Disclaimer:All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

"Thank you for coming," Detective Beckett said to the timid-looking parents of one of the victims. She guessed them to be in their late 60's, but today they were looking especially frail. "Mr. and Mrs. Higgins, I know this is hard, but what can you tell me about your son and daughter in law?"

"They were a happy couple," the gentleman spoke, sadness in his voice. "Work was going well, Mikey had just gotten a promotion."

"Do you know what happened to them?" Mrs. Higgins asked.

"That's what we're trying to figure out," Beckett explained, making a note about the promotion. She showed them a picture from her file folder. "Would they have any reason to be in this building? It's a new residential building in Brooklyn."

"They were shopping for a new place," the older lady said. Then she leaned in to whisper to Kate, "Alison was undergoing fertility treatments."

"It's not a secret, Margaret," her husband told her. "After being dedicated to work for so long they were really hoping to have a child and wanted a bigger place," he explained to Beckett.

"Is there anyone you can think of anyone who would want to cause trouble for them?"

"Everyone loved them," Mr. Higgins said. "It doesn't make any sense. Why them?"

"We have reason to believe that the suspect somehow had a personal relationship with Michael and Alison," Beckett told them. "There's no one you can think of?"

"They were a busy couple," Mrs. Higgins said. "We really only saw them on holidays: Thanksgiving, a day or two at Christmas. We only called every now and then. We didn't want to bother them." She sounded regretful. "You should talk to Christina Reed," she added.

"Christina Reed?" asked Beckett.

"She's known Mikey since high school," Mrs. Higgins explained. "Nice girl. We always thought they'd end up together, but Mikey didn't seem interested. Still, they've stayed close all this time."

"Thank you very much for your help," Beckett said to them, standing. "I'll let you know as soon as we find something." She understood their pain.

"Thank you detective," Mr. Higgins said as he comforted his wife.

Back at the murder board, the team was digging up information on their first suspect.

"Christina Reed," Esposito said, posting her picture on the board. "35, single mother. Former teen-mom. Her kid Andrew is 17. "

"Lives paycheck to paycheck," Ryan added. "Real estate agent by day, waitress by night."

"Went to highschool with Michael Higgins," Esposito read from his notepad. "Bridesmaid in their wedding."

"Clean as a whistle. The most this girl has ever done wrong is a parking ticket three years ago," Ryan concluded.

"Real estate agent isn't exactly a paycheck to paycheck job," Beckett thought out loud. "Maybe she has a bad habit?"

"Maybe, but her gig is new too," Ryan said. "She's been an office clerk at Joseph and Smith Realtors for the past 10 years."

"Talked to her boss," added Esposito. "She just got promoted, last week. Apparently Michael Higgins has a mutual friend with Mr. Joseph and called in a favor. Said she's always been a hard worker so they didn't have a problem giving her a chance to prove herself. Especially since the Higgins' wanted to be her clients."

"What do you think?" Ryan said, trying to read Beckett. "Christina got jealous that her best friend was about to buy a penthouse while she worked two jobs?"

"Did she have the access code for the model apartment?" Beckett asked, considering his theory.

"You bet," Ryan said.

"Bring her in," Beckett ordered. "Any word on those security tapes?" she called after the boys as they started to leave.

"Since the building isn't open yet," Esposito called back, "they haven't been turned on."

"Great," Beckett mumbled, returning to the murder board where she wrote 'No cameras'

Later that day, Beckett and Esposito sat in the interrogation room with a sobbing Christina Reed. Esposito was handing her tissues with an 'I'm really not enjoying this' look across his face. Behind the glass, Detective Ryan giggled, until Captain Richards entered and stood over his shoulder. Ryan tried not to shiver.

"Ms. Reed," Beckett started, not convinced by her suspect's melodrama. "Is it true that you are the real estate agent for Alison and Michael Higgins?"

"Yes," she answered through her tears. "They were so excited when I got the promotion. It worked out perfectly that they were looking for a new place."

"Was your promotion a surprise to you?" Beckett seemed confused that the Higgins' would've been excited about a promotion Michael had made happen.

"I had asked the bosses a few times over the years," Christina explained, "but they always said I was too nice. They didn't think I could give a hard sell. But we had an agent leave last month," she went on, "and because of budget problems they wanted someone new who wouldn't ask for a big salary. I told them I'd be okay with 75% of what they usually paid a beginner if they just gave me a chance."

"So you weren't aware that Michael Higgins called Bill Joseph and volunteered to be your first client if you were given the job?" Beckett asked, surprised.

"What?" Christina exclaimed. She was either genuine or an excellent actress. "No! Michael called my boss? I told him to stay out of it," she sobbed. "He's always trying to help."

"Most people would be grateful for that," Esposito called her out.

Behind the glass Ryan and Richards stood silently. Ryan prayed for his phone to ring so he'd have an excuse to leave.

"How come he's in there and not you?" Richards asked sternly as Beckett and Esposito went on with their questioning.

"He lost rock, paper, scissors. Usually Castle does interrogations with Beckett. He's not as afraid of her as we are." After he had spoken, Ryan realized he probably should've come up with a more reasonable explanation. But, what he had said was 100% the truth. Richards glared at him disapprovingly.

"You're telling me that Montgomery let Castle participate in interrogations?" Now Ryan was the one being interrogated. He should've chosen paper instead of rock. "He couldn't take notes from behind the glass?"

"I guess not," Ryan stumbled, "sir."

"The complete disrespect for protocol at this place amazes me," Richards trailed off, as if talking to a room full of people who weren't actually there.

"Sir," Ryan was gaining courage. "Castle may not be a cop, but he's a damn good detective. He certainly wasn't unsolving cases."

"If I wanted your opinion Detective Ryan, I would have asked for it," the former marine barked.

"Yes sir," said Ryan, courage gone just as quickly as it had come.

"Who's the awkward kid sitting at your desk?" The captain asked.

"That's Andrew Reed, our suspect's son," Ryan explained.

"What's he doing at your desk?" Richards growled.

"Playing solitaire, I think," Ryan defended,"sir."

"Put him in the break room and give him a magazine," Richards ordered before leaving. "What kind of detective lets a kid on his computer? That's just begging for a security breach. Unbelievable." Ryan heard the insult before the door had closed. He stared after his boss in contempt before sticking out his tongue.

"Yes sir," he said in a mocking girly tone, although no one was there to hear. He left to deal with the kid before he was yelled at again.

Back in the interrogation room a pile of tissues had formed on the cold metal table.

"I've known Michael since I was 15," Christina Reed was still explaining. "I skipped eighth grade but then I was the youngest kid in high-school and no one wanted to be my friend. He made me popular. We were gonna take on the world together. And then I got pregnant my senior year; ever since I've been scraping to get by while he skyrocketed to success."

"Sounds like you might be a bit bitter about that," Esposito suggested, "Michael leaving you in the dust?"

"No, it wasn't like that," she defended, finally controlling her tears. "Michael has always been there for me. He could've stopped talking to me when the whole rest of the school did, but he was too good of a friend. There's been so many times he's helped me cover rent or buy groceries. He never lets me pay when we share a cab or have lunch together. I'd always try to pay him back when I could though."

"What about Alison," Beckett took a different angle. "She couldn't have been too happy about her husband spending so much time with another woman."

"Alison and I got along fine," the woman insisted. "I mean, we're different, but there's never been trouble."

"Their bodies were found in this building," Beckett showed her the picture, realizing Christina was going to be harder to break than she initially thought. "Do you know why they would be there?"

"That's the new building about to open in Brooklyn," Christina said, surprised. "I was going to show them it this weekend."

"Their bodies were found in the model unit. The same one that you have the access code to," Esposito said, cutting to the point.

"Wait," Christina said, finally understanding what they wernge imply. "You think I killed them? They were my best friends!"

"Where were you Saturday morning?" Beckett maintained a stern look.

"I always work two shifts at the restaurant," Christina was quick with her alibi. "8AM to noon and then come back at 6 for the dinner rush. I usually stay until 10 if it's busy. In the middle, I have lunch, usually with Michael and Alison, but Michael texted and canceled, so I just did errands instead."

"What time was that text?" Esposito asked, flipping through his notes.

"I don't know," Christina said. "I was still on shift. 10AM maybe?"

"Was it unusual for him to cancel?" Esposito followed-up.

"It didn't happen too often," she said, "but they've been busy lately so I didn't think anything of it."

"Lanie put the TOD at Saturday morning," Esposito said to Beckett. "If he was alive to send a text at 10AM, that's a really small time frame. They might've been with the killer already."

"Can you think of anyone in either Alison or Michael's life who would want to hurt them?" Beckett asked, no longer convinced that Christina was their suspect.

"Not really, no," the other woman said. Her look was apologetic. "Alison is an event planner. Benefits, galas, fundraisers, all the fancy stuff. Everyone is usually very happy with her work though. And Michael just got his big promotion at the law firm. He was so excited. Although," she paused to think, "he did tell me there were some other people at work also hoping for the job."

"Thank you for your help," Beckett said, ending the interview. "You're free to go."

Outside in the hallway the team reassembled as Christina gathered her son and left.

"Esposito, I want a solid confirmation on that alibi," Beckett ordered. "Ryan, call Michael's boss and find out who else was up for that promotion."

"What are you going to do?" Ryan asked, curious for no reason.

"Hit my head against the wall, have a cup of coffee, and see if Lanie's narrowed down our time of death. Most likely in that order." She smiled at their detectives until they had lingered for too long. Then she shooed them away.


Author's Note: Not sure how I feel about writing a crime/mystery. Not really my genre, but I figured I'd give it a go. Its kind of daunting in comparison to the show writers who are so excellent. If you're totally bored let me know and I'll stick to drama/romance after I wrap this case up.