Searching the scene Kate's eyes burned…was it the shock of the scene before her or the sorrow of her heart…was it the smoke from the rising flames or the gripping fear that was tearing her heart in two…suddenly the car burst in spontaneous combustion again and shook Kate on her very foundation.

She dropped to the ground feeling the fullness of her wedding dress under her knees…and then it all went black…

Meanwhile…Esposito and Ryan had arrived at the scene in another car with Lanie Parrish, Martha , and Alexis in the back seat…Alexis jumped out to try to reach the car but Espo grabbed her writhing body and softly, sweetly caressed her hair…

"shshshshshsh, hush" he quietly spoke and calmed her as she stopped bucking his every grasp of her small frame…her eyes damp with tears and her mouth trying to utter the words…"Daddy"…

Martha just sat in the back of the vehicle…stunned unmoving…Lanie grasped her hand and that was all she could do as the woman who was wiser than her muttered…"my baby"… as Lanie tried to do her best not to get out of that car and run to see if there was a body, she heard another car pull up behind them fast…firemen were running around shouting and it looked like they didn't even want to get close to the car that seemed ready to go up in flames again at anytime…she looked back behind her again and saw Jim Beckett rush out of the driver's seat… he was yelling something that she couldn't understand and then again suddenly she remembered…"Katie? Katie?", he bellowed.

Lanie patted Martha on the shoulder and told her to stay in the car…so hoping that she would take her advice. She opened the door which seemed as heavy as led and rounded it to look for Kate… she joined Jim Beckett just as he was holding his daughter… cradling her in his arms…softly sobbing…

Espo and Ryan were talking to the state police on the scene when the firemen started to spray their hoses…apparently according the tire tracks there were two cars and only one set of tire tracks that led off into the ravine…the other tracks seemed to disappear down the road…the fire chief came over to them andquickly briefed them on the next step with the inferno that was a car… according to his knowledge this car had just been filled up and that was why the heat was so intense and the fire pulsating with new emissions of combustion…the boys decided the next step was to see where Castle had last filled up…maybe, just maybe, there was something they could find…they looked back and saw Lanie standing in the distance…looking like she had finally lost the battle to fight back the tears…Espo walked over to her and she let his arms wrap around her like a wave of sorrow but protection all at the same time…Espo also noticed something else…everyone but Lanie, and the last car at the scene, were gone.