Shared Obsession Chapter 172

"It's Demming!" Esposito insists to the tight group at the murderboard.

"Gotta be," Ryan agrees. "He told us he requested this case, claimed he liked the weird ones."

"Weird in itself considering he didn't bother bringing in Finch," Castle observes.

"He just wanted to hunt down the thieves for Racine," Ryan asserts.

"And if he'd brought in Finch, he ran the risk of him taking the Fifth. By leaving him out there, Racine's guys had a chance to torture him. But when they didn't get anything out of him, Demming took over the chase himself," Castle figures.

Esposito's dark eyes flash with rage. "All these years he's been lining his pockets with Racine's cash and leaving Ike Thornton holding the bag."

"And the guy's been playing us all along, using us to find Finch's accomplice," Ryan adds.

"Let's nail the bastard!" Kate declares.

"How?" Esposito asks.

"No way he'd use precinct phones to tip off Racine. He'd have to use his cell," Kate assumes.

Ryan nods. "We could pull his SIM card. If there are any calls to Racine, we'll have all the proof we need."

"How are we gonna get his phone away from him?" Castle wonders.

The corners of Kate's mouth curl. "I have an idea."

"In the mood for more of a workout than, um, holding the bag?" Kate inquires of Demming. "We've pretty much lost our chief suspect and I could do with working off some tension."

"Can't you do that with Castle?" Demming wonders. "He's made his territorial lines pretty clear."

"Castle more than has his talents in that department, but we are still on duty. That means any exercise would be restricted to the precinct gym. Castle is a fencing master, but the gym equipment doesn't include epees. So, can you impress me with what you can do on the mat?" Kate challenges, "or are you going to stand back the way you did with Finch's arrest?"

Anger prickles on Demming's neck. "You're on!"

"It's been a while for me," Demming confesses as he and Kate square off.

"I'll try to be gentle," Kate promises.

Ryan opens the door to the gym a crack and peers through. "She's got him!" he whispers.

Castle pulls a bolt cutter from beneath his jacket. "We're a go!"

He and Ryan cough to mask the sound as Esposito cuts through the lock on Demming's locker.

"Hurry up!" Castle urges as Ryan pulls the SIM card from Demming's phone.

"Any news on Thornton?" Demming asks as he grapples with Kate.

"None," Beckett lies.

"How's Esposito taking all of this?" Demming queries.

Using her lower center of gravity, Kate flips him to the mat. "How do you think? Here's a man who's been carrying his 54th key fob in honor of his partner's sacrifice. He says everyone from the 54th back then had one. Do you still have yours?"

Demming pushes to his feet. "I lost it somewhere years ago."

Ryan attaches Demming's SIM card to a reader in Tech. "It's uploading."

Esposito glances around. "It better upload fast."

Kate throws Demming to the mat, putting enough of her weight on his outstretched arm to pin him.

He winces. "I don't know how long I can keep this up."

"I would have hoped you'd have more staying power," Kate taunts. "You know, I hear it helps if you think about baseball." Her fist lands a blow to his jaw.

"Is this what you do for fun, Beckett?" Demming asks. "Try to take someone's head off?"

She extends a hand to pull him up. "Actually, I'm kind of a homebody. Last night I went home to read a book – 'Heat Wave,' one of Castle's. I like to reread pages 104 and 105."

Demming uses his longer legs to sweep Kate's out from under her. "Can't say I've read it. I prefer working real crimes to reading about imaginary ones."

Kate springs to her feet. "So, what were you doing the night before we met?"

Demming downs her again, the weight of his body preventing her from rising. "I've had enough of this, Beckett. Why don't you just ask me if I have an alibi for Finch's murder?"

With a kick of her practiced limbs, Kate frees herself. "OK. So where were you?"

"I ran all his numbers through the reverse directory. They all checked out," a scowling Ryan reports as Kate enters Tech.

"That's because it wasn't Demming," she replies.

"Kate, what the hell?" Castle demands.

"He gave me his alibi and it checked out. He was coaching a basketball league for underprivileged kids."

Esposito shakes his head. "Give me a break!"

"It would be the perfect place to recruit Racine's future minions," Castle offers.

"That may be, Babe," Kate allows, "but he didn't kill Finch. It had to have been someone else from the 54th. And I asked Montgomery. No one except Demming has transferred here recently from that precinct."

"But it has to be someone close to the investigation," Esposito insists.

"Then unless the captain or one of us killed Finch, there's only one person left," Castle points out."

"That sonofabitch Holliwell!" Esposito realizes.

"But we have zero evidence against him," Kate reminds him. "And we don't know if he ever served at the 54th."

Esposito heads for the door. "We're running out of time."

Ryan chases after his partner, catching up in the parking garage. "Hey, Man, what's happening? Thornton's going after the ledger tonight, isn't he?"

"The man's been on the run for three years, separated from his family. And if Holliwell is Racine's mole, the evidence will be in that ledger. With Finch gone, Ike has no one to help him. I gotta be there for him, so don't try to stop me."

"I'm not," Ryan declares. "I'm going with you."

"No, you're not," Esposito argues.

"I'm your partner," Ryan insists. "I'm with you until the wheels fall off."

"I know, Bro. I have to meet Ike alone, but I'm going to need you as backup if things go wrong. All right?"

"OK."

"Thanks."

"How are you going to find Thornton?" Ryan asks his partner.

"Our unit had a staging ground, a place where we'd set up for operations. But it got closed down when we were disbanded. It would still be deserted. If Ike's getting ready, that's where he'll be."

Montgomery joins Kate and Castle staring at the murder board. "Tell me you've got something, people."

"We have a suspicion, but nothing to back it up. Unfortunately, Sir, we're dead in the water," Kate admits.

Castle's eyes sweep over the board, falling on the prominent photo of Ike Thornton. "No, we're not. Look, if Thornton wasn't working for Racine, then someone lied to IA three years ago – or Holliwell claimed they did. He would have filed a report citing his informant, right?"

"No judge would have sworn out a warrant for Thornton without one," Montgomery confirms.

"We need to see that report," Kate says. "But we don't have access to information on confidential informants."

Montgomery starts toward his office. "We'll see about that."

Thornton startles at the approaching footsteps and reaches for his gun. "It's cool, Man," Esposito announces. "I'm here to help."

"You sure you're willing to bet your badge on this? Pretty long odds," Ike warns. "We have to get into Racine's office."

"You're my partner. I'm sure. But how do we make it past his security?"

Ike puts a hand on Esposito's shoulder. "I've been casing the joint for three years. Trust me. I can get us in."