A/N: For those of you who liked/loved the last chapter, please be sure to thank my beta-ish as she actually wrote that chapter and I played the beta-ish for her.
Once again, this chapter is a little light on fluff, and thanks go out to Slider23 for the inspiration for this chapter. I wanted to get this out relatively quickly after the last chapter just cause I didn't want to be too mean to you guys, so hopefully you like it. Also, I am trying something new again with this chapter so tell me what you guys think, please.
Disclaimer: If I got something wrong on the more technical aspects of this chapter, I have only myself and google to blame (although, I do prefer to blame google). Also, I still own none of these characters expect Chloe.
Arriving at the address given by dispatch, Kate couldn't help but shudder at the intense daydream she had just experienced—silently hoping that it wasn't a premonition of things to come. Quickly, she got out of her car, grabbed her bullet resistant vest from the trunk and met up with the boys as they got out of their car. After the boys grabbed their bullet resistant vests from their trunk, the three of them quickly strategized while donning their vests. Looking at a blueprint of the building (specifically the apartment in question)—which was laid out on the hood of Kate's car, they quickly came up with a plan of attack.
Fanning out towards the apartment building, Kate entered through the front while Ryan and Esposito entered through the rear entrance leaving officers at both entrances. Quickly clearing the lobby, Kate headed up the front flight of stairs, aiming for the third floor. On the third floor, Kate met back up with Ryan and Esposito as they headed for apartment 34C. After flanking the door, Kate reached out and banged on the door.
"Caleb Larson. NYPD. We have a warrant." After a moments wait, Kate pounded on the door again. "Open the door, Mister Larson. It's NYPD. Open the door. We have a warrant."
Receiving no response, Kate signaled to the boys that she was going to try the door. As she reached up to grab the knob, a shot rang out and a hole appeared in the door directly above where her hand was.
"Ryan, call for backup."
Ryan immediately responded by backing slightly away from the door and making the call before resuming his position behind Esposito.
Foregoing the long wait, Esposito rammed the door in and backed up to prevent any attacks from anyone who may have been lying in wait. Clearing the entrance, Esposito entered the door and traced the nonexistent diagonal line-from left to right. He turned to check the area to the left of the door and then quickly dodged into the bathroom to the right of the door, out of the line of fire. With Ryan and Esposito providing cover fire, Kate quickly ran in and dodged into the kitchen on the left side of the door.
Noticing a second entrance from the kitchen to the living room, Kate quickly made her way through the kitchen and then cleared the adjacent living room while the boys kept the shooter at bay. Running out of the kitchen and dodging behind the couch, Kate was able to see the shooter holed up in the bedroom adjacent to both the bathroom and the living room. Seeing Kate's movement, the shooter turned his attention to her and shot at her. While his attention was diverted, Ryan and Esposito both moved further into the apartment and towards the bedroom. Seeing the movement out of the corner of his eye, the shooter once again turned his attention on the boys causing them to fall back and take cover in the kitchen. Seeing that the shooter's attention was diverted, Kate crept out of her hiding place behind the couch and started creeping towards him using the other chairs and cabinets in the room as cover. Once she was in a good position, Kate quickly fired off three shots in quick succession-two at center mass and one to the head of the shooter.
Seeing the man fall to the ground, Kate cautiously moved towards him to ensure that he was truly incapacitated. Drawing near, Kate walked towards the gun that had fallen from the man's grasp and kicked it towards the back wall of the room. Having done that, Kate leaned in to check for the man's pulse. As she leaned forward, the man suddenly lunged towards her grabbing her ankle and yanking it causing her to fall backwards into a chest of drawers, hitting her head on the way down and losing her gun in the process. Quickly recovering, Kate was back on her feet. Jumping towards the man, Kate was able to get a hold of him and zip tied his hands behind his back, but not before he was able to land a couple of blows to her face and stomach.
Hearing a noise, Kate quickly looked up expecting to see Ryan or Esposito. Instead, she found herself staring down the barrel of the gun she had earlier kicked away as it was wielded by teenage boy. Before she could do more than register what she was seeing, the boy had pulled the trigger, shooting Kate in the chest and knocking the breath out of her.
Upon seeing Kate entering the room, Ryan moved to clear the rest of the apartment while Esposito moved to back Kate up. Right as Esposito entered the room, he saw the boy aiming the gun at Kate pull the trigger and saw Kate react to the bullet hitting her. Not stopping to think, Esposito shot the boy at point blank range.
Walking into the room, Esposito walked past Kate and angled for the boy. As the gun once again made its way into the back corner of the room, Esposito leaned in and checked the boy's vitals. Finding no pulse and noting the clean head shot, Esposito turned around and walked back towards Kate.
"Are you okay?"
"I think so. Just some bruises. I don't think anything is broken."
"Geez, Beckett. You look like hell. What, did you let that scum bag use your face as a punching bag before you got him subdued?" Ryan morosely joked to Kate as he walked into the bedroom. "Seriously though, we should have you checked out at the hospital."
"As I just told your partner here, I am fine. Just some bruising. Nothing life threatening."
"Beckett, you were shot and took several blows to the head, we are going to the hospital, if, for nothing else, then to get some x-rays done so you can prove us wrong."
Ignoring the worried remarks from her partners, she walked towards the casualty of the gunfire. She looked at the gunshot on his head and turned towards Esposito. She watched as Esposito's attention turned towards the boy and a look of pain and regret crossed his eyes.
I'm sorry.
She bent down and used her fingers to close the young shooter's eyes. Rest in Peace.
-o-O-o-
Walking into the interrogation room, Kate walked towards the table and sat down. Pulling out the file for Caleb Larson, Kate quickly skimmed through what she already knew about the case. While she was having some trouble concentrating, she was intent on nailing the bastard for murdering Rachel Simonson-a wife and the mother of three young kids.
"Mister Larson..."
"Please, call me Caleb." He told her while giving her a quick once over before finally fixing his gaze on her breasts.
"Mister Larson. Up here." Kate said while snapping her fingers in front of his face to get his attention. "Mister Larson. We have you on illegal possession of firearms, assault on an officer and wearing body armor while committing a violent felony. Now we can do two things." She raised an eyebrow at him. "Actually, you can do two things. One, confess to all of them and get less jail time; or two, you could deny and it will be my pleasure to lock you up and find a way for you to rot in prison." Larson tilted his head and ignored her.
Over the course of the next hour, Kate skillfully worked her way towards her way towards the confession she wanted all the while ignoring her ever increasing headache and ache in her ankle.
Finally, Kate dropped her final card, the piece of evidence that he didn't think they had—the piece of evidence that wiped the snide look right off his face. Seeing what the police had, Caleb Larson finally broke down and confessed to the murder saying that Rachel had deserved what she got for being such a slutty tease. If she had not come on to him like she had, he never would have killed her.
As soon as an officer had escorted him from the room, Kate found herself falling backwards into the chair she had previously occupied. Clutching her head, she let out a low moan.
Seeing this, Ryan and Esposito rushed in from the observation room.
"Okay, no ifs, ands, or buts, you are going to the emergency room right now." Ryan informed Kate.
Esposito quickly helped Kate up out of the chair into a standing position. As Kate started walking, she let out a hiss of pain as she placed some of her weight on her left ankle. Settling her back in the chair, Esposito did a quick visual inspection of her ankle.
"Beckett, how were you walking on this all this time? Why wouldn't you let us take you to the hospital right away?"
"I wanted to see that guy locked up for what he had done. My injuries could wait. This was more important."
Once again Esposito helped Kate to her feet, this time acting like a crutch on her left side as he led her to the elevator.
-o-O-o-
Arriving in the emergency room, Kate and the boys were surprised by the amount of people that populated the area. Their ears were inundated with the sounds of the ER: moans and groans from people who have less than extensive injuries, sniffling, sneezing, and crying from the little children as they held onto their parents like lifelines, and the squeaks of the shoes of the medical personnel as they rushed by, disappearing with patients whose numbers had been called and artfully dodging those who believed that their symptoms were more pressing.
Walking through the chaos, Esposito approached the intake nurse who, without looking up, handed him the requisite paperwork and told him to take a seat, fill out the paperwork, and wait to be called. Esposito willingly grabbed the paperwork, but did not immediately sit down.
"Ma'am, I'm Detective Javier Esposito and I am just trying to get my partner in to be checked out. She took a blow to the head earlier while doing her job but refused to come in and now, she is suffering from dizziness and headaches. There is also the possibility that she has broken an ankle and some ribs. Is there any way to get her in faster? I promise I will fill out the necessary paperwork while she is being attended to, if that is at all possible."
From that point on, it was a whirl of motion for Kate as an orderly forced her to sit on the wheelchair he would be pushing. She was then wheeled into one of the curtained off areas in the back where she was transferred to a bed and left to wait for a doctor. Not five minutes later, a doctor came in, checked her over and sent her to radiology for a CT scan and a full body X-ray. By time all the scans were done, Kate was worn out and just wanted to go home.
"Detective Beckett, looking at your CT scans and X-rays, it would appear that you have a mild concussion but no broken bones... just a few bruised ribs and a severely sprained ankle. We can wrap the ribs and ankle and send you home right now as long as you have someone that you can stay with tonight to check on you."
With that final note from the doctor, Kate ran for the exit as quickly as she could while on crutches, trying to get out of there as soon as possible.
She could see the door that was well beyond her reach when Ryan and Esposito showed up in her immediate sight and intercepted her, forcing her to slow down.
"Beckett, where do you think you are going?" Esposito asked in a challenging tone.
"Home." She replied simply as she adjusted the crutches.
Ryan shook his head and gave her a disappointed smile. "I don't think so. Not unless someone else is staying with you tonight. I know you have a concussion. No way are you going to be able to stay home by yourself tonight."
Her eyebrows scrunched up and gave them a defeated sigh. "Fine. Take me to Lanie's. Now, can we get out of here, please."
"Our pleasure." Esposito moved to stand by her to provide assistance... which she promptly waved away. Ryan shook his head in slight disbelief and added, "By the way, Rick called while you were in radiology. Just thought you would want to know."
"Crap." Kate whispered under her breath. "What time is it?"
Ryan looked at his watch and turned to her. "Eight."
She sighed tiredly and turned to them while holding out her hand, palm up. "Give me my phone, I need to call him."
Turning away from the boys, she quickly dialed Rick's number and explained her situation to him. Ryan and Esposito watched on as Kate tried to explain her way out of being in trouble-kind of like how a kid would explain to her parents how she got cuts and bruises. They smiled. She never had anyone who questioned her or really worried about her because no one else had the guts. This Rick guy must be really special.They shared a knowing smile and just watched as she made faces like a petulant child might when she thought her parents weren't looking. After five minutes on the phone, Kate ended the call and rested her forehead on the top of the phone while shaking her head in disbelief.
Finally, she turned to them and said. "Okay, Ryan, I need you to take me to Rick's loft first and then you can drop me off at Lanie's." And with that, she ambled her way out while the two followed her.
-o-O-o-
Pulling up to the building, Ryan quickly got out to help Kate out of the car. Before he got around to her side of the car, Kate had managed to pull herself out and was in the process of getting her crutches under her arms.
"Beckett, you have got to let us help you." Ryan said while shaking his head in disapproval.
"No need, guys. I got it." She gave them a smile. They could do nothing as they watched her amble towards the building, all the while wincing in barely hidden pain.
Staring at the building in awe as they climbed out of the car, they didn't notice that Kate had already made her way to the elevator until she called back at them to get a move on.
"He lives here?" Ryan said in disbelief as they reached her.
"That guy must be really loaded!" Esposito added with a nod.
Getting off the elevator and onto Castle's floor, Kate hobbled over to the door and knocked.
"Stay outside will you? I shouldn't be longer than ten minutes." Kate said to the boys before turning and knocking on the door.
As soon as Kate's hand had fallen back onto her crutch, the sounds of little feet could be heard as they ran towards the door.
Throwing open the door, Chloe ran forward and started to jump towards Kate, only to be stopped in her attempt by the hands that reached out from behind her and snagged her sweater.
"Kate! What happened? Why is your face all purple? And what are those metal things?" Chloe cried out upon seeing her.
Unsure what to say, Kate just stood there. Just then, Rick appeared from behind Chloe and promptly picked her up.
"Honey, Kate was in an accident today. Nothing too serious but she is a little sore right now." Rick jumped in and explained. "Now, how about you go help Alexis finish dinner while I talk to Kate?" Chloe nodded and gave her a small wave as Rick put her down.
While Chloe scampered off to the kitchen, Rick helped Kate disappear into the study.
He helped her settle on the couch and promptly put the crutches away. She gave him an appreciative smile and he turned around to drag a chair in front of her.
"Now, Kate. How about you really tell me what was going on? I know you gave me a basic rundown of your injuries on the phone, but I cannot help but think that you were not telling me something. How exactly did you get these injuries?" He asked worriedly.
"Rick, you know I work a dangerous job and this is an occupational hazard. Why is it so important that you know how I got them? What difference is that going to make?" She asked in irritation. Why does he care?
"It matters because I need to know why I am lying to my daughter. I told her that it wasn't serious...but I have the distinct feeling that how you got these injuries is a lot more serious then you are letting on. So, please, just tell me." He begged as he leaned forward, his arms now resting on his knees. Please, let me in.
"Fine, Rick. You want to know? I will tell you. The ankle and the concussion are from a fight I got into with a suspect I was trying to arrest. The ribs...the bruised ribs are from when I was shot by the suspect's friend. Are you happy now? Does this change anything for you?" Kate yelled.
"Kate. Are you..." Rick started when his voice immediately cracked. You could've died.
"No Rick! Don't! This mess today has had me thinking. I cannot do this anymore. I cannot continue to hang out with your family. It is just too much of a risk. My job makes it too much of a risk. What if I had not been wearing my vest today? Or if he had aimed just a little higher? You guys would have to deal with the consequences of that. I cannot do that to you. It would be better for me to walk away now. It may hurt but it would not hurt as much as if I were to get really enmeshed in your family and then get killed in the line of duty." She reached for her crutches and started getting up. Don't act like you care.
Standing up and turning to walk out the door, Rick suddenly grabbed Kate's arm from behind and she was gently spun back around to face him. She looked at him defiantly, blinking back the tears that are threatening to be let out. He looked steadfast... stubborn... knowing.
"No, Kate. You cannot unilaterally make that decision. Whether you like it or not, you are already a big part of this family. Do you think losing you now would be any better than if you were to have been shot and died? Either way we are losing you from our lives. Do you think I am going to let you just walk away? No! You cannot do this to my daughters! They do not deserve this. You cannot just enter people's lives and tell them who to care for, who to love. Who are you to tell them who they should love? You are better than this! You are stronger than this! Can't you see? They're not the only ones that need you? Have you thought that maybe... just maybe, I need you too?" She watched as he closed his eyes painfully and swallowed hard. She watched as he slowly opened his eyes and trained them on her... and as his expression changed from stubbornness to defeat.
"I don't let people into my daughters' lives very easily for that very reason, but you seemed different. Maybe I was just hoping, but I thought you were different." Rick sighed in defeat. "Maybe I was wrong, but I hope not. I think you are just what this family needs and you need us. I am not going to let you just walk away. We know... we know that we need you. I just hope you realize that you need us, too."
While this conversation was going on, neither Kate nor Rick noticed as the door opened and the girls walked in.
Walking forward, with tears streaming down her face, Chloe gently tugged on Kate's shirt.
"Kate? What's going on? Are you leaving? Why?" She bent down to the tear stained face of Chloe and her heart broke. Maybe...
Not waiting for an answer, Chloe fiercely hugged Kate's good leg as if to try and force her to stay. Do I deserve this?
Seeing this, Alexis could stay quiet no longer.
Kate turned towards the small angry voice directed at her. "You promised. You promised that you would never intentionally hurt us. You said that you didn't want us to hurt because of you. Well, guess what, detective. We are hurting. You are hurting us. You are abandoning us. Now I know what a promise really means to you-NOTHING. Nothing at all."
With that, Alexis left the room with tears pouring down her face.
A/N: I have not even begun to write the next chapter for this as I am studying for my last final EVER (as long as I never go to graduate school) and so am going to be a little busy the next 2 days and have no idea when the next chapter will be out (cross your fingers that it is before I go on vacation in a little over a week, although I do hope to have internet access while away, who knows if I will be inspired to write anything).