The Heart Won't Lie
by Castlefan6
Authors Note: This is Totally AU; Beckett has left for D.C and the Feds. This describes the activity of each, during the time away from each other, NO PROPOSAL, before she left, but plenty of ANGST. Can they find their way back to each other, or do they even want to? It blends some Canon dialog, courtesy of Dust Jackets Dot Com, then goes quickly and completely AU. What were each up to during this time, Taking Literary License to fill in the blanks.
A/N: CASKETT ENDING IS NOT GUARANTEED. : CASKETT ENDING IS NOT GUARANTEED.
I don't own Castle; I use the characters for amusement purposes only, except the ones I create.
Also, we take liberties with the timeline from Canon and use events to make this a more believable fiction, thanks.
Thanks to reader pmt0622 for the prompt:
A CASKETT ENDING IS NOT GURANTEED. **************************************************************************/
Chapter 10
Fairmont Hotel
One Week Later
The MADT gala was tonight, God, what a difference from the last time she had attended the same ball. She had been searching for something to wear when Castle had sent the perfect ensemble along with the shoes, clothes she hadn't worn since, but would once again tonight.
As she was dressing, she noticed a few areas of the dress that could benefit from some tailoring, had she lost that much weight? This time her BFF for many years hadn't so much as texted or called, last time she was there to help her get dressed.
Stop complaining Kate, you're lucky you're here and not in some bum fuck Egypt town in Kentucky chasing some tax cheat. She figured out why Stack and the Agency gave the recruiting line they did, no one wanted to be the small dog, they all wanted to start as the next modern-day Elliot Ness, blowing the underworld away with their bravery, and intelligence. If she had used her common sense instead of letting her ego, hell even if she had told Rick what Stack had said, he would have kept her grounded, he always did.
She dusted off the shoes and decided to take a wrap, evenings were turning cooler and she wouldn't have Rick's arms to keep her warm, at least not tonight. She sent a text to Heidi, who was her primary contact for this operation, "Calling the car service now, ETA your home 25 minutes, KB" sent the text and received the answer within a minute.
"Don't get out, I'll be in the car by then, Tom will walk out, and get in on the driver's side. I don't need to remind you of our agreement, and the consequences, just so we are clear. HD"
"Clear KB" Kate sent back and grabbed her purse, and wrap and headed downstairs to wait for the car service. Even though she and Rick weren't together anymore, the car service still gave her the VIP treatment, and she seldom if ever received an invoice, no matter how hard she tried to pay them.
The car appeared in the loading zone, so she walked out to greet the driver, it was Amal, the son of one of Rick's oldest drivers, he was still in college, or was the last she had heard.
"Good evening, Miss Kate, I was instructed to seat you on the passenger side, I hope that is acceptable," Amal said in his polite way,
"Of course, and you have the address where we are picking up Mr. Demming, correct?" she asked,
He smiled, "All set, Miss Kate." And off they went. She sent another text to Heidi, "Just left my building"
She received a thumbs-up emoji in response and returned her phone to her purse. They pulled up in front of the Demming's home, and a moment later, Tom existed. He jumped into the seat behind the driver, and they drove on for a few minutes in silence, until he heard two short beeps.
"OK, Heidi is behind us, so what's the plan once we get inside Beckett?" He asked,
"I thought we would split up and mingle, keeping our eyes open for those who looked out of place and pay attention to the workers, we've been fooled before," Kate said,
"Heidi has a hit list of potentials that she and our teams are watching, other than that anything, in particular, you aiming for? I mean I heard Castle and his team would be here but that was overheard and is strictly on the DL" Tom said,
"That wouldn't surprise me, you know the heat we're getting from Boyle, it wouldn't surprise me that Mr. Mayor went to his friend to call in the extra firepower to see if they could solve something we haven't been able to, YET" Kate spit out,
"Beckett, it's me, I know you don't have a clue and are grasping at any straw floating anywhere near you, so why don't you just get off your high horse. It doesn't matter who or what team cracks this, hell even Nancy Drew as I called him. I know that was a cheap shot, I had no idea of just how big his operation was, so if he cracks it, it's still one for the good guys, it's not a competition." Tom let her have a dose of humility,
"You're right, it's just that with this high profile of a case, all eyes from up top are on us, if Castle solves it, they won't think of his extended budget. They'll just think he did the job that trained detectives couldn't." she huffed,
"So, tell them that, do you think they're going to hand the NYPD anything on a platter, especially given the treatment that, and for what it's worth, I'm sorry about you and Castle." He said, almost making her believe him as they arrived at the hotel.
He exited the limo, allowing Amal to assist her out of her side, and up to the edge of the red carpet. She noticed Heidi looking so much different all dressed up, just behind them as they proceeded down the carpet and into the hotel. Neither attempted to touch the other, Kate was always just a few steps ahead of her 'escort' for the evening, not that anyone noticed.
Heidi was actually closer to Tom than Beckett was, they entered the doors of the hotel, followed the signs, and pretty young ladies dressed gave out assistance and directions and found their table close to the back of the room. A server appeared with champagne, Tom acting like a gentleman, took a glass, place it in front of her, then took two more as he turned to continue a conversation with his wife, who actually appeared to others as another guest.
Heid found her table, accompanied by what looked like a man Kate had seen before, then she remembered, it was her brother, Tom's best man at the wedding. Not that she had cut the clipping from the paper along with the photographs or anything, she just happened to notice it.
It wasn't lost on Kate that Heidi had a clear unobstructed view of her, driving home her threat to end things if Kate violated the rules they had agreed upon, including touching. Detectives Esposito and Ryan were outside monitoring crowd control, along with some of Heidi's team scanning for potential suspects that could be lurking.
Then came the moment she had been dreading since Tom had let it out that Castle may be attending the gala. There were flashbulbs going off, as the young ladies, and finally, some bulky-looking men in suits escorted Rick and his date to a table at the very front of the room. The lady looked gorgeous, just his type, and they didn't attempt to hide any sign of PDA.
Then she looked again, and chastised herself, when did holding your date's hand as you made it through a crowd become an overt act of PDA, certainly it wasn't as hurtful as he had witnessed her do, even with the Detective standing in her vicinity. They were seated, and Rick waved to a few of the crowd. He looked different, it was his hair, a little longer, and almost as if the sun had bleached it a shade lighter.
He was fit, and trim, she knew he had lost at least 20 pounds probably more, his face showed his boyish dimples when he smiled, something she missed so terribly. So far, no one was going out of their way to acknowledge his presence, short of the waves.
She didn't know if he was aware she was there, his facial expression certainly hadn't betrayed him if he did. His old smile, the one that once belonged to her was back, perhaps the most hurtful aspect of this assignment. She knew he was happy, without HER. She once had it all, but, then a blonde caught her attention as she approached Rick. Was that Gina, no, who, wait? What the fuck is going on? Serena Kaye is here, kissing Rick and hugging his date.
She made no excuse of showing off what nature had given her, and she had been blessed with a large pair. She also wore a gown that men didn't have to guess about her legs, they were also on full display. Her escort shook hands with Rick, and hugged his date, perhaps a bit longer than he should.
Then again, the kiss that Serena had given Rick was a hell of a lot more than she had expected. It brought back a memory of a hotel hallway many years ago, and the sight of the tongue being exchanged, even though he wasn't hers at the time, she was jealous. She tried to shake that memory out of her mind as she finally heard Tom's voice saying something.
"I'm sorry, did you say something," she asked politely,
"Just that I'm going to start my own surveillance, Heidi will have my six, so watch yours. I can already tell that Castle being here has you flustered; you may want to sit this one out Beckett." He said,
"WHAT? I'm fine, I was just distracted for a moment." She barked back,
"Beckett, just get with it, I don't want anyone on my team, especially Heidi to get hurt when you're walking down memory lane with your ex, get with it, or I'll tell the commissioner, he's right over there." As he pointed a direction with his head,
"FUCK" she thought, it was bad enough to be in a public scene with fellow cops, but now the commissioner was there watching as well. She couldn't catch a break with anything lately.
She looked and Mr. and Mrs. Demming was close but not too close as they strolled down one of the aisles, ever observant. She thought, here goes nothing she had to let him know sooner or later that she was there, why not now.
She stood, was approached by a few men, she gracefully declined drinks and offers to dance as she walked slowly towards Rick's table. She was approaching from his backside, but she could hear him laughing, a deep sincere laugh, not the ha, ha, he did to be polite.
She continued walking and spotted what looked like a ghost. She would have sworn the young man dressed in the kitchen serving uniform could have been Roy Montgomery 15 years ago. By the time she had reached his table, the young man was gone, replaced by Serena Kaye who had sat down with her date, at Rick's table.
Rick's date didn't seem to mind the banter at all, or she wasn't the one he supposedly was getting serious with, Damn TMZ, Damn her for even listening to the gossip. She knew that they were taking a few observations and bending them to fit whatever narrative would garner higher ratings.
Serena spotted her before she had a chance to approach Rick for a private conversation, damn it, "Kate, Kate Becket, it's been a while. I can guess what you're doing here." Serena said, loud enough for three tables over to hear.
Rick stood, as a gentleman always does, he never lost that. She noticed, his hand on top of the chair, had the hand of his date, gently massaging it, trying to calm or reassure him.
"Hello Serena, I didn't know you would be here, I can guess with the high profile of the past cases the insurance company would send only their best," Kate said, half sincere, she had to admit, she was good at her job.
Serena laughed, "Same old Beckett, but I'm still not spitting any reward with you" she laughed, "We'll see you in a few minutes, right over at the bar if you need us, Rick, Abby," she said as she and her date walked just out of earshot to a portable bar that had been set up.
"Rick, I didn't know you would be here? Although I can guess why; I mean Commissioner Boyle has really been pouring the heat on since he promised the cases would be solved before the holidays. It's good to see you, I have to say, you look good" she said, as business-like as her heart would allow.
"Kate Beckett, this is Abby Kassel, Abby, the infamous Kate Beckett, inspiration for the original Nikki Heat book," Rick said politely,
"It's nice to meet you, but I thought you had left New York for a job with the Attorney General's office, I mean that's why Rick ended the series with Federal Heat after five books, did I miss something?" Abby asked, innocently, knowing all along what had happened. She took some pride as a therapist to force Beckett to vocalize her transgression, at least she could get that done.
"It's nice to meet you too Abby, and I did relocate for a short period of time, but I'm back to the job and city I love, thanks for asking," Kate said,
Rick was silent, so if she was going to talk to him, she was going to have to be the one to initiate any conversation.
"Rick, do you have a few minutes you can spare to talk in private, I mean if Abby doesn't mind" Kate poured the syrup in her voice.
"Actually, I can't Kate, I'm about to be"
Then Kate heard the MC speaking over the microphone, "please help me welcome, all the way from the set of the latest Nikki Heat Movie in Los Angeles, New York's own Richard Castle" as Rick shrugged at Kate, kissed Abby on the cheek whispered "I'll be back soon" as he walked up to the podium to applause.
"Good Evening, it's great to be back in New York, this event brings back a fond memory for me, a time I shared with my late mother, the great Martha Rogers. It seemed that she found out I was attending this gala, undercover with the inspiration for my new lead character in my book when she thought it would be cute to raffle me off for a date to raise money." The crowd erupted in laughter, as Kate's mind went back to that happy time.
"I can tell you, that won't happen tonight, but we do have up what I consider an even better prize for the charity auction, actually we have three fantastic items. First the autographed complete set of Desert Storm Novels, next, the autographed set of the 5 Nikki Heat books, one which is yet to be released for public sale yet, I hope Gina doesn't kill me, it's for a good cause I swear" he laughed along with the crowd,
"Last, we have an all-expense trip to Los Angeles, to spend a week on set, and actually serve as an extra in the Nikki Heat film we are filming now. I hope one of these items will help loosen the purse strings of some of you and stir some vigorous bidding, but no not in a million years will I go through another date. Thanks for the interest, but I'm quite happy with my situation as it is now.
"Now, I can almost hear Mother's words now, 'Know your lines darling, but also know when to shut up and exit stage left,', I think that time is now. Please welcome back to the microphone your guest auctioneer to begin the auction, and one final reminder, ALL proceeds go to MADT, no admin fees are charged, please support this wonderful organization not only with your hearts but also your dollars, Thank You!"
Rick handed the microphone back to the young lady in the stunning evening gown and made his way to his tables, receiving a roaring round of applause. Once he reached the table, Abby kissed him, a peck on the lips, but Serena let him know what she wanted as the cameras flashed all around, Kate slowly took backward steps toward her table. One of the undercover detectives was posing as a photographer and was snapping pictures of any and everyone it seemed, actually he was trying to get a picture of everyone in attendance.
Rick had installed surveillance cameras, not the grainy cheap kind, but high resolution, that recorded in color and high definition. He was already feeding the images to his team, and with facial recognition software, they had managed to identify a few suspects who were not who they registered to be. That didn't mean they were thieves or murderers; they could be trying to hide extracurricular activities from spouses.
Tom Demming had also picked up on a possible suspect, unfortunately, he was still as inept as he was when he was working with Kate, he had picked up one of Rick's top detectives, special forces, and someone not to mess with. He was posed as a valet, parking cars, when Tom made the mistake of approaching him, alone, not informing anyone of his suspicions.
Kate and Heidi arrived outside just in time to see Tom go flying in the air, after having his legs taken from under him with a leg sweep, a powerhouse right to the eye, and then a throw that would have made any MMA artist proud. Rick heard about the commotion and arrived outside to see hotel security approach the detective until he stepped in and said something.
They then called 9-1-1 for Tom and the valet went about parking cars as if nothing happened. Heidi was furious, her husband had been beaten up and the security wasn't doing anything. She approached the Sargent and was pointed to Rick for an explanation.
"What the hell is going on Castle, my husband is injured on an assignment he was asked to do for the NYPD, and hotel security tells me you called off any investigation, I want to know why?" she spit evil
"Because your husband is the same pompous ass he always was, he approached one of my elite men. If he had asked, he could have avoided an old-fashioned ass-kicking. I suggest you go to the hospital with him, your cover has been blown anyway. Acting like a high school girl watching her boyfriend getting his ass kicked. Now lower your voice, accompany your husband or I go talk to Boyle, your choice" Rick said in a low monotone voice that only she could hear,
She shot him, Beckett, and the security guards a look that would kill as she climbed into the ambulance, that now contained her husband.
"Rick, I know I'm the last person you want to talk to, but can you give me one lunch, can you spare an hour after all we went through together?" she asked.
"What for Kate, you said everything that needed to be said when you left. I'll call, I promise, you remember that? It's funny, I did, but I knew you wouldn't it's just you."
"Rick, please it's just a lunch, I mean, it's Christmas in a few days, and"
"Exactly, it's almost Christmas, and I'm not going to spoil it for Alexis who is flying in tomorrow to spend the holidays with us." Rick interrupted,
"Oh, how about after Christmas Rick, how long is she staying?" Kate asked, trying to wiggle some time out of him,
"She's got a serious boyfriend now Beckett, they're flying to his folks the day after Christmas, and we leave for Los Angeles on the 29th, so you see I'm busy." He said, not rude, but not the old relenting Rick, caving into her moon eyes, and look of disappointment,
"Rick, what do I have to do to get you to sit down with me for one hour, just an hour? You've never been cruel, why are you acting this way?" Kate almost was in tears as Serena and Abby joined him,
"Cruel? Me Beckett? What promise did I break to you? How many times did I lie to you? Did I interview for a job in another city without even discussing it with you? I'm even leaving Eric Vaughn out of the discussion, so I think you have your parties screwed up Beckett. I NOW know none of that was MY FAULT, YOU OWN IT" as he walked away with Serena on one arm, Abby on the other,
"Rick" Kate called out, almost in tears
He held up one hand, never turning around, and called out over his shoulder, "Merry Christmas Beckett.
TBC
A/N Rough times for Beckett, but more realistic than the kiss and make-up, especially after she had the sexual trysts with her former boss. Most guys I know of can forgive many things, but there are lines in the sand for everyone regardless of the love. If you didn't figure it out, Serena's date was Abby's, new love,