Chapter 50
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Sutton entered the room and this time Rick extended his hand, and started, "Thank you for coming. Quite a bit has happened since you were here this morning."
"I heard about the explosion. Is everyone alright?"
"Yeah, yeah, I just spoke with Alexis. They're okay, just shaken up."
Kate had texted Ryan and Esposito that it was safe to return. They entered then halted at the sight of Daniel Sutton. He stood again and shook their hands. The guys couldn't help flitting their gaze between the father and son to gauge the emotional undercurrent.
"And Halstead? Anything turn up from the crime scene?"
Kate shifted as Castle answered, "Same caliber as the sniper from . . . before. He's an average white guy, no usable footage of his face. He stole Halstead's car, drove directly from there to the Hamptons, fixed an IED on a pizza delivery car that blew up outside the house."
"He wanted to distract you."
"It worked."
"So, do you have any idea who this guy is?"
They all looked towards Castle since it was his find. "Markway has a poker tell. He flutters two fingers together rapidly when he's excited about a good hand and too distracted to remember to stop himself. This guy did that on the tape."
Sutton considered this. "Could be a coincidence."
Castle rubbed his temple as he responded, "Could be, but we need to know for sure. This might be the connection we've been missing. We checked on his sons. One is on the west coast; we're looking into his whereabouts. The other isn't fit enough to be our guy."
"Do you have any DNA from him, anything that he touched so we can pull prints?"
"No, we have DNA from the weapon found at the cemetery two years ago; no hits. We're assuming it's the same guy, but we don't have proof yet."
"Do you have Markway's DNA?"
"No, he doesn't have a police record, obviously, and he was in the service before they registered DNA."
Ryan piped up, "Wait, what about the sniper? How is it that he's not in a military DNA database?"
Sutton replied, "The military catalogs DNA for identification purposes, but ever since 1996, once a soldier separates, their DNA sample can be destroyed and stricken from the database at the soldier's request. That's likely what he's done."
Kate, exasperated, urged, "We need to get Markway's DNA and figure out who this guy is." She looked at Sutton and nearly pled, "I don't know if the CIA has different databases, or if you have resources to help us, but we need something."
Castle added, "We've tipped them off, so it won't be long before they try something more drastic."
Sutton didn't miss Richard's eyes shifting to his wife as he spoke of impending doom. "Of course. I'll do everything I can, but a New York City judge wouldn't fall in any of our databases. Do you have any idea where the sniper is now?"
"No, only that he was in The Hamptons."
"Security?"
Castle filled him in on the arrangements.
"Do you want them moved somewhere safer?"
"Chances are he's back in the city setting his sights on us, but the way my mind works, I could see him disguising himself as a security guard to get close. There are a lot of people there, and we don't have a face for this guy. I'm torn between keeping them there where there is known coverage, or moving them somewhere that could be secured with fewer people who could be hand picked. I know it's likely that the bomb was a one-off, but it's my daughter . . . " Castle was fighting a massive headache and couldn't have cared less if he sounded vulnerable. This was too big for them to fight alone, and if his estranged father could help, Rick wouldn't let his pride get in the way.
Sutton mentally added, 'and my granddaughter,' which he had the sense not to say out loud. He was watching his son fret over his family and Daniel knew that he would move heaven and earth if it would make a difference. Richard looked drawn, worse than he had after their intense conversation that morning, so Sutton knew his son needed him to keep this professional. He looked at his watch then studied each person in the room. They all were drained.
"It's late. There won't be much we can do until morning. I will make arrangements to move Alexis and Martha, if that's alright, Richard. Do you want to know where they will be?"
"No, but I do need to stay in contact with them. Jim Beckett and Patrick O'Riley are there and need to be moved as well."
Ryan and Esposito gawked at Castle. He was trusting this man implicitly with his family. Esposito wrinkled his forehead and asked pointedly "Beckett, do you want us to work with Sutton on that?"
She looked at the guys and knew what he was really asking. She understood their skepticism, but she trusted Rick. Sutton was right, they were all beat and none of them would be any good in the morning if they didn't get any sleep. "No. It's been a very long day, guys. Let's come back tomorrow morning and look at this with fresh eyes."
She looked at Sutton, "Do you need anything else from us?"
"I'll need a copy of the footage of the sniper."
They updated Gates and she ordered everyone to go home while she coordinated with Daniel Sutton.
When they got to the loft Rick immediately stripped off his jeans, barely brushed his teeth and then fell into bed, exhausted. Kate sat next to him, fiddling with his hair. He slung an arm to cover his eyes.
"Migraine?"
"Getting there. Your sniper is back, our family was nearly blown up and my estranged father is going to move them to an unknown location. Maybe that wasn't the best call. I think my judgment might be impaired."
Kate walked to the bathroom and brought him some Advil and a glass of water. She sat down with one leg tucked under her, facing him. "Sutton paid over $40,000 to keep me alive, and our list of trusted allies is short. For what it's worth, I think you made the right call."
Castle swallowed the pills then started to unbutton his shirt but Kate slipped her hands under his and took over.
He studied his wife as she worked. "How are you doing?"
She shrugged, "I'm alright, I just focused on the case . . . and worried about you most of the day."
He used his free hand to tug on her shirt, pulling her in for a kiss. "Thanks, for everything. I couldn't have gotten through today without you, Kate."
She brushed her cheek against his, "That goes both ways, you know."
He smoothed her hair and asked tentatively, "You didn't seem as jumpy as I would have expected, given . . . he's back."
She pulled back and bit at her lip playfully, "I don't know, Castle, maybe making out in the precinct has calming side effects."
"Well, I'd be happy to oblige anytime you feel stressed, Detective." There was that disarming smile, for a moment, then it diffused, "Seriously, Kate, no holding back."
She nodded and hooked her hair behind her ears then rested a hand on his chest. "I was able to avoid windows, which helped. I wanted so much to go to Halstead's crime scene, but even as I argued with Gates, I knew I couldn't have handled it. It would have been worse than 'the honeymoon wave incident' had I gone, and who knows how badly I would have beaten you in the process."
"It'd be hard to hide spousal abuse at a crime scene littered with cops."
"True, although Espo and Ryan would look the other way."
Castle laughed, "Yeah, without a doubt." She gave him a puzzled look. Apparently she had missed some inside joke.
"Anyway, Rick, thanks for helping me save face with Gates, I knew you were willing her not to let me go."
"I got your back, Partner, remember?" He gave her a dreamy smile.
"I do remember."
She slid his dress shirt off his arms then reached for the hem of his t-shirt. "Off or on?"
He chuckled, "You do know there's only one right answer to that question." She slid the shirt up slowly and he lifted his arms obediently. She tossed it in the hamper then sat in his lap and leaned into the exposed skin of his chest, sliding her arm around his neck. He wrapped his arms around her and started kissing by her ear.
"I thought you had a headache."
"Oh, Mrs. Castle, that's so cliché." He yawned, then he brushed his nose against her ear, "Anyway, for you I'd suffer through anything."
She laughed, "It would be torture, I'm sure."
"Hmmm" He leant back and took her with him.
"Rick."
"Hmmm," His eyes were closed and he was breathing in her hair.
"I need to brush my teeth."
"Don't care if you have coffee breath."
"I know, but I do. I'll be right back."
She nuzzled into him then got up. By the time she had brushed her teeth and got ready for bed, Rick was sprawled in the sheets, asleep.
Kate and tucked herself under the covers and lay across his chest protectively, running her fingers through his hair and along his arm while listening to his heartbeat. She couldn't stop thinking, worrying about what the next day would bring. She thought through every event and conversation of the day, and reflected on all the relationships that would suffer if something were to happen to any of them.
She absently wondered if they would have all been safe now if she had died that day in the cemetery.
The guilt of bringing all this tragedy into Rick's life was still a battle that she was hashing out with Dr. Burke. She knew it would kill Rick if she voiced that sometimes she felt that he would have been better off if he had never met her.
She listened to the easy breathing of her husband and felt selfish for being thankful that she was here to feel him beneath her, even if it meant that she brought such darkness into his life.
She tried to clear her mind, but there was too much that had happened or that could happen. Her subconscious felt the need to stay vigilant, to protect him. Who's to say there wasn't a sniper outside their window? The blinds were closed, but there was always heat vision. It's a secure building, but how can they know the security is good enough to keep out any number of people involved that they hadn't uncovered?
Her mind then flitted to Rachel Halstead. Kate thought through exactly what Rachel was feeling in the privacy of her home across town. She knew the young woman would not find sleep or peace anytime soon. Her father might have been guilty, but he didn't deserve death, and Rachel and her sister were innocent casualties, now embarking on a path that Kate knew all too well. Kate didn't pull the trigger, but her investigation led directly to his death and Rachel's pain.
It was too much. Kate didn't even register the silent tears that were winding their way through her husband's chest hair.
She felt a large hand on her back, and with that one small motion, she felt safer, calmer. He hadn't opened his eyes but even half sleep Rick was comforting her "Shhh, Kate, sleep."
She tried to close her eyes and focus on the rise and fall of his body. Eventually exhaustion took her and she slept fitfully.
Castle hadn't even remembered getting into bed when he woke at two am. His body was leaning over Kate's, with his leg and arm strewn over her and she was twitching beneath him. Her brow crumpled and her limbs seemed to jerk in a coordinated way. Rick absently thought that it seemed like she was replaying a fight scene from a Steven Seagal movie in her sleep. He roused a bit more and reality hit. He looked again at Kate and sighed; even in sleep she would get no peace. He thought about waking her, but she needed sleep, even if it meant nightmares. She hadn't had many PTSD related nightmares since she had shared his bed, but the few from which he tried to wake her resulted in her flailing and pushing him physically away from her before she regained awareness. After she had given him a black eye as a fight or flight reflex just two weeks ago, he didn't want to risk surprising her.
Two weeks.
Two weeks ago they were a world away, his biggest concern was her violent reaction to going underwater. Four days ago they set foot in their apartment, married and still giddy about their change in marital status. Rick fingered his wedding ring. He had worn it for less than a month but it was at home on his finger, permanently.
A constant.
So much had changed around them. They were at the mercy of too many variables, so much had happened, but at the end of each day it was just them. Rick and Kate. Sunday . . . Monday . . . Tuesday . . . he thought through every development of each day, every plot twist, but when the sun went down it boiled down to the two of them, in this room behind the closed door that held the outside forces at bay.
There was so much outside his control, but in this room he could help her, even if it was as simple as humming peace into her dreams. He started a muffled tune like he had on the roof patio and she calmed. He kissed her forehead, her cheek and smoothed her hair with his hand. After several minutes the twitching subsided. He wrapped his arm around her, securing her to him and prayed that when the sun went down on Wednesday Kate would still be his to have and to hold.
