Private Life

by Castlefan6

Authors Note AU: Beckett and Castle have reached their first If Only moment, which forces Rick to leave the precinct. The episodes Cops and Robbers and To Live and Die in LA have been rearranged to suit this Timeline; please go with it.

I am taking a Literary License to fill in the blanks.

I don't own Castle; I only use the characters for amusement, except the ones I create.

This is COMPLETELY AU and May or May Not Wind Up with a Caskett Ending.

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A/N: This chapter has some injuries and Catastrophic events, if that is a trigger, please proceed with caution

Chapter 12

New Amsterdam Bank

54th and Lexington

The Following Friday

Flashback Previous Week

Rick had used some influence to get Maddie to see Doctor Sarah Solomon the very day she came home from her visit with Beckett. He knew if she took that drastic of a step to try to protect him, something was bothering her terribly.

The doctor happened to be a big fan of his work, and it didn't take more than a set of autographed Derrick Storm novels to get her to stay late and see Maddie. The session between the two ladies was private, allowing Maddie to speak freely. Rick waited in the outer room, not knowing what was being said between the doctor and his fiancé. It really didn't matter as long as she could kick the horrible feeling she was having.

After two hours, they appeared. Maddie had teardrop marks on her face but seemed to be much stronger than when they arrived for the appointment. I think we found the root cause of the problem, Rick. It's a long story, but I'll tell you about my 16th birthday party and the disappointment that I endured, but not tonight, sweetheart.

"It seems Maddie was traumatized much more than even I thought back then. We'll just say something occurred that made her afraid to ever get her hopes up to be as happy as she is now. She had several disappointments in life, culminating in the events of her party, but she realizes she is associating past disappointments and robbing herself of all future happiness." Dr Solomon offered.

"I don't need to know the facts or details of what caused your unhappiness, just that you have a handle on it now and are as happy as I will be when I make you my wife," he said, squeezing her hand slightly, as Dr Solomon shared an, "I told you so look" with Maddie.

"I'm sorry, Rick, it's my stupid insecurities; I tried to hide them from you. I should have told you just how screwed up my life was before I met you. It wasn't fair for you to inherit all this baggage," She said as she looked shyly into his eyes,

"There's no baggage, Maddie; we all have a past; some memories make us stronger, some hurt us; it's life; just let me be here for you, OK?" He said, and kissed her sweetly,

"What did I tell you, Dr. S? Isn't he just the most wonderful man in the world?" Maddie gushed as the good doctor just smiled.

"I can see why you said that you would be fine as long as you had Rick; I concur with your prognosis, Maddie. Now go, plan your wedding, and enjoy every detail, even when things start falling apart as they sometimes do.

"Remember, you have the pills to relax you until you get in touch with me if the feelings return. I don't think you will need them; you have something better right beside you," she smiled.

She smiled, hugged Rick tightly to her side, and turned to leave the office, feeling much better than she had in weeks. She knew the thoughts wouldn't magically disappear, but now she had the tools to cope with them. The best news was that her fiancé didn't think she was a whack job and loved her more than ever.

Rick guided her through the office and down to the parking garage, not saying a word. He was thankful that the woman he loved was doing better, and she was happy that her fiancé didn't think she was a candidate for Bellview Hospital.

Once they were in the car, and he was about to back out of the parking space, she turned his head and kissed him sweetly, "Thank You, Rick, I love you more than you will ever know," she said, tears in her voice,

"I'm sorry I put you, hell, us through this," she said,

He locked onto her eyes and kissed her as sweetly as she had just a minute before, "Maddie, I love you too, and you didn't put US through anything. Sweetheart, I want you to be able to tell me anything, good or bad. I promise you, nothing you can say will stop me from loving you.

He saw her eyes brighten and her spirits lift. "You know what would be a good idea? How about we head to the Hamptons? We don't even need to pack. I'll call and have the house opened, and we can spend a few days relaxing together. What do you say?"

"I say, let's go; I need to spend time with you, just me and you, and not with people around us," she laughed.

They spent the remainder of the week in the Hamptons, laughing, talking, and getting reacquainted with each other's bodies. It seemed to be just what both needed after the grueling schedule they both had been working for the past year.

Current Time

They were meeting with their banker at New Amsterdam Bank and Trust at 10:00 AM to discuss the sale of one of Maddie's Five-Star restaurants, which surprisingly had sold for almost triple the purchase price just three years ago.

Maddie had served almost 15 years with the organization and was also receiving a monthly retirement, which added to their combined wealth. They were meeting to discuss tax advantage strategies since it wouldn't be long before they would be married, in fact, five months to the day.

Rick was insistent that she knew of his financial holdings, but she had refused to meet with his investment people until AFTER he signed a pre-nuptial agreement that her lawyers drew up to protect him.

His lawyers told him that the agreement was slanted more in favor of him than any agreement they would have drafted. That was the first time he saw just how stubborn his fiancé could be.

He learned that she would agree to almost anything, EXCEPT she never wanted anyone to think she was marrying him for his wealth. He relented and signed the document, and they scheduled the first meeting with their banker.

Rick couldn't help but shake the feeling that something was off when they entered the bank and were escorted to the VIP rooms. Call it intuition or just having been in so many precarious positions before, he just felt something was off.

The security guard wasn't armed and seemed nervous, and unless there was a medical convention in town, there were too many people wearing hospital scrubs, standing at different angles and desks pretending to be filling out deposit slips.

The manager was still with the previous customer, so Rick decided to alert Roy Montgomery. If the bank were being robbed, these were Mercenaries, not typical bank robbers, and if regular patrol responded, they would be sitting ducks.

He dialed Roy's private cell phone and was surprised when Roy picked up halfway through the first ring,

"Rick, what's going on? I know this isn't a social call," Roy responded,

"Roy, I may be crazy, but Maddie and I are at New Amsterdam Bank at 56th and Lex. Something is going on. It looks like the bank is about to get robbed. The crazy thing is that it looks like we have five mercenaries dressed in medical scrubs, so if this goes down, don't send the regular patrol; SWAT will be needed." He said,

"Can you and Maddison get the hell out of there, Rick?" He asked as he yelled for Beckett to his office,

"I'll try, Roy." Then all hell broke loose. The robbers in scrubs locked the front door and started ordering everyone to ditch their cell phones and lie on the floor. Roy heard the noise: "Rick, listen to me. Don't be a hero. We got help on the way. Now comply and keep you and Maddison safe." The phone call was disconnected.

Trapper John had caught up with them, snatched Rick's cell phone, smashed it to pieces with his foot, and ordered them all on the floor, all except the manager. He took him by force toward the back of the bank.

"Beckett, get with SWAT; there's a 1030 going down at New Amsterdam Bank of 56th and Lex; be sure Dispatch sends SWAT,"

"Sir, a 1030, and a SWAT Team? For a bank robbery, Sir?"

"Castle and Maddison Queller are in the bank. He called me right before the goon grabbed his phone. He warned they weren't regular bank robbers, but highly trained mercenaries dressed in doctor's scrubs, so they are easily identified."

This was one time both Beckett and Roy were glad Javi was his usual nosy self. He yelled out to Ryan, "Hey, get your vest, and call SWAT. We have a 1030 in progress at New Amsterdam at 56th and Lex, and before you ask, Castle and Maddison Queller are inside the bank with Mercenaries. Now move your ass."

They arrived at the bank just as SWAT had set up the mobile headquarters where the negotiations and planning would take place. Beckett tried to enter the trailer but was turned back,

Captain Peterson, an officer in charge of SWAT, asked in blunt terms, "Who the hell are you, and how did you get into my command post?"

"I'm Detective Kate Beckett, 12th precinct Homicide, Sir," she replied,

"Well, we are sure to get you if someone dies; for now, you need to turn around and exit my command post.

"No, Sir, my Captain was on the phone with a civilian who served as my partner for almost two years. He and his fiancé are in that bank."

"Are you telling me we have a cop in there, in the middle of this mess, along with his fiancé? What else can you tell me?"

"He's a civilian but a damn good police investigator, and his fiancé is my best friend. He was on the phone with my Captain when this went down. They had an appointment this morning to finalize some financial matters with the manager and were waiting to see him. The intel we received is that there are five culprits, ALL dressed in surgical scrubs, different colors, but all armed with AKs."

"Thanks, Detective, that's helpful. Now, you missed your cue," as he pointed to the exit,

A very pissed-off Kate Beckett made her way out of the trailer and was escorted to an area behind a yellow tape barrier where NYPD personnel had been sent. She arrived to see Javi on the phone with one of his contacts, getting intel about what was happening on the down low.

Captain Montgomery arrived on the scene looking every bit as pissed as Kate was, even he had struck out with his contacts. For now, they were stuck with the unofficial updates from Javi's friend; she only hoped they were accurate and would continue to come.

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Inside New Amsterdam Bank

Robbery in progress.

Maddie was frightened, not for herself, but for what if this was it? What if this was what her dreams and fears had been about for the last month? She had almost pushed them out of her mind, and now they were playing out in living color right in front of her eyes.

Rick picked up on what she was thinking, "Hey, stay calm, sweetheart, we got this. We've been in tougher spots. They're not here to hurt anyone; they have a bigger mission, whatever it may be." Rick said, softly,

"Rick, what if this is what I've been."

He just put his finger to his lips, and she knew that meant silence regardless of how afraid she was. He was trying to see what was going on with the one "Doctor" who seemed to be in charge, Dr. Trapper John, as he was called by the others, Dr. Quinn, Dr. Howser, and Dr. Huxtable, and one goon who didn't say a word, but was busy with the cameras and hard drives of the security system.

Captain Peterson had set up a phone connection with the bank and tried the standard negotiation techniques without success; they still couldn't figure out what the demands of the "Doctors" were. Trapper John had been very elusive in his short talks with the Captain.

Rick thought they were looking for secure documents, not money since they spent so little time in the vault and more time in the safe deposit box area. He witnessed Dr. Quinn ripping the key from around the Bank Manager's neck and tossing it to the nameless goon to head back to the safe deposit boxes.

His mind raced to what could be so valuable stored in a Safe Deposit Box that it would be worth assembling the team of mercs and risking death or arrest. It had to be done by one person, not a corporation since that's where individuals kept their essential papers for safekeeping or out of the eye of other employees.

He was thinking with all of his might about figuring out what could be that valuable, but he couldn't come up with anything of that magnitude. The doctors had apparently found what they were searching for and now were ordering all of the hostages and employees to the vault area.

Rick knew that this wasn't good, but to risk anything at this point would be suicide, so he had to follow orders. Something about the nameless doctor was familiar; he couldn't place it, but Maddie whispered in his ear, "Jackson." then put her hand in his, spelling ou K, with her finger in his palm.

Son of a bitch, it was Jackson. What the hell was he doing? He was in the middle of a bank heist of God knows what involving foreign mercenaries. Something big was going on. Hopefully, they will get out of this alive and figure it out. When all of the hostages were in the vault, things started going south between the doctors.

There was some disagreement between Trapper John and Lady Doctor Quinn about the next sequence of events, but the nameless doctor, AKA Jackson, stepped in and pushed them all toward the back of the shaft leading to the subway. Just before Dr. Huxtable left, he fired one shot above the bank vault door. Jackson had missed it or hadn't figured out that one of the doctors was getting off a detonation shot.

The explosion rocked the entire block. Beckett ignored orders and ran toward the blast site that once had been the bank lobby. She entered, coughing through the smoke with Ryan, Esposito, and Montgomery right behind her, all shining lights and yelling out Castle and Maddie's names. They finally heard some noise coming from the bank vault area,

When they got there, Beckett almost fainted. There was her best friend and Rick, both looking like they had been blown to bits. Esposito pushed her out of the way; he took Rick, and Ryan began to work on Maddie, as he screamed, "Call a fucking bus, they're critical; I don't know how much longer they have."

Montgomery got on the radio; "this is Captain Roy Montgomery, badge number 435786; I need two busses and maybe more sent to New Amsterdam Bank at 56th and Lex, Officers down, get me my damn bus here in five, do you understand?" He screamed into the radio,

"The bus is in route, Sir, ETA, 4 minutes," came the reply. Ryan got Madison's wounds to stop bleeding or at least slow to a puddle from the fountain spraying everywhere when they first got to her, but she had a huge knot on her head and was unconscious,

Rick had shrapnel, huge shards of metal coming out of his back and side, and even a few small ones from his neck, as well as a giant goose egg on his temple that seemed to be growing by the minute. It appeared that he dived on top of Maddie to take the brunt of the blow and was successful, except for one huge piece that penetrated his arm and went into her chest, causing all of her bleeding.

By the time the medics came running in, Esposito had managed to stop or slow the major bleeds, and more were behind them, pushing gurneys. They took over the treatment of the two, but Kate could tell the news wasn't good.

The remainder of the hostages had superficial wounds, and all would be OK; Rick blocked the majority of the blast, with Maddie sustaining the scars from the pass-through piece of metal. As the medics were loading up Maddie and Rick in the ambulances, Captain Pederson made an appearance, "Well, we have body parts of all four of the doctors; they prematurely detonated the C4 explosives they were going to use to close the shaft to the subway, good plan if they hadn't blown themselves up." He said,

"That doesn't make sense; you said four; Rick said there were five doctors; where is the last doctor?" Roy asked Captain Peterson,

"I don't know what to tell you, Captain; no one would have survived that blast; there are four, and only four doctors, well, pieces left. Perhaps your intel was a little confused; I mean, he was being held as a hostage," Peterson said as he walked away, subject closed as far as he was concerned.

"Sure, something else happened here, and we won't know until we talk to Rick or Maddie if they make it, and they said it doesn't look good." He said as Kate finally let her tears go,

TBC

A/N: I never bought the fact that C4 was used in the bank and the hostages didn't suffer any injuries, blasts from a site spread for many hundred yards, and the flying debris could have caused as much damage as the bomb; Thx for the reviews and notes, please continue to remember Tom and S in your positive thoughts and vibes, prayers if you believe. Till next time, _ Tim