AN: So, so sorry for the delay between updates! Moving house and living without electricity or internet for a couple of days can be rather distracting. I'll try get the next chapter up within the next couple of days, although I have to warn you that buying a washing machine takes precedence. As always, please let me know your thoughts! Thanks for reading & reviewing!

Chapter Twelve

Gates wasn't going to fire them, she was going to help them – it drew soft sigh from Beckett to know that it seemed Castle's position at the precinct wasn't likely to be rescinded anytime in the near future with Gates silently backing him from behind the scenes.

Gates regarded Beckett carefully, she could tell the detective was more worried than she was letting on. Truth be told they all were. But Beckett and Castle had some sort of connection that the captain didn't fully understand, and from the way Beckett's brow was furrowed and her focus wasn't fully on the conversation before her, Gates knew she had to ensure this investigation went smoothly. Her team needed Castle back.

"I'm going to place a call down to forensics, make sure that they put a rush on the fingerprints from Castle's phone. We need those answers now," Gates said, assuring the team of her support. Alexis was tempted to hug the domineering woman before her – instead she looked her squarely in the eye.

"Thank you," the sincerity and gratitude rang clearly through the room. Martha let out a small smile and Beckett echoed her with a soft –

"Thanks, Sir." With Gates turned and made her way promptly to her office, Castle's loved ones watching her as she yanked the phone to her ear and began barking orders at the forensics tech. It was reassuring to have such a powerful figure batting for them, for Castle.

"Let's keep looking through the security footage," Beckett turned to her team. Ryan nodded and seated himself at his desk once again.

"We've run through the first tape, from the Laundromat and we haven't been able to pick up on much. There are a couple of cars that go past, but we can't get more than a partial print because of the angle," Ryan admitted as he ran his fingers through his hair, evidently frustrated.

"Although, with the make and model, we might get something from the partial," Esposito interjected.

"Right," Ryan nodded. "I'll run them now, see what we get." He focussed his attention on the screen, typing away hastily. Beckett's phone shrilled loudly to life.

"Beckett… Ah huh… Right… Got it." She turned to her Ryan and Esposito with a dull grin, "That was forensics. We've got a name, Tessa Lonkings." Esposito typed it in to his computer.

"She's not in our system, no priors, nothing," he sighed.

"That could be a good thing – she's not a known serial killer," Martha mused, no hint of amusement in her tone. Beckett glanced at her and nodded.

"Boss, I've got something," Ryan exclaimed. "One of the partial prints matches a car registered to a Bryan Lonkings. Could be the husband of our perp." Esposito let out a low whistle.

"Husband's got a rap sheet. Domestic assault. Weapons charge. Chances are he's armed," Esposito warned. "Good news is we've got an address!" Everyone moved at once, scrambling madly towards the elevator.

"Martha, Alexis. Do you guys want to ride with me? You have to promise to stay in the car and I'll leave it while back from the address. But, if you want to be there, I understand," Beckett offered to Castle's family. Martha took her hand and squeezed it.

"Thanks kiddo."

"Espo, tell Gates!" Beckett ordered as the elevator doors sprung open. "We'll meet you down there." Beckett hurriedly led Martha and Alexis to the cruiser.

They followed Ryan and Esposito to the address, both cars speeding along at an alarming rate. As she took a right turn a lot faster than was necessarily safe, Beckett noticed Martha's face pale. She considered slowing down, but couldn't bare the thought of it taking any longer to get to Castle. She knew Martha would understand, she just hoped the older woman wasn't carsick.

As Beckett pulled up to the curb the tension in the car was palpable.

"Just stay safe, okay," Alexis demanded softly as Beckett pushed her door open. Beckett nodded.

"The same goes for you. No pulling any Castle-esque stunts. Got it?" It was Alexis' turn to nod.

"Don't worry about us, darling," Martha reassured her. "We won't move an inch."

With that, Beckett and the boys stood on the sidewalk and hastily geared up. As Beckett tucked her mother's ring into her vest, she prayed that they wouldn't be necessary on this occasion. She didn't want to see whatever was going on culminate in a gun fight – even if Castle might find it very cool, if he managed not to get shot that was. Although, Beckett was fairly sure that since her shooting Castle didn't find gun fights to be all that exciting any longer. Her thoughts followed her up the path until they reached the front door of Tessa and Bryan Lonking's house, it was then that she pushed them back to focus on the task at hand – whatever it was that lay beyond the red wooden door before them.

"NYPD, open up!" her voice was loud and clear, no sign of the fear that was coursing violently through her veins. What if they didn't find Castle? What if he was hurt – or worse? Beckett couldn't keep the possibilities from running through her mind. Although the constant stream of thoughts should have been distracting, Beckett found them empowering, they motivated her to put one foot in front of the other, to order Esposito to knock down the sturdy door and to hastily move into the house, gun drawn. They scoured the rooms and came up empty. No one was home.

"Boss, I got something!" Ryan called from another room. Beckett made her way to him at a run.

"What have you got?" He answered by simply turning the computer monitor towards her.

"This sparkling gem was in the recently viewed list," Ryan motioned sarcastically, before his tone softened. "He'll be okay, Boss. We'll get to him." Beckett was frozen, Ryan's words failing to reach her; she was focussed entirely on the image before her on the computer screen. It was of Castle and a middle aged woman – Tessa Lonkings, she assumed – Tessa was in a yellowed wedding dress with a huge genuine grin that lit up her face. She could only see Castle's face, he was sitting as Tessa stood, but his smile didn't come close to matching Tessa's. His face looked drawn, worry and fear clouding his clear blue eyes. Beckett could practically see his brain processes his situation, looking for an escape. But from his eyes, all she could see was him begging her to come rescue him. She remembered to breathe, her heart thudding an erratic pattern. She noticed that Ryan and Esposito were staring at her with matching concerned expressions. She was about to speak, pull herself away from the photo and instigate their next move when the Lonking's home phone burst to life, echoing shrilly through the house devoid of its occupants. Beckett debated answering it – apparently she debated for too long as the answering machine picked it up. A worried woman's voice filled the silence left by the no longer ringing phone.

"Bryan, I know I told you that Tessa likes to go down to the old office building when she feels like having a little bit of space, just promise me you haven't done anything stupid with that temper of yours. I shouldn't have told you. No, no, I shouldn't have… She's probably just curled up reading those books she loves on that big couch in the foyer. Anyway, would you get her to call me when…" The message was cut off as Beckett yanked the phone from the hook.

"Mam, this is Detective Beckett from the NYPD. We're looking for Tessa and Bryan Lonkings. Do you know where they might be?" Her tone was professional and calm, her heart was anything but. Thank the lord this woman had called. It might be just the break they needed so desperately after finding the house empty.

"Uh, hi detective," the woman managed to squeak out. "Has something happened to my brother and his wife?"

"Bryan Lonkings is your brother," Beckett stated more than questioned, repeating it out loud to process the information. "Do you know his current whereabouts?" Beckett could almost feel the woman shrug down the phone.

"He called me an hour or so ago looking for Tessa. I told him she might be down at the office she used to work at. It's closed now, but it's still furnished and Tessa likes to go down there sometimes when she wants a bit of space," she begrudgingly admitted.

"Do you know the address?" Beckett demanded.

"No," the woman sighed. "But, as I told Bryan, it's probably in that address book of Tessa's next to the phone. Just look under work."

"Thank you for your assistance," Beckett muttered down the phone, hastening to hang it up. However, the woman had one last thing to add –

"Detective, whatever you think my brother has done, you're wrong. He's a good man. I mean, he has a temper sometimes, but he is a good man," she asserted. Beckett hung up on her, without saying goodbye. She wasn't in the mood to hear someone defending the person who was holding Castle captive. She slammed the phone down.

It didn't take long for Beckett and the boys to find the address for the abandoned office building. As they made their way back to their respective cars, Beckett shot a grim smile to Alexis and Martha.

"No one was home, but we spoke to Bryan's sister and we've got a possible address," she informed them before she planted her foot and they were off again. They reached the office building in a matter of minutes. Beckett withdrew her gun, taking point, and led the boys into the building. They cleared every room until they reached the end of the long corridor and only one door remained. Beckett nudged it open and moved into the room, gun first. Unable to remain completely professional –

"Oh Castle," rushed from her lips before she had the chance to reign it in. The armed man in the room standing over Castle's limp and bleeding body regarded her, a glint of menace in his eyes.

X-X-X-X-X-X

Castle lapsed between the realms of conscious and unconscious. Occasionally making out snippets of the madwoman's husbands enraged mutterings about what he was going to do to them. He preferred unconscious to waking to that. He pushed his eyes further shut and tried to will himself further into his mind and away from reality. His mind really was a beautiful place, in it Beckett called to him.

"Oh Castle." Her tone was concern and pure unadulterated love. Castle was immensely enjoying this unconscious fantasy. Reality didn't make for a fun alternative. Although, he thought he heard Esposito say something about dropping his weapon. That was weird, Esposito and Ryan didn't normally make it to his fantasies. In his fantasies, it was always just himself and Beckett, always.