"Kate, what the hell are you doing!"

From her position near Captain Montgomery's currently vacant office, all she has to do is turn on her heels to see Will. He's pissed, stalking through the bullpen without sparing a glance to anyone that might separate him from her, the same sort of intimidation that he would use against criminals rolling off him in waves.

She doesn't take it personally, though on some level it is annoying, but she does dread the fact that this conversation is now going to be held in the midst of a lot of curious onlookers. Kate is sure that trying to push Will towards the observation room or some other less crowded part of the homicide division wouldn't go over well.

And with that in mind, she bites her tongue until he's come to rest in front of her, his blue eyes cold and radiating fury.

"How did you find out?"

"My mother called. Teddy was late for an appointment with her, and she was concerned since this was the last place he was meant to be," he supplies, biting off the consonants with annoyance, "I tried to call you and you didn't answer, so I came down to check and your desk sergeant informed me that he suspected you were interrogating Teddy Murphy for murder."

"First of all," she begins, extending both hands in the universal sign to stop, "Sergeant Reynolds isn't mine, I don't officially work here anymore. But -" Kate raises her voice slightly, cutting off whatever interruption Will had planned with her own stern look, "He told you the truth. We've compiled enough evidence to hold Teddy with probable cause and conduct an official interview. Ryan just left to execute a search warrant and when we have the results of that search, Teddy will be interviewed as the prime suspect in Sophie's murder."

It hurts to see the way Will's face changes. It's not just anger that she sees now, but surprise and disbelief. He's shoved his hands into his pockets and rocked back on his heels with a long suffering sigh, "Teddy barely knew Sophie. Why would he hurt her!"

"I don't know yet," she tells him, cautiously reaching a hand out to touch his bicep and somehow both hurt and entirely unsurprised when Will shrugs her off, "But we're going to find out."

"He's been like a father to me, Kate," Will snaps at her, and there is less blistering anger and now just a deep hurt that squeezes her heart in a painful way. "How could you let them throw him in jail like a common criminal! You're supposed to be on my side, and on his! Who got us our marriage license? Who organized our pre-nup? Teddy has been nothing but encouraging and supportive, which has been a blessing in light of my mother and her opinions about our relationship, and this is what you do to repay him? Accuse him of murder?"

Though she gives it a valiant effort, Kate doesn't manage to hide her wince. Most of the people currently occupying the floor are former co-workers and, if not friends, acquaintances of hers and they've now been treated to a far more intimate look into her personal life and her relationship with her fiancé and his family than she ever would have wanted them to know. Just from the measure of the room that Kate takes with a glance from the corner of her eye she can tell that most of them are trying to pretend they haven't heard the altercation, but the buzz in the bullpen isn't as active as it would otherwise be in the middle of a workday. They're all listening, even in they don't necessarily want to be.

Sighing inwardly, she reaches forward and snags the open edge of Will's coat and uses most of her physical strength to drag him towards the back hallway and the doors that lead to both the observation room and interrogation. He doesn't fight her on it, following with another huff of annoyance that only serves to further piss her off, but Kate doesn't stop until they've reached the empty observation room and Will's been ushered inside to the soundtrack of the door that she slams shut behind them.

"And now that you've managed to embarrass the both of us in a room full of cops," she tells Will, letting go of his coat to place her hands on her hips, "I'm going to explain something to you, William Sorenson. I've worked in law enforcement for eight years. I've solved hundreds of cases both as a lead and as an assistant investigator for both the NYPD and the FBI. And I have never hauled in a suspect without evidence that is sufficient enough to put them behind bars, and if you ever again imply that I would manipulate or lie in an investigation to make someone else look better or to put someone in jail without a case to back it up? I'll kick your ass."

"That's not what I…."

"Your upset," Kate continues right over his explanation, "I get that, but I'm here and working on this case to give you closure. I'm not here to hurt you, or to hurt your family. Your mother is the one that would make, and has made, those blanket assumptions, but I'm here to find a killer and to make sure that you don't spend years wondering who would do something like this to a friend."

"Because you don't want me to go through what you have with your mom," he repeats with a sigh, "I know that, but Teddy wouldn't…."

"Teddy has been paying Sophie for months, Will. He's the reason she decided to be in the wedding; he paid for her dress, her flight, and her hotel."

"That's your evidence?" he scoffs, glancing for the first time away from Kate's face to the one-way mirror that shows Teddy sitting alone in the interrogation room, looking distinctly annoyed and frustrated, "Teddy's been like a father to me since my dad died. Do you really think the guy who helped me move into my college dorm and that helped me gather the courage to propose to you wouldn't step in to help someone who was important to me and that I wanted to be present for my wedding?"

"He would," Kate admits, glancing into interrogation, "But that doesn't explain the rest of the money he's been giving her. We talked to Sophie's landlord, she paid her rent in cash, and it's only a matter of time until we trace that money back to Teddy."

The realization that the evidence is real and currently stacked against Teddy seems to sink in when the shock and anger begin to burn away. Will's face goes slack with resignation, and she takes the opportunity to step forward and slide a battered chair from the equally dinged desk that has been crammed into the far corner of the room. "I can't believe this," he mutters once he's taken a seat, a hand rubbing across his face and then tunneling through his hair, "There has to be some explanation. He isn't a killer. An accident or…"

The or is left out in the air, and Will lifts his eyes to hers, a silent plea written in them for Kate to fill the blank with some ray of hope.

She doesn't do it, unwilling to lie to Will and allow him to convince himself of something that won't be true. They've got more than enough to connect Teddy to Sophie and provide motive, and if the hunch she had is right, they'll have physical evidence that connects him to the crime scene as well. "You know I am not doing this to hurt you, don't you?"

The smile he gives is sad, strained at the edges with a tension that matches what she's been able to see in his eyes for days now. For the first time, Will seems to let her see all of it, the riot of emotion, exhaustion, and reservation shining back at her. "I know that you didn't do it on purpose," he finally offers, "That will have to be good enough."

"Will…." Kate doesn't know what she intends to say, just that she has to try.

He stops her with a wave of his hand, "It doesn't matter now, Kate," he replies, "What matters is getting through it."

Reaching out to touch him isn't as instinctive as it once would have been, but she lifts her hand up anyway. Her fingers thread through his hair with a gentleness that has his eyes slipping closed, a small bit of tension draining from his face and his shoulders when she continues outlining a path over his forehead and down the side of his face, tripping over the shell of his ear and the sharp angle of his jaw.

By the time she's cupped his face in both of her hands, Will's eyes have fluttered open and met hers with that same resigned acceptance, and all the unspoken things they've yet to say aloud seem to swell between them. "Do you want me to-"

The door opens with a sharp bang, bouncing away from the wall with enough force that the one-way mirror vibrates with the contact and Kate spins to face the noise, her hands dropping from Will's face. Castle's standing in the doorway, and the way his eyes are reflecting surprise, worry, and annoyance are enough context clues for both she and Will to understand that he'd caught some part of their exchange.

She wants to roll her eyes, but Kate resists, instead giving a pointed glance to the writer, "Can I help you?" she asks.

"Ryan's on the phone, he says he found something that you will want to know about," Rick replies, shuffling out of the way so Kate can slip past him and back into the bullpen where Esposito is sitting at his desk and waiting for her to arrive to learn about the latest case development.

With Kate out of the room, the fact he's been left alone with Will Sorenson for the first time since this whole investigation comes to Rick. He'll admit that he's no fan of Will's, least of all because of his jealousy that he has something Rick wants for himself, but given that he's been let off the hook for Sophie's murder, he can't quite see being openly rude.

Not given everything that he knows will be happening in a matter of hours.

"Will," he says by way of greeting, and he's given one brief jerk of the head that seems to be Will's acknowledgement of him. With those pleasantries disposed of, the FBI Agent turns his attention to the one-way mirror, his eyes dark and more than a bit troubled when he stares at Teddy as he continues to wait alone.

"You must be loving this," Will says after several minutes of silence, his face contorted with a grim smile, "Kate and I fighting at every turn, someone I'm close to pinned as the prime suspect in a murder that stopped our wedding…"

Loving it isn't the description that Rick would give; he's seen the strain that it's put on Kate, and he's not quite callous enough to wish that she be put through such an emotional ringer for his own benefit. Likewise, even though he's made a living killing people on paper, he's never been the sort to wish an untimely end for anyone.

"I think it'd make a good book," he finally says just to give Will an answer, his eyebrows raising as the other man gives a snort.

"Oh of course," he replies, "I'm not surprised a third-rate author would think that the uncle of the groom killing a bridesmaid would be a good story."

"Third rate?" Rick asks, though Will either ignores him or doesn't hear him.

"I'm just waiting for someone to come and tell me that Teddy's also been in love with Kate this whole time and he convinced Sophie to sleep with me to stop the wedding. Hell, maybe they even decided to make a trade," he says, sarcasm dripping from every syllable he utters, "Teddy gets to sweep Kate off her feet, and Sophie gets another shot with me. We all live happily ever after."

"What do you mean also been in love with?"

Will gets to his feet with a sharp inhale of breath, and in one step he's close enough to Rick that one of them could so easily reach out and strike the other, "You know damn well that that means," he says and there is no room for arguing or pretending otherwise. Rick can't be sure what, if anything, Kate might have told Will about their conversation the previous night. For just a moment there is a slight spike of fear in his blood, but it's burned out by anger. It's as much at himself for being the person that now has Will facing some significant doubts about Kate as it is his need to defend and protect her no matter what.

"I don't," Rick lies, both of his hands winding into fists as he speaks, "But if you've got something to say then I think you should go ahead and say it."

Will doesn't back down from the challenge, but he does lower his voice, leaning close enough that Rick is momentarily struck by how similar in color their eyes are. Right now, Will's are a stormy grey-blue, glinting and hard with anger, "I love Kate," he murmurs, "She means everything to me. Maybe you won't let yourself see it, or maybe you just don't care, but I love her and I want to marry her, even now."

"What if she doesn't want to marry you?" Rick asks before he can stop himself, but it doesn't matter because the door to interrogation has finally opened and Kate has strolled in with Esposito on her heels. Immediately, Teddy begins his plea, and though he's clearly annoyed at having been left in the room for over an hour he's doing his best to appear happy and jovial to see her.

Judging by the cold glare Kate gives in return as she drops a stack of files onto the tabletop, the feeling isn't mutual.

The amount of pleasure that she receives from watching the smile slide off Teddy's face would be worrisome if not for her history with Will. As it is, Kate lets the satisfaction of knowing that they've closed the door and solved the case sweep through her while she takes a seat across from him, Esposito sliding into the chair at her right.

"Is there any reason you've kept me waiting for over an hour?" Teddy asks, holding up the hand that allows him to display the shiny gold Rolex clasped to his wrist.

Despite herself, she wonders whose money paid for it: Teddy's or Will's.

"We did actually," she replies, tapping the stack of files with her right hand, "You see, we had to go looking for some things before we could talk to you; fill in a few blanks about why you killed Sophie Ronson."

The disbelief that Teddy puts on display for she and Esposito is good, and it's almost good enough to be convincing if not for the bleed of panic that can be read in eyes that are such a similar blue to his nephew's.

"What are you talking about?" Teddy asks, "I told these cops before," he says, gesturing to Esposito, "That I barely knew Sophie. Why would I kill her?"

"That's what we kept wondering," Esposito says, "Why would a guy who barely knew a bridesmaid go to the trouble of murdering her? Coincidentally, answering that question is why you've had to wait so long. We had to get a warrant and then search your office and your home, which took a while. Actually, it could have taken much longer, but you didn't exactly go to much trouble to hide your files or the paper trail, so once we knew where to look it was quite easy."

Teddy's look towards Esposito is one of loathing and frustration, the man barely restraining himself from rolling his eyes, "A layman like you can't possibly understand the complexity of the clients and the documents that I deal with on a daily basis…"

"I don't have to understand all of them," Esposito replies with a shrug, "Just the file that named you the executor of the trust fund that Will's father set up for him and maintained until his death when Will was 11. But it's nice to know that you think I'm stupid."

Kate feels her anger reach its boiling point, whatever goodwill she might have fostered for Teddy evaporating behind his dismissal of Esposito, "When Will's father died, you took over and you did well. So well, in fact, that the initial amount in the trust fund doubled as the investments you and your brother chose were profitable. But that was before the market crashed," she explains, narrowing her eyes at him, "You took a big hit, and rather than make adjustments in your lifestyle you began stealing from Will."

"A house in the Hamptons, a Ferrari, probably that expensive watch you're wearing," Espo adds.

"You burned through nearly five million dollars, practically the entire contents of his trust fund. A fund that, coincidentally, Will would inherit on his wedding day," Kate continues, and though she sees the shadow of guilt on Teddy's face, she can't find it in herself to care. Sitting in this room, so close to wrapping this case, she knows that Teddy's greed and his selfishness have destroyed this part of her life.

"What happened, Teddy?" Esposito asks, leaning forward to place his folded hands on the tabletop, his voice as conversational as if the three of them are sitting here and discussing the weather. "Did you panic when Will told you that he was getting married? I've seen your bank statements, your list of assets. You're hemorrhaging money and there was no way you could raise the equity to put all that money back, and you knew it was just a matter of time until Will noticed."

"And what could you really do?" Kate picks up on Esposito's story, the muscle in her jaw jerking and pulsing as she grinds her back teeth together in anger. "Will and I were in love, we weren't going to break up on our own, but you had to stop the wedding. And then you met Sophie; a girl that you knew had a past with Will and still carried a torch for him, someone that was desperate for money. Desperate enough and unhappy enough to just maybe carry out the only thing you could think of to stop a wedding."

"This is ridiculous," Teddy huffs, rolling his eyes at the pair of them, "You don't know what you are talking about."

"You convinced Sophie to seduce Will before the wedding and, I'm sure, once she had done the deed, she was going to make sure that I found out."

Esposito is careful when he lifts Sophie's cell phone out of the bag, clicking several buttons until the home screen pops up, "Initially, we didn't look for any deleted videos or photos on Sophie's phone. It didn't seem connected to our case," he explains, opening up the appropriate app, "Did you know Mr. Murphy that even when you delete something that it's never really gone? Sophie had set her phone's settings so that all her photos and videos were automatically uploaded to cloud storage."

The phone screen goes black for a moment, and there is a distant rustling of blankets, and the creak of a bed. Even though she knows it's a necessary evil to lay out the case they have against Teddy, Kate can't help the roll of nausea that pops up, the way that her heart begins to ache. She's already seen the video, and she knows what is coming, but it doesn't help to assuage her own guilt.

Will was a good man. A good man who loved her deeply, who had resisted temptation when it was offered, and she had done so very wrong when it came to him.

The low hum that comes through the speaker after a few moments of silence is Will's, a slight chuckle that has her name whispered somewhere in the middle. It's still dark in the video, nothing more than a black screen with the occasional patch of deep blue, but the sound of kissing and a soft, happy sigh are distinctive until a sharp gasp cuts through the air.

"Sophie, what the hell are you doing here!"

"Come on Will, you and me, one last time?"

They can't see it on the video, but Will's snarl echoes crystal clear through the speaker, "Are you serious? Stop it. I'm getting married tomorrow to the woman I love, get out of here!"

"I just thought…."

"You need to leave, now," Will adds, and then there is another gasp, the sudden thunk of what sounds like a body hitting the floor and a muffled sob that continues as the phone is picked up and the sound of rapid footsteps are echoed by the slam of a door before the video rolls to a close.

"We found Sophie's cell phone in her room, with two separate sets of prints on it," Kate says, clearing her throat once the video has concluded and hoping that neither Teddy or Esposito have taken notice of the way her cheeks are flushed with color, "One set were Sophie's. When we take yours, what's the likelihood that we're going to find a match for the others?"

"The time stamp from the video being deleted from Sophie's phone also coincides with what our medical examiner has determined to be her time of death window," Esposito adds, "But that's what I'd call icing on the cake."

Teddy merely raises an eyebrow, parting his hands from where they've been clenched together on the top of the table, "It's a good story," he concedes, "But how are you going to prove that I killed her? Even if I paid her money, even I had asked her to stop Will's wedding, none of that is proof that I murdered her."

"He's right, Beckett," Espo says, contorting his face into a frown, "Stupid cops that we are, we'd never have considered looking for physical evidence to connect him to the crime."

Kate's shrug is noncommittal, though her fingers have already reached into the pocket of her blazer and plucked the small evidence bag from its depths. She holds it up in silence, keeping her eyes focused on Teddy's so that she doesn't miss the moment where he knows with completely certainty that they've got him on all counts.

He doesn't disappoint, mouth going slack with surprise and his eyes flashing shock when they dart between herself and Esposito.

"Esposito told you that they served a warrant to search both your office and your home," she explains, her voice low and full of bite, "We found the financial records we needed in your office, but in your home we found this in your still unpacked luggage," Kate tosses the evidence bag across the table, the tie tack contained within landing with a dull thud, "It's platinum right? The same metal that we found deposits of in the wounds on Sophie's back; wounds that you made while you were strangling the life out of her because she had a conscience and didn't go through with the plan when Will pushed her away."

"You could have just walked away, bitten the bullet and told Will the truth, but instead you decided to kill her. You murdered an innocent woman to keep your greed and your betrayal a secret," Kate snarls, her eyes blazing with anger, "And the funny thing is that you are right; if you hadn't been so sure you would get away with it, you could have gotten away with killing her. We'd never have been able to connect you directly to Sophie's murder if you'd thought to get rid of the one piece of evidence that put you at the scene of the crime."

"You probably didn't even know you were making them when you choked her to death," Esposito adds, rising to his feet with a careless shrug, "But we really are sorry we kept you waiting for so long. We layman cops like to be thorough before we charge someone."

They exit interrogation behind Teddy, who is sandwiched between two uniforms and on his way to booking. The path he's forced to walk takes him right past Will, and while Teddy attempts to say something, Will gives no acknowledgement that he heard.

But he's ready for Kate, reaching out to grasp her hand once she's within arm reach and draw her in for a hug. The thank you that he murmurs against her ear is choked with emotion, and while she normally might insist that he let her go and allow her to maintain a professional appearance among people who used to be colleagues, Kate just slides her arms around Will and holds on until he seems to have gotten his bearings.

"I need to thank the rest of you as well," Will says once he's released Kate, extending a hand to Esposito and Ryan in turn. Both men are quick to shake, Ryan even lifting his other hand to clap Will on the shoulder.

"Glad we could solve it," Espo says, shoving both hands into the back of his pocket when Will turns toward the last member of the investigative team.

The tension between Rick and Will is undeniable, and there is a moment of fear where Kate almost expects the two of them to come to blows, but Will seems to gather himself, and though he looks like he would rather do anything else, he still extends his hand and she's pleased when Rick meets him halfway for a brief shake.

"I appreciate all that you've done," he tells each of them, taking one step back with his eyes lingering on Kate, "And I'll give you all some space."

She watches as he wanders towards the break room, slipping through the door before Kate turns to give Esposito and Ryan each a hug. "I forgot how much I enjoy working with the two of you," she tells them both with a laugh, "But I hope we don't run into each other again because someone I know is dead."

"No kidding," Esposito replies, squeezing her shoulder briefly, "But you take care of yourself, Beckett."

"Don't let the Feds hassle you," Ryan adds, darting in for a second hug and then nudging Espo towards their desks to leave Castle alone with her.

She's suddenly aware that it's the first time they've been left to their own devices since their trip to Columbus Park, though it doesn't appear that Rick's train of thought has changed all that much. His eyes go immediately from her face to her left hand, Will's engagement ring still sparkling on her fourth finger, and as good as he can be at disguising his emotion, Castle can't quite pull off nonchalance at seeing it.

"You're staying with him," he says, sliding his hands into the pocket of his dress slacks.

"I'm going to explain to him what happened last night," Kate corrects gently, "And from there….." she shrugs, "But no matter what, I want you to know that you're very important to me and I…." she pauses, huffing out a breath of air that she hopes covers the way that her voice catches and the emotion wells up, "I care about you a lot, Rick Castle."

"Just be happy, Kate," he mutters, giving her a small smile, "That's all I've ever wanted for you."

"Are you sure about this?"

The question comes at the same time she closes her suitcase, the sound of zipper sliding around the edge of the container somehow sucking a bit of weight from the moment. Will knows as well as Kate that this is her last load of stuff, that once she departs with it that there's no reason for her to return.

Even though her mind is made up, she still appreciates that he doesn't want her to go.

"I'm sure," she tells Will, lifting the suitcase so that it's balanced on the rolling end. Her coat and her carry-on are already sitting near the door, waiting for Kate to pick them up. Normally, if she were packing to leave, she would have to wait on a taxi or someone from her FBI team to pick her up but today isn't normal.

Today is the culmination of a lot of life decisions that simultaneously scare her to death and have her shaking with anticipation. She'll simply hail a cab from the street when it's time to leave.

"Is there anything I can say? Anything I can do?" Will's risen from his spot on the bed, looking ridiculously young with his ancient jeans and faded Yale t-shirt. He looks wounded, and for just a moment Kate can remember the last time she left the home of someone she loved, and how Rick had given her that same long, searching glance.

It's hard to do it again, even if she knows in her bones, just as she did then, that it's the right thing to do, "No," Kate replies, "And I'm sorry for that."

To his credit, Will merely shrugs at the information, glancing out the bedroom window where a steady snow flurry has begun to fall. "Don't apologize," he says, "Deep down, I've always known it. From the time that he walked into the bridal suite, I've known that you and Rick had something that we never did."

"I wish I could tell you that isn't true…."

"I know," he tells her quickly, briefly closing his eyes in what she suspects is an attempt to stave off emotion. "But it is."

Her nod is brief, "I never got over him. I still care about him. Maybe I always have, or maybe I stopped and it came back to me when I saw him. I don't think I'll ever know."

"We could have been happy, you and I," Will says, giving her a smile that's genuine though weighed down with a sadness that they both share.

"We could have been great together," she agrees, wrapping her hand around the handle of her suitcase. "But I don't want to live a lie, and neither do you."

In the week since she and Will had returned from Boston, they had done nothing but talk. She had told him the truth about Castle, about their kiss in the park, and her conflicted emotions on marrying him. And Will had shared his own doubts, his worries that she would always want Castle instead of him, that he might never be able to trust her again.

But, through it all, he still loved her. Even when Kate had given back his engagement ring, even when they had decided that it was best not to get married, Will had been willing to work on their relationship.

She had been the one to decline, to explain where she felt her heart and her mind truly lay. Not just with her personal life, but her professional one.

"On that, we agree," Will says, closing the distance between the two of them to brush his lips across her cheek. "I hope you know that I'm still gonna think about you from time to time."

The laugh bubbles up out of her before Kate can get a handle on it, her smile full and genuine when she reaches up to brush her fingers over his cheek, "Oh, you'd better. I can't be the only one with fond memories."

She nearly tells him that he doesn't have to follow her out when she picks up her coat and shrugs it on, sliding the strap of the carry-on onto her shoulder and double checking that she has her phone and her plane ticket, but at the last moment, she bites her tongue, allowing Will to roll her suitcase down to the lobby and stand in the bitter cold in only his t-shirt while she hails a cab.

He loads her suitcase into the trunk and places her carry on in the backseat before turning to her, and Kate knows what he's going to do in the instant before it happens. When he kisses her it's soft and bittersweet, the type of contact that happens when you know it'll be your last, and she kisses him back, her fingers winding into his hair.

"I'll see you around, Kate," Will murmurs when they part, holding the door open to the cab and closing it behind her once she's safely inside.

"Bye, Will," she whispers, watching until he's slipped back into the apartment building that he had shared with her for the last eight months.

"Lady," the cabbie cuts into her reminiscing, his Boston accent thick and sharp to her ears. "Where ya headed?"

"Logan International," Kate replies, sinking into the backseat as the car pulls away from the curb. "Time to go home," she whispers to herself with a small smile.

A/N: While I initially planned this story to be six chapters; there will be a seventh chapter that is followed by an epilogue. Surprise!