November 2009
"She was just so upset," he said, running his free hand through his hair as he pressed his cell to his ear. "I've never seen her like that before. I mean, I try and shield her from all this. But this- she knew before I did, and Kate, you should have seen her face. I was playing guitar hero and I-"
"You play guitar hero?" she interrupted with a laugh. "Wait. No. I mean, that's not important right now."
"No," he said. "But yeah. Why? You want to play with me sometime?"
From the front of the police issue vehicle he heard Esposito groan, and he narrowed his eyes at the back of the detective's head.
"You don't see me calling my girlfriend every time a body drops," Ryan mumbled, and Rick redirected his glare.
"Anyway." He cleared his throat. "I may need to take a rain check on dinner tonight, okay? Because I know we were going to do something, but I think Alexis needs me."
"Of course," she said. "That's good, anyway. Gabe called, and he can't take Ramona tonight, so I was going to have to change our plans anyway."
"Oh." He nodded, as Ryan pulled up in front of the precinct. "Okay."
"But we'll talk?" she asked, and he smiled.
"Definitely."
He ended the call as Ryan killed the engine, but following the guys into the precinct, his mind remained on Kate and their phone call. How could Gabe think it was okay to cancel on Ramona like that? He grimaced. Kate's ex was a male version of Meredith. A male, consistently employed version of Meredith, granted, but a version of his ex-wife nonetheless; someone who put their career ahead of their family.
"So what do you think?" Ryan asked, and he shrugged.
"About?"
"The case, man," Esposito said, fixing him with a strange look, and Rick shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts and get back into it.
"Angry fan?" Castle attempted, and Ryan wrinkled his nose as they walked into the building.
"Really? That's all you've got?"
"Hey!" Castle raised his hands in protest. "You guys are the detectives, I'm just here to observe!"
"Uh-huh. That's why you want a service weapon and why you insist on that vest? Because you're really committed to staying in the car?"
"Yeah. Well." Rick huffed at the sarcasm, holding the elevator door for the guys. "I do like a certain level of credibility, you know?"
Esposito snorted, exchanging a glance with Ryan, and Rick stared straight ahead. Fine. They could be like that. When he went to the cafe across the road for a coffee break later he wouldn't bring one back for them; they could drink the precinct sludge.
The elevator door chimed as they reached the fourth floor, and he strode into the bull pen after the boys.
"Castle," Montgomery called, stepping out from his office. "It's about time you got back. We've got a very persistent citizen waiting to ask you some questions."
Rick turned, his head tilting to the side as he focused on his daughter. "Alexis?"
Rick turned his key in the lock. Nothing was going the way he'd planned today. Dinner with Kate. Canceled. His perfect daughter. Upset and skipping study hall. The homicide. More disturbing than the average murder of the week, every facet of their victim's too-short life disturbing. He swung the loft door open, his senses flooded all at once by a hive of activity.
"Rick!" Ramona cried, dropping her stuffed animal onto the floor and running from the sofa toward him.
"Hey!" He picked her up, laughing, and headed for the kitchen. "Well. This is a surprise."
"She cooks, Richard," Martha said with a smug nod, looking up from where she was standing beside Alexis at her laptop.
He grinned at his mother. Kate did indeed cook, and well, but he knew that already. This though, was something else altogether. Not only was Kate cooking, but she was cooking in his kitchen, looking for all the world like she belonged there. Casual in jeans and a tee, her feet clad only in socks - he glanced back at the entrance to see her heels by the door - she reached up on her tiptoes for a glass.
He rounded the counter, leaning in to brush a soft kiss against Kate's cheek before putting Ramona back on the floor, and accepting the wine she'd poured for him.
Alexis grinned. "I called Kate when you told me to go back to school-"
"Really?" Rick narrowed his eyes at his girlfriend. "You didn't encourage her truancy did you? I know Captain Montgomery said they don't have truant officers any more, but I'm sure I can sort something out."
Kate laughed. "Do I look like I would encourage Alexis to skip school?" she asked, nuzzling into him before turning back to the pasta sauce on the stove top. "I met her here an hour ago."
"Fine, okay. Maybe not," he huffed. "And I think it's very sweet that she called you. And even more amazing that you're cooking dinner." He grinned, turning to Alexis. "Hey. If you killed someone, you would tell me, right?"
Alexis nodded. "Of course. I'd need help hiding the body."
"Morbid much?" Kate asked, and he laughed.
"You get used to it," Alexis said, turning back to her laptop, and Rick looked at her.
"What are you listening to?"
"It's Hayley's last performance," Martha said. "She hasn't stopped listening to it all night. It's called Threshold."
"Oh, yeah? Sounds pretty. Little creepy, though."
"How's it creepy?" Alexis asked. "Kate, you don't think it sounds creepy, do you?"
Kate raised her eyebrows at Martha, who nodded. "Alright, Kiddos, if you're all going to overanalyze this song - and talk case details - Ramona and I are going to go back over to the living room and finish the book we started before you came home."
"Book," Ramona echoed, trotting after Martha without a second glance.
"So what did you find out today?" Alexis asked. "You met the rest of the band, right?"
"I did." Rick grimaced. "Don't ever date someone who doesn't shower."
"Ew." Alexis turned up her nose. "Who would do that?"
Kate cleared her throat. "Stinky grunge guitarists aside… What else did you find out?"
"Hayley Blue had a sister, a stalker and a dealer, and we spoke to all of them. We also spoke to the couple who paid for her rehab and let her stay with them when she got out. I feel so bad for them. They wanted to help her, but…"
"And she has a sister?" Kate asked.
"Uh-huh." Rick reached an arm around Alexis, squeezing her. "Sky. She was a mess, an absolute mess. She was absolutely wasted when she saw Hayley's body."
"People make bad decisions when they're hurting," Kate said, and he smiled at her.
"Yeah. But if you're thinking about your dad… you know he's doing well, now. He's got you. Families pull together, even if they don't get it right every time."
"Hey!" Alexis interrupted. "Look at this message. They're saying the band is getting back together, and Hayley's sister is going to be the lead singer."
"Well," Kate said. "Who would benefit from that?"
The three of them gathered around the laptop. "The manager." Rick pulled his cell from his pocket to message Esposito, asking Kate. "You want to come in to the precinct tomorrow? Watch them take this guy down?"
"Are you sure it's okay for me to be here?" Kate asked again, and Rick nodded, turning around to face her as they stepped into the precinct's elevator.
"Totally," he said, reaching out and entwining his hand with hers. "I told the boys you'd be here, and they're cool."
"Okay." She frowned, bringing her free hand up and pushing her hair behind her ears; the split second decision last night to come with Rick today was making her nervous, and her heart thudded in her chest.
"And might I say, you're looking awfully detectivey today… Beckett."
"What?"
He reached over, selecting the fourth floor, and the elevator doors slid shut. "Your leather jacket." He nodded. "It's nice. Very Detective Beckett, instead of Lawyer Kate."
"Really?" She shook her head, biting her lip. Maybe this was a mistake? Maybe she should have stayed home, instead of asking her dad to watch Ramona? Maybe she should have thought this through a little more?
"Yeah. You know what they say," Rick continued. "Dress for the job you want, not the job you have."
"Uh-huh." She rolled her eyes. "Shouldn't I be in a uniform then? If I do this, I'm not exactly going to start out as a detective, am I?"
"Oooh!" He chuckled, his eyes widening, and she suppressed her groan. "A uniform. You're right. I could totally get on board with you in a-"
"Let's leave your fantasies out of this, shall we?" she asked, as the elevator pinged and the doors slid open, revealing the bull pen.
She felt her lips curve up of their own accord; the bustle was the same as she remembered from last time, the open floor plan welcoming, and as they stepped from the elevator, a man strode toward them. "Castle," he said. "And who's this?"
She extended her hand. "Kate Beckett, Sir."
"Captain Roy Montgomery." He took her hand, shaking it. "Castle here tells me you're looking for a little career change."
"I wouldn't go that far," she said, throwing a glare at Rick.
The Captain chuckled, releasing her hand. "Well, the mayor wants Castle here, so any friend of Rick's is a friend of mine."
"Have they brought him in yet?" Rick asked, and the Captain nodded, gesturing through the bull pen. "They've just stepped into the box. Go right ahead. You know where observation is."
Rick nodded. "Thanks, Sir."
"You're welcome. And Ms. Beckett?" Kate nodded as Montgomery spoke again. "It's a rewarding career, and sometimes, just sometimes, we get the chance to make things right. You're very welcome here."
"Thank you, Sir."
She let Rick guide her through the bull pen, her eyes skating over the scene before her. The desks with their array of personal objects and photographs competing with paperwork and phones and computers. The white board, Hayley Blue's picture front and center. The whirlwind of activity as uniforms and plain clothes alike consulted one another. Phones shrilled, and the scent of bad coffee permeated the air.
"When I started here, Montgomery just kept making me sign paperwork to the effect that my lifeless remains wouldn't sue the city," Rick complained, and she grinned. "I don't know why you're so special or why you're so welcome here."
She grinned. "Come on, Rick, they love having you here. You know that, right?"
He shrugged, but his lips curled up and the small smile gave him away as he admitted. "Yeah. I know." He pushed a door open to reveal an observation room. "One way glass," he told her, and she looked through it to see the backs of Esposito and Ryan as they stared down their suspect.
"I told you, Sunday night I was in Philly scouting a band. I hit a motel. I watched a little pay-per-view and I went to bed, which may say something about my taste, but it does not make me a criminal."
"But your rap sheet does," Ryan said, and Beckett leaned in as he continued. "Six counts of misdemeanor possession, two counts of felony possession with the intent to distribute." The detective's voice was cool, detached, and she shivered, captivated. She'd shared a drink with Ryan and Rick just last week, but watching him in action was spellbinding. She nodded along as Esposito spoke.
"What do you do, McGinnis? Give them a little taste? Make them need you? Make them depend on you?"
The manager answered, and beside her, Rick shuddered.
"Skeevy," he murmured, and she turned to see him grimace in distaste.
"So what did you think of the interview?" Esposito asked, leaning against his desk, and Kate pursed her lips together as she grappled for an answer. Horrible. Wonderful. Rick's word, skeevy, stuck with her. It had been everything. It had woken a craving within her; she'd wanted to be in that room, staring down the suspect instead of watching from observation.
"Compelling," she said at last. "Disturbing."
"Yeah. That guy was gross." Ryan shrugged. "But he didn't do it, his alibi's solid."
"His phone records aren't, though," Rick said, running a highlighter across a page and handing it to Esposito.
"A ten minute phone call to Zack, the guitarist, the day before Hayley died. Right, let's go." Esposito stood up, nodding at Kate and Rick. "We'll see you back here in a bit."
"Wait, what? Aren't we coming with you?"
"You can," Ryan said. "But Kate hasn't signed a waiver yet."
"You can go ahead," Kate told him, but Rick shook his head.
"No. Fine. We'll wait here," he grumbled. "Except not here. Because the coffee's terrible." He wrinkled his nose and stood, gesturing for Kate to precede him to the elevator.
"How do you do this, week in, week out?" Kate asked, and beside her, Rick shrugged.
"At first it was fun. You know. Interesting. Intriguing. It really was about the books, and about trying to come up with a story and some authenticity." He laughed, leaning his head back in the booth and sipping his coffee. "A little bit about keeping Gina off my back, too. But that all just kind of fell away, after a bit, and now… it's about knowing that I'm doing my part in making the world a little safer."
Kate nodded, sipping her own coffee and closing her eyes as the buzz of the caffeine made its way into her veins. "Not everyone can be protected," she countered. "It's too late by the time you're helping them."
"To help them, yes. But it's not too late to make it right. And if we can get someone off the streets, maybe we're making it safe for someone else."
"Like my mom," Kate mused aloud. "It's too late for her. But her killer's behind bars, and that's a good thing."
"I guess I do this for Alexis, in a way," Rick said. "Because I want her to grow up in a world where she's safe."
"I want that for Ramona too," Kate said. "God. There are so many things to keep them safe from. I worry about her every day, you know. She's so little, but she's old enough that she'll remember Gabe and I divorcing."
"But she's doing okay, isn't she?" Rick asked, nudging into her and laying his hand on her thigh.
"I think so. We had such a great summer, and so I think when we came back to the city and we were suddenly living somewhere new… she just kind of went with the flow."
"And she sees him every week, except for yesterday," Rick pointed out. "Maybe it's not enough, but trust me, Meredith saw Alexis a lot less."
"Yeah. And she has my dad. And she adores you and Alexis, and Martha. I think she's okay."
"She's fine," he promised her. "She's got you as her mom. She's great."
Kate leaned into Rick, Ramona on her hip, Alexis and Martha standing beside them, as she gazed up at the band. On the stage, Sky breathed new life into the song that had been playing on repeat in the loft all week, telling the story of her sister's killer betraying her long before he'd finally pulled the trigger.
Snuggled into her, Ramona threaded her hands through her hair, bobbing in time to the music.
"Mommy, love you," she said, planting a kiss on Kate's cheek, and Kate squeezed her daughter.
"I love you too, Sweetheart," she said, looking back up at the stage and smiling at Sky. How would this young woman manage without any family? Would she throw herself into music? Or would addiction catch up with her eventually?
"She's gonna be okay, right?" she whispered, and Rick nodded, squeezing her hand.
"She's going to be okay."
A/N: This chapter was a little later than I'd planned, but we're back on track now, and the next is just a few days away. Many thanks to K & J for their beta work!