Ian

Chapter 49

Castle let himself into the loft, threw his keys on his dresser and plopped heavily on the bed. He used his hand to cover eyes burning from hours staring at a computer monitor, hoping it had been worth it. He'd generated a list of experts in scatter patterns. Kate and her people would be working through it and he would return to join them in the morning,

He'd come home hoping to sleep. It was quiet enough, too quiet. The air was missing the energy it had when Ian was there. Regardless, he felt that it was better that his son was gone. The Poconos were only about three hours away, close by New York standards, but the distance was enough to keep Ian safe. Castle had spoken on the phone to him earlier. Ian was disappointed that what he had expected to be a break from school would be filled with assignments transmitted online. He was also worried about his father, despite Castle's assurances that he couldn't be much safer than surrounded by a zillion police, including his warrior princess. Sometimes the kid was just too perceptive. Castle was pretty sure Ian got that from his mother. Still it was a lot better that Ian be worried than in the path of a radioactive cloud.

Castle tried hard to rest. He lay in the dark for an hour with more and more frightening images swimming behind his eyelids. Finally he gave up and went to his office. The plot would be grim, but a Nikki Heat was writing itself. It would be a new book, rather than a new chapter in the one he was already writing, but it would be good to have something in reserve. The room faded away as the words flowed from his fingers - until he felt a presence in front of him.

His breath catching in his chest, Castle looked up. A man, at least six four, towered over him. An impressive head of white hair topped coal black brows and eyes that looked strangely familiar. Castle grabbed for his only available weapon, a letter opener.

"Settle down," Castle's unexpected guest instructed, with a hint of amusement. "I'm not going to hurt you. If I'd wanted to, you'd already be dead."

"How'd you get in here?" Castle demanded. "What are you, some kind of spook?"

"If by spook you mean ghost, no. If you mean intelligence asset, uh huh. You've gotten yourself into a real pile of it, two piles of it, actually. So I'm here to help you."

Castle gazed at his visitor in confusion. "Why? Did Sofia send you?"

Dark Brows rolled his eyes."Hardly. Who do you think tipped off Ida Burnham? She was using you, Richard. She was letting you feed her information about Detective Beckett's investigation and when things got too close, she blew it up. Literally."

"Are you saying Sofia is Ida's protector?" Castle blurted. "Why the hell should I believe you? You broke into my home. I don't even know who you are. For all I know, you could be working for Ida Burnham."

The intruder just shook his head. "Again, you'd be dead. Did Martha ever tell you the story of how you were conceived?"

"You know my mother?" Castle asked incredulously.

"Knew, and in the biblical sense," the visitor confided. "It was one of those meetings, an instant irresistible attraction. Strictly outside my operating rules. I'm not supposed to get involved with anyone. Attachments get people killed. We had one incredible passionate night, a long one. We ran out of condoms. Then I got called away on a mission. Nine months later you were born. I had no idea. I was off in the jungle in Southeast Asia. I didn't find out about you until I got back to the states, and then there wasn't much I could do about it anyway. I've kept an eye on you and Martha and Ian, tried to make sure you were doing all right. I was truly sorry when Ian's mother died. But this is the first time I've had to intervene. First you get yourself involved with the Burnham operation and now you're chasing after a dirty bomb."

Castle stared, shock squeezing his vocal cords. "Wait, you're my father?" he croaked.

"That's what I just told you, yes," the looming figure confirmed.

"Uh, damn! I don't even know what to call you!" Castle exclaimed. "And how do you know about the bomb?"

"You can call me Jackson Hunt," the man replied. "I've had that name for a while. I'm kind of used to it. As for knowing about the bomb..." Hunt snorted. "Homeland Security leaks like a sieve, that's when they actually have a clue about where a real threat might be coming from. They wouldn't even have known about this one if it hadn't been for your new girlfriend. And Fallon, he has some questionable connections son. I'm still looking into that, but you need to watch your back. I'd advise you to get your ass to the Poconos with your son until this whole mess is straightened out, but you're probably the smartest one on the whole case. At least they're looking in the right place now, which they wouldn't have been without you. You and Detective Beckett make quite a team, although sleeping with a partner, always problematical."

"How did you? Never mind." Castle's anger rose. "Kate's the only woman I've wanted to be with in a hell of a long time," he snapped, "and Ian likes her. Besides, if what you've told me is true, you're in no position to criticize."

"True enough," Hunt admitted. "besides she beats that witch Gina all to hell. I could never figure out why you went for that one."

"I've often wondered myself," Castle confessed. "Wow, this is a lot to process. I have a father, who's a spy."

"Intelligence asset," Hunt corrected.

"Intelligence asset," Castle repeated,"who has been spying on me my entire life, and even knows whom I'm sleeping with. That's more than a little creepy."

"Point taken," Hunt conceded, "but in this case, you should be grateful. Do not say anything else to Sofia Turner and keep your eyes on Fallon."

"Thanks, I think, but I'm still not convinced you're who you say you are," Castle declared.

"Fine. I anticipated that." Hunt pulled two wrapped swabs from his pocket along with an envelope. He swabbed the inside of his own cheek and put the swab back in it's paper sleeve. Then he handed the other swab to Castle and put his own and the envelope on Castle's desk. "Go ahead. Take a sample from yourself. This envelope has the address of a twenty-four hour lab that confirms paternity. Or find a lab of your own. Suit yourself. I can let myself out. I'll be around."

Castle stared open-mouthed after the retreating figure. After a moment he shook himself, saved what he'd been writing and opened Google to research genetic testing labs. If he had his father's DNA, he wanted a lot more than to just to confirm the relationship. There was so much he had wondered about himself; about his own ancestry; whether he was going to lose his hair. He smiled wryly. He already knew the answer was no from his mother's side of the family and if he took after his father, it would be a definite no there too. He found the type of lab he was looking for, and deciding the extra fee for expediting the results would be worth it, swabbed his own mouth and prepared an envelope for super express shipping the next day.