25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Several hours later, Kate was moved to a private room in the ICU area. Jim and Castle were allowed another short visit; and rounding the corner near the door, they discovered it was already flanked on each side by officers from the twelfth.

"Sarge sent us," one of the two men explained. "He's running things until tomorrow when they send us somebody to fill in for the captain, but his authority only goes so far. Until it's all worked out, he's got a list as long as your arm of volunteers to stand guard on their own time. Shouldn't be anybody on watch here that you don't recognize. Things being how they are, he thought that might make all of you rest easier."

"It will," Castle agreed, "I appreciate it…and Beckett will, too. Thanks, Jarvis…Mitchell," he said, shaking their hands. "This is Kate's father, Jim Beckett."

Jim shook their hands, too, saying, "It feels good to know my daughter has so many people pulling for her. Thank you."

"We got nothing but respect for Detective Beckett, Sir," Mitchell told him before Jim and Castle entered the room.

The nurse patiently answered Castle's many quietly asked questions, seeming to be impressed that he thought of some of them. Jim asked a few of his own; then they both sat down next to Kate's bed, keeping vigil for as long as they were allowed. They were nearly at the end of their allotted time when her eyelids fluttered without quite opening, her head moved slightly, and a couple of the machines began to register a little differently. Jim quickly went to the door, which was right across from the nurses' station, and a nurse was there before he needed to say anything.

"It looks like she's waking up," he reported hopefully.

"The doctor has already been paged," she answered, moving to the side of the bed and checking her patient's responses.

When Kate's eyes blinked open a couple of minutes later, she immediately seemed frightened, but when she saw Castle and he spoke to her soothingly, she began to calm a bit.

"It's okay," he assured her. "You're in the hospital. The doctor will be here in a couple of minutes. Try to stay calm and still as much as you can. I love you. I'll be right here." He took her hand and held it, stroking his thumb over it until the doctor arrived a minute or so later.

When they told Castle and Jim to leave and her husband kissed her hand and reluctantly started to move, Kate's heart rate went up and the monitor made sounds Castle didn't like; but when he stepped back and took her hand again, it calmed.

"Well, Mr. Castle," Dr. Kovaks said with a smile, "looks like it's better to have you stay." Looking at a frightened and disoriented Kate, he explained, "We're going to get that tube out, but I'll need your husband to stand away until we do. He can stand at the foot of the bed where you can see him."

"I'm not leaving, Kate. I'm right here." Using his entire repository of self-control, Castle placed her hand gently on the bed beside her and released it. Then he stayed where Kate could see him but left the medical staff enough room to do their jobs. He stood at the foot of the bed, but he rested his hand on one of her ankles to maintain contact.

The tube was extracted, but the little cough to help when they removed it obviously caused her more pain than that from the sore throat that generally follows intubation. As they worked, the doctor asked Kate questions that she could answer with a nod or with minimal syllables; and before leaving, he reported to Jim and Castle.

"She seems to be aware of what's happening. That's a good sign. When I saw her during rounds this morning, her incisions showed no signs of infection. So far she's responding well." Looking back at Kate, he said, "Nice to actually meet you, Ms. Beckett."

"Mrs. Castle," Kate mumbled, her voice raspy.

Dr. Kovacs smiled again. "Mrs. Castle it is. I'll get this name thing straight after a while." Looking toward Castle once again, he said, "It's obvious that your presence is calming for her. You can have another few minutes; but your wife needs quiet, uninterrupted sleep, and I'd rather keep the visits short at least through tomorrow. After that, we'll see."

Castle just nodded, and the doctor left. The examination complete and the oxygen cannula in place, Castle was allowed to move back to Kate's side and take her hand, and Jim moved back to the opposite side of the bed as well.

"You gave us a scare, Katie Bug," her father said, squeezing her shin with his hand. "Rick has been a tower of strength for all of us so far."

"Only on the outside, if that's true at all. I've been scared out of my mind. It's so good to see your beautiful eyes again." He leaned to kiss her lips softly.

"W'happened?" she asked, her voice still raspy.

"You were shot…another sniper. It was…" He stopped, choking up before he finished, and felt her squeeze his hand weakly.

"How long?"

Her Dad took over at that point, giving Castle a moment to compose himself.

"Yesterday," her father answered. "Captain Montgomery's funeral."

"You've been out since then," Castle told her. "You had surgery after they brought you here."

Her eyes closed briefly, as if she were trying to piece it all together.

"Do remember any of what happened?" Castle asked.

Her head barely nodded, and she opened her eyes.

"Don't try to talk anymore. That can wait until later. We'll stay until you're asleep again…let you rest and get stronger. Then we'll go and let Alexis and Lanie and Mother know you finally woke up. They wouldn't go home last night, either."

Jim agreed by patting her shin again, and she looked in his direction.

The nurse returned with pain medication for the IV, and told them what she was doing.

"I promised her we'd stay until she was asleep again," Castle told her.

"That probably won't be long," the nurse answered with a smile as she completed her task. "This works fast. Stay, but after that, you need to leave and let her rest."

The heart monitor showed change again, and the nurse noticed.

"I'm not going anywhere yet, Kate. And the waiting room is just down the hall, so we can be here in less than a minute if you need us. Next time I'll bring Alexis. She's refused to go anywhere until she's seen that you're awake and responsive."

Her head moved in a small nod, but her eyes were closing again, the medication and the stress of her injuries all taking their toll to pull her back into sleep.

When they were sure his daughter was sleeping again, Jim told Castle they needed to keep their promise to leave so the nurses would trust them. We might get in here more often and maybe stay a little longer if they know we won't take advantage. Castle nodded, leaned and kissed Kate's forehead lightly, sighed, and released her hand gently. They stopped at the nurses' station on the way out and requested that they be called if she woke and they weren't there. Castle then turned to the officers from the twelfth to thank them again.

"She woke up?" Mitchell asked.

"Yeah, she did. Not for long, but it made me feel a lot better."

"Everything okay?" Jarvis asked.

"Seemed to be. The doctor was encouraging, but she's got a long road ahead of her. I'm gonna go back and tell everybody else. Thanks, guys."

Jim raised a hand in acknowledgment, and the other two men nodded in response.

As they left, the nurse who had worked with Kate told her co-worker, "A couple of times when she thought he was going to leave, her heart rate got a little faster…like she might be scared, but when he was close, it dropped again. Maybe we should keep an eye on that."

The second nurse smiled mischievously. "If that man belonged to me, I'd worry about letting him out of my sight, too. And when he got that close is when my heart rate would go up. I wouldn't mind if they gave him longer visiting times. Way better view than we get most of the time. But yeah. We should probably watch that…even if all it amounts to is satisfying our curiosity."

xxxxx

"She was awake for a little while, Castle reported to the others when he reached the waiting room. Not long, but she seemed to be aware of everything around her."

Alexis wrapped her arms around her father and was enclosed in his embrace. "Does this mean she's going to be okay?"

"They can't promise us that yet, but the doctor sounded encouraging."

"May I see her next time she's awake?"

"You can take my place," Jim told her. "I'm going to go home and get a few hours of sleep in a bed and pack some things to take to your place. It'll be easier to sleep while things look hopeful. I'll be back later on. "

"As much as I would love to see Katherine, I think I'll go, too…same reason. These aging bones need to find a bed for a while. After that I'll bring you a change of clothes, Richard. I know we won't drag you away from here tonight. I'll cede my time to Alexis and Dr. Parrish and see Katherine later."

"Shall we share a cab?" Jim asked.

"Fine with me," Martha agreed. "But are you sure you want to face the reporters while you're walking with someone they might recognize? The news, in all its formats, is full of your daughter; and I imagine the reporters and camera crews are lurking outside in small herds by now, probably with your picture in hand so they can try to get a statement. I think Dr. Kovaks has a press conference this afternoon to report on her progress."

"We'll tell them, 'No comment'?" Jim asked.

"Works for me."

"I just called the car service, Mother," Castle told them. "The driver can help if you need it. The garage isn't far from here, so it shouldn't take more than ten minutes."

"We can wait here about five minutes, then take our time getting downstairs." Martha suggested.

"I take it you've done this before?"

"More than once," Martha assured him. "You're in good hands."

Ten minutes later, hospital security and their driver were helping Martha and Jim through a loud and insistent group of varied media personnel, and they were quickly on their way to their respective homes.

And Castle sat with Lanie and Alexis, waiting for his next chance to be close to his wife.

xxxxx

About three hours later, Castle was allowed another short visit, and he took Alexis along. Lanie followed and asked if she could be allowed as well, as a professional courtesy. She explained her status and the shift she had to work that evening, and the nurses allowed three visitors that time.

Justine, the nurse who had worked with Kate during the night, had mentioned the detective's responses to Castle's presence, raising everyone's curiosity; so Kenny, the young man who was there checking the monitors when they entered the room, took his time, keeping an eye on the heart monitor.

"Your timing is perfect," he told them. "It looks like she's waking up."

"This is my daughter, Alexis," Castle explained. "We couldn't convince her to go home for some rest until she could talk to Kate."

"Just keep things on the quiet side," Kenny requested as he busied himself in the room.

Kate was indeed waking up, and her eyes fluttered several times before opening slowly. As she looked around, her heart rate reflecting her disoriented state, she found Alexis looking worried on one side of her bed and Lanie giving her a gentle smile on the other.

"Cassle?" she asked, her speech slurred by sleep.

"Right here. Just letting these ladies see you first. I'll be here as long as they let me." His hand went to her ankle again, and she seemed to relax.

Kenny was watching the monitor, and sure enough, her heart rate dropped back to where it was before she woke up.

"Kate?"

"'Lexis?" she mumbled sleepily.

"Yeah," the teenager answered, taking Kate's hand in hers. "I'm glad to see you awake. I've been so afraid for you."

"Gonna get better," Kate told her stepdaughter.

"She's been here the whole time with the rest of us," Lanie told her.

Kate squeezed Alexis's hand, but it wasn't nearly as strong as usual.

"Hey, Girl. Is Castle the only one who counts here? Nice to see you, too," Lanie teased.

"Lanie." She croaked when she spoke, and Castle was there faster than a man of his size should be able to move, offering her a drink of water, holding it where she barely had to move her head to take a sip from the straw.

"Writer-Boy, I know I work with dead people; but my bedside manner does include knowing I should get her a drink of water," Lanie told him, one hand on her hip in mock disgust.

"Sorry." He bent to kiss his wife, said "I love you.", then moved. "Going back now." The monitor showed another change, and he assured Kate, "Only going to the foot of the bed. Not leaving the room until they throw me out. Promise." And the monitor settled back to the old pattern.

Kenny went back to the nurses' station and reported what he had seen. "She doesn't lack for somebody to love her, does she?"

"Doesn't look like it," his colleague answered.

Alexis told Kate about the officers from the twelfth guarding her room.

"Tell 'em thanks," she answered.

"I will."

"Martha?"

"She knew you were awake, so she went home to get some sleep. She'll be back tonight to see you…and to bring Dad a change of clothes. We all know we won't be prying him out of here any time soon."

"Now that I've seen you, I'm going home to see if I can study. Dr. Parish said she'd share a cab with me. It's exam week, but you come first." That brought another little squeeze of Alexis's hand.

"Love you," she told her stepdaughter. "Study."

Alexis wiped a tear from her cheek. "Love you, too, Kate."

"My girl has turned into a family woman," Lanie said with a smile. "Kate Castle, you look just like a mom…a puny one right now, but a mom."

She got a puny Beckett eye roll in response, and everyone chuckled. "Love you, too, Lanie."

"I'm not gonna stay, Honey," Lanie told her. "I just wanted see for myself that you're awake…and hear your croaky little voice. You might not believe it, but Perlmutter sends his best. He didn't even gripe about switching shifts with me so I could stay here."

"Miracle," Kate mumbled with a little curve of her lips.

"I'll make sure your girl gets home, Mom."

"Thanks."

Alexis finally let go of Kate's hand and leaned to kiss her forehead. "I'll come back with Grams tonight."

"Study. Make me proud."

"Yes, ma'am." Alexis smiled through a few tears and went to hug her father before she and Lanie left the hospital.

"Okay, Castle, your wife is all yours," Lanie told him as they left.

Alexis waved to Kate on the way out, and stopped long enough to deliver Kate's message to Jarvis and Mitchell.

Kenny came back with her pain meds; and then Castle pulled up a chair, took Kate's hand in his and kissed it, and sat with her until she was sleeping soundly and he was told to leave. That became the pattern through the afternoon.

Martha and Jim visited as long as they were allowed to stay that evening. Alexis was allowed a few minutes with Kate, then she sat down with her books and studied as she waited for Jim and Martha.

Jim decided to stay; so while he was waiting for his wife to wake up again, Castle felt free to take a shower and change clothes. The guard's shifts were four hours, so trusted colleagues appeared outside Kate's door on a predictable basis.

As they sat next to Kate's bed while she slept, Jim again tried to convince his son-in-law to go home for a while.

"Son, you need to go home and get some rest. Katie's awake off and on now. We know her faculties are intact, and the doctor is satisfied with her progress."

"I don't want to leave her," Castle answered, never taking his eyes away from his wife.

"Alexis needs some time with you…away from this place, Jim argued. "She's still worried and frightened. She's a strong young woman, but she could use some comfort and reassurance from her dad.

"I know. I just…"

With what appeared to be a great effort, Kate's eyes opened slowly, and she made an unintelligible sound before she said her husband's name recognizably enough to get his attention. "He's right," she slurred.

Standing to kiss her forehead and bring her water, he teased, "Katherine Castle. Were you eavesdropping?"

"Too sleepy to open my eyes," she mumbled with a little upturn at the corners of her lips. "Need to go home…'Lexis. Take care of our girl."

"But…"

"Home," she insisted. "Sleep. Back tomorrow."

"Kate…"

"Please." Her eyes fluttered between opened and closed, and it was obvious she didn't have the energy to stay awake for long. "For me. Sleep. Please?"

"I'll stay tonight. She won't be alone," Jim promised.

"Go," Kate told him. "Kiss first?"

"I'll take my bag home and bring back some clean clothes in the morning," Castle answered, hesitantly giving in to two determined Becketts. Then he leaned in and kissed her lips gently.

"Mmmm. Love you. Tell 'Lexis…love her, too. Go." That was apparently her limit, and her eyes drifted closed and stayed that way.

"She argues with me and orders me around even when she's drugged," he told Jim, amused, and his father-in-law snickered.

"Heard that," she said with a tiny smile, but without opening her eyes again.

Both men chuckled at that, and took their conversation out to the hallway to let her sleep. They talked for a couple of minutes before Jim went to get coffee. While he was gone, Castle quietly put a couple of things in his bag and waited. After Jim returned, Castle left the whisper of a kiss on his sleeping wife's forehead, gave Jim a filial pat on the shoulder, and reluctantly went home.

xxxxx

"Dad, is that you?" Alexis called, coming to top of the stairs to check.

"In the flesh," he answered. "How is everybody here?"

"Still worried. I've seen Kate upset and sad, vulnerable; but I've never seen her look weak. Will she really be okay?"

"I hope so. The doctor came in a little after you left this afternoon, and he sounded satisfied with her progress. She has a long road to recovery, though. She'll need a lot of help when she gets home."

"We can do that, right?"

"Of course we can," Martha answered, stroking one hand over her son's cheek. "Sit down and relax, Darling. It's good to have you home for a while."

"Are you going back to school tomorrow?" he asked Alexis as he sat down.

Alexis sat beside him and pulled her legs under her on the sofa to snuggle next to him, and he put an arm around her shoulders. "I guess. The two easy exams are tomorrow. If I have trouble with those, I'll ask if I can have extra time for the others."

"I called the principal yesterday to let them know the situation, and they had already heard about it and made the connection. They're willing to work with you if you need it."

"I kind of feel like I'm deserting her if I don't go back tomorrow."

"That's how I was feeling when I came home tonight, but Jim is there. I know he can do as much as I can, and I know he'll call me if there's anything new…good or bad. Kate wanted all of us to take care of ourselves, so she sent me home. She said to tell you she loves you," he told his daughter, playing with the ends of her hair as he spoke. "She told me to go home and take care of our girl."

"She really said all that?" she asked skeptically.

"Well, she said most of it…mumbled pieces of it to tell the truth, but she made her point. She was kind of sleep talking. Ordering me around, even in her sleep.

"I told you she'd be fine," Martha chimed in, and Alexis laughed.

The three of them talked for a few minutes before Martha got up to take care of the dinner dishes she and Alexis had used.

Castle sat with his daughter, holding her against him as she voiced her fears and talked about going back to school for exams the next day. She was eventually tired enough to fall asleep on his shoulder, and he let her sleep for a little while before he shook her gently and said, "You'll wake up feeling better if you sleep in your bed. Come on. I'll tuck you in. I haven't done that in a long time."

"I haven't needed it in a long time," she answered as she stood. "Who's going to tuck you in, Dad? You need it, too."

"I haven't done that in a long time, either," Martha answered from the kitchen, and both the others smiled.

Castle walked Alexis to her room and waited while she changed in her bathroom. He held the covers while she got into bed, pulled them up to her shoulders, and kissed her forehead.

"You'll let me know if you hear anything. Right?

"I will. I promise." He kissed her forehead again, turned off the light, and closed the door behind him. Then he went back downstairs.

His mother met him at the bottom of the stairs with a glass of his favorite wine. "I thought she was supposed to be safe," she blurted out, keeping her voice quiet enough Alexis wouldn't hear and worry. Martha had been a pillar of strength for Alexis since the shooting, and now she needed to let her own feelings out. "Richard, I'm so afraid for her…and for you. You threw yourself right where a bullet had just hit her."

"Mother, I'd like to say I'm sorry, but if it could have saved her all this, I'd do it again…the same as I would for you or Alexis."

"I know. And if it didn't scare me so much to think about it, I might be more impressed. But I'm your mother…and I feel like Katherine's…and I love both of you…and I don't want to lose either of you…and poor Alexis…and…" She waved her hands near her face as she tried unsuccessfully to contain the tears. "Everybody I love is hurting, and there's nothing I can do to make it better. That's hard for a mother."

"Come here," he said, putting his arms around her for a long moment then guiding her with an arm around her waist. "Sit down with me." He led her to the breakfast bar and moved her wine glass in front of her. "I feel the same way. Kind of lost…useless. It's rough on a father/son/husband, too." He took her hand and held it as they sipped their wine. "She loves you, too, you know."

"I know I can be a little over the top sometimes. I probably took some getting used to."

"Not too much. She liked you from the first time she met you. She was a little confused, but she liked you." She bumped his shoulder and he smirked at her. They talked for a few minutes, then he drained what was left in his glass, thinking of how alive and energetic Kate was when they met and how still and listless she had been in the hospital bed the last couple of days. "Damn him. Whoever he is, he's going to pay for this one day," he said angrily.

"I hope so," his mother answered. "But right now, let it go and get some rest. Even if you can't sleep, you can lie down and try to unwind."

"I need a shower, then I'll do that. I told Jim I'd be there first thing in the morning. He needs to get back to work soon…said he might go in for a couple of hours tomorrow afternoon after he's had some decent sleep."

After his shower, Castle dressed for bed and went back to the kitchen to retrieve his cell phone…and found his mother right where he had left her earlier. He picked his phone up from the counter, kissed Martha on the temple, and said, "Thank you for taking care of Alexis."

"You never need to thank me for that."

"Yes, I do." he answered, then he asked, "Are you going to be able to practice what you preach…get some rest?"

"Maybe."

When Castle turned to go back to his room, he realized he had a shadow. His mother was following him. "Did you need me for something?"

She didn't answer, just walked into his room, pulled back the covers, and held them up for him.

"Really, Mother?" He all but rolled his eyes.

"Don't sass your mother. Just get in."

With an indulgent sigh, he got into bed and stretched out as his mother pulled the covers up to his shoulders. Then she bent and kissed his forehead. "Goodnight, Darling."

Realizing Martha needed someone to make her feel better, too, he caught her hand as she straightened to leave. "Thank you, Mom."

"You haven't called me that since you were little," she answered wistfully.

"You haven't tucked me in since I was little…ish."

"Little…ish?" she repeated, seeming confused. "Ah, yes. Right after school was out your last year of junior high. You came home with a busted lip. Defending my honor, I believe."

Putting his free arm behind his head on the pillow, he asked, "Did you know all along?"

"It didn't take long to catch on. Intuition and a few well-placed questions. It was another one of those things I didn't want to happen…like at the funeral. But by the time I saw your scrapes and bruises, it was always too late, and you were so determined to protect my feelings and not tell me. I didn't know whether to turn you over my knee or hug you; so I let you have your moment. Sometimes I resorted to bringing you cookies, or making you brownies, or with the busted lip in the way of eating, just tucking you in." Holding his hand in both of hers, she sat at the edge of the bed. "That wasn't your job, you know. I tried to find ways to mention that now and then, but I think you were born with that strong urge of yours to protect your family."

"It was just the two of us then. There wasn't anybody else to do that for you."

"When you were born, I considered adoption…for your sake…finding a couple who could give you so much more than I could. But I couldn't do it. You were mine, and I wanted you for myself. I made that decision knowing it wouldn't be easy, and that people would talk. But it was my decision. I didn't mean for you to have to take on the consequences. I'm sorry that happened."

"Kate told me that's how you'd feel."

"Smart girl, that wife of yours. She's going to come home to us and be just fine. I can feel it."

"I hope so. I finally got it right…for all of us. It can't end like this."

"It won't. You and Katherine are going to grow old together, just the way you intended." She kissed the back of his hand, placed it on his chest, and stood. "To this day, Richard Alexander Rodgers, you are still my finest contribution to the world. Now, get some rest," she instructed with a soft smile.

"Yes, Ma'am."

"That's more like it." She stood, patted his arm, kissed his forehead again, turned off the light, and closed the door behind her.

And Castle smiled, closed his eyes, and thought of Kate as the feeling of stretching out in an actual bed drew him far closer to some much needed sleep than he had expected.