*evil laugh* that's all I have to say...
... well, this too:
I'm miles from where you are
And I lay down on the cold ground
I, I pray that something picks me up
And sets me down in your warm arms
(Set the Fire to the Third Bar: Snow Patrol)
"What'd she say?" Ryan asked eagerly as he watched Esposito intensely set the phone down.
"I don't know." Esposito admitted.
'What? How do you not know? Did you tell her?" He begged.
"Yeah..."
"And?" Esposito remained quiet.
"ESPO! ELABORATE! You're not helping me!" Ryan nearly screamed.
Esposito's head jerked up and he realized how vague he was sounding. "Right, bro I'm sorry." he shifted, "So I told her and she just kept saying 'now way' and 'that's impossible'. She said she already knew."
Ryan's puzzled face grew even more confounded, "What? How did she know?"
Esposito shrugged, indicating his confusion as well, "She said Castle told her."
"Naw."
"I know bro. She said he said it in his sleep or something crazy like that. And then she hung up."
"Damn. 'She okay?"
"I dunno, she didn't seem to be."
"I don't blame her. This must be rough," the two were quiet for a moment, recapping the past moments before Ryan spoke innocently again, "So what do we do then?"
Esposito shrugged again, frowning this time to imitate his lack of authority, "We wait for her instructions, I guess." Ryan glanced over at the clock, reading 7:34 a.m.
Martha and Kate had spent a few moments in the bathroom, both left in pure shock. It wasn't until twenty minutes later that the two left the restroom, after refreshing to erase all signs of tears.
"I'll tell Alexis." Martha nodded, heading towards the room.
"It's alright, I got this." Kate interrupted, stepping in front of the grandmother.
"Are you sure you can do this?"
Kate stopped a moment before bobbing her head, "I can, thank you." She advanced towards his room, catching a glimpse of Alexis through the window. She was sitting on a chair pulled directly next to Castle's side, her hand clutching his. She appeared to be talking to him, hovering over his body and speaking to him. Kate was both perplexed and understanding to the situation. She placed her hand softly against the cold metal of the handle and let the shimmering tingle speed through her body. She drew a deep breath, bracing herself to enter the room, and exhaling before actually opening the door.
Alexis looked up at Kate standing there, and she looked baffled.
"Kate." she puffed out.
"Alexis, hey."
"Are you okay? You ran out of the room really fast." Alexis stood up, greeting the detective.
"Please, stay seated. I'm fine, thank you. But I want to know if you're okay?" Kate asked, pulling up a chair from the corner so it aligned with Alexis's.
Alexis seemed shocked by the question, "I, well I'm. I guess I can say I'm fine- physically. But emotionally, it's getting better."
"And how's he holding up?" She jerked her head upward, indicating she was talking about Castle,
"He's good. Better." Alexis explained vaguely. "Nobodies really said anything to me, so I just came in here. But I'm more confident in him now... I think" Kate watched as Alexis's eyes fluttered to her father, and she watched him intently.
Kate didn't know how to tell her... the timing was awful, considering that Alexis was a teenager still trying to wrap her head around the fact that her dad had been shot.
"I'm glad to see you staying sane. You still have high confidence, and that's great."
"Thanks. I know he'll get through this. It's not like him to give up on something so quickly. I'm sure you've noticed, knowing he's been following you around and all, that he's too stubborn to lose." Kate laughed and nodded.
"Amen to that." her smile widened as Alexis chuckled as well. "What's this?" Kate smiled, pointing at the ragged stuffed monkey that rested loosely in both Alexis's and Castle's hands.
Alexis giggled, "This is the one and only Monkey Bunkey. I've had this stuffed animal since my dad brought me home from the hospital." Alexis picked up the doll in her hands, examining the fragile history contained through the thin layer of faded, green cloth that formed into a messy shape of a monkey, "I remember my dad and I went on a trip to California when I was like, five, and I forgot to put Bunkey in my suitcase. From dad's stories, I apparently threw a fit. And so, out of instinct I guess, he ran to the store and bought me one. Since memory serves, I knew it wasn't MY Money Bunkey." Alexis laughed softly again before looking a little embarrassed. "It's childish, really."
"No, not at all." Kate reached for the doll, delicately holding it in her hands, "You know, I had a stuffed giraffe that I carried with me everywhere. And I still have it to this day- even though it's not much more than a couple of rags now."
Alexis chortled in agreement. She looked up at Kate again, "Kate, why did you run out?"
Kate looked away from the doll and to the young woman. She sighed, "Alexis, I have to tell you something. Your dad's shooter may have something to do with my mother's case. Esposito and Ryan confirmed a match in fingerprint samples directly from the crime scene."
She had said this so fast that Alexis's expression hadn't had the time to change yet. She was silent, and Kate wished deeply that she would say something, "Your mother? My dad?"
"Yes."
"How? I thought you caught the man who killed you're mother."
"We caught the shooter, not the man who ordered the hit on her." Alexis's eyes were filling again.
"Who is this man? What connection did he have with you're mother?"
"His name is William Ericson." she cringed at the name, "We don't know the connection. The cop at the time of my moms case shut it out, he didn't really seem to go too deep."
Alexis glanced back at her dad and continued to watch him, "This is insane."
Kate rested her hand on her shoulder, "I know. But I'm going to fix this, I'm going to find out who did this- and I have all the help I need, everyone at the precinct is hot on this case."
"You're not going to leave are you? Please don't leave, Kate. I want you to stay here." Alexis begged, sounding desperate.
Kate paused, thinking for a moment. She wanted to keep in touch with everything Alexis was going through, especially since nobody was there to help her when she was lost. But she wanted to be the one to solve this, "I can't promise. I'm going to be going back and forth, but I'll always be here. Don't worry. You can always call me, and I won't shut you out. Ever."
Alexis bowed, looking a little lighter, "Are you okay?"
Kate smiled pathetically, "I got this. I'm not going to let you or your father down. I promise."
Alexis smiled, "He always said you were like that." Kate was touched, completely warmed by the heart of this girl. There was no doubt that she was related to Castle. They had their differences, but their heart, integrity and warmth was identical. It was no question that she was the daughter of Castle...
Kate smiled, more convinced now that Castle was going to live. To hell with pretending and thinking what she wanted to. She knew now, Castle was going to live God Damn It.
* *
"Alright Esposito and Ryan." Kate began as she spoke to her partners on the phone. She'd migrated to the hallway after a few more moments with Alexis, "I'm gonna be on this case through the hospital which means you call me when you find anything. I'll occasionally come over there and see what I can do. But I'm determined to catch this bastard, nobody shoots an annoying writer monkey and gets away with it. So, here we go. We're at block one, but we're gonna go fast, you got an address?"
Kate hadn't even given them time to process nor comment on her little speech. And it took them a moment before one of them spoke from the other line, and their voices were a bit dumbfounded. "Um... not yet, but we'll go for it."
"Good. Alright guys, we're going to catch this son of a bitch."
Thanks for reading! I hope some of the emotions weren't rushed, or that the scene with Beckett and Alexis was cheesy. Please review to tell me what you think! Love lots!
~ShinyLane1.2