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"Hmm," Kate heard Castle mumble. Kate noticed the look on his face and knew he was probably coming up with a crazy theory for the case. She welcomed the brevity of it this time as the case was getting no where fast.
"What?" Kate inquired as she watched Castle speak into his IPhone.
"Targeting Analyst".
Kate had just ran a background check on the husband and they were waiting for a few more details to come back from it.
"Castle, what exactly are you doing?"
"I was curious what exactly a Targeting Analyst does so I thought I would look it up. It says here that a Targeting Analyst uses network analysis techniques and specialized analytical tools to identify and detail key figures and organizations who may pose a threat to US interests."
"Where did you get that job description?" Kate asked with her eyebrow raised suspiciously.
"Directly off the CIA's website of course. Where else would I find it?"
"Really? You're going back to your CIA theory? What's the matter? Running out of ideas so you had to fall back one already given?" She smirked at him and added just to tease, "and you call yourself a writer."
"Ok, smartass, I'd like to see you come up with something better or do you think you can't rise to meet the challenge."
"Oh, Castle. I can and will rise to any challenge you throw at me, any time, anywhere." Kate moved closer to him and looked him directly in the eye with a smirk on her face.
"We know that no id or personal affects were found with the body which could mean a robbery gone wrong. At the same time, her wedding ring was left on her finger which you would think would have been taken if money was purely the objective. The defensive bruising suggest she put up a fight which brings us back to the question of why an analyst would need self defense training and being called out to work at odd hours. Their has to be a connection somewhere."
"The self defense training I kind of understand considering we do live in New York City. It's not exactly the safest place to live so she may have taken a class at the gym where she works out." Castle said.
"Maybe but that doesn't explain the leaving at all hours or the fact that the husband didn't notice her missing the following morning. I'm not convinced he had anything to do with this murder though. " Kate said as she shook her head in frustration. This case was getting no where fast and could only hope that something popped in the vics background.
"Going back to the self defense idea for a moment, was thinking it might be a good idea for Alexis to learn some stuff and I thought maybe you could teach her? I've been told you are a great sparring partner... maybe you can teach me some moves as well?" Castle asked.
Kate looked at him for a brief second to see if he was serious, not about Alexis learning but about himself learning. She couldn't help but think back to the rather intense sparring session she had with Demming but instead of seeing him, she pictured Castle instead. It caused an involuntary shudder to run down her spine. She needed to put these thoughts out of her head because she had a boyfriend. She couldn't dismiss the fact though that her thoughts often ran to Castle instead of him which even she would admit meant something. Something had to change soon and it would have to be her to make the move.
Giving herself a mental shake to get herself focused back on what was around her, she heard Esposito walk toward her desk.
"Yo Beckett. Struck out when canvassing the area. No one heard or saw a thing that night."
"Okay. Thanks. Why don't you and Ryan check into the vics financials while Castle and I head to the gym. Something tells me we may find more of the story where she works out."
"On it." Esposito said.
Castle had been looking at the murder board during the conversation and seemed to be little more focused than usual.
"I know that look."
"What look?" He turned around and cocked an eyebrow at her.
"That 'something doesn't add up' look. What's running through your head?"
"Well, looking at the crime scene photos I remembered that her purse was taken at some point during the course of the murder. Which got me thinking about what could be in that purse, mainly what could still be left in it, like a cell phone. Her husband never mentioned her having one but she had to have one."
"But if her cell phone was left on, we could track its location." Kate said finishing Castle's thought. She turned around and found Ryan and Esposito at their desks. "Ryan, track down Katarina's cell number and put a trace on it. Let me know if something pops."
"Got it boss." Ryan replied.
"Come on Castle, let's see what we can dig up at that gym of hers."
Kate and Castle just started toward the elevators when she heard him mumble "Castle does it again." with a huge grin on his face. Kate couldn't help but smile herself and think back to their earlier conversation before the guys interrupted.
They were standing in front of the elevator waiting for the doors to open when Kate felt a hand brush against her own. She let out a frustrated sigh just as the doors opened and they stepped inside.
"I felt that you know."
"Felt what?" Castle said innocently
"Your hand as it ever so casually touched mine just before we stepped in here."
"I don't know what you're talking about. My hand must have a mind of its own and felt lonely. Who am I to stop what it wants to do?" Castle quipped.
Kate couldn't help but chuckle and she stepped closer to him but still within the realm of their normal distance. She pulled out her phone to check the address of the gym, slid it back into her pocket and let her mind rest, if only for a moment.
"Ryan got the cell number for our vic from the husband so a trace is running on it now. We need to check out this gym she worked out in and see if any of the regulars knew anything more about her life." Kate said as they walked toward her car.
"Did we ever clear the husband as a possible suspect?" Castle asked almost as an afterthought.
"Yeah, his background came back clean. He wasn't exactly husband of the year but it appeared that their relationship worked for them."
"What about her work? I can't shake the feeling that something connected to her work is involved. It would make for a better story to have some evil villain stalk our victim in order to prevent her from passing on some top secret information she uncovered through her work."
"I will never admit this in front of the guys but I think you are right. Although not about the evil villain thing. Let's see if anyone at the gym can tell us more." Kate said as they parked about a block away from the gym.
Getting out of the car, Kate walked around to join Castle on the sidewalk. This time when his hand casually reached out to brush her own, she gave in and let him hold it. Rationally it was two friends holding hands for warmth on a cold day as they walked toward the gym but her heart told her it was so much more. They walked into the gym and quickly found the manager on duty.
"Detective Kate Beckett, NYPD. Do you have a moment to answer a few questions about a lady that was a member here? Her name was Katarina Footelli and her husband told us she worked out here on a regular basis."
"Sure, although I'm not sure I can tell you much." The manager said but then pointed to a group of guys on the free weights. "That group could probably tell you more than I could as they worked out with her every day."
"So, she was here often. Did she ever come with anyone else?" Castle asked.
"Nope, always came in on her own and nearly always worked out with that group. It didn't seem to bother her that she was the only female of the group which I found intriguing. Most females like to work out with their own kind, you know?"
"She doesn't appear to be like most females."
"Sounds like someone else I know." Kate heard Castle mumble softly. She rolled her eyes at him and continued.
"Did you ever notice them sparring with each other or were they mainly focused on the weights?" Kate asked
"Oh they definitely sparred with each other in the ring set up over in that corner. It was fun to watch the guys get their ass kicked by her day in and day out but like I said that group could tell you more than I could."
"Thanks. One more question, when was the last time you saw her?"
"She was here around this time yesterday with the same group of guys. Look, if we're done here I need to go handle an issue with one of our customers." The manager said as he started to walk off in the direction of the problem.
Kate turned to Castle as they both watched the group of guys working out.
"That makes no sense. If she was able to beat those guys sparring, and they are not exactly what you would call small, how could she have been overpowered so easily." Kate murmured.
"It has to go back to whatever tool was used to strangle her. It would have had to been quick otherwise she would have been able to overpower her attacker." Castle said.
"Come on. Let's see what these guys have to say about being beat by a girl on a regular basis. Maybe she crossed a line one too many times and one of them retaliated. Just follow my lead."
"Would follow you anywhere, Detective."
Kate turned her head and let a small smile briefly cross her face.
She walked up to the guys working out and cleared her throat. The larger one of the group stopped what he was doing and let his eyes travel up and down her body checking her out. Kate felt Castle take a small step closer to her but said nothing.
"Can I help you or do you just want to admire this body of mine?" He asked and flexed his arms before striking a quick pose.
"Oh, you can help me alright, Detective Kate Beckett. I have some questions about your workout partner, Katarina Footelli." Kate showed her badge and added, "as far as your body goes, I've seen better."
She heard laughter coming from the other guys around him as they stepped forward. Almost like Kate had earned some respect in their eyes.
"What can you tell me about her? The manager said she was a workout partner of yours." Kate said.
"Yeah, she worked out with us nearly every day unless something with her family came up. She would text one of us if she couldn't make it. She was supposed to be here today but never showed up which is odd because I never got anything saying she wouldn't be here."
"She was found murdered this morning in an alleyway. How did you meet her? If you don't mind me saying, you all don't seem to be the group a women with a family would workout with or know really." Castle said before Kate could ask the question herself.
"Wow. She's really dead huh? Sad but it doesn't surprise me really, knowing her line of work."
"And just what kind of work was that exactly?" Kate asked.
"Well, to answer your partner's question first. We were in a similar line of work but not the same department exactly. We all met during training and just stuck together throughout our various assignments. She was the brains of the group but could hold her own in a fight."
"And again, what kind of work was that Mr... ?"
"Just call me Brent."
"Ok, Brent. What kind of work was Katarina involved in exactly?" Kate asked again.
"She was an analyst for a government agency. It was supposed to be a relatively safe position as she just researched and identified various groups of possible threats. The leg work was left up to people in my line of work."
"So why did she continue to train with you all if she was never in any danger?" Castle asked.
"She was a strong lady who believed in being prepared for anything. Working out with us kept her skills sharp and honestly, I think she got a thrill out of kicking our asses on a daily basis." Brent said with a slight chuckle.
"Do you know why she would be called out to her job at all hours of the night?"
"Working for the government or any agency for that matter, meant long hours and no set schedule for anyone. We could never predict when something would happen and she would be needed to be on site. Something you, as an NYPD Detective, can relate to I'm sure." Brent said.
"You sound like you knew her fairly well. Do you know why she never talked about her job to her husband or daughter?"
"She was like a sister to all of us. She didn't talk about her job to her family because they wouldn't understand her line of work or why she continued with it despite all the obstacles. I met her husband a few times and he seemed to accept her as she was and supported her however she needed." Brent said with a far away look in his eye.
"Did she mentioned anything she was working on recently that could have caused her some concern?" Kate asked.
"We didn't talk much about work, especially in such an open place, but she did mention she ran across a bit of information which rattled her some the last time she worked out with us. I offered to help her, even asked if she wanted me to take a look, but she said she would talk to her superiors about it."
"Do you happen to have the contact information for her work?" Castle asked.
Brent walked over to a locker where he kept his bag, unlocked it and pulled out a card and handed it to them.
"Call this number when you get back to your precinct. They should be able to at least shed some light on what she was working on and give you more information." Brent paused but then looked Kate straight in the eye. "Katarina may have been a tough lady but she was a sister to all of us and we all care about her deeply. I hope you can use the information I told you to find her killer."
"I'm sure we can Brent. You've been very helpful. We'll be in touch if we have any more questions for you and your friends. " Kate said and handed her card to him. "If you can think of anything else though, please don't hesitate to call."
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOX
As they left the gym, Kate reached out and laced her fingers with his without even thinking about what she was doing. When they reached the car, she let go of his hand while he climbed in and sat down.
"You know I have to say the similarities between our victim and yourself are striking. Both of you appear to the outside as strong willed, tough as they come ladies in male dominated professions that could kick anyone's ass if the situation warranted. She seemed to have a tight group of people to rally around her much like you do except she had her husband to lean on when she needed extra support, even if he didn't know much. Which leaves the question, who do you turn to when things get too tough, even for you?"
Kate stared at the road ahead of her instead of turning to look at Castle while she contemplated her answer. If she was honest with herself and really looked at the time she spent with Castle versus Josh, she knew her answer. It was something Kate knew would have to be addressed sooner rather than later. She parked her car in front of the precinct but before Castle opened his door, she grabbed his arm gently. He looked back, their eyes locked and he pulled the door closed slightly, a questioning look on his face.
"Who do you think I turn to when times get tough? You're smart Castle. You should be able to answer that without my help just by looking at our past history." She said softly. She looked into his eyes for a moment longer before getting out of her car and started toward the precinct. She felt him grab her arm just before she reached the door.
"You can't just leave it like that, Kate."
"I just did Castle. For now, we have some work to get done."
"What about tonight then? I'm intrigued by what is running through that head of yours."
"You have a date with Nikki Heat tonight, I seem to remember you telling me." Kate said as she heard her phone chirp, alerting her a text had come through. She glanced at her phone, noting it was from Josh saying he was off shift after all. "And that was Josh telling me he is off shift after all tonight so it appears we both have plans."
"I see. Hope you and Josh have has much fun as I will with Nikki Heat. Wait that sounded worse than I meant it." Castle said as Kate could see just a hint of hurt flash across his face.
"Let's just say tonight will not be a dull night but may not turn out the way anyone planned at the start. Now let's go see if Katarina's superiors can shed some light on what she was working on before her death."
A/N: Need to thank Xonze, my beta reader, for editing this chapter for me and for rkcaskett for reading it over for me. I hope you liked this chapter and appreciate all the reviews.