Thanks for your feedback. I know my chapters are short, but I'm working on the story. I may not have all my facts straight, but that's the glory of the imagination.

CHAPTER 2:

Castle's eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his head. "She's your WHAT?!"

"…I was just a kid when she was born, but her mother was adamant about it. Her mom, Diane, went to law school with my mother."

Suddenly, it dawned on Castle. Kate could see the light bulb go off as he put the pieces together in his head. "You mean…Diane Cavanaugh? Wasn't she…?" Castle wasn't sure if it was ok to say what he was thinking out loud, but Kate nodded her head and continued.

"Yes. After that happened, her dad became somewhat…over-protective, and frankly, pretty paranoid. He stopped trusting people. He took Macy out of school here and they moved to a ranch in west Texas, where she grew up. Using some family connection, he managed to become very successful in the oil business, as well as personal security, among other things. About a year ago, he moved back and re-opened his security office here in the city, leaving Macy in Texas to run the ranch. The last time I talked to him was before we lost Captain Montgomery."

It was a lot for Castle to take in, so Kate paused to make sure he had time to process everything. He studied the young woman for a minute. Macy couldn't be older than mid-twenties. Kate had never mentioned this family to him, even when they were working so hard to find Johanna's killer.

"Mr. Castle, the Beckett family is very near to my heart and always has been. Against my father's wishes, I managed to somewhat keep in touch with Kate after we moved to Texas. And even though Daddy won't admit it, Katie and Uncle Jim are two of a very small handful of people he truly trusts. He's not too keen on you just yet, but he knows that Katie trusts you, and that goes a long way in his book."

Castle could see the sincerity in the young woman's eyes as she spoke, and he could understand the trust that she placed in Beckett and her father. He'd trusted Kate from the moment they'd met. There had to be a reason why she hadn't mentioned Macy to him before, but he would ask her about that later.

Kate turned to Macy, "So what is it that you need my help with? It has to be important for you to be here, especially at this hour."

Macy hesitated before explaining, "Well…I don't know much, really. I got a phone call from Daddy around midnight. All he said was he needed my help and to get on the plane right away. He said 'Get to New York, find Kate and bring her to the office. I need you both,' so that's what I'm doing. There's a car waiting for you downstairs." As if everything were settled, Macy began to stand and gather her things to leave. "I'll see you at the office. I'm sure you won't waste any time in getting there. You know how Daddy can get." And with that, Macy walked out of the apartment.

"Kate, are you sure I should go along on this? I mean, if it's a family thing, I don't want to intrude…" Castle trailed off as he followed Kate towards the bathroom. "Castle, you heard her. You're coming. I don't know what's going on, but if she had to fly out here, it's big." She turned to face him and took his hands in hers. "Besides, I want you there. I trust you. And if Aaron Cavanaugh thought it was important enough to bring his daughter back to New York AND tell her to bring me to the office with her…Let's just get ready and go see what all this fuss is about."

Half an hour later, Beckett and Castle walked outside to find a black town car waiting, just as Macy had said. The driver immediately opened the door for them to get in, "Detective Beckett. It's nice to see you again. Miss Cavanaugh asked me to drive you." It took Beckett a few seconds to realize that she knew the driver. "Hey, Joe! I had no idea you were still working for AC."

"Of course, ma'am. They are like family to me. I'm sure you understand."

With that, Beckett and Castle climbed into the car and Joe closed to door before getting in the driver's seat and pulling out onto the street.

"Kate…how did she know that I would be at your apartment?"

"There's no telling, but if I had to guess, it's probably not the only thing she knows." The look of panic on Castle's face almost made Beckett burst out laughing. "Relax, Castle. That girl had more special ops training before she was 20 than most actual SpecOps guys will ever have. Remember, paranoid father with lots of money and connections? I spent a week with them one summer and felt like I'd come home from boot camp when I got back to the city. And that was BEFORE he got bad. I can't even imagine what she's had to deal with…"

"You mean, she's not just some cute little country girl?"

"Sure, Castle. A cute little country girl that knows about 40 ways to kill you without you even knowing she was even there."

"Cool! Can I use her in my next book? Do you think she'd mind? I mean…this could be a pretty epic storyline…" Beckett could see the wheels turning in his head as Castle's thoughts trailed off. "You'd have to ask her. But I'll warn you, don't call her a "cute little country girl" unless you don't really value your fingers."

They rode the rest of the way to the Cavanaugh Incorporated offices in silence.

Well...any feed back is appreciated. Thanks!