Chapter IV
Long Island, NY
As far as parties went, this one was surprisingly tame.
So much for her expectations of sex and drugs and other excesses.
Based on what Kate Beckett had seen in the homes of rich homicide victims, she'd fully expected lines of coke on top of the marble in that fancy upstairs bathroom. But so far tonight, the most egregious illegal acts she'd witnessed were a couple of teens of questionable drinking age having a beer, and another couple sharing a kiss and a cigarette near the ocean shore at the end of the yard.
There wasn't even a spliff in sight. Just plain old cigarettes, pawned off one of the soccer moms currently being regaled by Richard Castle's storytelling.
After everyone finished eating and the sun went down, the party had separated into two sections. The teenagers sat on the lawn near a fire pit and they broke out into various songs after a blonde girl with a pixie cut and half a dozen piercings in each ear grabbed a guitar from inside the house. They burst out laughing each time they butchered their lyrics and occasionally Beckett couldn't help a smile when she turned in their direction.
Alexis Castle really was as wholesome as she appeared to be.
Although she'd never been much of a delinquent either, Kate Beckett would definitely have won a Bad Girl contest with Alexis at the same age.
By now she'd already have downed a few shots and would probably have been locking lips with either the most heavily tattooed guy in the room or the one who'd arrived on a motorcycle.
Her eyes scanned to the other end of the yard, where the adults had congregated at two picnic tables pushed together, each end lit by two lanterns, bathing all of them in a soft orange glow. There were six women at the table and two men, including Richard Castle. Raconteur that he was, Castle appeared to be in the middle of telling them a story that had everyone's rapt attention. Especially the woman with the red hair and ample cleavage who hung on his every word.
Beckett already knew all their names and faces, because they'd been on Castle's list. And now they were on a different list, too. One that she'd already plugged into the NYPD's criminal record database.
None of the party attendees had raised any red flags so far, but she'd only just scratched the surface. After her initial check, she'd sent all their names off to her two Cyber Crimes detectives, Morelli and Chang, so they could dig a little deeper.
One thing that she'd already noticed was that the list of people who had access to Richard Castle was going to be insanely long.
Beckett stepped back into the house, away from the two clusters of people in the yard. She wouldn't go to sleep until the last of them left the house, but she wasn't going to hover over them either. There was no need.
At the moment, there was no rival girlfriend to poison.
It still bothered her, how pointless this entire assignment was. If there was truly a need for 24-hour protection, Gates wouldn't have insisted she leave him every night for a Breathalyzer test.
The only reason she was here at all was because Gates wanted her gone from the 12th.
Just as Beckett stepped into the kitchen, two of the caterers were in the process of removing a massive cake from the fridge. She observed them as they set it on a granite countertop and inserted more than a dozen candles into the icing. An animated discussion in Spanish followed the process.
Beckett made out just enough words to understand that they were debating whether to light the candles inside or outside.
Finally, the older of the two women stuffed a book of matches into her pocket and ordered the younger one to pick up the cake. Decision made.
Beckett stayed back in the kitchen area and stared at all the dishes that were piling up. Left-over hors d'oeuvres sat on long white plates. Cold cuts, cheeses, crackers, olives, fruits and veggie sticks. All of it made her realize that she hadn't eaten since breakfast.
She helped herself to a lonely devilled egg and then grabbed a small plate and piled some more food on it. Leaned against the counter and ate, while the sounds of multiple voices singing "Happy Birthday" echoed from the backyard.
Beckett's gaze drifted across the countertop after she finished her plate and set it down with the other dirty dishes. Bottles and glasses were everywhere too. Empty beer and wine bottles.
There was a not-so-empty glass that caught her eye. A crystal snifter nearly one-third full with a dark, amber liquid that beckoned to her.
She'd already gone down to the local sheriff's office for the indignity of her mandatory Breathalyzer test tonight. If she had a drink now it would already be out of her system in time for tomorrow night's test.
Except she was still on duty and she'd never ever…
Beckett fisted her fingers at her side.
No.
Don't.
It's not as though she'd have any more than what was in that glass. And it's not as though every other adult in this house wasn't drinking hard tonight.
One of her hands inched towards the glass, as though it had a will of its own.
It's not that she needed it. But since it was going to be thrown out anyway…
Her long, slender fingers curled around the bulbous crystal as soon as they touched it.
She was about to lift it.
"Detective Beckett…"
Had she already raised the glass she would have dropped it like a hot potato.
She spun around to see Alexis standing behind her, holding a plate with piece of cake and a fork on it.
"Alexis…"
The teenager handed her the plate. "I thought you might like a slice. It's raspberry chocolate mousse and it's so good," she gushed.
Kate forced a smile and accepted it, hoping that her hands were steadier than they felt. "That's sweet of you. Thank you."
"You're welcome." Alexis paused. "Detective, can I ask you something?"
"Kate. You can call me Kate."
Alexis smiled. "Kate…are you gonna make sure nothing happens to my Dad?"
"I'm…gonna try. Yes."
"My Dad pretends he doesn't get bugged by all this stuff. But he's scared of this stalker. I know he is."
"If that makes him more careful, then that's good."
"I didn't say that. Careful and my dad don't go together." Alexis paused, her pretty face thoughtful now. It surprised Kate, how serious she was for a teenager. Especially Richard Castle's teenager. "That's why I'm glad you're here."
"Thanks."
Alexis nodded, letting her know she was trusting her with her father's life and Beckett sensed that the cake was a subtle, gentle offering not to screw it up.
She left the kitchen without another word to rejoin her friends outside.
Beckett stared at the glass of liquor sitting next to the slice of cake on the counter. Three seconds later and Alexis would have walked in on her drinking it. Drinking leftover alcohol from some stranger's dirty glass while she was on duty to protect her father.
What the hell is wrong with you?
Burning shame flushed her cheeks and she grabbed the glass and poured the liquor into the sink, lest her traitorous brain lead her towards it a second time.
The caterers came back and grinned when they saw her eating a slice of cake in the kitchen.
"Buen provecho," the older woman said with a smile and then promptly went to work to clean up the mess along with her younger colleague.
The last of the party guests left just before two in the morning, and it amused her to see that the busty woman who'd been cozying up to Castle all evening wasn't even hiding her disappointment at not spending the night.
Girl, you do know that sleeping with him could get you killed, right?
"You really didn't have to stay up," Castle told her. He was a little drunk and it had the odd reverse effect that it did on most people. It made him less, not more, cocky.
It was almost endearing.
"Yes, I did," she told him. Not that I'd be sleeping anyway.
"Good night, Detective."
"Good night, Mr. Castle."
It was her cue to head upstairs and call it a night as well.
She took a long hot shower in the en-suite bathroom first and then opened the window of her room before falling into bed. It was a queen-size with a mattress that made her feel like she'd dropped onto a cloud. Maybe he'd stolen it from a five-star hotel. While riding naked on a horse.
The thought made her chuckle.
The last three sleeping pills she had left sat inside an orange-coloured prescription bottle on the night table stand.
Beckett eyed them and then left them untouched before turning over.
If she slept too hard and didn't hear something, she'd never forgive herself. Not after the way Alexis had looked at her earlier.
Maybe it was the fresh air, or the soothing sound of ocean waves coming through her window, or the heavenly mattress, or maybe she was just dead tired. But she didn't need them tonight. She drifted off nearly as soon as her head hit the feather pillow.
It was late and he drank more than he planned tonight, so what he should have done was down a tall glass of water and call it a night. But Rick Castle was also a rare extrovert in a profession full of introverts, and the evening's company had energized him so he brewed some strong black tea instead. To help him clear his fuzzy brain.
Then he made his way to the study area next to his bedroom, opened his laptop, and continued what he'd started earlier today.
He wanted to know more about the woman who was sleeping in one of his guest rooms upstairs.
An hour later he noticed that the tea was still sitting on his desk, untouched and cold now.
He hadn't needed it to stay awake.
The information he'd dug up from various news reports had been more than enough to kick start his adrenaline.
-The NYPD detective lost her mother at the age of 19. Murdered in an alley in Washington Heights.
-Johanna Beckett was stabbed to death. Investigators concluded that it was likely a random act of gang violence. However, all valuables, wallet and jewelry, were still on the body when police found her.
-Captain Montgomery was shot to death in a violent altercation at a private airport hangar in New Jersey.
-The investigation into his death and the events that led to it are ongoing.
-No arrest has been made in the shooting of Det. Kate Beckett.
"Are they connected somehow?" he wondered aloud. Beckett's shooting, the death of her captain, and possibly even her mother's death? There was way too much death and violence swirling around the detective for him not to want to connect the dots.
He also didn't believe in that much coincidence.
Tendrils of a story began to coil around his brain.
That is, until a booming noise thundered through the closed door of his bedroom and nearly made him fall off his chair.
It was followed by an ear-piercing scream that sent him running into the hallway, where Detective Beckett was waving one apologetic hand in the air in front of his mother while her other hand was holding on to a gun.
"Richard!" His mother's voice was at least two octaves higher than it usually was. "Explain to me why is there a woman with a gun in our house!"
"Mrs. Rodgers, I'm sorry," Beckett beat him to an answer. "I didn't mean to frighten you, but there was this deafening noise."
Castle noticed then that Kate was barefoot and wearing a t-shirt and pajama shorts. Very short pyjama shorts that exposed a pair of the most gorgeous legs he'd ever seen.
He had to tear his eyes away from them. To force himself to focus on his mother's indignant mix of anger and fear instead.
"My suitcase hit the table and it knocked over the vase."
A quick glance towards the dining room table and he noticed the broken bits left of his Waterford crystal vase, scattered all over the floor. Truth was, it was an anniversary gift from Gina and he'd never been a big fan. He already knew that he'd take some pleasure sweeping its shattered remnants into a dustpan once his mother had calmed down.
"Mother, this is Detective Kate Beckett from the NYPD."
It gave him an excuse to steal another glance at those long legs. He'd had his fair share of beautiful legs wrapped around him, but these were definitely in a league of their own.
"Why is there a New York Police detective here?"
Alexis had made her way downstairs too now, wiping the last remnants of sleep from her eyes with the back of her hand. "Gram?"
"She's here because of the stalker."
His mother's demeanour changed instantly. From irritation to concern. "Why? Has something else happened?"
"No, no. This is why Kate is here. To keep us safe, to make sure nothing else happens to anyone in this family and to catch this nut."
"I see."
Castle could see her composing herself on the spot. Recovering with the dazzling speed of a true thespian.
"I suppose I should thank you then," Martha told Beckett. "For bolting down those stairs with a gun in hand as soon as I knocked that thing over. I probably owe you all an apology for making you all jump out of bed in the middle of the night."
Alexis moved towards her grandmother to give her a hug. "Don't be silly."
With one arm around her granddaughter's shoulder Martha held out the other to Beckett. "I'm Martha, Richard's mother."
Beckett shook her hand, "I know. It's a pleasure to meet you. I wish it hadn't been like this."
"What can I say? I'm an actor. We like to make an entrance."
Castle smiled. Proud at the way she'd deftly diffused all tension that she'd created only moments ago.
"How come you're here so late?" Alexis asked.
"I wanted to make it in time for your birthday party tonight. But then Bev and Donald and I, we went out for drinks at the St. Regis after the ballet and before you know it, it was midnight. Then I had to go home and pack. But I want to make it up to you, sweetheart. Take you our for brunch tomorrow."
Alexis grinned. "Okay, if you insist." She grabbed her grandmother's suitcase. "But then we need to get some sleep tonight."
"All right then. Good night, Richard. Kate." Martha let Alexis take her hand and lead her upstairs, chatting as they made their way up the steps, leaving Beckett and Castle standing in the hallway.
"And that," he pointed out with a dramatic wave of his hand. "Is my mother."
"I see."
He could've sworn he saw some amusement in Kate's brown-green eyes.
"Do you have a dustpan?" she asked. "Let's clean this up."
"I do." He didn't expect the offer of help. "There's one by the shoe rack," he told her, pointing toward his study. "If you want to grab it, I'll start with the big pieces by hand."
Castle did just that. He pushed a waste basket next to the broken crystal pieces, before bending down to pick up the largest chunks by hand.
A minute later he'd cleaned up half the mess and Beckett still hadn't come back with the dustpan.
"It might be wedged under the drawer," he called out to her, turning around only to find her standing in the doorframe, glaring at him.
"What the hell are you doing?"
He didn't understand her question. But she was angry. That was obvious.
"What am I doing?"
Beckett's hand tightened on the gun she was holding and for an irrational split-second he thought she might use it.
And then it dawned on him.
The laptop he'd left open in his study, which probably still had several articles about her popped up on his screen.
Which she had undoubtedly seen the moment she walked into his study.