I really wanted to put a BAMF Kevin in this chapter, but had to refrain.

Sorry for taking so long with this. A lot of crap has been happening with me right now, but when I saw that there were no new Castle episodes, I was like :O. Must… Work… On… Over my head… So, yeah. Here you go.

~/~

I was in that dark room again. The one where Mikhail beat me and molested me. I couldn't see anything, but I could hear Mikhail laughing in the distance. It was cold and cruel and made me curl up into a ball. Where was Javi? I called out his name and shivered when the laughter increased.

"He will not be coming for you, pretty boy." I shuddered at the menace in Mikhail's voice, and found that I could see again. I looked up, expecting the interior of the room, but what I saw made me cry out as if I was being beaten again.

Javi was chained to the wall in front of me, blood running down his body from a dark gash severing his throat.

"He will not save you." I woke up with a gasp, my hands scrambling across the bed, looking for Javi. He wasn't there. A sob tore from my throat and I hurled myself out of the bed.

"Javi?" I tried, but it came out as a hoarse whisper. "Javi!" I called again. This time it came out as a scream. I pulled open the door, and Javi was there, pulling me into a warm embrace.

"Sh," he whispered as I clutched as his shirt and trembled. "I'm sorry, mi corazon. Was it a nightmare?" I nodded against his neck, pressing my nose into the skin that was still there.

"What were you doing?" I mumbled against his throat.

"Castle called cause you disappeared." Fingers threaded through my hair and I hummed in contentment. "I didn't want to wake you."

"Are you gonna make me go back?" I asked, pulling away slightly. Javi's fingers tightened fractionally in my hair and he smiled down at me.

"No," he said. I sighed in relief. "I prefer you here. Now let's go back to bed." I nodded and allowed him to pull me onto the mattress beside him.

"Things have been awfully quiet around here," I murmured, laying down half on top of him and resting my head against his chest.

"I think they're not sure where you are right now." I nodded. It made sense. Most of the precinct had known that I had been staying with Javi. And they had to have figured out that I had been taken somewhere else. I smiled sleepily as Javi's fingers tangled in my hair again.

"You really must like my hair," I murmured, eyes drifting closed.

"Yeah, it's really soft." Javi sounded just as tired. We lay there in companionable silence until the fingers rubbing lightly at my scalp lulled me to sleep.

~/~

I jerked awake with a gasp, fighting the shrill ringing in my ears and the hands holding me down against a warm, firm surface.

"Corazon, it's alright. Calm down," a soothing voice pressed against my ear. I sagged against Javi's chest and let the hand combing through my hair calm my frantic heartbeat. I watched his other hand reach out for the black phone, almost invisible on the black nightstand, and press talk.

"You've really gotta stop calling when we're in bed, Beckett." I blushed as the sound of laughter filtered through the tinny speakers. Javi put the phone on speaker and set it down on his chest, right next to my head.

"Castle told me Ryan snuck out last night?" Becketts voice filtered through.

"I'm still mad at you guys for that one," I grumbled, nuzzling sleepily against Javi's neck. I felt more that heard the chuckle reverberate through his chest.

"We thought it was the best move at the time," came the reply. "How are you feeling?" I stretched slightly against my human pillow and made a noise of slight discomfort.

"Nothing I can't handle. I'm really hungry, though." Javi snorted his laughter into my hair, and I glared up at him.

"Kevin, you really should go back to Castle's place. It's safer there." I scowled at the offending device against brown skin.

"I don't care, Beckett. I'm a cop. Or did you forget that?" A sigh wafted through the speaker.

"Okay, Ryan. I won't make you do anything." I nod in satisfaction, and settle back down against Javi.

"That it, Beckett?" A hand brushed up and down my back. I smiled slightly and closed my eyes again.

"One other thing, do you guys want to come back in later today?" She asked. "If Ryan's up to it, of course."

"Yes!" I shout, leaning up slightly and dislodging Javi's hands from my hair and back.

"Alright, I'll see you guys at noon." She hung up, and Javi threw the phone somewhere on the other side of the bed.

"You sure it's a good idea to go back?" Javi asked. I sat up and scowled down at him.

"I won't break," I told him. "My ribs feel better than they look, and if I have to sit around for another day doing absolutely nothing, I'll end up shooting something." Javi rubbed my arm, a slight frown marring his face.

"Alright, Kev," he said, rubbing my arm. "I just don't want anything else to happen to you." I smiled down at him and crawled off the bed, careful not to stretch out my protesting ribs too much.

"I worry about you, too," I told him, reaching down to pick up my shirt from last night and pulling it on. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched him eye my body with a slight smirk before it disappeared underneath the soft fabric.

"What're you so smug about?" I asked him. His smile turned sheepish.

"I never thought I'd have you," he answered, complete honesty on his face. He sat up and swung his legs over the bed and onto the floor. "I always thought that it would never be a possibility; that there was no way in hell you'd actually be attracted to me." He expression turned serious, and he reached out to grasp my hand, pulling me forward.

"This is what you want, right?" I smiled and sat down next to him.

"It's definitely what I want," I told him. "I may have only realized it a few days ago, but I've been in love with you for a long time." He let out a relieved breath that I hadn't realized he'd been holding and turned toward me to press a kiss against the corner of my mouth.

"I've already told you that you are my heart." I snort at the cheesy statement and let out something that did not under any circumstances resemble a squeak as Javi pulled me until I was straddling his lap. An arm wrapped firmly around my waist, and the other hand came up to caress the bruises and stitches.

"I know it sounds stupid, but it's true, bro. I can't live without you." My face turned red at our position and his words, and he laughed.

"Stop it." I smacked him lightly on the chest. He just laughed even harder, until I was chuckling along with him. I hid my face against his shoulder as the last bits of laughter died and relaxed against him.

"This is nice," I murmured. The hand not around my waist reached back up to my face and brought it up for a kiss. It was slow and soul consuming, no trace of the urgency that had been present the night before. I sighed into his mouth as he nibbled lightly on my bottom lip and he took the chance to slip his tongue inside.

I let out a soft whine as he tore his lips away from mine and began to nibble and kiss at my jaw. He kissed his way around to the side of my neck and bit down softly, sending an electric current straight from his teeth to the pooling lust in my stomach. I cried out, grinding down against him. His hips stuttered up to meet mine and I felt an answering hardness press against my ass.

"I take it you liked that?" He chuckled against my skin, nipping playfully at the spot he just bit. Another shudder went through me, and I pressed my face against his shoulder once more. He took the chance to tilt his head and place soft bites and licks across the back of my neck.

I was shaking in his arms, letting out nonsensical whimpers and morphemes by the time he was finished marking my neck. His hips ground up, making his decidedly large erection press enticingly against mine.

With a groan, he pulled away from me and moved me down onto the bed.

"Javi?" I questioned as he got up and put several feet between us. I tried to keep the confused and hurt look off my face, but he apparently saw it because he crossed the distance between us and knelt down in front of me, grabbing my hands.

"Corazon," he whispered, pressing kisses to the bandages on my wrists. "You have no clue how much I would like to press you into my mattress and slowly drive you insane, but I need you to make sure that this is something you want. That you're mentally prepared." A realization dawned on me.

"You want me to get a psych eval, don't you?" Javi rested his head on my knee and sighed.

"Preferably." I nodded. It seemed like a reasonable request. If I had thought about it before, not even I knew if I was ready for anything more than what we shared the night before.

"Okay, I can see about getting one when we go in later." Javi lifted his head and stared at me in astonishment.

"Really?" I wanted to feel offended, but all I felt was amusement at his disbelief that it could be as easy as that to convince me.

"Really, really." I leaned down for a kiss, and he obliged, pulling away after a few seconds.

"Okay." Javi seemed to be trying to recollect his thoughts and will his still visible erection down. "You go take a shower, and I'll make us some breakfast, alright?" I nodded, slightly cheered by the prospect of a meal and waited until he moved out the door to make my way over to the shower.

~/~

I stretched out on Javi's couch, sighing in contentment.

"Where did you learn to cook?" I groaned, pressing a hand against my overfull stomach. Javi chuckled and sat on the floor next to me, reaching out a hand to stroke back my hair.

"I grew up in a family dominated by Hispanic women." That made sense.

"Remind me to thank your mother the next time I see her," I told him, closing my eyes against the hand that was rubbing my forehead.

"I'm sure she'll be pleased to hear that you enjoy her recipes," Javi replied. "Here, sit up real quick." I sat up to make room for him and he climbed up onto the couch next me, pulling me against his chest as he lay back.

"Don't we have to be at the precinct soon?" I asked, leaning my head back against his shoulder.

"Not for another two hours," he said. "Wanna watch something?" I nodded, and he flipped the TV on. He flipped through channels lazily, until I gripped his arm and sat up a bit.

"Hold on, go back a channel." He flipped the TV back and I sat up fully, pulling out my phone and dialing Jenny's number.

"Kevin what's going on?" I turned around to him, my eyes wide.

"That's my apartment building," I told him, pointing at the screen where fireman were finishing putting out a fire in a tall building.

"Hey, Kev, what's up?" I sighed in relief as I heard Jenny's voice over the phone.

"Jenny, there was a fire in our apartment."

"Oh, god. Are you alright?" She cried.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I told her reassuringly. "I'm at Javi's."

"Oh, thank god." I could hear rustling on the other end and a door opening and shutting. "I'm going over there."

"No! It might be a trap." Jenny was silent on the other end for a moment before replying.

"I think you might be right," she said. "It's obvious that neither of us was living there anymore."

"Look, I'll call you back when I get some answers. I'm sure someone from the precinct is over there." I ehard Jenny sigh softly over the phone.

"Be careful, Kev," she warned. "These sound like some pretty dangerous people you're dealing with." I smiled

"Yes, mother." She tutted at me before hanging up the phone.

"You wanna go down there?" Javi asked when I put the phone back down. I shook my head.

"Like I said, it's probably a trap. Most of my things are kept in a storage locker and everything I need is here, so it's not that big of a deal." I sat up from my position against Javi and leaned back against the couch instead.

"And Jenny's alright?" I smiled at him and nodded.

"I don't think they'll go after her," I told him. "From the information they seem to have on me, they should know that we broke it off." My smile broke and I pulled my knees up to my chest and pressed my hands against my eyes. "Why can't they just leave me alone?" Javi sighed and pulled me until I was against him again.

"I promise we'll stop them," he murmured against my hair.

"I know," I said back, face still buried in my hands. "I'm just tired of this. It's only been a few days, but it feels like years."

"I know, babe. You wanna go ahead to the precinct? See what's going on with your apartment?" I nodded, feeling like a little kid being herded around by adults. But, for once I didn't mind.

~/~

"Beckett?" Kate turned around and smiled at us.

"Hey, I take it you heard about the apartment fire?" I nodded.

"We saw it on the news." Javi sat down at his desk and I pulled up my chair in between his and Beckett's.

"Any news on it?" Javi asked her, sipping at his coffee as he reached down to turn his computer on.

"Not really anything to go on," she said, typing away at the keyboard. "We know the fire was caused by a gas leak in your unit, but that's it." Javi frowned at his computer.

"That's strange." Beckett nodded.

"I know. We're trying everything we can, th-"

"No not that," Javi interrupted her. "My computer was turned on when I got here and the password hadn't been enabled.

"Maybe you left it on a few days ago?" I suggested. He shook his head.

"The janitors come around and turn off any computers at midnight to conserve energy." I shrugged.

"I'm sure it's nothing to worry about." He nodded distractedly, pulling up a few programs and doing a quick file sweep.

"It never hurts to be sure," Beckett said. "Though if it helps, I haven't seen anyone lurking around." He nodded, eyes still on his computer.

"Hey." Castle rounded the corner. "Looking who decided to show up." Castle appeared from around the corner, grinning at us. "I thought you two would still be in be-"

"Shut up, Castle," Beckett and Javi chorused. I smiled at his pout and spun around to face Javi.

"Everything okay?" He glanced up at me from his computer.

"Yeah, it doesn't look like anyone's tampered with it or put any viruses on it." He smiled. "It was probably nothing, just really paranoid right now." I smiled back.

"I know the feeling." A woman walked into our little office space and I glanced away from Javi to her as she smiled at us.

"Detective Ryan?" She enquired in a soft voice. Everything about her was soft. Soft brown hair, soft features, soft brown eyes, along with a vaguely Egyptian look to her. I raised a hand slightly.

"That's me." She turned her bright smile on me.

"I'm Dr. Bryant. You called about a psychological evaluation?" I nodded and rose from my chair waving a goodbye at the rest of the team as I followed after her.

"The last few days have been troubling for you," she told me as we walked into the elevator. "I find the roof to be very calming. Why don't we talk there?"

"Sounds good," I replied. I knew that I should be more careful about going places with anyone other than my team, but I couldn't find myself to suspect her of trying to hurt me.

We exited the elevator and I smiled at the janitor by the roof door.

"Hey, Stu." He smiled at me and moved to let us pass.

"Glad to see you back," he called after me.

"Glad to be back," I told him, beginning to move away. Before I could get too far, he reached out to grab my arm. I tensed at the unexpected contact, but relaxed when faced with his earnest brown eyes.

"Can I talk to you after you're done here?" He asked. "There's something I need to tell you." I nodded and smiled, looking relieved.

"I'll see you," I said as he released my arm, walking towards Dr. Bryant, who had stopped to turn and look back.

When I stepped out onto the roof, I tilted my head back and inhaled the familiar smells of smoke and smog.

"Tell me about what has happened since this began," Dr. Bryant said, stepping up next to me. "I need to know how you reacted to the situation, so I need the tiniest details that you can give me, especially those regarding how you responded to certain stimuli." I smiled at her efficient, if not clinical, vocabulary and spilled out everything that had happened, starting from the moment that I pressed ignore on Jenny's call.

The doctor was silent for a while, just staring off into the distance with a contemplative look on her face.

"You're handling this remarkably well," she commented at last. "I think it has something to do with detective Esposito being with you, though I am supposed to inform you that relationships with ones partner are frowned upon." She smiled to let me know that she thought the opposite of Javi's and mine.

"But the nightmares?" I questioned. Her smile turned a bit sad.

"While painful, are very normal," she said. "I would be worried if you weren't having any." I nodded slowly.

"So I'm fine? Nothing there that might impede my judgment or making life altering decisions?" She got that far away look again that made me think that she had some problems of her own before turning back to me.

"Not anymore than anyone else." I smiled, relieved.

"That's good. We should get back downstairs, now." The doctor nodded and followed after me into the building. Inside, the alarms were blaring and lights flashed over the walls.

"Oh, dear," the psychologist muttered. My heart froze in my chest and I sprinted for the stairs, taking them two at a time before I got to my floor.

"Javi!" I called into the dust and smoke that seemed everywhere. People groaned on the floor, though none seemed to be fatally injured, just shocked. "Javi?" I tried again as I made my way over to my teams office space.

"He's gone," I heard Beckett choke out as Castle propped her up against a shoulder. "There was the blast and then he was gone when we all recovered." I shook my head frantically, heart stuttering and beating in my chest as I glanced around the room.

"No," I whispered. "…" I sank to the floor, clutching my head in my hands. I knew then why the ring had been so quiet. They were planning this the whole time. I had discarded Jenny as a source of bait because we broke off the engagement, but even if they didn't know Javi and I were together, kidnapping someones partner was blackmail enough.

~/~

Sorry.

Oh, and Dr. Bryant is a real person. She's my psychologist and she's amazing. Don't judge. I have issues. So, cliff hanger, anyone?