CH12

Rick came charging down the hallway from the far end at the bow where his bedroom was to the stern where her bedroom was located.

"What's wrong?" Rick gets out while wearing only some long legged sleeping shorts. Alexis was soon right behind him.

"I can't move my legs!" Kate/Kat is still crying over her predicament.

"What do you mean you can't move your legs? You walked down her from the roof deck just a few hours ago." Rick didn't understand.

"They won't move." Kate/Kat was slowly stopping from crying but her tears were still out in force and rolling down her cheeks.

'Pumpkin go get a toothbrush out of the bathroom for me, please." Rick asks of her.

Alexis is soon back with Kate/Kat's toothbrush from the hall bathroom. "Thanks pumpkin." Rick takes it. "Can you feel this?" Rick asks her not touching the bottom of her foot with it.

"NO!" Kate/Kat was back to panicking, since she didn't feel a thing.

"How about now." This time Rick runs the not brush end up the bottom of her foot.

"YES!" Kate/Kat was suddenly happy.

Rick changes to the other foot and repeats it and Kate/Kat can feel that too.

"Ok, so you can feel things." Rick drops the toothbrush and takes her right foot in his hands and starts messaging it. "Can you feel this?"

"Yes." Kate/Kat answers and watches Rick message her foot. "Feels good actually." Kate/Kat was calming down considerably while Rick messaged her foot.

Rick started grinning and filed this reaction away for a later day.

Rick stopped messaging her foot. "Ok try wiggling your toes for me." Rick asks of her.

And Kate saw her toes wiggle when she willed them to. And a big smile was soon on her face.

"Ok, so you can feel and move your toes. So it's either limited or temporary. Which sounds like good news." Rick was happy for that. "Why were you trying to get out of bed?" Rick wanted to know what was going on. If she needed help getting to the bathroom to pee or something, she would have called out for it.

Kate/Kat however didn't answer.

Rick turns to look at Alexis. "You can go back to bed pumpkin. Kat is fine."

"Daddy?" Alexis wasn't sure. Kate/Kat had been yelling.

"Everything is fine pumpkin, now go back to bed. I'll be right there to tuck you in." Rick tells her.

Alexis looks at both of them, but turns and goes back to her room. Rick gets up and closes the door and goes back to stand over Kate/Kat.

"Now tell me, why were you trying to get out of bed?" Rick wanted answers.

"Castle, please." Kate/Kat didn't want to hurt him.

Rick kneeled down to the floor so his head was more level with hers. "Explain Kat, what were you thinking?" Rick searched her eyes. Finally noticing that she had green eyes that looked a little dull at the moment.

"I'm addicted Castle, I need a cigarette. Tomorrow will be worse and you aren't going to get me one, are you?" Kate/Kat looked at him and watched Rick shake his head no.

"I'm going to want one Castle. And I don't want to hurt you or Alexis to get one." Kate/Kat explains.

"So you decided to run away and go find one or buy one. Your old home is gone Kat and you don't have any money to buy one. What was your plan for that?" Rick didn't understand her.

"I can earn money." Kate/Kat knew what it took to get money.

"By selling yourself for sex?" Rick was now beyond mad at her. "Like hell Kat! That's not going to happen so get that out of your mind right now." Rick didn't believe her, how could she?

"Please Castle, you need to let me go. I can't hurt Alexis, … or you." Kate/Kat's tears were back.

"I promised I would help you. Help you feel better and I'm going to do just that. … You promised that you would let me help you. …. How could you do this?" Rick was mad at her.

"The going gets just a little bit tough and your first thought is to RUN? … Like hell Kat. I'll tie you down to the bed if I have to, but you're staying and you're going to keep your promise and let me help you.

You promised Kat and I'm holding you to it. You let me worry about my daughter and myself. … And you. I'm a big boy now, I can take it." Rick stands up and opens the door then comes back to Kate/Kat.

Rick works one arm under her legs and the other under her back. "What are you doing?" Kate/Kat didn't understand.

"I'm moving you to my bed for you to sleep with me so I can keep an eye on you. Even if you don't want to keep you're promise, I do. So I'm going to force you to keep yours.

You're going to go through withdrawals and I'm going to be there every step of the way, like it or not." Rick lifts and pulls her close to his chest.

One thing about her being too skinny, she was light in his arms and carried her down to his bedroom and placed her on his bed. Then went and closed the door to keep the cold air in the room.

Then Rick crawled into bed with her and worked at finding a good position that had her in his arms, so if she moved it would wake him.

"Now go to sleep, we'll work out how to deal with your addiction and the coming withdrawals tomorrow." Rick tells her and closes his eyes and can't help but breath her in since his nose was now buried against her bare skin.

Kate/Kat silently cried herself to sleep. No one had done for her what Castle was doing or had promised he was going to do. Her "boyfriend' would rape her but not hold her like this or fight to make her better.

Was this what a REAL boyfriend did? It was different and she kinda liked it, but she was worried about what was to come. It would kill her if she hurt Alexis because of her addiction.

Kate/Kat woke up in the morning still a little confused. About last night, about there being light in the bedroom instead of darkness, and especially about still being in Castle's arms.

Then she felt it. Kate/Kat had, had her period during the middle of the night, and she also had to pee.

Kate/Kat started to move, she needed to get up. That was when she noticed that her legs were moving.

HER LEGS WERE MOVING!

Kate/Kat worked at trying to get out of Castle's arms not sure she should wake him since her legs were moving again.

Finally she was free and was working on standing. Most of the pain was gone and she stood up relatively easily.

Kate/Kat moved to the door and opened it and saw a long hallway with windows on one side and a series of doors on the other.

She knew her bedroom was next to the only bathroom she knew about so she made her way down the hallway to her room to get a fresh tampon and then made it into the bathroom.

After doing everything she needed to, Kate/Kat turned on the water to fill the tub and went in search of the bottle she had seen Castle use last time. Then turned the water off and striped and got in and relaxed.

Eventually she grabbed the loofa and poured some body wash on it and started scrubbing. Then she saw Castle kneeling down on the floor looking at her.

"Hi." Rick grinned at her. "The bed was empty, you had me worried that you had escaped and run off like you wanted to last night." Kate/Kat could see the hurt in his eyes and knew that she had put that in them.

Kate/Kat reached a wet and bubbly hand out and ran her fingers down the side of his face, leaving a trail of bubbles. "You made me promise. … I'm still scared Castle. I don't want to hurt Alexis." Kate/Kat buried her hands back under the water.

"And we'll do everything we can to prevent it. But you are staying Kat. I am going to help you, so no more talk about running away. Got it?" Rick wanted her to see. "And not that I don't trust you, but you're sleeping with me from now on. I want to keep my eyes on you."

Kate/Kat grinned. "Ok." She had liked last night. After she had finished crying she had slept soundly, plus it felt good.

"Do you still want a cigarette?" Rick was curious.

"Yes, but I don't NEED one, but I do want one." Kate/Kat admitted, which in of itself was a big thing.

"How did you get down here? This is the other end of the boat." Rick was curious.

"Walked." Kate/Kat responded barely above a whisper.

Kate/Kat sees his eyes light up and she was soon swimming in that see of blue. "So your legs work again? … How was the pain?" Kate/Kat sees his eyes squint at her.

"There was a little pain, but not bad." Kate/Kat wasn't lying.

"I'm going to go get the baby monitor and move it in here. I'm going to go take a shower. Let me know when you are ready and I'll apply the cream. You're new clothes didn't show up last night, but they should be here today.

After breakfast I'll give you the tour so you know where everything is." Rick stood up and kissed the top of her head. "Oh, don't get out before I wash your hair." Rick was soon back with the baby monitor and then gone again.

It left Kate/Kat alone with her thoughts again. She did want a cigarette, but Lanie had said the need would get worse and worse. But it wasn't worse this morning. It wasn't gone, but it wasn't worse.

Maybe it would get worse later today. And Castle was worried about her. If felt, … different. But a nice kind of different.

The water was starting to get cold when Rick showed up wearing just his bed shorts again, and he washed her hair. "I've got Alexis in my tub taking a bath that I need to get back to." And Rick helped her out of the tub and started applying the cream.

"You want to try dressing yourself? I can get you your pills while you are." Rick offered.

"Sure." Kate/Kat was feeling better.

After Rick was gone and while she was still naked she went and stood in front of the full length mirror on the back of the door.

She still had bruises, she still had those marks that Castle was applying cream to. The marks on her breasts were mostly gone. She still looked really thin. Kate/Kat could make out her hip bones and some of her ribs.

Her face was thin but her eyes were brighter and the dark circles under her eyes were not as dark.

She was still ugly. What could Castle possibly see in her? But she liked being here. It was so much better than her last two homes. So was the food.

Kate/Kat was just finishing getting dressed and putting her shoes on when Castle came back with her pills. "Well look at you. All dressed and you did it yourself. Pretty soon you won't need me at all."

Kate/Kat was soon up and holding onto Castle. "No. … don't!" Kate/Kat didn't know why but that thought scared the crap out of her.

Rick places his hands on her shoulders and runs them down her arms. "I was just joking. Not remotely serious. I promised you I was going to help you and I'm keeping it. Come on, time for breakfast." And Rick escorted upstairs, watching her all the way up the stairs just in case.

"Where is Alexis?" Kate/Kat asked not finding her upstairs in the kitchen that was her first trip into and her eyes were open wide as she looked around.

"She's trying to find her shoes to slip on. She'll be up in a minute. … What do you think? Pretty cool huh?" Rick sweeps his hands around the kitchen.

Kate/Kat could only barely remember a couple of kitchens. The last one was long ago it seemed. "It's, … different."

"Different? That's all you've got? Different? This kitchen is way cool. Here look." And Rick opens the refrigerator. "See old school on the outside but state of the art inside. Same for the oven. Rustic shelves. It's way cool. Tell me you've ever seen another one like it." Rick challenges her.

Kate/Kat just shakes her head and she continues to take it all in.

"Thank you for coming in Mr. and Mrs. Beckett." The captain greets them.

"Have you found something?" Johanna asks him. She had her hopes up the second he had called.

"There was a house explosion some distance from the building we were told she was in last time. And since she wasn't there he didn't get his plea deal by the way.

We're still working on why the building exploded. There was no sign of it being a meth lab, …." He is interrupted by Jim.

"I'm sorry, meth lab?" Jim was after a better explanation.

"Most meth labs are home brew locations. The chemicals used to make it are highly volatile and dangerous and if you're not careful they will explode." The captain clarifies.

"I see." Jim responds and lets him continue.

"We've also ruled out the use of explosives or a gas leak. Frankly the inspection of the site is still underway so we have not reached any conclusions yet.

Do either of you recognize this?" And the captain slides over a clear sealed bag that has something in it.

Jim takes it off the desk and holds it up to look at it, then hands it to his wife who takes a close look at it. "It doesn't look like anything I've seen before. It's nice though." Johanna liked the look of it.

"What does this have to do with Katie?" Jim didn't understand.

"It was found at the house that exploded. We have identified it as part of the jewelry collection that was stolen from a house by the bikers your daughter was associated with." The captain explains.

"My god, are you telling us that her body was found in this house?" Johanna didn't want to believe it. He brought them out here to tell them her/their daughter was dead.

"No, actually no bodies were found in the house at all. The single owner was at work during the time. We have talked with him and are convinced he has no connection with your daughter.

We are still searching the area, but it appears that your daughter was hiding at or inside that house somehow. We're still trying to work that one out. The building was heavily damaged. The surrounding buildings all had debris from the explosion hit them.

The street it was on was closed due to the damage. In fact it is still closed." They were still picking up the pieces that were all over.

"Still closed." Johanna whispers out. "Where was this, exactly." Johanna asks him, starting to be afraid of the answer.

The captain pulls a paper out of his file and reads off the address. Johanna's tears start immediately and places a hand over her mouth.

"That address mean something to you?" He didn't understand. There was nothing in their file they had on these two that had anything to do with this location.

"Oh my god, oh my god. NO, … can't be." Johanna was having trouble breathing and Jim takes his wife in his arms.

"Mrs. Beckett?" The captain wanted to know what she knew.

"My wife's office isn't that far from that location." Jim explains.

"I drive right past that house twice a day. I had to find a new route when the road was closed. I, …. I drove right past my own daughter for almost a year." Johanna's tears only increased. "I drove right past her and never saw her." Johanna broke down and started crying in earnest.

"She was likely hidden away where you couldn't see." The captain tried to take away some of the grief. And she was exaggerating. It hadn't been a full year.

"I, … drove, … right, … past her." Johanna was having trouble taking breaths in.

This wasn't possible. IT WAS A NIGHTMARE. First they just miss her at one house and she drives right past her baby for weeks, months even at the next house.

It was more than Johanna could take. She just wanted her daughter back.