A couple more chapters for today, then I will be taking a break for a few days to tend the farm. Thank you all for the kind support.
"Well, Spencer Mulligan is Daniel's father. If he caught onto Shelley's little side business, he could have had motive to kill her. Plus, the part where her body was found in a dumpster, treating her like trash…"
"Yeah but he had an airtight alibi the night of the murder. He was in jail after being caught drunk driving. We checked his bank records in case he paid somebody to kill her but couldn't find anything.", Ryan explained and moved the picture off to the side, whittling down their pool of suspects to 4 photos.
"I guess that would be a hard one to work around. What about Jason Whittaker? He went to the same college, was seen with her a few times, his daddy is rich, there were rumors of some bad blood after Shelley refused to…service him any longer."
Castle took a moment to write the name into their ledger, treating each person like a brand-new lead, hoping to find something that could have gotten overlooked before, some connection Beckett had made while they were at the apartment.
"Even if it was him, what would he stand to lose from the exposure? He's a spoiled college kid. I doubt it would ruin his life's reputation if he got caught with a prostitute. Shelley would have had no reason to blackmail him. As far as his daddy is concerned, Lester Whittaker is one-hundred percent, undeniably gay. I can't see him being involved in prostitution at that scale. Javi and I even met his newest boyfriend. Guy looks like he just walked right out of Metropolitan Magazine."
Ryan hesitated for a beat, his eyes drifting back to the disturbing picture shoved to the corner of their work desk, and drew in a deep breath, licking his dry lips before he had the courage to speak again.
"I…I don't know what I am gonna do if Javi is dead, Castle. He's my partner, man, my brother. I swear if I find out who shot him-"
"Just wait it out, will you?", Castle cautioned, raising his hands in a calming gesture, "Nothing in that picture says he is dead. For all we know, this could be staged. They want us to panic so that we do exactly as they say. This is kidnapping 101 here. The worst thing we can do now is to lose our minds. Remember, this is Beckett and Esposito we're talking about. They know how to take care of themselves. In the meantime, we gotta pick up the slack and find out who we're dealing with."
The passionate monologue seemed to snap Ryan out of his panicked state of mind and the detective nodded slowly, letting the words sink in, then searched for the next name on their list.
"What about Richard Steward? He's a big moniker in local politics."
Castle shrugged and pulled the picture closer, recalling meeting the unpleasant bank owner over dry martinis on more than a few occasions.
"You think he could be Big Dick Rick?", he asked only to watch Ryan shrug, "Word has it his marriage has been shaky for a few years. Could be that he was enjoying some company on the side from time to time. It says here that he had an alibi for the night of the murder, he was at home with his wife."
"Yeah, that's what he told us. But how many times have we heard that? Wife said she went to sleep early that night and the security detail corroborated his statement. Doesn't mean that he didn't see Shelley, especially since he would have had her brought in."
"Yeah, maybe she came to see him at his house after the wife went to sleep."
Running a hand across his weary features, Castle let out a sigh, then stopped in his tracts, his eyes growing wide.
"Steward is running for Senator this year. Elections are coming up in a couple of days. That's it. That's what Beckett must have been thinking. Richardson could have tried to blackmail him, threatening to expose him if he doesn't pay her more. There's his motive. And he is the one guy who has everything to lose if we can tie Richardson's murder to him. Beckett must have found something in the house that put Shelley there the night of the murder. That's why they had to disappear."
"And that's why they don't want us to do anything. Once he's an elected Senator, it'll be almost impossible to touch him."
Castle nodded fervently, thankful for the light at the end of a long, dark tunnel that had been the past few hours. Then, without going into any further detail, he reached for his cell phone, searching for a name that would get him exactly what he needed tonight.
"Dennis?...Hi Dennis, this is Richard Castle, how are you, my friend?", he schmoozed and nodded at Ryan, as the conversation continued, "I am doing fine. You did?...How did you like it?...Oh, that is wonderful. Yes, I am still working with Detective Beckett. You know, I can't give you any insight on the new book, you're just going to have to wait. Hey listen, I was wondering if you know if Rick Steward is having another one of his fundraiser banquets tonight? He is? Oh, well that is fantastic, I have been meaning to plead my support. Yeah, could you do that? I am sure Rick would love the surprise when I show up. Yes, tell the doorman that it'll be me plus one. Perfect. Thank you so much!"
With a satisfied smile, he hung up the phone just to meet a set of worried blue eyes staring back at him from across the desk.
"We're just gonna waltz in there and ask about Beckett and Esposito?"
"You got a better idea? I don't think us sitting here and exchanging theories is going to help anything. This way we're ditching the paperwork shuffling for a quick trip to a fundraiser, see if we can rattle his cage a bit, then come back here. If all goes well, Montgomery won't even know we're gone."
"What…what if there's trouble?"
"That's what you are for. You're the cop. I am the writer. I get us in. You get us back out. Come on, let's head over to your place to grab a tuxedo… You do own a tuxedo, right?"