"So it wasn't about me?"

It was the next afternoon. The surgery had gone without a hitch, and Castle, though weak, was recovering well. The three detectives had paid him a visit as soon as they were able. When they discovered Martha and Alexis had subsisted on coffee for the majority of the past day, Esposito and Ryan had insisted on taking them to get something of more substance than caffeinated beverages.

Beckett chuckled. "No, Castle, sorry."

The look on Castle's face could only be described as crestfallen. "All this time, and I still don't have a rabid fan attack to my credit."

"Well, I wouldn't say you don't have rabid fans," Beckett objected. "Remember the case that started us working together? Or the Nikki Heat case?"

He paused for a minute, apparently thinking it over. "I'll give you that. But think about the headlines this could have created! There would have been articles and blog posts. My books would have started flying off the shelves!" He paused at the look on her face. "What?"

Beckett just shook her head, her left eyebrow raised.

"But you did get her, right?" Castle asked, growing slightly more serious.

"Yeah, we got her," Beckett replied. "Cassidy Thomas confessed to breaking into your apartment last night. She wanted to get back at me for arresting her last year."

"So why not attack you? I mean, I remember hearing about the case and everything, but I wasn't brought in on it." Castle shifted in the bed, wincing slightly. "And why did you make the arrest anyway? It was a robbery case and you're in homicide."

"I tracked her down to bring her in for questioning on one of my cases – I thought she might have seen something that would be helpful – and it turned out she had an outstanding warrant for breaking and entering. She blamed me for causing her to go to jail."

"So why didn't she go after you?" he asked again. "Wait, don't tell me. She wanted to make a point, right? That or she knew accosting an officer of the law was worse than just a regular writer."

Beckett glanced down at her lap before looking back up at Castle. "No, her, uh, her boyfriend broke up with her when she was convicted," she told him. "She thought the best retaliation would be to take away someone important in my life."

Castle watched her face, his eyes softening and the edges of his mouth turning up. "And she chose me?"

"Don't sound so flattered, Castle. She put you in the hospital; she wanted you dead."

"Right. I'm sure she misinterpreted our relationship," he assured her. "We're just partners."

Before Beckett could respond, the door to Castle's room swung open. Esposito, Ryan, Martha, and Alexis entered, smiling and laughing.

"Well, you're all in good spirits," Castle greeted them with a smile. "I'm glad to see that. Now, let's talk food. What did you smuggle in for me?" He rubbed his hands together in expectation.

Esposito waved a brown paper bag in his direction. "How does a chicken sandwich sound?"

"Heavenly." Castle inhaled deeply, leaning forward towards the direction of the bag dangling in Esposito's hand.

"I was talking to Beckett. You think we're going to sneak you contraband?" Esposito leveled a look at the man in the hospital bed.

Castle's face fell, and the rest of the group laughed.

"Gotcha!" Ryan pointed a finger at the writer. "Dude, you should know us better than that."

Esposito pulled two foil-wrapped sandwiches from the bag, passing one to Beckett and one to Castle, who eagerly accepted it and began unwrapping the sandwich.

"So when do you get out of here?" Ryan asked, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall.

"Well, they're saying a week," Martha offered, speaking for Castle who was wolfing down his contraband.

The conversation continued, but Castle was only half-listening. He sighed contentedly. He had good food and even better friends, friends who he knew would always be there for him. The situation wasn't one he would have chosen, but he couldn't complain too much. He was going to be fine and out of the hospital in less than a week if his mother had anything to say about it.

And who knew? Maybe he could put his experience to good use in the next Nikki Heat novel. Jamison Rook needed a little more excitement in his life.