Title: A Day in the Life if Perlmutter- Where We Stand
Rating: K+
Character: Sidney Perlmutter
Disclaimer: Andrew Marlowe, the creator and writer of Castle, is who I want to be when I grow up. And I'm thankful that he lets us play with the toys in his toybox.
Author's Note: In light of all that happened last night, Perlmutter keeps poking my brain to tell his story. I thought I would humor him, and I don't think y'all mind.
Summary: Murder made sense to him. But kidnapping didn't. (Spoilers through 5x15 "Target")

Murder made sense. The way a person dissected another person's soul from his or her body by bullet, knife, drugs or strangulation had an age-old method to the madness. Greed, money, jealousy, whatever feeling applied at the time was easily categorized and rationalized as motive. Murder made a great deal of sense. Kidnapping, however, was different. Kidnapping was another beast entirely, one he could not tame or slay as easily as an autopsy.

Alexis was smart. She was vibrant, quick, attentive, and one of the best people that he ever trained. Her kind, warm personality and exceptional intellect often made him wonder how on earth she could be the spawn of that insipid writer monkey, and through his time teaching her, he could not shake his almost parental pride and affection for the young redhead. Now, without her, the morgue seemed emptier, colder, too big and too vacant. Her absence painfully distracted him, and it was almost too hard to do the normal, daily multitasking his occupation required.

A slight knock on the door alerted him to somebody's presence and in walked a shade of the confident cop he had known for years. Her bloodshot hazel eyes and tousled hair spoke of restless, disturbed slumber, if she even grasped any sleep at all. She gave him a half-hearted smile and asked, "Find anything yet?"

Perlmutter stared at the body of Sara and Alexis's would-be savior and grimly shook his head. "No, nothing. But then again, we didn't expect to find much else. All I have is the logistics."

She sighed and ran her hands through her hair, pulling at the roots in frustration. "Great," she said. "And here I was hoping for something different."

"That's the definition of insanity you know," said Perlmutter. "Doing things the same way and expecting different results."

"I don't give a crap," she replied. "This whole thing is insanity."

"How's Castle?" Beckett looked at him sideways, steeling for her defense, and he amended his approach. "I know you two are together. You've acted differently ever since you came back from suspension. It was an observation I noticed right away."

Kate wilted, defeated. "He feels the same as you would expect. Scared of his mind. She's his baby girl, and frankly I can't blame him." She adjusted her coat and pursed her lips into a grim line. "I have to get back to the precinct. Thank you, Perlmutter, for giving this one last try."

"Detective."

"Yes?" She stopped midway through the threshold.

"If they so much as touch her, I will bury them. Right after Castle is through with them. You bring our girl home, or they will go home to their families in body bags."

Kate smiled faintly and nodded. "Thank you, Sidney."