Hunting Grounds

Chapter 33

"Oh My God! What are you drinking?" Rick saw Ryan drinking something a sickening green.

Jenny answered for him since he was drinking. "He's doing a cleanse. He forgot it, so I brought it to him. He needs to do that before he goes to Key West for his interview." She was all smiles.

Kevin took one last swallow. "Um, I haven't put in for my two days off yet."

"Please tell me you're not afraid of her," Jenny asked him, hoping he would say no.

Espo rescued his partner. "I am."

"Me, too," Rick quickly added and kicked the breakroom chair Kate was sitting in.

"Me three?" Kate said, not sure she meant it. She turned to look at Rick for that.

Jenny locked eyes with Kevin. "Don't forget to put in for two days off." Then her whole face looked soft. "Bye, sweetie, I love you."

"I love you more," Kevin said.

"That's not possible." Jenny kissed him and didn't see Javi shaking his head over these two mushy people. Rick and Kate, however, were trying to hide their smiles.

Once Jenny was gone, Kate asked him, "So you're going to Key West?"

"I got a call, and they want me there for an interview," Kevin said with excitement in his voice. "They're even paying my airfare. Exactly twenty-one days from today. We think it's to lower the cost of the ticket."

"I'm happy for you." Kate kicked Rick's chair since he was sitting next to her.

"Me too!" Rick told him quickly.

Kevin turned to look at Javi who hadn't said anything about it yet. Javi, however, saw the look Kate was giving him. "Me three."

"I know, I know. We're nauseating." Kevin knew it and didn't care.

Espo answered his cell phone, listened, then after Dispatch ended the call, he said, "Yo! We got a fresh one."

[_] /\ [_]

Rick and Kate were walking toward Lanie and the body in a fresh fruit vendor's cart that she was looking at. "Hey Lanie, we got a jumper?"

"Maybe. Based on impact, I'm guessing he either jumped or was pushed from somewhere above the 7th floor. Ryan and Espo are up there trying to find it with the hotel staff."

"He's naked!" Rick exclaimed. The body revealed absolutely everything to everyone. "Maybe you should cover your eyes." Rick put a hand over Kate's eyes.

"I've seen naked men before, Rick, including you. I think I can handle it. Now move the hand or lose it," Kate told him.

"Right." Rick yanked his hand back.

"Except if it was suicide, would you have these?" Lanie turned him just enough to show them his back. "Fingernail marks."

"Looks like he did the deed before taking a dive," Kate suggested. She had given Rick those marks at least once already and was sorry she had. It was just those orgasms were so intense.

"Hey Beckett, found the room. Eighth floor," Kevin yelled out the open window down to her.

"Okay!" Kate left, and Rick followed her.

[_] /\ [_]

Kate and Rick walked into the morgue. "What do you have, Lanie?"

"I can't tell you if he was pushed, but I can tell you that he was poisoned with a lethal dose of Colchicine before he hit the fruit," Lanie disclosed.

Rick frowned. "I think I know that drug, but I can't remember why."

"It's for rheumatism which he doesn't have, by the way. But he does have fifty times the amount any sane person would take," Lanie said. "I'm putting the time of ingestion between 4 and 6 pm."

"It was before she says she met him. Did he ingest it with something?" Kate inquired. "I mean, that stuff has to have a taste to it, right?"

Lanie nodded. "He did and it does. I found the ingredients for a chocolate protein shake in his stomach. More than enough to mask the taste of the drug. And one more thing. I ran a DNA test on Superman here and found that he had sex before his flight."

"Not interested." Kate didn't need to hear about that.

"Let me finish!" That brought Kate to a stop. "I found DNA indicating that he had sex with two women before his death."

Rick looked at the body. "You dog!"

[_] /\ [_]

"The paper hasn't moved." Rick nodded at Kate to unlock and open the door. "Still working, and the correct lights are still on."

"So they're leaving us alone for now." Kate went over to her laptop to check her email. Maybe Rosie sent them something. "BABE! I got an email from the New Orleans Police Department!" She opened it and started reading. "They're sending me a plane ticket. The hotel and car are up to me. They want to see me in fourteen days. Wow!" Kate used her laptop to find out the time in New Orleans. "An hour behind us. Good, I still have time to call them."

She found her cell phone, put in the number on the email, and touched the connect icon. "Sandy Ferguson, please. Kate Beckett calling." She waited impatiently.

Rick tried to make himself somewhat scarce, but he still wanted to be close enough to hear something.

"Thank you very much." Kate hung up and twisted in her chair. "He's interested in me! It seems he found out from 1PP that I was the youngest female on the force to make detective. They're overnighting the airline ticket via FedEx and it should arrive tomorrow. Now I just need two days off. How do I convince Gates to give me two days of vacation time?" Kate needed a plan.

Rick grinned. "That's easy. Tell her you'll be taking me with you. We'll both be out of her hair."

"Sadly, that might actually work," Kate agreed. "I still don't know what her problem is."

"Doesn't matter, Kate. Just show New Orleans what Kate Beckett is made of. Perhaps you should go down to the gun range, shoot, get it signed, and take it with you. Line up all of your references and take those with you. A judge you trust and like. Me, of course. Maybe Lanie and definitely Kevin or Javi. I'd suggest Roy, but no one can talk to him unless you know someone at the FBI that could give him a burner phone. Just one call and then destroy it."

"Actually I do." It was just she didn't want to talk to Will again. But if it meant getting away from Gates…perhaps. "I'll think about it." Kate needed to consider it first. "Fourteen days. We need to do some planning. Find a hotel and a rental car and decide what to wear. What makes me look like a homicide detective?" Kate already had her head in her closet when suddenly Rick was kissing her.

"Mardi Gras, here we come." Rick kissed her again.

Kate immediately felt better about everything. She wasn't quite ready to get married like Kevin and Jenny soon would, but she was getting there.

[_] /\ [_]

Since they didn't really need to talk during the trip into the precinct the next day, they didn't. However, Kate stood there and let Rick hold her. She really liked that.

"Hey guys, any luck on tracking down that other woman?" Kate asked Espo and Ryan.

"Um, sort of." Espo opened the door to the conference room and let them both enter.

"Bailey was involved with all of them?" Kate questioned while trying to keep her voice low and barely move her lips. There had to be twenty women in that room.

"No wonder he's dead. I don't even know anyone in the Navy that has this many women," Rick said. He spoke just as softly and tried not to move his lips too much.

"Each woman thought she was his one and only," Ryan confirmed and didn't know what to do next.

"What are all these women doing in my precinct?" Gates showed up and demanded to know what was going on.

Kate took her aside and explained. "ALL OF THEM!?" Gates yelled. Kate cleared her throat in an attempt to remind her that all of the women could hear her.

"Get it cleared up, Detective, and get those women out of my precinct." Gates retreated to her office.

"I hate her," Kate muttered under her breath.

[_] /\ [_]

All the young women were still in the conference room until Kate could figure out how to interview them one at a time.

"I found his apartment. According to the super, he hasn't been there for almost a month, but I did find this." Kevin handed it over to Kate.

"An Illinois drivers license that says his name is Jake." Kate glanced at Kevin. "Is he really Jake?"

"No, it's fake. It's a good fake but still fake. And I also found this." Kevin held up two plastic bags filled with cash. "Sixty thousand in total."

Rick broke it down. "Two names, supposedly out of town, on leave from his job. He has what, twenty women he's having sex with? And 60k in cash."

"What is he doing?" Kate didn't get it. Yet. But she would.

[_] /\ [_]

"Collette is lying, so why are you two watching that recording? I have better things to do." Kate started to leave. She had twenty plus women to still get rid of.

Rick stopped her. "Wait. That looks like Bailey…and Collette."

"And her ruffians," Espo added as they watched a small black car come to a stop, two men jump out, and kidnap Bailey. "In black ski masks, no less."

"Ouch. I think Collette just broke that one's nose." Ryan watched her put an elbow into his face. Still, the men had Bailey and drove off.

"What the hell is going on?" Kate stood there with her mouth hanging open.

[_] /\ [_]

"Kate, when did Kevin and Jenny start dating?" Rick was leafing through the book full of partially naked women with whom Bailey had supposedly scored.

"Around 2009," she replied.

"So by May they had been dating at least a month?"

"Yeah, why?" What did that have to do with anything?

"Look at Bailey's May 2009 entry." Rick turned the book around to show her.

"Holy hell, that's Jenny!" Kate leaned forward to get a closer look and make sure it was her.

"Gyrating Jenny," Rick said, and suddenly Kate looked to see where Kevin was to make sure he wasn't anywhere near them.

[_] /\ [_]

"I need a drink," Kate told Rick the second they were inside after verifying that the paper was still in place. She went into the kitchen while Rick checked out his device.

"I have never talked to so many pissed-off women in my life. No wonder he was poisoned." Kate found the vodka and poured herself a glass. "You want one?"

"Sure. What do we do about Jenny? Kevin's going to look in that book eventually." Rick didn't know what to do.

"We don't do anything. Women have secrets and they want to keep them." Kate had a few that she didn't want Rick to know about.

"Kate, he's going to look in that book. Either he or Javi will, or did you miss Javi eyeing it?"

"You mean him and you?" Kate fired back at him and saw him glare at her. "Alright but I get a chance to show it to Jenny first. If Kevin learns about it then he learns it from Jenny. Got it?"

"Got it. I just hope Kevin has an open mind." Rick took his drink from her.

"I know you're not a virgin, Rick, and you know I'm not. All any of us really needs to care about is who we're with now and that when we get married we're going to be each other's last one."

"I hear that." Rick clinked his glass against hers and drank.

"Good. Now please help me find a car to rent and make a hotel room reservation for fourteen days from now," Kate asked him. "The car needs to come with GPS since I've never been to New Orleans before."

"And get Rosie to look for houses to buy. When the NOPD makes you an offer we'll drop our offer on the house in Maine. Then one of us takes Rosie with us out to the ship and sends it flying into the sun. If we can't have it no one can," Rick said.

"That's going to have to be you, then. My chances of getting another two days off from Gates are extremely slim."

"I sort of figured that. Me being gone will make her day." Rick chuckled slightly, getting Kate to join him.

Kate shook her head. "That woman has issues."

"Too bad Gates isn't in that book," Rick commented.

"Blackmail Gates? Only if you have a death wish," Kate retorted.

He changed subjects. "Hey, have you heard anything from the other three police departments?"

"No, not a word. Maybe they like Kevin better because he used to be in Narcotics. Two for one. All I did was a bit of Vice."

"Street hooker?" Rick looked at her with new eyes.

"As a cop arresting Johns. Don't go getting any ideas," Kate cautioned him.

"Too late. Maybe you should do something to take away that vision." Rick grinned at her.

"Oh, I should, should I?" Kate walked up to him. "How about this?" She reached down and gave his balls a light squeeze. "Will that work?"

"That'll work." Rick felt Kate take her hand away, and she kissed him.

"You can make it up to me later. First, I need a car and a hotel." They had work to do.

[_] /\ [_]

"I found a Days Inn," Rick said, "at $61 a night, and it's only about a mile from your precinct. Though I don't think they call it that. They call them districts, I believe." He showed Kate something. "District 3 in your case."

"I'm definitely going to need to rent a car," Kate confirmed. "You have your truck, but assuming they hire me, how do I get to work? I don't think I'll have any choice but to buy a car."

"Are you okay with used cars?" Rick asked since combined, they only had so much money.

"How used? Will it still have a warranty? I'm going to be driving it daily however far I have to, but we need to buy a house close enough for me to get into work quickly," Kate told him.

"Rosie's going to look for housing, so I can ask her to look for cars as well. We'll find something. Then we can go see the French Quarter." Rick was beginning to really like this plan.

Kate put her arms around him from behind. "This just might work."

"Are you sure you're good with moving out of the city?" Rick knew she wasn't thrilled with that part.

"I'm good, I promise. I can get Dad and Lanie to fly down for a visit, or we can fly up for one. I just have to get used to a whole new city that I've never set foot in. Learn everybody's names, get used to a new desk, new everything." Kate didn't want to scare herself out of this opportunity.

"Not to worry, you'll have me."

Kate kissed his head. "Right up to the point you get deployed." Kate knew she had a test coming her way. "I'll survive. I can do this. I'm just going to miss you, though." She knew that last one for sure.

"You need to decide on an outfit and get it cleaned while I talk to Rosie," Rick told her.

"Yes, I do." Kate patted his shoulders and headed for her closet to look at what to take that she could change into that said she was a homicide detective, not a sexy woman looking to get laid.

[_] /\ [_]

Kate put aside what she finally settled on to wear to her interview for her new job and was back standing behind Rick. "Rosie found houses already?" Kate was actually a little shocked.

"I gave her a set of parameters using your new work address and wanting to find something close, as well as keeping costs down since you need a car. So I set her limit at around 400k." Rick looked at her. "Ready?"

Kate was ready. "Let's see what she's got."

77 Allard Blvd, New Orleans, Louisiana 70119

"It's listed a little over 400k, which is fine. All of three miles from your work and close to the city park. I think it's in something called Mid-City. Four bedrooms, three bathrooms, 3,143 square feet." Rick began clicking through the pictures. "It doesn't come furnished, so we'll have a lot of furniture to buy, hence my limit of 400k."

"No kidding." They were going to need nearly everything assuming they didn't keep much of what she had now.

"So far, so good." Kate got him to stop once he reached the kitchen. "It's not open concept, but look at the size of that range." She liked that a whole lot. "Is that a wine bar?" She was almost already sold.

"A balcony off the master bedroom sounds nice. Oh my God, is that the closet?" Forget the kitchen, she was in love now."What's with that gate thing in the master bedroom closet?"

"Is that a movie room?" Kate saw a lot of seating that was all leather facing a wall but couldn't see the TV.

"Two words for you: projection TV." Rick was sold on this place for that alone.

"A one car garage, tool area, lots of storage. It has a backyard! I've never had a backyard, not even when I was a little girl." Kate squeezed his shoulders. "Can we get them to leave the washer and dryer?" They looked new to her. "Outdoor seating and green grass. I like it. What's next?"

16 Neron Place, New Orleans, Louisiana 70118

"Oh, God, it's pink," Rick moaned once he saw it and listened to Kate laugh.

"Four bedrooms, three bathrooms, 3,491 square feet, and it's closer to 500k, so we're going to have to really want this one," Rick warned her as he showed her pictures.

"At least it's not pink on the inside." Rick gave it points for that.

"I don't like it," Kate told him. "Almost no yard. No storage. And the garage isn't attached. What's next?"

66 N. Wren Street, New Orleans, Louisiana, 70124

"Three bedrooms, three bathrooms, 4,312 square feet. It's listed even closer to 500k than the last one. So we would still need to be careful." Rick began showing her pictures.

"It has a lot of yard front and back." Kate squeezed his shoulders again. "A courtyard, I think. "Is that a bar?" She saw a mirrored back, lots of glasses, but no real alcohol. Kate got him to stop on the kitchen. "The range is set in the island. And it's not nearly as big as the first house."

"Three closets in the master bedroom?" Kate liked that. "Nice closet but not as nice as the first house. There's the floor plan, stop." Kate wanted to look.

"The bedroom has three closets, and the bathroom has three closets?" Kate was impressed. "I still like the first one better, and it didn't cost as much."

"That was the last one so far," Rick said.

"The first one. Give me the address for the real estate agent, and I can tour it if you trust me."

"Of course I trust you, Kate. Use your phone and take more pictures. If you really like it and they offer you a job, then call me, and we can decide on what our offer should be." Rick turned to look at her.

"Three miles from work. Thanks, babe." Kate leaned down and kissed him. "Now, what about cars? Keep it reasonably priced but nice enough. Something that will last for a lot of driving even if I don't have to go far," Kate said to him and Rosie.

[_] /\ [_]

"2009 Infiniti G37 Convertible. It still has some warranty coverage, but not a whole lot." Rick showed her the first one Rosie had found.

"It's white, which is fine. Two-door with white seats and a black console. Automatic is fine. A V6, and it's a hard-top convertible, interesting. The back seat has almost no leg room at all. It looks nice. What's next?" Kate wasn't totally sold but was leaning that way.

"2008 Scion xD Base. Nope. That thing is ugly." Kate didn't like the orange color.

"2008 Ford Escape." Rick showed her and heard her say, "Next."

"2009 BMW 3Series 335i. It has even more warranty left on it." Rick began showing her pictures.

"Black inside and out; that's okay, I guess." She liked the Infiniti even more. "Four doors, the back seat actually has leg room, woodgrain dash, sunroof. Automatic is okay."

Kate stood up behind him and thought about all of the cars. "I think I like the first one best. Please write down where it is for me, and maybe I can look at it and take a test drive.

"Fourteen days to go and I'm already ready." Kate started chuckling.

"Are you still okay with it? In order to be a captain here, you'd have to last till spring. Or you can put in for a transfer like Javi. It's one of those, or move to New Orleans. I'll go wherever you go." Rick felt her wrap her arms around him from behind.

"New Orleans is good. Any idea where you might end up? Can they send you to a base and expect you to live on base?" That was her one and only real fear.

"There's a Naval Air Station just outside of New Orleans. I might manage to get transferred there, but nothing is certain," Rick told her. "As for being on base, that's a possibility since I'm single."

"So if we get married soon, they might let you live off base?" Kate asked him since she knew nothing about how the Navy worked.

"Definitely." Rick was pretty sure of that. "There is a Coast Guard base, but that's not me. It's that or nothing." Rick turned to look at her to see what she was thinking.

Kate didn't say anything for a minute, then said, "I think you need to talk to your friend Lance to see what he says before I do this. If you can't go, then I'm not going. I'll just put in for a transfer or wait for the Virgin Islands or Seattle to respond. I know Seattle has a naval base."

"They do indeed," Rick confirmed. A rather large one, no less.