Sanctuary?

Chapter 1

Kate was on the run. She had cut her hair and dyed it red, bright red. All Kate had was a small bag filled with clothes and a little money. It wasn't much, but it was everything she had. She even changed her name and was known as Sarah Adler.

She took a taxi to the city's outskirts and hitched a ride. She took ride after ride until she reached Boston. It was there she took a flight. She was supposed to wait 21 days, but Kate didn't dare wait that long, so she flew standby. She slept in the airport until she could catch a flight, which ended up being an American Airlines flight to Chicago. She didn't understand why Chicago, but she took it.

Then she waited almost all day to fly standby on the next flight to San Antonio. She was looking for someone but only had a name and location. From San Antonio, she took a taxi to the house.

After paying the driver, Kate got out of the taxi, and he drove off. She felt like she was in the middle of nowhere. The house was large, bordering on huge. She walked toward the closed gate and pressed the button. Nothing. She pushed it again until someone answered.

"Yes," a male voice called out.

"I'm looking for a Richard Castle. My name is Sarah. I was told to come here." She waited patiently for someone to let her in.

"I don't know any Sarah, go away."

"My name was Katherine Beckett. Please, I must speak to Richard Castle." Kate heard a buzzing sound unlocking the gate. Relieved, she opened it and walked in.

Inside, she saw a pool large enough to swim in and a fountain on one end that drained into the pool. On either side of her was a building. She walked around the pool and headed for what she took to be the main door.

Halfway there, she watched the door swing open and saw a man standing there. He was a big man, maybe six foot two inches, weighing in at about 240, and handsome enough.

"Are you Castle?"

"Come inside and get out of the heat." Rick stepped aside and let her enter. "Follow me. So you're little Katie Beckett."

"That's me." Kate realized that he had called her little Katie. Only her parents ever called her Katie, so that told her something.

"WOW!" Kate looked around and slowly followed behind him. First up was a living room with two staircases leading to the second floor on either side. There was a Christmas tree off to one side. No surprise there since it was just after Christmas. She saw a grand piano, two sofas, and two sitting places. Rick selected one of the sofas and sat down while she took the other.

"What brings you to my home?"

Kate fished a flash drive out and held it up for him to see. "This. My parents are dead – murdered – and I used this flash drive to find out what to do."

Rick got to his feet and took the flash drive from her. "Wait here." He went to his study, intent on using his laptop. Once there, he plugged in the flash drive and keyed in a password to play it. Rick raised an eyebrow at what he saw and heard. "Interesting." He returned to the living room without the flash drive and sat down. "What do you know about me?"

"Nothing, just what's on the flash drive. I've heard of you before, but that's because you write books. My mother loved your books. She read every one of them, some of them twice."

"Your parents did me a favor once, Kate, and I told them if they ever needed me to call me. They didn't get to call. So, it's up to you to tell me what you know about their murder."

"Mom and Dad were both stabbed and gutted like a fish. It was horrendous. I didn't understand then why they were both murdered; I still don't understand now," Kate said bitterly. "They were both disemboweled." There was a look of despair on her face when she said that.

"I see. I'll take you to your room where you can rest. You're perfectly safe here, I assure you." Rick stood up.

"Where's your wife, Mr. Castle?"

"I'm not married, and please, call me Rick. I live here alone with my daughter.

Kate stared at him. "All this is yours, and you live alone way out here?"

"Five bedrooms, four bathrooms, a half bath, and 12,970 square feet of space on 200 acres. There's nothing around us but land. Follow me." Rick went up one of the staircases and entered a bedroom, stepping aside and letting the girl in.

"This is your room; the attached bathroom is through that door. Dinner is at six. Until then, feel free to go anywhere you like. If there's a room you're unable to enter, it's because you're not permitted." And with that, Rick turned and left her.

Kate looked around. It was colorful with yellow walls, a mural on one wall filled with swirls, orange-colored tile floors, and a very vivid green chest of drawers. She put her bag on the bed, took out the few clothes she had, and put them away. Then she decided to look around a little, so downstairs she went. She walked into the dining room and looked around. A table in the middle seated ten, and there was a wall of wine bottles behind a gate and iron bars.

The next room turned out to be the kitchen. "WOW." She had never seen a kitchen that size before. There were two sinks, a large center island, two dishwashers, a double oven, and a massive side-by-side refrigerator. The same orange tiles were in both rooms.

From there, she went outside onto an enormous covered patio that seemed to run the length of the house. It had a seating area, chaise lounges, a dining room table, and fans spinning in the ceiling. There were potted plants and palm trees everywhere.

"Palm trees...in Texas?" Kate shook her head. But they were tall here, so they must be hardy trees.

She walked the length of the house and saw Rick sitting at a desk, looking at her flash drive again since she saw her mom in the video.

Kate decided to walk around the entire house and see everything. "He has a plane!?" she exclaimed, seeing it tied down. But it wasn't just any plane, like a single or a twin prop. No, it was a jet!

"And he has a barn?" Kate found it on the other side of the house and walked out to it. She didn't see any animals, but he had a barn. "Strange."

She returned to the house and hit the A/C head-on, and it felt good. It wasn't all that hot out, but it was wonderfully cool inside.

She continued her tour and found a room with a pool table. She had to go outside first to find a closed door. "Locked. I wonder what's in there?" She walked around the room but didn't see any windows.

She went across the way and entered the garage. "He has an SUV and an RV. This thing is huge." Kate looked the RV over and tried the door. To her surprise, the door was open, so she went inside just a little. "Nice." Three pull-outs were taking up some of the space. Kate went back into the garage. "No boat," she muttered to herself and went inside.

She found the study, but he was no longer in it. She saw him sitting in the living room watching TV with his daughter.

"Who are you? I'm Alexis, and I'm this many." The little girl held up five fingers. "I'm a big girl."

"I'm Kate, and I'm 19." Kate sat down with them.

"That's old," Alexis proclaimed.

"I don't think so." Then Kate looked at Rick. "You have a plane."

"I do."

"What do you need a plane for?"

Rick defended his having a plane. "I fly it places. Mostly on vacation with Alexis."

"And you have a barn, a rather empty barn."

He nodded. "I do. It's set up for horses. I just don't have any horses. Yet," he quickly added.

"Daddy promised me a horsey," Alexis told her, some excitement in her voice.

"That I did, Pumpkin, and I'll get you that horse someday, mark my words."

"It's a big house," Kate commented.

He rolled his eyes. "Tell me about it. Trying to keep it clean can be a real chore. Is your room satisfactory?"

"It's fine. Rather colorful, but it's fine," Kate assured him. "The size of your kitchen is fantastic."

"It's the heart of the house. It needs to be huge."

"I agree, but there's two of everything."

"I call it planning. Speaking of which, it's time to start work on dinner. If you'll excuse me." Rick got up and headed for the kitchen, leaving her with Alexis.

Kate eyed the little girl. "Why aren't you in school?"

"Christmas vacation."

"Do you like school?"

Alexis beamed, "I love school! I learn lots there, an' I have new friends!"

"Hmm. I don't recall liking school all that much."

"You're weird."

"I'm weird? You're weird." Kate pounced, tickling her, causing Alexis to laugh. Kate stopped and just sat there, looking at her. She bluffed at tickling, causing Alexis to burst out laughing again.

"So you really, really like school?"

"Yep," the little girl confirmed. "It's fun learning new stuff."

Kate grinned at her. "I'll take your word for it."

"DINNER!" Rick called, causing Alexis and Kate to hurry into the kitchen, as large as it was.

"Go wash up, Pumpkin." Rick raised an eyebrow at Kate. "You too."

Alexis and Kate went to the closest bathroom to wash their hands and then returned to the kitchen.

"Dinner is on the table, ladies," Rick announced, and they went into the dining room and saw plates waiting for them both.

Kate helped Alexis to sit at her place, and she sat at hers. "Looks good."

Rick eventually joined them. That was when Kate realized there was no place setting for him. "You're not eating?"

"No, I'm not hungry."

Just then, Alexis ratted him out. "Daddy never eats."

"Never?" Kate watched as Alexis shook her head.

"But he's a real good cook," the five-year-old insisted.

"And fast," Kate agreed.

Rick shrugged. "Leftovers. Just heat it and serve."

Kate and Alexis ate their dinner in silence. "It may be leftovers, but it was good. Thank you, Rick."

"You're welcome, and thank you for the kind words." Rick took their empty plates and put them in the dishwasher.

Kate yawned. "I think I'll turn in. Good night."

"It's not even Alexis' bedtime yet," Rick protested.

Kate sighed wearily. "I've had a very long day already; I'm tired."

"Oh, if that's what you want to do. 'Night. Sleep well, Kate"

Rick and Alexis watched her leave and go upstairs to her room. "Looks like it's just you and me, kiddo."

"Read to me?"

"How about you read to me? You're getting good at reading on your own." Rick watched her go upstairs to her room to find a book to read and saw her come back down one step at a time. She snuggled close to him, opened her book, and read it to her daddy.

When she finished, Rick turned on the TV with her still snuggled up close. Then he noticed she'd fallen asleep. So he picked her up and carried her upstairs to her room where he undressed his little girl and put her in her pajamas, which was work since she was dead weight.

Rick kissed her head. "'Night, Pumpkin." He stood there watching her sleep, then went back downstairs. "Alone at last." Since he couldn't decide what to do, he cleaned. He had a lot of house to clean and needed to start somewhere.

~oo0oo~

Rick stayed up all night cleaning and came to a resolution. Then he got Alexis up and into the tub for a bath and played with her. When Kate finally got up, he told her he needed to leave.

"Where are you going?"

"New York City. I have questions to ask people about the killing of your parents. It's just that I'm loathe to take Alexis with me, and finding a babysitter way out here isn't easy."

"Of course, I'll watch her. How hard can it be?" Kate looked at Alexis, asking, "You want me to watch you, don't you?"

"You're sure?" Rick asked and watched Kate closely.

"It should be fun. We're going to have lots of fun, aren't we, sweetie?" Kate looked at Alexis again.

Rick made up his mind. "All right, since you're sure. Thank you. I'll be back really late. Be a good girl for Kate and listen to what she tells you."

Alexis was used to having her daddy there, so she wasn't so sure about staying there with a stranger.

Rick packed a bag, took it to the plane, and removed the tie-downs. He came back inside the house to say his goodbyes. Rick knelt in front of his daughter. "I'll see you in the morning. I love you more than anything, Alexis." He looked up at Kate. "Thank you for this. I'll make it up to you somehow."

"You're sure you need to go, Rick? That you want to do this?"

"I have questions only the locals can answer, so yes, I'm sure. There's food in the kitchen, make anything you want. I'll likely be back late, and you'll probably be in bed by then."

"I'll be up." Kate followed him with Alexis in hand, and they waited for him to take off.

Rick got in the jet and closed up. He started the engines, taxied the beginning of the dirt runway, and took off. Kate and Alexis watched until they couldn't see him anymore.

Kate looked down at Alexis. "So what do we do first?"

~oo0oo~

Rick set the autopilot, leaned back, and listened to the radio. He contacted air traffic control when he changed jurisdictions and had to adjust the radio each time. It took him a while to reach New York City, but finally, Rick landed and was assigned a parking place. He arranged for refueling and walked the perimeter of the plane while waiting.

Then he took a taxi to the morgue, hoping they still had the Becketts. They should, given that Kate hadn't stayed long enough to arrange what to do with them.

"Are you family?" the morgue technician inquired.

Rick stared at him. "You are compelled to show me the bodies of James and Johanna Beckett."

"Right this way." He walked over to a wall of cabinets, opened a drawer, and showed him Johanna's body first.

Rick pulled the cloth away from the body and looked it over. Kate wasn't kidding when she said they had gutted her like a fish. He saw her innards were a mess, and her heart was gone. He looked at Jim next and found him in the same condition.

"Show me the paperwork on the autopsies now." Rick watched as he closed them up again and took him to the file. He stood there while Rick read what it said.

"I was never here," Rick told him, leaving after learning all he could.

~oo0oo~

"Swimming?" Alexis asked Kate hopefully.

"I don't have a swimsuit, but I can watch you swim." Kate followed her up the stairs to her room and let her get her swimsuit out. She helped her take off her clothes and put her swimsuit on.

Then she grabbed a towel and followed her outside. Kate sat on the side of the pool, letting her feet dangle in the water while Alexis swam. For her age, the little girl was amazingly good at swimming.

Kate watched her swim until she slowed down. "You ready to get out of the pool?" She watched Alexis shake her head. "Okay, enjoy yourself." Kate watched her swim until she stopped again.

"Time to get out now," Kate called out, and Alexis climbed up the steps into Kate's waiting arms filled with a towel. She rubbed her dry and wrapped the towel around the little girl.

"Did you have fun?" Kate watched her nod. "That's great! Let's get you dressed again." She followed her upstairs to her room, where she peeled the soggy swimsuit off her and helped her get dressed in clothes she picked out.

"What should we do now?" Kate asked her. Alexis shrugged. "I know what we can do. You can help me make lunch." Kate watched as she smiled and nodded enthusiastically.

"Any ideas about what we should make?" Kate asked her. "We have this huge kitchen. Let's look in the refrigerator first." Kate opened the refrigerator and saw bags full of red liquid. She picked one up and looked at it. "It's blood. What's it doing here?" She looked at Alexis, who remained silent.

Alexis was torn. She knew it was a secret, one she couldn't share with anyone. Not even this lady.

Kate put back the blood and took out a packet of ham slices. "We're going to make sandwiches. We need bread, mayo, mustard, lettuce, and chips. Can you help me with all that? How about half a sandwich for you and a whole one for me?" Alexis nodded and helped Kate make lunch.

"Is it good?" Kate asked, her eyes fixed on Alexis as she ate. Alexis nodded. "Good. You know, Alexis, you can talk to me. I'm not going to bite."

"Okay," Alexis agreed.