Playing Hard to Get
Chapter 24
Kate knocked and heard Dahlia barking her head off and rushing the door since that was her job in her eyes. In turn, that got Lilly to bark which had Dahlia barking a happier bark since that meant Lilly and Kate were on the other side.
Martha was at the door before everyone, but only because she was closer. Save for Dahlia, who was there first, naturally. "Katherine! What a surprise."
Lilly ran in, and those two were off to the races. "Hi, Martha." Kate got a hug that she returned and stepped inside. She glanced around. "No Castle?"
"He said something about needing something. I wasn't listening, and Alexis is..." Martha was interrupted as Alexis came down the stairs.
"Hi, Kate." Alexis was getting used to calling her by her first name finally. Alexis gave her a quick hug and got one in return. "If you're looking for Dad, he said something about needing to find something, and out the door he went. That doesn't have anything to do with your case, does it?"
"It shouldn't. That case is solved, and we don't have a new one yet." Now Kate was wondering just what Castle needed so badly. Kate dropped her overnight bag at the door since she didn't want to give away that she was planning to spend the night here and have sex with Castle.
"You staying for dinner? Correction, you are staying for dinner." Instead of asking, Alexis made it a statement of fact.
"It sounds like I am. Thank you." She hadn't come over intending to get a free meal, but since she was here and Castle wasn't, she was staying. "Since Castle isn't here, would you like some help cooking?" She was willing to lend a hand.
"Sure, just as soon as I figure out what to make." Alexis didn't have an idea what to make yet.
"I can make something my mom made a lot if you want to help me instead." Kate didn't usually like cooking something her mother made. It hurt too much to remember what life was like then. She was trying to get better, though.
Alexis' face lit up. "I'm all yours. The kitchen is all yours. If we don't have something you need, I can go get whatever it is for you," she offered.
"Deal." Kate headed for the kitchen. "Alexis, is there a reason why you have a broken chair?" It was nearly shattered into pieces, and several small pieces were scattered on the floor, in fact.
"Dad." Alexis rolled her eyes just like Kate had taught her without realizing it, of course. "In his new book, he has Nikki Heat duct taped to a chair, and he wanted to figure out how she could get out. Realism. So Dad had me duct tape him to a chair after you had banished him from the Precinct again."
Kate stopped her right there before she or Martha went too far. "I can explain."
"Grams and I guessed that it was because of Kyra. You got jealous, and Dad was too close and was defending her." Alexis shrugged; that was it in a nutshell.
"Very sweet of you, by the way." Martha approved of Kate being jealous.
"I was not jealous," Kate insisted and saw the look on both of their faces. Kate backpedaled. "Alright, maybe a little."
"Threatening Dad with his monitor again or else leaving, is not a little jealous," Alexis countered and opened the refrigerator to see just what they did have.
"I didn't... I mean, I wasn't... Okay, fine! I was a lot jealous. Happy now?" Kate opened the freezer to see what frozen meats they had.
"Well, I think it's sweet," Alexis said. "What are we making anyway?" If they didn't have it, she needed to be leaving to get it.
"I see frozen ground beef. Have you had Enchilada Casseer-Olé before?" Kate asked them.
"Enchiladas in a restaurant, yes." Alexis was willing to try what Kate wanted to make.
Kate ran through the list. "We need at least one pound of ground beef, black beans, Italian salad dressing, taco seasoning, cumin, and flour tortillas, Mexican cheese blend, one tomato chopped, and fresh cilantro. Oh, and an entire onion."
"Onions we have, as well as ground beef, cumin, and cheese, but I'm not sure if it's a Mexican blend. Which do you want, jar or dry salad dressing?" Alexis inquired.
"Dry, just one packet will do," Kate told her.
"I'll get my purse. I'll be back by the time you have the hamburger thawed." Alexis ran upstairs to her room and was back in less than a minute. She had just left the loft but was still in the hallway when she heard Kate call out, "And sour cream!" Alexis added it to her list and hurried over to the elevator.
"You're certain you're okay, Katherine? Between Kyra and cooking something your mother made, it's a lot to deal with." Martha wanted to be sure.
"I'm fine, Martha, honest. I need to start finding a way to get past simply wearing her ring all the time. Joanne and I have the same problem, and this is as far as we've both got. Maybe this will help." Kate only knew she needed to start somewhere.
Martha hugged her. "She's watching, dear. Mothers are always watching. It's what we do. That and worry over our children constantly." Martha released her. "Speaking of family, how is your father? I haven't spoken to him since..." Martha stopped right there since that had to be a sore spot for Kate.
"It's alright, you can say it. Not since my meltdown over what Castle did. Dad's fine. As soon as I have a day off, which will have to be after I finish my paperwork for this last case, I'm meeting him for lunch somewhere. He hasn't told me where, though." He was being mysterious about that, and Kate didn't know why.
"Another mystery for you to solve," Martha said with a smile. "It definitely keeps you on your toes."
"I'm not sure that's where it's keeping me," Kate replied and listened to Martha chuckle.
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Alexis was back and dropped the groceries off in the kitchen. "Is Dad back yet?"
"He got here about 10 minutes ago and went straight to his study. He didn't even stop to pet Lilly or Dahlia," Kate replied. "He did come home with something. It was a nondescript bag, so I don't know anything about it." Kate began looking through what Alexis bought. "Chop the onion for me, please, if you don't mind?"
Kate listened to Alexis chopping and turned to see how far along she was. She was wearing something that looked a little like sunglasses. "Why are you wearing glasses?"
"You don't cry from the onion with these things on," Alexis explained and kept chopping.
"Where were those things when Mom had me chopping?" Kate remembered her eyes burning from chopping onions for her mom.
Alexis grinned. "These were Dad's idea. They even work!"
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Kate slid dinner into the oven and set the timer. "Twenty-five minutes. Better go find out what your father's up to."
His door was closed, so she knocked first and then entered. "Twenty-five minutes to dinner, Dad. Kate cooked… What are you doing?" Alexis was just nosy enough to come around his desk to see for herself. "Those are wedding invitations." Except the one she was looking at didn't have real names on it, just John and Jane Doe. "Who's getting married?" Then suddenly, it dawned on Alexis. "You're going to ask Kate!"
"A little less loud, if you please?" Rick asked her. "And these are just samples for her to look at. I've got flower arrangements, music options for her to choose from, and a list of photographers. I've even got wedding venue ideas she can look over."
Alexis squealed and hugged him while he sat there. "I approve, Dad. Just don't do too much planning. Kate may have ideas of her own, you know."
"I'm just giving her suggestions, and I haven't even asked her yet." Rick wasn't even sure when he was going to do that.
Then Alexis glared at him. "Does this have anything with Kyra getting married?"
"Kyra was followed by two mistakes. And Kate doesn't feel like a mistake," Rick told her. Suddenly, he figured out just what he had said. "I'm sorry, Pumpkin. Your mother wasn't a mistake."
"It's okay, Dad. Mom was a mistake. But at least she gave me you." Alexis hugged him again. Rick hugged her back since she hadn't taken that too personally. "Twenty minutes, and you better hide all that stuff," Alexis warned him. She went toward the kitchen and saw Kate on the sofa, so she sat next to her.
"What's Castle up to now?" Kate queried since he might tell Alexis.
Alexis shrugged. "He's being Dad again." She hoped that was enough for her.
"Ah!" Kate was well acquainted with Castle being Castle. "Well, he better hurry up, or I'm eating his portion." Kate got Alexis to laugh and even laughed herself. Being here felt really good. After all these years alone, being here felt so very different, and she liked it.
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They were all at the dining room table, enjoying supper. Kate had noticed Alexis grinning about something. "What are you grinning about?"
"Me? I'm not grinning. I know Noth-ing," Alexis argued.
"You're not a guy, you're not fat enough to be Sergeant Schultz, and you're not German, so give." Kate wanted to know.
"I'm entitled to my secrets. I'm just as much a girl as you are, so I'm not telling." And Alexis stuck her tongue out at Kate.
Kate softly growled since Alexis had her there, and she knew it. She had a lot of secrets that she was carrying to the grave. A few might slip out eventually, but not all of them.
"And why is it, Castle, that you suddenly look so guilty?" Those two were up to something, or she wasn't Detective Kate Beckett.
Rick blinked. "Me? I always look guilty. Ask Mother."
"Leave me out of this. You two are not starting a fight because of me." Martha opted out of this conversation.
"We aren't fighting. At least not yet, especially if Castle tells me what's going on," Kate countered and glared at Castle.
"Honest, I don't have any secrets. Well, that's exactly not true. I have a few secrets, but none you need to know about." Rick did his best to deflect when he said, "And this is pretty good, Kate."
"My mother thanks you, but this isn't over with, Castle. You two are up to something, and I'm going to find out what. I have my ways," Kate warned him.
"Uh-oh," Rick and Alexis managed to blurt simultaneously and saw Kate smiling wickedly at them.
They cleaned up after dinner, and it became movie night. However, Martha excused herself. Something about beauty sleep. So that left the three of them.
Kate was in the middle with Castles on either side of her. Not that she minded all that much. It felt strangely comforting. A lot like when she was a little girl and had her mom on one side and her dad on the other. But different.
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All three of them had managed to stay awake for the entire movie. There had been a few adjustments along the way though. One was that they were all trapped. Both dogs had decided to sleep not just at their feet but ON their feet. So there was no getting up to get something to drink, more snacks, or even use the bathroom if the need arose. Second was that Kate was holding onto Castle's arm and leaning into him while Alexis snuggled up next to Kate until the movie ended.
They were all content to stay like this as they watched the credits roll till Alexis finally snapped out of it. "Come on, you two. Let's go outside." That last word had both dogs jumping up and racing for the door. It had the added benefit of freeing up everyone's feet so they could all now move.
"I can do it, Alexis." Kate was willing if only to go with her.
"Thanks for offering, but I can manage. Besides, who would try to mug me when I have two dogs protecting me?" Alexis wasn't afraid. She had faith in Dahlia and whatever she did, she was betting Lilly would do the same.
"But we both know those two are teddy bears," Kate pointed out.
"Teddy bears with teeth, Kate. Let's see, I need a flashlight, doggie bags and leashes, and my can of mace. Just to appease you." Alexis smiled at Kate and went over to the door where both dogs were sitting, waiting patiently for her.
"Thank you," Kate called out but didn't release her hold on Castle. "Is she safe out there?" Kate couldn't help but be worried about her.
"She has two dogs, a can of mace, and don't ask me why, but lately, she's been taking Karate lessons on the side." Rick wasn't that worried.
"Karate lessons!?" Kate exclaimed. She sat up and loosened her hold on Rick's arm. "Since when?"
"She said she started while we were on vacation, so she hasn't gotten far yet. She's still wearing a white belt, I know that much. My little girl is trying to learn to break boards with her bare hand." Actually, Rick could hardly wait to see that.
"She has time to learn Karate?" Kate only knew what Rick had been telling her. Kate tried to think for a moment. Violin lessons, sword fighting with her dad, laser tag with her dad, school, homework, she had gone out on at least one date that she knew of, and now she was adding Karate? Kate was worried that she was spreading herself a bit thin. Worse, it wasn't even Thanksgiving yet, let alone Christmas or New Year.
Kate eased back against Castle. "God, I wish I had her energy." Kate chose to tease him right then. "Tell me again where she gets it from?"
"Careful." She was talking about his little girl here. "Wait, was that an insult?" Rick wasn't sure, so he looked down at her, but she didn't budge. He couldn't even see her grinning wide.
They were both still like that when Alexis and the dogs came back inside, and Kate watched Lilly run as fast as she could toward her, which had her sitting up and watching while Lilly jumped onto the sofa and plopped herself down on Kate's legs.
"I'm going to go to bed now. Thankfully, I don't have a class till 11:00 tomorrow. You know, you could take Dahlia to work with you tomorrow if you want to try that. Lilly might be willing to show her the ropes. All those secret treats she's being fed without your knowledge..." Alexis raised her eyebrows, cocked her head, then turned to go upstairs. The second Alexis set even one foot on the stairs, Dahlia raced up them and disappeared into her bedroom.
"So that's why you're getting pudgy on me. Just for that, my girl, you're going running with me more often, and I'll need some signs at work. Ones that say DO NOT FEED THE DOG!" Kate declared to everyone, especially Lilly, who wasn't listening or paying attention. She was getting petted.
"It was just a thought. Good night." Alexis made the rest of her way up the stairs.
"'Night, Alexis," Kate called out.
"Sleep well, Pumpkin," Rick called out.
Alexis left three perfectly content individuals on the sofa. "Do I want to take Dahlia to work with me? Lilly goes all the time, so she knows how to behave. I don't think Dahlia has ever been there before." Kate needed to think about it for a second.
"Lilly might show her the ropes," Rick suggested.
"Maybe, but more than likely, two playing dogs will piss off Montgomery and he'll banish both of them. It's a precinct, not a doggie daycare center," Kate reminded him.
"Good point." She had him there, and he knew it. "It sounds like Dahlia stays here. Unless you want to take one or both to K-9 training school?" Rick waited to see what she thought.
"Teach them to attack people on command? Oh, no, I don't think so. I'm pretty sure that's not what you had in mind when you got them. Anyway, they're Labradors, not Dobermans or German Shepards. No, I think these two will have to be content with being pets. One lives here, and the other splits her time between the Precinct and home. With visiting rights." Kate was good with that.
"All the visiting rites she wants." Rick kissed Kate's head. Now, if he could only think of a way to get her to move in with him, he would be a happy man, and Lilly would have someone to play with all the time.
Lilly fell asleep on Kate, and Rick yawned. He and Kate were beat, so he eased Lilly off of Kate, and hand in hand, they went into his bedroom. In the end, neither of them had any interest in sex. So that night, they were content to sleep naked in each other's arms. Both were right where they wanted to be.
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Kate had to leave Lilly behind at the Precinct again, but she wasn't concerned. It was just another home for her, and the people there would take care of her. Besides, she felt a sneaking suspicion that Lilly spent all that time in Roy's office. But she couldn't prove it yet. No one was willing to blab.
Espo introduced their new dead body. "Meet the late Jack Coonan."
"Why is that name familiar?" Kate couldn't place it.
"Probably because it crossed over all our desks over the last few years. Assault, arson, you name it," Ryan explained.
"Coonan had a rap sheet. Word is, he's an enforcer for the Westies," Espo reminded her if she didn't already know.
"And who are the Westies again?" Lanie looked up briefly. She was down on her knees, still going over him.
Rick gave her the short version. "Irish Mafia out of Hell's Kitchen."
"They deal in cargo theft, extortion, counterfeiting," Kate added, so she knew they were extremely bad people.
"Our boy also had a home security system." Espo went out of his way to show everyone that security system. "Twelve gauge with hollow point."
"That thing could stop a Kodiak in Kevlar, or whoever it was coming through the door," Kate noted with a frown.
"Whoever it was, they left him leaking from about thirty holes that a man doesn't normally have," Lanie pointed out.
"And a 9mm in his waistband. This guy was armed and ready. Whoever got him was very, very good." All of a sudden, Kate didn't much care for this case.
"I was going to go with Ninja assassins, but they don't use guns." Rick stopped himself from saying anything else.
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Kevin and Espo had come up with a lead that didn't make sense to her. "What's an Irish street thug doing talking to the FBI?"
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Kate had a key and knew just where to take that key; she had the guys and Castle with her. "Wait!" Rick exclaimed as she inserted that key. "I know you're going to think you know what I'm going to say, but what if it's a booby trap? Maybe enough to take down the entire building. Do you really think whoever would do that would give a damn about collateral damage?"
"Relax, Castle." Kate turned the key, opened it, and nothing happened. All that was inside it were stacks of Johnny Vong DVDs.
"You've got to be kidding me. That's what he was thinking of giving to the Feds?" Espo just saw a dead end.
"Maybe not." Kate took one out, tore off the plastic, and opened it. She found a wrapped packet full of white powder under the DVD. "But this is."
Espo held it as Kate took out a small knife, cut the plastic open, and taste-tested it. "Heroin, the good stuff too."
"That was so cool!" Rick loved it.
"You like that?" Kate knew exactly what he was thinking.
"Yeah, so Miami Vice." Rick was finally starting to like this case. Not so much visiting the Westies in their bar but this was good.
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Kate had a lead, but Vong wouldn't talk. "Whoever he's working for scares him a lot more than prison."
Lanie walked in with Dr. Murray, who Rick at least knew very well, as did Kate to a lesser extent. "Beckett," Rick said, drawing Kate's attention to them since she hadn't noticed them.
"Lanie, what are you two doing here?" She seldom came up here except on rare occasions.
"It's about the Coonan case," Lanie told them both.
This time, Dr. Murray had a reconstruction of the knife, and he handed it over. "The knife used to kill Coonan is the very same type of knife used to kill your mother and four others. Whoever killed Coonan killed your mother, Detective," Dr. Murray told her, and the three of them sat there watching Kate looking at the wounds and that damn knife.
Kate turned to look at her best friend. "Lanie?"
"I'm so sorry, Kate." Lanie felt for her.
"There is no doubt in my mind that whoever killed Coonan also killed your mother, Detective," Dr. Murray was forced to tell her.
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"Castle?" Lilly didn't waste a moment. She rushed into the loft to visit everyone and then ran off with Dahlia.
"You better come in, Kate." Rick opened the door wider and closed it behind her.
Kate immediately found herself embraced by Martha, and it felt pretty good. "Hang in there, kiddo."
"Thank you, Martha." She really did like older actress.
"Leftovers are in the fridge. We'll be upstairs if you need us." Martha took Alexis by the hand and dragged her upstairs with her.
"But, but..." Alexis protested; she desperately wanted to stay.
Finally, they were alone. "I'll do anything you need, anything at all, Kate. Including nothing, if that's what you want." Her mother's case was special to her, and he knew it. He also knew she had her own particular hole that could swallow her whole.
Kate had reached a decision, and she needed Castle to help her. "What I want is to find my mother's killer, Rick. That's what I want."
Rick nodded slowly. "To do that, you know we'll have to break Johnny Vong." That man knew what they didn't.
"So let's break him," Kate told him and walked straight into his arms so he could hold her. She was so scared. The last time she did that, it nearly destroyed her. The only difference this time was that she had Rick and a ring on her finger. Kate prayed that was enough.
Kate spent the night with him in his bed, but they didn't have sex. That wasn't what she needed right now. What she needed was the strength to do this, to come out of her rabbit hole, not get lost in it, and destroy herself. Having Castle hold her and whisper that they could do this. That he wasn't going anywhere and would be right there was what she needed to hear.