One month is better than six? Hey, guys. Sorry it's taken so long to update. Again. My lovely beta, Suzanne, went on a vacation. Then, she came back, and we went on vacation together to San Diego Comic Con. Managed to get tickets for the Nathan Fillion Nerd HQ panel, and of course, it was epic. He's even more ruggedly handsome in person. As for the weeks after that, I have no excuse, but I hope the wait wasn't too terrible.
Thanks to all of you for sticking around despite my failings. Your encouragement means a lot. :)
Previously
By the time they get to the abandoned building where they think the boys are being held, the sun has already set. It turns out the place is being patrolled. A lone but intimidating guard stands watch, wire in his ear to contact the men inside.
"This must be it," whispers the Copycat Vigilante.
"Yeah, but how are we going to get past him?" She points ahead to the guard who has his arms crossed over his chest, as if daring them to try something. "He'll alert Lockwood before we have the chance to go in."
"I think I might just have an idea."
This might be the most ridiculous thing she's ever agreed to. Kate feels Castle's warm palm resting against her back, way too close for comfort. He stumbles into her, and she lets out a silly giggle, trying her best to play the part. But from the look in the guard's eyes, he can see right through their act.
"He's not buying it," she whispers. Her hand drifts to her firearm instinctively.
Suddenly, the Castle is slapping her fingers off of the holster. What the hell? His own hands frame her face, and Kate freezes. There's a look in his eyes that's a little bit reckless and a whole lot dangerous. Oh, no. No way.
She has exactly two seconds to panic before he lowers his mouth to hers.
Holy-
Kate's stomach flips wildly. She's kissing Richard Castle. The Copycat Killer, Richard Castle. Holy shit.
The kiss is softer than she would have imagined - not that she had ever imagined - and it's timid and over in a moment. He pulls back to look at her, unsure of the next move. A glance at the guard tells her she has no other choice.
She takes a breath and goes back in.
His lips move against hers, a little sloppy at first, but then with fervor. A hand comes up on her back, pulling her closer. It's unexpected. She gasps, an embarrassing noise escaping before his tongue enters hot and wet, and he groans.
There's something between them. It's a feeling that both sickens and excites her. They have a connection. Through their similar tragedies? Through murder? Building theory? Whatever it is, it's so wrong, but she knows he feels it too. He bites her lip, and in turn, her fingers thread into his hair.
From this angle, she can see the guard when she opens an eye, and his back is towards them. Now, now, now!
She rips her mouth away from Castle's and twists, her leg coming up in a roundhouse kick, taking the henchman down and knocking him out against the pavement.
Kate's breath is heavy, her lips swollen, face on fire.
"That was amazing."
Her neck snaps to look at him, and he quickly amends. "The way you knocked him out, I mean." He jerks his head to the man's prone form. "Im-impressive. Does the NYPD have a program for mixed martial arts?"
She's still in a daze. Shit. "You better not pull anything like that ever again. Let's go," she pants, ignoring his question and turning away to wipe the back of her hand over her mouth.
They enter the building silently. He knows Beckett's worried - she's doing that lip biting thing again. She thinks they'll try to contact the guard out front, and when he doesn't respond, they won't hesitate to kill her partners. Castle's worried for her. So they go fast, not much time to scope out who they're dealing with.
"You stay here," she whispers as they approach a stack of crates. He can see a few goons lurking around with pistols strapped to their hips. "Don't do anything stupid. Just...you're my only backup right now."
"Why, Detective Beckett, I'm touched."
"Shut up," she hisses. "If someone comes close, you should probably find a weapon to defend yourself." He has a gun strapped to his ankle, but now might not be the best time to mention it. Instead, he nods obediently. "But that's last resort, got it? Last resort."
"Beckett?" he asks as she's about to slink away. "What if...shouldn't I come? As your backup, to protect you."
"I can protect myself." And with one last roll of her eyes, she's gone.
Then the gunshots start. Without Beckett in his line of vision, Castle panics. He should be out in the fray with her, not hiding back here like a coward.
He begins to climb then, trying to get eyes on her and the situation below. Ah, there she is, crouched and panting, reloading her weapon. But his relief only last for a moment because he also sees Lockwood standing mere feet away from the crate he's hanging on, and his gun is trained on Beckett's head.
Castle has no choice. From his vantage point, he readies his own piece and takes the shot, aiming to shoot the gun out of his hands. But Lockwood hears the safety click and turns at the last minute.
His bullet sails through the air and imbeds itself in the sniper's shoulder. Lockwood shouts, thrown backwards from the force, head smacking the ground.
Oh, it's bad. This is bad. It's not what he meant to do. But surely a man like Lockwood wouldn't discriminate in his work. Surely he's killed men and women alike by the dozens. He deserves this, or at least Castle has to tell himself that. But he doesn't have weeks of research to justify his actions this time.
There's just so much blood. It puddles out from under Lockwood's arm and his skull, a halo of glowing crimson.
Still, the assassin looks up at him and chuckles. There's no time for Castle to think about what he's done. He has to take this opportunity, for Beckett. He jumps down from the crate and crouches over Lockwood, knee pressed into the man's stomach.
"Give me a name," Castle demands "Who's behind this? Who are you working for?"
"Hey, I know you. You're...you're the one who erased Coonan. The Copycat Vigilante. Tell me, what separates you from the rest of us?"
"Everything," he growls, offended. "Everything separates me from the people you work with. My reasons are just. My hands are clean, and yours are filled with blood-stained cash. Now, I'm going to ask you one more time. Who's in charge?"
"Why are you even working with her anyway? What do you hope to achieve? Redemption? Or maybe you're just hoping to get into her pants." His mocking tone is dulled by the pained moan that follows. "As if she would ever let you touch her. She's using you, and let me tell you, there are easier ways to find a woman to fuck."
Castle presses two fingers into the open wound at Lockwood's shoulder. Maybe that will motivate him. The ensuing yelps give him some sick satisfaction at least. "A name."
"Tell your bitch she's awakened the dragon," Lockwood spits. "His power stretches further than you can imagine, and now there's nothing she can do to stop him from coming after her."
He scoffs. "That's some fairy tale. But the stories I care about are more fact than fiction. The big boss has you shaking in your boots? Well, fine. Tell me how Pulgatti and Raglan fit in. How does Johanna Beckett piss off a dragon?"
Lockwood begins to cackle. It's a scary, wheezing thing, clotted with blood. "You're fucking morons. He was under your noses the entire time. Watching her…keeping tabs, pretending to be a saint. But she never realized, never questioned his interest in her, never thought to. Pathetic."
"Who, Lockwood? Who?"
"Didn't want to see...I guess." He gasps for air. "If you can't trust the people you work for, who can you trust, right? Hah...pathetic."
Suddenly, in a moment of clarity while a man bleeds out in front of him, the pieces fall together. Beckett, her mother, Raglan. The pictures in Raglan's apartment. The young man nestled beneath Raglan and McCallister's wings. The NYPD. Watching, keeping tabs, all this time. The reason Beckett was kicked off this case. It's not the answer he was looking for, but in this moment...it's blinding.
And as the wheels turn in Castle's mind, Lockwood takes his last breath.
The gunfire stops, finally. Beckett stands and dusts off her knees. But Lockwood is still unaccounted for. And where is Castle?
She turns around toward where she told him to hide and sees the color red, seeping across the concrete floor, a lot of it. But whom does it belong to? Kate draws closer and then lets out a breath she didn't realize she was holding.
He's still alive and standing. However, the man below him is not.
"Castle, is that…?
"I'm sorry," he says faintly, staring down at his hands. They're shaking and covered in blood. A gun rests by his foot. "I didn't mean for this to happen. I didn't want to kill him. He was aiming for you, and then he turned and I...it was an accident. I'm sorry."
"Castle. Rick," she says, torn between anger and concern, stepping forward to grasp his shoulder. "Snap out of it."
"Beckett? Is it over?"
She nods. "Yes, it's over. Where did you get that gun?" He looks up at her and gives a tight smile but doesn't say a word. "Nevermind. It's not important now. Just...take it with you. You gotta get out of here. I don't want the boys to see you."
"Stop, hold on. There's something important I have to tell you," he begged, seeming to come back to himself.
"It can wait."
"It can't. It really can't. I asked Lockwood about your mother before he died. He wouldn't give me the name of the man he's working for, but-"
She's trying to consider this a win, trying not to let the death of a possible lead ruin that. "I know, you're sorry. What's done is done."
"Just listen to me," demands Castle. "He wouldn't give up the man behind all of this, but it sounds like he's more powerful than either of us thought. And he did give me something else. Someone who was involved with Pulgatti's kidnapping."
That makes her stop. Everything goes quiet, except for the stupid and hopeful thrumming of her heart. "But we already have Raglan and McCallister…"
"There was someone else, a third man. I noticed a photo in Raglan's office on the night I went to visit him. I didn't realize it then, but then Lockwood said something that made me think."
"He gave you a name?"
"Not a name." She tries to hide her disappointment, but it must not work because Castle reaches for her hand. And she lets him. "It wasn't a name, but it was enough for me to draw my own conclusions."
"Okay. What did you realize, Castle?"
"You're not going to like it."
"Just tell me," she pleads. She should be checking on Ryan and Esposito right now, calling an ambulance. It's selfish of her, but she has to know.
He leans in close and whispers the name into her ear, and she immediately wishes he hadn't. The furious heartbeats stop. Utter silence, dangerous in the way it allows her mind to wander, to consider.
No.
"I'm sorry, Beckett," he says, brushing her knuckles with his thumb. " I wish it wasn't true, but it makes sense. I wouldn't burden you with this if I wasn't sure."
"How sure?" she chokes.
"I'll look into it, I promise. I'll double check. Triple check. A thousand times over if you want, believe me. Until then, be careful. Don't do anything reckless."
She feels a hysterical laugh bubbling up inside at that but manages to put a lid on it. Him telling her not to be reckless. She's losing her mind. "Get out of here."
"Beckett, I'm-"
"I swear to God, Castle, if you apologize one more time…" She takes a long breath through her nose and exhales slowly. "We'll deal with this later, okay?"
"Okay," he relents, picking up the gun. "Go see your boys. We'll meet again, Detective."
Espo and Ryan are okay, aside from a little water in the lungs and some bruised ribs. They brush it off with jokes and macho shrugs. They ask how she found them and if she's okay. It's only then that she notices her bloodstained fingers, transferred from Castle's skin to hers. Kate gives them the carefully edited details and tells them that she's fine. But is she?
She's relieved, of course. She unties their bonds and draws them close, her partners, her brothers. But in the back of her mind, Castle's voice and the name remains.
Roy Montgomery.
This chapter was fun to write, even though it took some work. Hope you enjoyed reading. Any feedback is appreciated. :)