Summary – Kate is at mandatory police training and Castle gets into trouble while researching a story. Can the 12th save him in time.

Author's Notes: Sorry – Sorry, I left the tie in of the necklace out of this chapter and had to repost. That's what I get for trying to finish this before going to work. And I added a final scene that was requested by 7761. And I just added a bit more. Thanks for reading.

Disclaimer – Don't own Castle: Marlowe, ABC, and Disney do. Just writing for fun.

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This Is Castle We're Talking About – Chapter 24 – Winner Take All - Maybe - Of Course, This is Castle We're Talking About

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Kate studied her cards for a moment, looked up at several pairs of eyes watching her expectantly, and then looked back down. "Too rich for my blood – I'm out," she said as she folded the cards and placed them face down on the table. "Anyone want a refill?" she asked, getting up.

"As long as you're up," nodded Espo, holding up an empty beer bottle and lounging back in his chair since he had folded several rounds ago.

"And what's wrong with your legs?" commented Lanie drily. "Go help the girl."

"No, I've got this," laughed Kate, pausing by Rick's chair to give him a quick kiss on the top of his head while sneaking a peak at his cards.

"Hey, hey," said Castle as he moved them closer to his chest. "It'll cost you to see these."

"But I thought we shared everything now," Kate said with a fake pout.

"I'm sure that doesn't extend to poker," Castle replied and then waggled an eyebrow at her. "But I think I can make an exception in this case." He held the cards out slightly so she could see them.

Beckett glanced at them with a non-committal hmmm as she trailed a hand across his shoulders and then walked into the kitchen, pausing to survey the scene in Caste's loft with a satisfied smile on her face.

The Castle home could be quite lively indeed and she was surprised again at how many people could be stuffed into one area without making it seemed crowded.

Maddie had been able to cater this impromptu get-together fund-raiser at the last moment and stopped by that evening to lay out the spread of goodies from her restaurant.

Kevin and Jenny had brought their bundle of joy to the loft for a quick visit before the crowd got there and then went home. Now that they were expecting again, with twins this time, Jenny was usually fast asleep right after the baby went down for the evening. True to form, Espo took advantage of the situation to needle Ryan by whistling "I've Got Rhythm" as often as he could.

Martha had been there for several hands and then left to watch several of her students perform in an off-off-Broadway play.

Miguel had taken a break from working on the details of Deigo's fast-track extradition back to Mexico and arrived shortly after Father Thomas had gotten there, bearing a bottle of his favorite sacramental wine.

Much to Beckett's amazement, Sorenson, Demming, and Danberg had shown up, with Eric Vaughn in tow, and now the 4 of them were facing down big Castle and little Castle, both of whom had their poker faces on in full force tonight.

Kate turned around to open the refrigerator and almost ran into Thomas, who was watching her with a hint of a smile.

"Father," Beckett said, almost blushing at his scrutiny. "I'm sorry but you probably know more about me than I do about you. Rick never –"

"I'm not surprised," he said with a slight accent. "We haven't seen a lot of him in the last couple of years and now I know why."

Beckett did blush at that, pausing to tuck a piece of hair behind her ear. "I think I'm at a disadvantage here," she said. "You know, with Castle's confessions and all."

Thomas thought for a moment and then said conspiratorially, "You may be surprised, but they weren't all that earth shaking. This is Castle we're talking about and he may be a lot of things, but he is a gentleman at heart, and he rarely kisses and tells. But I will say, the first time I heard about you, he didn't start with, 'I met this woman and it was amazing.' He started with, 'I met this woman and she's extraordinary.' When I said, 'And?', he told you weren't that type of girl and to get my mind out of the gutter." He paused. "And I knew then that he may have finally found what he was searching for."

"I think we both did," said Kate, smiling back at the scene as Alexis crowed in triumph as she laid down her cards.

"Booyah! Read 'em and weep – three little ladies," she exclaimed and pulled the pot towards her to the groans of the people around the table. It didn't matter that all proceeds were going to Father Thomas' school – it was more a matter of pride at this point as to who won and who lost.

Castle shook his head as he pulled the cards towards him and started shuffling. "She gets that from her grandmother," he said, rolling his eyes. "Definitely not from me."

As Beckett and Thomas distributed the drinks and then sat back down at the table, Castle passed the deck to Lanie to cut. "Ladies choice," he said.

The ME looked at her watch. "It's getting late and some of us have to go to work in the morning, so how about a quick hand of 5-card draw?" she replied.

"5-card draw it is then. Everyone, ante in," said Castle as everyone slid a chip into the middle of the table. Castle then started dealing the cards.

Demming cleared his throat as he collected his cards in front of him. "Castle, I wanted to thank you for your help in this case. I don't think we would have made the connection."

"Well," Castle said, trying not to say too much in front of Alexis and worrying her, "it's not like I had a choice." He paused for a moment. "So you still don't know how Carmelita got the ER4-SER?"

"No – not a clue," said Vaughn, shaking his head. He looked at Castle with a curious expression on his face. "You're a mystery writer, Mr. Castle. How would you write this in one of your books?"

"First off, it's Rick," said Castle. He stopped for a minute, thinking, before dealing out the last set of cards. "A good story has its basis in facts and details. We know that Deigo and Dimont know each other, so the first question is when and where they met."

"It had to be more than 2 years ago because that's when Linderhoff sold his business and when you saw them together in Paris," said Beckett as she looked at her cards. "They must have known each other before that."

Castle nodded. "They were both medical examiners, so they may have met at a ME conference. Or it may have been at a fashion event since they both wore haute couture, hence the trip to Dries Van Noten and Balenciaga in Paris. Carmelita was definitely high maintenance, high culture. She loved nothing more than being seen at a black-tie event with all of its glitz and glamor and intrigue and inept men." He took a quick look at his cards. "Ante up, folks."

"The next questions are then how did they meet Linderhoff and know about his regular business and his side business," Castle said.

Alexis put a green chip in the center of the table.

"And the little lady bets big," Castle quipped as he matched her bet.

"Thanks for the money, dad," she said, smiling sweetly at him.

Espo and Lanie quickly folded but the rest of the table matched her bid.

"Since they were into 'culture', they may have gone to an event for a museum and met Linderhoff there while he was setting up an exhibit," said Demming.

"And when they talked to him, they could have found out that he had just sold his business and was retiring," Sorenson added. "We were able to locate the investment group that he originally sold the business to but then they sold it fairly quickly to private investors for a hefty profit. They had no idea that Sue Parker was Carmelita Deigo." He studied his cards. "So far, we haven't been able to track down the other investors on the bill of sale – Mitch McKinley and Fred Beamer."

"No – no way," said Castle, with an astonished look on his face. "Are you serious?"

"Yes," nodded Sorenson, frowning. "Those are the names on the agreement with the investment group."

"Then you're never going to find them," said Castle, shaking his head in disbelief. "Mitch McKinley is the lead character in Patterson's Miracle on the 17th Green and Fred Beamer – Freddie Beamer – was a recurring character on the Rockford Files TV show."

Sorenson stared at him for a minute before getting up from the table and pulling out his phone. "Excuse me for a minute. I need to make a phone call."

"Well, now we know that Carmelita probably bankrolled the whole venture," said Castle. "I know her 2 deceased husbands left her a small fortune so buying Linderhoff's business shouldn't have been a problem for her."

"Not necessarily," said Thomas as he looked at his cards, laid his hand back down, and waved his hand over them, indicating that he didn't need to change them as he raised the bid. "Carmelita had already spent most of the money she inherited and asked my father for a business loan about two years ago. She said she had come across an incredible business opportunity. Apparently business was so good that she was able to pay off the loan early."

"But Linderhoff said the business wasn't as lucrative as it had once been with the economy the way it is," said Beckett. "How could she have paid off the loan that quickly if the money wasn't coming in?"

"Their side business," said Castle as he discarded 2 cards and dealt himself 2 more. "And the dealer takes 2 cards." He looked at the cards and then laid them down. "It's not like they were a low-class operation. Demming, you said that their 'other' clients were well-to-do, so they may have met them at events – fundraisers, galas – so they could charge a steep price for their services."

"And the business suddenly becomes profitable again," said Beckett.

"Yeah," said Espo. "They probably stashed the money in untraceable accounts off shore."

"And my father would have wanted to see the books when she was able to pay him back that fast," said Thomas. "In spite of everything else he did, he was an astute businessman."

"And Carmelita wouldn't have wanted to show him those because he would have known what was going on," said Castle.

"Which gives us motive," said Miguel as he got up from the table and pulled out his phone. "Excuse me for a minute – I need to make a phone call."

"So how did they know about Linderhoff's side business – you know, with the different governments?" asked Danberg.

"I've got that one," said Beckett. "Dimont is an ME, so she's worked with him before – on the side business. She may have met the person Linderhoff talked to you about," she said carefully, trying to avoid the other elephant in the room. "So they knew they couldn't do anything without raising suspicion."

"Sort of a 'not get ki—'" Castle quipped and then quickly changed what he was going to say when his daughter shot him a look, "'get out of jail free' card."

"So they knew about the side business and how security could be circumvented, but that doesn't explain how Deigo knew about ER4-SER or even got it," said Vaughn.

"Well, in my book – since it's fiction – Dimont's brother would have been the scientist who created ER4-SER and he would have told her about it, maybe even a death bed confession or left her journals describing his work. Dimont would then have given the journals to Carmelita." Castle paused for a moment. "She may be a black widow, but she's an evil genius. Her graduate degree is in chemistry."

"So they read the journals and realize they need a sample to reproduce what Dimont's brother had created," said Beckett. "But how could they get into a secure facility to steal the drug?"

"That part is easy," Castle replied. "Dimont would have used the same trick Uncle Max told me that Carmelita used to get her second husband – drugged the guy and made him do the dirty work. Dimont knew who the manufacturer was and meets the man at an event. She's a beautiful woman and he likes beautiful things, so she uses her feminine wiles to cast her web. They go back to his place and when he goes to get changed into something more comfortable, she slips a mickey into his drink. Then she gets him to go to the lab and steal the vials and gives him a dose so that he doesn't remember doing it or even meeting her. She gets him to leave a decoy device at the lab so they think that someone else broke in."

"Then it's a good thing I never met Dimont," said Vaughn with a nervous laugh, looking at his cards.

"Oh, but you did," said Castle, frowning at him. "At the Black and White Tie gala 2 years ago. There's a picture on page 6 from that event of you and Dimont, and then another of you and she going into the St. Regis afterwards."

"Isn't that the event where you spent most of the time in the bathroom? Gina was so pissed at you," Alexis said, looking at her father. "Dad, were you trying to avoid Dimont?"

"What? No – well, maybe," said Castle, making a 'who me' face.

"Yeah," Espo chimed in. "Bro, you were burning up the phone with texts all night long."

"Sorry to spoil your theory," said Danberg, "but Dimont was an only child."

"No, she wasn't," said Castle, shaking his head. "When we were in Paris, Damion said he was surprised that Dimont had come back. She had found out she had a half-brother in the US who had died recently and went to take care of his estate. She quit when she got back and was only working that day because the ME on call had had a bike accident the day before." He paused and looked at Beckett. "Which is a little too co-incidental."

"Are you sure?" said Danberg. "That's not in her security clearance."

"Since it involved a scandal, I doubt it would have been. But her brother was the sculptor who created those statues, not a scientist, so I guess it doesn't matter," said Castle, pointing his thumb to the beast that hung in the corner.

"I still can't believe you have that," said Beckett, glancing at the monstrosity.

"Apparently, we have a history together and Mrs. Nguyen said it's supposed to represent health and good luck, and thought I could use some." He smiled at Beckett. "Besides, it's going to Mother's studio tomorrow. I'm sure there's some production she can use it in. It did come with a picture and bio of the artist though."

Castle flipped over the paper he had been writing on all evening and handed it to Vaughn and Sorenson. "That's her brother – Michaele."

"You're absolutely positive about this?" asked Vaughn, looking at the picture.

"Yeah," replied Castle. "Just ask Linderhoff. I hear he was quite upset when the business starting carrying those things – which would have been the same time that Deigo and Dimont took over. Why?"

"Because that's Dr. Joseph M. Parker, the scientist who created ER4-SER," said Vaughn. "He died in a lab accident 2-1/2 years ago."

"Wow," said Castle, sitting back. "I guess what you don't know you know can really kill you."

"Bro, no wonder they stuffed you in a crate – twice," said Espo.

"Dad!" exclaimed Alexis.

"It was a large crate, pumpkin – bigger than your grandmother's acting studio," Castle replied. "Besides Beckett got to me first," he continued, trying to assuage her worries.

"We've got to go," Vaughn and Danberg suddenly said at the same time and leapt up from their chairs, making a beeline for the door.

"What – no wait – no fair!" Castle exclaimed as he laid down his cards. "I've got an inside straight."

"Sorry, compadre," said Thomas, also laying down his cards. "I've got you beat – royal flush – so pull out your checkbook."

"Son of a bit-" Castle started.

"Uh, uh – Richard, really," Thomas said as he wagged his finger at him. "You know that adds an extra zero to the check. Besides, unlucky at cards, lucky in love."

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Beckett had just ended the call when Castle walked out of the bathroom, shrugging on his t-shirt.

"That was Will. They've taken all the statements from the victims and we have solid cases against Dimont and Deigo. They are going away for life – no chance for parole. The DA considers them a flight risk, so the judge denied them bail."

"Good," said Castle as he sat down on the bed. "Did they say anything about Alyssa's necklace – why it was at the warehouse?"

"Yes," said Beckett, smiling as she sat down on the side of the bed, her night shirt falling off of one shoulder. "Alyssa and Simone were together at one point and they overheard that Simone was being brought to New York. Alyssa had hidden her necklace and gave it to Simone in hopes that someone would find it and figure out what was going on. She was so glad it was you."

"Smart girls," Castle said and then slumped forward slightly, frowning. "I can't image what it was like for them – waking up and not knowing where they were and how they had gotten there. I mean, it was bad enough for me those times when I woke up in the hospital, not knowing what had happened. If you hadn't been there, I don't know what I would have done."

"Well, you were amazing," said Beckett.

"Yeah," Castle said morosely, running a hand through his hair. "I think the only time I've seen a room clear out faster was when Mrs. Stevenson played Lady Macbeth in summer stock."

Beckett crawled over to where Castle was and gently hugged him from behind. "I was talking about the shower this afternoon," she whispered into his ear and then sat back, resting against the pillows. "You're not still pouting about losing, are you? Castle, we solved at least 10 cases – that has got to be a record. Think of how happy Gates will be with those results."

"Yeah, I can imagine how delighted she's going to be to know that I was a prime suspect in a smuggling case," said Castle, flopping down on the bed. "Do we have to tell her? She's not going to like me again."

"She's probably already heard – you know how fast the police grapevine is," Beckett said as Castle let out a groan, rubbing his hands over his eyes. "And since Espo is officially in charge, he has to do the paperwork which gives me the morning off. So I was thinking," she said, moving closer to him, draping a leg over his and pausing dramatically, "that we can go look at wedding venues."

Castle moved her leg slightly and rolled over on his side, finally smiling at her. "Wedding venues, it is then, Mrs. C to be."

He rested his forehead against hers. "I'm glad I'm around for this."

"I am too," said Kate as she gently kissed his lips.

"Oh, we could do the ice rink in December."

"Castle," growled Kate. "Falling down on my ass in my wedding dress—"

"I know, I know," chuckled Castle. "I assure you it will be some place appropriate," he said as Beckett turned out the light by the side of the bed.

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They hadn't been asleep for very long when the jerk of Castle's body and a loud moan woke Beckett up instantly. She quickly turned on the light and rolled over to look at him.

He had a grimace on his face and seemed to be distress.

"Castle," she said softly, and then louder. "Rick, are you okay?"

"Huh – wha?" he said sleepily as he blinked bleary eyes at her.

"You were having a nightmare," she said. "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing," said Castle, shaking his head, his cheeks pinking slightly.

"Are you sure?" said Beckett.

"Yeah, just go back to sleep."

"Okay," Beckett said, turning the light back off and settling back down.

A few minutes later, Castle jerked and groaned again.

Beckett was up in a flash, turning on the light again.

"Castle – wake up," she demanded. "What's going on?"

"It's nothing," Castle said sleepily, rubbing his hands with his eyes.

"No, no – it's not nothing. It keeps waking you up."

Castle paused for a moment and then looked at Beckett. "You'll think it's weird – I do."

"Just tell me," Beckett said encouragingly.

"Well – sometimes when I'm falling asleep, I hear Perlmutter," Castle admitted.

"Perlmutter?" asked Beckett, confused. This is definitely not what she was expecting.

"Yeah, he's whispering that his is bigger. I mean, what is that all about? Why would I even think something like that?" Castle exclaimed. "That's just creepy."

Beckett pushed her lips together and waited for a minute before responding. "Probably just a side effect of the drug."

"Well, it's not a very pleasant one," said Castle as he settled back down.

Kate turned off the light and snuggled up to his side, gently rubbing her hand up and down his chest to soothe him. Some day when she could think about this whole event without getting knots in her stomach, she would show him Perlmutter's tape. Knowing Castle, he'd even want a copy of it.

"Shhhh," she said, "everything will be all right."

Castle let out a breath and then closed his eyes, only to open them again a few minutes later. "Well, I win now," he said.

Beckett let her hand drift lower. "You certainly do, writer man."

"And you get the prize," he said as he rolled over and pulled Kate to him.

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After listening to Castle's moans for several nights that his brain was probably melting from the drug they had given him, Beckett finally relented and discreetly acquired the DVD from Perlmutter.

She surprised him at the door of the loft the next afternoon when he came home from a meeting with Black Pawn with a glass of Scotch in her hand and a quick kiss.

"Hey, Beckett, you're home early," he said hesitantly as he took off his coat and slung it over a chair before following her back to the couch.

"Rick," she said, turning to face him as they sat down. "There's something we need to talk about."

"I knew it – my brain is melting," Castle said, looking stricken.

"No – no," she said, putting a hand on his chest. "I talked with Dr. Bresslier and he said there was no chance of that. But he did say that sometimes people subconsciously remember things that happened when they were given ER4-SER."

Castle frowned at her. "Then what…?" he asked as she handed him the remote control to the TV.

Beckett paused, trying to find the right words. "When they thought you were dead, they took you to the morgue," she said simply.

"Yeah, I had wondered about that. Lanie?" Castle asked.

Beckett shook her head. "No – Perlmutter. I got the DVD from him. I think it will answer your question."

"You've watched it?" Castle asked.

Beckett nodded. "Yeah. It was part of the case."

"Anyone else?"

"No – just me." She paused. "Do you want me to stay?"

Castle swallowed and nodded before pushing the play button on the remote.

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Beckett finally took the remote out of Castle's hands and stopped the recording the 10th time he reversed it to look at the segment of Perlmutter whispering in his ear.

"You okay?" she asked quietly.

"Uh – uh," Castle replied, speechless, a stunned look on his face. "Talk about hands-on research," he said and then was silent again for a while, staring off in the distance. He finally shook his head as if clearing cobwebs, shivered, and looked at Beckett.

"You sure no one else has seen this?" he asked.

Beckett shook her head. "Just Perlmutter, me, and now you. Since you weren't dead, there was no need for an autopsy and the DVD has just disappeared from evidence. There aren't any other copies."

"Okay," said Castle, sitting back on the couch, running a hand through his hair, his mind a blank as he tried to absorb what he had just seen. "That was really creepy," he said after a few minutes. Few things shocked him speechless, but this had almost done it.

Beckett let him sit still for a few minutes with his thoughts and then climbed onto his lap, straddling it. "But the good thing is," said Beckett, wrapping her arms around his neck while she gently planted kisses in between words, "that you are alive."

"Hmmm," hummed Castle as he returned her kisses. He finally paused and then looked at her, frowning, slightly curious. "You don't really think—"

"I think he was messing with your head," said Beckett as she sat back. "And it doesn't matter, because you're perfect for me."

And then she went on to show him how perfect they were.

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The body drop rattled them out of bed out an ungodly hour the next morning, and when they got there, Espo and Ryan were standing over the victim, Perlmutter kneeling beside him, carefully examining the scene.

"What do we have?" Beckett asked as she and Castle walked up.

"Black male, two GSWs to the back," said Espo.

"No wallet, no ID," finished Ryan. "Looks like a robbery gone wrong."

"The gunshot wounds were close range and he bled out almost instantly," said Perlmutter, looking up at them, shining the flashlight in their direction. "I'll have more when I get him back to the morgue."

It was then that Castle noticed how close he and the ME were and the positions they were in.

"You know what," the writer said nervously, "You got this, Beckett. I'm – I'm just going to wait in the car – while you finish," he said, pointing towards where Beckett had parked. "You really don't need me."

Espo and Ryan frowned as he walked off. "What's up with writer monkey?" they said in unison, grousing over the early morning wake-up call in the grim morning light of what was going to be a rainy day.

"Curiosity must have killed the cat," said Perlmutter as he peered over his glasses at the victim and then back up at Espo and Ryan. "He's just feeling a little inadequate right now." He shrugged as he put a sample in a bag. "But this is Castle we're talking about, so unfortunately, it shouldn't last too long," he said drily.

As Espo and Ryan moved off to canvas the area, Perlmutter examined the victim further, frowning as the headlights on Beckett's car flashed on and off several times, interrupting him. They finally quit and he could concentrate once again, only to jump slightly when Castle's voice boomed across the field.

"Hey, guys, there's something stuck under the dumpster. I can see it when I turn on the headlights."

"And he's back," commented Perlmutter acerbically.

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The End