Four:
Rick was driving back from Princeton when he receives the call from Roy. He was still emotional from leaving his 'baby bird' on her own for the next eight weeks. He had been so focused on her being away from him that he gave little thought to the other mess in his life. Of course Montgomery would have been made aware of his resignation by now and Rick was sure that Bob knew that there was more to the story than the feeble explanation he had offered. The real question was, why was Roy calling?
Curiosity winning out, he answers with a cool. "What can I do for you Captain?"
Roy pauses for second to reconsider how to broach the subject, given the way he was greeted. "Look Rick, I understand that you're mad at me. You have every right to be. I let you down."
"I'm not mad at you. I'm disappointed that you saw what was going on and did nothing. I thought that we were friends." Rick replies, all emotion stripped from his voice.
"I screwed up. I had no idea that Beckett and Demming were harassing you until today and for that I am truly sorry. The mayor and commissioner both know that there's more to the story of your leaving than what you said in your resignation letter."
"If you're worried about me ratting anyone out, don't. It serves no purpose anyway. I'll call Bob and tell him that I felt it was time to move on and that what I said was true. I'm not a cop and I was no longer an asset to your team." Rick replies, hoping to end this conversation.
"Why didn't you say something to me?" Roy inquires, his guilt only increasing as he knows he has lost a friend.
"Why? What purpose would it have served? You saw what was going on and said nothing. If I would have complained to you, I come across looking like a snitch and no one would want to work with me anyway. It's a lose/lose situation and you know it."
"I wish you would reconsider. There are going to be some changes in the homicide teams here, thanks to Karpowski transferring to the one seven. She saw how they treated you and decided she didn't want to work where the harassment of a civilian consultant went unchallenged." Roy responds with a sigh of resignation.
Rick was touched by Karpowski's actions, but knew that he wasn't the only reason for her transfer. She had made it clear that she was tired of the double standards that Roy had and wanted to go somewhere she would be treated equally. He was sure that she and Collins would make a formidable team.
Deciding that there was nothing left to say, Rick remarks. "Like I said, I'll call Bob and smooth things over. Sorry to hear about Roz. I'm sure that she'll do fine wherever she goes. Goodbye Captain and thanks for putting up with me for as long as you did."
Rick ends the call before Roy could utter a word. Castle would do as he said and speak to the mayor. He could only hope that would keep the fallout to a minimum. 'Maybe it was time to think about retiring...'
Approaching the outskirts of the city, he ponders what he will do with the spare time he suddenly has available. He had finished his novel weeks ago, but enjoyed pulling Gina's chain by making her wait as long as possible. He knew it was childish, but was still hurt by the way things ended between them. Rick knew he shared a part of the blame for their marriage failing, but it's hard to commit to a relationship that seemed to be predicated upon his success as a writer. It was part of the reason he killed of Derrick Storm the way he did, knowing how much it would piss her off.
The last place he wanted to be for the long weekend was here in the city, but he couldn't stand the idea of being at his home in the Hamptons alone either. It was then he decided that a road trip was in order. He hadn't been out to Lake Tahoe in years and decided it was as good as any place to spend the holiday.
Once inside the loft, he fires up his laptop and checks on flights and rooms for his impromptu trip. There were seats available in first class from JFK to Reno via Denver. That flight left in less than three hours and if he hurried, he could just make it. He was about to secure his ticket when his phone rings. Checking the caller ID, he sees that it was Jennifer Collins.
He had considered letting it go to voicemail as he remembered his promise of a date with her. Honestly, he thought that she was just teasing him, simply flirting to impress Roz. Thanks to the efforts of Beckett and her beau, he had no idea why any woman would be interested in going out with him. Deciding that there was no harm in at least talking to her, he answers. "Hello detective. I didn't think that you'd be calling."
The formality in his voice as he spoke and the way he addressed her by her job title rather than her name, made her wonder if he had been flirting with her just to impress Roz. Having nothing to lose, she begins to speak. "Detective, huh? You weren't this formal yesterday when you offered to take me on a date. Or was that simply to impress your friend?"
Rick could hear the hurt in her voice as she spoke and he felt like an ass. "I'm sorry Jennifer. I didn't mean to come off as rude, but I've had an interesting day. I just got back from Princeton where I dropped my daughter off. She was accepted into the summer intern program there and will be gone for the next two months. On my way back, I got a call from Captain Montgomery, trying to find out why I quit working for the NYPD."
Jennifer tries to process everything he has revealed in his remarks and quickly replies. "I'm sorry too Rick. I knew that you were upset, but I thought that you'd change your mind about quitting. From the way Roz talks about you, I get the feeling that you might be more of a detective than most of the ones here."
Wanting to change the subject, she inquires. "So how old is Alexis?"
"Sixteen going on thirty five. She's more of an adult than I'll ever be." Rick replies, unable to mask the pride that he felt for her.
"Wow, she must be very smart to qualify for a program like that at her age." Jennifer counters, hoping to keep their conversation on pleasant topics.
"Oh she is. I don't know where she got it from. Her mother's not the sharpest knife in the drawer and as for me, well..."
"Don't do that. Don't tear yourself down. Just because a couple of assholes were jealous of your accomplishments, doesn't mean that you aren't intelligent. In fact, over twenty best selling novels would seem to prove the opposite. Wouldn't you agree?"
The scolding tone of her voice as she spoke made him chuckle. It had been a while since someone that wasn't on his payroll, or a blood relative had defended him. "Thank you. I appreciate your sentiments." He pauses for a moment to try and figure out a way to explain his change of plans. "About that date I promised... is there anyway I could get a rain check? I decided that I need to get away from the city for a while and figure out what comes next in my life."
"Okay. A rain check it is then." Jennifer replies, unable to hide the hurt in her voice.
Once again Rick feels like an ass and figures that if he offers to take her with him, she'll decide that she can't go, letting him off the hook. "I was about to book a ticket on a flight to Reno and then spend the weekend in Tahoe... if you're free, you're more than welcome to come along."
The idea of her first date with Richard Castle being a romantic getaway to Lake Tahoe was too good to resist and she answers before she can talk herself out of it. "Are you sure? Because if you are, I'd love to go with you."
Clearly not expecting this response, he tries to think of a way to rescind the offer without hurting her feelings. Realizing he could do a lot worse, he counters with another challenge that he hopes will change her mind. "Great. There's only one problem. The flight leaves JFK in two and a half hours. Can you make it there in time?"
"Just try and stop me. I'll see you there. I assume that my ticket will be at the counter. Which airline?"
Knowing there was nothing else to say, he reserves two seats for the flight and replies. "American Airlines. Just show them your ID and they'll have your ticket."
"Great! You have no idea how happy you have made me. Maybe I can show you when we get to Tahoe..." Jennifer replies with a sultry tone of voice that indicated she wasn't teasing. "Gotta run. See you there." She actually giggled as the call ends.
Rick can only stare at his phone dumbstruck. Jennifer Collins was a beautiful woman and under normal circumstances he would be thrilled with idea of running away with her for the weekend. The problem was, these were anything but normal times. The old Rick mocks his conscience with. "Isn't Beckett doing the exact same thing with her robbery detective boyfriend right now? You remember, the one that's so much smarter than you... and a cop?" He was fighting battle between his heart and his wounded pride and this time pride won.
Jennifer was running to the gate just as they announced boarding for first class passengers. Dressed in jeans and plaid print shirt type blouse, her hair pulled back in a pony tail, she looked a decade younger than her actual age. She looked at him with a sly smile as she stopped to catch her breath. "Hey handsome. I was supposed to fly to Tahoe with this writer guy, but after seeing you, I think that I'd have more fun with you..."
Rick had to laugh at her remark, something that had been in short supply recently. He needed to forget about the last four weeks and focus on what happens next in his life and it appeared that he had the perfect companion to do just that. "I'm not sure how much fun I'll be, but it's hard to refuse an offer like that from such a beautiful woman." He counters, hoping he hasn't pushed to far.
She closes the distance between them, wrapping her arm around his. She leans closer and whispers into his ear. "Thank you for inviting me. I've never been to Tahoe before. Who knows, maybe I'll get lucky... at the casinos." She chuckles as she finishes her remark and places a rather chaste kiss on his cheek.
The truth was she was as nervous as she could ever remember being. Here she was, about to board a plane with a man she met yesterday for what she hoped was a romantic getaway. The fact that he happened to be handsome, charming, intelligent, and her favorite author only made the entire situation even more surreal... if that was possible.
Rick simply smiled at her comment and gesture, taking her hand into his and giving it a squeeze as they walked up to the gate. They both seemed to relax from the gesture and smiled as the attendant scanned their tickets and repeated their seat assignments before allowing them to enter the plane.
"I could get used to this." Jennifer offers, as she takes a sip from the flute of champagne the flight attendant had presented to her as soon as they were seated. "This is the first time that I have flown first class. I always wondered why people would pay extra to do so, but now I think I understand."
She could see that in spite of the attentive look he gave her, his mind was somewhere else, probably wondering what Beckett and Demming were doing right now. She envied and hated Kate Beckett at that moment. Hated, because of the terrible things that she had done to Rick. Envied, because she somehow still held onto his heart in spite of what she said and done to him.
She had a mission. Three days to undo the damage Beckett had done and convince him that he was worthy of love. Hopefully by her. She knew that what she felt for him at the moment was really nothing more than infatuation, but after three days, who knew?
Three hours later, the plane touched down in Denver. She became aware of another perk of flying first class as they were the first to exit the plane. They needed every minute as in spite of the fact their connecting flight was in the same terminal, it was at the other end and the two had to run, hand in hand, as fast as her four inch heels would allow her to. They ended up being the last ones to board and the doors were closed as soon as they entered the plane.
The flight to Reno gave her a chance to see Richard Castle the celebrity in action. One of the flight attendants recognized him from his publicity photo and presented a well worn copy of one of his old Derrick Storm paperbacks, seeking an autograph. Jennifer was amazed as he charmed the woman, spending several minutes talking with her. She happily provided him with her name and address as he promised to send her an autographed copy of his latest novel as soon as it was released. The smile on the woman's face as she thanked him for making her day was returned by him.
As she walks away, he comments. "She's the reason why I do what I do. Without people that read and enjoy my works, they're nothing but words on paper."
Jennifer smiles and takes his hand into hers, enjoying how they seem to mesh together and remarks. "You're far too modest, Rick."
Rick has to chuckle at her comment and replies. "I've been accused of a lot of things, but modesty was never one of them. Most of time, I was accused of wanting to meet my fans simply to stroke my already over inflated ego."
If she had three guesses to identify who had said that to him, two of them would been wasted and she wondered if Beckett had been intentionally cruel, or simply clueless regarding how much her remarks had hurt him.
It was after 11:00 pm here by time they got on the road for the drive to Tahoe. They were both exhausted as it was after 2:00 am in New York. The two kept their conversation to light topics just to make sure that neither nodded off. Arriving just after midnight, they were able to check into the two bedroom suite he had reserved a few minutes after arriving. The room decor was as opulent as the rest of the hotel and she could only imagine how much it cost. She might have been impressed if she wasn't so tired.
Rick shared a similar look of exhaustion and let her choose which bedroom she wanted before placing a chaste kiss on her cheek and slowly walks to the other. She wished him a good night and makes her way to her room.
X-X-X-X
Roy was sitting in his home office polishing off the last of the fine Kentucky bourbon that Rick had given to him for his birthday. As he stares at the amber liquid swirling around the crystal tumbler, he wonders how he had let things come to this. He knew that he had always treated Kate differently than his other reports, but only he knew that it was the guilt he felt for the role he played that led to her mother's death.
The guilt that he had managed to suppress until the night he discovered her sitting in the records room pouring over her mother's case files. Seeing her like that put a face on the victims he had created by his silence. He also knew that if the people behind Johanna's death found out about her poking her nose into the case, she would meet the same fate.
His idea was simple; take her under his wing and help to advance her career in exchange for her dropping her mother's case. And for a while the arrangement worked. Focused on helping other victims, she proved to be an excellent detective with one major flaw. She couldn't work with a partner.
That was why he was surprised that Castle had somehow managed to tolerate her behavior for as long as he did. The number of detectives that he had tried to pair her with was long and none had lasted more than a month or two. It was the reason he created the lead detective position for her so that he wouldn't have to try and pair her with anyone. Somehow the arrangement worked and her team's closure rate kept the critics silent.
The problem was his inaction as she flaunted the fraternization regs by her public displays with Demming brought the double standard that he had for her to everyone's attention. Add to that the verbal abuse of Castle that she and her boyfriend made no effort to hide from the rest of the people there, it was no wonder morale was as low as it was.
Roz was simply the tip of the iceberg. If he didn't make some serious changes, and fast, he wouldn't have to worry about the twelfth. Someone else would be the captain. Guilt or not, it was time to end the special treatment. His replacement wouldn't allow her to behave the way she had.