Castle stirs in his sleep, noticing a shift in the weight on the bed. He checks the clock and takes note that it's almost 3:30 AM, and then turns to notice Kate crawling into bed beside him.

"Please tell me you just got up to go to the bathroom and that you're not just getting home."

She yawns as her head hits the pillow. "I was chasing down a lead."

"By yourself?"

"It just sort of happened."

"How does…you know what, never mind. I'm too tired to argue. Which case?"

She yawns again. "Bracken."

"Learn anything?"

"One of his associates enjoys secret meetings in dark alleys."

"Meetings with?"

"I don't know, Castle. I left."

He drapes an arm over her, drawing her closer to him. "Probably for the best. I don't want you getting hurt, going places without backup."

"That's why I left."

"Does this associate have a name?"

"Jason Marks."

Castle yawns now too, letting his eyes slip closed again. "Sleep now?"

"Yeah," Kate says, curling into his side. "Sleep."


The next morning, Jason Marks is found dead, Vulcan Simmons is named the prime suspect, and Gates kicks Kate off of the case for being too close to it. She's now in the living room of the loft, showing Castle the pictures she took the night before on her stakeout, when Alexis and Addison walk through the front door.

"What are you doing home?" Kate asks when she sees them.

"I could ask the same of you," Addison says, letting her backpack drop to the floor by the couch. "Half day. Remember? You asked Alexis to pick me up?"

"Right. Half day. Parent – parent teacher conferences," Kate says, burying her head in her hands. "I don't have time for this."

"What are you guys doing home?" Alexis asks, plopping down in the chair next to the couch.

"Oh just looking at some surveillance photos," Castle says, waving them around.

"Why don't you have time –" Addison starts to ask, but is cut off by Kate's ringing cell phone.

Kate holds up a finger. "Hold that thought, it's the precinct. Beckett. What? What happened?"

Castle looks over at her concerned, while Addison and Alexis look on in confusion.

"Ryan, listen to me. You have to seize that town car before he gets rid of all of the evidence of the murder," she says desperately into her phone.

She's silent for a moment before she sighs and hangs up. She closes her eyes and rubs at her temples.

"What happened?" Castle asks.

"They let Vulcan go."

"No, no, why?"

She waves her hand. "Lawyers."

"What's going on?" Addison asks.

"Big case," Kate answers. "Very big case."

"Define big," Alexis adds.

She sighs and looks over at Castle. He nods.

"My mother's."

"You know it's totally okay if you can't make it to conferences," Addison says. "I'm getting all A's and it's not like I act out in class or anything."

"I know," Kate sighs. "But I wanted to meet your teachers, being a new parent and what not."

"The year is almost over anyway. And next year I'll be at a new school. You can be the doting parent then. For now focus on being the badass cop."

"Language," she mutters, her eyes tracing over the surveillance photos again.

"More and more mom-like every day," Addison sighs, sinking down in the chair opposite Alexis.

"What are you plotting?" Castle asks, rubbing the back of her neck as he watches her eyes flit over what little evidence they have gathered here.

"Not sure yet."

"Nothing dangerous though, right?" Addison asks.

"Not sure yet," Kate repeats.

"Mom –"

"Addie, I know what happened last month really scared you, but going after bad people like this is my job. My promise to you still stands: I'm not going to let anything happen to me."

Addison looks to Castle, almost as though she's seeking his confirmation. He nods and she looks away, tucking her knees up under her chin.

"Coffee?" he asks, nudging Kate's knee with his own.

She nods, but doesn't say anything, studying a particular photo extra hard.

"Want your laptop too?" he asks, standing up.

She nods again. "Thanks, babe."

"Well I have a two o'clock class I need to go get ready for," Alexis says, standing as well. "Good luck with the case you guys."

They bid her farewell and she heads out. Addison follows Castle into the kitchen.

"I've never seen her like this before," she mutters, slipping into one of the high top chairs.

"It's been a while since I've seen her like this too," he admits, starting to make her coffee.

"Are you worried? You sound worried."

Castle laughs. "I'm always worried about her, especially when it comes to this case."

"This is the one that got her shot, isn't it?"

He stops what he's doing and moves over to her, takes her hands in his. "I'm sure you know this by now, but this case is the whole reason she became a cop. She obsesses over it. And I've really gotten her to pull back, to tell me things, to tell Ryan and Esposito things, but she's not going to stop until it's over. And right now she's this close to making the connection she needs to take the man responsible down. I hate this as much as you do, but I also want this to be over as badly as she does."

"She's sort of like a superhero isn't she?"

He laughs again, squeezing her hands. "She's exactly like a superhero."


Castle sits on the swings at their playground waiting for her. This isn't good. This is definitely not good. Vulcan Simmons is dead and someone, probably Bracken, is trying to frame her for the murder. She said she didn't do it and he believes her. He's always going to believe her. Even though she used going to Addison's parent teacher conferences as an excuse to go after Vulcan alone. Although she did apparently stop by the school first.

He jumps when he feels a hand on his shoulder. He stands up and spins around to find Kate swimming in one of his sweatshirts. When did she have time to get that? He ignores the question and pulls her into a hug.

"You okay?" he asks into her hair.

"Yeah. Were you followed?"

"No, no, no. I switched cabs three times just to be sure. Donovan's gotta have the force looking for you." He pulls out cell phones from his pocket. "For the couple that has everything. Two matching burner phones, GPS turned off, of course."

She bites her lip and takes one from him, shoving it down in her pocket.

"What did you tell Addison?"

"The truth. That someone is trying to frame you for murder."

"Castle, are you sure that was a good idea? If they try to use her to find me –"

"She's a Beckett," he interrupts her. "She'll be fine."

"Are you insinuating that we're good at lying?" she asks, crossing her arms over her chest.

He smirks at her. "I'm insinuating that you're good at getting yourself out of sticky situations."

Kate sighs, leaning in to hug him again. "How did she react when you told her?"

"She told me to keep you safe and to help you clear your name."

"Does she know we're running?"

He almost laughs. "Yeah. She told me we had to make it back in time for our wedding."

That gets her to laugh. "What did you say to her? I expected her to be freaking out about this, not cracking jokes."

Castle shrugs. "Maybe I'm starting to rub off on her too. I don't know, Kate. She's scared. She's trying to hide it, but she's really worried about you. She said something to me yesterday about you being like a superhero. I think she understands that you have to do this, but she doesn't have to like it."

"So what now?"

"I think Ryan and Espo are on to something. We think Smith may still be alive."

"Smith? As in Michael Smith?"

Castle nods. "You ready to go chase down another lead?"


Kate stirs awake in the car. Her head is throbbing and she still feels sick to her stomach. She feels like she reeks of whiskey and vows never to drink it again.

Castle notices her waking up. "How are you?"

"Hungover. Where are we?"

"Vermont, on our way to Canada."

"No, Castle, turn around," she says shaking her head.

"Look, if you're worried about Addison –"

"No, it's not that, it's Montgomery."

He looks over at her briefly before focusing back on the road. "This again."

"Again?" Kate asks.

"You kept mumbling his name last night, but you were so drunk I didn't think much of it."

"He made the recording of Bracken. The one Smith has been looking for. And I'm pretty sure it's with my mother's things."

"Kate, how –"

"It's just something Montgomery said to me when we first met. It's been on my mind all night. Castle, you just have to trust me on this one."

"Okay, but we can't go back to the loft. They'll arrest you on sight."

"We're not going back to the loft," Kate says, digging out her burner phone. "I'm going to call Addison and she's going to find it."

"Are you sure about getting her involved like this?"

Kate starts dialing the girl's cell. "You said it yourself, she's a Beckett. And right now she's all we've got."

Addison answers on the fourth ring. "Hello?"

"Addie, don't react."

"Oh hi, Amy. What's up?"

Kate smiles. "That's my girl. Are there cops there?"

"Yeah I finished the homework. Did you get stuck on something?"

"Okay listen to me. I need you to go into our room and pull down a brown shoe box from the top shelf of the closet and look for a cassette tape. You do know what a cassette tape is, don't you?"

"I'm not that stupid."

She smirks. "All right, make it seem like you're going to borrow something from my closet."

"Wait, you're going on a study date with Kevin? Oh my gosh my mom has the perfect scarf that will totally bring out your eyes. You have to wear it."

"How's she doing?" Castle asks.

"If the dancer thing doesn't work out for her, she may have to join the CIA."

"I heard that," Addison says on the other line. "All right, pulling out her box of scarves now."

"You're amazing, kid. You're really saving my ass here."

"Language," she teases. "Amy, the blue scarf isn't in here."

"Are you sure? What is in there?"

Addison drops her voice to a whisper. "Um a lot of papers, a journal looking thing."

"Her appointment book. Open it. Look for dates around January 9, 1999."

"Umm on the 9th it says d me with family. Does that mean anything to you?"

Kate taps her finger against her chin, thinking. "She was supposed to have dinner with us that night. Unless…her shorthand. Okay, Addie, I need you to tell me exactly how it's written. Spacing, capitalization."

"The d and the m are really close together. And the d, m, and f are all capitalized."

"DM," Kate repeats. "Detective Montgomery?"

"Maybe the e in me stands for evidence," Castle suggests.

Kate throws him a look and he just shrugs. "You have the volume up kind of loud."

"So was she bringing the evidence to me and dad? It would have been on her when she died then. Bracken would already have it," Kate says rubbing at her eyes.

She hears shuffling on the other line before Addison says. "Sorry Amy, maybe my mom has the scarf with her today."

"Thanks baby, you were great. I'll talk you again when I can."

"Sure, no problem. Good luck on your study date."

She hangs up and Kate sinks back into the seat of the car.

"Now what?" Castle asks.

"My mom had that tape, I know she did. She was murdered for it."

Castle reaches across the seat and rubs at her neck. "All right think, what else of hers do you have? What could she have hid it in?"

Her mind races through her possessions, trying to figure out what the missing link is. What did she take from her mother that's big enough to hide a cassette tape in?

"Oh my god, that's it. Castle, we have to go to the precinct."

"Probably not the best idea."

"No, babe, the elephants on my desk. My mom used to call them a family; me, my mom, my dad. Detective Montgomery's evidence is with the family of elephants."

"Kate, if you're wrong about this –"

"I'm not wrong. Get us to the precinct."


Addison's on her the moment they step through the doors to the loft. Kate hugs her back fiercely, still overcome with joy from the arrest she just made.

"Did you get him?" Addison asks, looking up at her.

"We got him. It's over. My mother's murder case, it's closed."

She grins and hugs her tighter. Kate kisses the top of her head.

"You're quick on your feet, kid."

"Thanks Amy!" Addison laughs, pulling away from the embrace. "I take it you found the blue scarf?"

Kate scrubs a hand through her hair. "Yes and it's the most maddening thing. It's been sitting on my desk ever since my mother died."

"Do you think my parents' murder is right in front of us like that too?"

"Hard to say."

"Still think there's a connection there?" Castle asks.

"I don't know, maybe. That might be one of those conversations we have in prison while he's trying to cop a plea. But you know what? I'm done talking about Bracken. Our wedding is very, very close, and it's time we start focusing on us."

Castle grins, looping his arms around her waist and pulling her in for a kiss.

"Okay, you guys go make out. Glad you're home safe," Addison says, walking away.

They laugh, watching her leave.

"We've got a hell of a girl there, Kate."

"We sure do."


AN: I do not own "Veritas," no matter how much I wish I did.