Richard Castle, Watcher: New York, July 2009 - Part 4
Richard Castle, Watcher
Author: Starfox5
Rating: FR18
Crossover: “Castle”
Written for: TtH August Fic A Day Challenge
Disclaimer: BtVS/AtS characters belong to Joss Whedon/Mutant Enemy. Castle Characters belong to Beacon Pictures and ABC Studio. Please do not copy or take this story without my permission.
Summary: Sunnydale. It all came back to Sunnydale, Kate Becket realized.
New York, July 2009
Detective Kate Beckett sat at her desk, a report in front of her, but if asked, she wouldn’t be able to say anything about its content. Her mind was still trying to make sense of what she knew about Rick Castle, bestselling author, charming pain in her butt - and possible secret agent.
It still was ludicrous, but the facts she knew didn’t make sense otherwise. They still didn’t make that much sense, but it was the best she could have come up with, no matter how much she hated the idea. She still wasn’t certain if her dislike stemmed from the fact that for it to be true, it would mean that Castle had been fooling her ever since they had met, with his delusional theories about demons and magic. But then, his mother was an actress, so he likely had at least some talent for acting as well.
She closed her eyes and leaned her head back, sighing.
“Was the dinner with Castle’s family that terrible?” Kevin’s voice interrupted her thoughts.
“No, no. The food was great,” she answered. “I’m just … lost in thoughts.” She noticed Kevin exchanging a look with Javier, and narrowed her eyes at her colleagues. “What?”
“Nothing!” Kevin held his hands up in a placating gesture, and Javier winced. She must have let some of her frustration show. Good - she could use that.
Kate stood up and walked towards them. “I’ll ask again: What?”
Kevin grimaced. “Javier had the thought, totally far-fetched, of course…”
“Hey! Don’t blame me, you agreed!” Esposito spoke up.
“What did you agree with or to?” Kate spat the words out.
“Well… did anything happen between you and Castle? You had the look of a woman, well…”
Kate cut the babbling detective off. “Nothing happened! I had dinner with his family, it was a very nice evening, with his family. That’s all.”
“So, you met his family.” Javier managed to pack all sorts of lurid meanings into his simple sentence.
“Yes,” Kate answered, rolling her eyes. “His mother, his daughter, and Vi.”
“Vi’s part of his family?” Now the detective sounded aghast. Kate knew he had fallen head over heels for Vi, but the redhead hadn’t exactly returned the feeling - though neither had she rejected him.
“Family in all but blood, as the saying goes. They’re very close,” Kate added, watching with hidden glee as Javier’s face fell. Tried to insinuate she had been seduced and left by Castle, did he?
“So, what did you talk about? Geeked out over his books, or did he talk about his art and wine collection?” Kevin asked.
That earned him an eye rolling too. “He doesn’t have much of an art collection. He mainly seems to collect antiques - weapons. I’ve never seen that many swords and crossbows in one place outside a museum.”
“He has a toy collection, and he still lives with his mother…” Javier nodded to himself.
“Trying to convince yourself you’ve got a chance with Vi?” Kevin looked at his partner.
The other man glared at him. “He’s clearly after Beckett, so Vi will look for greener pastures.”
“Or she’ll kill him.” Kevin retorted dryly.
“Javier… are you really basing your hope on Castle seducing me?” she asked, sighing. “Don’t answer that. Let’s get back to work before the Captain notices we’re discussing Javier’s love life instead of working.”
“And yours!” Kevin added right when he left.
“I feel like I’m back in highschool,” Kate muttered, and took up her file again. Then she checked her watch. Another hour until she could call her friend in San Diego.
*****
A week later, back home, Kate was staring at her ‘Castle Wall” while eating Chinese take-out.
The ‘Camping Trip’ investigation was producing even more disturbing results than she had expected. Castle had broken his leg on that trip, that much she had found out. The yellow press had mentioned that - ‘Author convalescing in the Hamptons’. But they hadn’t mentioned just where Castle had gotten injured. But another article in the same issue, ‘Sunnydale refugees recovering in the Hamptons’, mentioned that Castle was among those who had taken in some of the ‘traumatized survivors of the sinkhole catastrophe’.
Sunnydale. The town that disappeared in a sinkhole six years ago. An event no one had managed to find an acceptable explanation for. For a while, day tv talkshows could keep their ratings going just by inviting conspiracy theorists and geologists. Or just geologists. Who would have thought academics could become so violent?
She shoveled another fork of noodles into her mouth, without tasting anything.
Castle broke his leg right around the time the ‘Sunnydale Sinkhole’ took place. And then harbored refugees from the town in his summer residence, while he was recovering himself. Of course, he could have just been in California, saw their plight, and, moved, took it upon him to invite a few of them to his house. Quite attractive refugees, according to that picture. Strange that an author surrounding himself with pretty co-eds hadn’t made waves back then. Another sign of influence one would not expect from a mere author?
Kate blinked and took out her magnifying glass.
That girl in the background… with the red hair… Vi! But Vi was from the East Coast. She was just on a camping trip, she didn’t live in Sunnydale. Why would she be with Castle in his house, and not back with her parents? Parents who had reported a break-in a few months before. Someone had smashed their front door, and the police report mentioned a struggle in the house. Nothing ever came of it, and according to the report, their daughter was already on a camping trip when it happened. That would have been a very long camping trip then - several months long.
There was one explanation, the one everyone thought of, but Kate was now rather certain that Castle wasn’t lying when he claimed the girl wasn’t his girlfriend. She wasn’t quite as sure that Vi didn’t want to be his girlfriend though. And she didn’t know at all how she felt about the whole thing… she buried that thought and forced herself to focus to the investigation.
The break-in had taken place right around the time the London bombing happened. A mid-eastern group had claimed responsibility, and to the surprise of many experts who considered the claim a lie, the British government destroyed said group months later in Iraq, then declared the matter solved. No survivors.
A bombing that sent Mary Wilkinson to New York, without telling anyone. Not even her daughter, who thought she was dead like her grandparents. And right afterwards, Castle left for a camping trip. With his ex-wife. To California. Where he met Vi, broke his leg, and returned right after a town had vanished in a sinkhole. And his ex-wife? She was admitted to a hospital a few days before that, in L.A., after ‘falling down the stairs and landing on a poker that speared her leg’. And she was in with a few more injured women and girls, one of which escaped from the hospital despite serious injuries the next day. Most of them were residents of Sunnydale at the time, according to the data her friend had gotten her.
Kate rubbed her chin. She was close, she felt it. The same gut feeling she sometimes got during a case.
Sunnydale. Castle had been in Sunnydale when it vanished. Nothing else made sense. And he never spoke of it, not even when Javier was telling war stories from Iraq to impress Vi. So, either he was traumatized by the experience, or he had something to hide. And he didn’t appear to be traumatized. And neither did Vi look particularly traumatized. She was just crazy. Vi. Very good at fighting, and driving. Far better than anyone Kate knew. And she was working as a bodyguard for a fantasy author, instead of getting hired by a government agency. Unless she was working for a government agency. With Castle. And his ex-wife. And was on a mission in Sunnydale.
Kate pushed the container with her now cold food away and stood up.
Sunnydale. The heart of dozens, hundreds of conspiracy theories. From secret military experiments to aliens and demons invading the town. The stories that surfaced after the town vanished in a sinkhole were so fantastic, even the Onion didn’t print them. But one thing was clear: The town had been evacuated in the weeks before the event. The number of victims was far too low for this not to have happened.
The detective felt a chill run down her spine when she realized what that meant: Someone had known it could happen. Or would happen. There were theories that claimed that a nuke, detonated at the right spot along a fault line, could cause such a sinkhole. Crackpots, disproved by established geologists. But what if that was a cover-up? What if the government had been aware of such plans, and had sent agents to deal with it?
She closed her eyes. She couldn’t deny the evidence any longer. The skills, the experience, the facade of an eccentric, the way his family kept talking around certain things, the friends in high places, the British connection…
Castle and Vi were the Avengers.
She sighed. John Steed was hitting on her. Or rather, James Bond - Castle certainly had the reputation. How did she deserve that?
Then her eyes shot open as another, even more terrifying thought shot through her mind. If Castle and Vi were agents involved in things like the Sunnydale Sinkhole… why were they following her around?
What was going on in New York that required the presence of them?
She didn’t think she’d like the answer, but she knew she’d get it. And she knew where she’d get it.
She grabbed her coat and left her apartment. She had a secret agent to interrogate.
Author: Starfox5
Rating: FR18
Crossover: “Castle”
Written for: TtH August Fic A Day Challenge
Disclaimer: BtVS/AtS characters belong to Joss Whedon/Mutant Enemy. Castle Characters belong to Beacon Pictures and ABC Studio. Please do not copy or take this story without my permission.
Summary: Sunnydale. It all came back to Sunnydale, Kate Becket realized.
New York, July 2009
Detective Kate Beckett sat at her desk, a report in front of her, but if asked, she wouldn’t be able to say anything about its content. Her mind was still trying to make sense of what she knew about Rick Castle, bestselling author, charming pain in her butt - and possible secret agent.
It still was ludicrous, but the facts she knew didn’t make sense otherwise. They still didn’t make that much sense, but it was the best she could have come up with, no matter how much she hated the idea. She still wasn’t certain if her dislike stemmed from the fact that for it to be true, it would mean that Castle had been fooling her ever since they had met, with his delusional theories about demons and magic. But then, his mother was an actress, so he likely had at least some talent for acting as well.
She closed her eyes and leaned her head back, sighing.
“Was the dinner with Castle’s family that terrible?” Kevin’s voice interrupted her thoughts.
“No, no. The food was great,” she answered. “I’m just … lost in thoughts.” She noticed Kevin exchanging a look with Javier, and narrowed her eyes at her colleagues. “What?”
“Nothing!” Kevin held his hands up in a placating gesture, and Javier winced. She must have let some of her frustration show. Good - she could use that.
Kate stood up and walked towards them. “I’ll ask again: What?”
Kevin grimaced. “Javier had the thought, totally far-fetched, of course…”
“Hey! Don’t blame me, you agreed!” Esposito spoke up.
“What did you agree with or to?” Kate spat the words out.
“Well… did anything happen between you and Castle? You had the look of a woman, well…”
Kate cut the babbling detective off. “Nothing happened! I had dinner with his family, it was a very nice evening, with his family. That’s all.”
“So, you met his family.” Javier managed to pack all sorts of lurid meanings into his simple sentence.
“Yes,” Kate answered, rolling her eyes. “His mother, his daughter, and Vi.”
“Vi’s part of his family?” Now the detective sounded aghast. Kate knew he had fallen head over heels for Vi, but the redhead hadn’t exactly returned the feeling - though neither had she rejected him.
“Family in all but blood, as the saying goes. They’re very close,” Kate added, watching with hidden glee as Javier’s face fell. Tried to insinuate she had been seduced and left by Castle, did he?
“So, what did you talk about? Geeked out over his books, or did he talk about his art and wine collection?” Kevin asked.
That earned him an eye rolling too. “He doesn’t have much of an art collection. He mainly seems to collect antiques - weapons. I’ve never seen that many swords and crossbows in one place outside a museum.”
“He has a toy collection, and he still lives with his mother…” Javier nodded to himself.
“Trying to convince yourself you’ve got a chance with Vi?” Kevin looked at his partner.
The other man glared at him. “He’s clearly after Beckett, so Vi will look for greener pastures.”
“Or she’ll kill him.” Kevin retorted dryly.
“Javier… are you really basing your hope on Castle seducing me?” she asked, sighing. “Don’t answer that. Let’s get back to work before the Captain notices we’re discussing Javier’s love life instead of working.”
“And yours!” Kevin added right when he left.
“I feel like I’m back in highschool,” Kate muttered, and took up her file again. Then she checked her watch. Another hour until she could call her friend in San Diego.
*****
A week later, back home, Kate was staring at her ‘Castle Wall” while eating Chinese take-out.
The ‘Camping Trip’ investigation was producing even more disturbing results than she had expected. Castle had broken his leg on that trip, that much she had found out. The yellow press had mentioned that - ‘Author convalescing in the Hamptons’. But they hadn’t mentioned just where Castle had gotten injured. But another article in the same issue, ‘Sunnydale refugees recovering in the Hamptons’, mentioned that Castle was among those who had taken in some of the ‘traumatized survivors of the sinkhole catastrophe’.
Sunnydale. The town that disappeared in a sinkhole six years ago. An event no one had managed to find an acceptable explanation for. For a while, day tv talkshows could keep their ratings going just by inviting conspiracy theorists and geologists. Or just geologists. Who would have thought academics could become so violent?
She shoveled another fork of noodles into her mouth, without tasting anything.
Castle broke his leg right around the time the ‘Sunnydale Sinkhole’ took place. And then harbored refugees from the town in his summer residence, while he was recovering himself. Of course, he could have just been in California, saw their plight, and, moved, took it upon him to invite a few of them to his house. Quite attractive refugees, according to that picture. Strange that an author surrounding himself with pretty co-eds hadn’t made waves back then. Another sign of influence one would not expect from a mere author?
Kate blinked and took out her magnifying glass.
That girl in the background… with the red hair… Vi! But Vi was from the East Coast. She was just on a camping trip, she didn’t live in Sunnydale. Why would she be with Castle in his house, and not back with her parents? Parents who had reported a break-in a few months before. Someone had smashed their front door, and the police report mentioned a struggle in the house. Nothing ever came of it, and according to the report, their daughter was already on a camping trip when it happened. That would have been a very long camping trip then - several months long.
There was one explanation, the one everyone thought of, but Kate was now rather certain that Castle wasn’t lying when he claimed the girl wasn’t his girlfriend. She wasn’t quite as sure that Vi didn’t want to be his girlfriend though. And she didn’t know at all how she felt about the whole thing… she buried that thought and forced herself to focus to the investigation.
The break-in had taken place right around the time the London bombing happened. A mid-eastern group had claimed responsibility, and to the surprise of many experts who considered the claim a lie, the British government destroyed said group months later in Iraq, then declared the matter solved. No survivors.
A bombing that sent Mary Wilkinson to New York, without telling anyone. Not even her daughter, who thought she was dead like her grandparents. And right afterwards, Castle left for a camping trip. With his ex-wife. To California. Where he met Vi, broke his leg, and returned right after a town had vanished in a sinkhole. And his ex-wife? She was admitted to a hospital a few days before that, in L.A., after ‘falling down the stairs and landing on a poker that speared her leg’. And she was in with a few more injured women and girls, one of which escaped from the hospital despite serious injuries the next day. Most of them were residents of Sunnydale at the time, according to the data her friend had gotten her.
Kate rubbed her chin. She was close, she felt it. The same gut feeling she sometimes got during a case.
Sunnydale. Castle had been in Sunnydale when it vanished. Nothing else made sense. And he never spoke of it, not even when Javier was telling war stories from Iraq to impress Vi. So, either he was traumatized by the experience, or he had something to hide. And he didn’t appear to be traumatized. And neither did Vi look particularly traumatized. She was just crazy. Vi. Very good at fighting, and driving. Far better than anyone Kate knew. And she was working as a bodyguard for a fantasy author, instead of getting hired by a government agency. Unless she was working for a government agency. With Castle. And his ex-wife. And was on a mission in Sunnydale.
Kate pushed the container with her now cold food away and stood up.
Sunnydale. The heart of dozens, hundreds of conspiracy theories. From secret military experiments to aliens and demons invading the town. The stories that surfaced after the town vanished in a sinkhole were so fantastic, even the Onion didn’t print them. But one thing was clear: The town had been evacuated in the weeks before the event. The number of victims was far too low for this not to have happened.
The detective felt a chill run down her spine when she realized what that meant: Someone had known it could happen. Or would happen. There were theories that claimed that a nuke, detonated at the right spot along a fault line, could cause such a sinkhole. Crackpots, disproved by established geologists. But what if that was a cover-up? What if the government had been aware of such plans, and had sent agents to deal with it?
She closed her eyes. She couldn’t deny the evidence any longer. The skills, the experience, the facade of an eccentric, the way his family kept talking around certain things, the friends in high places, the British connection…
Castle and Vi were the Avengers.
She sighed. John Steed was hitting on her. Or rather, James Bond - Castle certainly had the reputation. How did she deserve that?
Then her eyes shot open as another, even more terrifying thought shot through her mind. If Castle and Vi were agents involved in things like the Sunnydale Sinkhole… why were they following her around?
What was going on in New York that required the presence of them?
She didn’t think she’d like the answer, but she knew she’d get it. And she knew where she’d get it.
She grabbed her coat and left her apartment. She had a secret agent to interrogate.