Miracle at The 12th Precinct
Chapter 11
Title: Zat You, Santa Claus? (Song by Louis Armstrong)
Disclaimer: These characters…they're not mine. I wish. I'm just toying with them.
Gates stuck her head out from her office the moment she saw Kate and Castle walk past her door upon their return from the hospital. "Detective Beckett - a word." she said, discreetly eyeballing them both and quickly determining they looked none the worse for wear.
Kate nodded, and then left Castle to contemplate the murder board alone as she walked into Gates' office, closing the door behind her. Gates took a seat behind her desk, while Kate chose to remain standing. As usual, Gates skipped the pleasantries and got straight to the point. "We had one witness to guard, Detective," she said, removing her glasses. "You want to tell me how the hell this happened?"
"We're still working that out, Sir," Kate explained. "Two men made it past the FBI guards and into Henry Jenkins' room. They were both carrying false ID, one posing as a staff doctor, the other an orderly. We believe their plan was to kidnap Jenkins, not immediately kill him. He's apparently of some value to them. Exactly what that value is, we've yet to determine."
"Let me get this straight. You're telling me two, not one, FBI guards were posted outside the man's door and yet these men somehow still made it through. We're not dealing with amateurs; my guess is they won't give up easily. You should know, the Mayor has demanded a full report."
Kate's eyebrows rose to new heights. Great. How the hell did the Mayor get wind of this?
As if reading her mind, Gates answered her unspoken question. "His Honor received a call from one of his golf buddies – who also happens to sit on the hospital board. It seems the hospital frowns upon shootings on their premises and would prefer we retain our witnesses elsewhere. The Mayor's taken quite an interest in this case; I got an earful. Our only saving grace will be that at least the Feds were guarding him - not the NYPD."
"Yes, Sir." Kate nodded. "Plans are currently in the works to move Jenkins to a secure, less public location. It shouldn't be much longer. For right now, he's still at the hospital. Agent Shaw has half the FBI watching him."
"That's all good and well, however, right now," Gates said. "What I need are details."
Kate explained how, due to Detective Ryan's quick thinking, the kidnapping plan was thwarted and how one of the men who'd made it past security into Jenkins' room was taken into custody while the other was shot and killed by Ryan, who'd barely escaped taking a bullet himself. She told Gates that Ryan's insights also led them to the additional arrest of a third man who'd been waiting outside in a get-a-way car for Jenkins to be brought down. She confirmed both men apprehended were in lock-up, their dead accomplice down at the morgue, and added that the FBI, in cooperation with the NYPD, were working to properly identify all three men.
"Good. Let me know when you're ready to begin questioning the men now in custody. I'd like to hear this."
"Yes, Sir."
"I'd heard there was an altercation, injuries were sustained. You said Detective Ryan was nearly shot. Was he otherwise injured? Or was Mr. Castle? Henry Jenkins?"
"Ryan and Castle are both fine, Sir," Kate said, masking her shock over what she could only imagine had been concern flitter across her boss' face. Maybe Castle was right, and he is growing on her. Nah. "Ryan's currently running down a lead with Esposito, and Castle's…," - Well, he's outside staring at the murder board, being Castle, but she couldn't very well say that.
The Captain was still staring at Beckett, waiting for her to expand. Growing impatient, she then pressed for a more direct answer. "Well was there, or wasn't there an altercation, Detective?"
"Yes, there was an altercation, but no, it was not with Detective Ryan, Castle and our perp., Sir. It was between Kris, I mean Henry Jenkins and the man posing as the doctor."
"I see. How serious are his injuries?"
"Three fractured ribs, acute lacerations to the face, chest, arms, and head. A concussion, ten stitches...," Kate paused, eyes drawn to the ceiling as she tried to recall the rest. "A bloody nose, one knocked out front tooth and a few loosened ones."
"The bastards. Beating up an elderly man. Makes me positively sick." Gates said, venom evident in her voice. "What is this world coming to?" she said, shaking her head.
Kate quickly realized Gate's confusion. "Excuse me, Sir, but Jenkins wasn't the one injured," she said. "He's the one that did the inflicting – with his cane. Those were the assailant's injuries I described. The hospital is only watching Jenkins for signs of stress due to his age, but otherwise he doesn't have a mark on him."
"Seriously?" Gates' eyebrows rose to her hairline. Her mouth hung open.
"Seriously."
"Remarkable. And good for him since it's clear to me we can use all the help we can get." Gates seemed duly impressed - with Jenkins anyhow. "I'm looking forward to meeting this man. He sounds extraordinary, although I'm not quite sure he's in need of our protection; he seems to be doing just fine on his own. Regardless, find out what he knows about the bombing and the mob, and why these people are after him."
"Yes, Sir."
"Anything more on the credit card numbers found on the victim?"
"We'll be meeting with Agent Shaw to discuss that shortly, Sir."
"Any updates on the bomb squad report? And the surveillance video from the store they work at?"
"The same, Sir."
"Well then, we still have some work to do, don't we? I took the liberty of starting the interviews." Gates said. "They began to arrive just after you and Detective Esposito left and were getting antsy. I wasn't sure how much longer you would be so I put Detective Karpowski on it, mainly to handle the preliminary paperwork and questions. Find her. She'll fill you in and then you can take over, but she's available to assist, if need be. Keep me abreast of the situation."
Fantastic, Kate thought, keeping her expression neutral...more freaking elves. While she would normally welcome an extra hand, especially with the paperwork, the less people they involved on this case the better. It was bad enough half her team believed they were guarding the real, live Santa Claus, but she also had the FBI to contend with and now the Mayor of New York City; potential ribbing from their co-workers was the last thing she needed. Karpowski would have a field day with this one.
In lieu of a formal dismissal, Gates put her glasses back on, picked up some papers on her desk and started to read through them.
"Thank you, Sir." Kate said, unclenching her teeth and turning to exit.
"Detective." Gates called out. "One more thing. Instruct Agent Shaw I need to speak with her immediately."
"Yes, Sir." Kate nodded, feeling almost sorry for Jordan.
After leaving Gates' office Kate headed directly to the FBI's 'Santa's Workshop' area in search of Jordan who was nowhere to be found. She left a message with one of Jordan's staff to have her speak with Captain Gates as soon as she returned.
Kate found Castle and Esposito huddled around a table in the break-room wolfing down sandwiches Castle had ordered in, in his blatant, never-ending quest to ensure she ate. She had to admit he did a pretty good job of taking care of her, even if he tried to be sneaky about it. For once, she wouldn't argue; she was starving and hadn't eaten since breakfast. Her mouth watered at the sight of the plate Rick passed her. She smiled, thanked him and then took a seat at the table, placing her jacket on the back of the chair. There wasn't much time, but a bite or two would probably hold her until dinner. They needed to go find Karpowski.
"How'd it go with Gates?" Castle inquired, as he leaned against the counter and studied her. She looked a little tense to him.
"Oh, you know… the usual," she replied, dryly. "She wanted to know how the hell we let this happen, and wanted answers to numerous questions which, of course, I was unable to provide at this time. Oh, and on a special note, your pal the Mayor's now up her ass thanks to his golf buddy on the hospital board, therefore she'll be further up ours."
"Crap," Esposito exclaimed, muttering something else in Spanish.
"You know, Beckett" Rick said, trying to lighten the mood. "I have a theory."
"I'm all ears, Castle."
"I think secretly, you really love the quality time you get to spend with Gates," he chuckled.
She fought the desire to laugh. "Yeah, Castle. Each time I get called in there, it's like one big reunion. Next time, we're going to braid each other's hair."
Esposito continued eating, sat back, and enjoyed the show. Their sparring amused him and although it was a rerun, he hadn't seen this episode yet.
"You and you're theories," she said, shaking her head at him.
"You love my theories, Kate. Come on, admit it," he said, egging her on. "You know you do."
She laughed out loud. "Ha! Keep telling yourself that, Castle."
"Food!" Ryan declared, finally joining them. He eyed the food and then quickly grabbed a sandwich, scarfing some down. Nearly escaping death had seemingly fueled his appetite. "I just heard back from the hospital…," he said, between bites. "Man this is good. The agents are going to be okay. Labs came back. They were injected with Midazolam, commonly used at hospitals for sedation prior to surgery. Dose they were given wasn't enough to kill them; just subdue them, although I'm told they're pretty lucky their breathing wasn't compromised. Hospital's checking their supply to see if there's any indication it came from there. They're keeping both agents overnight since they're still pretty out of it. Feds are still trying to get their statements, but neither agent remembers much after reporting for duty."
"Okay, at least they'll be alright; that's some good news - I'll take it. Keep me posted on their status, Ryan." She checked her watch. "Hey, has anyone seen Jordan?"
"Yeah, she's bringing in our mole," Esposito replied. "Should be back soon."
"Good." Kate nodded. "When she gets back and after her meeting with the Captain, we need to regroup with her and her team. Feds should be pretty far along with reviewing the security camera footage by now and we need to discuss moving Kris. The stakes just got higher."
"About that, I have a few ideas...," Castle said, unable to suppress his smirk. Between the hands in his pockets and the bouncing on his tiptoes, he reminded her of a little boy dying to share a secret. Her Castle alarm sounded loudly. The shrill echoing in her head; no good will come of this, it warned.
"Yes, I'm sure you do. But let's wait for Jordan, okay, Castle?" She ignored his pout. "Daylight's burning."
"How do you want to handle the interviews, Beckett?" Ryan asked.
"Karpowski's already started on them. Let's find her, see where we're at. Then we split up. There's a lot of people to interview; I predict a busy afternoon, boys." Frowning, she rolled her neck and shoulders. Not getting enough sleep the night before was starting to wear on her.
"We'll get these guys, Beckett," Esposito told her, standing up and moving to clear the trash.
"I know we will, Espo," she replied. "Let's just hope it's sooner rather than later."
He nodded back and then both he and Ryan left the room leaving Castle and Beckett alone for a moment.
"Come on, Castle. You're with me." She said, getting up and then grabbing her jacket. He was next to her in a flash, helping her into it.
"Aren't I always, Kate?" He whispered into her ear, brushing his lips against it as his firm hands gently gave her shoulders a squeeze. He noted how tense the muscles were. A soft moan escaped her and he caught her smile forming, which had been the desired effect; the moaning, simply icing on the cake. "I think someone needs a massage," he said, matter-of-factly.
"No kidding." She said, turning to face him, standing closer than what would typically be considered a respectable distance from your partner in the work place. His clear, honest blue eyes bore down into hers. She could trust him with her feelings, Lanie was right. They needed to talk about her reservations with their upcoming holiday plans. She wasn't putting it off any longer. "Tonight…a massage, yes. But first there are a few things we need to talk about, okay?"
"Uh, oh. How much trouble am I in?"
"You're not in any trouble. For once." She teased, trying to put him at ease.
"Well then, you're on," he replied, curious about her request, but more concerned with how she'd handle the discussion he planned to have. "A talk, followed by one Castle Special Massage coming right up – if we ever get out of here, that is. Actually, Kate…there's something I need to talk to you about tonight as well."
She tilted her head to the side. "You sure it can wait until later?"
"Absolutely." He motioned to the door. "After you, Detective," he said, following her out.
XXXXXXXXXXX
Upon spotting Beckett a normally stoic and composed Detective Evelyn Karpowski, immediately grabbed her by the arm and pulled her by the jacket sleeve into the alcove between the two interrogation rooms leaving a perplexed Castle, Esposito and Ryan to remain standing in the hallway as she shut the door on them.
"Beckett, these people are bat-shit crazy!" she exclaimed, her eyes bulging. Nearly every one of those people think this Henry Jenkins guy is the real freakin' Santa Claus! What the hell are they putting in the eggnog over there?" Then she began to pace the small room, rubbing her hands through her hair.
And we're off… Kate wasn't sure how to respond without sounding just as crazy as the Macy workers, or Castle and Ryan for that matter, but braced herself. She had to take control of the situation and down-play Kris' unusual influence over his co-workers. She thanked God, Castle and Ryan had been banished to the hallway giving her a chance to smooth things over with Karpowski.
Through the one-way mirrors on either side of the alcove Beckett noticed a witness sat waiting in each of the adjoining rooms. Both occupants were still dressed in their costumes from work, and she found herself briefly distracted as to whether or not Castle had an elf costume in his collection. She pushed the disturbing thought aside to focus on Karpowski. "They told you they believe he's really Santa Claus, huh?" she chuckled. "Probably has something to do with being surrounded by all those Christmas decorations, and listening to that piped in holiday music play…," she said, making circles the air with her head, "…over and over and over again on a loop all day. I know weeks on end of that stuff until January drives me insane. Imagine listening to it all day long."
"Well, yeah. God, who doesn't hate that? But Beckett, this is different, it's like they've been brainwashed by this guy or something."
Kate kept her calm. "They're probably just caught up in the Christmas spirit. Or maybe they're just play acting? I'd bet the store encourages them to stay in character. Like they do at Disneyland."
"Yeah, well…just to be safe, I'll be doing my shopping at Bloomingdale's from now on. They're all freakin' nuts."
"Yeah, well, you and I both know we don't get a lot of normal walking these halls."
Karpowski seemed to mull that over then nodded slowly.
"How much coffee have you had today, by the way, Karpowski?"
"A few cups, why?"
"No reason." Kate said, looking at her watch. "Hey, we're running pretty short on time. How about I bring the boys in now and you tell us what you've got so far?" she said, eagerly changing the subject.
"Yeah, sure," Karpowski reluctantly agreed. She'd let it drop. In a short while, Beckett would see for herself what she was up against.
"Just give me a minute." Kate said, managing a small smile. She opened the door forcing the boys to jump apart and take a step backwards. They'd obviously been eavesdropping. She stepped outside and quickly closed the door behind her.
"Okay, listen up," she said, immediately losing the smile and lowering her voice. She waived her pointer finger back and forth between Ryan and Castle as Esposito stood silently by. "I don't want to hear one word from either of you about believing Kris is Santa Claus. We've got enough to deal with without adding ridicule from our co-workers to the list." They both stared blankly at her afraid to utter a response. "Nod so I know you understand."
Both Castle and Ryan nodded mutely. "Good. Follow me. Karpowski's going to give us a report on what she's got so far. No matter what she says I need you both to keep your mouths shut. Nod and smile boys, nod and smile. Got it?" Again they nodded mutely since antagonizing an already pissed off Beckett was on both their lists of things not to do.
"Told you." Esposito said, smacking Ryan on the arm.
"Shut up." Ryan whispered back, which only made Esposito laugh.
They followed her in the room and Esposito promptly wiped the smirk off his face at the look Beckett shot him.
"Hey," Karpowski said in greeting. Ryan and Castle both smiled and nodded.
"Yo." Esposito said, grinning. He couldn't help it.
Karpowski proceeded with her verbal review from the pile of reports she held. "Room one, Tammy Wilson. A real Southern Belle. She plays Mrs. Claus. Twenty-two, no priors. She's about as perky as they come, but if her costume were any tighter, I'd be afraid her boobs would spring loose, and terrorize the children."
The men all turned at once to check out Tammy through the one-way mirror.
"Eyes over here, boys." Kate said, flicking Castle's shirtsleeve to redirect his attention. He pasted on a stupid smile and nodded at her. She rolled her eyes.
Karpowski continued. "She's so sugary-sweet, my teeth hurt just talkin' to her. She thinks Jenkins, is the one and only, real, live, Santa Claus." She paused a moment, looking up at each of them to gauge their reactions, but they only stared back at her blankly. "Nearly all of them did actually." She was rewarded with more unblinking stares. Maybe I should switch to decaf? "Anyway…she wanted us to know she thinks Santa's a really "neat" guy who couldn't possibly have done anything wrong." She looked up at Beckett. "Who the hell says "neat" anymore anyway?" Castle and Ryan smiled and nodded in agreement. She narrowed her eyes at them as she handed Kate the copy of Tammy Wilson's report.
While Kate agreed the bodice of her Mrs. Claus dress was obscenely tight, nothing else from Evelyn's report seemed too out of the ordinary.
Karpowski read the name off from the top of the next report. "Billy Sanchez, room 2." She motioned to the young kid in the opposite room. "Little punk. Twenty-one. Four arrests for disorderly conduct. He thinks "Santa" is pretty cool – for a really, really old dude, and likes him even though he's been pushing Billy to go back to school to finish up his degree. I'm guessing the Billster, here - his nickname for himself - not mine, has other, more enjoyable extra-curricular activities that entice him more."
"Like what?" Kate asked.
"Let's just say the Billster has some major focusing issues and probably couldn't walk a straight line at any given time. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say it's possible he smokes a little weed. In fact, I bet if we told him we'd join him, he'd light up a doobie during your interview."
"This should be interesting…," Kate replied.
"Yeah, and yet completely unrewarding. But hey, that's nothing. Wait until you meet the others. They're in rooms all over the freaking place." Karpowski flipped through the other reports giving a brief synopsis on each interviewee.
"Room 3. Holly Winter. Nineteen. Cashier. Also no priors, but there were two disturbing the peace complaints filed over the last couple weeks at her apartment building, otherwise nada. Demanded I tell her what happened to Kris but claimed she hardly even spoke to the rest of her co-workers at all. Claims they're all idiots. You're not going to get much outta her, uncooperative is this kid's middle name. And wait until you get a load of the elf-outfit she's sporting. On a girl that tall, well, that's just all kinds of wrong. I can't believe they make the poor kid wear that thing – although it does explain the attitude. I mean, seriously, if I had to wear that thing, I'd be pissed off too. Unlike the others, she didn't bring it up, so I asked her if she thought Jenkins was the real Santa Claus too. She said Kris was 'just a nice old man with whiskers' and that since I was a cop you would think I would know the difference between fact and fiction. Then she looked at me like I was a moron."
Ryan and Castle smiled and nodded at her, not uttering a peep.
"What the hell's the matter with them?" Karpowski asked Kate, who simply shrugged her shoulders.
"What else you got?" Esposito asked, jumping in to redirect the conversation.
"Room 4. Alison Hanson. Twenty. No priors. Came to New York to be an actress. She plays one of Santa's elves, but has always felt she's really more suited for the Mrs. Santa role. As you can imagine, she doesn't care too much for the chick playing Mrs. Santa. As for Jenkins, she goes back and forth, but said he's either the real, honest to God Santa Claus or the greatest method actor that has ever lived."
"Room 5. Steve Drucker, photographer. Forty-five. Personally, I wouldn't let my kids within a fifty-mile radius. I needed a shower after speaking to him for half hour – slime-ball kept staring at my chest. Thought about pulling my gun on him." All three men glanced nervously around the room, at anywhere but, Karpowski's chest.
"He's had a couple drinking in public's, but surprisingly enough no indecent exposure incidents. Also, he spent a weekend in lock-up for disorderly conduct while down in Daytona Beach on Spring break – two years ago, the perv. A red flag went up on this guy so I pulled his financials. It turns out he owes a quite a bit of money to bill collectors; might be worth looking into. In regard to Santa; he envies him. Called him a babe magnet." She looked pointedly at Beckett. "When you speak to him you might want to bring a can of Raid."
"Room 6. The photographer's assistant, Cammie Coleman. Twenty-four, no priors. One look at her and you'll understand why Drucker hired her. I'd be shocked if she can spell her own name. She thinks elves are 'super cute' but thinks Kris is even hotter. Older men just…get her." Done reading, Karpowski looked up. "That's it for the preliminaries. That's all I've got." She handed Beckett the stack of papers she'd accumulated.
Esposito spoke first."Wow."
"Yeah. That about sums it up, Esposito." she replied.
Kate busied herself with the paperwork in her hands. "Thanks, Karpowski. Appreciate the help."
"Yeah. Thanks." Esposito seconded.
"Sure. No problem. Let me know if you need anything else, Beckett." Karpowski replied, half-heartedly. Frankly, she'd had enough "weird" for one day.
"Thanks, but we got this from here."
Karpowski eyed Castle and Ryan suspiciously as she started for the door. They both smiled and nodded back at her like idiots, neither uttering a sound. What the hell is wrong with everyone today? She stopped dead in her tracks, turning briefly back towards Beckett. "You know… you're right, Beckett," she said, turning back to stare them down. "We really don't see a lot of normal in these halls."
"Tell me about it." Kate replied, dryly, not looking up from the files she was reviewing.
Relieved, and without further adieu, Karpowski left, heading directly to the break-room for an aspirin with a double espresso chaser - screw the decaf.
Meanwhile, Kate divided up the list of room assignments, splitting up the interviews between herself and Castle, Ryan, and Esposito.
Ryan and Castle silently argued with each other while Beckett was distracted, debating over who would be the one to ask. Arms crossed, Esposito silently shook his head them.
Castle cleared his throat. "May we speak now?" he said aloud.
She didn't bother looking up, the hair lightly falling in her face enough to shield the whisper of a smile. "If you insist," she muttered.
A/N: Thanks so much for taking the time to read! Karen