Rick rushed around town trying to prepare for his proposal and hasty wedding, stopping by city hall to obtain a marriage license, as well as Saks Fifth Avenue to pick up a new dress for Kate. He returned home just as Kate and Mackenzie returned from the hospital.
Seeing how tired she looked, he offered to stay with Mackenzie while Kate took a soak in his Jacuzzi. She eyed him incredulously, but decided not to resist the pull of a relaxing bath. As Rick carried Mackenzie upstairs, she looked up at him with complete adoration and melted his heart all over again.
A few minutes after Mackenzie fell asleep, he shocked his own children by greeting them home from school.
Alexis put her jacket into the hall closet and turned a confused look to her father. "Hi, Daddy. What are you doing here? Are Kate and Mackenzie still at the hospital?"
"It's nice to see you too," he teased. "No, they're both upstairs resting."
Aiden and Alexis snuck puzzled glances at each other as he herded them into the kitchen, puttered around to get snacks for them, then sat down to assist Alexis with her homework.
Aiden finally voiced his misgivings. "You know, you look a lot like Richard Castle, but you don't act like him. What did you do with Mr. Recluse?"
Alexis shushed Aiden, but turned to address her father. "Don't listen to him, Daddy. I like you this way."
He smiled at Alexis, then turned back to answer Aiden's question. "Well, let's just say that Mr. Recluse and I are in a trial separation."
As Martha entered the loft, Rick pulled her into the office to discuss his talk with Jim Beckett and to inform Martha of his plans. They'd just returned to the kitchen when Kate came down the back stairs. She found the family sitting around the kitchen table joking and snacking. She felt a rush of affection for all of them.
"Well, you've mastered the fine art of multitasking. My work here is done," she exclaimed melodramatically, raising her eyes and hands into the air.
The kids laughed and greeted her brightly. She obtained a coffee cup and started asking the kids about their day. She sat down next to Alexis and listened to their stories.
She glanced at Rick a few times. He seemed to be staring at her. She looked away, feeling slightly uncomfortable with his intent gaze. Thinking he still felt upset about their argument that morning, she tried to smooth things over a little.
"Hey, Aiden. Did you tell your dad about your discussion with the Headmaster?"
"Uh, no, not yet. Dad, Kate and I saw Mr. Price before class began. I thought explaining it first before I got detention for disturbing class would be better than after."
"A wise decision, Son." Rick eyed his shiny head. He understood his motivation now, but he was still a bit peeved about it.
Kate leaned over to comment. "Come on, tell him the good part."
Aiden blushed a little, continuing, "Since I still needed a science project, I explained about Mackenzie, and offered to give my biology class a presentation on cancer, it's affect on the body and known treatments. He was amenable to the idea."
"Don't be so modest. He was crazy about it. He actually encouraged Aiden to enlist a group of classmates and lead the project so they could cover a variety of cancers. You know, I think it's the first time I've ever seen him smile."
Aiden smirked. "Yeah, I didn't think he had it in him."
After an early dinner, Kate helped get Alexis ready for the dance, while Aiden and Rick played chess. As they came down the stairs, Kate noticed that Rick had pulled Mackenzie from her wheelchair onto his lap to teach her how the pieces move.
Kate watched from the stairs, unable to move. She felt lucky that Mackenzie had this time with the Castle family, but how many things would her baby not get to experience?
Alexis took her by the hand and squeezed lightly.
"Are you okay, Kate?"
Kate looked down and smiled. "Yeah. How about you. Are you ready to show us your stuff?"
Alexis smiled. "Yeah!"
The family piled into the limo and headed to the recital hall. Aiden sat next to Mackenzie, showing her his latest magic trick, and kept her laughing until they arrived at the hall. Kate started around to the trunk to get Mackenzie's chair before Rick caught her attention with a light touch on her arm.
"Kate, wait. If it's all right with you, I'd like to just carry Mackenzie. She can sit on my lap so we can sit anywhere she'd like."
Kate gave him a cautious look and nodded. She watched his gingerly pick up her daughter and carry her into the building, Kate following closely behind. Aiden stood transfixed by the scene, until he noticed Martha standing at his shoulder.
"I'm scared, Gram. What are we going to do when she's gone?"
She looked at him sympathetically. "We'll miss her terribly and cry a lot."
He looked at her earnestly. "Do you think Dad will shut us out again, like with Mom?"
She shook her head slightly. "I don't think so. He's different now that he's met Kate."
He nodded his head. "I hope she accepts dad's proposal. They need to be together." Martha gave him an appraising look as she followed him into the building.
Paula didn't know what force convinced her to come to the hospital. She'd thought about it all day after Martha had told her about M...Mac...the sick one's predicament. So, after handling the issue with the Gina, she'd driven directly to the hospital for a blood test. She had a sneaking suspicion that Mackenzie's rare blood type matched her own. She stood as a doctor approached her.
"Miss Haas, is it? I'm Dr. Joshua Davidson and you are right. Your HLA type matches exactly the profile we need. If you'll take this prescription to the pharmacy, they will get you the medication you'll need to donate."
"Medication? You mean you can't do it now?" her voice edgy and annoyed at the delay.
The doctor shook his head. "The medication will boost your stem cell production. We'll need you to come back in 4 or 5 days to make the actual donation, giving your body time to create the excess cells the Mackenzie will need. The procedure also takes 4-6 hours to filter the stem cells out of your system, so how does Monday morning sound?"
Paula had scheduled meetings, and with Rick in a funk over Kate's daughter, she knew she couldn't blow them off. She shook her head. "I need to work. If we're going to do it, it'll have to be Sunday."
Dr. Davidson nodded his acquiescence. If for any other patient, he wouldn't ask his staff to do this on the weekend, but for Mackenzie Beckett... Besides, he needed more than just a blood donation from her.
"Miss Haas, you match more than one child's profile. We have a little boy from West Virginia that needs a Bone Marrow Transplantation. Would you allow us to harvest some bone marrow as well?"
Harvest? She shuddered at a mental image of a large tractor churning huge fields of plants to obtain bone-shaped vegetables. "What would I have to do for that?"
"It involves a general or regional anesthesia and a needle insertion either in the sternum or pelvic bone."
At the horrified look on her face, he rushed to reassure her. "There's not much, if any, risk associated and the procedure will only take an hour. The biggest inconvenience will be waiting for the anesthesia to wear off, but that shouldn't take longer than the stem cell aphaeresis"
Paula thoughtfully ticked her fingernail against the chair. She hadn't considered this possibility. It definitely wasn't something she'd ordinarily do. Paula Haas didn't give a rat's ass about kids normally, even sick ones. Now he wanted her to donate her bone marrow for some nobody from the middle of nowhere?
Still...she was coming in anyway. What the hell, she shrugged internally, it won't cost me anything.
"All right, doctor, but on one condition - I want to remain anonymous."
"Are you sure? The families usually like to express their gratitude." At the look on her face, he dropped it, not wanting to scare her away. "Okay, then. Anonymous it is. Shall we say 9 AM?"
Paula nodded. "Okay, see you at 9 o'clock."