Chapter 14

With his heart pounding near maximum speed and his stomach flipping nauseatingly in his gut, Richard Castle's foot bounced up and down as he frantically looked out the window during their drive to Queens. This was it—this had to be it! Because if it wasn't…well, he wouldn't let himself think about this. This had to be it; they were going to find Kate safe and sound. They had to.

After feeling confident that the Woodside area of Queens was a probable location for Tyson's hideout, Esposito decided to loop in the local precinct, and they ended up sending some officers out to canvas the area. As luck would have it, flashing around the photo of Dr. Neiman did some good. One of the local garage owners recognized her as she had verbally assaulted him a few weeks prior when the street was being blocked by some cars he was working on. Using that witness, they were able to home in on which building Neiman appeared to be coming and going from. The building was leased to an offshore corporation that, according to FBI data they were able to access, was known for shady and criminal business practices. Unfortunately, leasing a warehouse in Queens was not illegal.

The local PD began canvassing every building around the area to see if anyone had seen either Neiman or Tyson enter the building in question at any point in the recent past. After plenty of doors slammed in their faces, they finally encountered an old woman who claimed to have seen Tyson late one night while she was walking her dog. While the reliability of her as a witness felt suspect, her comment was enough to grant them a warranty for entry. Finally, Castle had a glimmer of hope.

By the time they mobilized and were on their way to Queens, it was nearly 1 p.m., a full twelve hours after Kate disappeared. Castle did not allow himself to think about what horrors may have befallen her in twelve hours' time. He only let himself focus on the positives. They were going to get her back; Tyson was not going to win.

When Esposito's car screeched to a halt where the team was mobilizing a block and a half away from the building in question, Castle immediately tried to open the car door, but found he could not. He had momentarily forgotten he was in the back of a police cruiser where of course the back seat doors did not open from the inside. "Lemme out," he demanded as all of his politeness had been temporarily overtaken by extreme anxiety and near panic.

Esposito turned back to him and said simply, "No."

Castle's brain failed to process this statement and he began to claw at the door handle with increasing anguish. The futility of his actions not processing in his brain, he demanded again, "Open the door! C'mon!"

"No, bro. This is for your own protection."

Horror shooting through him, Castle slid forward in his seat and demanded, "SERIOUSLY?"

"I'll come get you once they breach the door."

As Esposito's car was a detective's one, it did not have a cage separating the back seat from the front, so Castle was able to reach forward and grab on to his shoulder pleading, "Beckett's in there."

Esposito's expression was sympathetic. "Probably, but we don't know what else. The place could be booby trapped and ready to blow."

The writer scoffed. "Explosives aren't Tyson's MO."

"Neither was kidnapping," Espo challenged.

"But!"

"No, buts." Esposito's sharp tone was enough to have Castle recoiling in the back seat and gazing at him with no small amount of shock. "Do you want to risk killing yourself before we even find Beckett? What would I say to her then? If we found her and the baby safe but you died in the process? I don't want to have that conversation with her—I won't—so you are not going through that door until the building is cleared. Got it?"

"Yeah." Castle rasped out, feeling like he was back in elementary school and being sent to the principal's office for acting out. "But the second it is cleared!"

"Of course; we'll come get you."

"Wha—I can't wait outside?" he stammered out.

Again, the detective's answer was simple. "No."

"JAVIER!" Castle screamed, but the detective merely pretended not to hear him and got out of the car anyway.

For fifteen excruciating minutes Castle sat in the back of the squad car, hands on his thighs and his upper body rocking gently back and forth. Rocking seemed to be the only way to get out his anxiety—and to keep himself from vomiting from it. He hated being stuck there. He hated that it was a possibility that Kate was in grave danger, and he didn't know about it. He hated Tyson and Neiman for the situation they had put Kate in. And, at least specifically in that moment, he hated Esposito a little bit for trapping him there.

After endless seconds ticked by with no news, Castle finally saw Ryan approaching the car at a bit of a jog. Castle plastered himself up against the door, palms flat against the window as he yelled out questions like "Did they find her? Is she okay?" but of course Ryan was too far away to hear him, even though Castle was yelling. Fortunately, the detective did not make him suffer too long; he opened the back door immediately and Castle attempted to clamber out with such enthusiasm he nearly fell.

"Building entrance has been cleared but we're not sure if-"

"Got it!" Castle called out, not listening to a word Ryan said. He took off in a dead sprint, feeling like a track star on an obstacle course as he made his way down the block, dogging parked cruisers and men with large weapons standing by in case they were needed. He was out of breath by the time he reached the entrance, but even that didn't dissuade him. The only thing that stopped him from plowing through the door was a large FBI agent grabbing onto his jacket and yanking him backwards like a child grabbing on to a doll.

"My fiancée is in there!" Castle yelped while struggling to get out of the man's grasp.

"Yo." Esposito came out of the doorway wearing his bullet proof vest and carrying an assault rifle. He held his badge out to the man and said, "Let him through; we've almost cleared the building."

"Where is she? Did you find Kate?" Castle demanded the moment the agent relinquished him.

"Not yet, but we found the doctor; she's-" Esposito's comments were interrupted by loud shouts followed by gunfire. "Stay behind me!" he told Castle before turning and walking deeper into the building.

Thankful the detective didn't tell him to wait outside (which of course he would not have done), Castle followed, making sure his eyes continued to sweep the area just to ensure there were no surprises. About halfway down the long, narrow hall Castle was shocked to encounter the body of an auburn-haired woman. She lay face-down, her blue scrubs stained with splotches of blood. This, he supposed, was the doctor. Esposito must have been about to let him know she was dead.

Castle felt no remorse as he stepped carefully around her body. She had been the one to take his sperm. She had been complacent in kidnapping Kate for whatever nefarious plans Tyson had. She was equally culpable in his opinion. Furthermore, Neiman's presence made it more likely that they had found the right location and Kate was there somewhere. Now they only needed to find her.

"Out the back! He went out the back!" Castle heard them shouting and his heart jumped up into his throat. Tyson—they were talking about Tyson. If both Tyson and Neiman were in the building, then Kate was surely close.

Esposito took off running and Castle wasted no time in pushing forward. The hall eventually led to another hallway which ran perpendicular. Castle turned right but found only an empty storage room with light fixtures dangling down from the ceiling. Backtracking towards the left, he found a room with a toilet and sink, which looked reasonably clean compared to the rest of the building, and then finally what he was looking for: a makeshift medical facility complete with an operating room style bed, newborn bassinette, and an intense sterile smell.

"Kate!" he called out. His heart nearly exploded out of his chest when he heard a muffled reply. He moved forward into the room but couldn't see her, until he realized there was a partition pulled almost the whole way across the room. He jumped forward, shoved it back, and felt a wave of both relief and terror at what he found. Kate was there, alive, and unscathed, but she was strapped to an exam chair that reminded him of the ones in the gynecologists office: Her back was propped up at around the thirty degree mark and her feet were in stirrups.

"Castle," she said, her voice weak and breathy.

"MEDIC!" He bellowed as loudly as he could. "MEDIC! Back here! God, Kate, oh god. You're okay, you're going to be okay."

He bit back the tears as he rushed to her side. As he came closer, he saw that she was hooked up to an IV. Not knowing what was in it, he yanked the tube out of her arm and then immediately began undoing the leather straps buckled around her arms and torso.

"Castle, the baby…baby's coming," she told him, breathless.

"I know, love, I know. Just stay calm. There are EMTs here and they're going to help you. I'm going to get you untied, just hang on."

"Tyson…"

"He ran out the back; Espo went after him. Neiman's dead."

"Neiman…you…you know 'bout her?"

With two of the three restrains undone, Castle took a good look at Kate's face for the first time and felt immediately alarmed. Sweat covered her brow and she looked shockingly pale. Hoping it was just due to the pain of labor, he pressed his hand flat against her forehead and smiled reassuringly at her. "Yes; it's how we found you."

Kate nodded just before her face contorted with pain. Castle found her hand and slid his into it, letting her grip as tightly as she needed to until she grunted with relief. "Baby's coming," she repeated.

He smiled despite feeling terrifying that both her words and demeanor made him think something else was going on besides just the pains of labor. "I know, I know, and I didn't miss it—how great is that, huh?" He gave her forehead a quick kiss before walking over to the other side of the bed to untie her other arm.

"She…she gave me something. Started the labor…"

"Makes sense," he mumbled, struggling to undo the final restraint as it was the tightest of the three.

"I'm…'m so sorry, Cas'l…"

"What? No, no!" He cooed soothingly at her until he finally managed to unto the restraint. Then he grabbed onto her hand and squeezed it tightly. "You have nothing to be sorry for, love. Nothing at all."

She gazed up at him, now tearful. "But I thought…I thought this might happen. I thought Tyson might take me, but I was afra—ah!" She yelped when another contraction hit.

"Breathe through it. Breathe through it, Kate. You're doing great." He coached, remembering the last time he had been in the supportive father-to-be position and taking a moment to acknowledge how dramatically different the two events were.

"Shit!" She panted out a curse when the contraction ended. "I think I…I have to push."

"Okay, okay. Hold on. Where the hell are the medics," he muttered, more to himself than anything. He then walked around to where Kate's legs were propped up in the chair's stirrups. She appeared to still be wearing the t-shirt she'd gone to bed in, but she was bottomless. A blue surgical cloth was draped over her legs, but before Castle attempted to lift it and see if the baby was coming out, the EMT's thankfully burst through the door.

"Thank god! Okay, Kate, everything's okay now, see? These guys are going to help you deliver our baby and Esposito is going to catch Tyson and then we're all going to be okay. I promise you."

"No, no—something's wrong," she sniffed out, lifting out her arm towards him.

He grabbed on to her hand and pulled it into his chest. Standing directly beside her he stroked his hand over the top of her head promising, "Nothing's wrong—not anymore."

"No, it is, it is."

"It's okay, Kate. Just focus on breathing okay." He smiled reassuringly then glanced down towards the EMT checking the progress of her labor.

"Oh god," Kate groaned at the onset of another contraction.

"Push! You need to push!" the EMT told her.

Kate gripped Castle's hand painfully tight, but he didn't mind at all. He just continued to hold her tight, though he did give himself a moment to bask in the relief that everything was finally going to be okay. They were together. Tyson would be found and captured or killed. Nieman was already gone. They were going to be okay. Everything was going to be okay.

"I can see the baby's head; you're doing great." The EMT encouraged.

"You hear that, Kate?" Castle leaned down and pressed his lips against her sweaty forehead. "You're doing great; you almost got his head out."

She moaned and shook her head. "'s wrong." Was all she muttered.

His brow furrowed as he looked down at her. She did seem to be quite a bit more dazed than Meredith had been when Alexis was born, but during Alexis's birth Meredith had an epidural so her level of pain would have been significantly less than Kate's at that moment. He wondered if perhaps that was the difference, though he felt his level of concern rising.

Several seconds later, Kate groaned loudly and, assuming it was another contraction, Castle gripped her hand tightly and encouraged, "Push! Push! Push" into her ear.

"That is, that is it, big push!" The EMT encouraged until he proudly announced, "The head's out—great job, mama!"

Castle felt a rush of emotion through his chest and tears began to cloud his vision. God he was so proud of her and loved her so much. "You did it Kate; you got his head out. I love you so much; you're doing amazing." Her eyes were shut, but she pressed her lips tightly together and nodded. Seeing this as a positive sign, he kissed her temple and pulled her hand against his chest.

"When you feel the next contraction, really push to get the shoulders out." The EMT adjusted his position between Kate's legs, and Castle focused his attention on the spot as well, thrilled at the prospect of meeting his son.

Kate groaned and arched up her back. "Push!" Castle encouraged, but there was no need. Two seconds later a high-pitched wailing could be heard and the EMT pulled a wiggling infant out from beneath the drape on Kate's legs.

"Oh, god, Kate, you did it. Oh my god he's beautiful. He's just perfect!" Castle couldn't help but cry as the baby was placed on Kate's stomach. He had ten fingers and ten toes and was the most incredible thing Castle had ever seen. He moved to release Kate's hand so he could reach out and touch the baby, but only then realized how limp her hand felt. "Ka—god! Kate!" He gasped when he realized her head had drooped to one side and she appeared to have passed out.

"Take the baby!" The EMT shouted, and though he could barely process the words, Castle somehow managed to gather up the baby, who had been placed in the drape that was once over her legs and hold him to his chest. His movement was restricted as the umbilical cord was still attached to the placenta, which remained inside Kate's uterus, but he did his best to move away so the tech could check Kate's vitals.

"What's wrong? What's happened?" he asked frantically.

The EMT shook his head as he examined Kate's pupils and checked her heart rate. "Pulse is weak; we've got to get her out of here." He signaled to his partner to bring in the gurney and the two of them worked to lift her and move her onto it.

"Kate, oh god, Kate." Castle breathed out, but a sharp wail from the baby drew his attention back to his son. He looked down into the pale blue eyes of the baby and hushed him as best he could. "Shh, Jake it's okay. You're okay. We're all going to be okay."

"Bring the baby, we've got to move her," the EMT informed Castle. He dutifully followed along, jogging along directly behind the gurney, all the while terrified of what was transpiring. What was wrong with Kate? Had she simply fainted from the exhaustion of the labor? Was that possible? He had not known her to faint during the duration of their partnership, but that didn't mean she couldn't or wouldn't faint in such an extreme circumstance such as delivering a baby while being held hostage by a serial killer.

Once in the ambulance, the EMT quickly cut the baby's umbilical cord which enabled Castle to sit and cradle his son while the EMT's did what they could for Kate while on their way to the hospital. Jake was still crying, so Castle rocked him gently back and forth while trying not to think of the last time he rode in the back of an ambulance with the love of his life. At least this time there were no bullets involved, but pregnancy and delivery complications could be equally as terrifying. "You're going to be okay, Kate. You have to be. We've come too far for me to lose you now," he said as a way to comfort himself. Then, he cradled Jake more tightly to himself and shut his eyes, praying for the ambulance to get to the hospital swiftly.


"Sir! Sir! Bring the baby this way!"

The arrival at Elmhurst Hospital was nothing short of chaotic as Kate was whisked away by doctors, leaving Castle standing a bit dumbfounded in the ambulance bay. He wasn't sure what to do next. Jake surely needed to be checked over, though he seemed to be doing okay now that his cries had been reduced to whimpers. Thankfully, a nurse took notice of him and ushed him inside the emergency department.

Once he'd been ushered behind an exam curtain, the nurse took Jake from him and laid him flat on the bed that rested there. Seeing how small Jake looked on that big bed made Castle's diaphragm flutter and a wave of emotions came crashing over him. He had never once thought that there might be something wrong with Jake. He was, after all, only two weeks early, which should not have been any cause for alarm. But now with Jake surrounded by doctors and nurses examining him and Kate unconscious somewhere else in the ER, Castle began to have a full panic attack. He covered his face with his hands and tried his best not to begin hyperventilating because he knew that wouldn't do anyone any good, but he had also never been so terrified in his entire life. In the course of fifteen minutes his emotions had evolved from fear, to relief, and now back to fear again and he could hardly stand it. If he were to lose both of them, he wasn't sure what he would do.

"Sir? Sir, can you hear me?"

"Wha—what? What is it?" he stammered out, shutting his eyes and giving his head a little shake in an attempt to focus on the nurse standing in front of him.

"We need your name, sir. For the baby's paperwork."

"Is he alright?"

"They're checking him now, sir. Your name please?"

"Ah…Richard Castle."

"And the baby's mother?"

"K-Katherine Beckett."

"Your spouse?"

"No; fiancée."

"Okay, and does the baby have a name yet? It's okay if he doesn't."

"Yes. Yes. It's Jacob Alexander Castle."

"Thank you." She entered the information he provided into the laptop that had been wheeled in the examination area. Then from a printer on the laptop cart she assembled several bracelets, one of which went around each of Jake's ankles and then she affixed one to Castle's left wrist. He spun it around so he could see Jake's name and then his own listed as the father. He placed his right hand over the bracelet, shut his eyes, and sent out a silent prayer that nothing was wrong with his son.

"Sir?"

Castle's eyes popped open and he frantically asked. "How is he? Is he okay?"

The woman in a white coat gave him a small smile. "Yes, he's doing just fine. All his vitals are good. He was almost full term, right?"

Castle nodded. "Yes, yes we're only about twelve days out from his due date."

"Okay, well then I'm going to send him up to the nursery to get cleaned up and observed in the short term."

"Can my fiancée and I have him in the room with us?" he asked, knowing that on the off-chance Jerry Tyson escaped the police somehow, there was no way he was going to allow Jake out of his sight.

"Let's see what your fiancée's doctors say before we agree to that, okay?"

"O-okay…" Castle responded distantly feeling as though his brain was being overwhelmed with all the news. He felt as though his heart was being torn in half. He wanted to follow Jake to the nursey to make sure he would be okay, but he needed to find Kate as he'd had no update on her condition. He was so paralyzed by this confliction that all he could do was watch as a nurse scooped up Jake, put him in a bassinette, and then wheeled him off towards the elevators. When he finally came to his senses a few moments later, he said aloud, "My fiancée! I need to know how she is!" but of course there was no one immediately around him to respond, so he was forced to rush back to the entrance to the ER to find the intake desk, all the while hoping that by the end of the day, somehow, they would all be okay.


A/N: sorry i didn't update earlier in the week i've been really busy

final chapter will be Sat morning, epilogue on Sunday

thanks so much for reading everyone!