"I need you to know that our partnership, our relationship is the greatest thing that has happened to me" K.B.

Chapter 4

Half formed images floated in and out of his consciousness like the fuzzy pictures of an old black and white television, the edges distorted so much that he could feel his head ache as he attempted to capture them. A country road, a nondescript dark-colored SUV, men in balaclava, all jumbled around his mind, intermingled with the scent of diesel fumes, salt, days-old fish and his own fear. The incessant jack hammer in his head only matched by the lancing pains in his body and the pitch and roll of his stomach when ever he moved.

Each time he surfaced enough to become aware of his surroundings it was to find himself in the dark, the cold hard floor under his body heaving and dipping as if it were attempting to dislodge him. His body would be flung from side to side with each movement of the floor, only stopping when it collided with another hard surface, the burning pain in his arms and chest, his crushing headache enough to pull him back under into oblivion with each brutal knock, only for the process to repeat itself again and again.

Time didn't exist in the darkness only pain and a deep wrenching fear of what was to come next. Each time he felt himself succumbing to the blinding pain he would try to think of her to keep himself tethered to this reality. Her amused smile as she tried in vain to hide her enjoyment of his crazy theories, the way she tilted her head to the right when she was pleased with something and the way she laughed with the entirety of her being, releasing a soft snort that he loved to hear. He had watched her for five years from his place at her side and he knew her nuances, her gestures and her tells maybe better than she knew them herself. But his favorite was when she was lying draped around him, her long legs intertwined with his, her head tucked under his chin and her soft breath warm against his skin as she exhaled. As he slid under yet again he could swear that he felt her warm body wrap around him, holding him and easing his pain.

The next time he woke, the floor had ceased its pitching motion, his bound arms now numb as they lay lodged between his back and the wall behind him. Each inward drawn breath sending a lancing pain through the left side of his chest,accompanied by a soft moan. Castle shifted sideways, ignoring the pain in his chest and arms to draw his legs underneath him and hurl him abused body up the wall into a sitting position. He felt the room swim and tilt as his stomach revolted at the movement, his head attempting to split into two and drag him back down into oblivion. Castle pressed himself into the wall, a cold sweat dripping down his neck as he waited for the pain and nausea to subside, unable to do much else but pray that it would go away. This couldn't be happening, this was his wedding day to Kate and this is definitely not what he had planned today. Unless he was mistaken, and he had to admit he was only ever occasionally mistaken, ok, ok, well maybe more than occasionally but right now he wished he was, because he was sitting with his hands restrained behind him with possible fractured ribs and a concussion on a boat, somewhere off the coast, and Beckett was out there with no idea what had happened to him.

Castle slowly lowered his head to his knees, because any other movement would have resulted in a return of his nausea and tried to slow his breathing, the panic rising in his chest, making it difficult to think. Each shuddering breath was causing his ribs to hurt more and he was starting to feel the lack of oxygen as the dizziness returned, so he focused on each slow inhalation and exhalation, blocking everything else from his mind. The panic slowly receded with each calming breath and Castle started to piece together the patchwork of images fluttering across his mind. The story of his wedding day was starting to pull together like a plot outline on his story board and even with the gaping holes in it, he knew he was in trouble, big trouble without much hope of a rescue.

He remembered talking to Kate on the phone. her "Hey Lover" sending chills of desire down his spine, and making his foot press down a little harder on the accelerator in order to get to her quicker. His continued amazement that they had finally got to this point threatening to burst from his chest and almost choke his words, even with all the stumbling blocks of the last few days including mysterious appearances of sleazy ex-husbands, of pastor-blackmailing strippers, clumsy fire-twirling circus performers, water drenched wedding dresses and mobsters on the lam, they had made it and where minutes away from getting married.

Kate's "I love you too" had barely disappeared from the air when he had noticed the black SUV sitting on his bumper. A feeling of deep dread had flared to life within him because if he had written this scene, which he was sure he had put Nicki Heat in this exact scenario at least twice before, than nothing good was coming his way. Pressing hard on the accelerator, he felt the front wheels grip onto the dirt road as the Mercedes jumped forward. Keeping an eye on his tail in the rear-vision mirror Castle expertly navigated the winding country roads, glad for the lessons in F1 racing he had taken that time he had Derek Storm go undercover in Monte Carlo during the Grand Prix. Without taking his eye off the road, he reached for his phone trying to call Kate. Glancing quickly at the screen he scrolled to Kate's name and jabbed his finger at the call button, missing it as the car jolted. Approaching a sharp corner,he felt the rear wheels hit loose gravel and slide out sending the car into a spin, Castle dropped the phone, needing both hands to prevent the car from crashing. Accelerating out of the spin he was able to correct the car's trajectory and prevent serious damage but he could see the SUV take the corner with more control and speed up as it gained on him again. Grabbing for his phone, Castle could feel the desperation rising within him. He needed to talk to Kate, he needed to hear her voice as his intuition was telling him that this car chase may not end well for him and he couldn't leave without hearing his fiance's voice for one last time.

A hard bump from behind sent the phone skittering out of his hand, onto the floor of the passenger seat and out of his reach. Swearing, Castle gripped the steering wheel and accelerated, the Mercedes jumping to life under his desperate hands. He watched with trepidation as the SUV gained on him, all his energy now focused on controlling the speeding car on the winding dirt roads. As he came around a blind corner, he watched as the SUV reduced its speed and his advantage increased, with hope blooming in his chest he almost missed the second black SUV parked sideways across the road in front of him, having been hidden from view until he exited the turn. Looking wildly around as he slammed on his brakes he felt his breath catch in his throat as he realised he had no out. There was no way around the parked SUV and he would not walk away if he rammed it at his current speed. Allowing the car to drift sideways as he kept the brake to the floor he felt the car slam into an abrupt stop, his head whipping around, hitting the window with a loud crack and blinding pain coursing through him as his body was pushed backwards by the seatbelt, leaving a burn where it dug into his skin through the tuxedo.

Disoriented Castle fought off the darkness that was creeping in as the pain intensified in his head and with hands slick with sweat he reached for the seatbelt, swearing as his fingers fumbled with the clasp. Maybe if he could get out of the car he could make it to the woods and hide, he thought but as he looked up through the windscreen he watched as four men in black clothing with balaclava and guns poured out of the stationary SUV. If he wasn't injured, in peril and just a bit scared he might laugh at the clichéd scene unfolding before him. Realising he had no time to escape he abandoned the jammed seat belt and dived for his phone in the passenger seat, hoping to make just one call. He felt the seat belt cut into the soft skin of his neck as reached out, his fingertips searching the carpeted floor for his phone. Feeling them slide over smooth plastic he closed his hand over the phone and straightened already frantically typing his pass code in as he glanced up through the windows. His heart threatening to jump from his chest as a wave of despair hit him when he realised that they were almost at the car, with a deep steadying breath he typed in '911' knowing he didn't have time to call Beckett.

The car door was wrenched open and he was brutally forced from the car before he could press the call button. A gasp left his throat, part frustration, part terror as he felt the gun barrel being placed to his skull, its edges pressed firmly to his skin, with enough pressure to leave an indentation.

"Put down the phone, Mr Castle or I won't hesitate to pull this trigger" A male voice made raspy by the mask over his face shouted into his ear, his words punctuated by the sound of the trigger mechanism sliding into place. "It's in your best interest to cooperate with us"

"My best interests would definitely never include this scenario" Castle mumbled

"The phone, Mr Castle" The cold steel of the gun biting deeper into his skin.

Castle let the phone slide from his slack fingers, looking around he realised that he was surrounded by at least six identically clothed people, all with guns pointed directly at him. His overactive brain taking in the two black SUVs parked at an angle effectively blocking any hope of escape now his own car completed the third side of the triangle. He desperately glanced up the deserted road, praying for a car or anyone to appear, his heart sinking as he realised he was alone.

"Who are you?" Castle asked as the gun was removed from his head. Turning he stared into the blue eyes of his attacker, the only facial feature evident below his black balaclava. The cold blue eyes held his gaze without blinking, even as the man signalled to his colleagues with a flick of his free hand as he kept the gun inches from Castle's face and an iron-grip on his shoulder.

"No-one of concern." He replied "You have a meeting to attend and I'm here to make sure you don't miss it"

"No, what I have is a wedding to attend" Castle couldn't prevent the retort from escaping.

"Not today, Mr Castle" He rasped with a finality in his tone, hitting Castle like a slap to his face. Releasing his hold on Castle as he stepped back, he raised his hand to summon the men approaching Castle with ropes and a piece of cloth in their hands.

"Who are you working for?" Castle asked, trying to keep his captor occupied with questions even though he knew he wouldn't get an answer. He just needed to buy some time to work out how to get out of this situation. "Is it Bracken? Because you should know this probably isn't a wise career choice for you boys, Bracken's network is falling like dominos and you don't want to be caught up in the free fall."

As the man turned to briefly converse with his partners, Castle ignored the other guns trained on him and made his move. He figured if they wanted him dead they would have just run his car off a cliff so they weren't going to shoot him in the back now, no these people wanted him alive, at least for now. Diving towards the rear wheel of the Mercedes he rolled into himself and used his momentum to carry him around the back fender and to safety. Slamming into the dirt road he didn't waste time looking behind him as he heard a shot hit the fender near where his head had been, instead he launched into a run and quickly ditching the idea of running into the woods he aimed for the white picket fence to his right and the safety of the house behind it. Realising he may have been a little quick to assume that they wouldn't kill him as another shot hit the fence paling just a fraction of a second before his hand reached for it, he sprung up on his heels and shifted his weight to vault over the fence.

He never made it as a weight crashed into him from behind, sending his body slamming into the fence paling. Castle grunted in pain as he felt his ribs snap with the force, the breath expelled forcibly from his body as he crashed to the ground, the weight of his attacker grinding him into the dirt before it was removed and he was lifted into the air. Castle gasped for breath, his head spinning with the excruciating pain threatening to cause him to black out. He crumpled over as a fist plowed into his abdomen, what remaining air in his lungs expelled in a loud groan, the pain in his ribs intensifying as he struggled to breathe. A hand wrapped around his throat and he felt his head jerk up so that he could meet the blue eyes of his captor.

"Do not do that again, Mr Castle." He was instructed, as the fingers pressed deeper into the soft tissues of his throat and his head started to swim with the lack of oxygen. "I may have been instructed to deliver you alive but I'm sure my employer won't mind if a few parts are missing"

Castle's legs were kicked out from underneath him just as the hand released its grip on his throat. He was able to suck in a tortured breath before his injured left side slammed into the dirt road and the pain washed over him like a red-hot tsunami, dragging him under with the force of its waves until the darkness consumed him and he sunk into its coolness. His last words coming out on a gasp.

"No, YOU don't want to do this. She will hunt you down." Sinking into oblivion he missed the concerned looks shared between the less experienced of his captors at the quiet confidence in the injured man's voice.

Castle shuddered even hours later at the memories of that bone-crushing pain. Looking around him now that his vision had cleared he could make out the slightly sloping walls of his prison in the filtered darkness. Several boxes laid stacked near his feet but it was the rolled up anchor and nets as well as the overwhelming stench of days-old fish and the gentle rocking motion under his feet that really painted the true nature of his prison. He was in a fishing vessel, likely in the hold given the lack of portholes. Taking a deep breath he tried sliding his legs underneath him further so that he could push up into a kneeling position but the pressure on his fractured ribs was causing the bones to grind together as nausea and pain overwhelmed him. Sucking in a burning breath he rested back against the wall of the boat, ignoring the pins and needles in his bound hands. He had to get out of here, he had to get back to Kate but for the first time that he could remember he didn't have a plan. Castle couldn't see a way out of his current predicament because even if he by some miracle he was able to get free, he was in no state to jump overboard and swim. The gentle rocking motion suggested that they were anchored or docked somewhere out of the swells that had previously been jolting him awake but even then there was no way he would be able to get past at last count the six armed men guarding him to get onto the wharf. No, he needed to bide his time and wait til they took him where ever they were going on dry land then he could plan an escape that had a better chance of succeeding.

Continuing to take small shallow breaths in, Castle was able to control the nausea and prevent further pain from shooting up from his fractured ribs. Settling back down onto the cold floor and shifted forward slightly to ease the pressure from his bound hands, the inevitability of his situation wrapped itself around him as he started to realise that he may never see Kate again. Only yesterday, he thinks it was yesterday, he had been so sure that they were finally going to make it, they were going to get their happy ending. But now it had been ripped away from them again.

Castle's breaths quickly change into shuttering gasps as he feels their dreams slip from his fingers. From the first moment he had looked up at that book launch party and into her eyes, he had known that they would have a story together, he had just never imagined quite what an extraordinary story it would be. When he lies beside her at night and softly caresses her smooth skin, feels the soft puffs of breath that escape her lips as she sleeps, he allows himself to be overwhelmed with amazement that they have made it here to this moment. That it is him, she turns to, seeking warmth as she curls her body around his and softly mumbles "Stop it, it's creepy" and he realises that even in sleep her spidey sense is as active as ever. But it's her soft tilting smile in those shared moments that tells him she feels it too, that she is as invested in their story as he is.

Castle's gasps subside as he makes a promise to this Kate, his Kate that he will find a way out and back to her, because he truly believed it when he told her that it was a sign of any true love story that there would be seemingly overwhelming trials to transcend and hadn't they braved fire, water, ice, ex-wifes, tigers, assassins, powerful senators and their own walls to get where they are today, so a few gun wielding kidnappers weren't about to stop their story.

A soft self-deprecating laugh falls from his lips as the reality of his situation steamrolled over his internal image of fairy tales and heroic cops.

Maybe Kate had been right when she had said "Our wedding was supposed to be magical, it was supposed to be our perfect day and now it's just...falling apart".

Because it did fall apart and as he sat in the hold of a fishing boat, somewhere off the coast, Kate was waiting for him back at the house, by now she would know that he was missing and Castle's only hope was that she would not believe that he had intentionally left her. Slumping back down onto the floor, he rested his throbbing head on the cold surface. Castle knew that he had to figure this out before it was too late, but his body screamed with pain and all his thoughts were jumbled up inside so that he couldn't make sense of anything. Closing his eyes and allowing exhaustion to overcome him, to release him from the pulsating pain of his injuries for just a moment, he made a promise to Kate.

"If we want that happy ending then we don't give up" He whispered into the air, as the darkness pulled him under again "Don't give up Kate, because I won't"