Very Castle Celebrations
Chapter 43
Kate gazes around the venerable but solid structure. "Castle, this place is incredible."
Castle feels like his grin is about to crack his face. "I know, right? And Weldon says that since Speelman pleaded guilty and there won't be a trial, the city is going to expedite the sale. The city and the feds can use the money; they're going to split it. And we can use the house, assuming the backyard is what it's supposed to be. We need to go look."
"You still have to win the auction," Kate reminds him, "and there's no way a brownstone like this is going to go cheap."
Castle wiggles his eyebrows. "But the auction isn't going to allow for financing. Cash on the barrelhead. That will eliminate a lot of buyers. I have my business manager ready to pull the trigger on liquidating some of my investments right now. If we have to pay a premium to grab it, we will - as long as the yard measures up. There must be a door to it at the back somewhere."
A long hallway with a hardwood floor stretches the length of the building, leading to a small room with an exit to the outside. Castle watches Kate's mouth fall open. Apparently, Tuck Speelman had intended the high-walled retreat as an adult playground. There is a huge spa and a covered dining area complete with lights. There are also weatherproof but extremely sturdy loungers. "We'll have to put in an enclosure and a locking cover for the spa," Castle notes, "and we might want to downsize the dining area into something less formal that won't overpower the space. There will be room to put in play equipment for Jackson and an area for him to run around. And it will be a few years at least before he learns to scale that wall. Looks like we could have a romp or two out here ourselves.
Kate grabs a handful of Castle's behind. "Ya think? Tell your business manager to get busy."
Castle pulls his cell phone out of his pocket to make the call. Kate's phone buzzes just as Castle finishes his conversation. He can see her face light up. "What happened?"
"Castle, we got a hit from a Portuguese market. They have a customer who is a mason. They know because he did some work for them."
Castle can feel himself growing even more excited than he already was about the house. "And markets were selling Portuguese specialties in the area of all the bush hammer killings, right?"
"More or less," Kate agrees, "Some of them would have been a pretty long drive, but he would have been able to get what he wanted."
Castle's stomach lurches. "And force his girlfriends to try to choke it down. Where's that market?"
Kate scrolls through her text. "Newark, in the Ironbound Section. We'll have to coordinate with the New Jersey Troopers, and maybe the Newark cops, but we should be able to bring this guy in."
Castle wishes out loud that he could see Kate grill the mauling mason. She bumps him with her hip. "I just might be able to arrange that."
Kate is back in her old stomping grounds in the box at the 12th Precinct with a detective and an A.D.A., staring down Martim Bastos. Even through the glass in the observation room, the look in the man's eyes is unnerving. Castle recalls a similar feeling when Jerry Tyson dropped his mask.
Kate lifts an evidence bag containing a bush hammer that was discovered on a search of Martim's apartment. "There are traces of blood on this with DNA that matches a woman named Lindy Sloan. You killed her and then left her like garbage in a dumpster. And she's not the only woman you murdered. The pattern on this hammer matches marks on three other dead bodies. It has your fingerprints on it. You were seen or heard by the neighbors of the women you killed. You are going away for the rest of your life."
Before she continues, Kate glances at the A.D.A. who nods. "There is one way you might be able to make the rest of your life more bearable, Martim. You tell us about all the women you've killed over the years, give their families some peace, and we can arrange it, so Bubba doesn't make you his girlfriend. You might even be able to see the sun or watch a movie once in a while. You stay silent, and you will be at the mercy of every con in the penitentiary, and I guarantee you, they aren't very merciful."
Castle can see stains growing at Martim's armpits. Kate has him. Now all she has to do is wait. She's doing a great job of it, tapping her fingernails on the evidence bag and flipping through the murderer's file like she has all the time in the world. She lets Martim stew for an hour until he finally asks her what she needs to know. Just in time too. Castle needs to get home to relieve Buttons. He and Kate can celebrate her victory later.
Castle always gets nervous before Valentine's Day. When he was a little boy, it was because he was afraid that he wouldn't get any valentines except the one from Mother. Often his fears were realized. By high school, it was usually about a girl and how to get her something nice or take her somewhere, on his very limited funds. In college, Kyra was of the opinion that Valentine's celebrations were mostly for the benefit of the greeting card companies and the candy makers. He's not sure she was entirely wrong about that, but he is too much of a romantic not to take the holiday seriously.
He wants this year to be extra special. Kate is still fighting City Hall for the budget to pursue her cases. She can use an opportunity to relax and think loving thoughts. After hot-footing after Jackson most days, he can use some time like that himself. The question is how to get it.
Alexis will be having her own night with Cary, one he'd rather not think about too much. Buttons let him know that she has a date on Valentine's Night and Mother has a performance. He could try to get someone who's been properly vetted by an agency, but he hates to stick Jackson with a stranger.
He and Kate can stay in. He can always festoon the bedroom with candles and flowers. He's already ordered the best chocolate covered strawberries, and he has a case of Kate's favorite red wine. But there has to be something more.
He'd be willing to watch a chick flick, but Kate's not much of a fan. There are romantic mysteries. Even Sci-Fi can be pretty tender. Forbidden planet is - after a fashion. But settling down in front of any of that just isn't up to the Castle standards of creativity. He needs something else. If he thinks about it hard enough, an idea will come to him. Maybe taking Jackson for a tour of their new home to be - if he can get his hands on the keys again - will give him some inspiration.
