Thank you so much for all the kind reviews. I am glad you are enjoying this story. I will be gone for a few days again tending the farm but will update when I get a chance. Be safe y'alls.
For the first time since he could recall, it was Castle driving Beckett to her apartment that evening, not trusting that she was in any shape or form to handle the challenges of dense traffic while her mind was distracted with what had transpired.
And to be perfectly honest, he had a hard time wrapping his own mind around it too.
While his thoughts bounced from one theory to the next like a squirrel on caffeine, Castle had forced himself to remain quiet, allowing her to sort out the facts herself in hopes of coming up with an idea on how to deal with whatever fate would throw at them tomorrow.
After her conversation with Esposito went south, the detective had sped off in his car, never saying another word beyond reiterating his innocence.
Unfortunately, a floor or so below the bullpen was a granny who had returned from her weekly grocery run and positively identified him as following Anderson the night of his murder.
Somewhere deep inside, this all had to make some sort of sense if one was to put himself into Esposito's shoes.
Faced with the fact that a very important person in his life was about to get charged with two counts of murder, it felt natural to want to protect him. Who was to say that the detective hadn't called up some buddies from the military, using his influence to get the third degree on Lafayette in hopes of finding out who the real killer was?
But why the cover-up?
Why betray the people he'd worked with for years, turn his back on their trust and support?
"Whatever we do tomorrow, we have got to make sure that Gates doesn't hear a word about this."
Beckett's voice was trembling, devoid of the usual professionalism and passion that followed her everywhere. Instead, her tone was meek, disheartened and littered with terror of what the new situation might bring.
Castle took a moment to glance over at her, offering the gift of a calming smile for an utter lack of alternative options to help her. Then, dreading the question as it formulated in his mind, he cleared his throat.
"And how are we going to do this considering that the Sergeant downstairs knows about it too. What keeps him from reporting it to her?"
"Because I called him back before we left and told him that Esposito was undercover at the time and to disregard the sketch for now."
All his warning flags went up at once, making his palms sweaty, barely able to focus on the traffic ahead.
"Do…do you…do you think this is a good idea? I mean, it's bad enough that Esposito has gone off the deep end, but now you're covering for him?"
"And just what do you suggest, Castle?"
"Well…I hadn't thought about that yet.", he replied truthfully, hoping to buy himself some time to come up with a reasonable argument to stop the current issue from snowballing any further, "Now listen, I get this…I think. And I get that you want to cover for Esposito to keep him safe. But by doing what you are doing right now, are you really helping him? Are you really keeping him safe? I mean, if he…if he's out there again tonight canvassing the streets to look for the real killer, will your silence about his behavior help? Painful as it may be, wouldn't it be easier to have him tied to desk duty until this is all over with?"
"Esposito is a professional. If he wants to spend the night canvassing the streets, he will do just that, no matter what we do to keep him safe during work hours. I fail to see how my endangering his job would help anything. The best I can do is to be a sounding board, hoping he'll trust me enough to open up and stop this…madness."
Madness.
Was that really the right term for a soldier gone rogue, having separated from the pack to follow his own instincts and bring justice to those he believed were being wronged? Was Esposito a martyr for trying to help an old friend and doing so in sworn secrecy? Had he chosen this noble path because he believed that getting his friends involved might only further endanger their safety, knowing well enough that he was up against a formidable enemy?
It was a conundrum that pulled on his morals as he tried to understand and empathize with each party involved, doing so under the guise that what they assumed was going on was indeed the truth.
Considering the manic twists and turns this relatively young investigation had taken over the past couple of days, Castle wasn't so sure that this was actually the case.
"Do you honestly think that will work?"
His question made Beckett fall quiet for many long moments, biting her lip, staring straight ahead while nervously kneading her knuckles.
He hated seeing her like this, hated what her deep sense of caring could bring on under the wrong circumstances. And yet, he had to accept it, knowing that Beckett without her deep sense of empathy was like a fish out of water; it made her the amazingly loving soul that she was.
"No.", she finally admitted and glanced over at him, "See, I just don't get this. That's not the first time PTSD has come up in a case, so why would he act like that now. It just…it makes no sense."
"Well, for him it does. Might be something far more personal than he's let you in on."
"That's what I am afraid of. No matter what I do or don't do, he is out there, playing hero and I would…I would hate the thought of putting his face on our murder board before this case is over with."
These somber words would be the last things said until he reached her apartment, the tension so overbearing that it left no room for casual dialogue. And to be honest, Castle didn't have it in him to act tonight, pretending that all was well.
As a matter of fact, there was one final thought he couldn't get out of in his mind, a thought so troubling that he didn't dare vocalize it.
It was a nagging concern on whether Esposito's face might show up on the murder board as their killer's killer, or as his victim.
