"From the first time that I heard his heart beat everything changed."
"So Ryan and Esposito, they were working at the twelfth during that time, weren't they?"
"Yes," she confirms.
"So they knew?"
"There is a code among those of us in uniform. It is unwritten, but definite. There are some things that you never ask about. Losing a child, that is one of those things."
"How do you do it?" He questions staring at her in awe.
"Do what?"
"How do you keep going? How do you move on after something like that?"
"I don't think that I will ever move on. It never gets easier."
"I can't imagine what kind of strength it took to walk back into that precinct."
She swallows hard, "It was one of the most difficult things I have ever had to do. I was supposed to be returning from maternity weeks, and not until weeks later. I walked into the precinct that day, and it really hit me. I couldn't deny it any longer. I wasn't pregnant anymore, and I didn't have a baby."
As the elevator doors open she can see Javier at her desk. He quickly removes a blue balloon with something written on it from her desk. He pops the balloon, and shoves it's carcass into the bottom drawer of his desk. As she exits the elevator he takes a seat at his desk. She enters the squad room. He looks up at her.
"You ready to get back to work?"
"Yeah," she nods.
"You want to start with paperwork?" he hopes.
"No," she shakes her head.
His phone rings. He pulls it out of his pocket, and puts it to his ear. "Esposito," he answers. He nods, and after a very short conversation he hangs up the phone.
"You're in luck we have just caught a case."
"What did your dad do with all of..."
Kate cuts him off before he has the chance to mutter his name, "I honestly don't know."
"You never told him that you remembered?"
"No. It was a wound that I didn't want to expose to anyone."
"You could have told him."
"We didn't talk much after that. We grew very distant for a while after that."
"So..."
She cuts him off, again, "I don't really want to talk about this anymore."
"Okay," he agrees, relenting.
"You should go spend some time with Alexis," she suggests.
"Are you saying that you want to be alone?"
She shakes her head, "That isn't what I am saying at all. I just think that the two of us have been spending a lot of time together. You should take some time to hang out with her."
"Are you sure?"
"Absolutely."
"You'll be okay?"
"I'll be here."
"Okay," he agrees.
As he eats lunch with his daughter, she talks, and talks. He barely hears a word that she says. All he can think about is Beckett, and her son. His right hand rests on the table. Alexis taps his hand.
"Did you hear me?"
He looks up at her, "I'm sorry what did you say?"
She furrows her brow, in suspicion, "Are you okay?"
"Sure," he fibs.
"No, you're not. You seem really distracted, what's wrong?"
"Don't worry about it," he answers.
"Dad, what is going on?"
"Alexis, don't worry about it, it's nothing."
"Nothing?"
"Nothing that you should worry about," he clarifies.
"Clearly, it has you worried," she points out.
"I was just thinking about Beckett," he answers.
"What about her?"
"It's complicated."
Alexis nods, "Why don't you go home, then?"
"I wanted to spend time with you."
"Your mind is clearly somewhere else. Dad, it's okay."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah."
He walks through the door, and finds the person that he's looking for sitting at a desk, with his back towards the elevator. He stops behind the desk, and clears his throat. Esposito turns, and looks at him.
Javier cocks an eyebrow, "Castle what are you doing here? We don't have a case."
"I could ask you the same," Richard points out.
"I am working on paperwork."
"On your day off?"
"Gates threatened to write me up if I didn't finish my paperwork today."
"Oh, I see."
"What are you doing here?"
"Can we talk?"
"Yeah," he nods.
"In private."
"Okay," Esposito agrees.
Javier pushes his chair away from the desk, and follows Castle into the empty lounge area. Castle closes the door behind them.
"What's going on?"
"I need a favor," Castle admits.
"Okay?"
"And you can't tell Beckett that I asked. You can't mention any of it to her."
"What's this about?"
"Liam," Castle answers.
"Oh," he exhales, "she told you?"
"Yeah," he nods.
"I didn't know if she remembered," Javi admits.
"She does."
"What can I do?"
"I read the report, and something just doesn't sit right with me. I just want you to look into it, and make sure that everything checks out."
"Why? What do you really think happened?"
Castle shakes his head, "I don't know. I just know that there is always more to the story than what an accident report says."
"Okay," Javier agrees.
"Thanks. I'll owe you one."