A Convergence of Storms – Part 1
Summary – A post 6x23 fic previously titled Hours Lost Forever. What happens when Castle shows back up after the car crash and thinks the crash happened after the wedding and Kate was in the car with him. Will be 3 parts (maybe more) and 3XK or Bracken are not involved.
Author's Notes – Sorry, just couldn't resist the angst in this chapter. What's a summer without angst when we're all anxiously waiting to see what will happen in s7 especially with the changes in the show. And I'm borrowing lines from previous episodes and using them in a different manner.
Disclaimer – Don't own Castle – ABC and Disney do.
Chapter 2 – Right in Front of You
# # # # # # # # # #
Previously – "Ms. Beckett," said the doctor, looking directly at her. "According to the statement he gave the police, Mr. Castle believes that the wedding did take place and the wreck happened after that." He took a deep breath. "And that you died in the wreck because he couldn't get you out of the car when it was burning."
# # # # # # # # # #
"No!" exclaimed Martha, shocked, covering her mouth with her hand. She was sure that Kate felt the same way as she watched the color drain out of the woman's face.
Beckett sat down in a chair and shook her head in disbelief. "No, no – that's not possible. We didn't get married – the wreck happened before that. We were waiting for him."
The doctor nodded grimly. "That may be, but this is the reality as Mr. Castle perceives it," he stressed.
There was a knock on the door and a nurse poked her head in. "Dr. Freas, Mr. Castle is back in his room now and he's asking if his mother and daughter are here yet."
"Thanks – we'll be there momentarily." The doctor turned back to the women. "Ms. Rogers, it may be best if you see him first, and then you two can go in after a few minutes after Ms. Rogers has talked to him."
Martha nodded and put a supportive hand on Beckett's shoulder. "Kate, dear, I'm sure he's just confused. Everything will be okay once he sees you," she said, smiling slightly at her.
Beckett nodded, holding back tears, and then stood.
The doctor walked them down the corridor and stopped at one of the rooms. "Do you want me to go in with you?" he asked.
Martha shook her head. "No, we'll be fine." She looked at Kate and Alexis and quickly squeezed their hands. "I'll call you in in a minute."
# # # # # # # # # #
The moment Martha walked into the room, she knew how serious this was by the way Castle looked.
He lay on the bed, an arm flung over his eyes, his face red from crying, his breathing ragged, hands bandaged.
"Oh, Richard, darling," Martha said as she walked over to him.
Castle let out a sob at her voice. "Mom," his voice quavered as he held out his arms to her like he had done as a little boy when he had had a bad dream and needed his mother to comfort him.
"Shhh, there now, kiddo, everything is going to be okay," Martha soothed as she held her weeping son.
"No, no – it isn't," Castle said brokenly. "Kate was there – I couldn't get to her – and – oh, god, mother – the fire –" he sobbed.
"No, darling, Kate is right outside – she's fine – she wasn't with you," Martha said reassuringly.
The writer started to shake his head and then winced at the pain. "No, mom, she's not," he stated fervently between sobs. "She's not."
Martha glanced over at the door and waved to Alexis and Kate. "No, dear, see – she's here now, with Alexis," Martha said as the two woman walked into the room, along with the doctor.
Castle managed a tentative smile before breaking down again. "Pumpkin, I'm so sorry," he whispered. "I couldn't save her."
"No, Dad," Alexis said, her brow furrowing in concern as she held his hand and looked at Beckett. "Kate's right here – with me."
"Mr. Castle," said the doctor, keeping his voice neutral, "how many people do you see in the room?"
Castle wiped his eyes and stared at the man, and then swallowed thickly before answering. "Three," he said hoarsely and then lay back on the bed, closing his eyes wearily. "My mother, my daughter, and you."
The doctor carefully schooled his face before motioning the women towards the door. "This is very unusual but it may be caused by the concussion that Mr. Castle sustained in the wreck," he said quietly. "We'll watch him to see if there is any improvement. And then we'll go from there."
Tears in their eyes, Martha, Alexis, and Beckett nodded and then moved back to Castle's bedside to try to comfort the grief-stricken man.
# # # # # # # #
Along with Beckett, Martha and Alexis took turns sitting with Castle as he dozed off and on throughout the day, waking in fitful starts from nightmares of a fire he couldn't escape, often causing the heart monitor to beep in alarm as his pulse raced and his blood pressure soared.
The doctor encouraged them to talk with him when he was awake, but he only responded to Martha and Alexis, much to Beckett's dismay when he stared right through her and didn't acknowledge her presence.
The staff psychiatrist came by several times, asking him the same questions over and over, until Castle was so frustrated that he cursed and threw a pitcher of water and ice at the man and told him not to come back unless he had something else to say, something new to ask.
At that point, the orders were placed for 2 neurologists from New York to consult on the case because frankly they were stymied. The concussion was minor and shouldn't have resulted in Castle's condition.
The nurses came in every few hours to check on Castle, encouraging him to move from the bed to a chair and then back to the bed after he had sat up for a while.
Except for Martha and Alexis, Castle refused to have any other visitors, saying that he couldn't face them right now.
Martha tried to interest him in eating, but to no avail as he just shook his head at the offered food, saying it just tasted like dry ash in his mouth.
Towards sunset, Castle was sitting in the chair in front of the window, closing his eyes against the evening light. Martha placed a hand on his shoulder as she stood beside him and he covered it with one of his own.
"When I close my eyes, I can still see her, mom – I can still hear her," he whispered, a tear running down his face.
Beckett knelt in front of him, resting a hand against his cheek. "That's because I am in front of you, babe, just waiting for you to just open your eyes and see that I'm right here," she said, fighting back her own tears as she touched her forehead to his.
# # # # # # # #
That night, Beckett finally convinced Martha and Alexis to go back to the house to rest. Even though Castle didn't acknowledge her, she could at least press the button for the nurses in case he needed anything.
Snuggled in a blanket, she was dosing in the recliner when she was awoken by a light knock on the door.
Beckett glanced over at Castle and saw that he was finally sleeping and then looked at the clock on the wall and frowned. It was close to midnight.
The nurse had made her last rounds at 10:30 and then wished Beckett a good evening, telling her to call them if they needed anything, so she wasn't expecting anyone else this late.
"Come in," she said quietly, sitting up and running a hand through her hair.
Two men – a tall thin older African American with graying hair and thick glasses, and a smaller balding Caucasian with a rotund belly – walked into the room. They both wore white doctor's coats, stethoscopes hanging around their necks and the tall one pushing a wheelchair.
"Detective Beckett," said one of the men offering her his hand. "I'm Dr. Black and this is Dr. White. We're here to consult on Mr. Castle's case."
Beckett smiled at them slightly, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "I thought you weren't going to be here until tomorrow morning."
"We were in the area already," said Dr. White. "Can you tell us about what happened?" he asked as Dr. Black moved to examine Castle.
"Mr. Castle," the man said, gently shaking the writer. "I need you to wake up, sir."
"Huh, what?" Castle said sleepily, bringing his bandaged hand up to rub his red-rimmed eyes.
Beckett watched him for a moment with a heavy heart and then looked at Dr. White.
"We were supposed to get married yesterday, but Rick was in a wreck on his way to the wedding." She crossed her arms, fighting back tears. "And now he thinks I died in the crash and it was his fault. He…uh…can't see me, hear me. And the doctors don't know why."
Dr. White nodded. "Car crash," he reiterated to Dr. Black who hummed in response as he shown a light into Castle's eyes.
He turned back to Beckett. "We're going to run some tests on Mr. Castle. It shouldn't take more than a couple of hours. Feel free to join us if you'd like."
"Yes, of course," Beckett nodded.
"Mr. Castle," Dr. Black said, "we're going to run some tests. Sir, we need you to get into this wheelchair."
"Uh, okay," Castle replied sleepily as they helped him sit up and move to the wheelchair. "Did you call my mother? Is she here?"
"No, she's not," said Dr. White as he wheeled Castle out of the room and down several hallways to an unpopulated wing of the hospital. "She's gone for the day. She'll be back in the morning and you should be feeling much better by then."
"Ah, here we are," said Dr. Black as he opened the door to a room that contained several pieces of equipment strategically placed around a padded chair. "Here – let's get you comfortable," he said as they helped Castle out of the wheelchair and into the chair.
"There's a chair for you, Detective," said Dr. White, pointing to a chair in the corner. "It will take a few minutes to prep Mr. Castle."
Beckett sat down and frowned as she watched them strap Castle into the chair and place electrodes on his scalp, face, chest, arms, and legs.
After they had finished, Dr. Black moved to the monitor while Dr. White gently shook Castle's shoulder to wake him up.
"Mr. Castle, sir, we need you to wake up. We have several questions to ask you."
Castle frowned at the electrodes stuck to him and squinted his eyes at the man. "'kay."
"First, I need you to keep your head still and use just your eyes to look to the left." He nodded as Castle followed his instructions. "Good. Now to the right…and then up…and down. Now move your right hand…and then your left hand." He looked at Dr. Black. "And we're ready to begin."
He looked back at Castle. "Mr. Castle, tell me about the morning before the accident – what did you do that morning."
"Already told the police," Castle slurred sullenly, his head lolling back against the headrest.
"We just want to make sure they didn't miss anything," Dr. White said softly.
Castle grimaced and squeezed his eyes shut. "Beckett…was married before and we had to go to Willow Creek to find her husband and get him to sign divorce papers before we could get our marriage license."
Dr. Black nodded. "That's correct," he said, watching the monitor.
"Please continue," said Dr. White encouragingly.
"After we got the papers signed, Kate…went to the Hamptons to get ready and I went to the judge's office in New York to file the divorce papers and get our marriage license…"
"That's correct," said Dr. Black.
"We got married at the house and left after the reception. We decided to take the Mercedes rather than taking the Rolls," Castle said flatly. "A dog ran across the road and I swerved to miss it, but I had had a couple of drinks and couldn't control the spin and we went into a gully."
Beckett wrapped her arms around herself as she listened to the terrible story that Castle was telling.
Castle shuddered at the memory, tears running down his face. "The air bags deployed and Kate…must have hit her head…she was unconscious. The doors were jammed but I undid my seat belt and managed to climb out the window. But the door on Kate's side was crushed in and I couldn't open it. I tried to get back in the driver's side, but the gas tank had ruptured and the car was on fire…I couldn't get to her – I couldn't get her out…the dress caught fire…and she burned…" Castle sobbed, dropping his head to his chest.
"Hmmm," said Dr. Black, looking at Dr. White with a quirked eyebrow.
Dr. White put a hand on Castle's shoulder. "Mr. Castle, thank you. Now we're going to give you something that will make you a little sleepy."
He took a syringe off the table and inserted it into the IV port in Castle's arm. "Count back from 100 for me."
Castle blinked weary eyes at the man and started but only got to 98 as his head lolled back, his eyes closed, and his body relaxed.
Beckett studied the men as they studied the monitor for a few moments, talking quietly.
"You're not the doctors that Dr. Freas called in as consultants, are you?" she finally asked, interrupting them.
"No, we're not," replied Dr. Black. "But we're the ones who can fix this."
Dr. White picked up another syringe and inserted it into the port. "Now let's see what really happened."
# # # # # # # #