Kate looked at Rick and whispered "I'm Pregnant!"
Rick just smiled.
"I know you are!" Rick said pulling her into her arms.
"I 'm going to be a Mother to my own child." Kate said dazed.
"Yes you are" Rick said hugging and kissing her.
"We are having a Baby!" The both said.
"Rick, how did you know?" Kate asked in wonderment.
"I didn't…Well I suspected due to lateness of your periods. You have not had one in awhile." Rick said.
"Yeah I guess I have not been keeping track." Kate said.
"Well who could blame you? Writing the book on your experiences was taking up most of your time." Rick stated.
"Speaking about that when is it supposed to hit?" Kate asked.
"Oh yeah…in 2 days…?" Rick said.
"What 2 days why did you not tell me?" Kate exploded.
"I tried but…" Rick said
"Rick I can not possibly take time off right now." Kate said in panic mode.
"I know another bad timing but it had to be in the stores before Christmas. This was the latest of launches." Rick explained.
"Do I have to get dressed up?" Kate protested.
"Well are you ashamed of me? Do you not want to be on my arm?" Rick asked.
"Of course not…It is just I do not do well with crowds and the press." Kate said.
"Leave those things to me. I will protect you." Rick said
Kate smiled "You are my protector Rick!"
"…and speaking of protecting is it not time we head to the precinct?" Rick asked.
"Yeah I guess we do" Kate admitted "It's all so overwhelming Rick. Getting my Lt. Bars then Bracken assassinated. Finding out I'm pregnant and now a book launch."
"Yes but you are the strongest person I know we will survive this all." Rick encouraged preventing his wife from having a well deserved breakdown.
"Are you strong enough to go now Kate?" Rick inquired on his wife's health.
Kate nodded her head Kate and Rick emerged from the bathroom.
They were confronted with 5 sets of very worried eyes.
"Everyone relax, Kate is not just sick…" Rick said.
Kate looked at Rick and he gazed at her then they said together.
"We are having a Baby!"
The crowd was stunned for a moment and then the huge roar of congratulations occurred.
"Mom is having morning sickness! I should have thought of that" Alexis said relieved.
"Rick I need to set an appointment with Obgyn." Kate whispered.
"I'll remind you." Rick whispered back. Eventually they left the loft.
/
Kate getting into the precinct she called Javi and Kevin in.
"Look guys. I have an idea" She stated as she looked at Rick.
"Yeah Lt. what is it" Javi asked.
Rick took over.
"You all know what we know about Bracken and his illegal empire right?"
They both nodded.
"Well Kate thinks the plane was sabotaged to go down protecting Bracken. If Kate did continue with that federal job…" Rick continued.
"She would have brought him down" Kevin added… "Oh by the way thanks for the gifts those helped calming Jenny down."
"Gifts what gifts?" Kate asked her husband.
"It was nothing just something I used to help Alexis with your shooting." Rick replied. "I thought Jenny could use it too."
"I see anyways so what if someone was on that plane the shooter loved more than anything else a wife or girlfriend a Daughter or a Mother." Rick said.
"Ok we got you so far." Javi said.
"Ok and what if you found out that the person responsible for their deaths was someone you knew?" Rick surmised.
"Bracken was responsible in this shooter's eyes… so he had to die!" Ryan said.
"Right simple revenge was the motive." Kate said. "You need to comb the files on all the 58 people who died there has to be a connection to someone who could do this feat."
"We will be right on it Lt." They both said and they left.
"Kate I think my Father will be more helpful. I will go back to the loft to talk to him." Rick said.
"Ok but don't forget my hot chocolate and bearclaws" Kate kissed him and he left.
Kate grimaced she had to update Gates. She really did not know how much Gates knew. She got out of her office and knocked on her commanding officer's door.
"Come in Lt." The Captain said.
"Sir I have one item of personal business and two professional." Kate said.
"Ok Lt. let's hear the personal one first." Gates ordered.
"Sir I'm pregnant." Kate blurted out "and I want to keep this quiet for now."
"As you wish Lt. I figured there was something different in that tent the other day." Gates said.
"Rick said the same thing." Kate said.
"So now…What's about the other?" Gates asked.
"Sir I think I have figured out the motivation of the assassin of Sen. Bracken" Kate said.
"Ok what is it Lt.?" Gates asked.
"Sir it was revenge." Kate said.
"Revenge? Why Lt." Gates asked.
"Sir this brings me to point number two. Do you know why so many gov't agencies from the FBI to the Coast Guard are listed on this task force?" Kate asked.
"That thought did happen to cross my mind." Gates said.
"It is CYA time Sir." Kate said.
"CYA? Why? Lt." Gates asked.
"CYA is necessary because all of these agencies had dealing with various illegal activities of Senator Bracken or who we call the Dragon." Kate said.
"You are not telling me that the Senator and the Dragon is the same person?" Gates said in alarm.
"Yes Captain I am. Sir there has been a few of us who have been tracking the nefarious activities in secret of the Dragon. Rick could show you more." Kate said.
"So you are telling me that this one Senator had corrupted the whole of the Federal Law Enforcement Agencies?" Gates said.
"Yes sir and that is why I resigned. I was going to the feds to catch that Dragon." Kate said.
"So that is why you left… I always wondered about that." Gates said.
"It was to prevent me from reaching Pittsburgh and out of reach of the Dragon was the reason that flight was downed." Kate said.
"The flight was bombed? There was no mention of a device in the Official reports." Gates said.
"It is because I hid them. I knew Bracken had infiltrated every agency. I did not know if I could trust the investigators. I also fled the crash scene so that if they had known I was still there I might have been counted as one of the dead from the crash." Kate said.
"In other words you thought that they would have killed you." Gates said.
"Yes Captain. But now with Bracken dead there is not a good reason to kill me. I can return to the site and retrieve that evidence." Kate said.
"I see so what is the connection to the shooter?" Gates asked.
"The dead on the flight must have had some very big significance to the shooter. Rick made me think when my mother was murdered and if I knew who did it and I knew they were outside the touch of law what would I do." Kate said.
"I see point taken. Good work Lt." Gates said. "So what is next?"
"I interview with the NTSB investigators and return to retrieve the evidence." Kate said.
"Very well Lt. Keep me informed." Gates said "and again Congratulations to you and Mr. Castle.
"Thank you Sir." Kate said leaving.