Author's Note:

Yeah… you know how you start things and you don't finish them? I realized that I really did need to finish this and several readers have asked me to do so. When I looked and saw that I had actually written a lot more I decided to go with it. So here you go with this chapter, and I'll be posting another one tomorrow or the next day that may be the end! Happy reading and review if you would like to.

She awakens a few hours later when she hears some rustling outside the bedroom door. She knew it was one of them, and Castle himself gave permission for her to just be for the day and face them tomorrow, so she waited.

She waited until the steps outside her room were clear and she opened to find a stack of novels… Nikki Heat sitting atop a laptop… Castle's laptop.

As she contemplates her next moves, she smiles at what she knows is Alexis' gesture and grabs the books and computer and places them on the bed.

She starts by reading each dedication he wrote, pausing to think about Montgomery for a moment and remembering the man with fondness. Then she opens up his laptop… knowing exactly what she needed.

They shared ideas about Nikki and Rook and the cases the two investigated, but Kate had always refused to read parts of the book before it was completely finished. Castle told her numerous times that she was probably one of his best readers and would be able to tell him everything that needed to be fixed… but she always said that she needed to experience his books in their final form… aside from Gina she was now always the first to read his finished novel.

Now, she searches for what he was last working on, the latest in the Nikki Heat series… something he would never finish… it would break her heart, but she would read every word, never knowing the ending he intended for the pair.

As she read, the story line was coming back to her… something that the two of them had actually talked about at great length because it was combining two cases that they had worked on that fall. Castle would take snippets of cases that they worked on together and put them into his writing, take snippets of their lives and put them in as well… but he always made sure that Kate was okay with the aspects of the case and their lives he put in. Since this book focused a great deal on the two cases, they had talked about it a lot. He had also been more blocked than normal, or more focused on wedding planning than writing.

When she got to the end of what he had written, she knew where it would go next… so she changed the font and she started to write. She wrote what Castle would never get to write, and found that it came so easily to her because of knowing him so well and knowing his work. It was probably crap, but it was cathartic in some way to be doing this, doing what he would have done…

"Kate? Did you write this?" Alexis says the next morning, having come in to find the older woman sprawled out on the bed with her father's laptop lying open but asleep next to her.

"Hmmm?" Kate mumbles, turning from her position to see Alexis sitting on the bed next to her reading what she wrote last night, and letting her eyes go wide at the realization.

"Oh! Alexis, you shouldn't be—"

"Kate this is good… I could so see it going that way!"

"You read it before?" she asks, her lips turning to a frown.

"I'm sorry… that's why I gave you his laptop last night with the other books, I knew that the next book was halfway done on here and I know that he would have had you read it… what… what made you do this?" she gestures toward the computer, still not done reading the entirety of what Kate had written.

"I… We talked about it. This was a book where he and I actually talked through a lot of the plot line because it was based on a couple of cases we caught last fall. I felt like it needed to get finished."

"It needs a little more Rook and Nikki interaction in some points, but I haven't finished it yet… can I?"

Kate's surprised at that, not understanding why Alexis would want that, "Alexis, this is just a stupid thing for release for me… it isn't—"

"Dad would have loved this… I remember after meeting you he said that he knew you were a fan. Then more cases in, as he got to know you, he found out you were a big fan. He knows that's part of the reason why you tolerated him for those years. He would have loved to have someone who read his books, even the bad ones, like you did, and his real-life muse… he would have loved working with you on this."

"I'm not a writer, I'm a cop."

"A very well read cop, Kate. That was something that he loved about you, made him respect you all the more."

Kate's quiet for a little while, watching as Alexis continues to read since Kate wasn't telling her that she couldn't do it. When she realizes that the young woman isn't going to stop any time soon, she lays back down in the bed, watching her for a while longer before she falls back to sleep.

"Now you understand the pull of the writing… the need to get what you are thinking… the ideas in your head down in some way. You were someone who kept a journal when she was younger, weren't you?"

"How did you know that?"

"I watched you… last night, totally like me and consumed by the story and the lives of the people in the case. I bet you used to go home and write all about your cases when you were a young detective."

"Is that how you would have written it?" she asks, not wanting to talk about her journaling days.

"Alexis is right about the Nikki and Rook interaction… there needs to be more of that, but you can work together on that."

"On what?" she says, furrowing her brow at his simple suggestion.

"Finishing the book…"

"Castle, we aren't finishing your book…. It was just something to pass the time… it wasn't finishing your book."

"It looked to me that last night at three o'clock in the morning, you were doing just that…finishing it."

"No."

"The public would eat that up, you know…"

"Castle, I couldn't give a damn what the public wants… It was… I just remember us talking about this one. We talked about it more than any of the others."

"I was distracted while I was writing this one… I needed more help with the story."

"The wedding?"

"Oh, Kate, working towards getting married to you was the best of distractions… well… we've always been very good at distracting each other." He jokes, wiggling his eyebrows with the suggestion.

"You're terrible… you know that?"

"Yeah, but you miss me."

Her eyes cast down at this, the humor suddenly gone from the situation, because yes, she does miss him terribly.

"Kate… I'm still here… We said always, and we meant it… finish it."

Alexis jumps when she hears Kate's voice from beside her, "We have to finish it."

"Really?" Alexis says, partially closing the laptop to peer over at Kate, who was turning over in the bed to face her.

"Castle says…"

Alexis raises an eyebrow at that, letting a smirk come to her face.

"Did he give you any plot lines?"

"No, but he did tell me that you were right about writing in more Nikki and Rook interaction… he said that you would help me."

It's then that Alexis blushes, opening up the computer to show Kate another font interwoven with her own from the night before.

"How long was I out?" Kate laughs.

"You slept for about an hour."

"Looks like you got a lot done."

"When I learned how to read my dad told me that I wasn't allowed to read his books until I turned 18…. Which of course didn't happen because at the age of 10 I had hidden away in the library and finished his first best seller in a day. He caught me on it when I corrected a plot line from one of his retellings at the age of 12. He always taught me that reading was such a gift… which I why I suggested what I did for the nursery…. If you want to do this, Kate… it could be an awesome way to honor his writing. You were a fan long before you were the love of his life…"

"You mean like publish it?" Kate questions.

"Why don't we work on it these next however many weeks and then we can decide what we want to do… if we do decide to sell it… the money can go into a trust for the baby or it can be another thing that goes towards your mom's scholarship."

"Alexis…"

"At least finish it with me. Your case knowledge combined with my love for character relationships could make it interesting. Gina could tear it to pieces if we decide to give it to her… or we could just keep it between the two of us."

The doorbell's chime came at around four in the morning a little over a week later, which is how she knew that it must be something huge… anything before the sun was up, was something big… she didn't know that it was going to change everything.

The house was on total lockdown and no one had been able to get near it because of security, which also meant that whoever this was had clearance to be on the property. Essentially, for the past week and a half the three women kept to themselves, realizing that the beauty of vacation was sometimes not having to go anywhere. Reading by the pool, laying out at the private beach surrounded by security, watching movies until all hours of the evening… They had been in their own little bubble of sorts.

All three women seemed to meet near the stairs at the same moment with Martha being the one to ask what was on all of their minds, "Who on earth would come here at this hour?"

Kate's the one who opens the door to find a barely put together Captain on the other side. The older woman looked like she was ready to tackle the city, but her eyes told another story. She could see the fatigue in them the moment they locked with hers… it was the same look she saw in the mirror after a case that took everything out of her.

"Detective, can I come in?"

They move aside, and the Captain stops just inside the door, "I'm here to deliver news that I don't know will be received in a positive or negative way."

"Should we sit?" Alexis asks, gesturing toward the living room off to the side.

They all move towards the space, taking separate chairs with the exception of Martha and Alexis who sit close to each other on the couch.

"Sir?"

Gates pauses for a moment, "Senator William Bracken committed suicide around eleven o'clock tonight… well yesterday evening."

Kate's jaw tightens at the thought; angry that he took the easy way out in her mind, not facing the justice that he knew and she knew would be served.

"However what I came to tell you is that he wrote an extensive note… outlining everything from just before your mother's murder up until his arrest." She adds, turning towards Kate.

"And Castle…"

"He… detective, he wrote that the hit on Richard Castle was not from him."

"No."

"Detective, I don't—"

"No… you're going to tell me that the man wrote out what was basically his manifesto for the past nearly twenty years and also saw fit to make sure that he proved his innocence for Rick's murder… no."

"Beckett, I'm just telling you what was written… and given the circumstances with Bracken's status, I wanted you to know that it is safe for you to come back to the city. The press have been so focused on the suicide that they have forgotten about the case behind it."

"Damn it!" Kate screams, standing from her spot and walking out on the back patio.

The women look after her, Alexis being the first to be a bit confused by the outburst… "I know Kate… at least… I do now… Bracken killed my father… I know he did… but I don't understand why she's reacting like this… he's dead. He finally isn't a threat to us or to the baby."

Captain Gates is still staring after the detective, trying to formulate an answer that would remedy the younger woman's confusion.

"Miss Castle… Kate has always stood for justice… and in this case, she doesn't get to see him pay for what he did… to stand up in front of the world and confess to the crimes he committed against this city and even to her personally. As for Mr. Castle's case… the lack of confession will cause us to reopen it… which…"

"You can't let her investigate." Martha chimes in, finally saying something after spending the last half hour in silence. "Her dedication to my son… she'll become too involved… it will be too much."

"I have every intention of keeping her off the case, but still able to receive updates."

"You're going to tell Katherine Beckett that she isn't allowed to investigate her fiance's kidnapping and murder? I'd like to see the daggers her eyes throw at you when you try."

"I know that the two of you know her better than I, but I know a good cop's mind… I know what is going through her head right now. Let me go talk to her and explain next steps… your job… is to take care of her and that child… Know that we are doing everything we can to make sure that this case is locked up tight and that Bracken's crimes do not go unnoticed to the public. I want that man's name ruined and I want everyone associated with him behind bars if they had any clue as to what they were a part of."

She meets the eyes of both women before her, and with a firm nod, stands up and walks out to Kate.

He would never have to answer to his crimes. She would never get to look him in the eye and see the turmoil that came when he found out that he was going to spend the rest of his life in prison. Of course the press is focused on the suicide… the gory thought of however he killed himself… that sells more papers that the past crimes of a dead senator.

"He didn't get away with it, Kate." She hears from her right, the name sounding foreign from the lips that spoke.

"He did."

"No… we are going to make sure that everyone knows what he did."

"Do you believe what he wrote? That he didn't kill Castle?" she asks.

"Why don't you believe it?"

"This would be his way of getting one final dig in… make me focus on finding a killer that isn't really out there. He knows that it would consume me."

"I already have Ryan and Esposito looking into it. They were planning on interviewing the man who shot him later this morning… trying to see if the story is any different and trying to get solid proof to prove it."

"…. Doesn't matter… it won't add anything to a sentence… it won't be something he'll have to answer to."

"I assure you that every known associate is going to be brought in and questioned. We are going to look at every connection that man ever had or was going to have in his lifetime, and we are going to make sure that any crooked deal or person he was involved with will be seen in the light of day. And damn it, Detective, I'm going to make sure that if anyone knew about it… they end up in prison just like he should be… I get it… you need that justice… but… Kate… that isn't going to bring Castle or your mother back."

"It's not just them… this man affected the lives of so many others… he killed everyone that got in his way… and he did it without pulling a trigger himself…"

"He was a coward." Gates says, putting her hand on his shoulder… "and Kate… you and Mr. Castle brought that man down… you exposed him for what he truly was, and you should be proud of that…"

"No."

"Yes, detective. And now your job… your only job is to come back to the city, pack up your desk at the precinct and take the rest of your vacation days until your maternity leave kicks in. I don't want you anywhere near this case with the exception of detectives Ryan and Esposito giving you occasional updates. If I see you at that station for anything other than bringing lunch to your friends or letting us see that child after he or she is born… I will start rethinking you being on this team at all in the future."

"Sir, I –"

"You have new priorities, detective… and you have a daughter and mother-in-law in there who are very concerned about what this news is going to cause you to do. Mr. Castle and I never got on that well, but I know how much he loved you. He would completely back me up on this, and you know it."

Kate thinks on that for a minute, the many times that Castle had put himself between her and the door when she let herself get too consumed by a case. In the past two years, it hadn't happened often… she wanted to spend much more time with him than staring at the brick walls in the downtown precinct.

"He would… however, I think that I would like to stay out here for a while longer. I'll keep the security detail on our own dime until we come back but you're right. I would let it consume me… so the further I am away… the better it might be for everyone."

"I don't know if you understand what your team would do for you, Kate."

"I do."

"Okay… then you know that they are going to do everything in their power to make sure that this is going to be figured out. Regardless of what William Bracken wrote in his cell… we will find out the truth."

"I do know that… I understand all of it… thank you."

"I have to get back, but you call me if you need anything or want an update on any situation regarding this case."

"I will." Kate says, not moving from her spot on the porch as the Captain moves towards the door, "and sir…?"

"Yes, detective."

"It's a girl… the baby, I mean." She says, gesturing towards her stomach.

"I'm glad… Mr. Castle had a way with the ladies, and if she is your daughter… she is going to be beautiful."

The blush hits Kate's face instantly, not realizing how much the compliment to her and the sincerity behind the last minutes meant to her. Gates had certainly earned her respect in the past few years… but the last few minutes had her seeing another side to the older woman.

"This place is huge." He says simply, after hugging his daughter.

"I know… I still remember coming here for the first time and actually realizing that I was dating a millionaire… it was the oddest realization."

"Richard Castle wasn't one to flaunt his money… if you didn't know who he was, you wouldn't know that he had… well… all of this. He was a kind-hearted and certainly altruistic individual."

Kate looks up at her father, surprised at the relief that flowed through her at her father's words of approval.

"Are Alexis and Martha here?"

"Since they knew you were coming, they took one of the security guys out with them so they could go shopping for the next week while you're here. We didn't really go out of the house that first week or so and then we were still afraid that when the news about Bracken broke, that they would still be lingering around the town."

"So they had a bit of cabin fever then?"

"Yeah, they wanted out for a while." Kate says with a smile.

"Give me the full tour? I didn't really get it the day of the wedding" he asks, wanting to see more of this home his daughter was so used to already.

She shows him around the grounds, letting him look at all the rooms and nooks that Castle made into such an inviting second home.

"You guys spent a lot of time here." He notes, realizing this through the stories that she shared while they were walking through.

"If I ever got time off and it was warm enough, we came here… we came a few times in the winter too… all the fireplaces make it nice and cozy. Good memories…" she trails off.

"…and one not so good one."

"two now."

"How are you managing with this information?"

"I don't know. How are you managing? This man took my mother, yes… but she was your wife… he tried to take me more than once and he took the man that would have been your son in law."

"Kate, you're sure that he did it?"

"Even if I didn't know that the man who shot Castle told us that it was Bracken, I would have said that he was one of the only people capable of such a thing… it was him… which… how did you know about that? How did you know that was being questioned?"

"Your Captain… Gates… she talked to me after she came out here. She was worried about you taking this too hard."

"I know she is… I know that all of you are tiptoeing around this whole thing because of my past… I get it. Do you all think that I don't have the sense to realize that it isn't just me anymore? Everyone is so concerned that I'm going to put myself in that situation again… getting so deep in that I can't get myself out again. Do you all really think that I would risk the one thing that I still have left of my hus—of Castle to get justice for his death?"

"Katie, I don't think that is what anyone is saying-"

"It is though, dad. Honestly, it is why Bracken even did it. That is why he wrote that he didn't kill Castle. He knew that I would hunt forever to find out who killed him just like I could never drop everything with mom. He knew that I would put myself down before realizing I was already gone." She interrupts.

"Katie…"

"I'm actually really tired, dad. Can I set you up in the living room with some books and coffee? I need to take a nap if we are going to be up anything past 9:00."

"Katherine…"

"Dad, I'm fine… I'm just tired." She says, wiping her eyes and then resting her hands on her stomach for a minute.

"It's time to head back, Kate."

"I don't want to… I don't want to be in the city… I don't want to be in the loft… I just want to stay here and avoid everything."

He sighs a long sigh before reaching out to caress her cheek.

"Kate, Your dad has been here a week… Alexis starts school in two weeks… you haven't called Espo or Ryan or Lanie back at all. This is turning into your shooting all over again. You're trying to deal with this all by yourself and everyone is telling you that you don't have to do that!"

"I'm not dealing with this by myself, Rick… your mother and your daughter and my father have been here."

"You haven't let them in… you haven't told them what you are thinking… hell, Kate… you haven't cried in weeks… and the book… you and Alexis started to finish it and you've just left it there… I know that you told her it was a release for you. It's a release for her too."

"Now you're going to give me a guilt trip about it? No, that's not fair. You aren't here for this!"

"Kate!" Alexis says, shaking her awake.

"What!?" she screams back at the girl, not realizing what was going on.

"You were shouting out in your sleep… Gram woke me up."

"I… We should go back?" she says with uncertainty.

"Are you asking a question or are you telling me that we are going back?"

"We're going back. We should be back in the city. You've got to get stuff ready for school and… we… ummm… we should go back."