Chapter Four
About three hours later Rick entered Kate's room, passing Jim on his way out. Jim had been give the first visit with Kate about half an hour before, but now it was time for him to be taken into protective custody by Ryan.
Jim paused in the doorway. "She's in your hands now; do what you can to keep her safe. I hope this ends soon and then we can all get on with our lives, all of us. She'll try to push you away, but don't let her. Stick close to her, she's gonna need you."
Sitting down beside Kate, he cradled her hand between his. He knew he didn't have much time before the nurse kicked him out. Kate lay against the stark white sheets, her skin almost the same color. Her eyes were closed and he wondered when she'd wake up.
Dawn was just slipping through the blinds when Castle woke. Kate had roused for a few minutes in the evening before slipping back into unconsciousness. Rick was happy to see her eyes open but he realized she needed her sleep.
Gently, he ran his fingertips over the back of her hand. "I meant every word, Kate. I should have told you sooner, but I was scared you wouldn't let me follow you anymore. Now I've said it. I love you and I want to stay with you, no matter what you do. I'm gonna be dogging your steps."
"Is that a threat or a pro-" Kate stopped sucking in a few breaths.
Happy to see her eyes open, Rick grinned. Then he bent close and kissed her softly on the lips. "Oh, it's a promise. It always was." Reaching out, he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
Kate turned her head away. "What do you know about the shooter? Do they have any leads?"
At the same moment a nurse entered and shooed out Rick. "Let the detective rest. She's been through a lot today."
Resigned, Rick nodded, but when he went to leave Kate didn't let go. "I want him to stay." Her eyes met Rick's. "I'll sleep better knowing he's here."
The nurse frowned but relented. "He can stay but no talking. She needs to rest."
Rick, unable to resist, snapped to attention and saluted with the wrong hand because Kate still clung to the other.
Kate smiled as she closed her eyes once more. "'Night. Castle, will you be here when I wake up then?"
Lowering himself back into his seat beside the bed he kissed her hand. "I'm here for you. Kate."
"Me too, Rick, me..." Then her eyes drifted shut and she was asleep.
Rick settled deeper into the chair and studied Kate, taking comfort in each breath, grateful she was alive. They needed to solve this case; it was time Kate was free. She deserved it after all these years.
Rick yawned as the events of the day began to catch up with him. For just a moment he thought about climbing into the bed beside Kate, but instead he just laid his head down on the bed and instantly was asleep.
Kate came awake slowly. Her first awareness was a hand linked with hers and someone's breath flowing over that same hand. The next one was the dull ache in her side, but knowing Rick was there made the pain bearable.
Easing her eyes open, she looked around the room to see the stark walls of a hospital room. Drawing a deep breath she looked over at Rick, whose head lay next to their linked hands.
Then suddenly it came back to her. The reflection from behind the gravestone on the far side of the cemetery, the sound of the shot, Rick calling her name and then diving to take her to the ground just after the bullet struck her. Last of all she remember Rick's declaration.
She swallowed. Did he really mean it? Kate stopped that train of thought; she knew Rick, if he said those words then he meant them. He wasn't the type to play games like that.
Tears formed in her eyes as she replayed his words over and over in her mind. Reaching out, she laid her hand on his hair, threading through the strands and reveling in the softness.
At her touch, Rick lifted his head and she moved her hand up to his cheek. "Rick..."
"I know Kate, but where do we go from here? I love you Kate, but-"
"No buts. If we do this then we do it right, but not until we settle this thing with my mother's killers. We find the Kingpin and then take him and his organization out. Until then I can't divide my focus or someone else might get hurt. It's time to end this, we're so close."
Rick shook his head. "No, Kate, that's not how this is going to work and you know it. Life is short and now you're going to live. Time to stop hiding. It's what you want, I know you do.
Then he kissed her. It was nothing more than a light brushing of lips, but Kate could see the truth in Rick's eyes. He wasn't going to let her retreat, not now or ever.
His hand rested on her cheek. "So are we going to try that again?"
If she was honest with herself there was no way she'd be able to shove her emotions back into the closet. She needed Rick like she needed to breathe.
Neither of them heard the door open or saw the smug smile on Lanie's face until she spoke.
"I see you're feeling better, Kate." Lanie stood in the doorway.
She walked into the room and Rick jumped back, trying to stumble out an explanation but Lanie just arched her brow and slapped a manila envelope into his chest.
"You're lucky it was me who walked through that door first, not Ryan or Javier. You never would have heard the end of it. By the way, it's about time the two of you stopped pussyfooting around and got down to business."
"The business of what?" Ryan asked, coming in the door.
Rick looked over at Kate, who smiled sardonically. "None of yours, Ryan. So what do you have for me on my shooter?"
"Nothing. He policed his brass, taking his bullets, and left nothing for us. No DNA, no fingerprints. Nada. It's like he's a ghost."
"Well keep digging," Kate said, rearranging her bedclothes, not looking at Rick. She loved her friends but right now she just wanted them to leave so she could be alone with Rick, there were still things they needed to talk about.
"You gonna open that or should I?" Javier pointed to the large yellow envelope still cradled in Castle's arms.
"You guys checked my mail?" Rick asked, flipping the envelope over to study the postmark and address. "How did you get this? It was sent to Black Pawn for me."
"Gina brought it by this morning. You'd better call her, she started spitting nails when I told her she wasn't allowed to know which hospital Beckett was at. She's also very angry that you're not answering his calls. I told her your cell was probably off because of hospital policy. She's tired of having to deal with your publicist, who wants to have a statement ready to give the press."
Rick rolled his eyes. "I'll all her later, can you guys take it to her?"
Kate looked over at the envelope and plucked it out of Rick's hands before he could say any more.
"That handwriting is Captain Montgomery's. What would he send you?"
Ripping open the envelope, she dumped the contents into her lap and everyone studied what Montgomery had left for them.
Castle swallowed. "Where did this come from? I mean, this makes our case. All of it. We just have to verify everything and then we can take this man down." Rick gestured to the pile of paper and photographs. "This was his last gift to you, Kate. He wanted to end this thing. It was more than just keeping you safe that night, it was about all of us. He'd been planning this for a long time. You don't just gather this kinda of evidence over night. By why did he wait until now?"
Javier frowned. "What do you mean, Castle?"
Rick chose one of the photos of the Dragon and Dick Coonan. "I mean if the captain had all this, why not give it to us sooner; we've been stumbling around in the dark since I linked Kate's mom's case with those other victims. There had to be some reason for him to take the chance he did."
"Me." All eyes turned to Kate. "They were going after me, they made him choose between me and his family. So he took himself out of the equation. They couldn't hurt him if he was dead. I was getting too close; until now they had just taken out those who could lead me to them. Roy's death was my fault. I should have listened to you, Rick, I should have backed off that night and let it all go."
Rick sat down on the bed and wrapped his arms around Kate. "No, I was wrong. I was asking you to deny who you are. The only outcome now is to finish this and Roy gave us the means. We're going to use all this and take down the kingpin." Neither of them noticed that the others had left, leaving the two of them alone. Rick brushed at a tear that escaped down her cheek. "We're going to make his sacrifice worthwhile."
"It's time to make that man pay. There is no way the mayor will get away with this any longer."
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