Presumptions

Chapter 7 - The Trial

Miguel Chaves, hitman for the local Columbian Drug Gang in NYC, is being brought into the courtroom wearing chains. He is lead by two officers. Chaves is being tried for the homicide of Maya Santori, killed for her part in stopping the DWB smuggling scheme. Seated in the audience in a section reserved for all witnesses is Alpha Team, ME Parish, and Dr. Josh Davidson. Kate's delivery date is now but a week or so away, but for first time mothers, it is not unusual for deliveries to happen two weeks before or after the expected date, which is usually 40 weeks after the woman's period had stopped. So Kate was right in the zone, she had finished her 38th week and could deliver any day. As such, Kate would be one of the first witnesses to be called.

"All rise. The court's in session. Be seated. Matter number twenty seven on the list, the people of New York verses Miguel Chaves. The matter is up for arraignment. Counsellors, for the record, who do you represent, please?", states the Bridge Officer.

"ADA Reagan for the State of New York, your Honor."

"Who represents the accused?", asks the Judge.

"Avery Lehman for Miguel Chaves, your Honor."

Bridge Officer speaks, "On the matter of the people of the state of New York in arraignment 2011460 the charge is premeditated murder under special circumstances per allegations."

Three new uniformed policemen walk in just then and sit near the front. Beckett watches them.

The newcomers are not paying attention to the court proceedings. Castle notices something is bothering Kate, "What is it?"

"I don't know yet", replies Kate.

"Mr. Chaves, do you waive a formal reading of this indictment?", asks the Bridge Officer.

"I do", replies the accused.

Something is still off for Beckett, but she can't place it. She looks at the newly arrived police officers once again.

Then it comes to her, what had been bothering her, they're wearing chrome collar pins. NYPD's are brass.

"How do you plead?", asks the Bridge Officer.

"Now!", yells Chaves.

One of the imposter officers throws out two flash bombs.

"Castle, down! Everyone down", shouts Beckett.

The flash bomb goes off as Castle hits the ground, Beckett on top of him. She's disoriented but she turns to see the imposter officers covering Chaves as they break him out of the courtroom.

Beckett to Castle, "Are you okay?"

"Yes. Yeah."

Espo and Ryan manage to get out of the courtroom after the suspect, falling out of the court room door, into the hallway, there Chaves' handcuffs are lying on the ground.

"Where? Where?", shout the two.

"Downstairs", says a woman who saw the escape party.

Everything is in chaos but the two detectives are on the move. They're after Chaves. The pair follows the woman's instructions to the stairwell, glimpsing at Chaves as he makes his way behind the guards that helped him. Once outside the courthouse the two detectives see Chaves getting into a helicopter. It's taking off and the two alpha team members do the only thing they can think of – they shoot at the escaping helicopter. Espo manages to hit it a few times but it's no use. The helo flies off into the sky. Chaves has escaped.

Meanwhile back in the court room, Beckett is still sitting on the floor next to Castle. She had covered Rick's body with hers to protect him from any rounds that might have gone their way. Considering her pregnancy, that had been an incredible act of protection and bravery. She had done it instinctively, an automatic reaction to the situation.

As the excitement and adrenaline come down, Kate starts to feel pain coming from her stomach.

She lets out a moan and says. "Oh my God, the baby, it did not like that".

Another wave of pain comes to her and she let's out a louder moan this time.

Instantly, Doctors Parish and Davidson come to her aid. Kate is sitting on the floor now, in a pool of water.

Lanie speaks first, "I think the event induced labor. Her water has broken, Kate's going to deliver now!"

"Call for an ambulance quickly!", Josh directs the officers in the room.

"I think Kate may just give birth here. When was the last time you delivered a baby, Josh?", Lanie asks of him.

"Been a while, why don't you lead, I will assist."

"Take her to my office", says the Judge, "Clerk grab the first aid kit and some towels from the bathroom and bring them to the attending doctors."

The Hospital

Kate is in the maternity recovery room. She had delivered her daughter in the judge's office and then was brought here by ambulance. Lanie had taken a sample from the umbilical cord for a paternity determination. She rushed the sample to the FBI lab with request for a fast turn around on the results.

All of Kate's family, friends, and colleague are now in the waiting room to hear about Beckett's condition. Each one of the crowd had gone in to see her, two by two, as permitted. Josh upon seeing the female baby was instantly struck with the thought this could be his daughter. Castle had gotten a similar reaction.

However, the praternity test now became but a formal confirmation of the child's birth father. There was one feature of the new born that gave a clue as to her birth father. When the new born baby opened her eyes, they are deep blue in color. It was then that people knew that Castle is the biological father to the newly arrived baby. Even Josh realized this and was surprised at his disappointment as he had come to believe that the baby might be his. Josh had been almost sure of this, but it appeared to be wishful thinking on his part. Still they waited for the test results. Maybe, just maybe, the eye color was a wrong clue.

Finally, after lunch, Lanie got a call from the FBI lab. She immediately goes to Kate's room. Rick and Josh are there.

"Well, it's official, Castle is the father!", she announces.

"Yes", says Rick.

"Congratulations Rick and Kate", responds Josh, but in his heart he is let down on his shaky expectations of being the biological father to this newborn. Josh's paternity had become doubtful with the tell tale eye color of the newborn. Now they knew, the eye color is a gift from the baby's biological father.

Josh had secretly hoped for this child to be his, thinking that it was a way to remain connected to Kate. Given the time that had elapsed since Josh broke up with Kate, Josh had come to realize that he should have found ways to keep Kate. But, in his heart, after he had observed how Kate and Rick were so good together, Josh came to realize he never had a chance with Kate. What made it even more painful was the fact that Kate had been the best that Josh had ever been with and the almost one year with her was now painfully burned into his memory.

Josh had known Kate in a most intimate manner. He had been in a physical relationship with her for almost a year and they were sexually compatible. Josh had thought that made their relationship solid, but in thinking back on all the times they'd slept and been sexual, Josh realized that Kate had held back. She was never fully there for him. Had it just been a carnal longing from her? One not for Josh but for another man? Had Josh been just a relief to Kate to ease her longing for Castle? Josh now realized that for himself, it too had been mostly a physical relationship with the absence of emotional sharing. He did not really know Kate in that way. Still, Josh had observed that it was not so with Rick Castle.

Rick knew that side of Kate, despite not being with her in physical intimacy. Castle knew so much more about Kate's personal history than Josh. Castle knew her fears , her hopes, and her many moods. He had tried to find the real Kate. Unlike Josh, Rick attempted to know the Kate behind her wall. She was a mystery to Castle, one he thought he would never solve, but wanted always to try and reveal it's depth, it's layers.

There are so many aspects to the woman Kate Beckett, and Castle wanted to know all of them. Josh never really tried to learn about Kate in that manner. Josh had been content with the physical relationship. Sex with Kate had been the best Josh had ever experienced. Something Josh had incorrectly thought had become something more than it really was for them. Josh had wanted more from Kate, but had no idea how to get there.

Yet Josh had observed the familiarity and ease that was evident between Kate and the Writer. They did things for each other with no thought. It was like they just knew what the other needed and responded automatically. It was like they were of one mind when together and that had fueled Josh's jealousy even more for the one named Rick Castle. He had wanted that same ease and familiarity with Kate that the writer shared with her. But time had been Josh's enemy in his relationship with Kate as had been his ego. Josh had thought the sexual intimacy they had went beyond just the sex, even when he had not been in her company as much as Castle. One year was too short to get to know this complicated and extraordinary woman, and Josh had not really tried for that kind of emotional intimacy with her.

True they had been almost a year together in a carnal joining, but that was only when they could find time together. With his DWB missions and the odd hours of their jobs, the two had relatively less time together than other couples. So what time they did have was spent on sex after which they had were exhausted and just slept. There had been little pillow talk between them as post play. Kate had not shared her personal fears, thoughts, and hopes with him as she had with Castle. Kate had done those kind of talks with Castle, despite the lack of carnal intimacy with Rick. It begged the question of how much more they could have once, they consummated a physical joining.

Unlike Josh's situation, Castle was with Kate almost every day, working cases, and learning more about her. On particularly difficult cases, they worked late nights and weekends. How was Josh to compete for Kate's time given that situation? Castle simple had more time with Kate and he took that time to learn more about Kate. Rick Castle had known Kate for years, Josh just barely a year. The reality was, that with the little time Josh had with Kate, he chose not to attempt to know her beyond their physical intimacy. This was Josh's glaring inadequacy in his relationship with Kate.

Kate too had been lacking in getting to know more about Josh. At first she wanted it to work, she wanted a chance with him. But she soon realized this was more because she wanted her longing for Rick to go away and she had tried hard to make it happen with Josh. But the heart wants what the heart wants, and her heart already belonged to Rick Castle.

For Rick, Kate was a mystery that was compelling. But that was only one of several reasons that he wanted to know more about Kate. Kate shared a lot of personal info with the Writer, whom she found was easier to do with Castle than with Josh. There was a trust and ease that Kate had with Castle, and he was always there for her. All this from Rick, despite the wall that Kate always had up. Castle had found a way around that wall and knew so much more about Kate than any other man in her life except maybe her father.

Rick had found out about the death of Kate's mother only weeks into the office partnership they had started. The years he had been with Kate, Rick always had her back and had even saved her life on a couple occasions. Their time together had built for Rick Castle a trust and ease that Kate had in him that she had not given to any other man. A trust that was equal to, if not exceeding, the one she had in her other partners, Espo and Ryan. It was a trust that only cops understood and one that never revealed itself to Josh. In this matter Josh was clueless.

Josh had been pondering this dynamic between the two but came out of his thoughts as Lanie Parish, the NYPD ME, came in to check on Kate.

"Oh Kate,..., you're a mother now", says Lanie as she gives Kate a hug.

Josh reacts to Lanie's proclamation adversely. He cannot stay as he realizes this is the final nail in the coffin that once was a relationship he had with Kate. Kate was the mother of another man's child. Josh had unconsciously wanted the child to be his, but it was not to be.

"Well, I have to get back to the safe house, congrats again", says Josh as he tries to hide his disappointment on the test results. People can see Josh's disappointment, that he is not the baby father to the newborn. Josh had entertained delusions that the newborn was a way to remain connected to Kate maybe even a way to get back with her.

"Bye Josh, and thank you", Kate says hoping that it will ease Josh's angst on not being the birth father of her child.

"Just be happy with your baby", Josh replies looking at the proud couple, but his eyes and body movement is contrary to his proclamations to them.

Josh leaves then with his security escort to return to the FBI safe house.

Lanie had left Kate now to go to the waiting room to announce the paternity test results. With that news, Jim goes to his daughter to meet his new grandchild and to celebrate with the proud couple.

"So do we have a name yet for baby Castle?"

"Lilith Johanna Castle, we will address her as Lily", proclaims the proud parents.

"Good name!", says grandpa Jim. He is pleased that his first grandchild's middle name comes from her maternal grandmother. Thrilled by the name, Jim then greets the baby, "Welcome Lily, I'm your grandpa Jim".

Lily reacts by looking at her grandfather with her bright blue eyes. She has every bit the image of her mother, except for those eyes, those are her father's color, passed on to her.

The remainder of the day is spent with family and friends greeting the newborn.

Aftermath

With the escape of the primary suspect, Miguel Chaves, the trial was placed on indefinite hold. Then the question arose as to what would happen to Josh. Would he be allowed to stay in protected custody until such time as Chaves is re-captured and tried again. Or would Josh immediately be given a new identity and a new location only known by the WITSEC program.

It was then that Josh chose an alternate path. He would relocate overseas under his own identity. DWB had an opening on the Staff for an African Regional Coordinator. It keep him physically away from the Columbian cartel, and the remote sites he would be at had little Cartel presence. The job paid well, almost as well as Josh's current surgeon job, but living in Africa was less expensive. DWB even had a house free of cost for him to live in, when he was not visiting all the remote field hospitals he was in charge of overseeing.

So financially Josh was way ahead. Additonally, Josh could take the job now with a promise to return as a principal witness when the escaped accused was recaptured for trial. The restart of the trial had no predictable time frame. But DWB had already agreed to let Josh leave for the trial whenever it happened. It was a win-win all around.

The Columbian Cartel had a global reach, but it was doubtful they would pursue Josh in the African wild. If the Cartel did pursue Josh, that would be difficult, the job called for Josh to be in country at some of the most remote sites in Africa, possibly in the world. Probability was that the Cartel could not or would not seek out Josh when he was in Africa. There were a lot of logistics involved to do so, if the mob so chose. This item was a big show stopper on any attempt by the Columbia drug cartel to get to Josh.

So with Lily Beckett-Castle barely a week old, she was at the airport with her mother and father, Alpha team, and ME Parish, to wish newly declared Uncle Josh off to his new job. The departure was cordial and everyone thanked Josh for his part on bringing down the cartel's DWB drug smuggling operations . As Josh gets ready to board at his gate, he says good bye to Lily. The baby who could have been his, had things had gone differently for Kate and him. The baby grabs Josh's finger when Josh gave her an affectionate touch to her baby cheeks.

"Go bye Lily, grow up well and make Uncle Josh proud". He looks at her for a last time and sees Kate in her. Her mother, whom Josh still was in love with, but now no longer had her. Kate was now another man's significant other, much to Josh's regret. "If Only's" were always filled with regrets.

With that Josh boarded his plane for Africa.