A/N: Well, thank you to everyone who has favorited, followed and reviewed! I'm so glad you liked the first chapter. You're all wonderful :)

So, this chapter is pretty much AU. I recently watched Target and Hunt (again!) and noticed for the first time that Hunt says he was working on a job at the UN (at least I think that's what he said...it's kind of muffled and brief) which would imply that he was in New York when he and Martha met. I had already researched and written this chapter thinking we didn't really know where it happened, so I've decided that in fact, he never said that...cause that's not how I wrote it (hence AU). I hope you like my version and see it as plausible. The more I read it the more I actually love the story I came up with...I just LOVE writing Martha!

All historical information is as accurate as I could make it from the research I did. I'm a bit of a history buff, so this was pretty fun for me to write. Hope you like it.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Castle except for my feelings of love and respect for the cast and crew.

"Alexis?" Kate looked to the young girl still resting her head on her father's arm. She looked exhausted. "Could you come and help me make some tea?"

She looked up at the detective, then over to her father. Alexis hesitated, clearly not wanting to let him go, yet perceptive enough to recognize that Kate felt her dad and gram needed some time alone.

"It's okay honey." Castle reached down and placed a gentle kiss in her hair. "We'll be right here." Castle knew it would be a long while before his daughter would let him out of her sight.

At the US Embassy in Paris, they had been offered separate rooms. But even though they were adjoining, and the door had stayed propped wide open between them, Castle had awoken in the night to find Alexis cuddled up next to him. He'd placed a strong, protective arm around her and fallen asleep again to the sound of her gentle snoring. They had both been roused from their fitful slumber several times through the night, the darkness of the room and their dreams overpowering their subconscious. But each time, one or the other had squeezed just a little tighter, giving them the comfort only a father and daughter could share, allowing them to return to sleep.

Alexis stood, still hesitating, but finally relented when Kate held out an arm to take her gently by the shoulders. They walked together to the kitchen, Alexis huddling just a little closer to Kate than she typically would.

Castle returned his gaze to his mother who was still sitting in silence. He lifted up her hand from her lap and gently squeezed, trying to rouse her from the wanderings of her mind. "Mom?" he questioned quietly, hoping not startle her. Finally she looked up at her son, but the look she gave him was not the disconcerted expression he was expecting.

"You know, I always wondered what took him away that morning." Martha looked at him with shining eyes, a twinkle of mischief in the background. Castle returned her smile, waiting for her to continue. "We had one glorious night. But you know that. I've told you that. But here's something you don't know. I was awake when he slipped away." She smiled, a knowing look in her eyes as she remembered that day.

"You were? Did you say anything to him?"

"Something had roused him from his sleep," she continued, not really hearing his question. "I don't know what, maybe his Spidey-sense was tingling," Martha finally acknowledged her son with a wink. "But he woke with a start and sat straight up in bed. I don't think we had finally closed our eyes that long before so I wasn't fully asleep yet anyways." Martha turned her head, staring off into space, remembering that time more than forty years ago.

Castle, for once, did his best to sit quietly. He could tell his mother wanted to share the story with him, and he wanted to hear it. Despite his million questions, he let her talk. He knew that just like he did, Martha liked to set the scene and give - what did she call it? - right, dramatic flare, to her performance. And with Martha, Castle knew it really was a performance. She told stories like she was acting them out on a stage, her whole being absorbed in the characters she was describing, body moving in time and flow with the emotions she wanted to convey. When she really got going, Castle had always found her to be mesmerizing.

"I just lay there quietly. At first, I thought he just needed a drink, or to use the facilities, you know? But he moved almost stealthily - I could barely hear him - into the other room, and turned on the television. I could see the glow from the screen reflecting off the walls as he flipped channels for a minute. And then, just as quickly, the light vanished. He padded softly back to the room and sat on the edge of the bed. I wanted to roll over and put my arm around him, you know, to comfort him. I knew something was wrong and I felt such a strong connection to him, but I also could sense that it wasn't my place, so I just waited."

Martha paused here, remembering the details. Castle could see by the look on her face that something had just come to mind that she wasn't expecting.

"Mother? What is it?"

She looked back at him distractedly but smiled. "I just thought of something that I hadn't remembered before now. It didn't make sense at the time so I guess I just dismissed it."

"What is it?" Castle's curiosity was getting the better of him and he couldn't help but try to prod her along.

"He picked up the phone and dialed. There were no cell phones back in those days, no email or text messaging. The hotel suite we were in only had the one phone in the bedroom. It was sea foam green, with a rotary dial - quite fancy in those days," she smiled pointedly at him as she considered just how much things had changed in her lifetime. And although she knew her son was well aware of the changes too, she wanted to give her story scope. She truly believed it was the little details like this that allowed the audience to fully appreciate the motivations that drive a character. The details were important.

"I thought it was strange at the time," she said, returning her thoughts back to the phone call. "He picked up the phone and dialed, and for the longest time he just listened. It seemed strange that he wasn't saying anything. I thought maybe he was just letting it ring and ring and no one was picking up. It was the middle of the night, you know. Maybe they were sleeping? I was just about to tell him so when he finally spoke."

"What did he say?" Castle sat in rapt attention on the edge of his seat.

"Phoenix."

"What?" Castle asked, confused.

"Phoenix, he said phoenix. You know, like the bird?" Martha sounded almost frustrated at having to explain what a phoenix was.

"Yes, I know what a phoenix is Mother, but what does it mean?"

"Oh. Well, I don't have the foggiest. This is the first time I've even thought of that phone call since that day. I had completely forgotten about it. I guess it must be some kind of code word or something. If he really was, is, an agent with the CIA, then I guess that would make sense. But I never thought of it at the time."

"Code word..." Castle whispered under his breath, more to himself than anyone else. He thought about what he knew of the CIA from his time with Sophia. Phoenix could be his father's code name, he mused. Or it could be a distress signal. Didn't Hunt say he found out that things had gone south and he'd had to leave suddenly? Phoenix, like he'd been burned.

And now he had risen from the ashes, Castle thought. Damn, that's poetic.

"Did he say anything else? Did you hear a voice on the other end of the phone?" Castle asked his mother, hoping there were more clues, more he could work with, more pieces for the puzzle that was his father's life.

"Nada. He just returned the phone to the cradle, took a deep sigh, and left. And I never saw him again." Martha waved her hand dismissively.

"And you didn't say anything to him before he left?"

Martha looked at her son closely now. She could hear the disappointment in his voice, she sensed his need for more information, and was beginning to feel that need for herself too. As much as she had always dismissed that night as a brief moment of love and passion, there had also always been just the hint of wonder about him. Martha had never been angry with Hunt for leaving. These things happened, and she had loved him so completely when they were together that she had always believed it was simply fate.

"No. Not a word. I could sense that he didn't really want to leave. That sigh spoke volumes. And as he got up from the bed and walked out of the room, there was real purpose to his stride. So I let him go. Even though I knew I would never see him again."

From her years of experience, Martha knew that sometimes people came into one's life for a short time, sometimes long, but always with purpose, always for a reason. She had resigned herself to the idea that Jackson Hunt, or whatever his name was, was just one of those who had come into hers for a short time. He had come to give her one beautiful night, and one beautiful son, and then he was gone. It was almost disconcerting to her now to learn that in fact he had been a part of their lives all this time, whether they had known it or not. She never thought that he would re-enter their story because she didn't realize that he had known about Richard. But here he was, not only saving her son's life, but her beloved granddaughter's too.

And now, for the first time in over forty years, she wished she could see him again.

Just then, Kate and Alexis returned with a tray filled with tea and toast and jam. As Alexis served her grandmother, Kate looked to Rick hoping that their timing was okay. She didn't want to interrupt his time with his mother, but she could only stall Alexis for so long. And the girl had been anxious to return to her father's side.

Rick looked up at Kate with an interesting expression on his face. He looked at once perplexed, and thoughtful, but through it all shone the love that he had for her and the relief that they were together again. She smiled genuinely at him as he moved to stand with her.

"You okay?" she asked, taking him in her arms.

"Yeah, I think so."

"Martha?"

"She'll be okay. She's processing."

Kate leaned her head on Rick's broad chest and watched Martha and Alexis fix their tea with milk and spread jam on their toast. They were the spitting image of each other, their movements so alike, and it made Kate wonder, just for a brief moment, if she and Rick had kids one day, whether they would be like her mother.

"Hey, you okay?" Castle asked her, sensing a change in her posture as he held her close.

"Yeah, I'm okay. Just thinking." Kate knew this wasn't the time to be thinking about her own mother and the challenges that Kate faced every day, living without her. But, her own family's tragedy was a reminder, like this one had been, that they needed to live every day to the fullest, they needed to make the most of the time they all had together.

"Martha?" Kate suddenly thought of something she'd always wondered.

"Yes dear?" Martha looked up from her toast and smiled.

"How did you meet...um...Rick's father? He never told me that story."

Rick pulled Kate just a little bit closer. She seemed to have taken over from him on keeping things light today. It was like she knew he'd be off his game and was stepping up to make sure that everyone had something positive to focus on when the heartbreaking details of Alexis' abduction got to be too much.

"Oh, well, that's a wonderful story. Sit down, you two, and have some tea and I'll tell you all about it." While Rick and Kate sat, Martha moved to the edge of her seat and started to set the scene for her brief, but memorable, love story. "It was the summer of 1968. And I had just moved to Berkeley."

"Wait, Martha? You lived in California?" Kate asked surprised. "I thought you always lived in New York."

"Oh, well, my dear, the life of an actor takes you to many different locations. You know, I have done summer stock in small towns across America. I even once performed in a circus tent in Lambertville, New Jersey. The life of an actor is never dull." Martha punctuated her statement with a dramatic flourish of her hands. Everyone smiled back at Martha as she continued her tale, each thinking that her unique enthusiasm and zest for life were so endearing and made her so beloved by all who met her.

"This particular summer though, I had been invited to work in a new troupe, at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre. You may have heard of it. I hear that Jean-Luc Picard himself, Sir Patrick Stewart, will be performing there this summer. It's become quite the renowned theatre. But then, it was just starting out. It was the first year of productions and they had done a few plays to some lovely reviews. But the summer of 1968 was promising to put this little theatre on the map. I was cast as Cecily in The Importance of Being Earnest."

Martha looked around the room, expecting impressed looks from those three who were probably her most adoring fans. She was not disappointed.

"But then, just as we were about to begin our run, The Battle of Hamburger Hill." Martha's voice took on an appropriately low ominous tone. "And then that dreadful edition of Life Magazine, published with all those pictures of American casualties, most of which had not even been taken during that battle, but it definitely got people's blood boiling."

"Mother, what does the Vietnam War have to do with this?" Castle asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.

"Well, my dear, all of that led to the town of Berkeley, particularly the remaining university students who hadn't left for the summer, demanding the opportunity to protest. It was eventually decided that the town would close down Telegraph Avenue on July 4, 1968 to allow the hippies and radicals and whomever else wanted to participate, to gather in the street for a peaceful protest. It was on this day that I met your father."

A long pause settled as Castle sat back to consider this new information. He had only heard the part of the story that took place sometime after his mother had met his father. This was all new to him and was not exactly what he had expected to hear.

"Gram, you were at a protest?" Alexis spoke up in the silence.

"Well, I wasn't supposed to be. But they cancelled our performance that night so we had a rare day off. Some of the cast and crew wanted to go to the rally and they dragged me along with them. I was hoping to spend the day in San Francisco. I'd heard that they put on a dazzling fireworks display on the fourth and I wanted to see what kind of trouble I could get into in the big city." Martha's eyes twinkled and her tone suggested exactly what kind of trouble she was looking for.

"Gram," Alexis groaned. And blushed.

"What? A free day off was a rare thing kiddo, something not to be wasted. I just wanted to have a good time and I took advantage of every opportunity."

"Some things never change." Castle quipped dryly.

"I..." Martha started to address Rick's joke but waved him off and continued her story.

"Well, there we were, right in the middle of Sproul Plaza on the UC Berkeley campus, when things turned...well, a bit frantic, really. I don't know how it all started but the next thing I knew a small group of people had started a real melee right near where we were sitting. More and more people got involved and it turned into a brawl right before our eyes."

"Gram what did you do?" Alexis' eyes were bright and wide, concern mixed with intrigue bringing her to the edge of her seat.

"Well, I ran. Or at least I tried to. But there were just too many people. I found myself pinned against a tree, unable to move. The bodies were crushing in around me and I really was starting to worry for my safety. I had no idea how I would ever get out of there." Martha paused and looked at her audience. She had them just where she wanted them.

"And then, he was there. Standing in front of me," she looked at Castle and smiled. "My knight in shining armor. Or at least in jeans and a white t-shirt. The most handsome man I had laid eyes on. He took my hand, said 'Come with me' and started to guide me through the throngs of people rushing in to take part in the fight. He cleared the way and we ran and ran. Sure we were bounced around a bit, and at one point, we were even torn apart from each other. But somehow, he managed to get back to me before I had been thrown around too much. He put his arm around my waist and took my hand and we pushed through the crowd. Finally after what felt like hours, we made it to the other side of campus. I'm sure it was only fifteen minutes, but it felt like forever."

"Wow, Martha, that's incredible." Kate sat shaking her head in wonder.

"Gram, you could have died," Alexis gasped. "And he saved you. That's so romantic."

"Well that was just the beginning. When we finally stopped and had room to breathe, he let go of my arm. He said, 'You should be safe now,' Then he smiled at me and turned to walk away."

"What? He walked away? But Gram, how did...?"

"Now, now, patience my dear." Martha patted her granddaughter gently on the hand then continued her story. "I knew there was something special about this man, and he had just saved my life, and as I said he was rather a handsome fellow, so there was no way I was just going to let him walk away like that. No sir-ee. I reached out and grabbed his arm and spun him around and kissed him."

Castle, Beckett and Alexis all gasped out in surprise.

"No way Gram!"

"Martha!"

"La la la la la...I can't hear you...la la la..." Castle had immediately pulled his hands up to cover his ears like a little kid being told there was no Santa.

"Oh, Richard, really. You've heard and seen far worse from me." Martha said annoyed by his antics.

"Don't remind me. Please." Castle swallowed thickly remembering a time when he was just entering his teen years. He walked in the front door to find his mother in a rather...private...moment with a gentleman friend, in the living room. Thinking she would be at an audition, he had decided to play hooky from school. He never played hooky again.

"Anyways, I kissed him and when we finally broke away, we just stared into each other's eyes for the longest time. Then he took my hand and said 'Let's go, kid.' We spent the rest of the night together. We wandered aimlessly for a while, talking about nothing in particular. And finally we found ourselves in a rather seedy part of town by the water. We discovered a lovely little dive bar with a big window and sat watching the fireworks, drinking tequila. It wasn't long before we made our way to a rundown old motel. It was shabby and out of date and falling apart, but as far as I was concerned, it was the Ritz."

"Wow, Martha, that is a wonderful story." Kate smiled at the older woman, happy to have learned something new about her. Though as Kate thought about it, the story was perfectly in character with what she'd already known of the woman. But she still felt more connected to Martha now, than before. This whole experience had drawn the two women closer in just a few short days than they had gotten in the four years that they'd known each other.

"Gram, that is so romantic. He saved your life, then you kissed, then you fell in love. What happened next?"

"Next?" Martha and Rick passed a look to each other at Alexis' question. "Well, you know the rest dear," Martha finally said hesitantly. "I woke the next morning and he was gone. And I never saw him again."

Alexis sat back disappointed. She knew that was the ending to the story but for some reason, she had hoped that this time it might turn out differently.

"Oh, darling, don't look so sad. I'm not upset about it all. I've said before that in that night, we loved a lifetime, and I really meant it. But sometimes in life, the timing just isn't right, and you have to just appreciate the moments you have, because ones that special don't come along very often."

Martha slid over and put her arm around the girl's shoulder and squeezed. Alexis brightened at the sentiment.