Chapter 14

It was the phone vibrating in his shirt pocket that finally brought Castle back to the conscious world. His eyes opened with several blinks to the sight of a hospital room, reminding him of cold harshness of reality. Natural light peeked through a small break in the curtains behind his left shoulder causing a sunny spot at the end of the bed in an otherwise dimly lit room. He sat up straighter, feeling his body protest from being in the chair for so long. He cast his eyes briefly over Kate who was asleep then reached into his pocket for the phone. He flipped it to see who the caller was. It was Ryan. He hit answer. "Hey." He greeted in a murmur so he wouldn't disturb Kate, "How's it going?"

"Ok we got a few hours of sleep. Where are you?"

"Still at the hospital. I just woke." Castle yawned and wiped his eyes. He heard the weariness in Ryan's voice and felt the same thing in his body.

"Oh. Sorry man."

"It's ok." Castle took a better look at Kate. She was in a deep sleep.

"How's Kate?" Ryan asked with genuine concern.

"She's asleep." He murmured. "Like in a sound sleep."

"That will be good for her." Ryan remarked.

"Yep. She must feel safe."

"Of course she does. You're with her."

"I don't think so." Castle replied in disbelief.

"I know so." Kevin replied. He was telling the truth but was making it sound like he was messing with Castle.

"Maybe." Castle ended up stating. "Have you had any luck finding the others who did this?" Castle asked as he stretched his body, then rotated his neck which felt stiff from sleeping awkwardly in the chair. He checked his watch. It was almost midday.

"We've had a good run on the preliminary evidence the technicians pulled off Beckett and her clothes. They gave us initial findings earlier but need more time to give us the final report. But anyway, Kate put up a good fight."

"I can imagine." Castle agreed.

"There was DNA of at least four males under her nails and on her body. Yet to be confirmed with numbers," Ryan paused and Castle could hear him shuffle paper. "They weren't related. Umm… Castle, its all pretty shit what happened to her. I would rather you not know."

"I already know." He replied. "I saw enough and heard enough during the exam earlier."

"Mmm." Ryan paused. "Castle. I have to ask you something. The sex crimes unit will also ask you."

"Ask." Castle encouraged hearing the tone of worry in Kevin's voice..

"They need to know if you and Beckett ummm.. engaged in …"

"The morning of the day she took off we made love." He paused. "So my DNA will definitely be on her." He rubbed his forehead with his left hand, partially in weariness, but mostly in fear he was going to be put through hell because his own body fluids would have been taken from her body earlier and identified in the results. He sincerely hoped confidentiality was maintained and it wasn't dragged up against her.

"Ok. I will let them know. Your DNA is on record so I will let them know that as well."

"That's fine." He replied remaining calm. "Who was the dead guy?" Castle asked.

"His ID has him as being Markos Plotnik. The uniforms found his vehicle at the other end of the alley we were in and up about half a block. But I'll talk about that later…."

"Yep." Castle glanced to Kate, to ensure she was still unconscious. "Kevin, we have to protect Kate. They must have thought she was dead. Maybe it's why they didn't phone us for the reward."

"We think so. Sorenson is here with us and he thought that. He offered up that Kate may have acted dead to stop them messing with her, and with her being so cold …."

"He has a valid point. She was so cold even after all the drama in the alley." Castle stated. "Maybe that's how she got out on her own. She could have broken out when she was stronger. Maybe she was tied up before then and couldn't escape."

"Mmm." Kevin acknowledged. "We think they will come after her again when they find out she's alive." Ryan took a breath. "Listen, Gates made an executive decision this morning, but I need to tell you before you hear about it on the news.

"What's that?" He sat up suddenly awake when he heard that Gates had made an executive decision. That alone worried him.

"Ummm…" He paused, and Castle sat up in response. "Gates has informally leaked it to the media that Kate was found dead last night." Kevin rolled out like he was going to get into serious trouble for his confession.

"Shit! She what?!" Rick stood up. "She didn't?" He paced across the room, his hand forming a fist. Why on earth had she done that?

"Yeah, she did." Ryan waited a bit then continued. "We need you to go home, pack your car and clothes. Tonight we are going to get Beckett out of the hospital to a safe place."

"No." He flatly replied. "I'm not doing what I did last time Kevin. I will take her to the loft where we can keep her safe, until she's strong enough to travel with me." He paused. "She will need Lanie's help. Kate's weaker this time and pregnant. If she gets worse, I won't know what to do with her pregnant. I would be ok if she wasn't pregnant. I'm not willing to risk two lives. And before anyone says it, there is no chance in hell I'm letting Kate go to a safe house."

"Ok. Well, we need to move her. We can have your loft secured. Hang on Castle, Espo is saying something…"

Castle waited hearing the muffled conversation of the two detectives. He also heard Sorenson's voice. He looked over to Kate. He noticed the nurses had kept up the fluids with the IV whilst he'd been asleep. He gently stroked her hair off her face. Against all the odds, he thought she looked better than she had at 3.00 am. Perhaps being rehydrated helped. Ryan came back. Castle wandered about the room as they talked.

"Esposito and I will stay at your place tonight with Lanie. That way we are all together and we can protect Beckett."

"Deal." Castle replied, instantly feeling relief wash over him. "I have spare rooms, can provide anything you need. We just have to move Kate."

"You need to come to the Precinct so we can talk off the phones." Kevin suggested.

"Ok. I will head down now. I will also see if she's stable enough to discharge."

Ryan okayed his comment and the two hung up. Castle returned to the bed and stroked Kate's forehead, softly brushed his fingers over her right cheek. The bruising had come out more in the past few hours over her face. He easily recognised then she had been attacked the previous evening shortly prior to the time they had found her. He figured it was probably an attack done as a result of his actions on the media.

"I will be back soon to get you." He whispered and kissed her forehead. No response at all. The last thing he wanted to do was to leave her, but he forced himself to depart. He ensured she remained asleep then vacated the room. There were two police officers right outside her doorway.

Outside the hospital, he hopped in a taxi directly to the precinct. He contemplated dropping by his apartment to take a shower and change his clothes but decided he could do that once they got Kate back to the loft. He had a four day growth of whiskers, needed to shave and was excessively tired. He could do with a few more hours of sleep.

He checked his phone. It was on the brink of having a low battery but would last the distance to the Precinct. Kate had a charger at her desk he would use. Alexis had hammered text messages at him earlier on in the morning, none of which he bothered to read. The last message he received from her indicated that Martha had been in contact with her and all was ok. He had phoned his mother very early to let her know he was ok and that they had found Kate. The latest development by Gates however might trigger off another onslaught of texts once his family heard via the media that Kate was found dead. He leaned his head back on the seat of the taxi, and contemplated whether Gates had done the right thing. He was unsure. Granted, it gave them the opportunity to conceal Kate and let her recover without being on the run but it also created a mass of problems with friends and family. Had Special Agent Shaw been involved, he was positive the media would have been kept out of the situation.

At the Precinct, the boys waited for him in the war room, with drinks and Chinese food they had ordered in. Sorenson was still with them, in casual clothes. He looked as tired a Castle felt. Ryan and Esposito were weary but they had been home, showered and changed their clothes.

"Excuse the appearance." Castle said as he sat at the table. Rick's clothes were soiled, with dirt and blood.

Sorenson lifted up a plastic bag and threw it towards Castle. "I thought you might want a change of clothes. It's one of mine."

Castle caught the bag and peeked inside it. He smiled seeing a blue knitted sweater. "Thanks dude. I will take a shower once I've eaten."

"Hope so man." Esposito said.

"I have personal stuff you can use in my locker." Ryan added referring to his deodorant.

"Thanks." He smiled. "I'm starving." He took a can of soft drink from the middle of the table and opened it, nearly downing it in one session.

"What a night." Sorenson stated.

"Could say that." Castle replied thinking about the experience in the hospital. He didn't know what was worse, the waiting and the desperation to find Kate, or sitting through the examinations and discovery of what had been done to her.

Whilst they ate, they discussed and finalised the plan they would follow in order to protect Kate. Castle listened in and ate hungrily polishing off what the boys didn't eat.

"I spoke to the doctor before I left the hospital." He finally said. "They will reluctantly discharge her so long as she's with someone. But that is subject to change of course. The doctor said there's not much they can do for her. She has to rest and he says she will sleep a lot because of the concussion."

"Good. We can hide her and keep a low profile whilst she's gets better. Lanie said she will stay with us as long as Kate needs her." Javier replied. "She has a few days owing in time if she needs to stay with Kate."

"That's fantastic news." Castle replied, relieved that he would have a doctor to support Kate. "So how are we going to get her out of the hospital without her being seen?"

"How else?" Esposito replied. "But straight out the front door?" He replied like a smart ass. "With you holding her. No one will be looking for that."

"Funny Javier."

"Straight into the back of the Coroner's van." Ryan replied. "We have already arranged it with Dr Parish. You just need to get back to the hospital and sign your life away once again to have Kate discharged."

"We'll move her tonight." Sorenson clarified. "We need time to secure your loft. Can we have the keys?"

"Sure." Castle reached into his jeans pocket and handed them over. He scribbled a number on a post it note and handed that to Sorenson. "Security code." He offered and Will nodded. "Has anyone been to Kate's place?"

"We have security on it." Ryan replied.

"So what have you found from the dead guy?"

"We got his family in for questioning earlier. Total dead end. He was living in an apartment alone. He didn't show up for work this morning of course and his colleagues said he kept to himself. Sorry Castle, his DNA was on Kate." Kevin softly said and held his eyes on Castle a moment longer hoping he understood the man's DNA wasn't just about Kate's head. By Castle's expression, he understood.

"But we don't know where they held her." Castle queried dismissing Ryan's subtext. He wasn't ready to deal with what had been done to Kate today. He was already experiencing overwhelming emotions over the fact he had her back alive. Mentally he knew he had to prepare himself for later in the loft.

"Not yet. But it has to be relatively close to where we found Beckett." Ryan said. "And where the uniforms found his car."

"Mmm… I'm going to take a shower. Can one of you guys give me a ride back to the hospital when I'm out?"

"I will." Esposito replied.

Ryan chipped in, "You also need to see Detective Cahill before you go back to the hospital. She has a few questions for you. Your DNA was on Kate so they need to rule you out as a suspect."

Castle smirked in disbelief. "Seriously? I'm her boyfriend. She is carrying my child – which everyone now knows. What did Gates say?"

"Arrr… she wants to speak to you as well." Ryan replied scratching his head and smiled at Castle.

Esposito added. "She wasn't that surprised to hear you two are together either. Muttered something about it being inevitable and obvious."

Castle stood, "Ok. Well, I will clean up and when I get back I will do the rounds." He picked up the plastic bag and Ryan's locker key. He headed off to the showers.

Castle knocked on Captain Gates' office a half hour later. He was uncomfortably nervous as usual in her presence but also because he was unshaven and dressed casually, when he usually presented in business attire at the Precinct. At the sound of the knock on the door Gates looked up from her paper work and took off her reading glasses.

"Mr Castle. Please, come in and close the door."

Castle swallowed his anxiety levels going up. He glanced through the glass to the boys who all gave him the death stare mimicking Gate's usual expression. It made him feel worse. He turned away from them and faced the Captain. "Sir."

"Take a seat Mr Castle."

Castle sat in the chair nearest the door and leaned forward pretending to be relaxed and interested in partaking in the conversation. "The boys said you wished to see me."

"Yes, that's correct. Firstly, how is Detective Beckett?"

"She was sleeping when I left. I won't lie, Sir. She's hanging in there but I don't want to think about what she's going to be like in a week or two." He took a breath. "She pretends she's all tough and strong, but beneath all the tough exterior she is as vulnerable and afraid as the next person."

"Yes. I understand. We can only be there for her." Gates sat back in her seat and put her glasses on the desk. "I know you two are together. Evidence provided from the hospital this morning identified you as one of the identified DNA evidence on Detective Beckett but they dismissed you as you were with her last night at the hospital as her next of kin. I've known for awhile now but chose to keep quiet about it, ignore it whilst it hasn't been a problem."

"Thank you. We try to keep work and personal life separate." Castle calmly replied his mind too tired to care or to try and cover up their relationship. It was too late and would have become known in a matter of weeks anyway with Kate being pregnant. He was kind of relieved it was out in the open now. Kate wouldn't be working for much longer and they could simply move on. "Is it a problem now?"

"No. Not at all. You have no doubt heard I leaked it to the media that Kate had passed away. I did it in consultation with Special Agent Shaw once we learnt that Kate is pregnant. Shaw considered it and she believes it gives us time to find out who is behind it and arrest them."

Castle thought about that. He was surprised Shaw would have agreed to make such a decision. He would have appreciated being told beforehand however. "We know who is behind it, Sir." Rick replied, opting not to address the media topic at this time. "It's a politician, and his sidekick we couldn't nail, who wants her dead. I simply outbid him to keep her alive. They want the file they think Kate has." He paused. "But that's all my speculation, and until Kate tells us who is behind it we have little to prove there is a link."

"Do you think she is at risk of holding back, not giving us any information?" Gates asked, "I fear Kate will take revenge into her own hands."

Castle tapped his fingers on his thigh thinking about it. His instincts told him one thing, his conscious told him another. Lie. "If she has evidence she will give it to us. She's a detective and she follows the evidence wherever it takes her." He was happy with that response and it seemed Gates was also satisfied with his response as she took a breath.

"Well, you had better get down to see Detective Cahill and go back to the hospital."

Castle stood and smiled to Gates. "Thank you Sir." He left the office and found the boys in the war room. They had paperwork spread out over the table. They stopped what they were doing and waited for Castle to tell them how it had gone with Gates.

"She knew about us for awhile." He told them. "She's ok with it too."

"Cool." Javier replied.

"I'm going to see Cahill. Do I need to phone my lawyer?"

"No. She wants to just speak to you." Javy replied, "but if you get locked up, I will get you out."

"My man Espo." Castle called out as he left the war room.

The meeting with Detective Cahill only took about ten minutes. She was a tall woman, blond blue eyed with a similar approach to being a cop as Beckett had. She offered him a coffee, but took the opportunity to point out they didn't have the fancy coffee machine that some writer had bought the homicide branch. He declined the coffee fully aware it tasted like monkey piss and battery acid. He didn't need a second try of it. He nearly said it aloud but decided to keep his mouth shut.

Detective Cahill strictly wanted to write him off the suspect list and asked him questions that, although they were extremely personal, were very important in establishing his relationship with Kate and her nature in general. Castle didn't care whether a few people knew when he and Kate had last made love, and what Kate was traditionally like with him. He honestly answered, regardless of how much he knew Kate would be annoyed about someone prying into her personal life. He knew she would hate it. The only time Castle became annoyed with Cahill was during the questions she wanted answered that implied things about Beckett's personal sex life before he was on the scene. He knew Kate was not a woman who slept around and he made a point of emphasizing the fact she didn't, that it had taken him four years to lure her in. He made it very clear to the detective that he wasn't going to have Kate defending herself or her reputation.

When he left the Detectives' office he also made himself a note to phone his lawyer to obtain the name of a bloody good attorney for Kate. He wasn't going to permit the system fail her. He was fully conscious she was going to need legal representation beyond what the police department would give her and he was going to make sure Kate was appropriately compensated. He would just keep quiet about hiring a lawyer for her until he needed to say something.

When he left the Precinct with Esposito and Ryan, he took Kate's personal belongings with him along with her handbag. In the car on the way to the hospital the men were silent a few blocks, having just had a bit of a laugh in a situation that didn't really have a place for jokes. But it was how the detectives coped with stress. Laugh it off a bit. Castle still struggled with police humour.

At the hospital entrance, Esposito brought the Crown Vic to a stop. Castle opened the car door. "No way man! Get outa here!" He squawked at Esposito in response to the detective's smart ass statement and pretended to throw something at him. Castle retreated out of the door smiling to the boys. "Let me know when Sorenson has it organised." He closed the car door. As soon as he turned his back to the vehicle the smile disappeared. He was sick to the stomach with worry about Kate. But he had a job to do and he had a place he wanted to be.

Will be more soon, but I want it to be right so please be patient. Thanks to those who have sent messages. Greatly appreciated.