Chapter 7

Castle opened his front door. "Hey Alexis."

"Hey dad." She was sitting at the island working on homework.

"How was your day?"

"Uh, fine. Yours?" She looked up. Secrecy covered her face, but Castle, drowning in his own thoughts, didn't see it.

"Interesting." Castle stated.

"How so?" Alexis asked hopping up and dishing her father up some leftovers. "Here."

"Thanks. Well. Beckett wanted to make an old friend jealous so we pretended to date."

"Beckett? Really? Are you feeling okay?" Alexis came up behind Castle and put her hand on his forehead.

"Then Gina stopped by, found out and thought it was real. She broke up with me. But not without a fight. Gina punched Beckett, knocking her out."

"Oh my gosh!" Alexis gasped.

"When Beckett woke she was fine. Until our suspect commented on her black eye. She runs out and I take over interrogation."

"Wow. Nothing compared to mine."

"What happened in your day?" Castle asked taking a bite out of his dinner.

"I got the highest score in the school on a school wide test. Mr. Potter said I had a choice of skipping senior year."

"What did you tell him?"

"I said I'll think about it. But he told me to start applying for colleges."

"Beckett." Castle greeted.

"Castle. What's wrong?"

"Alexis passed a test." He said hurt.

"K. I'm a detective, and under normal circumstances, I'd understand this. But I'm just not seeing it."

"She got a high score, she might not have to do senior year. She's applying for college."

"Castle. She was going to leave any way. No one stays forever. But, since I owe you, how can I make you feel better?"

An idea came to him. "You could go on a date with me tomorrow."

"Not gonna happen."

There was a little bit of silence. "How's your eye feeling?"

"Better. Iced it for an hour and the swelling went down."

"I never thought I'd see the day Kate Beckett was taken down."

"Castle. Every cop has that happen to them some time in their career. I'm not perfect."

"Hey look. Sanchez is here. With, is that Gina?"

Ryan and Esposito were leading them to separate interrogation rooms. "Oh yeah. I sent them to this apartment first thing this morning. Why is he in handcuffs?"

They met the boys in the back room of interrogation. Looking through the window she said, "What happened?"

"What's Gina doing here?" Castle asked facing the other way looking through the back window at her.

"The captain told us to pick her up as well. For assaulting a cop." Esposito filled Castle in then left.

"We found him locked in his apartment with a gun. Tried to shoot us. And when we took away the gun, strangle us."

"Violent." Beckett stated. "Castle let me do this. Think he'll react less to 1 on 1 interrogation." She opened the door and went out, but poked her head back around the door. "Oh Castle. You and Esposito look up James Connelly."

"K." Castle agreed.

"Thanks."

Castle followed Beckett out but left her side and went to Esposito's desk. "What's up?" Esposito asked putting papers in a file.

"Beckett wants us to look up a guy named James Connelly."

"James Connelly? Isn't he the man who's supposed to be dead?"

"Yeah. That's just what she told me to do. I think it's just a diversion so I don't interrupt her when she's questioning Sanchez."

"Well. If it's what Beckett wants." He shrugged. And walked Castle through the whole process so that next time he could do it himself.

"Yo. Esposito!" Ryan called, nervously. "Get over here. Sanchez pulled a knife on Beckett."