Moment in Time Part 3

Chapter 25

The Last Seduction

Part 1

"Haven't you finished that paperwork yet?" Esposito questions.

Ryan grits his teeth. "Sure, Sarge, just finishing it now. Anything else you want? A soda? Maybe wipe your ass?"

Kate pops out of her office. "OK, you guys. That's enough. You two are going to mandatory counseling. You're getting your first appointment this afternoon."

Doing his best to tiptoe off the elevator, Castle motions to the grumbling partners. "Hey guys, I need your help. Tomorrow is Kate and my first anniversary, and I want to arrange a little surprise for her."

"I don't know that she's in the mood for surprises, Castle," Ryan offers. "She just came down on Esposito and me for fighting. She's making us go to a shrink."

"All the better to have something to put her in a happier frame of mind," Rick argues. "That could work for all of us. So listen. I have some stuff to put together. So I'll meet you guys back here before the end of shift."

Dr. Carryl earnestly regards the men trying to sit as far from each other as possible on her couch. "So, your captain tells me that you have been partners for years, but suddenly, you're not getting along. What's going on?"

Ryan points at Esposito. "Ever since he passed the sergeants exam, he's been lording it over me. He hasn't even got his stripes yet, but suddenly I'm his slave."

"He's jealous because I passed, and he didn't," Esposito interrupts, glowering at Ryan. "Castle gave me a bottle of Champagne, and you couldn't even be bothered to say congratulations."

"Stop!" Carryl commands. "First of all, I want you to talk about your own feelings, not what the other guy did. Now, Detective Ryan, how do you feel about not passing the sergeants exam? Are you jealous of Detective Esposito?"

"I'm not jealous," Ryan insists. "I'm just disappointed. And I could have used a little sympathy."

"And how do you feel, Detective Esposito?"

"Like I wanted my closest friend to be happy for me. And it's not my fault if he didn't pass."

"So, what do you want to happen here?" Carryl inquires.

"I just want some respect," Esposito claims.

"And I want to be treated like a decent cop, not an idiot," Ryan counters. "I have blog subscribers all over the world who think I'm worth reading. So I could use a little respect from my partner, too."

"All right," Carryl considers, "we're not making much progress here. I think you two could use a buffer until you can file the edge off your feelings a little."

"What kind of a buffer?" Esposito presses.

"A friend, a colleague, someone you can talk to besides each other. Think about finding someone you both hang with, a neutral third party."

Rick waves as Ryan and Esposito get off the elevator. "Hey, guys. Everything is set. I've got all I need for Kate's surprise stowed with LT and his gang. They'll do anything for a month's worth of pizza. All I'll need you guys to do is distract Beckett at the right time so we can set everything up in her office."

"And how long is that going to take?" Esposito asks.

"Maybe twenty minutes or a half-hour," Rick guesses.

"That's a long time to keep Beckett distracted," Ryan figures. "She could get wise pretty fast. We'll have to think of something exciting to her."

"Like an interrogation," Esposito suggests. He and Ryan look at each other. "Hey, we're not fighting. Castle is our buffer!"

"That sounds kinky," Rick comments.

"Castle, the therapist told us to get a buffer to keep us from fighting with each other," Ryan explains.

"And you're perfect," Esposito adds. "Look, if you want us to distract Beckett. You have to act as our buffer."

"Does your buffer get to tag along on your cases?" Castle inquires, hopefully. "I can always use some new material."

The partners glance at each other and shrug. "Yeah, why not?" Esposito responds.

As Castle follows the boys to a murder scene, Lanie gazes up from a very messy body on the floor. "Vic's name is Scott McCoy. He was stabbed nine times with a knife from his own kitchen."

Castle surveys the shabby apartment. "The way he was living, I'm surprised he could afford a knife strong enough to do that."

"He was an actor, Castle," Lanie explains. "We got his ID from the resumes and headshots on his desk."

"And as my mother is so fond of telling me," Castle recalls, "at any given time, 85% of actors in New York are unemployed. So the apartment figures. And nine stab wounds sounds like a crime of passion. Mr. McCoy may have decided to play from the wrong script."

"We'll check out boyfriends, girlfriends, whatever, Castle," Esposito assures him. "But now we've got to let CSU scrub this place and set up a canvass with the neighbors."

"I can set up the canvass," Ryan offers.

Castle claps both detectives on the shoulder. "See, with my bufferly presence, you guys are working together better already."

"Just got the call on prints," Esposito announces to Ryan, as Castle occupies a chair between their two desks. "The knife was wiped clean, but CSU found prints on the block the killer got it from. They belong to an Anton Ford. He has a rap sheet for felony assault. He was booked on three different occasions, but each time the charges were dropped. And in fact, he was determined to be the victim. Scott McCoy attacked him. But Ford didn't press charges against him either."

"Sounds like Anton finally decided to get himself a little revenge," Castle observes.

Ryan starts toward the elevator. "Let's go pick him up."

Kate pops out of her office as uniformed officers lead a handcuffed Anton Ford toward Interrogation. "You guys like him for the McCoy murder?" she queries Ryan and Esposito.

"He claims he didn't do it," Ryan replies.

"But what scumbag doesn't?" Esposito finishes. "So, Captain, could you handle the interview? He isn't spilling anything to Ryan or me."

"And you have the magic touch," Ryan adds.

As Kate gazes back at the pile of paperwork on her desk, the box beckons. "Sure. You want to come along, Babe?" she asks Rick.

"Love to. Only I have buffer duty. But make sure the video's on. If you leave grill marks on this guy, I want to see the smoke rising."

As soon as Kate disappears into Interrogation, Rick signals for his operation to begin. Several uniformed officers carrying heavy bags rush into Kate's office with Castle while Ryan and Esposito play lookouts.

Kate regards Anton Ford. The large, well-muscled man could readily plunge a knife through flesh and bone. Her eyebrows rise as she opens his file. "Mr. Ford, I see you like bar fights. And you had several of them. But what I can't figure out, Mr. Ford, is how you lost to Scott McCoy. You're at least six inches taller and 50 pounds heavier than he was."

"I didn't lose. I took a dive," Anton claims. " Scott was an actor. Those fights were staged."

Kate rolls her eyes. "Actors don't usually audition for roles in bars."

"Oh, Scott was auditioning all right – for the ladies. He was there picking up rich married women. I was his wingman."

"And they believed he could beat you up?"

Anton sighs. "He was an outstanding actor."