Nightfall

NINE

FRIDAY – 4:26 PM

He couldn't let go. He just couldn't. Tears streamed down his face, unashamed. Castle clutched Alexis, his baby girl, to his chest, hugging her with a desperate fierceness that was whole heartedly reciprocated from his daughter. He buried his face in her long red hair, closing his eyes as he inhaled deeply of her familiar scent. Beckett remembered similar embraces with her mother. Before she'd left for Stanford, Johanna Beckett had hugged her fiercely, much the same as Castle was doing with Alexis. Johanna had told her that even though she no longer had that new baby smell, there was something about her that was always uniquely Kate. And it was something Johanna had said she never wanted to forget. Beckett imagined it was much the same for Castle with Alexis.

Hands on hips, chest heaving with each breath, Beckett rubbed the soot and sweat off her brow. She watched Castle and his daughter with warm, soft eyes, giving them a brief moment before she shattered their reunion with reality. Chaos was still unfolding behind them as the monster swatted at the hovering helicopters like they were buzzing flies. Thankfully, the beast was distracted enough to halt its forward momentum down Canal Street, providing them with a small window for a much needed respite. Not far away was the blazing wreckage of the downed Apache that had almost crash into her and Castle as they fled from the advancing creature.

"We need to go," she announced after a beat, placing a gentle hand on Castle's shoulder. He nodded, and separated from his daughter, but did not completely let go. Beckett ached to do the same with him, wanting desperately to hold his hand and lean against his broad frame for support, yet now wasn't the time or place for that sort of thing. She needed to be Detective Beckett right now.

"Where to, Detective?" Castle asked, still clutching his daughter with one hand, the teen ducked close to him, secured in the protection of her father's solid frame.

Beckett assessed the situation with cop eyes. Currently they were near Wooster Street. Judging by the creature's current progress, it was still around Lafayette, and if it continued down Canal, as it appeared to be doing, she suspected it was heading for the Hudson River. So, making for the tunnel would be foolish at best, suicidal at worse. Glancing out frantically, she contemplated trying to double back around, head north and then west, and attempt to reach the Williamsburg Bridge, but they were on foot, and she did not think it would be as easy to find another vehicle that wasn't already somehow damaged.

The drumming of rotors, different from that of the Apache attack helicopters, thundered overhead, forcing Beckett to crane her head back to look up. A group of Black Hawk helicopters were hovering above the rooftops of the Sheraton and Hilton Garden hotels. She couldn't be sure, but she had to hope they were sent to rescue evacuees and ferry them across the Hudson River and to relative safety. She had a decision to make, and she made it fast.

"The Sheraton," she shouted, pointed up so that the others could see. "To the roof, now!"

Beckett ushered Castle and Alexis forward. Turning she gestured to the two dozen or so other students, which included Paige, Alexis's best friend, to follow the pair. Beckett then took up the rear as everyone dashed through the conglomeration of packed buses and automobiles, heading up the block towards the front façade of the hotel.

It had been a rather bold and brazen choice to remain behind, but these twenty students thought that joining the reckless and growing panic would only make things worse. Beckett didn't know if she entirely agreed with their decision to remain, considering the fact that there was a massive creature barreling, seemingly unstoppable, down the street. But Alexis's choice not to flee, staying with the bus, had been sort of a blessing for Castle and Beckett.

If Alexis had left with her teacher, as most of the students had, then Beckett didn't know what they would have done. Eventually, she would have had to convince Castle to retreat with her off Manhattan and head for the Meadowlands, hoping and praying that the teen had somehow been able to make it to MetLife Stadium with the other evacuated school students. Beckett couldn't even imagine how hard that would have been. Castle would have been distraught, difficult to convince to do anything other than scour the entire city for his daughter. He was like that, when it came to the people he loved.

An explosion behind them signaled the destruction of another tank, and the gunfire was steadily decreased as more and more soldiers began to fall back or opted for full on retreat. Glancing over her shoulder, Beckett saw the creature slam into the side of a building, instantly sending shards of concrete and glass flying towards the ground. As it heaved its massive bulk away, the building buckled and collapsed inwards, sending up a cloud of dust and debris.

She had lost sight of Castle and Alexis in the fray, but found them once again after rounding a stalled city bus and helping a student up after he had stumbled over the curb. Castle was frantically waving his arms at them, and Beckett gripped the teenage boy's shoulders, directing him ahead of her as they ran towards the hotel's front doors. Castle placed a hand on her back as he ushered her inside, Alexis by his side.

The ground shook beneath their feet, and the dull sound of the monster's wailing roar could be heard as Beckett and Castle shepherded the students towards the stairwell.

"I don't know if this is even going to work," Beckett confessed to him in a quiet, breathless voice after the last of the students was through the door. Only Alexis remained, and Beckett wasn't worried about speaking truthfully in front of her. The teenager had a good head on her shoulders and Beckett knew that she could trust Alexis to take the news appropriately.

Castle merely nodded, grave in understanding. "I know, but we have to try," he replied, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder, before he turned to Alexis and helped her through the door.

The stairwell echoed with the footsteps of the two dozen students as they rushed up and up. Castle and Alexis were in front of her, and as they passed the third-floor landing, Beckett felt the ground quake again, this time much more violently. The creature was getting closer. Beckett's eyes flashed to Castle's, matching the concern and terror.

This is going to be close, she thought, as she blinked back into action, spurring Castle and Alexis onward.

"Don't stop," she shouted. "Go. Go. Go!"

And they did.

Her feet pounded hard against the steps as she flew up the stairwell, gripping the railing for added support, hurtling herself forward. Her legs burned with the effort, and lungs ached from the near nonstop exertion. Fatigue was beginning to set in, but adrenaline still provided her with enough fuel to carry on. When this was all over, Beckett knew she was going to crash hard. Everyone was.

"Almost there!" Alexis cried, her voice carrying the hopeful quality of youth.

Beckett latched on to it, believed in it. They had to make it. Those troops on the rooftop couldn't abandoned them. It just had to all work out. She wouldn't except failure. Not now. Not ever.

"It's locked!" a student wailed ahead of them.

"Clear a path," Beckett ordered, hiking up the stairs, squeezing her way through the mass of students as they bunched around the rooftop access door. She assessed the lock and grimaced. Unhooking her Glock from the holster on her hip, Beckett withdrew her weapon and aimed. "Stand back."

Castle relayed her instructions. "Back! Back!"

Taking aim, Beckett pursed her lips and fired, blowing the locking mechanism. Castle moved ahead of her and rammed the door open with his shoulder, sending it flying back on its hinges.

Bursting out onto the roof behind Castle and Alexis, Beckett sucked in a deep breath of the cooling late afternoon air. The sun was beginning the early process of setting, and nightfall would come for them soon. The thrumming sound of the hovering helicopters thundered down upon them as they broke out onto the roof. Beckett shoved her way through the crowd of students, waving her hands up at the helicopters, hoping and praying one of the pilots saw them.

The hotel shook as the creature rammed into another building not far away. Looking back towards the street, Beckett saw that it was rapidly approaching their location. She bit her lower lip and furrowed her brow, praying that she hadn't led Castle, Alexis, and all these students into a deathtrap.

But then, almost miraculously—because that's how it felt to her jackhammering heart—one of the Black Hawks descended towards the rooftop. Narrowing her eyes, Beckett spotted another one doing the same thing across the street on the Hilton rooftop, where other people were waving frantically at the hovering helicopters.

"Get back," Beckett shouted, spreading her arms wide as she ushered the students away from the landing. Castle, with his broad frame, and baritone voice, helped in clearing a space for the helicopter.

The Black Hawk touched down easily, the powerful rotors generating strong winds that whipped Beckett's long hair around her face. She held a hand up to shield her eyes and watched as the door opened up. A pilot emerged, hopping down to the rooftop. As the pilot approached, Beckett noticed the vague feminine shape beneath the uniform. The woman was about her height and build, with a wide mouth and a little dent in her chin. She wore the bars of a lieutenant.

"How many?" the lieutenant demanded, in a firm and authoritarian voice.

Beckett flicked her eyes down to the patch with the woman's name. "We've got about two dozen students with us, Lieutenant Dallas," she said, reaching down to produce her badge. "Detective Beckett, NYPD. I need to get them out of here. Can you help us, Lieutenant?"

"That's what we're here for, Detective," Lieutenant Dallas answered. "We can take ten in each copter." She turned around and signaled with her hand to her co-pilot, who nodded and relayed the number of civilians to the other hovering helicopters. "Let's get the first batch in now," Dallas said, turning back.

"Right," Beckett shouted over the drumming rotors.

Spinning, she grabbed the arm of one of the students, and urged them forward. Lieutenant Dallas stood by the helicopter's passenger section, helping the students up and into the passenger compartment. After it was full, she stepped back and signaled to her co-pilot to lift off. As the first helicopter rose and banked away from them, another one soon moved in, taking its place. With Lieutenant Dallas's help, they loaded up another batch of students. Castle was counting heads, and looked to Beckett with an anxious expression after a quick calculation.

"We'll need one more," he said.

"I know," Beckett answered, watching as Dallas assisted one more student into the helicopter before stepping back and signaling it to takeoff.

Behind them the monster roared, making the air crackle and snap with the energy of it. Dallas jogged back, clearing the space as the helicopter's rotors picked up speed and the Black Hawk slowly rose up into the air.

"We're up next," Dallas informed them as a third Black Hawk moved into motion, hovering for a moment, before making its descent.

"It's getting closer," Beckett noted, glancing over the edge of the roof.

She watched as the creature tore into the side of a building with the talons on its clawed hand, sending shards of glass and chunks of brick and concrete tumbling down to the street. Frowning, she scrutinized the dark shape of the creature, noticing for the first time that its lower torso seemed to be covered in a slick, oozing substance that looked a lot like blood. It wasn't indestructible after all, she mused.

Beckett stepped away from the edge as the huge beast loomed nearer. A large eye, yellow and reptilian, blinked down at her.

Castle groped for her, snagging her arm and pulling her back. "Kate!"

She stumbled into him, jostled.

The creature opened its massive maw, displaying rows of sharp teeth. A piercing roar, that sounded halfway to a screech and a howl, bellowed down on them like a sonic blast. Beckett grimaced and clutched her hands to her ears, backing up. The creature reared back and brought down its claw, smashing the part of the roof Beckett had just been standing before Castle had yanked her back. The monster howled again and swung its other clawed hand down on the rooftop. The building began to buckle beneath their feet.

"Move!" Dallas shouted, easily regaining her balance. She grabbed Paige and another student, shoving them ahead of her as they rushed for the waiting helicopter. Beckett could just barely hear the alarms blaring from inside the cockpit. The two pilots were frantically working at keeping the Black Hawk steady as they waited for their passengers.

Alexis clung to her father as she probably had as a little girl. Castle held out his other hand for Beckett.

"Kate!" he cried.

Hands clasped, Beckett and Castle, along with Alexis, ran for the helicopter as the building began to crumble beneath their feet. She could feel it, the shake and quake of it, the yawn just before the supports gave in, the moment the pressure and abuse were just too much for it to take. Her eyes grew as wide as saucers, and she surged Castle onwards, propelling him in front of her as they booked it for the Black Hawk. Castle and Alexis reached it first. Dallas was hanging on the edge of the opening, and quickly helped Alexis climb in, securing her by Paige, before assisting Castle in.

He immediately turned and stretched his arms out for her, screaming her name over the thrumming of rotors and crashing, roaring, chaos all around them.

"Castle!" Beckett shouted back, feeling the rooftop beneath her feet start to give way. The howling roar of the monster filled the late afternoon air as it appeared to lose balance and rammed harder into the hotel. The rooftop tipped, slopping, and Beckett nearly lost her footing. She gasped in alarm, jerking her eyes up to meet Castle's.

He shook his head, pleading, holding out his hand.

Castle screamed for her, "Kate!"

She pumped her legs as hard as she could, feeling the burning, working through it. The building started to imploded in on itself. She didn't have much time. Beckett looked at Castle, and willed herself to jump.

She reached for him.

And he caught her. He snatched her outstretched hand just as the rooftop collapsed down into dust and debris, leaving her feet dangling in the air. Inside the alarms were beeping and ringing, but the pilots managed to keep the helicopter level as they lifted up and away. Beckett hung in the air for a long moment, feeling the wind caress her face. She glanced down, past her swaying feet, at the beast below. It stared up after Beckett, roaring like it was angry it didn't get her, which made no sense. It was just an animal. How could it be angry at her?

"Hang in there," Castle was saying, grunting as he worked at keeping his hold of her. Dallas moved up next to him and reached out to help, gritting her teeth as she heaved back.

Soon, Beckett was tumbling into the passenger bay, landing on top of Castle. His arms came around her, hands clutching at her with a desperate need that matched her own need for reassurance that she was, in fact, still alive. The Black Hawk shook slightly as it fought against a strong current of air, but soon righted, rising up high, before circling the area. Dallas stepped in, assisting them both up to their feet, and then secured them into two opened seats: Castle beside Alexis, while Beckett perched on the outside seat, wind whipping at her hair. She closed her eyes, breathing in the cold air, letting it chill her lungs.

It was terribly loud inside the compartment. The engines above them, spinning the rotors, gave off such a deafening buzz that she could hear little else but the thumping, chopping noise of the blades slicing through the crisp air. Flirting her eyelids open, she glanced at Castle and reached up with one hand to brush her fingertips along his jaw. He gazed at her with equal astonishment, grasping the side of her face in his large palm, his thumb teasing across the beauty mark on her cheek. And then he was closing the distance, ramming his mouth against hers in a fierce, life affirming kiss, before pulling back and flushing slightly in apology. She shook her head, waving it off, and offered him a brief smile. He smiled back, before turning around to his daughter and hugging her into his side.

Below, the beast opened its mouth, head arched up, and made a mournful sound. That's when she heard the muffled bang of two tank guns, their shells impacting the monster right at the base of its skull. The monster moved jerkily, howling anguished as it staggered amongst the wreckage around it. It wasn't angry, she realized, it was in pain. This whole time, the aggressiveness. It was spurred on by tremendous pain. It was just defending itself.

Looking down from so high above, the thing didn't look so big. Only the buildings it was standing amongst gave it the proper scale. It was so bizarre looking from this distance, a hodgepodge of different aquatic and reptilian creatures. And now, from this vantage point, she could see that it was, indeed, severely injured as she had suspected, that dark, slick blood-like substance seemed to cover its whole back and lower torso. It was dying, she thought. In tremendous agony and pain. And dying. Alone. Feared and attacked for simply existing. They were witnessing its death throes.

The two tanks continued to bombard the beast with strikes as it thrashed violently around in the rubble of the Sheraton Hotel. The booming screech of an A-10 Thunderbolt resounded through the sky, and the aircraft buzzed by, delivering its explosive and deadly payload. Plumes of fire and smoke burst into the dying sunlight, engulfing the strange, gigantic creature.

The helicopter banked right, setting a heading to take them across the Hudson River, and Beckett lost sight of the creature. She closed her eyes and leaned against Castle's side. Oddly enough, the last thing she heard, before unconsciousness took her, were the strange mournful howls of the dying monster. And despite the peril it had placed them in, Beckett felt sad for it.