A/N: Only a couple chapter left! Leave a note, I don't bite!

Kate

Morning dawns brightly and I'm surprised either of us slept this late. I stretch a little and stand from the bed, taking a moment to replace the blankets over Alexis' sleeping form. So much of what she said last night was valid and I wish that just making a promise had the power to cause it to come true, but it doesn't. I am fully aware that I may die trying to bring Castle home. And as much as I am already grieving the loss of our future together, I accept that it could be endgame. But if he can be safe, if the two of them can be together again, then I will do this gladly.

I make my way out to the kitchen and start coffee, rubbing the sleep from my eyes and scrolling through the mental file of Jerry Tyson once again. The last clue he gave us was that stupid song and even though I've memorized the lyrics, it occurs to me that music and songs are more than that. Could there have been more hidden in the track? Did he embed some kind of code that we could crack with the right equipment?

"Kate?"

"Hey. I just had a thought."

"Me too," the redhead says, perching on the barstool, her eyes alight with excitement. "I don't know if it was a dream or that halfway point between awake and asleep. If dad kept his own notes on Jerry Tyson and he knew that Tyson had been here, or at least was keeping tabs, doesn't it hold that he would have stored those notes somewhere else?"

"Like where?"

"A safety deposit box. Locked in a filing cabinet at Black Pawn. That's where he keeps copies of his will, my birth certificate… Kate what if we just haven't been looking in the right place?"

It hits me then and I steady myself against the counter, stammering words out.

"My apartment."

"What?"

"It was months ago. Remember when we made him clean out his study because it was so dusty? He was going through files and things for days, that's why it's so disorganized now, he got bored and shoved it all back into the drawers. He took some stuff over to my place, he said it was important paperwork, contracts and things, and he didn't want to risk losing it in the purge. We took it over there and put it in my wall safe. I never looked at what it was but maybe…"

"We have to go over there," she says, standing up from the barstool. "I mean, we're not even sure he made any kind of notes, but why would he keep them here if he did? If Tyson was going through destroying things, if he had the loft under surveillance, then he'd know dad was making notes, he'd know to come here to get them and he wouldn't care about taking out anyone that stood in his way. Kate, he had to have made those notes and he would have hidden them to protect us."

My heart is beating faster and faster as all the ink blots finally form a clear picture. It's the same feeling I get in my gut when we're closing in on a suspect. This is it. This is a foothold, it's a piece of hope, it's something.

"What were you thinking of?"

"The flash drive," I stutter out, remembering. "What if there's something hidden under the music?"

"Paul is dead, coo-coo-cachoo?"

"Like that."

"Where's the flash drive?"

"Locked in my desk at the precinct. I'll call Ryan and have him get it out, start analyzing."

She nods, watching as I grab my phone from the counter and open the web browser, hunting for the history of the song. What I find is innocent enough, but it sends a chill down my spine. She takes the phone from me and reads the screen, a wrinkle forming on her brow.
"The assertion that "we'll meet again" is optimistic, as many soldiers did not survive to see their loved ones again. Indeed, the meeting place at some unspecified time in the future would have been seen by many who lost loved ones to be heaven."

"No. No, this is just a coincidence," she says, shaking her head. "The message he sent, it's nothing more than the lyrics, it's not about this. It can't be."

I want to assure her that she's right, it is just a fluke, but this is just the kind of thing Tyson would do and it's just the kind of thing Castle would come up with to solve a case. There's a pit in my stomach while Alexis gets rid of the webpage and shakes her head.

"It's not this, Kate. This isn't some spy thriller, this is real. It's just a coincidence."

I don't agree or disagree with her and she sighs, heading upstairs to get dressed, while I finish my coffee and call Ryan, tumbling all the information over in my head while I do so.

"Kate. We're almost to the loft-"

"I need you to do something for me."

"We'll come pick you up-"

"Ryan, I need you to get into the locked drawer in my desk. There's the flash drive in there. I need to take it to Tech and see what they can get out of it. File names, anything that was on there, then deleted, anything embedded in the current files."

"Kate-"

"Just do it Ryan!"

"Okay. Do you want us to come pick you up?"

"No, I have things I need to do."

There's a staticky noise and I can tell he's put the phone on speaker so Esposito can get in on the conversation.

"Kate, Gates wants us to look into the body in the car-"

"That's going to take forever, just please go and do this for me okay?"

"Is Alexis going with you?"

"Yes. I don't want to tangle with her over this right now. She can make her own decisions."

"Bring her to the station, she can help us instead."

"I'll bring it up to her but I don't think she'll go for it. Call me if you find anything."

I hang up the phone and leave it on the counter while I head into the bathroom for a shower. Their apprehension isn't lost on me and I really want to sneak out while Alexis is in the other room, leave without her and bar her from any of this. I know how angry she would be, she may never talk to me again, especially if I ditch her for a simple trip back to my apartment. There's no danger here, but I feel like I need to make a stand now. Castle would be furious if he knew I was letting her do this, but if I don't let her do it, if I don't keep an eye on her, Tyson could take her too.

Swallowing hard at the thought, I shake my head and wonder if the boys have reached the precinct yet, or managed to get into the locked drawer. It's not that secure, I'm sure they'll get in with a little work. And maybe we'll get lucky and tech will find something on the flash drive. Maybe, maybe.