The couple have gone back to the main ballroom for the closing formal dinner and awards ceremony. The ceremony that Kate is dreading, like facing a Tiger or a sniper and not knowing what horrible thing might happen next.
She decided, tonight, she would look the part of the professional woman she is. Not to mention the wife of a world famous author who is occasionally in the spotlight of the media and often at some formal gala or public event where she has always shown her very dignified side. Fortunately, tonight, it is just her classmates and two of them.
But there is still that little bit in her past that might come back to haunt her
She has dressed in a nice black, off the shoulder dress. The full skirt passing just below her knees but still exposing her lovely legs in a modest manor.
The group assemble in the room and the festivities begin. The meal is served and the conversations flow easily sometimes bringing laughs or embarrassing tales of childish stories of antics that many would wish had not lived to this day
As they are waiting Maddison Quillar step up and her and Kate laugh and reminisce. Just in a few minutes the program begins. Maddie stands and says just loud enough that Kate knows Rick can hear "Don't worry…you and I are the only ones that can confirm what happened on Lexington"
That remark did not help Kate's blood pressure
Several minutes pass with stories of the events those many years ago with Kate worried about what forgotten event from her own teenaged years still might resurface.
One event in particular she hopes no one either knows about or no longer remembers but the stories of tonight will tell. Stories from the most mundane to more silly are told
A common thread passing around the room is how much of a flirt Kate was. She was known as a tease to all the boys. She leads every guy on then cuts him off just when he thought he might have a chance with her, he is left needing to take a cold shower.
"Her wearing those skin tight leather pants did little to cool any guy's jets
Kate leans into her husband "See babe, I told you that nothing happened in high school"
"You still have not modeled those pants for me" he is smiling
She seems giddy "I am not sure where they are anymore…"
These stories are something that was not anything new to Richard Castle. Her husband had spent several years suffering from her unstoppable ability to completely disarm him with a wink…a laugh…a passing whispered comment leaving him a blubbering fool. And this is something she is still totally able to do to him
When one of her classmates brings up the story of the Bed-Sty school's mascot, Peg Leg Pete and the competing high school, Sir Donley High School for boys 's mascot, a knight on a horse, she can feel Rick's eyes watching her for a reaction
Ronnie Chapman has his opportunity to tell the story from his perspective "Late on Friday night, Beckett, Madison, and another couple, that I can't remember the names, came and stole the Peg Leg Pete statue from the front steps and impaled him on the lance of the Knight…"
Beckett hears her husband let out a soft chuckle
"I will only admit to being involved…The entire escapade was Kate's idea" Ronnie finishes
Then finally the mistress of ceremony, Nancy Hopkins, wraps up by presenting Kate a plaque acknowledging her for being such as model for the Bed Sty graduates, As Kate is accepting the award someone in the crowd yells out 'don't forget to mention her being The Lady Godiva of Lexington'
Nancy speaks out "That was just a conspiracy theory"
No matter how hard she tries Beckett cannot help but turn red as the room laughs
/\/\/\/\/\
Kate is sitting quietly at the table where her and Rick finally selected for their private discussion after the awards and comments
She has a worried look on her face, wondering what her husband might be thinking she had done that brought out the comment from her old classmate
She looks at his face and cannot tell if he is worried like a man thinking his entire life is about to come crashing to an end or a man thinking this could be just one more layer in the Beckett onion. The onion that he has worked hard on trying to find the core of that particular fruit but, so far, to no avail
"Kate…we need to talk"
"I know"
"You know what it is I want to know"
"Well, there is a funny story to go along with that"
"OH? Funny?"
Kate drops her head letting her long hair cover her face
"Well…maybe not so funny in the Ha! Ha! way"
"In the WHAT kind of way then?"
"Are you sure you want to know?
"Yes I do! Will you tell me what Madison was talking about?"
She closes her eyes for just a short moment, takes a deep breath, then opens them. He can see a glisten on the whites where tears begin to try and escape
She reaches out to touch her husband's hand "Rick I was young and impetuous…and I should not have done what I did. I would have embarrassed my parent to the point we would have had to move out of the city. Dad would have put me in a nunnery"
At this moment a man steps up beside the table halting the conversation "Am I interrupting" Detective Drake asks
Rick says "Yes" at the same moment Kate, in a panic, says "No"
"I won't stay long so you two can get back to whatever you were discussing"
Kate leaves her hand on her husband's so he knows she is not running from the conversation that will follow
"First off…I enjoyed working with the two of you so very much"
"Same here" Kate responds
"But something happened during this case that brought me to the decision I had to make"
"What decision is that?"
"When I left the service, I was offered a job with a civilian contractor that does work for both the government and private sector. Work that sometimes borders on the gray edge. It's called SAG"
"Odd name" Castle responds
"Stands for Strategic Action Group"
"OK" Castle comments
"But I was not sure about wanting to be involved in some of their work so I declined the original offer"
Castle feels his wife's fingers tighten on his. He knows what she is thinking
"Are you talking about doing jobs that are outside the rule of law?"
The man shakes his head "No, not wet work or criminal activities like Ms. Beckett faced from Bracken"
Kate's head snaps up when he says that. "How do you know about that? Were these people the one's…"
"NO! No. I was aware of what happened to your mother. But at a much later time. It was part of a conversation that I had with the recruiter for this agency. He assured me that his company had never and would never do that type work for the benefit of some rogue politician or anyone else. All the jobs taken were to benefit of the downtrodden and the governments serving their people and would be sanctioned"
"What are you saying?" Kate asks
"After running into dead ends on this case and not locating whoever stole the software I got to thinking. I could help with these type cases and since I have no other reason to stay here…"
Castle and Beckett know exactly what he means when he says that he has nothing keeping him in this town
"So what are you planning to do?" Beckett questions
He looks at the couple "I am going to go and try to help the underdog by protecting the world or just a little girl being threatened or being sold into slavery. Whatever the victim needs"
"That sounds like a heroic thing to do" Castle remarks
"Not heroic. Just necessary. I don't want to see bad things happen to good people"
"So when do you leave?"
"I have already packed what few items I have and I am on my way to…" he stops realizing he cannot tell them his destination. That place is classified "Just say I have a place to be"
"Understood "Beckett states "you have a safe trip and take care of yourself" She looks at Rick "We have grown to like you"
"Thanks and you two keep having the most amazing love live together. You are great examples of what you can be if you really want it"
Castle and Beckett both nod in agreement as they watch him exit the building
Castle speaks first "I doubt if we will ever see or hear from him again"
"No but we will hear about things he does"
"True"
There is an extended pause then Rick looks back to Kate "so, where were we?"
A deep breath enters her lungs once more "It was late on a Friday night or more accurately early Saturday morning…Maddie and I had had a little too much to drink…actually a lot too much to drink"
She looks up through her lashes. "We were playing truth or dare"
"A lot of teenagers do that"
"Not every teenager has a Harley"
"This has to do with your bike?"
"Sort of"
"Sort of…how?"
"Well after the usual questions like how many times have you gone home drunk? How many guys have you had in one night…?"
"WAIT! I thought you said you didn't…I mean…not in high school"
"Like I said…I didn't…but After a few too many shots of tequila truth is not necessary the best thing in the conversation"
"OK then what happened?"
"Maddie gave me a dare…she dared me to ride my Harley down Lexington from one end to the other…"
"I am sure you rode there many times before"
"Not Nude"
Castle almost chokes trying to get his breath back "You rode down Lexington…? NUDE?"
"No. That was the dare. But I was too drunk and told her if I did, she had to ride with me"
"So you AND Maddison rode nude down the main street?"
"NO. I was able to convince her that maybe it was just as good to do it wearing very little. You know, leaving a lot to the imagination of any guys who saw us…so I wore my vest and chaps"
"And?"
She is trying to look at her husband in the eyes and it has become almost impossible. She is afraid of seeing his disappointment in his face
"Nothing else…everything was covered…well not everything…but nothing was visible to any spectators"
"Let me get this straight…you rode on your bike from one end of Lexington to the other wearing nothing but an open front vest barely covering anything and chaps. Chaps that I believe are open between…"
She cuts him off "I wore my helmet. No one knew it was me"
He pauses again "So this is something that Maddie knew about you but you said you knew more about her? Like what?"
"She was on the back of my bike?"
"You both rode down the street with almost nothing on?"
"We shared"
"You SHARED? You mean she wore the vest part time… and…you didn't…? or the chaps… or who wore what…when?"
Kate sees no change in Rick's face for an extended period of time then an eyebrow rises a tiny amount "Do you still have the vest and chaps?"
"Yeah I do. They are in a box in storage along with those leather pants"
"What else is in that box?"
"Just stuff"
"Kinky stuff?"
She suddenly feels relief. He is playing with her and does not seem to be upset "Maybe?" she comments in glee
"I'll tell you what…how about you model that outfit for me? The vest and chaps"
"In your dreams"
"Look at my dreams. She married me"
FINIS
Thanks everyone for reading and reviewing this story and all my Murder in series...
I hope I brought some fun and a laugh or two
I have a couple of ideas for new stories but nothing pinned down at the moment.
We will have to see where life takes me
I wonder what will happen to STAKE?