CH46
It is just seconds later:
My free time to write has diminished greatly lately, so updates will be only every other day for now. Possibly up to every third day. Sorry! Life happens.
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"Katherine? …What is going on?" Martha stumbled behind Kate and tried to keep from falling, however Kate remained silent. Kate could almost hear the guy outside the door working on the lock since Martha's bedroom door was right across from the front door.
Kate pulled Martha down the hall and around the corner and started working on the panel to open it. "What is that?" Martha had never seen it before.
Kate placed her finger on the pad and opened the steel door and pulled Martha inside. Once inside Kate pulled the Murphy bed down so that Martha could sit down. Doing this also exposed the wall of weapons that were stored in the room.
Kate didn't pay any attention to the face Martha was making as she looked at the wall of weapons. She took down a handgun exactly like hers except that this one already had a silencer attached to it. Kate had never been more happy over Rick's paranoia over security till now.
"I need you to stay here Martha. Don't even try to leave and try not to make any noise." Kate took a peek at the monitors to see the doors and saw someone outside of each of them; every one of them was carrying a weapon. The one on the spiral staircase had what looked like a sub-machine gun for a weapon.
"I'll be back to get you, Martha. Do. Not. Move." Kate stepped back outside and pushed the steel door closed till it locked then pushed the panel closed and secured the panel.
Kate instantly used her remaining time of Jill's capabilities for several hours and activated her version of invisibility. She then looked around the corner and watched the door open and a man stepped inside and immediately started work on the security panel.
This told Kate two things: First he was likely good enough to turn it off since Kate hadn't and Jack wasn't likely to either. Second it also told her that the other two would likely wait until he told them they were clear, so Kate waited.
It took him just minutes to turn the system off, or so it seemed to Kate. Finally he put his tools away and Kate could hear him say something. "Headset," Kate whispered to herself. She raised her weapon and put three shots in his chest and watched him fall to the floor, his blood spilling out onto the brand new tile.
Then Kate ran for the stairs and went up them. At the top she turned right and went down the corridor and into the butler's pantry. From there she could look into the kitchen and down the hallway into Castle's study since the windows were always left open.
Kate could hear the outside door open leading to the garden and took a peek down the hall to see if she could see the other man. Seeing nothing in both directions, she kept on the lookout in both directions.
Everything was quiet till she heard creaking. That small sound told her someone was going up the staircase to the mezzanine level. He would either come out into the hallway from the living room or go into the kitchen. Kate was hoping for the kitchen since she didn't want blood all over her beautiful wood floors.
Kate was still waiting when she spotted movement in Castle's study and saw him bend down to look through the open windows behind Castle's desk. Kate thought about shooting him now but the desk was partly in the way and the floor was wood in that room. He was only about 10 or 12 feet away making it an easy shot, however she waited.
Kate continued to hold the door leading from the hallway into the butler's pantry open while she paid attention to all three directions, never looking in one direction for long. Then Kate heard the door leading from the dining room into the kitchen open so she concentrated on that direction until the man with the sub-machine gun appeared on the other side of the kitchen island. She aimed carefully, fired three times directly into his chest, and watched him fall to the kitchen floor.
Blood splattered all over the kitchen window so Kate knew she had hit him. She swallowed the bile that started its way up her throat and stepped into the doorway to look down the hallway. The third man was just turning the corner and looking down the hallway with his weapon out in front of him.
Kate didn't waste a second and put three rounds into his chest. She watched him fall to the floor and bleed out onto the tile floor before the floor changed to wood just past the tile archway.
The enormity of her actions hit home. She'd killed three men right in front of her. That knowledge had Kate running for the kitchen sink to vomit into it as Jill ended her invisibility.
Kate was still emptying her stomach minutes later with her weapon sitting on the counter next to the sink. She was shaking, crying and heaving into the kitchen sink.
She still felt wretched. She slid down the cabinet and sat on the floor holding herself tight, while shaking and crying.
Kate was out of it and still crying slightly when an officer suddenly showed up and stepped into the kitchen with three more going past him. The officer went around the island to check on the guy on the far side.
"Beckett? …Agent Beckett?" Kate could hear her name and looked up to see a Hispanic face looking down at her. Espo put his weapon away and stayed with Kate.
Ryan eventually caught up with Espo. "We've got three dead with three shots to the chest each. It looks like the doors have been picked, there are signs of damage. Also the security system has been disabled, likely illegally judging by the damaged open panel at the front door," Ryan told him. "How is she?" Ryan looked down to see that Kate wasn't really with them.
"In shock it looks like, bro. Likely her first kill would be my guess." Espo bent over the sink to look inside since he could smell something and saw the contents of Kate's stomach.
An hour later Captain Montgomery was sitting with Kate taking her statement of what happened. Ryan was handing Kate a glass of water as a voice called out. "Beckett!" The three of them looked that direction and saw two men flashing their FBI IDs to gain access to the living room.
"You are?" Ryan intercepted them. "Agents Frazier and Hammond. We work with Beckett and Castle in the New York office. Special Agent in charge of the New York field office sent us. Since this event has involved a Federal Agent it is now the jurisdiction of the FBI and we will be investigating this case," Frazier informed them.
"You think you can just walk in and take over…" Ryan was interrupted by Frazier. "That is precisely what I am doing detective. These agents will escort you off the property; you are instructed not to interfere in our investigation." Frazier motioned with his arm and three more agents enter, waiting to escort Ryan and Captain Montgomery outside. They pass still more agents along with other personnel inspecting the bodies and meet up with all of their officers and Espo outside.
"Damn FBI, who do they think they are?" Espo was moments from going ballistic.
"I want one of you to stay here and follow where they take the bodies. Get a couple of uniforms to help you. The other is going to follow where they take Agent Beckett. Take a couple of uniforms with you. I want to know where everyone is going," Montgomery instructed them.
"We're not dropping the case?" Espo asked.
"We have 3 dead bodies in our city, what do you think Espo? Now get to work, I have some phone calls to make." Montgomery walked off, headed for his car. Ryan and Espo were left behind with pleased looks on their faces.
CSU arrived just as Montgomery was driving off. Ryan and Espo relieved them of their cameras and had the uniforms that were still there to begin searching the surrounding area. Those three men got here somehow. "You two, take the other cameras from CSU and start taking pictures of every car within 6 blocks from here, including their plates and owners if you get lucky."
"The rest of you spread out and start knocking on doors. If someone saw something I want to know what it was," Espo ordered the uniforms that were still standing around, putting them to work.
Espo was feeling a lot better now. No one just walked in and took over his case, certainly not the FBI.
Meanwhile Kate was sitting in the living room drinking the glass of water that Ryan had gotten for her as she watched FBI and crime scene unit people wandering around all over, taking pictures, taking away the dead bodies, searching her home inside and out.
"Were you home alone Beckett? I know Castle is in the hospital," Frazier asked Kate.
Kate started nodding her head. "MARTHA!" She suddenly remembered Martha. She jumped up and ran out of the living room and down the hall with Frazier not far behind her.
Frazier watched Beckett open a panel revealing a steel door with a fingerprint reader that Kate placed her finger on and opened the door by pulling on it. "I'm so sorry Martha, I forgot all about you." Kate stepped in and hugged Martha.
It gave Frazier a view of the interior. What he saw was a single-sized Murphy bed that was still down with weapons on the wall above it. On the other side of the wall was a large flat panel display panel that had live feeds of every security camera in and outside of the place.
Frazier's eyes opened wide as he took it all in. The far wall had what looked like water, MREs, medical and a few other supplies piled up on top of each other. "It's a panic room!" Frazier finally worked it out.
"I saw our guests on the display panel and left Martha in here while I stayed outside to defend her and my home," Kate explained.
Kate closed up the panic room and followed Frazier back into the living room with Martha this time. "I'll be right back," Frazier told them. He walked off and talked with some of the agents that were inside the home and got an update on what they were finding.
"I saw some of what you did darling, however I never actually saw you." Martha didn't have anything else to do but watch the monitor.
"The cameras don't cover everything inside or outside, there are a few gaps here and there." Kate hoped Martha would buy it.
"You killed those men, dear. Are you alright?" Martha took Kate's hands in hers. Martha had watched Kate vomit into the kitchen sink.
"I… I… I don't really know Martha. Castle warned me that killing someone took something from you that you would never get back. I guess I really didn't know what he meant when he said it." She looked down at their joined hands. "FRAZIER!" Kate suddenly had a new fear.
Frazier came jogging into the living room. "Beckett?" Frazier knew they were safe here, since there were at least a dozen FBI guys spread out all over. He had also been informed that the local police hadn't actually left yet. They were out there snooping around, which was fine with him, just so long as they stayed out of his hair.
"Castle... I left him unprotected at the hospital!" she stammered. Kate was terrified. If they were here after her and/or Martha, would they be after Castle, too.
Frazier on his cell phone in an instant, coming back to Kate and Martha after hanging up. "There will be two FBI men just outside his door in under 15 minutes. They will check on him. And they will consult with the doctor and his staff as well as set up security for him. I'll let you know when they arrive," Frazier advised them. Both Kate and Martha breathed a sigh of relief.
"Why do they want you dear? What have you and my son done?" Martha hoped Kate would share.
"Castle and I are working on a case that already has over 300 dead people from drug use. The same drug that put Castle in the hospital. The drug causes strokes Martha." Kate was already scared for Castle but she thought Martha deserved to know what had happened to her son.
"A stroke," Martha whispered. "Richard had a stroke because of this drug?" Martha was catching on slowly.
"Someone injected him with this drug in an attempt to kill him. I did the best I could as fast as I could; I just don't know if it was enough." So much was happening and the thought of losing Castle was beginning to cause her tears to flow once more.
Martha drew Kate in close. "Richard was a Ranger dear, he came back alive from that time. He isn't going to die now just because of some drug. Have faith darling, you wait and see." Martha saw a motherly need and was only too willing to dispense some to Kate.
The problem was that Martha didn't know the type of drug that she was talking about. "You go find who did this Katherine, I'll be fine here. In three days I'll be gone anyway when my show opens up again."
"Go dear! It'll make you feel better if you know you are doing something. Go tell your FBI guy that you are going to find out who drugged Richard. I'll have food delivered."
"I'll be fine dear, go do your job." Martha hugged Kate and helped Kate get to her feet.
Kate checked in with Frazier to get clearance to leave. Kate took their car and listened to Jill tell her what Jack was saying about the Mets player that had been called up.
Jack still didn't have him checked into a hotel that was connected to the internet. Nor had he shown up lately on security cameras that Jack had access to. Kate had gotten Jack to give her a list of possible locations on who his friends might be and if he had any family in the city.
It was late and Kate was getting tired from driving around all over the city. She had been forced to stop for gas and get a cup of coffee. Kate sipped her coffee as she sat watching the building that was next on her list.
It was a townhouse or row house if you prefer. New York was full of them. They were thin and usually long; some had a lot of backyard while others had little to no backyard at all. They also varied from 3 floors to 5 or more. The higher the price, the wider and taller it was.
Kate didn't see any lights but she decided not to wait any longer and went up to the door. "Jill?"
"The door is not locked and appears to have been picked recently based on the damage the lock has sustained," Jill warned Kate. She instantly pulled her service weapon out and turned the doorknob to open the door.
She brought out her flashlight, turned on her laser pointer that was attached to her service weapon, and started panning around. Only seconds she found the body lying on the floor. Kate moved into the room, barely looking at him while she kept her eyes on the area surrounding her. "Jill?" Kate asked since she didn't see anyone else.
"Scanning… Based on condition of the body and his temperature, I would place his death at about 2 hours after he injected Nuke into Richard. He has died from an overdose of Nuke in his system. It appears to have caused a massive stroke that resulted in death," Jill informed Kate.
"Kris Bryant?" Kate inquired. "Correct," Jill responded.
So much for questioning who dosed Castle. Kate searched the rest of the home room by room, with Jill telling her each room was clear along the way. She put her service weapon away and started searching the place looking for anything.
"Katherine I have scanned the room and found what might be a Nuke injector in the far corner under that table," Jill advised Kate as she searched the room with the dead body.
"Careful!" Jill warned as Kate's hand got close to the injector. Kate pulled out a second pair of gloves with which to pick it up. "It is empty and has obvious indications that it has been used relatively recently. Scanning… the needle shows DNA of Kris Bryant on it," Jill informed her.
"Great, he injected himself to get his fix after injecting Castle for some reason," Kate surmised as she looked at the damn thing.
"I don't think so. The partial print that is still on it does not belong to Kris Bryant." Jill remarked.
"Can you scan it and send it to Jack and have him run it down?" Maybe Kate had a lead.
"Already done, Jack is working on it." Jill replied.
"How are you coming with your analysis of Nuke?" Kate hadn't heard anything from Jill about the formula for Nuke lately.
"I am still working on what chemicals are being used plus the interaction of each chemical. It is amazingly complex; it is astounding that someone from this planet could have manufactured it." Jill was still having trouble breaking it down.
"Our planet," Kate whispered. "Jill, are you suggesting that this person has one of the other two devices? Devices like you and Jack?" Kate started wondering if they had stumbled onto the owner of one of the other two devices, whomever that person was, since they didn't have a name.
Jill was silent for a moment while she ran through all the options and the probabilities of this. "It is possible. Nuke is something that I find difficult to believe that your science could create," Jill finally answered.
Kate had another issue to deal with before she could focus on the probability of the second pair of devices. She had a crime scene on her hands. So she pulled out her phone. "Hi Lanie, I've got another dead body for you and your detectives." Kate gave her the address.
"Are you ok? Should I bring some EMTs with me?" Lanie hoped Kate was feeling better.
"I'm find Lanie. I think I found the guy who injected Nuke into Castle, however someone beat me to him and gave him an overdose of Nuke," Kate told Lanie.
"I'll be there in 30, don't do anything or touch him, girl," Lanie instructed.
"I went through police academy Lanie, I know what and what not to do. I'll be here waiting," Kate grumbled and ended the call.
"Where are the owners Jill?" Kate didn't want someone suddenly showing up and causing her even more trouble.
"Jack is scanning, give him a moment," Jill responded.
Jack was unable to locate them until their car went through an intersection. It looked like they were returning from going out to dinner and were about 30 minutes out. Kate thought that Lanie, Ryan and Espo were going to arrive at about the same time, forcing the owners to stay out of their own home till they were finished. It was going to be a late night.
It was after midnight by the time Kate managed to leave. She left for the hospital since she had a real need to see and touch Castle. She needed to see for herself that he was still alive and breathing.
As Kate neared Castle's room she easily spotted the FBI agent standing outside of the room just as Frazier had promised. Suddenly Kate was confronted by a guy that she hadn't noticed. "Who are you? I need to see your ID," he demanded.
As Kate reached for her ID her weapon was exposed. Instantly she found herself on the other end of a weapon that was pointed at her.
She managed to show her FBI ID that had her name. "My apologies Agent Beckett, I'm simply doing my job. I hope your fiancé feels better soon," he apologized and allowed her into Castle's room.
Seeing Castle felt like a magnet pulling her to him. She leaned down to kiss his cheek and ran a hand through his hair. "Please wake up Castle, I miss you."
Kate was conflicted. She knew she should probably go home and check on Martha but the pull of Castle on her soul was something she couldn't resist. Kate removed her weapon and holster, took off her shoes, and climbed into bed so that her head was on Castle's shoulder. She pushed her nose into Castle and tried to find his scent over the smell of the hospital. "Please wake up Castle. I love you." Kate closed her eyes and tried to let having Castle near her lead her towards sleep.