A Hole for Two

Chapter 10

Kate closed the lid of her laptop harder than she needed to, causing Castle to look up from his files. "Had it for the night?" he asked.

Kate rolled her stiff shoulders. "Feels like I've had it period. I can't find any kind of connection between Merkle and Ganz."

"Maybe that's because there isn't one," Castle suggested gently. "Kate, your feelings about Ganz may have more to do with your guilt over Mike's death than they do they with this case. You've been a cop for well over a decade and I've been at your side for seven of those years. There have to be other people who have a hate on for you, or both of us, and might have been connected to Charlotte Long and/or Merkle somehow. Maybe there's a case we missed, that wasn't in the original piles, maybe under the name of a different cop? Or maybe there was one with Federal charges because there was another crime involved. Why don't we sleep on it?"

Kate stretched wearily. "You may be right, Castle. You've been working at least as hard as I have. We could both use some rest."

Castle stood up and crooked an elbow."Allow me to escort you to our cushy if unconventional sleeping quarters." Kate took the offered arm.

Kate sat up suddenly in the gloom of very early morning. "I know whose file wasn't there!"

Castle fought off the confusion that came with the sudden interruption of REM sleep. "What?"

"Castle, you remember when you and Martha were held hostage in that bank?"

"Remember it?" Castle returned. "The smile I got from you when you found me alive is one of the highlights of my life. What about the case?"

"It wouldn't have been filed under my name," Kate realized. "The guy who was officially in charge was that jerk Petersen, even though it led to our capture of Ron Brandt for murder. Ron Brandt had extensive unsavory connections overseas and he hired mercs to pull off that bank job. Castle, we kept Brandt from kidnapping his son. He has reason to hate us both. And we know he has a mind for revenge and doesn't care who he kills to get it."

"You're right," Castle agreed, "but didn't he get convicted of enough charges to send him away for at least a dozen lifetimes?"

"He did, Castle," Kate confirmed, "but his lawyer also was trying to negotiate with the Feds. Brandt supposedly had information on terrorist activities, because he sold them the guns to pursue them. He was trying to make some kind of a trade to get himself a deal in exchange for helping to take out a major Al Qaeda base. Once I heard about that, I didn't want to hear anymore. I couldn't stand to picture that piece of crap ever getting back on the street."

"What about Tanya and Connor, his wife and son?" Castle inquired anxiously. "If he was let out, they'd be in danger all over again."

Kate shook her head. "I don't know Castle. I do know that our people put Tanya in touch with an organization that helps abused women build new lives, so she and Connor may be safely settled somewhere. I can ask Ryan if there's a file under Petersen, but we probably wouldn't have access to anything the Feds did. Since terrorism may be involved, this is probably more Rachel and Richmond than it is Jordan, especially with the possibility of the mole at the FBI."

Castle reached for his watch on the nightstand and gazed at the glowing dial. "All of those people are going to be asleep for at least several more hours. Sleeping on the problem has brought you this insight. You could try for another one. Wait, did you hear that?"

Kate instinctively reached for her gun."There's someone in the house, someone who knows how to get past the security system. Castle, we need to be ready."

"Kate, if whoever it is was able to breech the security system, they may be as armed as you are, maybe more. We should hide," Castle urged."

"Castle, where? I think they'll know to look under the bed, unless Garland has a panic room you haven't told me about."

"No panic room, but a writer's retreat. He showed me once when I was still married to Gina and I was complaining about her getting on my case. He had it built in here. The staff was not allowed to disturb him unless the house was burning down and it's shielded from phone signals and wi-fi, so all he'd do is write."

Kate pulled out the Mag Lite she kept with her cell phone and her badge. "Show me."

"We do have to get under the bed," Castle told her. "That's where the hatch is. Garland wanted it there to make it as difficult and probably as weird as possible to get in."

Kate handed him her light, but kept her gun, and they slipped beneath the box spring. He felt along the wall under the backboard. "There's a catch here somewhere. Yeah, this is it." A section of the wall swung inward and they crawled through. Castle kicked it shut behind them and standing up, used Kate's light to find a switch that would provide better illumination. An overhead light revealed a small room with a large comfortable chair, a desk that would accommodate a laptop, a sink, a commode, and a plug-in twin sized air mattress with a blanket. A small refrigerator had been left empty and open with a microwave oven on top of it. The wall boasted shelves with one set of dishes and flatware, an array of non-perishable snacks, and a bottle of fifty-year-old scotch. There was also a vent from the climate control system and an intercom.

Kate gazed around. "Wow, Castle, a person could live in here."

"That was the idea," Castle responded, "but it was definitely not set up for two. When I was talking about joining you in your rabbit hole, this wasn't what I had in mind. Still it should keep us safe and if we put the intercom on receive, we should be able to tell when the coast is clear. Garland had two-way mikes put in most of the rooms so he could reach the staff if he needed them." Castle flipped a switch. They could hear whispers of conversation about finding the cop bitch and her idiot writer. "Definitely not friendly."

"Our files and our laptops are in the basement. At least they're not talking about finding those. That means they may not be sure we're here. I could stick my cell phone out the little door just long enough to call in reinforcements," Kate suggested.

"If you do that and the cops come, then they will know for sure we're here," Castle pointed out. "There might even be a shoot out and the cops might be on the bad end of it. Much as I love my wife, woman of deadly action, I think this time it might be best to huddle in our burrow and wait whoever these guys are, out."

Kate paced the tiny patch of floor. "Castle, cowering in here goes against almost every instinct I have, but you are probably right. We should wait and listen. Maybe they'll give something away about who they are and who sent them."

Castle sank down in the one chair and held up crossed fingers. "Let's hope."