CBs
Chapter 33
"Captain," Esposito called as Kate was settling herself in her office, "I'd like to be in court today. I've been doing my best to act as big brother to to Mary Brodsky's two older boys, the twins. They're about to age out of the system and I want to make sure they have a place to live and jobs. The kids of a vet deserve a decent break. Marcus Weller is supposed to be presenting the details of the bribe to Ridley Mason. The boys want to hear how their mother died and they want their little sister to hear it too. And they want the jury to see them sitting there so they know just who Trimp screwed with his money."
Kate nodded her approval. "Sure Espo. You and Ryan don't have an active homicide right now and you were the detectives on Ridley Mason's murder. You should both be there. Castle and I will try to be there too."
"Is everything all right, Captain?" Esposito inquired. "I mean except for the CB meetings, Castle hasn't been around the precinct much. He isn't sick again or something is he?"
"Everything's fine Javi," Kate assured him quickly. "He has his own cases and he has been working on getting Hayley into one of the Russian games. They had to work out a cover for her."
"Yeah well that's good," Esposito responded. "I guess I'll see him later."
Kate sank into her chair hoping that things were as rosy as she'd portrayed them. On the surface, Castle was his usual self, cracking jokes and cooking up fanciful concoctions in the kitchen. But she sensed almost an air of desperation, even in the bedroom. He held on to her almost too tight and when his mouth found her skin, it was as if it was his last meal. He was also pouring himself into his P.I. business and his writing. She suspected he was trying to keep his mind occupied so he wouldn't dwell on the questions hanging between them. Of course her promise of a decision at the end of the Trimp trial left Castle at least as invested in the proceedings as Trimp must be himself. Unless something earthshaking came up, Castle would be in court.
The cameras flashed as Castle walked into the courthouse. He'd never minded having his picture taken. In fact, he'd usually enjoyed it. But now it was wearisome. Each new day brought some accusation of maliciousness from the Trimp camp. If Castle was as evil as Trimp painted him, he could be a Disney villain. Still, the old saw about there being no such thing as bad publicity seemed to be holding. As Richard Castle and Kate Beckett became household words, Castle's books, especially the Nikki Heats, were flying off the shelves. Black Pawn had ordered re-printings of a lot of his earlier works. He never thought he'd greet increased royalties with so little enthusiasm.
The publicity was also putting a crimp into his activities as a P.I.. He could sit as his computer all he wanted to, but undercover work and surveillance would be problematical or even impossible until the trial was over and the hoopla died down. Hayley, even as she readied herself to take on the Russians, was picking up the slack. Alexis was also spending time in the field. But Castle never realized how much he'd miss wearing down his shoes and drinking cold coffee. He was beginning to wish he could go to sleep and wake up when the trial was over and he could get his life back on track, but reality wasn't that kind.
Castle met Kate at the benches outside the courtroom door and they walked in together. Esposito was already sitting in the gallery with Tom, Tim, and Emily Brodsky. Kate walked ahead of Castle, taking a seat next to Emily. She and Castle were greeted by Esposito and introduced to the Brodsky children. As the bailiff called everyone to rise when the judge entered the courtroom, Kate could feel the girl trembling beside her.
The Honorable Judge Rifka Goldberg heard the usual barrage of motions from the heavily populated Trimp counsel table. They proposed excluding witnesses and quashing evidence. Goldberg did her best to maintain an even and impartial tone, but her annoyance was obvious and a welcome sign to Kate.
The defense's motions were summarily denied and the first witness called. Cal Norman had investigated the staircase collapse that killed Mary Brodsky. Under questioning by D.A. Sam Waterman, he was taken through his qualifications as a registered construction superintendent. Cal went through his experience as a professional engineer and well as the health and safety courses he had taken to receive his certification. Cal then explained his finding of substandard materials and insufficient bracing in the construction. Kate could feel anger radiating from Esposito. Tom and Tim sat stony-faced and Emily's cheeks were wet. Castle passed Kate his handkerchief to give to the girl, a move that did not go unnoticed by the jury.
The defense attempted to challenge Cal on the basis of the dates of his classes before applying for certification. Norman calmly informed Trimp's attorney that he'd had a refresher just before evaluating the collapsed staircase and the most current information and best analytical methods had been applied. He was confident and unshakable. Waterman, Weller, and Gonzales watched with satisfaction clearly visible on their faces.
Emily looked at Kate. "The jury will believe him, right, that the staircase killed my mama?"
Kate was a little nervous that the girl had turned to her rather than one of her brothers or Esposito, but she did her best to reassure her. The judge called for a recess and to Kate's discomfort, Emily reached for Kate's hand to exit the courtroom. Castle offered to spring for lunch for the group at a nearby burger joint and Emily again chose to sit with Kate. While they were waiting for their orders to arrive, Emily asked Kate to take her to the ladies room. Emily produced a tiny brush from her small purse and asked Kate if she'd help get the knots out of her hair, explaining that her brothers didn't know how and the foster lady had been too busy that morning. Kate hesitantly took the brush and did the best she could, remembering how her mother and her Nona had patiently worked through the tangles in Kate's hair before she'd learned to toughly attack them herself. It looked like Emily's tresses had grown more snarled for at least a couple of days. By the time Kate and Emily returned to the table, the food had arrived. Kate and Emily had both ordered strawberry shakes, although Emily was far from being able to finish hers. Otherwise, the kids made good progress through their lunches, especially the french fries, and returned to court with Emily clinging to Kate's hand.
Judge Goldberg skipped an afternoon recess in favor of an early adjournment so she could handle other matters. As the courtroom emptied, Emily kept hold of Kate's hand until she was ushered into Esposito's car with her brothers.
Emily certainly got attached to you," Castle commented after Esposito drove off.
"I think she needed a woman," Kate told him. "It doesn't look like she's had much attention from one since her mother died. I was the nearest one handy."
"Still, it looks like you rose to the task," Castle noted.
Kate's stomach twinged as she remembered the feel of the fine little girl hair against her fingers as she worked each matted strand loose. "Under the circumstances I guess I did okay."