An hour later, Kate still had her arms wrapped around Rick's head as they both slept in the trauma room. She was exhausted, the strain of the last week having taken its toll.
"Dad?!", Kate was startled awake by the entrance of Martha and Alexis. The two redheads had entered quietly, but their first view of Castle had shocked them. They knew from their conversation with Captain Gates that he had been hurt, they were not prepared for the extent of his injuries.
Alexis slowed, reaching for her father's hand initially, then pulling back as Kate straightened herself up. "Alexis, your dad's been badly injured, just be careful. Don't touch his back or left arm."
Alexis nodded at Kate then leaned down to softly kiss her father's cheek and run her hands through his hair. At the same time, Martha wrapped her daughter-in-law in a comforting hug. Concern lined the older woman's face, concern for her son, her daughter-in-law and her grandchild to be.
"It's going to be okay, Katherine," she reassured, "Richard has too much to live for. He will be okay, we need to believe that."
"I know, Martha, I know." Kate tried to quiet her doubts now that her family was here.
Martha slipped past Kate, leaning in to kiss her son and caress his cheek. Then the three women leaned into each other, holding on for support.
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When Kate left the trauma room to get some coffee and check in with her team, she found two officers standing guard outside the door. It was a stark reminder that the crazed woman who had hurt Castle was still out there, still posed a threat. She didn't notice at first when one of the guards followed her as she walked out to the waiting area.
Quickly glancing back at the uniformed officer, she was happy to see Esposito and Ryan dozing in the waiting room, their dedication to both Beckett and Castle plainly evident.
"Hey guys." She gently shook at their shoulders.
Esposito was the first to react, "Kate," He pulled her into a deep hug, "How's Castle?"
"He's sedated," She answered, accepting a hug from Ryan as well. "They say he'll recover, but it's going to be a long road in front of him. Did you get her? Any word?" The long looks on their faces was all the answer she needed. "Guess that's why I'm getting the escort now, too."
"Beckett, there was a place in her room, nothing but pictures of Castle, his books, articles. It was like she had built a shrine to him." Esposito hesitated. He hated to tell her what they had found but she needed to know. "There were some pictures of you as well, your engagement announcement, wedding pictures. Everyone of them had been scratched, cut or written on. It's pretty clear that she hates you, Kate."
"Probably thinks I stole Rick from her." Kate concluded his story. "So if anyone is her target, it's me."
The guys nodded their agreement.
"We have every entrance to the floor covered. You, Alexis, Mrs. R, you're all under guard til we find her, Castle too of course. We have her car, frozen her accounts, she can't go far."
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That was too easy, she thought, all hospitals are the same. Wait for the staff to sneak out for a smoke, they prop the door open, move far enough away so the smell doesn't go in and, simple as anything, I'm in.
Beth giggled, adjusting the scrubs she had stolen from the laundry. I know Rick is here, saw them take him out of our house. He was hurt, she had hurt him, she'll do anything to take my love from me.
Her thoughts were spiraling out of control. Checking again that her weapon was hidden and accessible, she started towards the ER intent on ending this and taking back what belonged to her.
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Alexis had come out looking for Kate. Her father was beginning to stir and she knew he would need to see Kate when he regained consciousness. After exchanging pleasantries with the detectives, the two woman headed back for the trauma bay doors. Hearing a commotion behind them, they turned in time to see a nurse, or someone dressed as a nurse, pull a weapon from under her scrubs and shoot the deputy who had stopped to question her.
All were momentarily shocked as Beth McAgee turned toward Kate, screamed at her, raised her weapon and began firing.
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It was just as easy to get down to the ER level as it was to enter the hospital. Uniformed guards were at all of the entrances but no one thought to look at someone already in the building.
Approaching the trauma unit was a different story, a young, uniformed deputy stopped her to ask for ID. Knowing the ID she had would not pass close inspection, Beth had tried to slip past the man with her hands full of blankets. When he persisted she started to argue with him, that's when she spotted her.
Beth's rage consumed her.
Rick's daughter is with her, she thought, oh, Alexis, you've fallen into her trap as well. I will free you, one way or another.
Tossing the blankets at the young officer she swiftly slipped the Glock from its hiding place, shooting the young man in the abdomen. Stepping more completely into the unit, she raised her weapon screaming, "Rick's mine, you can't keep him from me." and then began firing.
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Kate hesitated, momentarily stunned by the turn of events, then pushed Alexis behind a corner as she drew her weapon.
Beth continued to unload her weapon in the direction she had seen Kate go ignoring all else around her. Her single mindedness allowed Esposito, Ryan and the uniform who had accompanied Kate to draw their weapons and fire.
The eruption of gun fire was brief, but definitive. Each man had shot two or three times, all hitting their mark. The emergency room personnel who rushed to Beth's aid just as quickly turned their attention to the wounded deputy, someone who was still able to be helped.
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Kate checked Alexis for injuries first, then hugged the young woman to reassure her that she was alright. More and more security and medical personnel flooded into the area as the woman went to check on Martha and Castle.
The older woman was shook, but unhurt. The noise had further roused Castle and now he was calling for his wife. Kate raced to his side, running her hand across his cheek.
"Rick, we're here." She reassured him. "Can you hear me, we're here."
"Kate?"
Gathering the two red heads closer to her, she turned back to him, "We're all right here." she smiled for the first time in a week, all three woman joining their hands with his. "You're going to be okay."
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Two weeks later, Kate stood in the kitchen of their loft watching as Martha and Rick sat side by side on the couch talking. Kate had watched the last few weeks as the older woman had changed from the vibrant, life of the party mother-in-law she knew to someone who looked every bit her 70+ years, and then some.
As her son had healed, so had Martha.
Kate couldn't hear what they were saying but knew the sentiments. She rubbed her stomach, knowing that, although she would not meet her child for many more months, the thought of he or she being hurt by someone the way Rick was would be more than she could handle. No mother should have to go through what Martha had just endured with her only child.
The last two weeks of Rick's recovery had been a roller coaster for the women who loved him. The first few days passed in a drug induced sleep for Castle. He was never alone though as Kate, Martha and Alexis were constantly at his side.
As the days wore on, he was transferred out of the ICU and into a private room. This meant more visitors but less visiting time. Esposito, Ryan and his wife Jenny, other friends, even Captain Gates had taken the time to make the two hour trip to Green County hospital.
The change in location also meant a step down in medication. The first few days were difficult, the time leading up to a medication dose was painful, but the decrease also meant more awareness for Castle and a chance to talk with his family and friends. The move from Green County back to Mt. Sinai hospital in the city had made visits so much easier and allowed the women to sleep in their own beds rather than live out of a suitcase at the local hotel.
One visitor Castle had before the move had been Nicholas McAgee. He had come to New York to claim his sister's body and wanted to express his apologies to her victim. Castle felt bad that the young woman had never been able to overcome her delusions and hoped that her brother could overcome his loss.
The two men had talked briefly, shook hands, and went their separate ways.
Coming back to the present, Kate watched her husband and his mother again. Finishing their talk, Martha first kissed his cheek before resting her lips against his temple as she hugged his head, his right arm wrapped around her. Detaching herself finally, she waved to Kate calling out, "I'll be home in a few hours, Katherine. Make sure he behaves himself." The diva Martha making an appearance once again.
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After changing into some more comfortable clothes, Kate sat on the coffee table again watching Castle sleep. He had been exhausted by the simple act of walking from the car to the elevator and the elevator to his couch. He would hear nothing of getting a wheelchair for the loft, the going was rough right now but he was just relieved to be finally out of the hospital. Now, after Kate had applied cream to stop the incessant itching from healing skin and given him a pain pill, he was sound asleep on the couch as someone knocked softly on the door.
"Yo, chica," Kate smiled at Esposito's greeting as he and Ryan quietly entered the loft.
"How's he doing?" Ryan inquired first as all three looked at the sleeping man.
"Good," Kate answered. "He's just tired and was hurting so I gave him a pain pill." She visibly slumped, "We're all just so happy he's home. It's going to be a while til he's back on his feet, but at least he's healing."
"This may help," Esposito pulled a small evidence bag from his coat pocket, "CSU found it in the kitchen trash can. Lanie cleaned it up, thought you'd want it back."
Kate took the offered bag and slowly opened it, a gold ring, identical to one she wore in all ways but size fell into her hands. Turning it slowly around in her fingers she looked at the one word inscription inside.
Always
Tears crept at the corners of her eyes, "Thanks guys, this means a lot...to both of us."
Goodbye hugs and promises to stop by in a few days and the guys were gone. Walking back to the couch, Kate slipped the ring onto Rick's right hand, the left still too swollen, just as she had done on their wedding day. Then settling down on the couch, she picked her husband's head up to rest on her lap. He stirred momentarily before resettling.
Running her hand through his hair and across his cheek she allowed the tears to flow freely. They were together again, they had survived the ordeal and, in time, would come out whole on the other side.
Together.
Always.
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A/N: Thanks again to all who followed, favorited and reviewed. I really loved writing this even though at times it diverged from my original outline. So looking forward to seeing Rick and Kate get married.
I do have a few other ideas but as a single mom and a grad school student, they may have to wait til summer at the earliest.