They had gotten ready in record time despite Castle's protests and whining. Add to that the fact that it was so early, they actually bypassed the morning traffic; it was still dark when Castle and Beckett arrived at the crime scene on the chilly December morning. She parked the Charger behind the other cars, some of them still flashing their lights, on the side of the road. The wind made her shiver as she pulled her coat close, over her protruding bump.
They weren't far, but they had to finish the path on foot. When they were close enough, the partners saw the group of people huddled at the foot of a billboard. Given the early morning, both the detective and the writer were surprised by the number of curious faces already trying to peer through.
The officer in uniform lifted the tape for them to pass through, giving Beckett a look conveying sympathy. He smiled at her with compassion as he eyed her growing bump. She brushed it off, but internally, she hated him for it. Being a woman on the force was hard enough, being a pregnant one was even worst. It wasn't that people treated her badly; it was just that people treated her differently, like she was a fragile glass doll.
She had opted for baggy clothes at first, trying to conceal it. She wasn't ashamed; she just hadn't been ready to be the pregnant one yet. There was no hiding it anymore, she looked very much pregnant. Everyone could see it now and she couldn't help and feel judged by the world. Every smile, every look, every hand to help her, felt like a criticism on how she was handling it and somehow, she despised them for it. She hated herself even more for letting it affect her.
Despise was a strong word, but with the hormones emphasizing every little emotion she felt, despise was exactly how she felt about the officer supporting her elbow as she bend down under the yellow tape on the chilly December morning.
As they approached the crime scene Castle, peered up in awe. Turning his head towards his wife he asked smiling, "What the hell?"
Beckett shrugged her shoulders and shook her head as they continued their way towards the others. Their footsteps echoed on the cold path and as they approached; the sea of familiar faces turned in their direction.
Esposito smiled as he greeted the two partners, "Hey, Mama Bear!" He said to Beckett before turning to Castle, matter of factly stating, "Papa Bear."
"Shut it, Espo," she shrugged off shooting him the look she was famously known for, continuing her way towards another group of people a couple of feet away.
Esposito looked at Castle with wide eyes, biting his lip to contain the smile, as he added in a lower voice, "Got it. Cranky Bear."
Castle didn't follow his wife. He stopped and stayed with the detective and he answered, while shooting glances towards his wife, almost in a whisper, "Yeah… hormones can be a bitch," as he gestured a wavelike motion with his right hand.
"I heard and saw that, Castle," called Beckett as she came back to the guys, Ryan following her closely. "And, not as much hormones as the damn lack of caffeine, the fact that I pee every 5 minutes, gas, bloating and the fact that I'll soon be as big as a house. But hey, who am I to complain, right? Pregnancy is beautiful and all that. Now, on with the case, shall we?"
Castle smiled tenderly, took her by the shoulder and brought her in closer, kissing her temple, "You have every right to complain, when you're growing my tiny human, Kate."
She quickly pulled away, glaring him down, hands on her hips. Her facial expression, which Castle correctly recognized as her 'What the hell do you think you're doing here?' face, had him petrified. He had just seriously messed up. He knew how she felt, but he had gotten carried away in the moment, and yes he knew she wanted to kill him right about now.
Castle stumbled on his next words, still very startled by the look his pregnant wife was still giving him. "Yeah, right…Sorry. So guys, what the hell happened here?" He attempted while turning towards the guys.
Ryan, quickly catching on that it was best for all of them to focus on the case right now, answered "Not sure yet, a concerned citizen called it in at 4:15 this morning. He's still with Hadley over there." He pointed to an officer in uniform and a young man.
Castle still in awe at the crime scene they had stepped into asked, "How do up think he got up there?"
Beckett now more relaxed, happy the conversation had steered away from her, jumped into the exchange, "The better question is why would anyone give them self the trouble of smashing someone against a billboard?" she asked as she walked closer to the foot of the sign, and the three men followed her.
"Lanie?" she screamed to the woman perched out on the crane, examining the body stuck to the sign.
"I'll be down in a minute, honey!" the ME screamed back.
And Beckett put her thumb up and lifted her hand high.
The four of them stayed there, watching the doctor work in fascination. They waited until the crane lowered her to the ground, just beside them. As she got out of the box and unstrapped herself, Castle jokingly said to her, "Good thing you aren't afraid of heights."
"I didn't know this would be a factor when I signed up for this job. God, I hate the creepy ones," she shivered at her last words as to prove her point.
Beckett and Castle shared a look and a smile, which Lanie caught onto, "I know. I know. You two married nut bags love them."
Castle chuckled. They did.
"So Lanie, what do we have?" Beckett asked.
"Really not a pretty site that's for sure."
"I bet. He looks like the tiny insects that keep smashing into my windshield when I'm on the highway," added Castle, disturbed.
"Anything you could tell us right now?"
"I'll have to compare dental records to be sure but, his wallet was in his pockets." She extended her arm with the evidence bag in hand, exposing the wallet covered in human fluids and tissue. Ryan and Esposito shared a disgusted look.
"His name is Sebastien Franklin. The force of impact had him explode on the billboard. And when I mean explode, I mean explode. His whole body is mush, that's why his wallet looks like… well like that. I really hope I'll be able to work with the dental records."
"Do you know what did this to him?"
"My best bet is he was dangling from a small plane when he hit the sign. Helicopter would be too slow. But that really isn't my area of expertise; you'd have to check with forensics. I'm not sure it will be possible, but when we find a way to get him down and take him to the lab, I'll try to determine if he was dead upon arrival."
"Thank you, Lanie."
"No problem," added the doctor before shaking her head and grumbling, "People are sick bastards," and turning around to walk away.
Thoughts? Comments? Complaints?