Thanks to all the lovely people who read or reviewed the last chapter. I appreciate it. A lot. Seriously.
Chances are, there are a few mistakes in this chapter (grammar, spelling, diction, etc.) that I missed and forgot to fix. I take responsibility for that and will fix it eventually. I just wanted to get this chapter up.
I wish that I had something else today, and honestly, I thought I did. But I guess I really don't have anything to say until the chapter is over. So…I guess that only leaves a couple more things.
Sorry for the wait. I'm a busy person and sometimes, like Castle, I have no inspiration and mope around waiting for post time at Belmont. (I actually do; I'm a huge horse racing nerd). Not only that, but I really hated writing some of this chapter. I just couldn't get things the way I wanted them to be. But now I'm satisfied. I hope you guys are too.
This marks the end of part one. The next part is fluffier. And honestly, this chapter should have been the start of part two, but I broke up the last chapter into two parts because it was getting long, and I didn't like the pace of it, and blah blah blah…
Enjoy. :)
Part One: Sunday Punch
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Chapter Six
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Kate waited another fifteen minutes after closing the door on Castle again, just to be sure that when she left, he wouldn't be crouched down on the ground beside her doorway. So in the mean time, she wriggled into a pair of jeans and a loose-fitting white T-shirt and grabbed an energy bar from her pantry (when was the last time she had eaten, anyway?).
Kate arrived at the precinct at 1 AM. As the elevator door cracked open, she caught her first glimpse of Agents Shaw and Avery, dictating orders and conversing with Ryan and Esposito.
She stepped out and began scanning the area, a chaotic mingling of detectives and agents. Kate let out a relieved sigh when she saw that her de facto partner was absent. Just as she was about to call out to Esposito, Ryan spotted her off in the corner of the bullpen, surveying the area.
"Beckett!"
A few detectives paused and curiously whipped their heads in her direction, which was met by Beckett's uneasy glare. The spectators quickly reoccupied themselves.
"Hey guys," she greeted as Esposito bounded up beside his partner.
"So I take it Castle came to see you…," Ryan trailed off.
This was met by a raised eyebrow from Beckett.
"…since you don't seem too surprised by the cavalry of FBI agents," he added nervously.
"He did."
Ryan and Esposito exchanged glances, the subtle annoyed undertone of Beckett's voice not going unnoticed.
Esposito closed a file he was holding, crossing his arms and pressing it against his chest, a brotherly concern crossing his face.
"You wanna talk about it?"
She met the detectives' worried sets of eyes, the edges of her mouth pulling into a small, appreciative smile. She simply shook her head in response.
The detectives averted their eyes to the ground.
And that was that.
An awkward pause followed before Esposito gestured behind him, toward the remodeled war room.
"Agent Avery wanted to debrief."
She nodded and followed the pair, welcomed in by the deep voice of Shaw's partner.
"Detective Beckett."
She nodded again.
"Avery," she responded.
He ushered them toward a smart board, and the four of them discussed everything.
The law firm. The snipers. They were working on warrants. TSA had the name, and it was only a matter of time before Nathaniel Held was cornered.
Ryan and Esposito then brought up Gary McAllister- they would be paying him a visit.
Avery noted that there would be a security detail on Beckett at all times. No exceptions.
However, they were willing to let her work the case, so long as she actually followed the orders of Shaw. There was no reason for her to disobey or go rogue, Avery surmised. Everything was under control.
"I'll do what I can," was her stony reply.
With that, Avery turned on his heel and disappeared, leaving Beckett with a wary look.
She turned away and glared long and hard at the digital murder board, straight into the gruff mugshot of Gary McAllister.
Ryan and Esposito knew her well enough to know what was going through her mind.
Kate Beckett hated to be controlled.
That was when she heard clipped, determined footsteps from behind her, and Kate whirled around to see Jordan Shaw striding toward her.
"Detective," she addressed her in that firm, self-assured tone. "Long time no see."
Kate smiled.
"Agent Shaw. Good to see you."
She mirrored Kate's expression.
"Likewise."
Shaw stopped when she saw the watchful Ryan and Esposito standing staunchly off to her left.
"A word, please?"
Shaw led Beckett outside the war room, and the detective strode beside her as they wound around the hall toward the break room.
"What do you need me to do?"
Shaw stopped suddenly and turned to Beckett.
"Go home."
"What?"
"I can't have you burned out, Beckett. Especially not on such a high-stakes case."
"Agent Shaw, I-"
She cut her off.
"Detective. Consider it an order."
Kate saw the stern look in Shaw's eyes, the one that said she was walking on a very thin line. Despite her personal connection to the case, despite the fact that she knew it better than anyone else, Agent Shaw could kick her off this case.
And if she needed to, she would.
"Yes, ma'am."
She turned to retreat toward her desk and grab her jacket, but Shaw called out to her once more.
"Come back here a second."
Kate whirled around and began to come toward her again.
"I never got to tell you this…," she wavered a bit.
"I'm sorry about your mom."
Kate only nodded and mumbled, "Thank you."
Shaw motioned to the break room, and with a quizzical look, Kate followed her inside.
"Just wondering- did you kick Castle out for this one?"
Kate pursed her lips and looked away.
"No, he's… he's been more helpful on this case than on any other. ""
Shaw cocked her head, eyebrows raised.
Kate sat down on one of the chairs and looked up at her.
"When we first started working together, he started snooping through my mom's case. I had buried it, tried to put it behind me, but he just wouldn't let it go. I've never had someone so intent on figuring out every little thing about me, and poke and prod to get to know me and it-"
"It's because he cares about you, Kate."
Kate's smile ran away from her face, and she sighed.
"I just found out that my boss died trying to protect me, and then I find out that he had something to do with my mom's case. To top it all off, he tells Castle, who then keeps it from me, and I end up being the last to know."
She paused to run a hand through her hair.
"It's a little frustrating."
Shaw stepped closer and sat down beside Kate, grimacing.
"So you fought?" she asked.
Kate only pursed her lips in response.
She went on.
"It's not his fault, you know. He just did what he was told, and, honestly, he just wants to protect you. At least, that's how I'm seeing it."
Kate let out another sigh, shaking her head and looking away.
"Kate, I can only imagine how you're feeling inside, but instead of pushing him away like you seem so intent on doing, I think you need to let him in and let him be your sounding board. Otherwise, you're going to drown in this case, and I don't think the people around you want to see that."
Kate forced a small smile now and nodded.
"Don't get yourself killed over this case, okay? Especially now that it's in a spot where we can manage it and end it- for good this time," Shaw added softly.
"Thank you," Kate mumbled.
Shaw nodded, then cocked her head and studied the ruffled Beckett for a few moments longer. She was trying to figure out what was going on in her head. Trying to profile her.
"I know how hard it is to deal with the loss of a parent," she said finally.
Kate met Jordan's gaze.
"My dad. Lung cancer. I was 13."
Kate's mouth open in a gasp, and she muttered, "I'm so sorry."
"And even now, almost 30 years after the fact, there isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about him. What he'd be like today, what he'd think of my career…," she trailed off at this, and then continued.
"You know, he was always enabling my fascination with crime and justice, much to my mom's dismay. Part of the reason I became who I am today…"
"Guess we have something in common then."
Jordan met Kate's gaze.
"My mom's case is why I became a cop."
She smiled.
"You're afraid to find out who you are now that it's over, aren't you?"
Kate didn't reply.
"Kate, I've been in that same spot. For years after my dad died, I holed up. I became reclusive, stoic. There was no… spark in me. I just worked constantly- school, part-time jobs, whatever. I thought I was happy, but I wasn't. I got a degree in political science and was going to try to get an internship on the mid-term elections. And then I met Jason, my husband."
Kate kept listening, staring intently at the agent, who sighed.
"Look, I know where you're at, and I know how you feel. But the best thing you can do is let him in, not push him away. Let him be that sounding board that you need. He cares about you, Kate. He cares a lot."
Agent Shaw gave her a weak smile and placed a hesitant hand on top of one of Kate's, gave it a quick squeeze, then rose from the chair. Just like that, she was gone, leaving a stunned and confused Kate in the break room.
She didn't sleep at all that night.
When Kate arrived home, she changed into the same comfortable pair of shorts and NYPD sweatshirt as she had worn the afternoon Castle came over to comfort her.
She went to her room and opened the bottom drawer of her night stand.
She took out Royce's letter and re-read the last paragraph at least ten times.
XxXxXxXxXxX
He followed her to the precinct that night. She probably noticed, but she didn't bother to pull over and call him out on it. She didn't want to fight with him. She was too tired to fight.
He parked on the opposite side of the street, making sure that she made it inside safely, before turning the ignition again and driving back to the loft in SoHo.
Despite his yearning to go to her, to see her, to help her, he respected her wishes. He stayed away.
He had willingly given her space for the past two days. He knew that they would have to face each other eventually. Montgomery's funeral was today, and they were going to have to at least pretend to be civil to one another.
Rick had selected an all-black ensemble- dark slacks, a silk black, button down polo, and a suit coat.
Alexis and Martha would be joining him at the funeral. Montgomery had been part of Castle's precinct family, and consequently, he had been a part of Martha and Alexis's family, by extension.
He trailed the casket as Ryan, Esposito, Beckett, and three other officers, all white-gloved and clad in their uniforms, carried it. He bit his lip to fight back tears as he spotted Evelyn Montgomery and her three children, swallowed a lump in his throat when Esposito and Ryan presented her with the folded American flag, and lost his breath when Beckett turned to meet his gaze as she rose to the podium to give the eulogy.
"Roy Montgomery taught me what it meant to be a cop. He taught me that we are bound by our choices, but we are more than our mistakes. Captain Montgomery once told me that for us, there are no victories. There are only battles, and in the end, the best you can hope for is to find a place to make your stand…"
She trailed off at this, overcome with emotion, gripping the sides of the podium.
She cleared her throat and continued.
"And if you're very lucky, you find someone willing to stand with you."
She stole a glance toward Castle, who had been standing not ten feet from her side, waiting to say a few words of his own.
They met each other's gaze briefly before she lowered her head, turned back to her speech, and went on.
He kept his powerful gaze on her before feeling the corner of his eye twitch at something bright. He turned his gaze to the tombstones in the distance and saw it again. A fleeting flash.
Time seemed to stop for the next few moments.
Gun.
Sniper.
Kate.
His head quickly whipped toward the perimeter of FBI agents, wondering if they had seen what he had. Shaw seemed to be pointing over to the area from which the flash came, speaking with another agent who stood nearby.
They weren't moving fast enough.
There was no way they could stop a sharpshooter in the next five seconds. He was about to shoot. So Castle didn't waste another moment.
He didn't think. He just acted.
"Kate!" he cried out as he launched himself toward the podium, a bullet erupting from the gun's muzzle and roaring toward her as his arms enveloped her.
Their bodies plummeted together in a heap, their fall broken by the sea of grass behind the gravesite.
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End of Part One
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So who got shot? Nobody knows.
Seriously. I don't even know.
Let me just say that when I first wrote this, I had no intention of leaving you guys with a cliffhanger. When I first wrote this, Castle got shot. But then I re-wrote it and decided not to let either of them get shot. Now, I'm not sure, so I left out all details of who got shot for the next chapter.
I normally don't do this, but I'm going to let you guys influence my decision. So in your reviews, tell me what scenario you want to see- it's kind of a Choose Your Own Adventure with Castle! What could be better?
So go ahead. Click the button, review, and tell me if you want Castle, Kate, or neither of them to get shot, or if you just want the sniper to blow up the whole world so this story can be over. And then see what happens next chapter.
Hope you guys liked it.