Hey baby dolls, it's me again with another update. This time we have SheWhoTangles at the plate, hitting this chapter out of the park. Next is my turn so wish me luck as we head into the the 7th inning and down the rabbit hole. Cheers!
And as always, you can follow me on twitter at vatrask
Enjoy 3
Back at the precinct, Beckett stepped off the elevator deep in her own thoughts. The desks were clear of the guys, including Castle. Beckett took off her jacket and put it on the back of her chair. Coffee, she needed coffee to mull things over, refocus her head. A hot cup was one thing she could get a hold of since starting this case. Walking with her head down, her mind jostled with feelings and facts. On one side was the case, going nowhere fast with clues coming in at the pace of a lethargic snail. On the other side was her discussion with Maddie…did she, Kate Beckett, just declare territorial rights on Castle? Richard Castle? "Rick…" she said outloud to no one.
"Yes?" Castle answered. Kate looked up at him thoroughly startled, barely aware she had spoken his name aloud, never mind that he was there to hear her it do. All the guys were in the room, getting coffee. Esposito and Ryan hadn't been watching her walk into the room, but Castle had. He caught her expression on a unguarded moment.
"Ri-dic-ulous waste of time," Kate said trying to smooth over her slip by stretching out her first word. She went straight to the ready coffee pot keeping her back toward the guys as Espo starting running through the same info relayed to Kate by phone with Castle earlier. She turned with her filled coffee cup in hand forcing her 'detective mode' up front and center, attempting to lean back slighty against the counter to look business as usual. Her coffee cup was her private forcefield as her eyes met Castle's inquisitive gaze, the penetrating gaze he used on her that always left her feeling like he was seeing intoher. Pointing her focus on her cup, Beckett attempted to continue, "My results…"
"Results?" Gates was suddenly at the door without warning. Kate hated it when the Captain just popped into the room that way. Beckett's relaxed stance altered instantly to standing at attention, while Castle's face wore an expression that suggested 'Iron Gates' had actually materialized in a puff of smoke in the doorway. Kate bit her tongue to keep from expressing any hint of amusement that might be interpreted, or misinterpreted, by the Captain. "All of you in my office now. I want to hear what, if anything, the four of you have turned up in this case."
They all reassembled in her office trying not to look like a batch of puppies being chastised for chewing up the master's newspaper. The door slammed with a sound that instantly increase the tension in the room as the sound of Gates' shoes crossed back through the room to her desk. Gates shot Castle her best 'Gate-glare' as she began to pass him in the room.
"You said four…"he rattled off with his nine-year-old voice, but the Captain's hand went up in it's silent motion. Castle closed his mouth and his hand made a soundless key turning motion, tossing the key over his back. Ryan's head and shoulders did a sideway jerking motion to avoid being hit with the invisible key. Gates barely resisted an eyeroll and continued her march back behind her desk trying to ignore the comedy show in her office. They were a good team, including Castle, but she had no intention of telling them that. Taking a standing position behind her desk, arms crossed at her chest, the Captain's stance implied more irritation with the team than usual when the four of them worked together on a case for more than 15 minutes without solving it.
"Well?" Gates demanded behind closed doors. "What do we have on the case, detectives?" Castle started to open his mouth first, but Gates' hand went up immediately reminding him of his key turning motion, and Castle sucked his semi-sound back in.
Esposito broke the hanging silence. "We've heard from several witnesses that our perps are female, have brown hair, and are of average builds and heights. No distinguishing marks or other details of any kind about their appearance. No one saw them come or go from any locations. Since the station incident, they've been seen at two scenes wearing police uniforms. So far they have been successful at avoiding any accidental appearances on any kind of security or surveillance cameras to date."
"It's like they're ghosts," Castle mumbled, but not soft enough for Gates to miss. Castle went back to silent attention giving.
"Wonderful," said Gates sarcastically. "Is there any new concrete information on our victim?"
"Yes," chimed in Beckett. "According to my follow up with Maddie where the last note was left for us, the two women made a reference to 'JJs memory' at the last scene. There is reason to suspect that JJ might be the name or possibly the nickname of our victim." Becket's final word seemed to hang in the air longer that it should have as Gates waited for more… more did not come.
Gates quietly sized up the team and the leads as the silence in the room grew. Castle started shuffling uncomfortably. "Mr. Castle, do you have any additional facts to introduce to this case?" asked Gates. Castle started to open his mouth, but the glare from Beckett made him close it again. He looked at Gates and motioned a soundless no at her.
"People," her voice stinging with harshness, "are you telling me that the only information we have been able to dig up in this crime is that our suspects are females with brown hair of average build and height with the ability to impersonate janitors and officers, complete with a wardrobe from our precinct, without leaving any trace evidence or useful witnesses?"
"Sir, with all due respect, we've only been on the case for a few hours. We'll find more leads soon," Becket stated non-defensively.
"Speaking of leads, Det. Beckett, what do you think of these clues being left behind?"
"We are already familiar with many of the places that have been included from previous cases. I'm hoping that will give us an advantage in putting the pieces together." Captain Gates raised an eyebrow.
"In what way are you familiar with the places?"
"They are all places where cases our team have investigated crimes at before." Esposito and Ryan's voices chimed in together in answer to her question. Gates glared back annoyed. This team, always holding back on her.
"You mean, specifically Beckett and Mr. Castle, don't you?" The group exchanged awkward glances. "I'm familiar with the cases the two of you have worked on together." Her looks bounced between the two of them now, gauging their reactions and watching for the weak link. "Seeing how the messages being left behind have been directed at the two of you, I think you need to conclude that the two of you are very much included in the crux of this mess. Mr. Castle, I'm amazed you didn't offer that suggestion yourself."
Castle swallowed and looked at Beckett. Kate ignored him already anticipating his boasting about it later. "We have been discussing the possibility that we are, indeed, more involved then just the receivers of clues left behind to toy with the police. Our discussion was interrupted by the arrival of the new clue when we separated to expand investigating from the hotel. All of us had just returned from following up when you called us in," Castle said, accidentally implying she was interrupting them. The captain raised her eyebrow, but let the implication slide. Gates liked Castle, but he was too reckless for her. Still, his wild card on the team seemed to bring out the best in Detective Beckett, and in their precinct's track record. Her eyes went to her star detective.
"Get on it then," she said watching Beckett's expression. "I want this case showing progress, or better yet, wrapped up before the entire precinct is a laughing stock."
"Yes sir," Beckett returned with a nod, joining the rest of the team without speaking to their special section of the hallway where they could speak outside of visual shot of Gates but see her coming up behind them.
"She's right," said Ryan. "We were just talking with Castle about how the clues keep pointing to places where you and Castle have worked on a case together.
Castle looked over at Beckett, expecting her to shoot him a steaming, angry look, but was pleasantly surprised. "I guess that means we get to look into our time together more closely then in order to discover the answers for this case." His voice had a touch of question to it, but Beckett surprised him again by not voicing an objection or writing off again that the two of them might actually be a deeper part of the case. Instead, Beckett smiled his favorite this-case-is-thickening smile and waved the tickets at him.
"You ready to follow me on our next clue into us then? I have tickets for our next in depth examination." Castle eyes glazed over for a few seconds, enjoying their own version of her question, and then Castle smiled and straightened his jacket.
"Just lead the way, Detective." Kate offered her arm to him, and Castle snaked his hand and arm in and around hers as they walked briskly together to the elevator. They separated and exchanged a smile just before the doors closed on them, leaving Esposito and Ryan to shake their heads both in disbelief and in agreement on an entirely different discussion Castle and Beckett had yet to hear from them.