Shattered Lies

Chapter 32

Damn! After checking every inch around Bracken's country home, Lockwood can't find a sign of him. He knows the senator isn't in Washington, or back in the city. The press would have spotted him in either place. The worm has crawled into a hole, and Hal has no idea where.

He hates to give the cops that much credit, but they may know something he doesn't. That Detective Beckett is smart, and the writer who trails after her isn't dumb either. Now that the scandal is out, they'll be actively tracking Bracken as a person of interest if not an outright suspect in Bowdry's termination and they have access to resources Hal lacks.

That could work out. Hal can track the trackers from their center of operations. When they find Bracken, so will he.

Castle rises from his seat and lightly kisses Kate's cheek as she rubs her eyes. She was at her desk at the 12th all morning and came up with zero. Bracken has fallen off the radar, despite attempts by cooperating authorities upstate and the press to find him. She has nothing new on Bowdry's shooter and no more evidence against Doof. And she could have used at least a couple more hours of sleep. "Going somewhere, Castle?"

"Back to the loft. I've got three dog sitters coming to interview with Custos and me. And the trainer is coming later too. She has great credentials, and her recommendation for puppy food Custos would like was spot on, but I still want to check her out before I let her get her hands on my puppy."

"Castle, Custos is supposed to be a guard dog. Who's guarding whom?"

"I'm not guarding; I'm parenting. You couldn't have tracked down a criminal when you were a baby, and Papa and Mama Beckett kept the predators away until you were old enough to fend for yourself - and take care of your father too. I just want to make sure Custos has everything he needs to grow up to be the best he can be. Fortunately, that won't take nearly as long as the ongoing process with Alexis."

"But it looks like it might turn out to be almost as expensive."

Castle waves a dismissive hand. "Money well spent. In any case, I have to go. Call me if anything breaks?"

"Sure Castle, but don't hold your breath."

Castle is discouraged after meeting the first two candidates for a sitter. They're kind enough and enjoy playing with Custos, but their availability is spotty, and neither one of them has experience with the independence of his ancient breed - when the pup develops it.

Miniver Cracken is a stocky, well-muscled sitter who is of a breed all her own. She grew up on a farm upstate, taking care of a multitude of animals, including a Central Asian Shepherd that guarded the livestock - and humans - from intruders. She immediately knows how to scratch the puppy to elicit the grin Castle fell in love with and understands that the dog will be consuming a massive amount of food, something that will considerably enlarge the Castle household budget.

Castle is in the middle of jotting down the basic data he needs to take on a new employee when Miniver spots the Ledger lying on a nearby chair and points at the picture of Bracken on the front page. "I know that hack, a real jerk off."

Castle's fingers tighten on his pen. "How do you know him?"

"My Grandfather had a cabin he built in the woods. He called it his hunting lodge, but he never used a gun. Our family raises our own livestock for meat, but we always slaughter them humanely. They never suffer. Granddad used a camera. He captured the most amazing shots of animals just being animals. My parents have some of them framed in the buildings on our farm, and I have a few up in my apartment.

"The one thing Granddad wasn't good with was money. He fell behind on the taxes on the cabin. The sheriff put a lien on it but somehow never put out the paperwork to let Granddad know what was happening. When he finally found out, he tried to pay up, but the cabin had been sold out from under him."

"To Bracken?"

Miniver nods. "Indirectly. Some LLC he owns. I don't know why he wanted the place, but he got it. The road up there goes past our farm. Sometimes I'd see him going by or picking up supplies. My folks tell me they still catch sight of him every so often.

"He's a part of the reason why I came to the city. I've been studying agricultural economics. I'm finishing up the thesis for my masters. But I also wanted to understand the laws governing the acquisition of land. I don't want to see anyone else in my family's neck of the woods have to go through what Granddad went through. You work with the police, right? Are you going to be able to get Bracken?"

Castle lets out a slow breath. "I hope so. My, um, muse, Detective Beckett, is the lead on the murder of Councilman Bowdry. She wants to talk to Bracken, but she can't find him."

Miniver gives Castle a grin strangely reminiscent of the one on Custos' face. "I can help you with that. I talked to my folks last night. They said they saw Bracken heading up to Granddad's cabin. It's not easy to find, but I can draw you a map. And if you want to go with Detective Beckett to track him down, I'll be happy to watch over Custos as much as you need me to. I can bring a sleeping bag. The first few nights in a new place, a puppy like him needs a lot of company."

Castle rolls his eyes. "Tell me about it."

Miniver points to Custos' enclosure. "That's more than big enough to sleep two."

Half out of her chair behind her desk, Kate's mouth gapes as Rick tells her his story. "Castle, the dog sitter; are you kidding me?"

"Kate, I would never kid about something as important to you as finding Bracken. Mother will be home with Alexis tonight, and Miniver will be taking care of Custos. If we get started now, we should be able to get to the cabin Miniver described before dark. We can at least check to see if Bracken's actually there. And he won't have a chance to escape from the Beckett brand of in-depth questioning. If we find him, you can pull in some local backup can't you?"

"I don't know, Castle. From what you've told me about what the sheriff did for Bracken, he may have operatives there with badges. It might be better to have the boys follow us up and stay nearby in case we need them. Maybe there's a motel or something."

Castle pulls out his phone. "We may be able to do better than that. Miniver thinks her family will be willing to help any way they can to nail Bracken. Maybe they can put the boys up where they can keep a direct watch on the route in and out of the cabin. I can call her right now."

Kate pushes out of her seat, grabbing her purse from her drawer. "Do it, Castle."