Slaying the Beast
Chapter 43
As Kate spots Kris Olafson carrying a canvas bag toward the front door of his rundown apartment building, he sees her and Castle, drops the duffel and takes off at a run. Kate sighs, relieved that she's wearing boots against Spring mud, rather than her treasured spike heels, and pursues the fleeing suspect while Castle guards what Olafson left behind.
Olafson may be an arsonist, but he's not much of an athlete. Kate brings him down with a running tackle and cuffs him before he's made it two blocks. She calls in a marked unit for backup and returns to Castle while the uniformed cops take charge of her prisoner.
Kate points to the bag. "Have you touched it?"
"Much as it is my want to investigate the contents, you've trained me well. I haven't laid a finger on it and will swear to the same in court, if necessary. I just hope that after all that, it's not full of his gym shorts."
"I doubt it is, Babe. If he'd spent much time in the gym, it would have been a lot harder to chase him down." Kate snaps a picture of the bag before opening it. "Paint thinner, a classic accelerant. Fuses, some kind of electronic trigger. This is an arsonist's tool kit. No wonder he ran. Fleeing is enough probable cause to take him in, but we both witnessed him carrying this, and his fingerprints are probably on the bag and all over his toys inside. We'll have more than enough to book him and get a DNA sample."
"Lanie said that the DNA that she found on Carmen's body was degraded," Castle recalls. "She may not be able to get a match."
Kate waves at the bag. "Combined with all of this and Olafson's previous connection with Carmen, whatever markers she gets may be enough. And once we have his prints and fresh DNA, we may find some matches to what CSU found at the scene. We'll just have to see what the techs come up with. I'll document the chain of custody, and we can transport this to the CSU lab."
"Would we be putting a kink in that chain if we stop to pick up the treats for Esposito and Beckett's Best? If I don't show up with the perfect pastry, it will take me at least a month to live it down."
"It'll be OK Castle, as long as I can account for the whereabouts of the firebug's dream stash."
Kate regards an email from CSU. "They found Olafson's prints and DNA in Carmen's house. He was in the kitchen, but they said it looked like he banged on the bedroom door. He kicked it and spat on it too."
"Fireboy is into spitting," Castle notes. "But pounding on the bedroom door sounds like his flaming desire for more intimate contact with Carmen had been denied. Perhaps he mistook her concern for leading him on, and when she refused to participate in more personal pursuits, he turned on her, perhaps took her unawares, knocked her out, and sacrificed her to his own hellish demon."
"It's as good a theory as any, Castle unless Olafson confesses. But even if he does, I don't know whether a court would deem him competent to make a statement. We have more than enough to prove he killed Carmen. The residue on her body matches what would have been produced by the paint thinner in his bag. Those products are often marked with dyes that break down to identifiable chemicals when burned, and the one Olafson had is in that category. Enough of the DNA markers were salvageable to be presented as evidence too. Olafson will either end up in prison or a psych ward, maybe both. But he won't be killing anyone else or setting any fires."
"And Lily Redfield and Captain Gates will have some closure," Castle adds. "You should get some satisfaction from that and who knows? I may have earned a brownie point or two with your boss."
"I think you did, Babe. She's stopped sneering when she mentions your name."
Castle nods. "That's progress. But you know, there's something else we need to make some progress on."
"You mean our wedding plans. I'm sorry, Rick, I let things slide while I was getting used to being a Sergeant, and working on this case."
"No worries. I understand. But now that things are more settled, I can set up a meeting with Gloria Meadows. How would you feel about tonight, after dinner? Alexis will want to participate, and Mother thankfully will be at the theater."
"Sounds good, Castle. And you'll tell her where you got that cake for the party, that was so good?"
"Number one on my list."
Gloria Meadows shows up with a thick binder that looks familiar to Castle but is new to Kate. As she flips the pages, there are swatches of fabric in the colors Kate had long before told Castle she'd like for the linens at the reception. There are also photos of flower arrangements and even dried flowers to look at as samples to go into Kate's bouquet. The book also contains also facility lists and layouts for multiple venues bookable for September. Gloria cautions that if Kate wants one of them, they'll have to reserve it right away.
Kate finds Gloria's undeniable talent for organization reassuring, but still can't help feeling overwhelmed. Castle smiles his understanding, reaching for Kate's hand. "We won't do anything you don't want, will we Mrs. Meadows?"
"Of course not," Gloria assures the bride to be. "Now Rick told me that the two of you had settled on about 100 guests. Is that still true?"
Kate makes a mental tally. "I guess it is, although there may be a few more people from the precinct."
Gloria nods. "We can manage that." She points to some of the images. "These venues can all accommodate up to 150. That gives you some wiggle room. And if you don't fill them up, we can expand the dance floor. Now Rick also tells me you've already made your choice of cake. All of these options are capable of providing the rest of the food. You'll just have to decide on what you think you and your guests would like. Oh, and Rick said you wanted a DJ. I can offer you several choices, all very reliable and capable of providing a wide selection of music. If you want a specialist in a genre like hip hop or show tunes, tell me now, and I'll hunt someone up."
Kate visualizes her father trying to deal with rap music. "No hip hop." She looks at Castle. "We agreed on Sinatra's 'The Best Is Yet to Come,' for our first dance, right Babe?"
He kisses the top of her head. "I certainly approve of the sentiment."
"Dad, you don't want show tunes," Alexis cautions. "You know how Gram is when she's had a lot of champagne."
"Right," Castle agrees. "We don't need the musical portrayal of the girl who can't say no. We'll go with a mix of pop for the younger set and standards for the more mature and experienced in the crowd."
"Fine," Gloria agrees. "I'll get working on all of that and stay in touch."
Castle extends a hand to Kate as she joins him in bed, pressing a kiss into her palm. "I know you were nervous about having to make the decisions about the wedding tonight, but you did great."
Kate snuggles into his shoulder. "Babe, I was nervous, but I'm not now, at least not about flowers and music. I'm going to marry you, and everyone who's important to us is going to be there to celebrate with us. I can't wait for September."
Castle gathers her into his arms. "We'll just have to find a way to fill the time."