Shared Obsession Chapter 181

In Interrogation, Cicily pulls a light cardigan around her as she gazes across the table at Kate and Castle. "I don't understand. Why am I here?"

"How well did you know Wolf, Cicily?" Kate asks.

"He was like family."

"So you knew him for a long time?" Kate assumes.

"Well, ten years. Ever since David's father hired me at his restaurant."

Kate leans in. "Did the two of you ever…?

"Why are you asking me this?" Cicily exclaims.

"Every day for the last two weeks Wolf went to the Café Rex," Castle says.

"That's right across the street from where I work," Cicily realizes.

"Yes, it is," Kate agrees.

"And Wolf spent his entire time there gazing out the window – at you," Castle continues. "Why do you think he'd do that?"

"I – I don't know," Cicily insists.

"I think you do," Kate says.

"In the past two weeks, Wolf made a lot of changes," Castle picks up. "He stopped sleeping around. He paid off all his debts."

Kate slides an evidence bag with Wolf's ring in it out of her black folder. "And he bought this," she passes the bag across the table, "for you."

Cicily stares wide-eyed at the ring.

"Now, what makes a man, a self-professed bad boy, suddenly declare himself after 10 years?" Castle questions. "Unless something changed."

Kate reaches into her folder for some paperwork and lays it in front of Cicily. These are your phone records. For four months you've been calling the office of Dr. Eli Gonzalez regularly. I checked. He's an OB-GYN. You're pregnant, aren't you? Is it Wolf's?"

Moisture begins to overflow Cicily's dark eyes. "Yes. No one was supposed to know. It was supposed to be my secret. But when David told Wolf we were pregnant, somehow he knew. He - he- knew. God, you must think I'm awful."

"It's not my job to judge," Kate responds. "I'm just here to get the truth."

Tears streak Cicily's cheeks. "David's father had just died, so he went out of the country to bury him in his hometown. Wolf came by. He held my hand and I remembered how much I loved him – how much I'd always loved him."

"If you love Wolf so much, why stay with David?" Castle questions.

"Because David doesn't leave. David doesn't sleep with every girl who walks by. You have no idea how hard it is to love someone knowing they're gonna break your heart. If I couldn't trust him as a man. How could I trust him as a father?"

"Becoming a father can really settle some men down," Castle offers.

"Are you sure David doesn't already know about you and Wolf?" Kate probes. "Where was he on the night Wolf was murdered?"

"At home with me in bed."

"All night?" Castle presses.

Cicily's hand slaps against her mouth. "Oh, God!"

"What?" Kate demands.

"I had been having trouble sleeping, so David gave me a pill, the kind Dr. Gonzalez said was OK. It's the only time he's ever given me a pill."


Ryan and Esposito hand David over to uniformed cops to escort to Holding, and join Kate and Castle at her desk. "He asked for a lawyer and clammed up," Esposito says. "We're not going to get anything out of him."

A satisfied smile lights Ryan's face. "But we don't have to. We found Wolf's backpack in their apartment along with the extra cash."

"The soles of a pair of David's shoes were cracked, probably from the liquid nitrogen," Esposito adds.

Kate nods. "The lab can confirm that."

"I can't imagine the betrayal he must have felt," Ryan says, suddenly sober.

"It's still not an excuse to kill," Kate declares.

"No, it isn't," Castle agrees, "or there would be fewer Hollywood producers running around. I think the one Meredith slept with has hooked up with at least six married starlets since then. So, Kate, shall we go tell Maddy the good news, that you've got Wolf's killer and she can go about re-opening?"

"I could just call her, Castle."

"Sure, but I want to get our names in for a reservation now before she fills all her slots again. And if she's auditioning new chefs, maybe we can get a sampling out of it. Closing cases always makes me hungry – among other things."

Kate chuckles. "I've noticed."


Castle sniffs the air as he and Kate enter the still-deserted waiting area at Q3. "Wow! Oven-roasted glazed pork belly. I do believe Maddy has enlisted…." Maddy comes to meet them, accompanied by Jennifer Wong. "I knew that incredible aroma couldn't originate from any other culinary magician. So, Chef Wong, are you donning Wolf's toque?"

"I have one of my own," Jennifer says, "and I prefer a bandana in the kitchen anyway."

"Yes, I remember," Castle acknowledges. "But what about your catering business?"

"We're merging them," Maddy announces. "Q3 will offer Jennifer Wong specialties inside the restaurant and out."

"But I'll be using some of Wolf's recipes as an homage," Jennifer adds.

"Recipes, oh, yes," Maddie suddenly recalls. "I'll be right back."

"What's that about?" Castle inquires as Maddy hurries off.

"I don't know," Jennifer admits.

Maddy rushes back holding an envelope she gives to Castle. He opens it and grins. "Domingo's recipe for popcorn soup!"

"He left it for you before he took off for Ecuador," Maddy explains. "He said it was the least he could do. But not the least I can do. Come on you guys. Pick your table. You can preview our grand reopening."

Castle beams. "Outstanding!"


"Babe," Kate asks, her fingers hovering over an appetizer platter, "what was Domingo talking about when he said leaving you the recipe was the least he could do?"

Castle reaches for a sweet potato crostini. "Oh, that. Domingo's sister needed surgery and you couldn't release the money Wolf gave him. So I gave him the $5,000. No big deal."

"I'm sure it was a very big deal for Domingo and his sister. Is that what you were doing when you said you had a little business to take care of?"

"Right. I had to make sure the source of the funds was documented so the cash wouldn't get seized at the airport as suspected drug money. But the timing for everything all worked out. And there's more timing I hope will work out. Alexis and I have a tradition of going to my house in the Hamptons over the Memorial Day weekend. And getting there will be even more of a thing this year since she decided to give up her trip with her friends. But you know what could happen at any moment."

Kate lays her appetizer on her plate. "We could be called to testify at Bracken's trial."

"Right. And considering the feebies' penchant for doing things exactly when it will spoil any fun we might be having, we should probably eat up. And then I will personally scrutinize the reservation preference list to ensure our names appear prominently."

Kate picks up her savory tidbit again. "I doubt Maddy's going to give you any arguments."


From their shared shower Kate and Castle barely hear their cellphones going off in synchrony. Kate is the first one out, grabbing for a towel and retrieving her phone from the bedroom. Castle follows a few seconds later, rushing across the room to take his call. After a moment, their gazes lock. "That was the federal prosecutor's office," he reports. "I need to be in DC tomorrow morning. You?"

Kate slowly lays her phone down. "The same."

Castle's still-wet arms wrap around her damp frame. "I guess this is it," he murmurs.

Kate presses her face against his bare chest. "I guess it is."