Lovely Rita, Meter Maid
Summary: What if Rita isn't who she says she is? I told myself I wasn't going to write a season 8 story but this idea just popped in my head.
Author's Notes: Thanks for the reviews, favs, and follows – all of you rock. Don't own Castle; just writing to mess with the characters and waiting to see where the series goes. One more chapter after this to wrap things up.
Chapter 5 And the Truth Shall Set You Free
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Beckett blinked back tears; she couldn't raise her hands to her face because of the handcuffs, but she would be damned if she let them see her cry.
How had this gone so wrong? How could she have been so wrong? She thought they were being so careful.
"Well, Ms. Beckett, we're waiting," said Donovan. "Do you deny that is you and Singh on the tape?"
"No, I don't, but it's not what it looks like," Beckett replied softly.
"It rarely is," Gates said. "Would you care to enlighten us?"
Beckett opened her mouth and then closed it. "I'm sorry," she said finally. "I can't. I'd like to call my lawyer now."
Donovan sat back, smirking. "You do realize you're being charged with an act of terrorism. That means no lawyer, no rights. And we have enough to convict you."
He was about to say something else when the door opened and a man in a severe suit walked in, briefcase in hand.
"Good morning, Captain Donovan, Deputy Chief Gates," the man said, nodding at them. "My name is Harrison Cross from the Attorney General's office. I've been retained to represent Captain Beckett."
He sat his briefcase down on the table. "I will be filing a protest immediately that my client's civil rights were violated when she was not allowed to call anyone when taken into custody last night and not allowed to seek legal counsel at that time."
Cross held up a finger to stop Donovan as he started to say something. "And if she had been allowed to make that phone call, all of this could have cleared up then at no cost to the tax payer."
Cross looked pointedly at Donovan and Gates, who stared at him.
"Who retained you?" asked Gates.
"Her husband, Richard Edgar Castle, and the Attorney General." Cross looked at Beckett. "Ms. Beckett, Mr. Castle apologizes for not being here sooner, but he had to stop at City Hall this morning to meet with the mayor, the police commissioner, and the DA."
"What?" Donovan sputtered. "Why?"
"Mr. Castle will personally tell you about the meeting when he gets here. Now, if you'll remove the handcuffs from my client," Cross demanded firmly. "I can guarantee she's not a flight risk."
"Her previous actions say otherwise," said Donovan, but he grudgingly unlocked the handcuffs.
They didn't have to wait long before the door burst open and Castle made a theatrical entrance, worthy of Martha Rodger's son, followed by Alexis.
"Kate, sorry I'm late. I had to see some people first to get the charges against you and Singh dropped," Castle said as he walked over to Beckett and kissed the top of her head before sitting down next to her and taking her hand.
"This is an interrogation," blustered Donovan. "You have no right to be in here."
"Perhaps you missed the part where my father said the charges have been dropped," said Alexis.
"Mr. Castle, I know you would do anything to protect your wife," Gates countered, "but we have irrefutable proof of her guilt."
"Then let's see it," said Castle.
Donovan smirked slightly as he played the tape again. "That is Ms. Beckett and Vikram Singh going into your loft Tuesday morning at 10 am, at which time they planted a bomb in your luggage that was supposed to explode when your plane was over the Atlantic."
Gates looked at Castle coldly. "Ms. Ellis confirmed that the date and time stamp on this tape has not been tampered with."
"And Ms. Beckett opened the door with this key," said Donovan, holding up Beckett's keychain. "That's been verified also."
"That all you got, Sherlock?" said Castle rhetorically, looking directly at Donovan. "Unfortunately for you, there are 2 major problems that blow your theory out of the water. And I am surprised at your lack of due diligence." Castle looked at Cross. "Does this sound like an unlawful arrest lawsuit to you?"
Cross nodded slightly, an eyebrow quirked. "It could cost the city millions, not to mention the bad publicity," he responded. "This will definitely be a black mark on someone's record."
"Care to enlighten us?" Donovan asked. "Or are you just blowing smoke up my ass?"
"I don't blow smoke up anyone's ass, especially yours," said Castle, all business now, nodding to Cross who opened his brief case, pulled out two deadbolt locks, and put them on the table.
"The first problem is that I changed the lock on my front door Monday morning and haven't given Beckett a new key yet," Castle said. "The lock labeled 1 is the old lock and the lock labeled 2 is the new lock. And I have witnesses to this event."
He motioned to two people standing in the hallway. "This is George Tarrant, overnight concierge in my building. And Kate, you remember Norman Jessup, locksmith extraordinaire. George, will you please tell them what happened Monday morning?"
"Yes, Mr. Castle," said Tarrant. He looked at Donovan and Gates. "Mr. Castle called me about 2 am Monday morning and said that the lock on his front door was not working and he needed a temporary replacement."
"How was your lock broken?" asked Gates. "Did someone tamper with it?"
Donovan frowned as he picked up the lock and looked at it. "It looks like someone put glue in it."
"Yes – super glue to be precise," nodded Castle. "Patterson did it."
"Patterson?" asked Donovan.
"James Patterson. I'm sure you're familiar with his books?" Castle said. "He and Connelly came over for a poker game Sunday night, sort of a 'congratulations on the new contract' party. Oh, and Judge Markway was there too. Anyway, when they left, Patterson squirted super glue in the outside of the lock."
"And you're sure that he did it?" Gates asked incredulously.
"Oh, yeah, because they left a note," said Castle as Cross took a piece of paper out of the briefcase and put it on the table.
"These guys are epic pranksters," Castle continued, making a face. "One time, when I was having plot problems, he did the same thing to the bathroom door when I was inside and told me to figure out how to get out. Then he sat on the couch, eating popcorn and watching Dumbo with Alexis."
Tarrant nodded in response.
"And then when one of my books made the best seller list," Castle continued, "they had these fake diplomatic plates made and put them on my car. I didn't notice that for a while and was wondering why I was getting good parking spots." He chortled. "Then this other time, they—"
"Dad!" hissed Alexis, her cheeks flushing slightly, giving him an eye roll.
"And that's a totally inappropriate story," Castle said, taking a breath. He looked back at Donovan. "So there was no way Beckett could have opened my door Tuesday morning. You can try her key in the new lock."
Donovan tried Beckett's key, which wouldn't even fit. He frowned as he put the items back on the table. "How do we know that this is the lock that was on the door on Tuesday?"
"That's the one I sold him as the replacement on Monday," Jessup piped in. "And I came over and installed it personally. Custom model serial number 8763542 and it only has 1 key that will fit."
"And because the mayor, the commission, and the DA were at the loft this morning as witnesses to that," said Castle.
"Rick, who's watching the loft if there isn't a lock on the door?" Beckett asked.
"Definitely not Patterson," Castle replied cryptically.
Donovan frowned. "And what's the second problem, Mr. Castle?"
"The second problem is that the bag that you alleged had the bomb in it wasn't even at my loft on Tuesday. The zipper broke when I tried to open it so I took it to the repair shop on Friday. I didn't pick it up until Wednesday morning, the day of the flight."
He nodded at Cross who put another piece of paper on the table.
"And here's the receipt. You can call them if you want to," said Castle, pointing to the phone number. "So if you're looking for who might have planted a bomb in my suitcase, you might start with the car service. That's the only time the bag was out of my sight that day, except of course when I checked it at the airport, which opens up a whole slew of new suspects."
"This doesn't explain what Beckett and Singh were doing Tuesday morning," Donovan said.
"No, it doesn't. But call this number," Castle said, taking a card out of his jacket pocket, "and ask for Director Martin Danberg—"
"Of the CIA?" Gates asked quickly, remembering the man who had shown up in her office several years ago.
"Yes," Castle replied, nodding slightly. "He's expecting your call."
Donovan left the room for a few minutes and then came back in, looking none to pleased. "Well, Captain Beckett, it looks like you and Singh are off the hook for now. But be forewarned, we'll be watching you."
Beckett breathed a sigh of relief for the first time since she had been arrested and looked at Castle. "Thank you."
"Kate, I'll always have your back," Castle smiled softly. "Now let's go get your stuff so you can get changed and get out of here."
Beckett looked at Alexis and Cross. "Can you give us a minute alone?" she asked.
"Sure," said Alexis, with a half-hearted smile.
Castle stood and shook Cross' hand. "Thanks for your help, Harrison."
"Glad to be of service. You'll get my bill in the mail."
Beckett waited until Alexis and Cross walked out of the room. "Rick, after what happened, I don't know if it's safe for me to come home."
Castle nodded as if he expected her answer, pressing his lips together. "Kate, just come home for now. There are some people who need to talk to you. And then after that, if you decide you need to leave, I won't stop you."
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