Emily knows this, but to those of you who don't, I'm extremely iffy about this chapter. I hope it meets everyones expectations :)
And this time you have to read to the end to get the thank you's.
Chapter 12:
"Esposito-" Beckett shouted across the bullpen as she entered that morning. "Where are we on tracking Matthew Gregory?" Her tone told him she was not in a very good mood. Esposito and Ryan leapt out of their seats, abandoning their coffee to launch into their findings.
"No word on the man yet, but I have my boys sweeping the streets-" Esposito began, speaking quickly. A frustrated Beckett huffed, irritably, sinking into her desk chair. She took a minute to compose herself, running a hand through her golden brown hair, releasing another low breath, heavy with exhaustion.
She had gotten great sleep last night.
The past two days, as a matter of fact, despite the hardwood floor she slept on.
The best sleep she had gotten in years.
So why was she so tired?
I'm tired of this damn case, she told herself. It put her in the foulest of moods, despite her pleasant morning.
A shuffling sound in the quiet precinct indicated the arrival of Castle. She looked at him, caught his eye for the briefest of seconds, and pretended not to notice his arrival. Why, she wasn't sure. Not an hour ago she was smiling and joking with him over orange juice.
A part of her wanted to curl up into his warm body and let him wrap his arms around her.
Breath in the mixture of Coast soap, manly body wash and whatever was uniquely him.
The rest of her wanted to push away.
The latter was something she promised herself she wouldn't do.
"Woah-" Esposito caught the look they shared. "What was that?" he asked.
"Nothing," she dismissed, as she saw Castle sit in his chair, slowly, as if he wasn't sure he should.
"Yesterday you could hardly keep your hands to yourself," Esposito continued, obviously not ready to drop the subject. "Now you can't even look at him?"
"Was it really that bad?" Ryan caught on, asking Beckett specifically. The implication of his words were very clear. Before shooting them both very dirty looks, Kate continued.
"Ryan, I want you to release John Marcus," Beckett said, boldness erupting without warning. She wasn't sure if her brain had caught up with her mouth yet.
"Excuse me?" Ryan asked, her words distracting him from his joke.
"You heard me. Let him go."
"Ahh," Ryan caught on. "You want to bait Gregory?"
"They were partners in crime for a long time. Word got out, surely, maybe he's hiding until Marcus is in the clear. Release Marcus from holding, do whatever paperwork, but I want a tail on him," she delegated. Ryan nodded, pen and pad in hand, and rushed off in the direction of holding. "Esposito- have you heard from Lanie about the knife?" to this, Esposito shook his head.
Kate felt her mood begin to change from irritation to a lighter, more calm sort of feeling. "I will go talk to her, Espo, you get started on that paperwork, yeah?" she said, now grinning at her own joke as she stood and made her way to the lift. When she found herself waiting at the doors alone, she looked back. Castle was still sitting in his seat, looking kind of hurt. "You coming Castle?" she asked, a little more annoyed that intended. It was easier to sound annoyed with him when she actually was.
Castle leapt up and caught the elevator, slipping inside. Once the doors were closed, he turned to her. He opened his mouth but before words came, she spoke, breaking the uncomfortable silence.
"I'm sorry," she said, sincerely. She hadn't meant to be so rude earlier. "I didn't mean to-" she began to explain. She reached towards him, craving the feeling of him beneath her fingers- desperate for the odd sort of comfort she found in it.
She wasn't used to wanting someone.
Needing someone.
Castle smiled, relieved to find her cold attitude towards him a farce. "Katie- Kate," he said, grabbing a gentle hold of her hands, holding them where she had rest them on his chest. He braved a step closer. He had exactly eight floors to tell her what he had to say. "Relax, Okay?" it was more of a plea than a question. He watched her whole body ease, and he swore she lost a good few inches. He pulled her into him, seriously pushing his luck, wrapping his arms around her small frame as he squished her into him.
Seven floors.
This is exactly what she had in mind earlier, she thought to herself, as she inhaled the concoction of him that had embedded itself into her brain. She needed this.
"Last night was amazing," he told her. He was mumbling into her hair, and his voice box was vibrating in his chest so she could feel it, but she didn't mind. She actually liked it a little. She felt his lips at her temple. "Please, don't worry so much. Just relax." He pulled away and looked at her weary face.
Six floors.
"We okay?" he asked her. She grinned a little, doing her best to memorize the feeling of his arms around her, before she broke away. She planted a small kiss on his lips. It lasted a mere millisecond, far too short, in his opinion, but the meaning in it was not missed by either of them.
Four floors.
"Yeah," she told him. She felt like someone had just come and flushed out all the crap she had been feeling that morning.
They were both facing the doors, ready for them to open, a good few inches between them. It was then he reached across the invisible barrier that was social acceptability and grabbed her hand, linking his first two digits with her last two. She let him. "Hey Castle?" she asked, not looking away from the elevator doors.
Three floors.
"Hmm?" he asked, mood obviously cheerful.
Two floors.
"Ever do the PDA thing at work again, and I will break your fingers," she said, a false coldness revealing itself in her tone. The tiny smile pulling at the corner of her lip was the only indication she wasn't truly angry.
One Floor.
"Right." He dropped her hand, after running a thumb over the soft flesh of her palm.
Ding.
The steel doors parted and the couple walked out, the inches between them restored, and social acceptability regained. No one would suspect a thing.
The morgue doors opened to reveal Lanie. How she knew they were coming was unbeknownst to Kate, but the way she was standing there, staring at the door, arms crossed, a smug smile already on her face⦠It was off-putting.
"Kate. Castle." Lanie greeted, smiling like a fool.
"Lanie," Beckett replied, warily, unsure of what was to come.
"Are you going to come out with it or am I going to have to withhold evidence again?" she asked. Castle watched, slightly bemused at the two friends. How they were friends beat him- they were nothing alike and yet they fit so flawlessly together. He was more than happy to just sit there and watch their interaction- he found it all quite fascinating.
"There is nothing to tell that I haven't already told you," Kate told her. That got Castle's attention. They then proceeded to have an eye conversation that lasted about two seconds, and Lanie grabbed a file from her desk.
"Your blade was a match for the murder weapon," she said, handing the file to her friend, who flipped it open to the first page. "Teeth marks matched at every place, and the nick in the bone, along with the copper selenium compound, matched the knife you found in the Gregory apartment. I am running the handle for prints now, but the lab is bogged down in a very serious way," Lanie informed her.
"What about the blood?" Castle asked, surprising them both. They turned to face him.
"What?" they both asked it in union.
"Well if you look here," Castle pointed to the picture of the knife that sat in the now open folder, bringing him closer to Beckett. "The hilt is practically non-existent on this thing. Think about it-
Gregory throws Wayne down, pulls out the knife and brings it down. Once, twice, over and over and over again. Emotions are running high, his palms start to sweat. His grip is slipping but he doesn't really notice nor care- he's blinded by the rage that's consuming him. Then his hand has slipped so far its pushed past the sad excuse of a hilt and the blade is cutting into his palm, slicing open a fresh wound. The next thing he knows, Wayne is dead on the ground, ten or so different open, bleeding holes in his abdomen and chest, and Gregory is holding the knife, his hand now bleeding freely and mixing with his victims. Wayne is dead, the deed is done."
Kate was absorbing his words. It didn't matter what it was, he could make even the bloodiest of murders beautiful. She hated how his words affected her, however simple they were. Yet she loved it. Something about the right words in the right order made her heart skip around. Castle was very good at putting the right words in the right order.
"So while you're waiting for prints to come back, run the blood," he finished, shrugging.
"What?" this time it was just Lanie who asked. It seemed to be the only word she knew.
"I mean I know we don't have DNA, but the man's got a record so his blood type is on file," Castle explained further, now taking the file into his own hands for a better look. "Wayne is AB neg, Gregory is O positive- just filter the blood and use an elimination sample from Wayne to single out any foreign type. Run a quick ABO typing screen and boom. Answer." Again he shrugged at the dumbfounded look Lanie was giving him. "It will be enough to get a warrant on Gregory's blood for a DNA profile."
By this time Kate had zoned out completely- she loved Lanie to death, but when the science of it all came in to play, she tuned out of the conversation. Maybe it was the details of death that got her. Maybe it was the fact that she nearly failed biology freshman year of high school.
"That may be the hottest thing I have ever heard you say," Lanie told him, finally shutting her gaping mouth. "I should have jumped you when I had the chance," at that flippant comment, Kate tuned right back in. "I will start running the ABO now- he Castle-" she said, taking the file back. "First- thanks. Seriously. The whole smarts thing? Hot. Secondly, I think if you hurry, you may be able to tag along on the tail Ryan's putting on Marcus," Lanie grinned wickedly when Castle darted out of the room.
Kate looked at Lanie, sideways. "There is no way in hell he's going to be able to tag along on the tail," she told her friend. As if Lanie didn't already know.
"No, but it gives you a full ten minutes for you to spill the beans. Fifteen if Ryan argues with him a little."
"Lanie-"
"I live vicariously through you, honey. I need the play-by-play to get my fix."
"Okay, you ready?" Kate asked, already smiling at the memory. She lifted herself effortlessly onto the nearest vacant slab and crossed her legs Indians-style.
"No- let me get my Rasinettes," Lanie said, scurrying off to find the chocolate coated treats before hoping onto her regular table opposite Beckett.
"You should really invest in one of those couches," Kate pointed out, reaching over the space between them to silently demand a Rasinette.
"Okay, begin- talk quickly and don't leave a dirty detail out," Lanie moved the box of Rasinettes out of Kate's reach.
"And the clean ones?"
"I don't care about those so much," Lanie dismissed with a wave of her hand.
And with that, Kate began.
So? You made it this far, you may as well review.
I hope the science stuff isn't too confusing!
And the thank you's
To Andrea, for helping me out with the title, and for not actually calling me a hoe. And not meaning it.
To Susanatc, who has yet to update
and to Hemily, my love, for being my cornfield.
Review?
Who wants to see Alexis back?
And please don't hesitate to PM me, I love talking to my readers :)
