Couples
Chapter 95
"Beckett," Esposito calls as she steps off the elevator into the bullpen. "We've got something."
Kate joins him and Ryan at the murder board. "The day the body was dumped wasn't the only time that Walker Buck's truck was in the area. It wasn't the only time Walker Buck was there, either," Esposito announces.
"He'd been visiting local merchants to drum up business," Ryan adds.
Kate's brows rise. "For landscaping? Of what, concrete?"
"Not landscaping. Waste disposal, dumpsters," Ryan explains. "The trouble is that in that part of the city, private waste disposal is connected to…"
"The Lorenzo Family," Kate fills in. "Then I can see why someone might go after Buck. But what would that have to do with killing Calista Ford?"
"You've got us," Esposito admits.
Kate's phone chimes an alert. "My warrant for searching Calista's safety deposit box is in. Maybe we'll find a clue there. I hope so."
"So," Rick sums up, rolling the last of his dinner fettuccine against the side of the bowl, "the safety deposit box was full of Calista's private notes on her possible extortion targets."
"Right," Kate confirms, spearing a cherry tomato in her salad. "It looked like she was evaluating all the companies where she made inspections to see who she'd be more likely to get money from. She was almost stalking Walker Buck. She even made a note of who he was seeing, the owner of a reupholstery shop, Gina's Restorations."
"Gina's Restorations," Rick repeats. "Why is that name familiar? Oh, right! When I was using Sal Cardano for background, he said that his wife wanted her grandmother's furniture redone. Supposedly, Gina did the best work in the city, but he didn't dare have the job done there."
"Why?" Kate demands.
"Because Gina is Gina Lorenzo, and Cardanos and Lorenzos didn't mix. If a Cardano even walked into their territory, it could trigger an incident."
"So it's not just waste disposal. SoHo is solid Lorenzo territory?" Kate inquires.
"Part of it, apparently. The Lorenzos were getting their hooks into a lot of interests there. However, waste management was the foundation – or at least that's what Sal told me. But it's been years, and you know where Sal ended up. I suppose we could take a drive out to the corrections facility in Orange County and ask him."
Kate shakes her head. "No, I get the picture. There's nothing new about organized crime and waste management. Somehow garbage seems to like handling garbage. And if Walker Buck was trying to break into business that the Lorenzos controlled they wouldn't have liked it." Kate jams her fork into another tomato triggering an explosion of juice and seeds. "But I still don't see how all of that ends up with Calista Ford dead."
"Was Calista investigating any Lorenzo operations?" Rick asks.
"I don't know," Kate admits. "If she was, she didn't make a note of any connection. But she did look at some in the general area. Maybe she didn't know about the Lorenzos."
Rick's eyes take on the faraway focus Kate sees when he's formulating a plot. "Then consider this. Walker Buck unknowingly angers the Lorenzos on not one score but two. First, he attempts to horn in on their waste disposal. I doubt he would have cut into their profits much, but they wouldn't put up with any competition. Adding to that, he forms a relationship with Gina Lorenzo. They'd tolerate that even less than a business conflict. But Gina has power in the family. How do they get rid of Buck without seriously ticking her off?
"When Calista tries to bleed a Lorenzo business, the family checks her out and realizes she's been leaning on Buck as well. At once, the solution to both of their problems becomes crystal clear. They murder Calista while setting Walker Buck up to take the fall. They dump her in the jurisdiction with the highest known homicide clearance rate." Rick winks. "For once, the bad guys might have been glad to see Kate Beckett on the case, as long as you followed the right bread crumbs. The Lorenzos know Buck's truck has been seen in the area, but just in case, they set up to make sure witnesses swear to it on Ryan and Esposito's second canvass. My hat's off to the Lorenzos. It's a beautifully crafted frame."
"Too beautifully," Kate considers. "That's a great story, Babe, but we have zero evidence that the Lorenzos were involved."
"But you didn't know you were looking for it." Rick points out. "Now that you do, you can ignore the red herrings."
Kate flutters her eyelashes. "I thought they were breadcrumbs."
Rick continues undeterred. "Any distracting foodstuff you like."
"Right," Kate considers. "If I have eyes on both Buck and Gina Lorenzo, the case may break open when the watches collide."
"Hmm, 'When the Watches Collide,' would be a great book title," Rick mulls. "But I can't figure out how to get either Storm or Heat into it. Still, I could make it work for a chapter. You are truly museful tonight."
"Nice to know I could help."
"You mean I'm hired?" Christine asks.
Auchincloss looks down at the open-mouthed Chef Azaria. "That's what I said. But I want you to act as my sous chef for a month until you know this kitchen as well as the ratio for a roux. As you settle in, I will leave you in charge for increasingly longer periods while I work on launching my restaurant. And Mr. Castle will be popping in from time to time. He said he might be showing up today to meet you. He also brings his little daughter. She can be quite, uh, energetic."
Christine smiles. "Meaning she's never still for a moment unless she's sleeping. My mother reminds me at least three times a week that I was like that. I'll make sure that there's nothing the girl can grab and hurt herself."
"Her father's very good at that, but I'm sure he'll appreciate your additional efforts. All right. Let's set you up at your station. This kitchen has a complete set of Middleton knives, but you are free to bring your own if it will improve your performance."
"Middletons are fine," Christine assures him, "but I do have a couple of cheap Chinese peelers that slip on my fingers. They look like plastic crap, but they do a great job."
Auchincloss shrugs. "Whatever works for you. You'll have to show them to me when you get the chance." Violin music drifts in from the front of Imagination Patch. "Ah. You've met Mark, our manager. That's his wife Holly, one of the country's premier musicians. They often bring their son Itzhak. The back office has a crib and facilities for little ones."
"This place is really organized with families in mind, isn't it?" Christine queries.
"Actually, it started out as being set up to attract writers," Auchincloss explains. "Accommodating the children came later. But so far, it seems to work."
Christine's eyes light up at the word "writers." "I write – science fiction. I came up with a whole confederation of planets working to invent new ways to feed a growing universe. There's more, too, space pirates and stuff. Do you think Mr. Castle would be willing to look at my work?"
Auchincloss shrugs again. "I can't speak for Mr. Castle. But he acts as a mentor for a lot of our writer-regulars. When he shows up, you can ask him." A high-pitched request for a "Punkin Cookie" penetrates the wall of the kitchen. "If I'm not mistaken, that's his daughter Lily. You should be meeting both of them any minute."