Another Chance

Chapter 57

Esposito can feel himself tightening up as Lanie licks a dab of the filling of her éclair from the tip of her finger. French food always turns her on. It's a good start if they're going to practice some steamy moves.

There's not much room to dance in the lab or the conference room, but the lounge where the grieving can go to get their thoughts together isn't in use and probably won't be, since no one has arrived to identify a body.

Lanie dabs at her enticingly full lips with a napkin. "You said you learned some new moves - dance moves I mean - you wanted to show me?"

"I've been working on getting the positions down."

"Then I'll just have to see what you've got."

"No luck Babe?" Kate asks.

Castle swipes the back of his hand over his eyes and rotates the kinks out of his shoulders. "None of the people on that list have been murdered, and there haven't been any attempts either, at least none that were reported. There is one that is at the stop off the ship is making tomorrow. And the ones that I've looked at so far will be on or near the route of one of the line's ships within the next few months. But if it is not a hit list, then what?"

"Do they travel with their wives or children? Significant others?"

Castle's fingertips tap swiftly on the keyboard. "Yes! The one that will be in hailing distance has his older son with him. The kid's still in school, but apparently, he's training him to take over the business someday. Why?"

"Kidnapping, Castle, for ransom - or favors. It's big business, and all the people on that list would have access to money and resources. Who's tomorrow's potential victim?"

"Nicholas Bender. He owns a pharmaceutical firm. It specializes in searching out folk remedies, herbs, and things, and refining the active ingredients into chemicals they can put into pills. The company is growing. From what I can see, he doesn't have much of a market in the U.S. yet, but he does very well in a number of places overseas. He's supposed to be on the island where we're making port, to check out some kind of a local cure."

Kate whistles. "A pharmaceutical company. Wouldn't someone just love to get their hooks into that as a distribution chain for illegal drugs? We need to go ashore tomorrow and get eyes on Nicholas Bender and son."

"Kate, if we're going to be away from the ship for more than a couple of hours, we'd need to take Aletha with us. We can't put ourselves in the middle of a potential hit or kidnapping."

"I know, Babe. We won't put Aletha or ourselves anywhere near the line of fire. But we can see if anything goes down so we can tell the local authorities what we know before it's too late, and the ship and possible perpetrators are out of reach."

Jim Beckett leans back in his seat at the table. The restaurant the kids suggested was just what he needed. Alexis is a lot like Kate, and like Johanna was. They all love their red meat. He appreciates his steak a little more well done, and the chef was spot on. He could have done without his whipped potatoes being purple, fashionable as it may be these days, but they tasted normal. The salad wasn't full of the bitter greens that are so trendy now either. He prefers lettuce he can recognize. He watches Alexis take a sip of her demitasse. "You said you were thinking about law school."

She nods. "Knowing about patents could be very helpful to our business."

"It could," Jim agrees, "but there are a lot of patent attorneys, and many of them also have PhDs in some field like chemistry, as well as a JD, so they can specialize. There is an area of jurisprudence that is underserved and fits right in with what you and Micah are doing; disability law.

"Johanna did some of it because it is strongly related to civil rights. I think she would have liked to do more. I take a case now and then too, but they can be difficult. What's in the law and what is enforced are often very far apart. If you decide you're serious about law school, you should look into it. I can give you some contacts and some resources if you like. There's one attorney in particular that I know who's always overworked. Part of that is because she does a lot of pro bono work, but the demand for what she does is also very high. I can put you in touch."

Alexis carefully places her small cup back in its saucer. "Thanks. I'd like that."

When Castle and Kate debark with Aletha in a compact folding stroller, the harbor is full of activity. Predictably, there are all sorts of wares offered to entice tourists. If she and Castle were just seeing the sights, Kate might be tempted to pick up a few things. There is a sheer cover-up featuring her favorite shade of purple that she's toying with buying before she and Castle re-board.

Bender's itinerary showed that he and his son Ivan are staying at the Grand Island Hotel, which is a short cab ride or a long stroll from the pier. Given that the more motion Aletha gets, the happier she is, the Beckett-Castles opt to walk. It's warm, but a breeze is blowing in from the sea, rendering the journey comfortable, and Castle has clamped a folding shade to the handles of the stroller, to protect Aletha's tender skin from burning in the brilliant sunlight.

The Grand Island Hotel is very grand. It reminds Castle of an idealized southern plantation, with towering columns and a wide veranda. There are dining facilities indoors and out, and he and Kate opt for a table at the indoor restaurant, where the stroller can be easily stashed in a corner, and they can take turns holding Aletha. They order fruity teas and appetizers which can be readily eaten with one hand.

The Beckett-Castles have yet to see any sign of either the Benders or any nefarious activity, but the ship hasn't been in port long and is due to depart in a few hours. Kate suspects that if anything does happen, it will be as close to when the ship exits the harbor as possible, leaving just enough time for whoever pulls off a crime to get back on the vessel before it sails. That will make things tight for her and Castle as well, although if need be, they can contact island authorities from the ship. She'd rather do it in person, and if something does go down with the Benders, she hopes that the time frame will allow her to make direct contact with the local constabulary.

Castle inclines his head toward the archway that forms the entrance to the dining room. "Kate, look. I think that's them."

Kate gazes quickly at a PR photo of Nicholas Bender, that's on the screen of her phone. Castle's right. The man in the ice cream suit and woven wide-brimmed hat and the young man who bears a close resemblance to him are the potential victims. If she and Castle can keep them in sight from a discreet distance, they'll be ready to observe anything that unfolds.