Return To Maine Chapter 25
A/N: On Tuesday, Jan. 29th, I learned that a very dear friend and Castle lover, Peggy Alexa Hoffman, AKA: Peggy Trueheart who wrote many commentaries and reviews for Castle TV. net for many years, passed away after a long battle with cancer Monday, Jan. 28th, 2019.
Peggy and I became friends through her writings and she became a great inspiration and encourager for me to write. So I'd like to dedicate this chapter to her.
Peggy, we never got to become the 2 little Castle loving grannies attending Castle Comicons like we both wished, but I want you to know that I am so thankful for your friendship. Thank you for all of your love and support and the impact you made on my life!
RIP, my friend, your work here on earth is complete now and you are now resting in the arms of Jesus! Love and miss you, my friend!
And to P2P for your help, which I am so grateful for as well as your friendship which means the world to me.
Kate's emotions were on a run away roller coaster as she let herself into her apartment. Two very, young, innocent girls were out there somewhere, scared as hell and she needed to find them.
A search of the suspect's house in Queens had yielded no Jack Wyatt or his daughters, but it was evident that someone had been staying there as there were a few dirty dishes in the sink and a print was lifted from a glass in the sink.
CSU had found a gun cabinet in the house loaded with guns, but none of them had been fired recently and no .45 or knives with blood or tissue samples, either and without a murder weapon, they were dead in the water.
Her team had found that Pam's apartment had no signs of forced entry, but it was apparent a struggle had taken place as the furniture was askew, lamps knocked over and broken, a large pool of blood on the living room floor and the spray of blood on the wall, making it obvious that this was the actual scene of the murder.
A sweep of the apartment revealed no clothes whatsoever for the girls, which indicated that Jack had taken the girls and was on the run with them. A canvas of the neighbors had revealed that the elderly woman living next door had called in a noise complaint to the management and had called the cops, but the cops had just dismissed it as a marital spat and left.
So the system had failed Pamela Wyatt and her daughters and she'd be damned if she let that happen again.
The apartment was cordoned off and Kate and her team returned to the precinct to await CSU's findings.
Later that afternoon, Kate returned to York Prep and talked to one of Pamela's co worker, an English teacher, Gloria Henley who was also a close friend of the victim and corrobrated Ms. Scott's statement, that the victim had walked into her husband's office to surprise him with lunch and caught him and the paralegal in his office in the act of all places on top of his desk.
She further stated that Pam had picked up her girls from her sister's house and had left their home before Jack came home. Jack stalked Pam and found out where she had moved and Pam told her that she was frightened of Jack so she had gotten a restraining order against Jack, but he always found a way around it and continued to stalk her and the girls.
Evidence was pointing directly to Jack Wyatt, but so far, all the evidence they had was circumstantial. They needed to find Jack Wyatt and the girls and the sooner the better, but with no new evidence and no sightings of Jack and/ or the girls, the team called it a day and went home.
To say that this case had affected the whole team and with the girls missing it was like a double whammy and intensified their anxiety would be a massive understatement. Time was of the essence. The longer it took them to find him, the easier he could slip through their fingers and they might never find him or the girls.
With shaking hands, she unlocked her door and entered, wishing for the hundredth time Rick was here to hold her and reassure her. She missed him and not only that, she needed him.
With a heavy sigh, she kicked off her boots, undressed and had just began running water for a nice hot bath when the buzzer sounded, accompanied by a loud knock.
"Open up, girlfriend. I have pizza and beer." Lanie loudly announced.
Oh hell. She forgot about Lanie! She turned off the tap and shouted. "Just a second!" as she grabbed her terry cloth robe hanging on a peg on the bathroom door.
Lanie was the last person she needed to see right now, but knowing Lanie and her good intentions , she would not stop until she got what she wanted, Kate cinched the belt of her bathrobe tightly around her waist and headed for the door.
"I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" Lanie asked taking in her appearance as her eyes skimmed the interior of her apartment.
She loved Lanie, really she did, and under normal circumstances would thoroughly enjoy the impromptu girls night. But at times when she was being her noisiest, when she was most obnoxious was times like these that she really wished her friend would mind her own business. Yes, she thought. You are interrupting my hot bath! But she said nothing and ushered her inside.
"Come on in. And no, you are not interrupting anything like that. We are completely alone."
"Good. Now why don't we dig into this pizza and open a couple of beers? We have a lot to talk about."
No. Not really, Kate thought, but grabbed some paper towels and the bottle opener from the kitchen anyway.
"You mean about the case?" Kate asked as she grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge.
"Hell no! About that new neck jewelry you're wearing around your neck!"
Oh shit! She hadn't had time to remove it before Lanie saw it, but it probably wouldn't matter because Javier probably told her about it this morning.
"It's nothing, Lanie."
"No, it is not nothing! And don't you dare try to snow me with that story about it being from your dad. Now who is it from?"
"You're not going to let go of this, are you?
"Not a chance in hell." Lanie said, popping the cap on her beer.
Kate hesitated. They had wanted to wait until he got back before they announced it to everyone, but that may not be possible now, not with Lanie. Lanie knew her entirely too well.
She waited until Lanie had a piece of pizza in her hand before she nodded. "Okay, but you have to swear to me that you will tell no one! Especially Javi."
"Okay. You have my word, but it isn't as if he isn't already suspicious. So spill, girl. Whose the guy?"
She swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. She knew Lanie. Lanie was her bff and she trusted her, she had always kept Kate's secrets, well secret. She would this, too. She'd just have to explain when Rick called.
"Fine. Okay. It's Castle."
Lanie choked on the bite of pizza that got stuck in her throat and took a swig of beer to wash it down.
"Writer Boy?" Lanie asked incredulously, her eyes popping out of her head.
Kate nodded. "Actually, that is writer man."
"What? Well, for how long?" Lanie stammered.
"Eight months now."
"What? You're telling me that you and Castle have been together for 8 months?"
"Yes. Since a couple of days after I returned from my dad's cabin." Kate answered.
"How come I haven't seen any signs?"
"You weren't supposed to. We've been v very careful."
"Yeah, but Kate, even when you are being careful, I usually see some sign."
That was very true. She had never been able to keep anything from Lanie, so why should anything be different now?
"We were going to come clean about it when he returns from his trip, but we absolutely cannot let Gates find out."
"Please , girlfriend! It's not like any of us would rat you two out. I'm just overjoyed that you two finally got your shit together. Besides, it means I won the pool."
Kate shook her head. "I should have known! You didn't by any chance know what Ryan and Espo was up to Thursday night, do you?"
Lanie looked at her dubiously. "No. Why? Did they do something?"
"Not that I know of. I was just wondering." Kate lied.
"I didn't see Javi until Saturday night, but he did say that he and Kevin had played Madden at Kevin's house Thursday night into Friday."
"Hmmm. Did he now? Did you corroborate that with Jenny?" Oh shit! She didn't ask that out loud, did she? She hoped not! As if that wouldn't raise Lanie's suspicions more!
Lanie's eyebrows rose and she shot Kate a questioning look. "Okay, Kate. What are you not telling me?"
"N-Nothing." Kate stammered. So much, Lanie. So very much.
"Kate."
"It's complicated."
"Uh uh, girlfriend. You do not get to pull that 'complicated' bs on me! That's a line of crap and you know it! Now, what is it that I need to corroborate with Jenny?"
"Please, Lanie!" Kate pleaded.
Fortunately, she was saved from answering as her phone rang.
"Beckett." she answered, snatching her phone from the coffee table. "Hey Espo." She listened and then followed with a couple of uh huh's and then, "Thanks, Espo! I'll be there in 20!"
"I gotta go! That was Espo! Unis spotted Jack going into the house in Queens. He's got the girls and is refusing to open up." she told Lanie, rushing to the bedroom to jump into her clothes.
"Do you have any evidence against him?" Lanie asked.
"Not enough to arrest him for murder, but he's definitely our prime suspect."
"Okay, but don't think we are done talking about this, Kate Beckett! I want to know just what you suspect the boys of and hear more about how you and Castle got together and what it's like being with him." Lanie said, as she gathered her things to leave."
"Just remember. Not a word of this! Martha and Alexis don't even know yet and we'd like them to hear it from us first."
"No worries. Your secret is safe with me."
"Thank you." she said, as they left her apartment and headed in opposite directions.
TBC
A/N: Going to close this chapter here as it gives a bit of a cliff hanger and a great spot to begin the next chapter. I know this is a sad case and is probably full of holes in the crime solving, but hoping I get better at it. Rick will be home very soon and we will deal with the boys, but Kate will get a little revenge of her own on an unrelated issue before that happens.
As always, Thank you for your continued love and support of this story, your thoughts and ideas and for your belief in me.