A/N: So, I think these two chapters make a nice (if unintentional) contrast. Chapter one was all about the people at the precinct. Chapter two turned out to be more about the Castle household. No idea how many chapters there will be. I have a bunch more phone calls planned, as well as an ending. But I'm not sure how long it'll take me to get there. Thanks to everybody who reviewed chapter one. I'm glad you liked it.
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Summer Calls 2
xxxxx
"Beckett."
"If you were chasing a guy and he ducked down an alley so dark you couldn't see anything, would you still go after him, or would you wait for backup?"
"Go after him Castle," Kate replied without hesitation. "Most of the time there isn't time to… Wait a minute. Why are you actually asking me this? I thought the whole point of being a novelist was just to make stuff up. It's what you usually do."
"Yeah, I make stuff up," he agreed. "But that stuff has to be based in reality. And I couldn't decide what Nikki would do. So I thought I'd go straight to the source… so to speak."
"I am not Nikki Heat," Beckett insisted, for what felt like the hundredth time.
"So both of us keep saying," Castle replied easily. "But you are the closest thing I've got."
Beckett found she couldn't disagree with that.
"So you said yes to the whole giving chase down a dark, potentially creepy alley, who knows what danger awaits around the next corner then?" Castle double-checked after a brief silence.
"Yeah, sure," Beckett replied.
"Even if you were in the middle of hostile gang territory and had already been shot at once that day by a probable gang member out for blood?" Castle qualified.
Beckett blinked. "No," she admitted slowly. "In that case I'd probably wait for backup. But what the hell am I doing out there alone to begin with if things are so dangerous?" she demanded.
"You've already asked yourself that very question many times Detective, believe me," Castle told her. "Or rather Nikki has."
"Right," Beckett agreed absently. "So if the stakes are so high that I, or rather Nikki's being stupid with her life, then why stop now? If it's that important then running down the alley may be the only option."
"You assume you made a deliberate choice to be alone outside an alley," Castle pointed out. "And you're saying that if the situation warranted it you might risk your life?"
"Cops risk their lives daily Castle," Beckett reminded him softly.
"Fine, risk your life more so than usual," he conceded.
Beckett shrugged. "Maybe," she said finally.
"Very helpful," he remarked dryly.
"I'd need more specific details to be more helpful," Beckett replied easily.
"Can't give you those," Castle said with a grin. "I'm sworn to secrecy."
"Then I can't be any more help to you Castle," Beckett replied easily. "I'm afraid you'll just have to use your own discretion."
"Fine, but in that case you're not allowed to complain when you don't like what happens," he cautioned her.
"Not happening."
"Yeah, I figured," Castle muttered. "So how are you this fine day Detective?" he asked cheerfully, abruptly changing conversational topics.
"Fine I guess," Kate replied as she absently sorted through some papers on her kitchen table. "How are you?"
"Cursing my characters," he replied easily.
"My fictional alter-ego giving you trouble then?" Kate asked with a half a grin.
"Almost as much trouble as the real thing," Castle told her candidly. "Even in print you like to mock me and make my life difficult."
"Hey, if you wanted a pushover for a main character Castle, maybe you should have based her on someone else," Kate shot back as she walked over to her couch.
"Where's the fun in that?" he teased.
"Then quit your complaining," she replied as she curled up against her couch cusions.
Castle grinned, clearly hearing the smile in her voice.
"Uncooperative characters aside, how are you?" she asked him.
"Eh, can't complain about a beach-front view," he said with a shrug.
"Guess not," Kate replied agreeably.
The pair lapsed into comfortable silence.
"Hey Beckett?" Castle said suddenly.
"Yeah?"
"Are you mad at me?" he asked tentatively.
"Mad at you?" she repeated. "Why would I be mad at you?"
"I thought a woman didn't need a reason," Castle said, going for the joke.
"Keep it up and I will be," Kate warned.
"Okay, okay," Castle pacified. "It's just, I haven't really heard from you all summer. And last time we talked you seemed… weird."
"There was never exactly a reason to call you Castle," Beckett explained. "I didn't want to interrupt your writing," or anything else, she thought to herself. "And when you called last time I was on my way to a memorial service."
"So you're not mad at me then?" Castle double-checked.
"You've done nothing wrong," Kate told him evenly. And it was true. He hadn't. He had no obligation to her. He wasn't required to follow her around all the time. It was his choice to do what he had been doing. It always had been. She'd never really had much of a say in when he came and went.
Despite her reply, Richard Castle wasn't convinced. He hadn't lived surrounded by women for nothing. And while he didn't know much, he knew enough to recognize that she hadn't actually denied feeling any anger towards him. "It's just, I was talking to Ryan and Esposito and…" he started to explain.
"And they told you I was mad at you?"Beckett interrupted bluntly, her muscles tensing up. Maybe she needed to have a talk with that pair.
"No," Castle admitted reluctantly. Kate relaxed back against the couch.
"So, what's this about then?" she asked.
"Like I said," Castle explained. "I thought something was off, so I mentioned it when I was talking to the guys. Esposito said that he didn't know anything, but I should talk to you. And I guess I was wondering if there was anything we needed to talk about."
"Did it ever occur to you that any weirdness you were hearing might have been because we haven't spoken in over a month, after going from speaking almost every day?" Kate suggested.
Castle winced. He was well aware of the shift in their relationship. He'd missed her even more than he'd expected to, which was saying a lot. "Beckett… Kate… If I did something that upset you, I'm sorry. That was never my intention."
She sighed, "Castle, I don't know what Esposito said to you, but I'm not mad at you." Sure she hadn't been thrilled about what had happened right before he'd left, but how could she be mad at him for leaving the precinct? He needed to finish his book. That was his job. And if there was anything she understood, it was being dedicated to your job. Yeah, Gina had been bad timing, walking up right as Beckett had been considering telling him…
But whatever. It was done now. Beckett'd lost her window to figure out exactly what her friendship with Castle was. Of course, she'd always figured she'd have more than twelve hours to make up her mind about what to do once he presented her with the opportunity before he moved on to someone else. On the other hand, maybe this was how things were supposed to be. Castle had no obligation to her and besides, she'd basically told him that some guys were too big a risk for some girls to take. She had no right to be upset.
"Oh," he said abruptly. "Well, good then."
"Yeah."
"Sorry about…"
"No, that's okay," Kate replied quickly. "I mean if you really thought I was mad at you, it's probably good that…"
"Right, exactly," Castle said just as quickly. I'm glad you're not mad at me."
"I'm glad you care," Kate said softly.
Castle smiled a little at that. "Of course I care Detective. Hard to write if your muse is always mad at you," he joked.
"Yeah, I guess," she replied slowly. "Still, as far as muses go I wasn't much help, was I?"
"That's okay," Castle told her with a shrug. "You always help eventually."
Kate wasn't sure what to say to that.
"Well!" Castle said cheerfully. "I guess I should get back to this."
"Yeah," Kate Beckett said with a half a laugh. "Can't have your readers wondering indefinitely whether Nikki Heat runs down an alley or not."
"No," he agreed. "And I should let you get back to your evening. I hope you have a lovely evening Detective. It was good talking to you."
"You too Castle," she agreed over-cheerfully. "I hope your characters start cooperating a little bit more."
He laughed. "Me too. Night Detective."
"Night," she whispered back. It was all she could say. After all, she wouldn't be seeing him tomorrow.
Kate hung up the phone slowly. She hadn't lied to him before. She wasn't mad, but it was entirely possible she was still just a little bit hurt.
xxxxx
"Hello."
"Hi Martha. It's Kate."
Martha Rogers paused in the middle of her search for the scarf she wanted to complete her outfit. "Detective Beckett!" she exclaimed. "This is a surprise. To what do I owe the pleasure?"
Kate grinned in spite of herself. Martha just seemed to have that effect on people. "Oh," she said, almost shyly. "I was just calling because, well, I was in Williamstown for the weekend, and I happened to go to a little theatre festival there…"
"You came to the play," Martha guessed enthusiastically. "Oh well aren't you sweet?"
"Yeah, well, it sounded interesting, and it's been a while since I've been to the theatre," Kate admitted.
"So why not take advantage of the summer theatre?" Martha filled in.
"Exactly," Kate agreed. "Anyway, I just wanted to say that I thought the play was really good, and I thought you were just fantastic Martha. I know people probably tell you this sort of thing all the time…"
"Not as often as you might think," Martha interjected dryly.
Kate grinned. "Well, I thought that if I was an actress, I'd want to hear what people thought after they watched me perform, so I wanted to call you to tell you."
"Thank you dear," Martha replied sincerely. "I appreciate it. Plus it's good for my ego."
"I haven't actually been to a play where I knew someone in the cast before. Outside of high school productions or whatever. It was interesting," Kate admitted.
"Why on earth didn't you stop by backstage?" Martha asked, the thought suddenly occurring to her. "I would have loved to see you. I could have introduced you to some of the cast!"
"Oh, well, I didn't want to bother you if you were busy," Kate explained. "And I hadn't told you I was coming so…"
"Nonsense," Martha said with a wave of her hand. "Detective Beckett if you ever come to a play I'm acting in again you feel free to come backstage. You don't even have to bring flowers. I won't be offended. In fact I insist."
"I'll keep that in mind," Kate replied.
"So," Martha asked. "Did you go with that boyfriend of yours?" Martha asked nosily. "Richard said you were seeing another detective at the station."
"Um, no," Kate stuttered out. "I went with a girlfriend. I'm not seeing Tom anymore actually."
"Oh, well I'm sorry to hear that," Martha replied. Though in all honesty, she wasn't particularly crushed to hear about that particular development. On the other hand, she didn't want to cause Beckett any pain. "I didn't know," she explained. "Richard didn't mention it. I'm sorry if I brought up painful memories."
"No, it's fine," Kate assured her. "It was a while ago. I'm fine with it. And now that you mention it, I don't remember if I actually told Castle about it," Kate lied easily. She certainly didn't want to discuss the complication that was her relationship with Richard Castle with the man's mother. "He and I haven't been speaking all that frequently lately, you know? He's so busy with his book, and I'm so busy with the job. I'm sure you know what that's like, working in the theatre."
"I do indeed," Martha replied, pleased to get some confirmation that her son actually was keeping in some sort of contact with the lovely detective, sporadic though it was. He'd been so evasive on the subject she'd been half afraid he'd decided to wallow in his misery and cut all ties. Martha wondered how the new information about the lovely Detective's relationship status would affect him her son, and then she wondered if she had the right to tell him about it. Probably not, though Martha decided to keep the information in reserve on the off chance that, horror of horrors, the man truly decided to rekindle a romance with ex-wife number two. "Still, I hope the break up wasn't too painful. It's never easy," Martha said, turning her attention back to the conversation at hand.
"No," Kate admitted. "It never is. But in the end, I decided that even though I liked him, something was off. It just wasn't what I'm looking for right now."
"Darling, you don't have to explain that to me," Martha said with a wave of her hand. "I've been in so many relationships that have ended badly; I don't even want to think about it. And it's always better to find out if it's not working as quickly as possible, and preferably before you get married. Trust me on that one. Besides, you're young! Why tie yourself down, especially if something doesn't feel right? Embrace your life! It's the summer. Maybe it's time for a little summer romance," Martha added suggestively.
Kate snorted. "We'll see," she said with a laugh.
"How'd he take it?" Martha asked.
"Gracefully," Kate admitted. "No major scenes, no recrimination, which is nice."
"At least he didn't let his ego get in the way then," Martha said. "That's always unpleasant, when the alpha male feels slighted by the female. That's when you can get dead rodents in the mail, or angry letters, or I guess e-mails now. We women need to stick together then."
"Yeah, well, I didn't get any of that," Kate assured her. "Worse I get is an awkward nod when we pass each other in the hallway."
"That's nothing," Martha replied. "I wish all relationship dissolutions were that civilized."
"Exactly," Kate agreed. "Anyway, I just wanted to call to let you know that I loved the play, but I should probably let you go."
"Yes, I'm on my way to a dinner party at an actress friend's. It'll probably be perfectly dreadful. I'd much rather stay in and chat with you, but I should probably make an appearance," Martha said with a dramatic sigh.
"The trials of life as an actress," Kate said.
"Exactly," Martha replied. "But at least it has its perks. And it was lovely to talk to you Detective, thank you for calling. Call anytime you feel like chatting."
"Well thank you," Kate said with a laugh. "It was nice talking to you as well."
"Everyone needs a little girl talk from time to time. And hey, if you come back to the show I could introduce you to some of the handsome, single, actors," Martha told her.
"I'll see," Kate replied dryly. "Good bye Martha."
"Goodbye Detective. I hope to hear from you again soon," Martha said as she hung up the phone, pleased by the call. If nothing else, at least Detective Beckett had no intention of cutting ties with the Castle family completely. She wondered when the Detective's break-up had taken place. After all, the timing could be interesting.
Kate shook her head as she hung up her phone. But she was still smiling. Martha really was one of a kind. She kind of missed the entire crazy Castle clan. Well, she admitted, Alexis for the most part wasn't crazy. But that wasn't the point. It was nice to chat with another woman. It was nice to talk to someone about Demming, someone who didn't know about all the Castle-related baggage. Somewhat ironic that that woman was the man's mother, but what're you going to do? If she knew about the complication Castle'd been to the whole thing, Martha clearly wasn't going to mention it.
Kate smiled. Whatever Castle decided to do come the fall, she hoped she could still at least be friends with his family.
xxxxx
"Castle."
"Hi Dad."
"Hi Pumpkin!" Richard Castle greeted his daughter enthusiastically. "How's Princeton? Has your academic mind been completely blown since we spoke two days ago?"
"Not completely," Alexis Castle told her father. "I think portions of my brain are, in fact, still intact."
"Huh, Princeton must be slipping," Castle replied. "And I assume you are still spending every second of your time there studying."
"Of course," Alexis agreed. "Well, except for the three hour drinking binges we all go on every night in one of the common rooms," she added. "You were right, it's lucky the student advisor's old enough to buy alcohol."
Castle was pretty sure his heart stopped beating for a full minute. "So. Not. Funny." he told his daughter eventually, after he regained the power of speech of course.
"It was a little bit funny," Alexis replied with a grin. "Even more so since you apparently fall for it every single time."
"I seriously think that my heart actually stopped there. What are the symptoms of a stroke? Blurred vision? I can still see fine so that's okay," Castle continued as if she hadn't spoken.
"Well, your speech doesn't appear to be slurred either," Alexis told him. "I can't speak for your other symptoms over the phone, but I think you'll be fine. Any numbness or tingling in your arms or other extremities?"
"No," Castle admitted.
"Then I think a stroke is unlikely," Alexis concluded.
"You're probably right," her father replied. "So what have you really been doing?"
"Studying, going to classes. We're reading the Tempest, which is interesting. Meeting people."
"And by people, I assume you mean boys," Castle added.
Alexis laughed, "Yes, dad, some of them," she told him. "But don't worry. They're all just friends."
"Uh huh," Castle said skeptically. "And do they know that?"
"Yes father," his daughter said with a long-suffering sigh.
"Hmm."
"I talked to Grams yesterday," Alexis told him, deciding to change the subject.
"Oh yeah?" Castle asked. "How is your grandmother? Still getting into her usual amount of trouble out in Williamstown?"
"She seems to be having a great time with the play," Alexis replied, deciding to ignore the question.
"She always does," Castle pointed out. "Loves the spotlight does Martha."
"She said Detective Beckett came to one of the performances," Alexis told him. "Even called her the next day to say how much she enjoyed it."
"Really?" Castle asked surprised. "I didn't know Beckett went to the theatre. Though I'm not surprised. And I'm especially not surprised that she called mother after seeing the play," he added almost to himself. Beckett was like that. She noticed things, and she took the time to do the little things to brighten people's days, or make them easier. It was part of why she was so good with the family members of the murder victims.
"Yeah," Alexis told him. "Grams said they had a nice chat."
"Well, that's good," Castle said absently. "I guess Beckett went to the play after I talked to her, because she didn't mention it."
"Oh, you talked to Detective Beckett?" Alexis asked. "I didn't know you'd even spoken to her since you left the city."
"Well, I heard a Detective got hurt in New York City, so I wanted to check in," Castle admitted.
"That's horrible," Alexis replied.
"Yeah," Castle said softly. "But everyone at the 12th is alright, just so you know. Plus, I had a couple of questions about Nikki Heat, you know, for the book I'm trying to finish. We're keeping in touch."
"That's good," Alexis said easily. "Still, it must be weird. After all, you saw her almost every day, and now you only talk a couple of times in a month?"
"It is weird," Castle admitted. "But times change. After all, look at you. I used to see you every day, and now you're not even in the same state, and I only talk to you once every couple of days on the phone if I'm lucky."
"Dad…" Alexis said in exasperation.
"Hey!" Castle said. "I'm allowed to get a little emotional here. My little girl's getting so big," he added with exaggerated sentimentality.
"Yeah, well, you've still got me for a couple of years yet," Alexis told him.
"Plus I'm hoping this program at Princeton makes you think twice about Cambridge," Castle told her candidly. "After all, New Jersey's a lot closer than England."
"We'll see," Alexis told him. "Oh, Dad, I've got to go. A bunch of us are going to go get ice cream and then work on one of our assignments together."
"Alright, I'll see you later pumpkin," he told her. "Have fun."
"Bye Dad," Alexis replied. "I love you."
Castle smiled, "I love you too honey."
He glanced at his phone affectionately. His little girl really was growing up. He was equal parts excited and terrified. He knew things changed, it was inevitable. But a lot had been changing lately. He wasn't sure he liked it.
Sometimes Richard Castle just wanted things back the way they were. Things were simpler then.
xxxxx
"Hey Grams."
"Hey Kiddo, how are you?" Martha asked her granddaughter. "Still enjoying Princeton?"
"Absolutely," Alexis said. "There's the greatest ice cream place nearby."
"Great for studying with the cute boy you met at that history lecture I'll bet," Martha suggested.
Alexis blushed crimson, glad that her grandmother couldn't see it. "Josh and I are just friends," she said as calmly as she could.
"Whatever you say dear," Martha replied easily.
"We are!" Alexis insisted.
"Have you talked to your father lately?" Martha decided to ask instead of pushing the issue.
"I talked to him earlier today," Alexis admitted.
"I can just imagine his reaction to the co-ed study group," Martha said dryly.
"He may have freaked out a little," Alexis told her. "Of course, I may have already been teasing him, so I guess it's not all his own fault."
"It's going to be hard to watch you grow up," Martha replied. "Hard for both of us actually."
"I know," Alexis admitted. "So far he's doing pretty well. But you seem to be dealing with it much better."
"Well, of course darling," Martha replied. "I'm a woman. I understand these things. It doesn't mean I always like it. Besides, I'm sure you'll make smarter decisions than either I or your father did at your age."
"Speaking of women," Alexis said, changing the subject. "Dad also told me he's spoken to Detective Beckett a couple of times."
"Yes, the Detective mentioned that when she called a few days ago," Martha confirmed. "Didn't I tell you?"
"No," Alexis said with a shake of her head. "He said he was still calling her for research purposes. You think that means he'll go back to the precinct in the fall?"
Martha paused. "What do you think?" she asked. "Do you think he should?"
Alexis sighed. "Well, it is dangerous, and I worry. Plus it's long hours, and it means he's not at home as much as he used to be, but he also seems to enjoy it so much. And I know he'd miss Detective Beckett and the rest of the detectives if he never saw them again. He has been kind of quiet this summer, up there in the Hamptons, mostly on his own. I guess I hope he does go back. Even if it means he isn't home as much."
"We're all changing," Martha reminded her softly. "You're growing up, you're father's potentially moving into a new phase in his writing. I'm living with Chet… That's life kiddo."
"I know," Alexis told her. "And I really like Beckett too. I mean, it was nice having another woman I could talk to about stuff." Alexis paused, "Not that you're not great Grams because…"
"I understand," Martha said, interrupting her granddaughter. "Sometimes you want another perspective. And I certainly can't argue with your choice. I'm pretty sure your father doesn't either."
"Do you think he'll go back to the precinct in the fall?" Alexis asked her grandmother again.
"In all honesty?" Martha asked. "I don't think he'll be able to help himself."
Alexis laughed. "I hope you're right."
"Me too," Martha admitted. "Now I suppose you're about to tell me that you've got to get to bed because you've got class in the morning."
"Absolutely," Alexis agreed. "But I'll call you in a few days Grams."
"Alright," Martha replied. "You know where I am if you need me. Your father does too. And don't worry about him. He'll sort it out. Good night darling, and sweet dreams."
"Night Grams." Alexis said before she hung up.
She hoped her grandmother was right, about her dad that is. Because spending the summer semi-secluded in the Hamptons wasn't agreeing with him. She felt bad leaving him alone, but Kate had been right when she'd said the two of them needed a trial separation before she went away for college. So far things had been going fairly well, even if they weren't perfect. Alexis could only hope things would get better in the fall.
xxxxx
TBC