The Children's Corner

Chapter 54

To say that the loft where Ms. Castle-Wygard's father lives intimidates Marcus would be an understatement. He's never seen an apartment that big. And he knows Mr. Castle is famous. He even saw one of the older kids reading one of his books once. So Marcus sticks close to Mr. Castle-Wygard. Both the Castle-Wygards told him that when he feels comfortable enough doing it, he can call them Mom and Dad. But he's not even close yet. And he's afraid of causing a jinx. He knows it can take a year for adoptions to be final, and they don't always work out. He's heard kids who were sent back crying at night. And he's determined to do anything he can to keep that from happening to him.

But Mr. Castle isn't what Marcus was afraid he'd be: stiff, like some writers he's seen when all he was allowed to watch was interviews on the education station. The author is more like a big kid. He even asked Marcus if he wanted to play laser tag. Marcus explained that he didn't know how, but Ms. Castle-Wygard told him it was so easy that she could play when she was five. She smiled when she added that she beat her dad then, too. After that, Marcus couldn't say no. So Mr. Castle and Mr. Castle-Wygard started pushing furniture out of the way while Marcus gazed around some more.

At least the place looks like someone actually lives there. For one thing, a huge baby swing sits not far from the kitchen. Detective Beckett said the twin babies are still sleeping and their sister Lily wanted to finish painting some bunnies, but she should be done soon. And the air smells a little of bacon, probably from breakfast. Marcus hasn't had bacon very often, but he's eaten it enough to know he loves it. At least he has that in common with the Castle family.

"All set!" Mr. Castle announces. "Alexis, can you help Marcus with his target and his gun?"

Ms. Castle-Wygard seems as experienced as she said she was. In what feels like only a minute, she tells Marcus he's ready to play. Mr. Castle presses some kind of remote control. The lights in the room go out, and Marcus pulls his night goggles into place. Everything looks green, but he can see well enough to spot Mr. Castle trying to hide behind a couch. Marcus isn't sure whether to crouch behind a chair and wait to get shot or go after Mr. Castle. What if the writer gets mad at losing?

"Go on. Marcus," Ms. Castle-Wygard urges. "You're smaller and faster. You can get him."

Marcus doesn't want to disappoint her, either. She might not want him anymore. He moves as carefully as he can, using other couches and chairs to take cover as he goes. Finally, he works his way behind Mr. Castle's hiding place. But the players wear their targets on their chests, and Marcus still can't take aim. Not knowing what else to do, he beeps like the roadrunner he saw in a cartoon. As Mr. Castle turns, Marcus takes a breath and shoots.

"You got me!" Mr. Castle announces. "Well done. Take off your goggles, and I'll turn the lights back on."

As soon as he can make out Mr. Castle's face again, Marcus studies it for signs his target is upset with him. But all he sees is a grin, reaching eyes that crinkle at the corners. Mr. Castle holds up his hand for a high five. "Great match. Now, who's ready for pizza rolls?"

"I am, Daddy," a girl's voice that Marcus guesses belongs to Lily calls.

With an even wider grin, Mr. Castle claps his hands together. "Great! Let's get snacking!"

Handing Rick a glass of wine, Kate settles in next to him on the couch. "You really pulled it off with Marcus. By the time Alexis and Dana took him back home with them, his smile was genuine, and he was even laughing a little. And I think he and Lily hit it off. She let him grab the last pizza roll. And Felicia decided he's worthy to pet her."

"Probably, she was hoping for another human who would feed her. But, yeah. It all worked out pretty well. It's a start, anyway. Still, I'd love to hear him call Alexis something other than Ms. Castle-Wygard."

"And what would you like him to call you?"

"Oooh, good question. I'm not ready for Grandpa. Captain, maybe?"

"Captain of what?"

"Another good question. Well, we're not there yet. Perhaps Marcus will come up with something on his own. I just hope it won't be too embarrassing."

"Mmm," Kate considers, "maybe Marcus and I can have a little talk about that."

Rick slaps his palm against his face. "I should have quit while I was behind."

A cellphone alert suddenly erupts from Kate's pocket. "It's a text from the surveillance on Amy Stow and Stockard Maitland. The subjects met up at a coffee shop in midtown. According to this, they seemed pretty friendly."

Rick springs from the sofa. "And the plot thickens. So now what?"

"We keep up surveillance until the other shoe drops. The last fires came pretty close together. They may be planning to set another one soon. If they are, we can catch them in the act."

"And if they decide to layout for a while?"

"We continue digging. But I'd be doing that anyway. Their paths may have crossed before they went to work at Prints O'Plenty. If I can find out where and when it may be the key to figuring out how they're working together."

"You know, Stockard made a point of mentioning that Chloe, the Greenery's owner died," Rick recalls.

"Amy did the same thing. What are you thinking?"

"More like wondering. Were Stockard and Amy truly upset that someone died, or did they just want to sound that way?"

"What are you getting at? Do you think they wanted to kill her?"

"I don't know. But they'd both been working at Prints O'Plenty for a month. The Greenery was two stores down. So they could have known Chloe's habits. Maybe we should look into her, too. Don't you usually check the background of a murder victim?"

"I do. But until you brought it up, it never occurred to me that her death might have been intentional. And there's still a good chance that it wasn't. But I'll check for possible connections to Amy and Stockard."

"You might see if the Greenery had ties to Prints O'Plenty, too," Rick suggests. "If the owner said that store was fully insured, maybe it wasn't all that was insured."

Kate scowls. "But what could any of that have to do with animal adoptions?"

"Maybe nothing. But on TV, it's usually some little detail or character introduced before the first commercial that turns out to be the key to the case."

"This isn't TV."

"But occasionally, life imitates art – if you call those mysteries art. And insurance means money, and money means motive."

"You have a point. Tomorrow I'll look into the insurance on Prints O'Plenty and see where it takes me – at least until we see more from Amy and Stockard."

"And if you like, I can look into the history of Chloe and the Greenery," Rick offers.

"Don't you have a book to write?"

"I'm at a stopping point with my Black Pawn endeavors, and I just sent Muriel Lissette more copies of the lit book for comment. So until I hear from her, I can use the distraction."

Understanding warms Kate's eyes. "OK. I get it now. Go ahead, Babe. Dig into the Greenery."