Here be Dragons!
Chapter 34
Kate almost couldn't believe it. Castle had been really good and was almost done and a deal was a deal. So she was packing for a five day four night trip to an island in Belize. She had even gone shopping to get some really light summer dresses to wear along with some new bikinis.
"Tell me again, Castle." Kate paused to listen to him once more.
"It's called Belize Cayes, Belize. A private island that offers three magnificent villas. Located in the World Heritage Marine Reserve near central Belize, this opulent property will not disappoint. Amenities include a personal chef, an outdoor bedroom, expansive windows where guests can capture the impressive views, modern décor, and more.
"Since there are three villas and we have the largest of the three, there may be two other couples, so we might not have the entire island to ourselves. Then again we might not see anyone else save for the chef at meals.
"We could stay busy with beach games, paddle boards, sea kayaks, snorkeling, scuba, sailing, and fishing. If you care to venture off of the island, there's a concierge that can arrange a variety of activities including zip lining, waterfall hiking, helicopter tours, cave tubing, and excursions to the Mayan ruins.
"Oh, and there is this." Rick dropped it on the bed for Kate to look at. It was a Belize brochure that said Wedding on it. The brochure talked about all of the following:
1. Use of all 15 villas (8 bungalows and 7 cabanas)
2. Accommodations in air-conditioned over water bungalows and oceanfront cabanas
3. Three meals and one afternoon snack daily
4. Unlimited local alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks
5. Daily housekeeping services
6. Transportation to and from Dangriga Airport (arrival & departure)
7. Unlimited use of kayaks, snorkel gear and stand up paddle boards
8. Exclusive use of beautiful beaches and private yoga palapas at the end of the island
9. Marine reserve access fee
Minister or Priest to Perform the Ceremony
Bridal Bouquet and Bridesmaid Bouquets
Boutonnière for Groom and Groomsmen
Decorative Palapa
Wedding Cake
Champagne Toast
Romantic Candlelight Dinner or Full Reception
Floral Turn-down Service on Wedding Night
Breakfast in Bed the Morning after Wedding with Mimosas
Complimentary Transfers to and from Dangriga Airport
Live Belizean Band
Garifuna Drummers for Procession or Reception
Services of On-Site Coordinator
Conch Shell Wedding Aisle
Ceremony Sound System
All administrative costs, government taxes and handling fees for marriage license
Private Couples Massage
Snorkel Excursion or Island Hop with Wedding Party
Welcome Gift Bags for Wedding Party
Pig Roast Reception
Bar Bike
Bonfire
Expedited licensing services
Photography/videography services
It was a full brochure complete with pictures of a number of things including the island itself. There were actually four different locations for weddings and each looked lovely.
"We can take a boat and go see it while we're there if you like it," Rick said while she was reading.
"How many can this place accommodate?" Kate asked.
"Well the island has 15 villas that can sleep anywhere from 4 to 8 guests each. One of which will be ours. The rest of Belize can handle a lot more people. Those people would need to transfer by boat. It's a 7 to 8 hour flight.
"We can help support some of the people that want to come." Rick knew that not everyone could afford to even get there let alone stay there.
"We can look," Kate agreed and packed the brochure for later.
They had a 7:30 flight this morning and when they exited their bedroom they found a sleepy Alexis waiting for them.
"You didn't have to see us off, sweetheart." Kate hugged her anyway.
"I don't mind. Has Dad told you her name yet?" Alexis was curious.
"NO!" Kate glared at him. Her deal hadn't included him telling her the name of her character for his book.
"You'll love it. Have a good time." Alexis yawned and stumbled back upstairs to bed.
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Kate found out that there was a 1 hour 29 minute layover in Miami involved in this flight on American Airlines. And another 1 hour and 15 minute wait for their boat and the time it took to get to the island.
Their bedroom was almost all white and not really to her taste, however, it had a large bed that faced the beach but it was the large sofa at the foot of the bed that had her attention. That and the whitewashed wood ceiling was an inverted pyramid with a ceiling fan.
Half the island was sand and the other half was trees. That side was where the other two villas were located and could only be reached using a walking bridge.
Kate started off their vacation by switching to a bikini and getting some sun.
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Five days later and they were on a plane headed for home. "Thanks, babe. I love you." Kate leaned across and kissed him.
"I love you, too. Have you reached a decision?" Rick inquired.
"About the wedding venue? It was gorgeous. A place of my dreams. I just worry how many of our friends are going to be able to afford to get to it. Police officers don't make that kind of money." It was Kate's only worry.
"I'll keep looking then." While Rick had loved it, it was really up to Kate.
"Thanks." Kate kissed him again.
"Are you still worried?" Rick asked her.
"No, I'm taking birth control pills. I think I can afford an occasional risk. Not that I don't want us to have children. I just want us both to be ready for a child and yes, I know neither of us are getting any younger." Kate took hold of his hand in hers.
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When they got home the first thing they saw was Alexis at the breakfast bar snacking on a strawberry.
"So how was it?" Alexis wanted details and showed them a picture of them out in the hallway that the 360 degree camera had taken of them.
"Well at least it works." Rick headed to the bedroom with both bags to unpack.
Kate stayed with Alexis. "It was great! Lots of beach, sunshine the entire time. We went snorkeling and did some paddle boarding which is harder than it looks, by the way. We almost ran out of sunscreen and I'm pretty sure we both are red somewhere. OH, and then we went to see a Mayan ruin. I don't know how Castle knows so much about Mayan ruins but it started to feel like he was a tour guide." That had been the only downside.
Alexis grinned. "Dad does a lot of research and remembers everything. That and he loves to talk. Have you ever noticed that he won't shut up at movies?"
"I've noticed that. That and he has to touch everything. Plus all his toys," Kate commented.
"That's Dad. If you don't let him he can drive you mad. But there's one thing about him. He's never boring. He hates boredom more than anything," Alexis told her if she didn't already know.
"Anything happen while we were gone?" Kate queried and stole a strawberry.
"Chet proposed!" Alexis announced since she couldn't not tell.
"Get out of town! What did Martha say?" Kate was sure Martha liked Chet a lot.
"She didn't say yes." Alexis saw the look on Kate's face. "She also didn't say no. Chet let her keep the ring and think about it."
"Martha better say yes. Men like Chet don't come around every day," Kate said.
"I don't know what Grams is thinking. I thought she loved him," Alexis admitted.
"How are you and Ashley?" Kate asked her since he was her first boyfriend. Kate was pretty sure it wouldn't last but never say never.
Alexis began to shine. "Fine. He's going to college soon and I don't know what I'm going to do when he does yet. I'm trying to graduate early but I don't know."
"Don't follow him just to follow him, sweetie." Kate reached out and touched her hand. "You need to do what's best for you. Then you can both do what's best for both of you. Have you decided on a major yet?"
Alexis deflated. "No."
"When you do you'll know what to do." Kate kissed her cheek. "I better go check on Castle before he reaches my underwear." Kate left her behind to monitor what Castle was doing.
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"Kill me now," Rick mumbled to himself as he unpacked a small box.
"You got the cell phone bill?" Alexis knew it was going to be bad. It was her fault and she was scared.
"No, books from my publisher. Wait, what about the cell phone bill?" Rick looked up from the books and stared at her.
"Nothing!" Alexis went back to breathing and began to search the box for herself as well as the mail.
Martha joined them and poured herself a cup of coffee. "One for me too, please, Martha." Kate joined them since she was ready to go into work.
"You got a letter, Grams. Looks important." Alexis handed it over.
"Chet's estate lawyer. It's probably about the probate," Martha paused. Chet's unexpected death still hurt.
"Are you okay?" Rick asked her as Kate put an arm around her.
"It just caught me by surprise." Martha would be fine.
"You think he left you something in his will?" Alexis questioned her.
"Well he certainly didn't need to." Martha ripped it open and was shocked at what she saw. "Oh, my." Martha began to cry. Kate's arm slipped off of Martha's shoulder and Kate covered her mouth in surprise.
"Mother, what's wrong?" Rick took what she'd found and looked at it. Alexis looked as well.
ONE MILLION DOLLARS
Kate's phone ringing got her attention off Martha's million dollars and answered it.
Kate looked at Rick. "We've got a body, Castle." She hugged Martha. "You'll know what to do with it, Martha." Kate kissed her cheek and grabbed her bag on her way out of the door.
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"Any idea what Martha's going to do with a million dollars?" Kate questioned him as she drove them to their new body.
"Maybe she'll find her own place." Rick really didn't know if he was teasing.
"Well it is New York. You can't get much for a million dollars.
"What's with the stripped cab?" Kate asked as she and Castle approached. They were homicide not a stolen and stripped car.
"Security guard found it and our body," Espo told them.
"Who's our victim?" Kate was looking over the cab while she asked.
Espo did his best to get the name right. "Amir Alhabie."
"Robbery?" Kate waited for Lanie to answer.
"No money on the body and no money in the cab. He did take a nine millimeter to the noggin. However, his fingers were broken one at a time." Lanie held up his broken hand.
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"Espo wants us back at the car," Kate said to Rick as she drove back to the site.
"SCU found something." Espo began the playback of what they could see now.
"The car has cameras," Kate noticed which was unusual.
Espo nodded. "Pin hole cameras."
Rick smiled. "Great! Now all we have to do is rewind and see who did it."
Espo shook his head. "Can't. They ripped out all the hard drives that held the video data." One of the scenes showed where the seats used to be and where the hard drive would have been under the seat.
"What the hell is going on here?" Kate didn't understand any of this.
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"Where are we on those hidden cameras?" Kate asked everyone within earshot.
"Just that they were installed by a pro. Serial numbers are being used to try and find out by who," Roy told her and sat down. "A guy with surveillance in his cab and a roll of money sounds hinky to me."
Ryan joined them. "Based on his financials it looks hinky, too. He has medical bills up the wazoo." Ryan handed them over. "Then there was that."
"A cash deposit of $10,000." Kate was missing something.
"Where does any cab driver get that kind of cash?" Rick wondered aloud.
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It left them back at their board until Rick saw the numbers C4121652. "What's at 1652 address for C412?"
That had Ryan moving to a computer and typing. "North Manhattan Storage."
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"Murder, political intrigue, cash, and now a mysterious storage locker. This is just too good." Rick was loving it for another book.
Kate dropped her bag and got out bolt cutters. "But I also grabbed his keys from property storage." She used a key to unlock the door.
The crate they found was filled with weapons and Kate pressed a finger against what was taped to the top. "Plastic explosives." Then suddenly there was a beeping sound.
"CASTLE! Get out, get out!" Kate slammed the door closed, pulled out her phone, and followed Castle.
"This is Detective Kate Beckett. Badge number 0334. I've been exposed to high levels of radiation. I need emergency services services right away." Kate dropped her phone and ran her hands through her hair. She was scared to death.
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Rick was escorted down an enclosed space inside the storage locker and dropped into a room that already held Kate. "Does that radiation detector of yours have a scale on it? X-ray to Chernobyl for example," Rick asked her and sat in front of her.
"Yeah, maxed out. …I'm scared, Castle. I've never been so scared," Kate confided. Castle moved to sit next to her, put an arm around her, and held her close. "What if I'm pregnant?" Her baby, if she survived this, would have medical problems if it lived at all.
Kate couldn't help but cry. She had found him and now it was all over before it even got started. It was just too much to take.
Then a man not dressed in a containment suit unzipped their wall and stepped inside. "You're free to go," he announced.
"What about the radiation?" Kate asked and wiped tears from her eyes.
"We found traces of Cobalt 60 in the storage unit. Not enough to cause any health problems or lasting effects," was the answer they got.
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They were still recovering and hugging each other when Roy walked in on them.
"You two are fine. There was only residual Cobalt 60 in the storage locker. However, we did find that there was a second crate that held considerably more. We also found a whole lot more," Roy informed them.
"A bomb?" Kate queried.
"A dirty bomb. A big one," Roy said.
"Where is it now?" Kate questioned.
"If you two are up to it that's where I want you two, back in the precinct. We need to find it." Roy told them.
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"I'll go to the precinct, babe. You need to go home." Kate put a hand over his mouth to stop him. "To get Alexis and Martha packed and out to the Hamptons or even farther. Then you can come find me."
"Count on it. I swore I would protect you and I'm going to." Rick kissed her and hurried home.
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Rick got lucky. "I'm off to my Oasis," Martha announced.
"I've changed my mind. You should go," Rick said to Alexis who was sitting there working on her physics, studying for her test.
"But my test." Alexis and her dad had reached a deal and he was going back on this deal. "I haven't even packed."
"You can study while you're there," Rick said to her, trying to get her to hurry up and move.
"You don't need to pack. Everything is provided for us. This is going to be so much fun." Martha was happy at this turn of events.
Alexis was looking at her dad trying to figure out just what was going on.
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"Due to the nature of this case let me remind you not to discuss this with anyone. Not even family. We can't allow a panic to start because of us. Agent Fallon of Homeland Security is now in charge," Roy declared just as Rick made it onto the floor.
Rick made his way over to Kate. "Alexis just left with Mother on her Oasis trip," he whispered softly.
Fallon wrapped it up and walked over to Castle. "Mr. Castle, I want to thank you for your fine work on this case. However, I can't allow a civilian to remain on this case. You are hereby ordered to go home and not discuss this with anyone."
"I see. I feel like I just got a raise and fired at the same time. I'm sure my friend the governor will be happy to hear about this." Rick tried the only card he really had and took out his phone and scrolled for a number he didn't have.
"Castle goes and I go," Kate advised him.
"They go and I go," Roy informed him.
"Me, too," Ryan piped up.
"Me three," Espo added.
Fallon growled at this turn of events. "He doesn't even work here," Fallon exclaimed since he was now really angry.
"He's my partner. You don't have to like him but he's staying," Kate challenged him.
Fallon sighed. He needed this precinct to help him. He didn't have time to bring in several teams to be on the ground. "Fine, just try and stay out of the way."
"You don't know him very well, do you?" Kate knew Castle was going to be in the way. Right where she wanted him to be.
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"I find one of our own having a non-fat latte with a suspect in this investigation." Fallon was now beyond furious. "I don't even know what you are doing here. You go and talk to a foreign official. What if the Syrians are behind this? Do you have any idea just how much damage you've done?"
"You are so blinded by the obvious that you are chasing the wrong guy," Rick said just short of yelling at this idiot.
"Do you have any idea how many laws you have broken? …Detective Beckett, did you know anything about this?" Did he have to get rid of her, too?
Kate lifted her chin, refusing to back down. "Yes, I did."
"Well that's disappointing. In the interest of National Security you are both now removed from this task force. I'll decide later if you should be arrested and jailed for life. Provided we all live past this," Fallon growled at both of them.
"Oh and Mr. Castle, the governor has never even heard of you before. My agents will escort you from this building," Fallon said coldly. Rick gave him a dirty look that showed what he thought of Fallon.
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"A six hundred thread shower curtain white board. I took a picture while we were being escorted out." Rick put it up on his video projection system.
"Okay, how about this. Amir overhears a terrorist plot and he installs cameras so they kill him," Rick offered.
"That means the passenger's involved," Kate said thoughtfully.
"Right, and they mention the storage facility which is where he gets the number," Rick suggested.
"But why would they talk about the storage unit in front of him if they were going to frame him?" Kate was missing something here.
"Maybe we're going about this all wrong." Rick picked up his laptop to search for something. "Maybe it wasn't a passenger. What if it was all on the phone. What if he was talking to someone who works for him? Kevin McCann stopped at our storage facility."
Kate shook her head. "He's a cab driver. Besides he alibied out."
"There! Amir was at the storage facility and he was dead here. Kevin has been at both of them? What are the odds of that?" Rick asked. "We really need to go see why this warehouse area is so popular."
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They both spotted a white van in an empty warehouse. Opening the back of the van placed them right in front of their bomb. It showed 13 hours, 21 minutes, and seconds. Then Beckett's radiation detector went off followed by them both being shot at.
"Castle, door. We gotta move," Kate urged. "There are two shooters. One will be flanking us even now."
Once inside they wait for the door to open. Instead it got locked on the outside.
"Beckett." Rick had found a frozen body. "It's Jamal." The Amir's brother and co owner.
White rip tape was removed from the white van that turned it into a black van.
"We're going to freeze to death in here, Castle. There's no lock to shoot off." Kate's eyes showed her resignation.
"There's one way out but it's going to hurt as the building collapses on us," Rick said.
Kate looked around and could see them busting out but he was right, their size was going to bring down the building.
She put her weapon away. And they formulated a plan.
"Remember, on three we shift then inhale and breathe fire. It should burn away a lot of it but this is still going to hurt." Rick liked his idea better than freezing to death. Especially when no one knew they were out here.
Kate simply nodded and kissed him.