Beckett holds the little piece of paper between her fingers, turning it around and observing it. It is tiny, barely the size of a matchbox, but it has some kind of a writing on it.
"What is it?" She hears Castle asking from behind her.
"I don't know," she says and gets up, turning herself around to face her partner. "It seems like a scrap from some kind of letter," she continues, not taking eyes off the paper. "See," she points.
He can clearly read:
'192.168.19
kiis'
The paper is torn in half, so whatever the note was, it should have another half lying around somewhere. Castle takes the paper from Beckett's hands and examines it himself.
"Hmmm," he hums in confusion.
She lets him play with the paper for a few minutes, in the hope that he can shed some light on it, but no luck, his face stays blank. She takes the note from him, intending to give it to CSU, then walks away from the car. For a moment Castle contemplates going after her or staying near the car. But his curiosity gets the best of him and he inches closer to the bullet-ridden vehicle.
The body is still there in all its gruesome glory. There is so much blood everywhere. He feels his breakfast coming up, threatening to greet the world. He closes his eyes for a second and wills himself not care about the body and then opens them again. He slides his glance over the bloody seats, trying to spot the other half of the paper. But there's nothing. He takes another step towards the front of the car.
"Castle!" he hears a sharp voice from further away. He freezes on the spot. Beckett has spotted him poking around. He turns and looks at her apologetically.
"What are you doing?" She asks.
"I ...am.. um.." he tries to think of a quick answer, but fails.
"Come on, we don't have the time to spend here," she hurries him. "CSU can handle the details, we need to talk to the eyewitnesses."
"Coming, already coming," he huffs out, making his way to her. She waits for him patiently and when he reaches her side, they head in the direction of the cars across the street.
Back at the precinct, Kate's attention is on the murder board, her focus on the victim. Well, it should be on the victim, but she is all too aware of the presence of Castle, who has just walked behind her to glance at the board. He is a distraction that she isn't sure she needs at the moment. She turns and glares as he rattles off a question. Could she really do without him? He looks back confused.
"Kate. You OK?" The question snaps her out of her reverie. Embarrassingly she realised that the glare had lasted a good ten seconds and she didn't even hear the question.
"Umm.. yeah fine... Why do you ask?" She asks, trying to save face.
A smirk starts to emanate from Castle's face. "Well you looked sort of lost there for a minute. My good looks too much for you?"
"Yeah right," Kate fires back. "So, a diplomat dies in a bullet storm in New York City. Sorry what was the question again?" She tries to steer the conversation to more familiar and comfortable territory.
"What do we know about the victim?"
"Think I can help with that," Esposito pipes from across the bullpen. Both he and Ryan stride over to the murder board.
"Our victim, as Castle pronounced earlier, is one 'Kalev Järvesoo' a diplomat newly appointed to to the Estonian consulate here in New York. Early thirties, single, and his country has a house on 34th." Esposito looks over to Ryan who continues the story.
"Our good diplomat was killed with what looks to be a .40 caliber. CSU just sent preliminary results through now." Ryan looks over the photo pinned to the murder board in front of them and grimaces. "Man, he had no chance." He looks back down to his notes.
"The driver states that he only had a quick look at the motorcycle, and the rider." Esposito continues. "He hit the floor like real quick. Can't blame him really. Could only give a very basic description."
"So why would a diplomat, from a neutral country, have an enemy fierce enough to gun him down in rush hour traffic? It has to be more than simple politics," Kate ponders, as finally her attention on the case at hand focuses.
"I think I know what has transpired," Castle interjects, a mock serious expression painted on his face.
Kate turns slowly and looks at Castle, one eyebrow raised.
"Castle, if you even mention a CIA plot, or time travelling robots, I am going to shoot you where you stand," she says with a serious face.
"Hey, hey... Let's hear what he has," Esposito quips with a smile, arms folded over his chest.
"Yeah, lets hear the theory," Ryan, with an even bigger smile, directs at Beckett.
Kate resigned to the inevitable, rolls her eyes, and waves Castle on. It was always the weakness of the boys - Castle could always paralyse them with a good story.
Castle hunches his shoulders, leans back on the desk and launches into his version of events. "Our newly appointed diplomat is an ambitious man, who rises to the top of his field, unaware and unashamed of the dignitaries he has trampled to get to his position. He views his predecessor as weak, and leaves no stone unturned in his quest for ultimate power. The former consulate general feels slighted. He has cold war contacts he keeps in touch with, cold-blooded killers who could return the many favours he has handed out of his tenure."
Castle is now warming up to his task. Kate glances over to Esposito and Ryan, both thoroughly engaged in the story. She sighs, and returns her attention to Castle, who continues on.
"So our consulate general has his information that he is to be replaced. A quiet word in the right place could solve this humiliation right here. No one could tie it back to him. There is little chance he could get caught. These guys are professionals. After the shock of the assassination, he could quietly step in, offer to take control until matters settle down, knowing full well that a replacement would be months, maybe even a couple of years away. Then our good consulate general quietly retires on his own terms, peacefully settling down at his Mediterranean villa."
"Great theory Castle," Esposito states. Castle smiles back and turns to Beckett, ready for her opinion. She looks unimpressed. "Just one problem though," Esposito continues on, a wry look creeping over his face. Castle's expression freezes, his crest falls slightly. He peeks back at Esposito.
"And what would that be?" Castle asks, knowing that there is a high chance the bubble is about to burst.
"Well the former consulate general, as it turns out, was unwell, and virtually begged his government to let him retire, according the consulate. He was only there as long as he was because they couldn't find a ready-made replacement quickly." Esposito looks over to his partner sand shrugs.
Castle looks down at the ground, but then grins. "It would be hell of a story though, right?"
"Oh yeah, totally. It was working Castle." Ryan offers him some consolation.
Kate herself tries to keep a straight face, and fails in the attempt. "Anymore brilliant theories Castle?" She was going to enjoy this small victory.
Castle, not to be denied, answers back, "I've got a least a dozen. Want to hear them all?"
Ryan, hearing this, bursts out laughing. "Good answer, Castle."
The two trade a fist pump, knowing that Castle isn't losing this battle anytime soon.
Kate thinks to herself 'Don't let him get to you. This is what he wants.'She takes a deep breath and raises her voice to all three. "Back to the real world guys. Esposito, what do we have on the weapon itself?"
Esposito offers an answer, "I'm thinking a semi-automatic pistol, and a powerful one at that. Think about it. He would have to conceal the weapon, but have enough power to bust through a car door and kill a guy."
Ryan looks down at his notes, "Uniforms have canvassed the area, and report that witnesses saw a black motorcycle pull up next to the victim, kitted out in black, fire through the windows and door, and speed off. No one saw his face, or could get a rego. Seemed to be all too quick."
Kate muses over this information, "This really is a professional hit, isn't it?" They are all interrupted by Beckett's phone, breaking the tension of the foursome.
Kate picks her phone, and notes to the rest of them, "It's Lanie." She tucks her long auburn hair back behind her ear and asks "Hey Lanie. What have you got?" She falls silent for a minute, confusion slowly setting in her expression. "Uh huh. OK. We will be down shortly." She drops the phone back to the desk, and looks back to her crew. They are expectantly waiting for Lanie's details.
"...Well?" Castle's curiosity gets the better of him, his patience the shortest. "What did she say?"
"Lanie just says to head down there. She said that she has something for us." Kate herself seems a little nonplussed, the cause of death she thought would just be a formality. She grabs her jacket from her chair, and turns to head out of the bullpen. Castle quickly reaches for his jacket, and prepares to follow his muse, excitement written on his face at the possibility of a quirk in the investigation.
Ryan interrupts, "Hey Castle? All set for tonight? Jenny says the dress code is smart casual. It will be a fun dinner for the four of us."
Kate freezes mid-stride, her attention snaps back to Castle. She stops and turns her around to observe the detective and the writer. Neither of them notice her at the moment. She feels awkward, listening in on the private conversation of her partner. But she can't do nothing. Her interest is peaked and her heart has picked up the quickened pace. 'Tonight?'she thinks to herself. 'What the hell is going on? Castle and Ryan are going out somewhere?'
She doesn't hear Castle responding but she catches Ryan saying, "I am glad then, Emily is waiting to meet you in person. She is very sweet."
'Who the hell is Emily?'she thinks but then notices Castle smiling at Ryan and answering, "I'm looking forward to it too. But now, I have to catch Beckett. She is probably halfway down." Ryan nods and Castle starts stepping towards the elevator, assuming Beckett is there already.
He stops in his tracks when he sees Beckett standing in the far end of hallway, eyeing him intently.
A/N: Thank you all those people who read our story's first chapter. Delighted to see that people are interested in it and want to see where this goes. I hope you enjoy the ride with us to the end. It will be interesting! Thank you!
Brett & Trinxy