"The famous Kate Beckett, risen from the ranks of detective to Captain in just a few years flat, a local star thanks to her relationship with none other than world-renowned novelist Richard Castle…"
Beckett let the snide remark sit there for a moment, intentionally appearing distracted as she watched Sarah Grace go through a box of crayons.
"You are here to help us on our case, not to speculate about my career achievements.", she finally countered, growing increasingly weary of the Chief's order to bring on Sheringer of all people.
She'd only dealt with her a handful of times during her career, each case involving one or more unusual factors that had required her assistance. And each time her presence caused unnecessary tension, even leading to a suspension once.
It was an outcome Beckett was hoping to avoid at all costs, though she knew well enough that history had a way of repeating itself. Sheringer's reputation preceded her throughout all of New York and it was only a matter of time before she would cause upheaval in her department as well.
"There's no need to be defensive, captain.", the other woman replied matter-of-factly, one hand resting on the case file she'd provided her with, the other one running along the length of her wooden desk, "I am here to help, that is correct. But to build the foundation for my research, I must also see how you have approached the case, identify any gaps, anything you might have missed when it comes to our killer. You have worked with the same team for nearly a decade. Sometimes, those…relationships tend to make people…complacent. And there is no room for such a thing in a case this…all-encompassing."
"I have my most experienced detectives on this case, not to mention the fact that we've taken every single murder apart looking for clues and-"
"And here you are, making excuses while babysitting on the job, captain. The real fact is that the Chief is concerned about the lack of progress in this case, which is why he brought me on. Nobody can afford to lose more police officers to this…this ruthless killer and we're up to five victims now. That's unheard of, especially when it comes to your team which is cited to have one of the highest crime solving rates. Something is clearly amiss here, causing your investigation to stall. Now, for the second time, instead of making excuses and wasting everyone's time, how about you tell me what you and your…team have done to narrow down the killer. With any luck, I might be able to identify a new avenue for you to pursue and we can put this matter to rest."
Biting the inside of her cheek, Beckett held stern eye contact with the other woman, not willing to yield as much as an inch, knowing that Sheringer would take full advantage of it. Then, with SG's happy squealing in the background, she took in a deep breath before speaking up again.
"I am quite aware of your obvious misgivings with my person and my detectives, Miss Sheringer, so let me remind you that you are here as an advisor only, to help us out, not to distract us from our jobs. So how about you stick to the case file and do some reading before wasting any more precious time speculating and trying to defame people you don't know?"
With her thin lips pursed, Sheringer grunted in dismay, then shook her head, as if to struggle through an internal dialogue. After a few moments of silence, she grasped the case file tighter and pointed at one of the interview rooms down the hall.
"You can find me over there in case you have any questions. I will inform you of my findings once I complete my…review and we can begin an in-depth discussion about this case."
Not waiting for a reply, Sheringer stepped out of the office and marched down the hallway, never bothering to look up at any of the bewildered faces greeting her.
"Well, that was fun…", Beckett said out loud and glanced back over at SG, who had emptied the box of crayons and begun drawing little police cars onto her pad of paper, blissfully unaware of the rising tensions surrounding the case, "Let's hope your daddy had more luck than I did."