Shared Obsession Chapter 39
Castle surveys the kitchen space in the Cavanaugh's former apartment. "There's barely room in here for a freezer."
"And there aren't any indentations in the floor from where one would have been for a while," Kate notes.
"So Sam would have had to order one for the purpose," Castle concludes. "In my building, if you have something picked up or delivered you have to sign for it. Roger, is it the same here?"
"It is," the current tenant confirms. "Actually, for something that big, you have to sign the ledger."
"The ledger?" Kate echoes.
"The doorman's ledger downstairs."
In the hallway outside 917, Castle balances a thick book in the crook of his arm. "There's no delivery listed for the Cavanaughs, but there is one for Deloris Marsh who lives in 919, next door."
Kate immediately raps on 919, displaying her badge. White-haired Deloris peers out over a security chain. Kate takes the ledger and holds it up for the woman to see. She points to the name listed. "Is this you?"
"Yes, that's my name," Deloris confirms.
"I know it was five years ago. But you're the only one with a delivery listed that day, from Mueller Delivery Service," Kate explains. "I'd appreciate anything you can tell me about it."
"I remember it all right," Deloris assures her. "I had to go downstairs and straighten the whole thing out – and it was right in the middle of General Hospital."
Castle winces. "Bad timing."
"You know it," Deloris agrees. "Anyway, I told the doorman that I never ordered a freezer. But the guy brought it on up anyway. He loaded it on the freight elevator while I was talking to the doorman."
"So what happened when you were downstairs?" Kate asks.
"I told the doorman they got the wrong apartment again, and then by the time I got back upstairs, the guy was gone. Does this have anything to do with the missing woman?"
"Yes, it does," Kate confirms. "Why?"
"Because I already told the other cop."
"Detective Sloan?" Kate queries.
"I don't know his name, but I told him everything, same as you."
Kate pulls up at a ten-foot gate with a sign saying Mueller Bros. Delivery Service. Castle shakes his head as they're buzzed through the entrance. "I don't get it. If Sloan had Deloris's report, why didn't he follow up?"
"You know why, Castle. He'd already made up his mind, so he wrote it off as irrelevant."
"But it wasn't even in the file. Wouldn't Sloan document talking to a neighbor? It's kind of SOP, isn't it?"
"That omission is strange," Kate agrees. "Otherwise, he followed standard procedures. He documented everyone else he talked to. That's probably why the Davidson's protests fell on deaf ears."
Castle points at a vehicle parked at a loading dock. "Isn't that the same kind of truck we saw parked outside Wyler's store?"
"Some of that antique furniture must weigh a ton. He'd need someone to haul it. He must have a contract with Mueller," Kate speculates.
"Which would make Sam's best buddy Wyler the perfect person to call to transport something heavy ASAP," Castle realizes.
"Something heavy like a body in a freezer," Kate adds grimly.
Wyler slumps at the table in the box next to an uncharacteristically quiet Jenks. "We can trace the rental of the delivery truck to Mr. Wyler," Kate states flatly. "If you want, I can bring in the woman you pretended to deliver it to. She can identify you."
"Look, I had nothing to do with what happened to Melanie," Wyler insists.
Castle moves in from where he's been leaning against a wall. "You lied about everything else. Why should we believe you about this?"
"I never had any reason to hurt her," Wyler claims.
"But your pal Sam did, right?" Kate argues. "She kept going back to her ex-boyfriend. How much can a guy take? How much could a friend stand to see him take?"
"I admit, he talked to me about how pissed he was with Melanie, with her whole runaway act. But he'd been saying that for years. I never thought he'd do anything. And I didn't know he had. When he called me that night he just said to come over right away. He didn't say why. But when I got there, the kids were asleep, and Melanie was in the bathtub."
"Stop," Jenks orders. "Don't say anything else."
Wyler shakes his head. "They got this far. They're going to figure it out anyway. They might as well hear it from me. I didn't actually see the body. Sam put her in a garment bag and had the shower curtain pulled around her in case the kids looked in. And he told me she came at him and he just snapped."
"He could have gotten a divorce," Castle points out.
"That's what Melanie was afraid of," Kate adds, "that because of her drug history, he'd get one and get custody of the girls."
"But he was afraid that Elizabeth Forte would testify against him about the affair, or at least that's what he told me," Wyler explains. "But then with Melanie dead, he said he was afraid of what would happen to the girls if he went to prison. I've known those girls all their lives. I wanted to help, not just for Sam, but for them."
"So you arranged for the truck," Beckett surmises.
"Sam said it could never be traced back to him. And that's why we sent the freezer to the old lady, so his name wouldn't be on the order. And Sam gave me the money to rent the storage space because he knew the cops would be looking at him."
"So you made the payments?" Kate queries.
"Yes. Sam would give me the cash, and I'd stop by twice a year."
"For five years?" Castle questions.
"It seemed easier than moving her."
"Why did you stop paying?" Kate queries.
"Look, I'm truly sorry about what happened to Melanie. But Sam was gone. Was I supposed to keep paying for the rest of my life?"
Kate's chair creaks against the floor as she stands. "The DA will make sure that you do that Mr. Wyler."
In the break room, Castle hands Kate a skillfully foamed latte. "There's one thing I still don't understand. If Sloan thought he was investigating a missing person, why ask Deloris about the freezer?"
"I told you, Castle, it's standard procedure to talk to the neighbors."
"To ask if they'd seen anything, I get it. But Sloan didn't document any of that. He just assumed she'd run off. So why Deloris specifically and why the freezer? All the other pieces of the puzzle fit, but not that one."
Kate takes a slow sip of her foamy brew. "Real murders aren't like your books, Castle. Not every piece fits. But it isn't like Sloan to go to that much trouble for a case he was so eager to close."
"Maybe we should go talk to Deloris again," Castle suggests.
"All right," Kate agrees.
"You want to finish your coffee?"
"I'll grab a to-go cup."
Deloris looks out over her chain. "That must be some freezer."
"You mentioned a police officer," Kate recalls. "I know it's been five years but…."
"I didn't say he was here five years ago," Deloris interrupts.
"Just when did he come to see you?" Castle asks.
"Last year sometime. I remember wondering why the police would care about a freezer I never ordered."
"Do you remember anything about that cop, about what he looked like?" Kate inquires.
"Uh, he was older, with grey hair."
"Did he wear a uniform?" Kate presses.
"No, plain clothes. I do remember he walked with a limp, which I thought would be hard on a guy having to go around asking all those questions. But that's all."
Kate nods. "That's helpful, Ms. Marsh. Thank you."
The chain rattles as Deloris closes her door. "Castle, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Kate wonders as she and Castle head for the elevator.
"If you're thinking that the man asking about the freezer wasn't Sloan, it was Ben Davidson, Melanie's father, yes I am."
"Feel up to another trip to White Plains?"
"Beckett, Melanie's murder is solved. The case is over. You could let this go."
"Really, Castle? Sam Cavanaugh's murder was another death chalked up to something akin to random violence, a mugging. But it never fit the mold. It was the wrong place for a mugging and the wrong type of gun. How can I let that go? Can you?"
"Maybe, as a father, I could. But you're going to White Plains whether I go with you or not, aren't you?"
"Yes."
"Then I'm with you. You shouldn't have to do it alone."