ENTER—STAGE RIGHT
"Where have you been?" Beckett greeted him, as Castle finally reached the left hand side of the stage. "What were you looking at?"
"I was looking over the room. Why didn't you tell me about the letters?" The words were out of his mouth before he realized he had said them, us usual.
"It was the first time we had seen each other in two weeks, Castle. I didn't want to spoil the evening with some feeble death threats." Her tone had changed into cop-mode. "It's not important." But Castle didn't miss her first statement.
"The death threats or seeing each other again?" Castle's tone was serious in more way than one, and he watched Beckett's face carefully trying to assess her reaction. She smiled and then covered herself with a quick wave of her hand in the direction of the nearly full auditorium. "It's a room full of cops, Castle. Someone would have to be crazy to try something here. The Captain has it covered." She made no verbal reference to the other half of the question. Instead she stepped in closer, reached up, and fawned adjusting the knot she had done for him earlier, sliding her hand down the length of the tie in a smoothing motion. Castle's hand covered hers halfway down, holding it gently against his chest.
"You should have told me." His voice was soft but intense. Their eyes locked again and for an eternity of seconds, Beckett looked as if she was about to say something. Hesitation, her inner restraint, something held her back. He could feel her hand start tensing again under his; she was feeling pressured, retreating again,. "About the letters, I mean." His words gave her the banter escape she was searching for, and he could see she was very aware of the deliberate opening. He released her hand as she pulled it away, but her movement wasn't sudden or jerky. His now empty hand tightened, remaining in place where he had held hers. Her eyes sparkled making careful note of his action. Kate's face suddenly had that warmer, softer look again. She smiled with a look of relief and nervousness trying to gather up her best detective tone.
"The Captain has all the working lights in the place on throughout the evening, and the one traveling light to sweep across the balcony areas in the auditorium. There are also some plain clothes officers on duty. There's only one thing I couldn't swing myself." Kate leaned in toward Castle looking downright provocative as she whispered in his ear. "I couldn't find a new gown in green Kevlar to wear." Her voice switched from detective to flirty in a heartbeat, trying to lighten the mood again.
"Katherine Beckett, are you flirting with me?" Castle asked, raising his eyebrow and giving her his best teasing grin.
"No," she lied. "I think we're starting now." His eyes widened. "The event, Castle. Eyes, front and center." Castle turned around to see the Dean Parker stepping up to the podium to introduce the others on stage. His eyes searched the audience for anything suspicious on the floor or in the balcony areas as she spoke. He found himself following the traveling light on more than one sweep across the room pulling his attention away from the stage proceedings. Beckett took a step closer to him and his hand again automatically went to the small of her back as she leaned into him and whispered again.
"It's almost time… I'd rather wrestle a murderer to the floor than go out on that stage at the moment." The suggestion of Beckett wrestling posed a quirky grin on Castle's face, but with his usual expression, he dropped the subject with the reproachful look and eye roll Kate shot at him. The wordless exchange did help to relieve her anxiety, that he could see. She kept putting her hand over her eyes as if she was shielding them from the sun. "The traveling light is distracting," she said trying to change the subject and swinging her shielding hand out, pointing at the light's most recent direction. "It's giving me a headache. Is it bothering you, too?" Out of reflex, Castle looked up in the direction she pointed to just as the light crossed and thought he saw something moving in the empty balcony it passed over. What was that?
He rubbed his eyes briefly with his hand. Maybe the moving light was messing with his eyes, too. "No. No, it's not really bothering me at all…" he paused, speaking to her distractedly and feeling an unpleasant thrill even though Beckett was leaning in against him for a third time. "Didn't she say that the all the balconies were closed for repairs?"
"Castle!" Beckett whispered at him sternly. "Dean Parker is introducing you."
"I thought I saw something moving up there," he whispered to Beckett, his eyes still fastened on the balcony.
"Castle, pay attention! Go!" She turned his gaze to the dean, with her finger on his chin, to redirect his eyes in the proper direction.
"So now…" the mike echoed across the room, "I'd like you to meet the person that has made all of this possible—mystery writer, Richard Castle." Hearing his name snapped his attention to the woman waiting at the podium introducing him. Undaunted, he walked out beaming his best Castle charm to the applauding audience, smiling as he recognized his mother's familiar whistle from somewhere in the back of the auditorium. He glanced up at the balcony following the slow moving light again. Was that a reflection off something as the light passed by… his attention returned back to the Dean, smiling graciously and shaking hands with her. He looked up again at the balcony briefly but saw nothing, as he removed his speech and the check from his pocket unfolding them deliberately on the podium. He smiled in appreciation for the continued applause while attempting to time his awareness to the traveling light as it crossed the right hand side of the balcony section again.
"I'd like to start with a sincere…" his words echoed to the back of the room and the light passed by again with no glint, "…thank you to everyone joining us here this evening… to honor the memory and contribution of Johanna Becket." Wait a minute, there it was again… Castle continued, "I first came to know of the dedication of Johanna Becket… through my friendship with her amazing daughter…" And again, what could be up there to reflect like that… "Detective Katherine Beckett of the NYPD… who has been recognized time and time again… for her own contributions in bringing the guilty to justice." There it was again. Was that a different light or did the reflection move from the place it was at the last time… Castle glanced over at Beckett who was looking at him with a confused expression. Castle returned his gaze to the crowd and began speaking again. "It is their joint contribution… that has inspired me to ensure the legacy of Johanna Beckett's dream… and her never-ending quest to discover the truth… to defend the innocent… and to pursue justice." Watch for it, watch for it, there it is again… It's definitely in a different place now. Castle shot Beckett a nervous glance and looked up at the balcony hoping someone might follow his gaze.
"IN THE memory of Johanna Beckett," Castle wasn't aware that the alarm rising in him was starting to reflect in his voice as he spoke. "I am happy to initiate this scholarship in coordination with Dean Parker to…" A reflection wouldn't move. "ENSURE that another such woman sharing their special vision for justice not go…" did someone just move up there… "UNREALIZED. I would also like to personally thank Detective Katherine Beckett for the dedication and commitment," nothing, nothing that time… "She has demonstrated for the city of New York… by presenting her personally with this check to begin our event this evening."
Castle forgot the mysterious light in the balcony the second he turned and saw Beckett waiting on the left of the stage. She seemed to be moving in slow motion in his direction. Her green eyes, echoed by the color of her dress, beamed and sparkled. The necklace she wore around her neck, adorned with her mother's ring, glinted in the stage lights as she continued walking across the stage toward him. She was smiling at him as she approached yet shooting him a confused expression over the rhythm of his speech. She was so beautiful tonight and he couldn't help but let the love for her show on his face as she came closer. Castle held out his hand to take hers, but his smile quickly faded as the traveling light's path moved across the air of the stage. He saw the flash of a red beam drawing a swift line to Beckett only a few steps away from him.
"Gun!" he shouted, running and blocking her body with his back to the audience, the bright red dot almost glowing on his tux as someone squeezed a trigger. Castle's arms surrounded Beckett and pulled her to the floor with him; the sound of the rifle and Beckett's scream moving again in slow motion as they slammed into the stage, hitting the floor.
Ryan and Esposito were on the stage in seconds directing everyone to stay down. Lanie yelled for an ambulance already at Beckett's side. No other shots followed and the auditorium suddenly erupted in chaos. "Balcony," Castle rasped at the guys, still out of breath from hitting the floor, "Stage right," he coughed. "It came from there." Coughing again, "I thought I saw something from the podium."
The captain was on the stage also behind Castle, kneeling down to hear him better. The captain searched the room nervously with his eyes while putting a reassuring hand on Castle's arm. "It's alright, Castle. Just take it easy. Don't move." The lack of following shots registered an all-clear, and the captain got back up and was shouting orders sending Esposito and Ryan, followed by several off-duty and plain clothes officers to swarm the balcony area and the building exits, asking others that came to the stage area to try and calm the panicked people down.
Lanie was kneeling down behind Beckett, holding cloth napkins on her arm. "You can let go of her now, Castle. It's just a flesh wound; it's not very deep. I've got her." Castle released his protective hug on Beckett only enough to allow Lanie's hand to press the napkins down on Kate's arm, but he didn't let go of her. Still pressed against her body and shaking, he pulled back only enough to look at her face, only inches from her lips.
"Are you okay?" he asked in a choked whisper.
"You saved my life…"
"I don't understand," said the captain.
Castle moved his hand from her arm up to cup her face, wiping the tear that was streaming down her cheek away with his thumb. "Of course. I love you…" Kate's mouth covered his before he could say anything more, and her arm flew out from under Lanie's hand and the bloodied napkins as she hugged Castle tightly. Rick moaned loudly as they kissed.
"What don't you understand, Sir?" asked Lanie. "He just saved her life, and they're in love!"
"No," glancing back and away from the couple. "I mean, if Becket has just a flesh wound, then where is all the blood coming from." The captain held out his blood covered hand out to her to see. Lanie looked and saw more on his knee and pant leg.
Castle's kiss weakened as the captain's words started to register in Beckett's head. She broke the kiss, pulling away from Castle's body. Kate reached down and opened Castle's jacket. His white shirt, vest, and the floor between them saturated in blood.
"Castle!" Kate shouted, her hand on his cheek and her face against his forehead. "Please Rick, don't leave me now…" Her words were the last thing he heard before losing consciousness.