Slaying the Beast
Chapter 16
Kate grits her teeth as she turns the ignition in her unit. "That was a wasted eight hours. We're not going to get anything else out of Goodlatte. If anyone at the prison knew anything, it was Lockwood, and he's still in the wind."
Castle reaches across the console to put his hand on her arm. "Not entirely wasted. I managed to get through to Weldon. He's going to strongly encourage the commissioner to have Justin Flake come for a little tête à tête. With any luck, you can roast our underground dweller over the coals tomorrow. And Kate, how do you want to handle tonight? I mean, do you want to…?"
"Rick, I'm still trying to get everything straight in my head. We have our lead in Justin Flake. I think it might be better if I drop you at the loft and go to my place tonight. Alexis can maintain her illusions for a while."
"Kate, I don't honestly think Alexis has any illusions to maintain. More likely she was trying to avoid embarrassing me - or you. But if you need the space and the time, you should take it. Maybe I'll even get some writing in."
"Castle, if what happened last night ends up on the pages of your next Nikki Heat, we're going to have a problem."
Castle sucks in his lips, shaking his head. "Kate, maybe Jameson Rook's alter ego the romance writer could put what happened last night into words, but I can't or maybe I just won't. That was too intense, too personal, to share. It belongs to the two of us - only to the two of us. That means it won't make even a disguised appearance in any of my books, but it shouldn't go to Lanie, and somehow be spilled to Esposito and on to Ryan, either. It was too perfect to ruin that way. Agreed?"
"Agreed, Rick."
"Good. Fine. But you know what? I'm starved." He gazes at the clock on the dash. "Alexis is going out for pizza with her teammates. Why don't we take a pause in the day's occupations and stop somewhere for dinner? There's a new place that just opened up not far from the loft - The Pots and Kettles."
"Sounds like an argument."
"Are you game to find out?"
"Sure Castle. It will beat the three-day-old Chinese I have in my refrigerator."
"Yeah, I figured."
The menu of the Pots and Kettles seems perfect for New Yorkers fortifying themselves against an icy winter. The kettles hold a variety of hearty soups, and the pots are homes to savory stews. Aside from an assortment of hot coffees and teas, the restaurant offers spiced cider along with the obligatory colas, regular and diet. Freshly baked breads and desserts fill out the listings that are posted on a large chalkboard.
The scent of rosemary beckons both Kate and Castle toward lamb stew with brown rice as an accompaniment. Kate sips a spicy chai while Castle, ever the Trekkie, opts for Captain Picard's favorite, Earl Grey, hot.
"Castle you're staring at me," Kate notes over a shared order of dense flourless chocolate cake.
"It's just the first time I've seen you relax since - you know. Most of the day your forehead has been all wrinkly and now it isn't. If I'm not mistaken, I think I might have detected a hint of a smile when you tasted your first bite of cake."
"Mmm. It is incredible, Castle. But I feel like I can't let go. Lockwood or someone is out there waiting for the next chance to take us out. And we don't seem to be getting much closer to Bracken."
"We will, Kate. We build a case step by step, piece by piece. Isn't that what you're always telling me? And our next piece will be when you work your wizardry on Justin Flake. We're going to get this done. I know it. Writer's intuition."
"OK, Castle, I guess I'll just have to go with that for now."
Justin Flake is feeling very nervous. He couldn't think up an excuse to say no to the commissioner, but he knows Kate Beckett by reputation. What she goes after, she gets, and he has no idea what she wants from him. He's been so careful. He doesn't live above his salary level, although he could. His accounts are in nations that deliver the highest level of discretion. Until he's ready to leave the department, nothing he's done could tip anyone off that he's anything but another bureaucrat. There's no reason a detective, let alone one of her standing should ask to talk to him.
He toys with the idea of leaving the city, but one thing he's had drummed into him as a cop is that the surest declaration of guilt is to run. It's a mistake, that's all. When he meets with Detective Beckett, he can straighten it out. He's sure of that. Almost sure.
Hal Lockwood studies the plans for Castle's loft. Despite its designation as a security building, it is anything but secure. Any competent sniper could take out a target through the tall windows. Adding to that, there's an entrance from the building next door. Castle should be an easy mark, and if Beckett is with him, that would be hitting the jackpot. She's not with him now. Castle entered the building by himself. That would most likely put Beckett at her own apartment which is somewhat more problematical. The buildings in that area are low, and there's no place to build a nest to wait for a clean shot. That's fine. She and Castle have been working together almost every night, and Hal suspects they did more than work last night. She'll be back. And when she is, Bracken will be free of this particular annoyance once and for all and Lockwood will have a fat payday.
He does have another problem to consider. That idiot Goodlatte has no doubt told the cops everything he knows, or they wouldn't be taking such good care of him. Hal followed a couple of detectives from the 12th to Goodlatte's safehouse. He has to admit, using a stripper joint is creative. The place is also difficult to breach. There are no windows. Why give out free samples? There is a back door, but it's solid and locked from the inside by what looks like a metal bar. He could blow it, but that would give even the dumber cops guarding Goodlatte a chance to get him under cover. He can try getting in by going through the roof. The HVAC is on top of the building, so there has to be a hatch to reach it for maintenance. There really isn't much reason to kill Goodlatte, He's probably done as much harm as he can do, but the boss hates loose ends and Goodlatte is dangling like a spider too stupid to stay in its web.
It will be best to take out Beckett and Castle first. If Hal terminates Goodlatte, they'll be even more on their guard. That means that he has some time to wait. He has enough cash to amuse himself any way he wishes, and there's a house up in Harlem that's maintained a reputation for offering anything and everything, for well over a hundred years. Until Beckett and Castle decide to get it on again, he'll find some pleasures of his own.