A/N: You guys are the best! Thank you so, so much for your amazing reviews and alerts. What I love about you guys, readers of this story in particular, is that your reviews are always so detailed and exciting. They just make me want to write more. So really, thank you from the bottom of my heart. For those of you who asked whatever happened to the person I based Kate's character on, she's doing okay. Still got a long way to go emotionally, but she's a lot better. It's my big sister, actually, and Alex and Olivia are based on my wonderful nieces, who are the absolute light of my life.

Anyway, hope you guys like this one!

At the end of the tunnel

Chapter 14

"How long have your mother been letting that guy hang out with you two?"

Olivia heard her father's voice and how it still resonated with repressed anger. She wasn't really sure what the problem was, but it seemed like her dad really didn't like Rick. Which didn't make any sense because Rick was really nice and her dad didn't even know him. How could he treat someone he didn't even know in the first place so badly?

"A couple of months, I think. Why, dad?" She asked, leaning forward from the backseat to be closer to him.

"I don't want you around him. Neither of you." He said in a clipped tone and Olivia sighed. She just couldn't understand. Why was he so mad at Rick? Was he jealous because he was her mom's boyfriend now?

"Why not? Rick is really cool." She protested, but he glared at her through the rearview mirror. "What, he is!"

"I don't care. You are not going to be around him anymore and that's final, Olivia." He told her seriously and she frowned in confusion. "I am your father and you are going to do as I say."

"But I like him. And so does mom, so I don't see any problem in hanging out with him when mom hangs out with him too." She retorted and grimaced when she saw her father gripping the steering wheel so tightly that his knuckles were all really white.

"I like Rick too. He's the best!" Alex chimed in from his car seat in the back.

Olivia touched his knee and shook her head at him to try and get him to shut up. He was only going to make dad even angrier and she was afraid of what could happen if he got really, really angry. After all, she had already seen him really angry at her mom and she had thought he was going to hurt her a few times, especially that one time when her mom had sprained her wrist. She had been listening in on their conversation and saw when he pulled on her sprained wrist and how her mom had been in pain for the rest of the day after that.

"Why exactly is he the best, Alexander?" He asked quietly and Alex frowned in confusion.

"Why are you calling me Alexander, daddy? Did I do something bad?" Her little brother asked, confused. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to!"

"I asked you a question, Alexander. Why do you say Rick is the best?" Olivia flinched at his tone and felt bad for her little brother. He was still too young to understand what was going on. She was almost 9 and she couldn't really understand, let alone 4-year-old Alex.

"Well... he is really, really nice and he plays with me all the time and he tells the best stories." Alex replied quietly, his voice so small. He sounded afraid and confused and Olivia didn't know what to do.

"Is that so?" He nearly growled and Olivia gasped when she saw a tear escape her brother's eyes. Releasing her seatbelt, she scooched over to her little brother. "Olivia, what the hell are you doing?"

"Alex is crying, dad. You made him cry!" She exclaimed defiantly, reaching out to hold Alex's little hand in hers. With her other hand, she clicked the seatbelt back into place around herself. "There. Happy now?"

"Watch your tone, young lady! I'm your father!" He snapped at her and she held onto her brother's hand a little tighter, warning him to be quiet. "You will not see this Rick person anymore and that's that. End of discussion."

The rest of the trip was made in silence.

"He's awake." The nurse told Kate when they reached the door to her father's room.

"Oh, thank God!" Kate sighed in relief and felt Rick squeezing her hand comfortingly. "Is he okay?"

"Seems to be. He's fighting the vent, so I'm going to get Dr. Lucas to see if we can get him off of it." She explained with a kind smile and Kate nodded.

"Thank you. Can we see him?" She asked, leaning against Rick's side. Now that it was almost over, she felt like she had just been run over by a truck, she was so exhausted.

"Sure. Go right ahead." The nurse said and left in search of the young doctor. Kate was about to go in when she felt Rick pulling her back.

"What's wrong?" She turned to him with a confused frown. He tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear gently.

"I should wait out here. Give you guys some privacy." He told her quietly and she nodded in agreement. "I mean, he doesn't even know me."

"Yeah, you're totally right. I'll come find you in a little while, okay? Are you staying?" She asked, threading her fingers through his. She couldn't get enough of his touch, no matter what the situation was. It calmed her down, gave her strength. It was amazing.

"Of course." He smiled and leaned down to press his lips to hers in a loving kiss. I'll go down to that diner we went to last night. Eat my brownie." He showed her the bag with the treats she had gotten for him and the kids with a grin, making her chuckle.

"Alright. I'll see you soon, babe." She told him, stealing one last kiss, before turning back to the door and taking a deep breath. She could do this.

Her father looked so small in that bed, now that it was broad daylight outside. So defenseless. His eyes followed her as she walked into the room and she swallowed hard when she met his gaze, the tears about to fall.

"Oh, dad." She said quietly, but the sob that she had been trying so hard to contain escaped and, just like that, the floodgates were open. She rushed to his side, held his hand, bringing it up to her lips for a reverent kiss. "Oh, daddy." She sobbed when he brushed her tears away. "I'm so glad you're okay. So glad."

The look in his eyes was killing her. He looked so sad, so guilty. Before she could say anything else, Dr. Lucas walked in.

"Hey, Mr. Beckett. Good to see you're awake." The young doctor said with a smile. "I'm Dr. Lucas and I saw you when you came in and have been following your care since then."

"Is he really okay, Dr. Lucas?" Kate asked, brushing her tears away with the back of her hand.

"Nancy says he's fighting the ventilator, so he probably doesn't need it anymore." He told her and turned back to her father. "Let's get you off that thing, huh? Ms. Beckett, if you could wait outside a little bit while we do this procedure."

"Yeah, sure. I'll be right outside, Dad."

She left the room and leaned against the wall outside, letting out a heavy sigh. Another tear escaped her eyes and she brushed it away angrily. Now was not the time to break down. She needed to be strong for her father, for her kids and for herself. But, God, things were just so hard right now and she just felt like crap, completely overwhelmed by the giant mess her life had become. The only good thing in her life right now, besides her children, was how amazing Rick was to her and how much she loved him and was loved by him. Their relationship was so effortless, that she was almost afraid that it was too good to be true. But it was too late now, anyway. She was all in.

"All done, Ms. Beckett. You can go back in now." Dr. Lucas' voice startled her out of her thoughts. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I..." She cleared her throat and took a deep breath before continuing. "I'm fine. Thanks. Is he okay?"

"Things are looking up right now, but I still want to keep him here another 24 hours for observation." He said and she nodded, offering her hand for him to shake.

"Thank you so much, Dr. Lucas." She said honestly and he smiled at her, shaking her hand.

"You're very welcome. Now go on. Go see your dad." He encouraged her and she smiled back.

Entering the room again, she found her father sitting up, his bed reclined into a sitting position, and sipping something from a cup with a straw. When he saw her, she offered him a small smile and quickly crossed the distance to his bed. Reaching out for his free hand, she brought it to her lips again, saying a quiet prayer in thanks for her father's life.

"Katie..." His voice was raspy and it came out like a whisper.

"No, dad. Don't try to talk right now. It's okay." She squeezed his hand and brushed his hair away from his forehead gently. "I'm so glad you're okay, dad. I was so scared. We all were."

"I'm so sorry, sweetheart. I don't know what came over me." He rasped, but she shook her head.

"Dad..."

"No, let me get this out." He took a deep breath and started coughing. "I got the bottle as a gift from a friend. He didn't know." Kate rubbed his back when he started coughing again. It took him a few seconds to catch his breath. "It had been sitting there for weeks. Then it was your mom's birthday and it had just been our 35th anniversary a week before." He sighed, suddenly looking so much older and exhausted. "And I've been so worried about you and the kids. It was suddenly all too much." He started coughing again and this time Kate interrupted him.

"Dad, don't." She touched his cheek and offered a small, sad smile. "We can talk about this later. Right now, I just want you to get better. Okay?" She said and he nodded. Kate felt her phone vibrate in her back pocket and pulled it out, smiling when she saw Rick's name on the screen. It was a text message, saying he was at a café down the street and not at the diner.

"Who was that?" Her father asked curiously and Kate felt herself blushing slightly.

"It's, uh..." She cleared her throat and looked down at her phone again, worrying her bottom lip with her teeth. "I've been seeing this guy, Rick Castle, and..."

"Like the author your mom loved so much?" He interrupted and she found herself chuckling.

"Yeah, dad, that's him." She smiled at her father and was so relieved to see him smiling back.

"He must be making you very happy if he puts a smile like that on your face." He squeezed her hand gently, still smiling.

"Yeah, he is. He's been amazing through this whole thing, dad." She pulled a stool next to the bed and sat down. "He's waiting down the street for me."

"Oh, do you want to go see him? I don't mind."

"No, no. I'm staying right here with you." She told him and sent Rick a quick text that she would still be a little while. "Not letting you out of my sight, Mr. Beckett." She narrowed her eyes at him playfully and he laughed quietly.

"How long have you guys been together?"

"A couple of months. We were friends first, you know. He's been helping me with this whole mess with Jake. He was the one who recommended Garrett Bishop." She told him and saw the flash of recognition in his eyes.

"Your lawyer?" He asked and she nodded, brushing her thumb gently over his hand.

"Yeah." She smiled at him and sighed. "The kids love him. You should see Alex around him. It's like Rick is his hero." She chuckled, remembering how attached to her boyfriend her little boy was.

"Do they know you're together? How are they handling not living with Jake anymore?"

"Liv knows. Alex just goes with the flow. But they met him way before we got together." She let out a heavy sigh. "I think they're okay. Getting used to it, I guess. Jake is the one who's been a problem lately."

"When hasn't he been a problem?" Her father said dryly and she laughed. He had never really liked Jake.

"I told you how he wants to fight for their custody, right?" She said and he nodded. "Now he's acting like a jealous jerk. You should've seen the scene he made downstairs when he saw Rick with the kids."

"Oh, well. He's going to come around, Katie. You said so yourself, he never wanted custody, they already live with you... it's going to be alright, honey. You'll see." He reached out and touched her cheek lovingly.

"I hope so, dad." She said and covered his hand with hers.

"And if this Mr. Castle is making you and my grandchildren that happy, then I like him already."

"He likes you." Kate nudged Rick's side when they stepped outside the hospital that night.

"Yeah, you think so?" He looked at her, uncertain, and she took his hand in hers, threading her fingers through his.

"Absolutely. You made him laugh, you make me happy and you make his grandchildren happy. You're approved, babe." She teased him with a grin and he chuckled, letting go of her hand in order to wrap an arm around her shoulders. It had gotten really cold after night had fallen.

"Well, thank God." He commented with a laugh. "I like him too. He's a fun guy, even if he's in the hospital." He placed a kiss on her head and she smiled, leaning into his side for warmth while they waited to cross the street. "And he's okay, right? I mean, the doctor said he's alright."

"Yeah, hopefully I'll be able to take him home tomorrow morning." She sighed and let him guide her across the street. "It was just a scare."

"Yeah. I'm so glad everything turned out okay. Mother and Alexis sent their love. Their words, not mine." He teased and she laughed quietly.

"Thanks. I really appreciate it. And thank you." She looked up at him and stopped walking, touching his arm to make him stop too. "I don't know how I would've gotten through this without you, Rick."

He smiled and touched her cheek, leaning in to capture her lips with his in a gentle kiss.

"I told you, no place I'd rather be, love." He told her, caressing her cheek lovingly.

She closed the distance between them and kissed him again, allowing herself to get lost in him for a moment. Before they got too carried away, her phone started to ring. She fished it out of her coat pocket and frowned when she saw who the caller was.

"It's Jake." She told Rick, concern and fear in her voice. "Hello?"

"Mom?" She heard her daughter's voice and her heart skipped a beat. Something was wrong. She could feel it.

"Liv, hi. What's wrong, baby?" She asked immediately and heard her daughter sigh.

"Mom..."

"I want to talk to mommy!" She heard her little boy's voice in the background.

"Shush, Alex. We don't want daddy to hear us, remember?" Olivia said and Kate felt like she couldn't breathe. What had that bastard done? "Mom, we want to go home. Please."

A/N: Thoughts?