrapping her left arm around his waist as he slung his right arm over her shoulder, "but not the time."
"Oh, don't be such a stick in the mud," he gritted playfully, swallowing a pained hiss as he took his first step, his right leg burning due to the pressure.
She ignored his quip, completely focused as they moved deeper into the dark woods, weaving between the enormous trees - careful not to slip on wet stones or trip over fallen logs - the rain starting to come down more insistently, the drops getting bigger.
"Speaking of mud," he groaned, struggling to pull his foot free of the powerful suck of the muddy ground as he fought to swallow the reverberating pain that was surging through his body due to his fractured ribs.
Wet leaves squished beneath their feet as they continued to hobble along, the forest growing more obscure as they moved deeper into the woods.
Cold water was now pouring down ruthlessly, sluicing ferociously over their bodies. A bright flash of lightning illuminated the forest for a split second - just enough for Beckett to find what she was looking for.
"There," she nodded, indicating a small alcove at the base of a rocky knoll just ahead of them. A second later, a crash of thunder echoed around them.
They were firmly in the belly of the beast.
They crawled into the paltry, hollowed-out space in the stony hillside, the four-foot overhang providing just enough cover to shelter them from the freezing onslaught.
Castle released a heavy exhale as he settled into the meagre cavity, his large hand keeping firm pressure on his left side as he leaned back against the craggy stone wall.
"T-talk about being c-caught between a r-rock and a hard p-place," he joked, trying to control his chattering teeth as he attempted to find a comfortable position on the damp ground.
She rolled her eyes as she shook her head, but she couldn't help but sigh, a light grin tugging on the edges her mouth as she gently bit the inside of her cheek. She knelt down beside his hip, a constant stream of water trickling down her left arm from the rock-face just above her head. She ignored the cold drip as her hand smoothed up and down the length of his arm – trying to create some friction to warm and comfort him - while her right palm rested firmly on his thigh, anchoring herself.
She felt his body tremble relentlessly against her wet flesh - her own body responding with an uncontrollable shiver, the intense cold seeping into her bones as well.
Their clothing was soaked completely, rain-flattened hair dripping, water running down their necks, oozing along their backs and chests.
The blazing wind howled as world lit up again with a few flashes of lightning - his face momentarily set aglow during the brief bursts of light... his eyes dark, peering fathoms deep into her own. Piercing. Steady. Unyielding.
She released a soft, quivering exhale as she recalled the last time Mother Nature had drenched her to this extent - sitting on that lonely swing, her head finally accepting what her heart had known for so many years. Terrified and excited as she came to the realization of what she wanted: Him.
And here she was again. Soaked to the bone. Staring into the eyes of the man she loves - the man who is everything to her - wondering how she could have ignored her feelings for so long. How she almost lost him.
How she almost lost them.
But it was as if the rain washed away any remaining doubts. Like the lightning helped to illuminate the darkness that had been consuming her for so long. Too long.
And though it hasn't been simple – because it's been anything but – diving in made them both stronger... heart and soul.
She was lost in the profound depths of her thoughts when Castle's body suddenly quaked again, breaking her from her trance.
She knew hypothermia would claim them both if they didn't keep warm. Trapping his cold, wet fingers between her own, she curled in against his broad chest, her right hand pulling his arm around her like a blanket, their soaked clothing doing nothing to help their situation.
The deluge from above tumbled down like a thick curtain - a dark, dividing wall, cutting them off from the world.
Yet another maelstrom that they had to endure… endeavour to overcome.
Always an uphill battle.
Nothing ever easy.
The story of their lives.
"D-Don't w-worry," he chattered, pressing his lips into her hair, his eyes drooping as he surrendered to both exhaustion and the cold. "The s-storm's b-bound to k-k-clear up s-soon."
She looked out hypnotically at the raging tempest to her right, then back at her battered and frozen fiancé, her hand gripping his.
'I hope so,' she thought as she fused her frigid form firmly with his, their wet bodies dissolving together. The thunder continued to rumble and crack vehemently as she closed her eyes. 'I truly hope so...'
"Beckett…"
His familiar, comforting voice calling her name echoed in the depths of her mind. So distant yet so close.
She felt numb. So numb. The chill of her drenched clothing saturated her body, seeping relentlessly into her icy skin.
"K-K-Kassle?" she replied with a weak whisper, her eyes hooded and tired, too heavy to open.
"Beckett!..."
The syllables of her name rumbled again, pounding into the ground alongside the pouring rain. The voice reverberated in her head - laced with the same distress she heard almost two years ago when it pleaded for her to hang on as she clung desperately to the side of the building.
"K-K-Kasssle, I'm h-here…" she stuttered, the memory all too real in her mind, her fingers slipping open, releasing her grip.
She couldn't do it. She was so tired. So cold. She couldn't hold on any more.
She felt herself letting go...
"BECKETT!"
It was Castle's voice… but it wasn't Castle's voice…
The world began to spin as she started to fall…
A bright light washed over everything...
"JAVI! JAVI, THEY'RE HERE!"
Everything was a delirious blur, sudden activity throbbing around her - flashes of light and dark, a cacophony of shouts and rushing footsteps.
She heard the soothing treble of Ryan's voice mutter something incoherent, a hazy silhouette of Esposito's solemn face filled her mind... then darkness overtook her and everything went silent.
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Hmmm… interesting. When I began this fic, there was never any rain in the forecast…
But I do like pathetic fallacy. ;)
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Still with me? Just one more chapter to go.
Typos still belong to me.
Judge away.
