Unexpected Appearance Chapter 39

As if a giant hand had squeezed all the air from her lungs, Kate can barely get her words out. "We'll, uh, need copies of that and we'll have to put it someplace safe where no one can get to it."

"I can handle both," Krumholtz offers. "I can copy it to analog and digital media. The analog can't be hacked. And I can put the original in the vault I use for evidence I'm analyzing for trials."

"Who would be able to get in there besides you?' Rick queries.

"Other members of the faculty working on legal matters," Krumholtz says.

Kate shakes her head. "Not good enough. Bracken could have compromised anyone."

"I have a place, Beckett," Castle says. "No one would have access except me – and I can also set it up for you."

"All right," Kate agrees.

"That's a very vulnerable tape," Krumholtz points out. "A magnetic field could destroy it. If you're going to take it, let me give you some packaging so it won't get screwed up if a magnet gets near it."

Rick nods. "Thanks, Dickie."

"If the state doesn't shell out for this, Rick, you'll get my bill."

"Which I will most gratefully pay."

"Castle, where are you going to put the tape?" Kate asks on the way to his loft.

"That's an easier show than a tell. I have security set up for certain elements of works in progress – and other things I want to keep from prying eyes. Two occurrences spurred me to put it in. Meredith started dropping in unannounced and sticking her nose into every corner, as well as trying to pump Alexis. I found out she was dating an editor for Black Pawn's main competitor. Then, Mother held a party at the loft when Alexis and I were in DC on a field trip for her Civics class. The place was totally wrecked. There was even lime rind in the wall paper. As far as I could tell, nothing was missing except the majority of the contents of my liquor cabinet, but I found signs that someone had been snooping around my office. I needed a place I could count on to be totally secure."

"More of your spy vs. spy stuff?"

"Where the tech was concerned, yes. But I also consulted with Powell. He swore that it would defeat even him."

"A ghost like him? I wouldn't think that would be possible."

"I know, right? But I got it done." Rick hits a fob on his keys. "Pull into the underground parking, Beckett. We can skip the lobby going up."

"OK, Castle, where is this security marvel?" Kate demands as he lets them into the loft.

Rick leads the way across the great room. "It would take very careful measurements to determine that this is anything but an outside wall." He knocks. "See, it even sounds solid. But," Rick pushes his fingers in sequence against a molding. At a faint click, he shoves the wall aside, revealing a metal door. "This is tungsten steel. It is incredibly hard to cut or machine and has a very high melting point. Any explosive strong enough to blow it would also destroy anything inside. Rick works two combinations before saying a password and pulls the door open.

Kate giggles. "You use 'Snagglepuss' as a password?"

Rick grins. "For now, and why not? Anyone who doesn't know it should exit stage right. So, you think the tape will be safe in here?"

"Since we don't have access to Fort Knox, it will have to do." Kate slides the tape, in its protective sheath, inside, and Rick locks it in.

"Now what?" Rick asks. "You have the evidence that Bracken is behind your mother's killer, but whom do you bring it to?"

"No one, until Krumholtz verifies that it's Bracken's voice. Otherwise, no matter who brings the case, it would never make it into evidence."

"So what now, except maybe lunch? Uncovering evidence makes me hungry. I'm starving. I've got sandwich stuff in the fridge."

"What kind of sandwich stuff?" Kate questions.

"Roast beef, pastrami, brown mustard, sourdough bread, and those big fat pickles they sell at the deli."

Kate closes her eyes. "I love those big fat pickles."

"I figured you would. So how about if we also make up fat sandwiches, take them and some pickles back to my office, and do a little digging on Alan Slayton?"

"Sounds perfect," Kate says as her text alert goes off. "Oh! It's Josh! He just landed at La Guardia and wants to meet at my apartment."

"Suddenly, I'm not so hungry," Rick admits.

"Yeah, neither am I. Castle, I've got to go see him."

"I know, and I want you to. Rain check on the sandwiches?"

"Yeah."

"And while you hash things out with Dr. Save the World, I can do some research on Alan Slayton. Money to start a hedge fund has to come from somewhere. Maybe he was working with Bracken."

"All right. See what you can find out. I'll call you when I… you know."

"Yeah, yeah. Hear from you soon."

"So, are you going to say to her?" Nurse Althea March asks Dr. Joshua Davidson.

"After all these months, I can't just knock on her door and blurt out that I fell in love with a nurse I've been working with in Haiti. But I'll find a way to tell her."

Thea strokes her lover's cheek. "I've seen you find a way to break worse news, a lot worse news, Josh. It's always been best to get it over with as soon as possible."

"Yeah. See you later at your place?"

"I'll be waiting."

Rick plops into his chair in front of his laptop. This is the day he's been waiting for it seems like forever. He should be turning handsprings. They have strong evidence against Bracken, and he and Beckett will finally be able to… what? They've never really talked about what things would be like after Josh gets his walking papers. The NYPD frowns on personal relationships between cops who work together. But he's not a cop. What will Captain Montgomery say? Will Montgomery be there to say anything, or will Bracken's downfall be Roy's as well? Every answer leads to more questions.

Until he hears from Beckett, Rick needs to distract himself. Diving into research is the best way – well, maybe the second best way – he knows. He wants to dig into Alan Slayton. The former congressman's presence on the Foreign Relations Committee, the connections to Afghanistan and Russia, and his knowledge of the helicopter can't all be coincidence. There's got to be a connection, other than a DC brotherhood, with Bracken. Rick just has to find it.

As Kate paces the floor of her apartment, silently practicing what she'll say, similar thoughts swirl through Josh Davidson's head. He pauses, fist poised, almost losing the nerve to knock, but finally raps softly. She pulls open the door, expecting him to try to kiss her, but he just walks inside and glances around the room. As she gazes up at him, their mouths move almost in synchrony. "There's something I need to tell you."

Grudgingly, Marc Donovan scans through computer searches from the 12th Precinct that morning. There's not much there to see, not even porn – until the name Vulcan Simmons catches his eye. The query came from a cop named Kevin Ryan. Why the hell would he be looking into Simmons? Whatever the reason, Donovan needs to alert Zussman.