At the end of the tunnel
Chapter 12
He fished his phone out of his pocket, rolling his eyes when he saw the caller ID. Kate. Again. Well, she could call as many times as she wanted, he was not going to answer. He was absolutely sure that she just wanted him to take the kids earlier than they had agreed to, so she could go to the fancy book launch party of that son of a bitch of a writer of hers. He was not going to play babysitter while she danced the night away with him.
Who did she think she was, anyway?
Well, it didn't matter. He was going to that party himself to keep an eye on her. That is, if she managed to get someone to stay with the kids. It would serve her right if she didn't find anyone. She was a mother, a wife. It was not her place to saunter around town with a rich guy when they were still married. In fact, it was not her place to saunter around town at all. She was the mother of his children and his wife. She should start acting as such.
After all, he doubted she was going to fight him for custody of Alex and Olivia. They both knew she would lose if she tried. So he had nothing to worry about. Just had to give her time. She would come back to him. He knew she would.
Placing his phone on the nightstand, he rolled to his side and wrapped an arm around the blonde lying in his bed, placing an open-mouthed kiss to her neck.
Kate sighed, checking the time on her phone. It was close to midnight and she had been watching over her dad's sleeping form for the past five hours. She was exhausted and her entire body hurt, as if she had been hit by a truck. She still couldn't understand what could possibly have set her father into this out of control spiral into the bottle. He had been doing so well lately. Retired a few months before and he always said that he loved having more time to do the things he liked, spend more time with his grandkids. He had even taken to carpentry lately and would disappear to their cabin upstate for a few days every month to work on it.
Pulling her knees to her chest, she rested her cheek on them and closed her eyes. It was no use, though. She had been trying to get some sleep for hours with no success. No matter how tired she was, it seemed that her mind would not just shut down and let her get some rest before she had to deal with whatever tomorrow brought.
Rubbing her eyes, Kate yawned and looked at her dad again. His heart was beating steadily and the machine was pumping oxygen into his lungs, so that his body could recover faster. Dr. Lucas had said that if all went according to plan, they would probably get him off the ventilator tomorrow. Hopefully.
Alex and Olivia had gone home with Esposito and Lanie for the night. She couldn't even express how grateful she was to have a partner like Javi, who had dropped everything to come to the hospital and take her kids in during this emergency. Olivia had been so excited so hang out with her Aunt Lanie, Kate thought with a smile at the memory. They had always gotten along, but things had been so busy lately that Kate had barely seen Javi's wife at all, even if their jobs did usually overlap.
Alex had held onto Rick until the last possible minute and Kate was torn when she made him say goodbye so he could leave with his sister. At the same time that she was elated that Alex was so fond of her boyfriend, she also worried that he would start favoring Rick instead of his dad. And Jake was pissed off enough as it was with the situation. Speaking of which, he had still not called her back, the bastard. Whatever, she would deal with him tomorrow morning when he came to get the kids.
Yawning again, Kate stretched her arms over her head, standing up to go get some water in the hallway. Walking towards her father's bed, she leaned down and kissed his forehead for a moment before making her way to the door. The harsh light of the corridor made her shield her eyes with her hand and she blinked several times in order to get used to the different lighting outside of the dark hospital room. Just as she was filling a plastic cup with water, she heard a familiar voice coming from the nurses' station just a few feet away.
"…waiting for me. I told her I'd come back." She heard his voice and smiled, shaking her head. "Come on, please? Let me just say hi, at least?"
"Mr. Castle, for the third time, visiting hours are over. I don't even know how you got this far." Nurse Yang told him patiently.
"The receptionist is a fan?" He said sheepishly, but it came out more like a question. Kate chuckled quietly and decided to put him out of his misery.
"I'll walk him out, Mrs. Yang. Don't worry." She smiled at the middle-aged nurse, who gave her a nod in agreement and went back to whatever it was she had been doing before Rick interrupted. "What are you doing here?" She asked softly when he turned to her with a smile, her hand involuntarily touching his lapel.
"I told you I'd come back after the party, didn't I?" He reached for her, caressing her sides gently and offered a boyish smile. "How's your dad?"
She sighed and drank the rest of the water, throwing the cup in the nearby trashcan. "Still asleep. Dr. Lucas said he's under some pretty heavy sedatives so his body can heal faster. He'll most likely be asleep until tomorrow morning at the very least." She explained and went willingly when he tugged her closer. "How was the party?" She asked quietly, breathing him in.
"Boring. Got out as soon as I could." He wrapped his arms around her and held her for a moment in silence. "How are you holding up?"
"I'm fine." She mumbled, closing her eyes. His heartbeat was soothing to her ears. "So glad you're here."
"Nowhere I'd rather be, love." He ran his hand through her hair gently and she sighed. "Have you eaten anything?"
"No. I stayed with him this whole time. Had to make sure he was really okay." She said quietly, rubbing her cheek sleepily on his shoulder.
"How about we go grab a late dinner downstairs? We won't be long." He suggested and she nodded, stepping away from his embrace. "Mrs. Yang?" She called out to the nurse, who looked at them with a raised eyebrow. "We're going to go get something to eat really quick. I'll be back soon, okay?"
"Don't worry, honey. We'll let you know if anything changes. You go get some fresh air with your man." The woman smiled kindly at her and, at that moment, reminded Kate so much of her own mother that she had to swallow hard and take a deep breath to control her emotions.
"Thanks. Can we bring you anything?"
"No, thanks, Kate. I'm all set here for the night." The nurse answered and Kate nodded, turning back to Rick.
"Shall we?"
"Sure." He kissed her cheek for a moment and took her hand in his, threading their fingers together. "Feel like eating anything in particular?" He asked when they entered the elevator.
"I'm not really hungry, to be honest." She answered, pushing the button to the first floor.
"But you've got to eat." He insisted, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.
"I know." She sighed and rested her head on his shoulder. "I think there's a diner just across the street. Maybe we can go there."
"Sounds good." He kissed her hair. "The kids okay?"
"Yeah. Espo is bringing them back here in the morning. Then I have to try to talk to Jake somehow. He's supposed to take the kids for the day."
"I can stay with you tomorrow, if you want some company. I only have to leave on Monday."
"Oh. Right. Your tour." She looked up at him and hoped he couldn't read the sadness and disappointment in her eyes. She needed him close so bad right now.
"I can try to postpone a few cities so I can come back every couple of days, love." He kissed her hair again and took her hand, pulling her out of the elevator and into the lobby.
"As much as I want you to, it's your job, Rick. You have to do it." She let out a breath and tried to offer him a smile. "We'll be fine." She squeezed his hand in reassurance, but he still looked torn. "Don't worry."
Tugging on his hand, she led him out of the hospital and they quickly crossed the street on the way to the 24-hour diner. She let him order their burgers and shakes and slipped into a booth on the very back of the place. Closing her eyes, she leaned against the window and wished hopelessly that this was all a nightmare and she would wake up soon in her bed with Rick.
She opened her eyes when she heard him coming back with their orders, settling a tray in front of her with a look that told her to eat up and not complain about it. He told her about the party while they ate and even managed to make her laugh several times at the antics of the fangirls that had been selected through a contest to attend the book launch party. When they were done, Kate leaned back on her side of the booth, her feet tangled with his under the table in a comforting warmth. He watched her for a beat, before leaning forward and placing his hand on the table, palm up in offering. She smiled and took his hand.
"Want to talk about it?" He asked quietly and she looked down, teeth worrying her lower lip. "You don't have to if you don't want to, you know." He added quickly, but she shook her head.
"Thirteen years ago, my mom was murdered." She said in a small voice, still unable to meet his eyes.
"Kate…" She heard the shock and concern in his voice, but she plowed through.
"They never caught who did it. Shelved the case as random gang violence." She let out a humorless laugh and shook her head. "My dad… he took it hard, you know? Turned to alcohol. I don't…" She stopped, took a deep breath. "I can't even remember him back then without a glass in his hand or being crazy drunk. I was still in college and had to transfer to NYU so I could take care of him." She let him pull her hand to his lips for a comforting kiss. "I remember that every day that I walked out that door, I was afraid that I would come back home to find him dead. I can't even tell you how many times this situation now happened back then. It was a struggle for years, until he finally recovered."
"How long was he sober for?"
"Nine years." She gave him a small smile. "He gave up the bottle when I found out I was pregnant with Olivia." She squeezed his hand and closed her eyes for a moment. "Every year on a few specific dates, things are always harder on us. My mom would have turned sixty today." She swallowed hard and brushed a tear away quickly. "I miss her. So much. I still don't know what to do when he's like this." She said in a fast whisper, her voice strangled by the overwhelming need to cry.
Rick let go of her hand and circled the booth, slipping into her side. "Oh, Kate." He pulled her to him, running his fingers through her hair soothingly. "Honey, I'm so sorry. I can't even… God, I don't even know what to say right now." He said against her hair, placing a kiss to the top of her head.
"Not your fault." She sniffled against his chest. "It was a long time ago. I just can't believe that today of all days…" She shook her head and pulled back to look at him. "She would've loved meeting you. She loved your books."
"Really?" He said, genuinely surprised and she nodded with a watery smile. "I'm sure I would've loved meeting her too."
"She was the one who pestered me to read In a hail of bullets in the first place." She told him and he smiled proudly. "Good thing she did. I couldn't stop after that. Read every single one. Multiple times."
"Really? You like my books that much?" He said, still amazed. "Why didn't you say anything? I mean, I saw a few on your bookshelf, but I never thought…"
"They inspired me. Gave me an escape from my horrible reality back then. Justice was always served. There was always a happy ending." She shrugged. "And I like mysteries." She grinned weakly and he smiled, touching her cheek before catching her lips with his.
"Thank you for telling me all this. I wish…" He let out a heavy sigh. "I wish there was something I could do to help. To make it better for you and your dad."
"Just being here helps." She leaned in and touched his lips with hers. "More than you know."
The next morning, Kate woke up early. Rick had dropped her off at the hospital around 1am with the promise that he would come back first thing in the morning to stay with her. Her back was now killing her from sleeping on the uncomfortable tiny couch, but her first action of the day was trying to call Jake again.
This time he answered.
"Miss me, Katie?" He answered in a smug tone and Kate rolled her eyes, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"Where the hell have you been? I've been trying to reach you since yesterday afternoon." She nearly growled into the phone and he chuckled. Honest to god chuckled.
"I know. I saw your half a dozen missed calls. But it was too late. What's up?" He said lightly and Kate let out a breath, trying to keep herself calm to handle this conversation.
"What's up is that I needed you to get the kids. My dad is in the hospital." She told him in a harsh whisper.
"Oh." At least he had the decency to sound somewhat ashamed.
"Yeah. Oh. I had to ask Esposito to take them for the night and he's driving them back here soon. So I need you to come get them here at the hospital instead of the apartment." Her tone was clipped and she was holding on to her last thread of calmness and balance.
"Uh, sure. I was getting ready to get them, anyway. Which hospital are you at?" He asked and she told him the address, saying she would wait for him in the lobby downstairs. "I'll be there in twenty. And, Kate? I'm sorry. Hope Jim is okay."
"Yeah." She said and hung up.
Standing up, she took a moment to stretch her body, feeling her joints pop loudly for a second. Laughing quietly to herself, thinking she was getting old, she made her way to the bathroom to brush her teeth and decided to go to the diner across the street to get some decent coffee. She checked on her father, kissing his forehead lovingly again before leaving. Waving hello to Mrs. Yang, she told her she was going out for coffee and that she would be back soon.
Once she made it to the diner, she decided to buy some pastries for the kids and for Rick. She knew he was partial to brownies and picked a large piece for him, asking the kid behind the counter to get it all to go. Balancing her coffee cup and a bag full of pastries, Kate crossed the street and smiled when she saw Rick walking up the steps to the hospital's entrance. Calling out to him, her smile grew when he walked down to meet her halfway.
"Hi." He said happily, taking the bag from her hands to help her and leaned down to kiss her.
"Morning." She whispered against his lips, wrapping her bag free arm around his neck. "You're here early."
"Didn't want you to be alone for long." He pushed a rebellious strand of her hair behind her ear. "And I missed you."
"Missed you too." She sighed and kissed him again. "Come on, the kids and Jake will be here soon and I want to have some breakfast first." She told him and took his hand, pulling him up the stairs behind her.
"Did you get some sleep?" He asked as they crossed the entrance to the lobby.
"A bit, yeah." She told him with a small smile.
"Mom!" She heard a childish voice call out and looked up in time to see Olivia running towards them, followed by Alex. The girl crashed into her and wrapped her arms around her hips.
"Hi, sweetie. Did you have fun at with Uncle Javi and Aunt Lanie?" She leaned down to kiss her hair and frowned when she saw that her daughter's blue eyes were filled with tears. "What's wrong, Liv?"
"I had a bad dream. Is grandpa okay?" She asked tearfully and Kate hugged her tighter.
"Oh, baby. He's fine. Still sleeping, but he's going to be just fine, alright?" She brushed a stray tear away with her thumb. "It was just a dream."
"It was so bad, mom. I thought for sure he died." She sniffled, leaning against Kate.
"It was a just a dream, Liv. We're all okay." She reassured her little girl before turning to Alex, who had finally reached them. "Did you have a good time, baby bear?" She asked with a small smile and the boy nodded, already holding his arms up for Rick to pick him up.
"But I missed you and Rick a lot, mommy." He said, getting comfortable in Rick's arms, resting his head on his shoulder. She shook her head, amused, and leaned in to kiss his nose playfully.
"We missed you too. Both of you." Rick told him and Alex smiled at him happily.
"You did?" He asked and Kate nodded.
"We sure did, buddy. I miss you all the time." She brushed his hair away from his eyes lovingly and turned back to Olivia. "Where's Uncle Javi?"
"Right over there." Olivia pointed to the elevators, where Esposito was talking to Ryan. "Hey, look. Dad's here." She added and Kate turned to the direction she had pointed, surprised.
Sure enough, Jake was there. And he didn't look happy.
At all.
A/N: Thoughts?