I just finished reading the first three parts – great story!!! You're a phenomenal writer – keep it coming!

Thanks everyone for your awesome feedback. If I don't get the chance to post the next part when I get home from work, my next opportunity wouldn't be until late. So hang in there. Only 2 more parts.

I must say that this is the longest piece of fiction I've written in a very long time, and I'm quite proud of it (hope that didn't sound arrogant . So I really appreciate your feedback and can't wait to see your reaction to the ending. If you have negative feedback, please let me know as well. I like to think of myself as my own worst critic and try to correct things that my mind says doesn't make sense or won't read well, but sometimes I miss details or plot points along the way. And I'm always looking to improve. Thanks. :tongue:

Here's the next part. Only one more after this. :tongue:

Castle knew that if Beckett was faking her unconsciousness, first, she was exceedingly good at it, and second, he couldn’t blow her cover.

“Alright, Mr. Castle enough sentimentality. I think I’ll kill you right here, so your lifeless body will be the first thing Detective Beckett and our FBI friend see when they wake up.” The man directed Castle with the gun to a spot in the middle of the room and circled around in front of him, such that his back was to Beckett’s casket.

“Any last words, Author Man?” The man said quickly dropping his gentlemanly ways and transitioning into a demoniacal glee at the thought of his plan coming to fruition.

“Yes,” Castle said. “The jig is up.”

Then the man saw a shadow shift outside the room and he knew instinctively that he had to act fast. Somehow, Castle had summoned authorities that were quickly tightening a noose around his neck. The man’s eyes flew open in shock such that Castle thought they’d pop out of head.

Several things happened at once. Jim realized that the man was going to try to carry out his plan despite the police that surrounded him, and ran at Castle, knocking him to the floor. Unfortunately, the man had succeeded in getting a shot off, but it only hit Castle in the right shoulder. Then Jim and Castle heard another gunshot go off from the area where Beckett had lain in the casket, and the man in the black suit crumpled to the floor on his stomach, shot point blank in the upper back in between both shoulder blades.

“You bet it is,” Kate Beckett said with her usual casual intensity. She was awake, alert and sitting up in the casket with her police-issued hand gun pointing straight ahead of her and smoking slightly. She had fired the shot that felled her lunatic captor.

Finally, Esposito, Ryan, Montgomery, and a swarm of police, FBI agents, and SWAT team members flooded into the room. Esposito cuffed the man in the suit and called for an ambulance, while Ryan checked on Castle, who was having trouble filtering through the melee to see if it really was who he thought it was who fired the gunshot from the casket. When he saw Jim help his daughter to the floor then both of them melt into each other’s arms, he knew it was her. As usual, she had saved him, all of them. She was alive.

Secure with the feeling that the ordeal was over, he passed out.

Castle spent two weeks in the hospital recovering from the wound. The recovery went smoothly since the doctors and surgeon were able to remove the bullet with little trouble and since he was in generally good health. Lanie’s consistent tending and keeping tabs on the hospital staff didn’t hurt either.
He had a steady stream of visitors, as well, to keep his spirits up. Martha stayed during the day and Alexis came by every day after school. They reported that Captain Montgomery had posted a patrol car in front of the building when they were home and had a plain clothes officer driving them everywhere in an unmarked car, just as a precaution, though he acknowledged that the threat was most likely behind them. Esposito, Ryan, Karpowski, the Mayor, and even James Patterson and Steven Cannell came by too, causing Castle to quip that he’d be willing to substitute as the target in the precinct’s shooting gallery if it meant he’d get the same star treatment.

“You know, I’d be more than happy to oblige you there,” a voice from his hospital room door said. It was Beckett, standing with her arms crossed and a wry grin on her face. She looked as radiant as ever, despite being dressed casually in blue jeans, a red boatneck top and one of her black leather jackets. Her badge hung from her jeans waistband as always.

She visited as much as she could, given that she, Ryan and Esposito still had their regular caseload to work. Even though the rest of world seemed to be focused on visiting Castle in the hospital, in reality, the murders, crime and violence still went on. And since she was staying with her Dad, it took her a little longer than usual to get around.

She explained that she had been in her apartment building, but down the hall from her apartment when the bomb went off, so she wasn’t too close to the impact zone. The explosion blew her off her feet and in those few moments of disorientation, the man, who apparently had been lurking in the building, injected her in the neck with the same drug that had put her and the FBI agent to sleep in the funeral parlor. This made it easier for him to just act like he was helping an injured tenant escape the building. According to witnesses, he bore her out of the building, put her into his car, told anyone who asked that he was taking her to the hospital, and sped away.

She never could be sure where exactly she and the FBI agent had been held in the days between the explosion and the funeral because he drugged both of them whenever he moved them. The day of her funeral, though she didn’t realize it was, she sensed something was up. It was intuition. Miraculously, she still had her cell phone on her but was unable to get a signal until that day when they were moved to a new location – the funeral home. They were held in the same room where the caskets were. The riddle that she left on Esposito’s voice mail was a creation of the man and he had forced her to leave the correct message by putting a gun to her temple. She had reasoned that he knew she would try to call Castle, so he deliberately interrupted the phone call to further spur Castle and everyone from the 12th into action. The FBI agent had figured out that he wanted Castle and Jim to find them, which explained to Beckett why he didn’t search her when he kidnapped her.

She had awakened from the drug-induced unconscious state while the man in the black suit had stepped out of the room in the funeral parlor briefly to greet Castle and Jim.

“He may be a brilliant kidnapper and bomber, but he’s lousy at human chemistry. The last dose he gave me didn’t last nearly as long as he had thought it would,” she told Castle. “Lanie says my body must have begun getting used to it, which he didn’t account for, leading him to seriously miscalculate when it would wear off.”

She had quickly finagled her backup handgun out of an ankle holster and into her waistband at the small of the back, then laid back down in the same position and made every effort to stay as still as possible. But with all the talk about the FBI agent and the connection to Johanna’s murder, it was a tough challenge. When she heard the gunshot from the man’s gun, she put two-and-two together and figured that he knew that the police were close. She had to take quick action, so she threw caution to the wind, sat up, drew her gun, aimed and fired at the man, hitting him in the upper back.

“But how did you signal the guys to go in?” Beckett asked Castle.

“The cherries comment I whispered in your ear. Jim and I were wearing wires and I told Montgomery, Ryan, and Esposito to listen for any mention of cherries, or more specifically, the fact that you smell like cherries. Remember where that came from?” he answered and smiled devilishly.

Initially, Beckett rolled her eyes, but quickly smiled to herself and blushed.

Castle was surprised when he realized she had heard everything that was said, but whatever her thoughts were regarding his actions and his new feelings for her demonstrated by his kiss, remained hidden from him. Save a few telling looks that, at the least, said she was glad he was OK, and a peck or two on his cheek, he had no idea if she felt the same way or if he had scared her away from him. But, it was obvious to both of them and to almost everyone else that something significant had changed between them.

On his first day back at the precinct, he was greeted with a surprise party in the lounge around the espresso machine he had bought for everyone. Martha and Alexis had come with him to share the moment. Lanie had come up from the morgue too, but to his dismay Beckett wasn’t there. Ryan said she had been called away on a case and there was no telling when she’d return. As Castle chatted with all the well-wishers who dropped in to see him, felt like a seasoned veteran of the force: comfortable, right at home, like this was where he was supposed to be. He was happier than he had been in a long time, but still something, someone was missing from the moment.

Once the party was largely over, the cake cleaned up, the cops back at work doing what they do best, Castle sat in the lounge alone reflecting on all that happened. He couldn’t help but smile to himself: without realizing it, he had found a second family. He decided then, that if his Nikki Heat series was ended tomorrow, he’d still continue to consult with the department. He had to continue doing whatever he could to find justice for the families of New York City’s murder victims.

He heard footsteps outside approaching the lounge and stood, assuming it was Martha coming to say that she and Alexis were leaving. But it wasn’t – it was Beckett. Castle didn’t think it was possible, but she looked even more beautiful than she had at the hospital. She was wearing a form-fitting pastel blue top with black cap sleeves and a deep V neckline, blue jeans, and her requisite heels.

“Guess I missed the party, huh?” she said.

“No worries,” he answered. “What matters is that you’re here now.”

“Castle, we need to talk,” she said with trepidation in her voice. They sat down on the lounge’s couch. Castle knew that in a moment he would find out how she felt.

“I don’t think we can work together anymore,” she began. “It’s become too dangerous for you and your family and I couldn’t deal with it if something happened to Alexis or Martha – or you.” She swallowed hard on those last two words and had trouble looking him in the eye.

“Kate, I spoke to Alexis and Mom when I first started shadowing you. I told them that it would be odd hours, and that it might be dangerous. They couldn’t believe all the paperwork I had to fill out, remember? But they get it. And it’s not like I just became a world-famous mystery writer yesterday. They’ve heard the stories about crazed fans and stalkers. Remember when that article came out in the paper listing me as New York’s 9th most eligible bachelor?”

“Are you kidding?” she said. “Don’t you remember what it said about me? You and me more specifically?”

“Right. We’ll get to that in a minute.”

She raised a curious eyebrow, but didn’t stop him from going on.

“You wouldn’t believe all of Alexis’ teachers and classmates who handed over their numbers for her to give to me and who gushed over how apparently ‘choice’ of a catch I am. She was pissed at me for days.” Castle finished.

“I know the feeling.” Beckett said directly.

“My point is, all of us Castles are willing to accept the risk if it means catching a murderer and bringing a family some peace and resolution. These cases aren’t just stories to me anymore like they were in the beginning. It’s the human side of it that I’ve come to appreciate and to recognize as the most important thing. That’s what you’ve taught me,” he finished.

Beckett had unconsciously inched a little closer to him and her lower jaw was hanging slightly open. Her eyes were full of happiness, sheer happiness. She blinked back tears, but didn’t pull back from how close she was to him.

“What did you mean when you said we’d get back to that story about our being romantically linked?” she asked.
Castle felt like an Olympic diver standing on the edge of a diving board and preparing to plunge into the pool of water below. He took a deep breath and jumped.

Sweet. Um… next chapter please?

Sweet can't wait for the next chapter

OK everyone. Here is the conclusion. My internet is running slow, so I hope this posts correctly. Enjoy. :

“The importance of respecting the human side of these cases isn’t the only thing that I’ve come to realize. Kate, the experience of losing you, working without you, going through your funeral – it almost broke my heart,” Castle said.

“Why is that?” she asked even though her heart knew the answer.

“Because I’ve fallen in love with you. Hook, line and sinker, truly, completely, totally. I love everything about you – your smile, your mind, your warmth, the way you connected with Alexis, who, by the way, is crazy about you too, your eyes, your humor, your intensity, and I’d be seriously remiss if I left out your body.”

Kate blushed deeply, smiled and lowered her head, embarrassed to let her eyes, which were now swimming with tears, meet his. He put a finger under her chin and lifted it up so she had to look into his eyes.

“I mean it. Every word. Ever since you whispered ‘You’ve no idea’ in my ear after our first case, I have been in love with you.”

Kate now couldn’t hold back her tears. She covered her face with her hands and fell against Castle’s shoulder. Unfortunately, it was the one that took the bullet. He yelped in pain causing her to back off and apologize through tears and giggles. When he had recovered, she turned back to him, looking deep into his eyes. He lightly brushed a tear from her cheek.

“Castle … Rick, when we first started working together I never in my wildest dreams thought I’d ever say what I’m about to say to you. But even in those days when you drove me nuts, I felt something too. Yes, you were obnoxious and annoying and didn’t listen to the simplest instructions, but you were also charming, witty, intelligent, fun, warm. Qualities that I’ve come to look forward to seeing more and more each day. And as much as I tried to deny it for so long, you’ve become a very important part of my life, a part that I don’t want to lose.”

Castle’s face broke into a wide smile and he lifted one of Kate’s hands and kissed it. Tears now ran down both of their cheeks.

“Until that day at the funeral parlor, I wasn’t exactly sure what it was that I felt for you. But when you offered to sacrifice yourself for my family, it was then that I knew that what I felt was love and still is,” she finally said. “So, you were right when you said you thought you detected something on the other side of that kiss you gave me in the casket.” She paused and took a few deep breaths.

“You OK?” Castle asked.

“Yeah,” she answered. “It just feels so good to say it after all this time.” She looked deeper into his eyes than she ever had. “I love you Richard Castle.”

“And I love you Katherine Beckett.”

Their arms entwined each other as they kissed deeply and unashamed right there in the lounge of the 12th precinct, where they had shared so many talks and cups of espresso. Suddenly, they heard thunderous applause from all around them. It was Alexis, Martha, Ryan, Esposito, Lanie, Captain Montgomery, Karpowski, and everyone at the precinct who had been watching their whole conversation with faces pressed against the windows that looked into the lounge. Beckett and Castle looked around at everyone and each other sheepishly, but realized they couldn’t take any of it back. They laughed, cried, held hands, and hugged each other as if they’d been together for years.

When the crowd began to disperse, Kate finally stood up to exit the lounge. Castle, who was still sitting on the couch, took her hand and pulled her back to him.

“Castle, as much as I’m REALLY enjoying this, I do need to do some work,” she protested.

“One last thing. And it shouldn’t take long,” he reassured her, then paused for a moment. “Will you marry me?”

Kate’s jaw dropped and she clapped her free hand to her mouth.

"Cas…Rick, are you serious?” she finally choked out.

“Do I look like I’m kidding?” he said and again flashed that devilish smile that she so loved seeing.

“Kate, dear Kate, I want you in my life always and not just as a work partner, but as a life-partner. You are by far THE most beautiful woman I know, in every way anyone has ever measured beauty. Please Kate, do me the honor of being my wife.”

“Rick…” she stammered, letting the question wash over her. Both were completely unaware that the lounge was again totally surrounded.

“Yes. Yes, a million times yes,” Kate finally answered and they flew into each other’s arms. The precinct erupted in cheers and applause. Alexis and Martha hugged each other with tears streaming down their faces. Lanie cried too and joined in on Alexis and Martha’s hug. Esposito and Ryan whistled, while Captain Montgomery just beamed and clapped enthusiastically, standing next to Jim Beckett who had arrived late but still just in time and was also smiling from ear to ear.

When they finally broke the embrace, Kate composed herself and whispered in Castle’s ear.

“I don’t mean to be critical, but shouldn’t you kinda slip a ring on my finger at some point?”

Castle backed off slightly, looking like he’d just spilled coffee all over his new fiancé. “Oops. I knew there was something I forgot.”

“Are you kidding? Castle, how can you go through a proposal like that with no ring?” Kate demanded incredulously.

“Wait, now I remember where the ring is,” Castle recovered, but made no movement as if he was going to pull a little box out of a pocket. He curled his good arm around Kate’s neck and slowly lifted over her head the chain from which Johanna Beckett’s wedding ring hung. He undid its clasp with surprisingly little trouble, took the ring in his hand and held it up.

“Here it is.”

He took her hand and slipped Johanna Beckett’s ring on her finger. Kate glowed with approval. They then sealed their commitment to each other with a passionate, deep kiss.

THE END

Good ending. Like how Castle gave Beckett her mom's ring. That was a nice touch. Overall, it was a great story. You are a very good writer.