Moment in Time Part 3

Chapter 107

Much Ado About Murder

Part 1

A/N Oh boy! In this one, the writers didn't just make Castle a buffoon. They extended their sin to Beckett and Ryan. Maybe someone hypnotized them into believing they were writing a sitcom. I'll try to de-clown the characters as much as I can. On a personal note, my late uncle was a playwright, not famous but produced. He wrote the play I cite for Martha.

Zane Cannon is great box office – for movies. Unfortunately, his stage acting leaves something to be desired. But standing alone on the stage, he's trying his best to do a decent job with Hamlet's soliloquy. As he struggles with the music of the Bard's words, he hears a door opening. "Is someone there?" As he turns, a quill pen penetrates his neck, and he falls, soon to be lifeless, to the floor.

Rick grins as he examines the package Eduardo dropped off. "It finally came!"

"What finally came?" Kate asks. "I haven't seen you this excited since… well, not that long. It was pretty obvious when you joined me in the shower this morning."

"And with good reason. You were, as always, glorious. But this is glorious too. It's a YOLO card."

"A card to have a 1500 calorie latte because you only live once?"

"All in all, not the worst idea. But with you hooked on skim milk, I've learned how to do a pretty good job foaming it. No, this card is the newest step up. It opens the door to all kinds of perks at hotels and gets me on planes first."

"You already have cards to do that."

"But with this, it only takes one. And it's also got upgraded RFID, so you don't have to swipe it ten times for the terminal to read it. More than that, I can avoid the check-out at some of the better establishments. Some supermarkets are ramping up for that too. I can even just drive straight through toll booths and out of parking garages and get charged automatically. Also, YOLO matches every dollar I spend to seize the day, to help the less fortunate seize their dreams."

"Now, that part's worthwhile," Kate admits.

And it's got little tiny diamond particles, so it won't scuff in my wallet, although it might not be great for the leather. Still, nothing's perfect." He plants a kiss on Kate's temple. "Almost nothing. We could start spreading the wealth sooner rather than later. Want to take it out for a spin tonight? It might help with whatever you have planned."

Kate's gut tightens. "What?"

"Don't tell me you've forgotten our weekly date night – a break in the endless banality of your bureaucratic burden. It was your turn to plan something."

"Oh God, Castle, everything going on with Caleb's phone knocked it completely out of my mind," Kate confesses. "I'm sorry."

"I get it, Kate. It's all right. And anyway, you've still got time to put together a scenario. The woman who turned my 40th birthday into a reboot of Rear Window isn't short on creativity. Perhaps that's your problem with your deskbound drudgery."

"You may have a point," Kate allows. "And I'll think of something before tonight and…." Kate's cell dings a text. "We've got a murder at Citizen's Theater."

"I know that temple to Thespis. It's charitably designated as off-Broadway, more like off-off-Broadway. Mother did "A Touch of Intimacy" there in '93 – a fittingly dramatic spot for a crime scene."

"Then you go ahead. The boys are there. I want to check in with Vikram and start on my paperwork. Catch you later?"

"Count on it."

"Is that Zane Cannon?" Castle asks as CSU takes pictures of the body.

"Yep," Esposito acknowledges, "star of the Apocolypse Runner franchise."

Rick sighs. "I love those movies."

"Me too," Esposito confides, " though, no disrespect to the dead, the guy couldn't act to save his life."

"Quite literally," Rick observes, "from the look of things." He points to a script lying on a nearby table. "Was Cannon rehearsing Hamlet alone this morning?"

"Actually. It was last night," Esposito corrects. "Perlmutter places the TOD between eight and eleven."

Rick glances around. "Where is Dr. Charming? He usually stays until the body's off to the morgue."

"Men's room. He said the idea of casting Zane Cannon in Shakespeare made him sick."

"He's probably not the only one. You know, a quill pen is an odd weapon – unless the murderer was the ghost of William Shakespeare taking revenge on Zane for butchering his words. I've heard some buzz that the classical acting world was up in arms about Zane playing Old Will's most famous character."

"Why cast him then?" Esposito wonders.

"Because movie stars sell tickets," Rick explains. "Just ask my mother. She can't stop talking about the Hollywoodization of Broadway." Rick spies a man in an NYPD jacket taking pictures with his phone. "Who's that? I don't recognize him."

"That's because he's not a cop." Esposito charges at the intruder. "Who the hell are you, and what are you doing crashing a crime scene?" Esposito snatches the phone and starts going through the pictures.

"Nice try," the photographer responds. "But I already uploaded them to the cloud."

Esposito calls over a uni. "Hey, Officer, escort this dirtbag out of here and confiscate that jacket."

"Give me back my phone!" the intruder demands. "You can't legally take my phone."

"What's your name, fella?" Esposito questions.

"Jake, Jake Cuneo."

"Well, Jake Cuneo, you can't legally invade a crime scene. You're lucky I don't arrest you for illegal trespass, destruction of evidence, and obstruction. Now, get out of here before I change my mind," Esposito orders. The uni urges Jake off the stage. "See that, Castle? Our victim's fame is already turning this into a media circus."

"Hey, guys," Ryan calls, ushering a woman up the steps to the stage. "May I introduce you to Erin Cherloff? She is the director of the play. Jenny and I caught some of her work before Nicholas was born. Erin is a true artist." He turns to Erin. "Your Antigone was a revelation."

"Has Ryan been hanging around with your mother?" Esposito murmurs to Castle.

"Any chance to get out of the house with one toddler and another kid on the way would be a revelation," Rick whispers back.

Erin favors Ryan with a smile. "Thank you. I can't believe all this is happening. Zane and I finally get a chance to work together after all these years, and this happens."

"The two of you were friends?" Rick inquires.

"Yeah, since theater school," Erin replies. "Zane dropped out to go to Hollywood, but we stayed close."

"Do you know what he was doing here in the theater by himself?" Esposito asks.

"He was terrified – of Hamlet," Erin explains. "He really wanted to show his acting chops in this role. Sometimes he would come here after hours to get more work in."

"Was Zane having problems with anyone that you know of?" Ryan queries.

Sighing, Erin nods. "It's no secret that he had a reputation for sleeping with his leading ladies."

"Are you saying that Zane was sleeping with the actress playing Ophelia?" Castle presses.

Erin nods again. "Naomi Fox. Mm-hmm. But they recently had a messy break-up. She went sort of Fatal Attraction on him and took a baseball bat to his DB9. He had to take photos for insurance. He sent me some of them." She holds up her phone. "Here."

Rick regards the photos. "Did Zane report the vandalism to the police?"

"No. Look, I've worked with Naomi before, and she's crazy, but actor crazy, not murderer crazy. However, there is one thing you should know about her. Naomi's a method actor."

"Meaning she doesn't play characters. She becomes them," Rick translates. "I'm more than familiar with the concept. Questioning her should be – interesting."

"Where can we find her?" Esposito asks.

Erin points toward the stage right wing. "Her dressing room is that way."

"Guys," Castle wonders as they walk down a short hall to find Naomi, "you can't file a vandalism insurance claim without a police report, can you?"

"Not usually," Esposito replies."

"So why did Erin say Zane hadn't filed one?"

"Directors are sensitive," Ryan asserts. "Maybe she got so caught up in all of this she forgot."

"But we'll check it out," Esposito promises.