The silver Fiesta was only a short distance away, and Beckett involuntarily retraced her steps. The car had obviously lived its life, but even with a dented fender and a cracked bumper it looked pretty good. It felt like it was being watched. Despite a slightly dusty bodywork, its chrome-plated parts were polished to a shine, and the dazzling glare of the sun bounced off the radiator grille, company badge, and reflective curtain on the "dashboard" in all directions.

"My God, it's been a long time since I've held on to the wheel!" - Smiling indulgently, Kate ran her finger over the sun-hot bodywork. She rubbed reddish grains of dust between her fingers and, reliving the former memories of two years ago, wandered leisurely around the car. The pungent smell of gasoline clogged the sense of smell, but Beckett's mood did not deteriorate from this, on the contrary, a light, cheerful tune whistled by itself, when suddenly ... involuntarily slowed down, Kate stopped to the left of the Fiesta and, looking closely enough, grumbled perplexedly. If no one had ever crossed her path, then why was the left window rolled down and the back door ajar?

"What kind of a mess are they making?" - Kate even tiptoed up, craning her neck in a fruitless search for negligent workers, but no one was rushing in. Had everyone completely forgotten about her, too? Beckett was about to return to the reception, to show her character, when out of the corner of her eye she caught some incomprehensible stirring. Probably only a "waterfall" of dried frogs would have amazed Beckett much more, but the sight was already quite unexpected - a girl of about six or seven years old crawled out of the "fiesta" into the light of day. With a steamed face, she held a large doll in a silver dress under her arm. Smoothing a disheveled fiery red hair, the little girl sleepily yawned, pushed open her slumbering eyelids with her fingers and looked at the bewildered Beckett with evident interest:

- Hello! Who are you?

The question was simple, but somehow it caught Kate off guard. Embarrassed, she mumbled vaguely:

- H-Hello... I... it's... well, well... I'm Kate.

Interpreting her confusion in her own way, the girl asked unashamedly:

- "Are you my daddy's new girlfriend? - and, without waiting for an answer, held out her hand for a handshake, slightly digging her stained fingers: "And my name is Pumpkin!

Sincerely perplexed by the ambiguity of the situation, Kate even frowned slightly. Was she really mixed up with someone else? Perhaps it was better to put everything in its place at once!

- Nice to meet you! - Beckett gently squeezed the small palm in a welcoming gesture and shook it slightly. - What makes you think I'm his girlfriend? I have no idea who your daddy is!

With a little bit of a chin, Pumpkin smiled cheerfully.

- He's the world's greatest daddy ever! - She pushed her thumbs up into fists and looked questioningly at Kate.

- You can take my word for it, kid," Beckett looked honestly and amiably into the child's wide-open eyes, "I'm dreaming of getting my license.

The pumpkin was definitely a catchy little thing, and Kate regretted that she hadn't come to class without a toy. Somewhere in her bag, though, there must have been a little lollipop from last week. Fumbling in her pocket, Beckett carefully freed the melted candy from its wrapper and handed it to the girl.

- Oh, thank you! - Swallowing a lot of saliva, Pumpkin shoved the treat behind her cheek and began to roll it appetizingly. - Aren't you cheating on me?

With a negative shake of her head, Kate squatted down, unable to keep from smiling. Pumpkin's soft, copper-colored hair was tangled in a shapeless ball, patches of car grease decorated her cheeks and forehead, and the shoulder strap of her pants, unbuttoned, hung lonely. In short, Beckett was an unusually cute and very pretty girl, but somehow so dirty!

"I wonder where the good-for-nothing parents are looking? Leaving their child unsupervised!" - Kate cursed to herself, shaking her head reproachfully. A damp washcloth immediately appeared from her purse, and Beckett ran a light squeeze of her finger over the muddy splatter on her soiled cheeks, the fold of her neck, and the corners of her lips, trying not to miss a thing. Pumpkin didn't resist, and a mute question lingered in her trusting, clear-blue eyes. After weighing it all out, Kate returned to the topic of conversation.

- Why would I want this? - she asked affectionately.

- I don't know," Pumpkin shrugged simple, and held out her hands, no less dirty than her face, to Beckett. The napkin had already had to be replaced to wipe each finger individually. After a few minutes of laborious housekeeping, Beckett carefully corrected the children's clothes and straightened to her full height.

- Thank you! - Thanked Pumpkin politely. She sat down on the edge of the seat, dangling her legs outward, and holding the doll by the waist, straightened her arms in front of her. She critically examined the doll, carefully tugged at the folds of her wrinkled dress, carefully tucked her hair into an unimaginable wisp, and only then smiled happily at her mouth. Pumpkin seemed to take unspeakable pleasure in her "motherly" care. Leaning toward the doll's head, she whispered something in her ear, not forgetting to glance at Beckett, nibbling her lower lip thoughtfully.

"Is there anything else I should ask, or should I not say anything?" - Kate still hesitated, but in the end, curiosity and anxiety took over. Without noticing that she was mechanically biting her nail, Beckett scrutinized Pumpkin from her own height, like Gulliver the Lilliputian.

- You know, it seems a little strange," Kate began cautiously, "but why isn't there an adult around a little girl like you?

- It's because Mommy and Daddy divorced when I was very young," Pumpkin sobbed suddenly and sorrowfully, and clutched the doll tightly to her.

The child's chubby lips trembled finely, she lowered her head, and a big tear rolled down her rounded cheek, getting lost in the toy's hair.

- My mother is an actress, and she's gone so far away that we hardly ever see each other..." Pumpkin tried to smile through her strength, but instead she crinkled even more sorrowfully and ducked back into her toy curls.

"Oh, shit!" - The pitying sight of the shrunken figure even made Beckett's heart ache. Overcoming her growing sense of guilt, she hurriedly took a few deep breaths and exhalations, then pulled a comb from her bag to squat down and run it through Pumpkin's tangled strands.

- I'm sorry, baby, I didn't know," Kate swallowed a lump in her throat and hid her eyes bashfully, while Pumpkin, on the other hand, perked up slightly. She put the doll on her lap and began to undo the unruly curls of her hair.

- Okay, I forgive you," Pumpkin's voice perked up and sounded like a silver chime. - It's a pity you don't know my daddy, though! You would have liked him, because, as my grandmother says, "women have surrounded him all his life!"

When she had finished fiddling with the doll, Pumpkin put the toy on her knee and, with her nose meaningfully turned up, finished her thought:

- And he himself says so ... - here she hesitated, remembering, and proudly proclaimed, "Technically, I'm always in demand!"

Perfectly aware of what kind of demand we're talking about, Kate grinned modestly. What's more, she would never be proud of it, and it wasn't because she was a woman. It's just that she has her own unshakable principles, and there are also the rules of decorum. After brushing out the last curl, Beckett got to her feet and took one step back, admiring her work.

- I understand," Kate raised her right eyebrow skeptically, "but it's not my style to make a passing acquaintance with the first man I meet.

This phrase Pumpkin for some reason took it with a grin. She fidgeted nervously in her elastic seat, pouted fretfully, and looked at Beckett with genuine resentment.

- My daddy is my daddy, and he's no one! - Pumpkin rephrased someone else's words reproachfully, and something subtly familiar flashed in her gaze, "Because he writes books!

- And what kind of books does he write? - She realized that she had made a mistake, and asked Beckett cautiously, trying to smile as friendly as possible.

- My dad doesn't do nonsense! - Pumpkin reasoned maturely, looking at Kate in all seriousness. - He's a detective writer, and his name is Richard Castle!

- Richard Castle?!

"My God, his name!"

Kate rounded her eyes in amazement and involuntarily took a step back. As luck would have it, she was immediately reminded of a mild pique with Mandy, who had just dusted off from Castle's last autograph session. Shining like a big light bulb with undisguised pleasure, her friend generously showered Castle's new book and the author himself with a hurricane of praise, not allowing her to insert even a few words of objection, but she could not influence Kate's stable opinion about this "read" in any way. And she couldn't have, because Beckett was sure that such opuses were more suitable to the pathetic definition of "little books". And they simply can't have any clever thoughts, interesting content, or deep, philosophical meaning, since such books are sold in abundance on every corner, without bringing much praise to their authors. Much more interesting to take in the hands of a weighty volume of long-revered author, to be with the bright, original characters, to rethink their complex, multi-faceted characters, or even just try on their fate itself. The characters' resilience in overcoming adversity, their ability to make reasonable compromises, and their uncommon personalities have always made Kate quietly envious, constantly tormenting her with the same question:

"What would have happened if all of the above had happened to me? What would I have become then, and what path would I have chosen for myself?"

The answers were even harder than the questions, and after much reflection, Beckett assured herself that there is a God who keeps her and her family safe. Somehow!

Wandering in thought, Beckett had even somehow forgotten a little about Pumpkin, but when the seat squeaked impatiently beneath her, Kate realized she was still expected to answer.

- I've heard that name somewhere before," Kate put a finger to her cheek thoughtfully, trying to relate what she'd heard to what she already knew. Shouldn't he be at home, with his laptop in his lap, making up one chapter after another?

- He's waiting for inspiration," Pumpkin pushed her lip back contemptuously, surprised at her incomprehension, "and making a little money in the process.

- Don't you have enough money?

- No. My dad isn't very famous yet, but my grandmother and I believe in him and his talent.

Pumpkin said it with such undisguised pride that Kate felt even more respect for the child. Smiling, she remembered her mother, ready to help at any moment, and always keeping a warm word in reserve.

- Ahhhh..." Beckett stretched out as a man's voice suddenly sounded behind her:

- Alexis, so there you are!

It sounded so loud and so close that Kate even flinched in surprise. She took an involuntary step back and felt a strong man's palm on her shoulder.