Another Chance
Chapter 11
"It's M. Swinson, and she's not alone!"
Castle squints at the couple approaching the Stop and Save. "Looks like the guy with her could be Larkin. The hoodie is shielding his face, but the height, weight, and build fit his description."
Kate digs her teeth into her bottom lip as she nods and reaches into the back of the car for a low-light camera. "We need to get some pictures. Then maybe we can get the N.Y.P.D. in on this or maybe the FBI. At least they haven't had their budget cut."
"If we have a lead on his granddaughter, might not the commissioner loosen his grip on the purse strings a smidgen?"
"It's possible, Castle, but we can't count on it. We're still the only ones who believe that Larkin is involved, and we might not even be playing in the right ballpark. We haven't seen any sign of Merri."
"There might be a clue in whatever is going to end up in the bags from Stop and Save," Castle suggests. "If they have Merri, and they're feeding her, there might be some teenage junk-food. And if she's still alive, it would have to be the nonevil, hypoallergenic kind."
Kate's eyebrows fly upward. "There's nonevil, hypoallergenic junk food? Isn't that a contradiction in terms?"
"Not if you're a company making it. I have an investment in one. Their stuff flies off the shelves. I think Stop and Save might even stock it."
"But how do we find out if Marnie and The Lark are buying it?"
"I guess we go shopping. Marnie already thinks we live in the neighborhood. Why else would we have been at Suds and Spin? Maybe I should go. Marnie knows you're a Lark groupie. She would think you'd recognize him even in a hoodie. But your oversudsing boyfriend probably wouldn't care. Better yet, I make like I'm thoroughly distracted by anticipation of the night to come. I'll just hang out in the marital aids section looking as if I'm trying to pick the thing that will lend the most excitement to our sexual adventures, until I see them head for the checkout. Then I can get in behind them to see what they purchase."
Kate runs her hand down his thigh. "And what are you going to purchase?"
Castle wiggles his eyebrows and grabs a quick kiss. "I'll let that be a surprise."
Alexis has been putting off saying anything to Pi until she could find out whether he won his fellowship. At least that would take some of the sting out of what she has to tell him. She's just waiting for him to arrive. Grange tapped him to work late doing a honey inventory. She used her key to the mailbox to check what had come for him. She didn't remove anything from the narrow brass confines, but she noted the presence of a thick envelope from the agency offering the fellowship. It has to be an acceptance, complete with the accompanying documents to fill out. She knows only too well that rejection letters don't require much paper.
She can hear his footsteps on the stairs to the walk-up apartment. He bounces rather than climbs, like a five-year-old. At first, that reminded her of her father, who has more than a few man-child moments of his own. But when it has counted, the man has always taken over. She doesn't know that she's ever seen the man take over in Pi - and she wants a grown-up, at least some of the time. He may have to be one now. She can try to make it about the separation, about deserving to make both of their lives on their own terms. But she doesn't know that she could have stayed with him even if he hadn't won the fellowship. That he did, just makes for a convenient excuse and a less hurtful way to part.
She has -ugh- papaya steaks all ready, along with an apple and mandarin salad that she actually likes. She could kill for some chocolate, but that will have to wait. Right now, her whole life is about waiting, but it shouldn't be much longer.
Castle stares at the products on the shelf in front of him. It's been quite a while since he worried about anything like them. With Gina, he occasionally used something to melt through the iciness that characterized her attitude toward intimate play with him. Making love with Kate is another universe. Sometimes he feels like he should keep a fire extinguisher near the bed. Still, the various creams and oils are fascinating. Even the euphemistic descriptions are amusing to ponder.
He wouldn't mind having Kate apply the contents of the blue tube to him if he could caress her with the purported magic housed inside the shiny pink one. Even if he comes up empty on any evidence against Larkin, the night will be far from a waste. And one of those massagers might be fun too, despite the picture on the box portraying a woman using it on her face. Uh huh. Sure. He drops the items in the little shopping basket he carries on his arm, all the while watching one of the mirrors mounted above the aisle to see when Marnie and Larkin head toward the checkout.
His quarries are on the move in the right direction. He forces his pace to be slow and casual, making sure that they reach the register first. Marnie and Larkin have a full cart to unload, and at first, Marnie doesn't even notice him behind her. When she does, it's with a nose-wrinkling expression of distaste, rather than the tight fists and whitening skin of apprehension. He's not sure if her look is about him or what's in his basket, but either way, it works.
He struggles to remain impassive as he sees what Larkin places on the belt, Ally Annie's, no GMO, milk free, gluten-free, soy free, peanut free party mix and energy bars. Merri must be with them. It's evident that Larkin and Marnie aren't health freaks. There is also a large bag of cheese puffs and the kind of prepared dinners with enough sodium and preservatives to last on a long-term black ops mission into enemy territory.
"Castle," Kate explains grimly, after he returns to the car, "even if we believe that Merri is with Marnie and Larkin, just a couple of healthy snacks are not enough evidence to take to the cops, let alone a judge."
Castle can feel his jaw tighten. "So what do we do now? You want to break into Marnie's apartment and get her out ourselves?" Kate's eyes darken with determination. "You do, don't you? By the book, Beckett wants to go rogue! You must have a plan." Kate's gaze drops to her feet. "You don't have a plan!"
Kate grabs for his hands. "Look, Castle, if we don't do this right, Merri could end up dead, and we could both end up behind bars. If Larkin and Marnie bought that stuff for Merri, they must want her alive and healthy. That means we have some time. We should go home and sleep on it. We'll both be more clear-eyed to come up with something in the morning."
"Fine. Let's go back to the loft. But with the wondrous offerings I obtained at the friendly neighborhood emporium, I believe we can find our bliss outside of dreamland."