645. Chapter 645

After Setup

Episode 3. 16

By

UCSBdad

Disclaimer: I wish I could just jump into Castle, but I can't. Rating: T Time: See above.

Kate Beckett checked her watch. She tried to remember her training on hypothermia from the Police Academy, but it was too long ago. She did know that they had been in the freezer for too long and that they didn't have much time left. She thought she remembered that the smaller you were, the faster you'd die of the cold, but she wasn't sure. So I could die before Castle does. Do I want him to spend the last few minutes of his life thinking that I love another man? I've pushed him away and I've denied to myself that I have any feelings for him and when I couldn't do that anymore. I told myself that my feelings for him weren't that important, that Josh was important to me, not Castle. Now I know that Josh will never be there for me. People in Haiti or the Congo or someplace else will always be more important than I am. And, as odd as I find it, Castle will be there for me. Maybe not always, but for a while. In spite of their situation, Kate almost laughed. That is funny. I know that Castle will be with me for the rest of my life, which is now measurable in minutes, or maybe an hour. I finally got what I've always wanted. Someone who'll be with me always, love me always and never leave. Until death do us part. I have to tell him. I really do. I can't wait until the last minute. I have to tell him now.

"Castle, thank you for being there."

Castle held her a little closer, giving her a bit more life giving warmth. "Always."

She ran her fingers over his cheek. "I just want you to know…I really care for you. A lot more than I've ever let on. I know…I've known that Josh would never be my one and done. I'll never be as important to him as his patients. But you are so important to me. I wish we weren't going to die like this. I'd really like to see what we'd be like as a couple."

"We'd be amazing." Castle said softly. "We will be amazing just as soon as we get out of here."

"Always the optimist, aren't you?"

"I always try to write a happy ending. Who wants to read about an unhappy ending? There are too damned many of those in life anyway."

She leaned up and brushed her cold lips over his. "I wish I hadn't pushed you away. I wish I hadn't listened to my head and not my heart. I wish I'd told you that….I love you."

"I love you too, Kate. I have for a while now."

She smiled. "I know."

"You knew?"

"I'm a detective, you know. Everything you've done for more than a year tells me that you're in love with me. I just wish I'd been brave enough to do something. When my mom died, I put up a wall around myself. If I never cared for anyone, I'd never be hurt by losing them. And now I'm going to lose you and what hurts the most is that I hurt both of us by not being honest with you. God, I hate this."

"Me too. But when we get out of here, everything will be great."

Kate could feel herself starting to slip away. "Hold me Castle. Tell me you love me. I love you."

He held her in his arms and whispered that he loved her.

Someone was talking. Castle tried to move and couldn't. He tried calling out to whoever it was, but only a muffled groan came from his mouth.

"I think he's coming to."

He pried his eyes open. Ambulance? Doctor? No, paramedic. He was alive. "Beckett? Where's Beckett?"

"Right here. I'm right here, babe. Right beside you." He felt her take his hand.

"You're okay?"

"I've never been better." She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "There's more where that came from, Rick."

"So it wasn't a dream?"

"No, it definitely wasn't a dream."

"Can you sit up, Mr. Castle? I have some hot coffee for you."

With the help of the paramedic and Kate he sat up and held the cardboard cup in his hands. "That feels so good." He smiled at her. "Not as good as the kiss, though."

"Guess who was here?"

Castle had no idea.

"Josh. He put off his trip for me."

Castle's heart sank a little. "He did?"

"I felt terrible telling him it wouldn't work after he did that, but I think we both knew it wouldn't work."

"So he was okay?" Castle could not imagine that being dumped by Kate Beckett could be anything other than horrible and worse.

"No, not okay. He was angry in fact. Espo had to restrain him."

"Remind me to thank Espo." Suddenly something surfaced in Castle's still frozen brain. "How did we get out of there?"

"Espo and Ryan came looking for us. Alexis was worried and called them."

"And it's a good thing we knew that you'd be off doing something incredibly stupid and that you'd need us." Ryan said from over Kate's shoulder.

"Ryan, Espo. Thanks. And thanks for helping with Josh."

Both Espo and Ryan smiled. "Josh was a little bit upset when Beckett here dumped him." Javi said." I had to explain to him that an ex-Special Forces type might just hurt his hands if he persisted in putting them on my partner."

"We are sort of curious as to why Beckett dumped him, though. Josh seemed to think there was another man involved. Any ideas who that could be?" Ryan asked, smiling.

Kate spoke at once. "Guys, One PP has restated their policy on colleagues not dating after some problem in the Bronx. They're very serious about that now. As far as you two are concerned, I'm not with anyone, okay?"

"And I'm not with Beckett, either." Castle added.

The two detectives nodded. "We'd better go tell the captain that you two are alert. It looks like it's going to be a long night."

"So what are we going to do now, Rick?"

Castle sighed. "As much as I hate to say it, I think we're going to be very busy keeping New York from being blown up."

Much, much later.

Captain Kate Beckett occasionally needed to get away from the precinct. Usually, she'd just tag along on a murder case with her husband. Today, after a four hour meeting at One PP that had solved nothing, she returned to the precinct to find Castle gone and the only murder of the day already solved. Luckily, she had ridden her Harley to work and was able to blow off steam that way.

After an hour of dodging traffic and violating any number of traffic laws, she felt better. And she felt hungry. She headed for Red's, a bar that catered to upscale bikers.

She ordered a sandwich and was looking for a place to sit when she heard a familiar voice.

"If you think that ass looks good in those pants, imagine how it looks bare assed naked on your bed."

Josh was sitting with some friends she remembered. She turned away from them and moved to the end of the bar. That didn't stop Josh.

He walked over and stood beside her. "Too good to talk to me now that you've hooked your millionaire?"

She faced him. "Dr. Davidson, from the way you're slurring your words, you're drunk. Why don't you go sit down?"

"Dr. Davidson? I can remember you screaming "Josh" when I fucked you."

That made Kate angry. "At least I was able to convince you I was enjoying it."

She heard laughter coming from Josh's friends.

"So do you convince your new boyfriend that you enjoy it, too?"

"I love my husband and I love what he does to me."

"Yeah, and you were screwing him when you were with me, weren't you? You're noting but a cheap slut. I hope he figures that out."

"I never slept with Castle until after we broke up. Long after I broke up with you."

"Lying little slut. And I dumped your ass, honey, not the other way around."

Before Kate could reply, they were interrupted.

"Buddy, I don't like you bothering my customers." The speaker was Joey, the bartender and an old outlaw biker now in his sixties who also functioned as the bouncer. He was only five feet, five inches tall, but was a solid two hundred and fifty pounds, with arms and legs like tree trunks.

"I'll do what a damned will please in here. Get lost."

Joey smiled. It was not a friendly smile. "We have all kinds of rich clowns like you in here who buy a Harley and think they're bad ass bikers. Well, you ain't. And I am. Plus, we got security cams all over, with sound, too. So, when I throw your ass out through the door, I'll have evidence that it was justified. So, apologize, get the hell out of here and don't come back." Joey nodded towards the door. "Or we'll do it my way. So, please say something nasty to the lady again. Please?"

Josh mumbled an apology and quickly left with his friends.

"I could have handled that, Joey." She said.

He shrugged. "Sure, but that's my job. And I would have loved tossing him out, Captain Beckett."

"Can you wrap up my sandwich for me? I really need to get back to my husband. There's something I really have to do."