Late the next week that first case was solved because of a lead Lara found. It happened in the follow-up canvas that she originally thought was overkill. On her first few evenings doing follow-up, she found most respondents were surely men with just one goal - get her out of their face as soon as possible. That triggered an idea to dress a bit more slutty reasoning that additional time spent admiring the view might lead to something useful. So it was in apartment 5C where Leroy saw their victim very near the TOD window with a guy he could describe. That lead to a sketch which fingered a former boyfriend, and Beckett in the box did the rest with a withering line of attack.
Kevin told her most perps underestimated Beckett much to their regret. She had an uncanny way of sizing up the guilty and knowing exactly what approach would get them talking. In an interview she could be stern, aggressive, or even motherly depending on vibes coming from the unlucky soul across the table. It was all about keeping the conversation going and exploiting every minor revelation. Castle was usually mum in these encounters until the suspect was near the breaking point. Then he would swoop in with his own line of attack, and more often than not, the denials started to crumble in the face of that withering crossfire.
Kevin called it a mind melt thing; she saw it differently. They were an item and not just professionally. She even tried more than once to get the truth out of Kevin. He ignored her. The clincher came when she was invited to join them at the Old Haunt after closing another case. She knew Castle bought it, and the restoration was now almost complete. Descending the stairs for the first time, the place oozed an old New York ambiance which most places had renovated out of existence. Seated in the booth reserved for members of the Twelfth, she observed way too much PDA for them to be just partners.
When Brian, the bartender, approached for their drink order, she almost lost it. They had a history - a very naked history. It was brief, but not an unpleasant memory. When she excused herself from the group, she pointed to an alcove, and Brian followed. The conversation was enlightening. After a brief pause to remember some rather prolonged encounters, he confirmed all of her suspicions with numerous instances of Beckett begging for more, faster, and harder coming from the private office down below.
She came back to the booth with a rather smug look on her face that she hoped no one would notice. Fortunately for Castle and Beckett, Kevin did. He had observed her chatting with Brian for far too long and speculated correctly, they had a history. While obviously not privy to what was said, he guessed that Brian's history with Castle would be agenda item one from Lara's perspective.
When Lara headed home early, he interjected, "She is very curious about your relationship. She thinks there is more to it than just work. I think some of your recent PDA displays have only confirmed her suspicions. She just had a rather friendly conversation with Brian. I assume he knows about you too, and I think the cat is out of the bag."
Both Castle and Beckett were stunned by the observation. Castle immediately excused himself and pulled Brian aside. He came back with bad news. "Brian and her have a history, and yes, he has spilled the beans." Beckett was pissed, but really had no one to blame but herself for arousing suspicion in the first place. All agreed Mom and Dad needed to discuss this on their next date in the Hamptons, and Castle probably needed to ascertain Lara's motivation.
Their trip to the Hamptons now had a routine to it. They bitched about the traffic, ate at the same Greek place, and took an early exit off the highway that probably took longer, but was far less hectic. Castle's regular caretaker prepared and stocked the house so there was little to do except roll in their bags and adjust the pool temperature to their liking if the weather was cooperating. Attire for the pool depended on the temperature and the chances of precipitation. Most sultry nights, attire was forgotten, but not the wine. Dawn the next morning revealed just one rather large hump in the messy sheets as both touched, separated, and touched again during the night.
Breakfast was an organized affair. Castle took charge of the coffee and the meal prep, while Kate set the table and put out the condiments. Castle was a happy man looking over at a robed Kate knowing just one pull of the sash would reveal all. More often than not, the sash was pulled in the tidying up process, and the subsequent shower was desperately needed.
Their day-long walk that day started out with a frank discussion of their Lara problem. Both were curious about her being so curious. Castle needed to confront her and try to elicit a motivation. Gates had agreed to let Castle back in the fold, but that assumed they were colleagues not something more. Both wanted their precinct partnership to continue, and that meant Lara needed to be persuaded to keep mum.
With that resolved, Kate opted to bring up the elephant in the room - Bracken. During her penance she had let the matter slide while she coped with the daily hassles of Tracy's rules and her coworker's snarls. Now that was over, and she wanted to begin planning next steps. Castle was not a receptive audience. "Kate, you have a great deal with Bracken. It keeps everyone safe. All we have is an account number with no context. I am sure he is watching to make sure you abide by the deal. If we give him any reason to doubt your commitment to the deal, who knows what would happen?"
"Castle, this is about my mother being brutally murdered. I can't abandon this when we are so close. He is the one responsible; we just have to prove it."
"Kate, you know I love you, but don't make this a choice between that love and safety of my daughter. What if something happened to your dad, Kevin, Ann or LT? Kate you have to accept the status quo for now, and perhaps in the future we can find a way to proceed."
Kate released her hand from his grasp and veered off their joint path making a solitary beeline for the house and the upstairs bedroom where she could shut the door and avoid any further bickering. Dinner that night was a sullen affair. Tacos and wine were finished quickly with little of the usual banter. That night they chose to read in separate rooms, and dawn on Sunday found the sheets covering two rather distinct humps with a large gap in between. The exposed limbs suggested one was ready for action, while the other was ready for mom walking in on them.
They left early at Kate's behest. The lyrics from the playlist on Castle's phone were not interrupted by any conversation. She asked to be dropped off at her apartment and ran inside before he could suggest anything else. When he got to the loft, there was a short text telling him she would call if a case came their way. She was perturbed by his obstinance and threat to walk away rather than follow her lead. She had hit a trip wire with Rick. He would rather lose her than allow any harm even close to his baby girl.
He put his bag on the bed and poured himself a large scotch as he contemplated the fight that could break them. She was full of revenge; he was not - particularly if it endangered the lives of innocents. The battle lines were drawn, and she had chosen to disengage. The break would be hard, but he still had a task to do. Lunch with Lara seemed like a good place to start.
AUTHOR'S NOTE - HOPE YOU ENJOY AND REVIEWS ARE WELCOME