The Children's Corner
Chapter 5
"I found him!" Sully announces, his chair squeaking his excitement. "This guy came to New York from Transylvania six weeks before Jan Doe died. He claimed he was a tourist and put his profession down as priest."
"That would fit with what Beckett figured," Ryan acknowledges. "Got a picture?"
"Passport photo. I've got it on my screen now. Have a look."
From behind Sully's seat at Kate's desk, Ryan and Esposito view the image. "Not a guy I'd want to give me communion," Ryan comments.
"Me either," Sully replies. "But I doubt you'd find him at Saint Pat's. I did a little research. In Transylvania, most of the priests are Romanian Orthodox. And the country takes religion very seriously. Ceremonies like baptisms can be social events for a whole district."
"So a baby like Jan Doe would draw a lot of attention," Esposito puts in.
"And probably a lot of questions for the local priest," Sully adds. "Who, if it was this guy, is named Dragos Baciu."
Esposito grimaces. "Father Dragos. I wouldn't want him sprinkling any kid of mine."
Ryan quirks an eyebrow. "Something you're not telling us, Bro?"
"Not now. But a guy's always gotta think of the future. And the way Bambi is with kids, she'll make a great mother."
"If you can put up with the competition for her attention," Ryan teases.
"Let's get back to the case." Esposito retorts. "We need to get a line on Father Dragos."
"There are a couple of Romanian communities in Queens: Sunnyside and Ridgewood. So if he wants to be with people who speak his language, that's probably where he'll be," Ryan assumes.
"Sully and I can check out places to stay around there," Esposito volunteers. "Now that you have a face, the king of video scrubbers should go over the footage from the crime scene again."
"Hey, come on! I've never called myself that. Castle just put it on my character in his books," Ryan protests.
"Yeah, but the way you lord over Tech, you act the part," Esposito counters. "And while you're at it, you should go back over the traffic cams."
"I wish Beckett would come back," Ryan mutters as he seeks refuge in Tori's domain.
"What time is your meeting with Liz Halpern?" Kate asks.
"I told her four o'clock," Rick replies. "The twins are usually napping, and I'll be back from picking up Lily. But if we have a lull, I may ask her to come down earlier."
"You sure snagged that apartment for her fast."
"I'd love to take kudos for that, but it was pure serendipity," Rick explains. "The owner had an agreement with someone else, and it fell through at the last minute. He didn't want to waste time getting it shown again. And I already knew the building from when I helped Meryl get her apartment. So I grabbed the place for Liz. Her furniture would have cost a fortune to ship, so she left it in L.A. for her former roommates. She rented a few pieces until she decides what she wants to do with her new space. But I don't think she cares about much beyond a desk, a bed, and reliable wi-fi."
"An updated version of the writer's garret?"
"Something like that. Anyway, does the time matter? Did you want to run out for something? I can pick stuff up at the store when I go to get Lily."
"I don't want anything at the store. But Cindy has classes until late this afternoon, and I thought it would be nice to get out for a while by myself – take a walk or something."
Rick's eyebrows descend. "That walk wouldn't be down to the 12th Precinct, would it?"
"I could pop my head into the bullpen for a minute."
"I should have known that just setting the boys on the right trail wouldn't be enough for you. Well, as long as you're there, you can collect fresh suggestions for the daily doughnut order and give everyone my greetings."
"I can do that."
"What have you got?" Kate asks as Ryan scrolls through the security video from the crime scene.
"Nothing yet," Ryan responds, keeping his eyes on the screen. He holds up a printout of Dragos Baciu. "I'm looking for this guy. He's the only arrival from Transylvania that fits our time frame. But he has fingerprints, and he's a priest."
Kate nods slowly. "Given the story that I got from Professor Cayou, that could make sense. But maybe a priest wouldn't be comfortable hanging out at a bar. If he's our killer, he could have slipped the poison to Jan Doe somewhere else."
"Like where?" Ryan wonders.
Kate shrugs. "When you locate him, maybe you'll find out."
"Espo called in a few minutes ago and said he and Sully might have a line on him. So, with any luck, they can pick him up."
Kate's fingernails dig into her palms. "I wish I could be around for that. But I have to get back to the loft."
"Montgomery's been having us use Zoom for interviewing potential witnesses instead of bringing them in. It shaves some bucks off the budget. If he OKs it, maybe you can zoom in when we question Father Dragos."
Emerald sparks dance in Kate's eyes. "That would be great."
"How's the apartment working out?" Rick inquires as Liz settles herself and her computer at a table opposite him in the Castle loft.
"I know you sent me the pictures and the floorplan, but it still looked bigger on the screen."
"I've spent enough time around T.V. and movie sets to know that almost everything does. Did you want to try for a larger place? You could probably sublet yours in about five minutes."
"No. At least I've got high ceilings. I can breathe, and I can write. That's all I really need."
"Spoken like a true member of the fellowship of the pen – or laptop, as the case may be. So, did you have a chance to go through the outlines I sent you?" Rick queries.
Liz flips up her screen. "I did. And I have some suggestions about how we might appeal more to some of your female readers."
Rick can feel the muscles in his shoulders tighten. "Oh?"
Liz swallows, sensing the sudden tension. "I'm just going on my own experience as a reader, as well as a writer. When you describe Storm, you concentrate on his physical attributes, like how much weight he can press. But women can be more interested in his inner life, how he feels. For example, how it devastated him when he thought Clara Strike was dead.
"A man who carries on to save the world even as his soul is being wrenched from his body is a hero that will keep a reader turning pages even when her bathwater is cold. But she can always put down an action scene and pick it up later because she has a pretty good idea of how it's going to come out. Do you see what I'm getting at?"
"I think I do. And I believe I've sensed it. I've always picked the most emotional scenes for book readings. Those are attended mainly by women. But no one's been quite as straightforward with me about the failings of that aspect of my writing before. And I guess it's ironic. Nikki isn't my alter ego. Storm is. Yet, I don't have much trouble describing Nikki's angst, but I don't go to those depths with Storm.
"I guess that digging more intensely into his feelings would be like spilling my own guts. I've always shied away from that. And my male readers, especially the younger ones, don't want Storm to show that much vulnerability. They're connecting with Agent Ass-Kicker.
"So," Liz proposes, "maybe we can find a happy medium."
"Yeah," Rick concedes. "Maybe we can."