Forty-Seven: Chapter 11
DISCLAIMER: None of these characters are mine, but they are memorable. Thank you, Mr. Marlowe.
A/N: I'm posting these as I can. Spending time in Dad's hospital room, stepping out to post a few more. I will get the first 18 up tonight, hopefully. Story is not finished – but on the road.
Tuesday, March 27, 2012 – Now 5:50 p.m. at the Mayor's Office
"Sorry for the delay. The Mayor will see you now, Rick."
"No problem Janice," Richard Castle replies affably, picking his large frame up off the plush chair in the mayor's waiting room. Castle has been sitting here for about thirty-five minutes, waiting for Bob Weldon to finish a previous engagement. This is an impromptu visit, so Castle wasn't expecting to be ushered right in.
He's spent the time reflecting on the unexpected rollercoaster ride that today has become. Less than five hours ago, he was standing in the viewing room, watching his favorite detective do what she does so well . . . interrogate and break down a perp. He watched with an illogical pride as she peeled away layer after layer, stripping the poor guy's story to the bare bone. Just another day in the box.
Only, it wasn't.
Pride turned to horror and anger as she unknowingly laid open a secret she had kept for so long. Anger turned to frustration as she confronted him in the cemetery, next to her mother's grave. Frustration gave way to an unrealistic hope as he heard the three critical words she uttered leaving the gravesite, unaware that he had heard. And finally unrealistic hope transformed back into frustration (and let's face it, a strong case of trepidation and fear) as he now considers this new journey that faces all of them: Beckett, Espo and Ryan, Gates, Alexis, Martha – and of course, he himself.
Somehow – for some still unknown reason – the deal that was keeping Kate Beckett standing and healthy has been pulled off the table. He can feel it. He knows with certainty that whoever was behind the break-in at Roy Montgomery's family home is connected to Kate's mother's murder. And whoever is behind this – so far – hasn't concerned themselves with collateral damage. So yeah, even though Kate's the target, they all are in danger, because they all are a part of the circle that intersects with Detective Kate Beckett.
He's here for some answers. Bob Weldon, the mayor of New York City, knows more than he has shared with Castle. And today is a day for destroying all secrets, pulling everything out of the dark and into the light.
"Bob," Castles greets his old friend as he walks into the mayor's private office. The two men shake hands and then pull one another into a hug. A slap on the back follows as they separate, and Castle takes the chair in front of his friend's massive desk. Rather than take his chair in the position of authority, Weldon pulls up the second chair in front of the desk and sits aside his friend.
"So, what can I do for you, Rick?" he asks him. "Janice said you indicated it was quite urgent." Tired lines under the eyes stand out on the handsome man's dark face. Yeah, this job can be a pill, to say the least.
"I wish this were a nice social call, Bob," Castle begins, "but it isn't. I need your help. I need your help desperately."
Weldon cannot help but raise his eyes and sit back a bit. In all the years they have known each other, Richard Castle has never asked for a 'desperate' favor. The two play cards, make bets, share drinks, and probably the most serious thing Castle has asked for was inclusion into the 12th. But even then, Castle was his normal, scheming and charming self. Today, however, it is clear that Castle is a desperate man asking for a desperate favor.
"Okaaaay," Weldon comments. "This is new."
"Just promise me one thing, Bob," Castle continues. "I need the truth. I warn you now, and I hate to take this stance, but . . . well, it's just that important. If you don't tell me the truth, you and I are done. And by done, I mean I leave the city, I leave the 12th, you and I are done. I can't take any more lies today. Fair enough?"
"Any more lies? I haven't lied to you, Rick," a confused and slightly put off mayor replies, regaining his bearings. "Never."
"I know, Bob . . . let's keep it that way," Castle replies, knowing that he is taking out his frustrations with Beckett on his good friend. "I have a question, my friend. It's a tough one. So think about it, don't answer right away."
Call it politician's intuition, or just call it waiting for the shoe to drop for so long that it's a relief when it finally happens, but Mayor Bob Weldon is no idiot. He senses where this conversion is going, and what question is coming. He actually smiles, which brings a matching smile to Castle's face, relaxing him into this difficult discussion.
"A few months ago, you were being framed," Castle begins, and notices his friend take a deep breath. He realizes that Weldon has been waiting for this conversation.
"Someone very powerful decided you weren't going to be governor. Ever. But they also made sure that you stayed mayor."
Castle pauses here for a moment, wondering how much to say. The mayor – again, no idiot – senses this.
"If you want full disclosure from me, Rick," Weldon states firmly, his eyes now boring directly into those of his friend, "then give me the respect of reciprocity."
"Fair enough," Castle chuckles, nodding his head.
"There is a man – name of Smith. At least that's what he told me his name was," Castle tells him. "He told me that your suspicions about being framed were correct. You were right. He also said that the people who were framing you definitely wanted you to stay in office as mayor . . . because you being mayor kept me at the 12th. You leave the mayor's office, the captain over at the 12th kicks me out."
Weldon doesn't say a word, but a few seconds later his simply nods his head.
"This means the people who framed you are the same people who want me keeping Detective Beckett away from her mother's case."
Again, Weldon is quiet, but a nod of his head confirms Castle's train of thought.
"Which means," Castle continues, "that the person or persons who killed Laura Cambridge. . ."
"Is also the person who is responsible for Johanna Beckett's death," Mayor Weldon finishes, completing the sentence.
Castle stands, taking quick deep breaths as he begins pacing the inner office. His head is swimming now, deep under the waters. It feels like drowning. He can't catch his breath, he can't focus. Finally, after a couple of paces, he manages to sit down on a small loveseat near the window. The mayor stands next to him with a small tumbler of scotch.
"Take this," he tells his long-time friend. "You're going to need it."
Castle looks up at the small glass and manages a weak smile. "That bad, eh?"
The mayor doesn't respond. He simply gives Castle the glass and then turns away, walking a few steps to the window and staring out over the city he loves.
"Rick . . . Rick, I can't . . . I couldn't . . . Damn it all."
He turns to face his friend who sits on the small couch, staring at the glass in his hands. He's yet to even take a swallow. Weldon nods his head. He knew it would come to this at some point. And none of this is even his fault. Well, scratch that. He knows that if he had never given the okay for Richard Castle to be included in the 12th Precinct in the first place a few years ago, things would be different.
He'd still be mayor – check.
His plans for a run at the governor's office would still be in place – check.
His long-time, whispered ambitions for the Presidency would still be viable – check.
His long-time friend and novelist – Richard Castle – would be off writing a new series somewhere, still his poker buddy, still his close friend – check.
Detective Kate Beckett would be deader than a doornail.
Yeah, check on that one also.
"I don't understand," Castle finally begins, as he takes a long swallow of the clear liquid, allowing the burn to soothe his nerves – just a bit – on the way down.
"I will give you the cliff notes version, Rick," Weldon says with a chuckle, "since I don't have the eloquence of words that you do."
"Pleeeease," Castle chuckles himself, mockingly. If there is anyone who is as good with words as Castle is, it's his friend the mayor.
"There is someone – very powerful – in our political system. I don't know his or her name. All I have figured out is that they are a politician – on the national scene, not local. That person provided information to Norris – months ago – to frame me. When it became clear that Laura Cambridge was close to the truth – a truth that would have exonerated me from both embezzlement rumors – then she was killed. On the orders of this unknown powerful politician. And whoever is behind this attempted to point Laura's murder back at me."
Castle begins to speak, but the mayor holds up his hand, quieting him.
"Better if you hear the entire story before asking questions," Weldon tells him, and then continues.
"The entire reason for wanting to frame me for embezzlement wasn't to get me out of office, but to put enough dirt and doubt about my integrity to kill any chances of future offices I wanted to run for. Period."
He pauses, allowing this information to soak in, allowing Castle to get his head around this. Then he repeats himself.
"I will say it again," Weldon repeats. "The whole reason for wanting embezzlement charges associated with me was to kill my political future. New Yorkers – in the sense of the citizens of New York City – are not spooked by a little mud here and there. They know it is big engine politics in the big city."
Castle nods, knowing exactly what his friend is talking about.
"New Yorkers – in the sense of citizens throughout the entire state of New York, however, - well, that's a different question all together. When it comes to a city election, a good politician can overcome a few rumors and innuendo. When it comes to a state election, well, not so easily," Weldon tells him. He walks over and pours a drink for himself now, and returns to Castle, joining him by sitting on the arm of the small loveseat next to his friend. He takes a long pull from the drink, he, too, enjoying the soft burn.
"They never intended for you to be found guilty of embezzlement," Castle realizes.
"No," Weldon confirms. "Just wanted the word associated with me, tainting me for future endeavors."
"Then why kill Laura Cambridge?" Castle asks.
"That's the part that confuses me," Weldon tells him. "Someone wants me tarnished. Why kill the keeper of the evidence that tarnishes me. Remember, Rick, when you and the detective showed up at my office during that investigation. She asked for my coat, to test it."
"You refused," Castle recalls. "I never understood that. Neither did –"
"I tried to tell you then, Rick, but neither of you were listening," Weldon tells him. "Oh, you heard what I said, but you didn't listen," he recalls, and Castle notes the sadness in the mayor's eyes, only adding to his guilt.
"I tried to tell you both. In a matter of forty eight hours, I am being framed for embezzlement and accused of murder. That's a stretch even by your writing standards, Rick!" the mayor tells him, allowing the ironic truth of his words to settle over both men.
"If I was being framed for embezzlement . . . well, okay. I'm a politician. I'm a big boy, I can handle that. Or if someone was accusing me of murder . . . well, again, I know I'm innocent, I can fight that without losing my career," Weldon says softly. "But both? Both, Rick? In two days, I turn from respected mayor with a future to a suspected embezzler and a murderer? In two days? No, Rick, I knew I was being set up. And I tried to tell you and Beckett then, just the mere fact that you both were there having that conversation with me meant that things were already in motion."
The two men are quiet for a moment. One minute turns into two. Two minutes turn into five. It is a comfortable silence, as the two long-time friends are well acquainted with these extended moments of quiet, allowing each to think and process.
Finally, it is Castle who breaks the silence.
"This is why I wanted to come here, in person," Castle tells him, putting his empty glass down.
"Refill?" the mayor asks.
"Sure," Castle smiles weakly, picking up his glass and offering it to his friend. Weldon moves toward the bar area, and Castle stands and follows. Half a minute later, both glasses are refreshed, and the two men stay – stationary – at the bar table when Castle continues.
"I think you have it partially figured out, Bob," Castle tells him, and the mayor sees an uncharacteristic fury swelling behind his friends eyes. The tenseness in his jawline, the furrow of the brow.
"I have a feeling I'm not going to like this," Weldon muses aloud.
"I know I sure as hell don't," Castle seethes. "This is twice today that I realize I've been played."
"How so?"
"Later on the first one," Castle says quickly, brushing thoughts of Kate Beckett's betrayal away. "I'm talking about my infamous Mr. Smith."
"Again . . . how so?" the mayor asks.
"You said that someone wanted to frame you – not to end your political career, but to make sure your political journey goes no farther than New York City."
"Yes," the mayor replies, succinctly. He has learned to trust the imaginative instincts of one Richard Castle.
"You are making the assumption – and I can see why, on the surface – that this person who wanted to keep you in New York is also the person who killed Beckett's mother."
"Yes," is the only reply, once again.
"And that this person also killed Laura Cambridge."
"Yes."
Castle begins to pace the room again, and Weldon knows his friend well enough to let alone, to let him work this out.
"Meanwhile," Castle continues after a few laps around the room, "at the same time this is happening, my Mr. Smith picks this time – after months of no contact, to reach out to me during that time and tells me that if I want to prove your innocence, I should listen to the evidence."
"Listen?"
"Exactly!" Castle says, now extending his forefinger into the chest of his friend, pointedly. "See, Bob, that's what I should have caught before, months ago when he spoke with me. Smith didn't tell me to follow the evidence. He told me to listen to the evidence. To listen to what Laura was listening to."
"The taped conversation," Weldon nods.
"But how, Bob? How would my Mr. Smith even know that there was a taped conversation? How would he have even known about what Laura was following unless . . ."
He lets the thought hang out there in the room for one . . . two . . . three . . . then it lands.
"Unless Smith was the one behind it in the first place," Weldon gasps, now understanding the anger in his friend.
"Exactly," Castle spits. Twice now, today, he has realized that someone has played him for a fool. Okay, perhaps that wasn't Kate's intent. But the result is the same. And now he suspects that his confidante, Mr. Smith, has been doing exactly the same thing.
"Instead of putting all of this at the feet of whoever killed Johanna Beckett, let me give you another scenario," Castle begins, his writer's mind now moving plot lines around on the virtual board that is his brain. "One that makes a lot more sense to me."
"Think like a writer, not a cop," Castle has told himself many times in the past few years during his tenure with Kate Beckett and the cops of the 12th. "They're the cops, they think one way. My value is thinking a different way, giving a different perspective."
"See, Bob," Castle continues, 'if I were writing this story, here is how it would go. I agree that it's probably some national figure on the political scene who was behind Kate's mother's death. I will share why I believe that in a bit. Regardless, now that I know that much, I can start to piece together who that person might be. Who is on the national scene now that was here on the local scene all those years ago? I can figure that one out," Castle smiles, now, as for the first time in his four years with the 12th, he is confident he can get to the bottom of that one. Castle claps his hands excitedly. Yeah, this is coming together now.
"But I have the one luxury you don't have," Castle continues, "and that's the luxury of a certain Mr. Smith. He's the wildcard. He's the one who told me that – with Roy gone – I was now the one tasked with keeping Beckett away from her mother's case. He's the one who told me that I was now tasked with keeping her alive. He's the one who told me this was a favor to Roy, a debt to Roy that he was fulfilling. He doesn't give a shit about Beckett's welfare. This is all a favor to Roy. He must owe Roy bigtime for something."
"Okay," Weldon agrees. "Where are you going with this, Rick?"
"Six, seven months ago you dropped a hint in one of your little speeches down at the Waldorf," Castle reminds him. Weldon picks up on this immediately.
"That was intentional," he admits. "We wanted to use that women's event to drop the idea of me running for governor," he recalls, and Castle can see both fondness and sadness in his eyes.
"A couple of months later, you are being investigated by the NYPD," Castle tells him, and he stops there. He will let his friend start to piece this together. Seconds later, the mayor does just that.
"I drop a hint at running for governor, and soon after, my reputation and my career are tarnished," Weldon states brusquely. "We've already determined this, Rick. We've already –"
"No, Bob," Castle argues. "What we've determined is the what. What we haven't determined is the why. And – in writing, when I am laying out a plotline – the first step in establishing a why is to make sure you have someone who benefits from the what."
"Geesh, Rick, can you talk in more circles?" Weldon erupts now, frustration boiling over. Castle can't blame him. It was his career, after all, that was disrupted.
"Bob," Castle states calmly, placing both of his large hands on the equally large frame of his friend. His hands resting on the mayor's shoulders, Castle finishes the chapter for him.
"Who benefits from you not running for governor?" Castle asks. "More to the point, who benefits from you staying as mayor of New York? Certainly not some national politician trying to hide something he or she did over a decade ago. That person couldn't possibly see the mayor of New York as a potential threat. No, the beneficiary of you staying mayor is someone more local to the scene."
"Smith?" Weldon exclaims, and then with a second thought, it is no longer a question, but a realization.
"Smith," Weldon states softly.
"He owes Roy a favor, and that is to keep Beckett safe," Castle continues. "Keeping her safe means I have to stay working at the 12th. The only way I stay at the 12th is if you are still mayor. The person behind the embezzlement charges simply wanted to keep you as mayor, not allow you to become governor. Because the new mayor would not have a personal friendship with me . . ."
"And you'd been out of the 12th in minutes," Weldon agrees.
"And the one person who finds that scenario unacceptable is my Mr. Smith," Castle concludes. "All this time I thought Smith intervened to help you, to keep you in office . . . when in fact, Smith was the one who set the entire story into motion. He was the one who organized the initial frame-up."
Suddenly Castle gasps, making a motion to cover his mouth. The final shoe of discovery has finally dropped.
"And Smith was behind Laura Cambridge's murder."
For another few seconds, both men remain silent, each pondering what-if's, what-could-have-been's.
"So all of this – all of my troubles –"
"Stem from your dropping gubernatorial hints," Castle states, "that Smith took as an eventual possibility of me being kicked out of the 12th.
"And with you gone, then Beckett eventually starts probing again," Weldon continues himself, now feeling this, now understanding and believing this.
"And that frees them to take her out," Castle continues.
"And frees them to take him out," Weldon muses aloud.
"Smith," Castle agrees. "See, Bob, I just had to think the bigger picture through, and that is that the person who had Beckett's mother killed also wants Beckett killed."
"And they tried to take her out last summer," Weldon adds, now fully warming to the direction.
"And the only reason they haven't tried again is because this Mr. Smith has information damaging to them," Castle reflects. "Information that he will release if they hurt Beckett. But the deal, the caveat is that Beckett cannot interfere with the investigation of her mother's murder. She has to drop it. And I am there to make sure she does. And they don't know who this Mr. Smith is in the first place. He's just a faceless connection to them."
"But," Mayor Weldon considers out loud, "if I am this national figure who is behind all of Beckett's problems, I can't let this deal with Beckett stay in place forever."
"As long as she is alive, she is a potential bombshell exploding at the wrong moment," Castle agrees.
"So at some point, I'm going to want to take her out," Weldon adds.
"And there are two ways to clear the road to do that," Castle adds. "One is to get me out of the way, get me out of the 12th."
"And according to you, this Mr. Smith is willing to do virtually anything to make sure that doesn't happen, including ruining me – ruining my career," the mayor muses aloud, taking a long drag on his drink. "Me gone means you are gone, which means eventually she steps in the mud again."
"And the second way," Castle continues, now standing at the window, looking over the city. "The second way is to eliminate Smith."
"Hmmm," Weldon thinks out loud.
"And that's what I believe is happening now," Castle adds, realizing that Weldon isn't aware of the break-in to Montgomery's old home. "Yesterday, someone broke into Roy's home."
"Seriously?" Weldon exclaims. "Evelyn and –"
"Evelyn and the girls are fine," Castle quickly adds. "The girls weren't there, but Evelyn was. She shot and killed one of the intruders, but the other knocked her out and got away."
"Knocked her out? Didn't kill her?" the mayor asks, surprised.
"I was surprised also," Castle admits. "She's lucky as hell, for sure. But they did take something – at least one thing that she has noticed. A photograph."
"A photo?" Weldon asks, once again with surprise.
"Yeah," Castle answers. "If these are the people behind Beckett's murder –"
"You think they aren't?" Weldon asks, skeptically.
"No, no, I'm almost certain they are," Castle replies quickly. "That would be a huge coincidence."
"No such thing," Weldon responds.
"Agree," Castle states, now pacing the room once again. "It's the same people, let's assume that. I would have thought they'd be looking for the files that Roy has that he shared with Smith."
"It would make sense that Roy kept a copy," Weldon agrees.
"Or the originals themselves," Castle adds.
"But . . . that's a lot of time to let go by before searching Roy's house," Weldon comments.
"I agree," Castle replies quickly. "That's why I think they've been in Roy's house before. Evelyn just doesn't realize it. And the best time for someone to discreetly and secretly look through Roy's house for incriminating evidence was –"
"During his funeral," Weldon completes the sentence, nodding his head. "They would have had a good couple of hours to go through the house without leaving evidence, without leaving so much as a fingerprint."
"The reason they were in Roy's house this time wasn't to find the evidence, but instead to find the identity of the man who holds the evidence," Castle tells him.
"Smith," Weldon states.
"Smith," Castle agrees. "Smith wasn't an issue the first time they probably were in her house, because he hadn't made any deal with them at that point. He was clear on that when he first spoke to me last fall. Beckett was shot before he could contact them and make the deal."
Castle walks back to the window, glancing outside and suppressing a shiver. Now for the harder part.
"If I'm right," Castle begins, "and I have no reason to think I am not right . . . then you're in danger, Bob."
"Okay, you lost me there," his friend tells him.
"Think about it," Castle continues. "If they are searching Roy's house for the identity of Mr. Smith, then for whatever reason, something has happened to change the game. They are no longer satisfied with the status quo. They are looking to shake things up. If they find Mr. Smith, then they can either take the files, or just kill him. If he's dead, he can't hurt them."
"How does that put me in danger?" Weldon asks.
"You're not listening, Bob," Castle almost whines in frustration. "Something has changed. They are no longer satisfied with the status quo. They want Beckett, and one of the ways to get to Beckett is to eliminate Smith, or at least neutralize what he knows, what he has. Another way, Bob, however, is to eliminate the man who is actually keeping Beckett safe."
"You?" Weldon asks.
"No, Bob. You. If they eliminate you, then by extension they eliminate me. If you're no longer mayor, I'm not here. You making gubernatorial plans was actually good news to those people. It moves you on. But that's no longer an option. But the equation remains. Eliminate you, and they eliminate me from the 12th, which frees Kate to pry again. Smith becomes a non-issue at that point. He probably goes deep into hiding if he sees you eliminated, his promise to Roy be damned."
Weldon considers the words – and logic – of his friend. Perhaps it is a bit far-fetched, like his writer's mind. But he recalls a conversation with his author friend over a poker game years ago when Castle confessed that his plots, his stories really are extensions of real life.
"And by eliminate," Weldon says aloud, "you mean murder."
"That's how I would write it, Bob," Castle tells him, and the room falls silent once more.