747. Chapter 747

After Dead Again

Episode 8.19

By

UCSBdad

Disclaimer: I'm dead certain I down own Castle. Rating: K Time: See above.

Immortal Heat

By

Kate Castle

"Oh, my god! No!" Screamed Jameson Rook, looking down at the lifeless body of his wife, Captain Nikki Heat.

"What is it?" Detective Ochoa yelled as he and his partner Detective Raley ran up to the entrance to the abandoned building where their suspect was known to be hiding.

Rook knelt by Nikki, but could find no pulse. "She's dead. The perp wired the door with ten thousand volts and when Nikki opened it, she was electrocuted." Rook stood up, tears streaming down his face. "Oh, Nikki, my love. There was so much I wanted to do to, er, that is, with you. I wanted to take you scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef. I wanted to show you the whole world and show you to the whole world. I wanted to take you to the casino at Monte Carlo and play strip poker with you until I beat your pants off. I wanted to…."

"Rook, could you tone it down. I have a splitting headache."

Rook whirled around to see Nikki standing there, looking through her pockets. "Does anyone have an aspirin or an Advil or something?" She asked in a pained voice.

Rook handed her a small bottle of aspirin he always carried. "How….You were hit with ten thousand….I mean you had no pulse." Rook mumbled.

Nikki rolled her eyes. "Look at how old this building is, Rook. These old wires couldn't hold enough current to kill a fly."

"But you had no pulse."

"And that's based on your extensive medical experience?" Nikki teased.

"Last month when that groupie passed out at the U2 concert, while I was loosening her clothes, I saw Bono check her pulse. I paid close attention to how he did it."

Nikki assumed a very serious look. "Was that the girl who couldn't find her panties because you were wearing them?"

"Nikki!" Rook whispered, looking around to see if Roach had heard. "I told you that in strictest confidence."

"Yeah, well, we have a suspect to catch. Let's go. We'll have to check every room in this building."

Disaster struck at the third door Nikki went through. A basket of deadly cobras spilled onto her, biting her repeatedly. Nikki collapsed at once.

"Nikki!" Screamed Rook. "No! Not again!" Once more he knelt beside her and once again he found no pulse. As Raley and Ochoa ran in, Rook picked up Nikki's SIG. "When we find him, leave him to me. I'll start by ripping his intestines out and feeding them to him. Then I'll…"

"Dammit. I need another aspirin, Rook."

And there was Nikki Heat, standing there as if nothing had happened. "Where did all of these snakes come from?"

"Those are deadly cobras and they bit you. You were dead. You had no pulse. How could you have….Are you immortal, Nikki?"

"No, but I still need an aspirin. Maybe two this time."

"I know about cobras, from being in South East Asia. They're deadly, Nikki. Deadly. And you were bitten."

Nikki rolled her eyes. "Okay, then if their deadly, then I'm dead. Are you happy now?"

"Of course not!" Rook yelled.

"Then these cobras aren't deadly. Maybe they're old or sick, or something. And as for your pulse finding abilities, I'd better have my panties on when we get home."

Rook was going to say something, but thought better of it.

"Okay, Rook, Roach, we still need to check out this building. We've done this floor. We'll do the next one.

Rook heard the explosion a second after Nikki walked into the second room she checked out. He ran to the room to find… nothing. "Nikki! Oh, Nikki. You've been blown to bits. There's nothing left of you but…your boot with the four inch heels." Rook began to cry.

"Rook, could you help me down?"

"Nikki? Where are you? In heaven?"

"No, Rook. The force of the blast tossed me up here on top of this big pipe. I'm going to lower myself down. Catch me?"

Rook stood under her and caught her as she dropped. Then he put his arms around her and hugged her tightly. "Let's call ESU and let the SWAT people handle this. The whole place is booby trapped."

Nikki shook her head. "ESU is busy saving a little girl's kitty who climbed up a power pole and is too scared to come down. You wouldn't expect me to call ESU away from rescuing a little girl's kitty would you?"

Rook knew he'd rather let all the little kitties of all the little girls in the world sit on top of power poles forever rather than risk Nikki, but he knew she'd never do that. "But how did you survive this time?"

Niki shrugged. "Just dumb luck I guess. I was blown onto the pipe so the force of the blast lifted me upwards." Nikki rubbed her perfect ass. "I must have hit it on the way up on something and…." She stopped and glared at Rook. "I'm not wearing any panties. Rook! Where are they?"

"Are you sure you put some on this morning?" Rook asked in desperation.

"Rook…." She began walking toward him.

"I'll give them back tonight." He whispered.

"We'll check the next room." Nikki said angrily.

As Nikki walked in, a hypodermic needle shot through the air and into the side of her neck. Rook grabbed it and tore it out at once, but Nikki collapsed.

Rook examined the needle. "Oh, my god! This is TFX, a deadly poison. Even the smallest amount is lethal. Nikki are you….?"

"I may need another aspirin, Rook." She said, rubbing the side of her neck. "If this keeps up you may have to run and get another bottle. Extra strength this time."

Rook pointed at the syringe. "But, but, but…."

"It says it's TFX, Rook. That doesn't mean it is."

Rook nodded dumbly as Nikki lead them through the rest of the room on that floor.

"Okay, there's only one floor left, so our suspect has to be on that floor. It's just one big room, so we should be able to spot him easily."

As always, Nikki was first through the door. As soon as she was inside the room a shot rang out and Nikki fell to the floor. Raley and Ochoa opened fire, killing the suspect.

Rook knelt over Nikki. "Nikki? I can't find a pulse and there's this bullet hole in your forehead. Are you…Do you…?

"Yes, I need the rest of the bottle of aspirin."

"But how….The bullet…It hit you…." Rook babbled.

Nikki checked her forehead. "It did break the skin, but the skull is intact." She shrugged. "I don't know. Old or defective ammunition? A defective weapon? Does it matter?"

"No." Rook said thankfully as he held Nikki in his arms. "Nothing matters as long as you're alive."

"Rook? The aspirin? You wouldn't believe what a headache I have."

Rick Castle put down his laptop. "Kate, can you come here?"

"What is it, babe?"

"Did you write Immortal Heat?

She nodded. "I knew you'd add something about Masters and his death defying experiences to the next Nikki Heat, so I decided to give you a few ideas of my own."

"Rook wearing Nikki's panties?" He said, suppressing a laugh.

"You can always edit things out."

Rick nodded. "Perhaps I can add something of my own."

Immortal Heat

By

Richard Castle

Nikki Heat met with her aunt at a nearly deserted coffee shop in Manhattan.

"I had a close call today. Rook almost found out."

Her aunt looked worried. "What happened?"

"I kept getting killed in front of him."

"Did you explain it away?"

"Yes, and I left him so exhausted tonight he probably won't think about it for a couple of months."

"Do you think we should tell Rook about the Nikki Heat origin story?"

"How I was bitten by a radioactive raccoon as a child and developed super powers?"

Her aunt nodded.

"I'll have to tell him sooner or later, but not now. But now I have to go."

"Go?" Asked her aunt. "Oh, no. It's not…"

"Yes. Thanks to that damned bite, I have another overwhelming urge to knock over a garbage can and eat from it."

"Knock over a garbage can and eat from it?" Kate said skeptically.

"You can always edit it."