Papa Jack Chapter 73

Kate sighs with satisfaction as the credits roll on the last Temptation Lane episode she had left to view. She's just shutting down her recorder when her landline rings. "Ryan or Esposito?" she murmurs to herself as she crosses the room to answer it. A voice hinting at desperation comes through the receiver. "Beckett, it's Ryan." Before he gets any further, she has a good idea of what he's going to ask.

Kate opens the door of her apartment to a lopsidedly grinning Richard. "So, the boys have given in, huh?"

"Well, they're both on their way, but Esposito claims he's just along for the ride with his partner."

Richard rolls his eyes. "Ah, a wound to the pride may not bleed, but it can hurt like hell."

"Who said that?" Kate asks.

"I did, just now," Richard responds before holding up a large tote bag. "But this should salve the wound somewhat: seven-layer dip and fresh chips. I was considering tequila, but that wouldn't aid anyone's deductive powers."

Kate urges the writer inside. "I started coffee using the blend you gave me. I could get addicted."

"Fortunately, that addiction is still legal – unlike murder. So, did you drop a hint to Ryan to check out other open homicides?" Richard queries.

"I did. He's supposed to be bringing a list with him of the ones that took place since the article you found came out."

"How many are on it?"

"He didn't say, but I'm guessing too many." Kate's jaw tightens. "There've been close to 400 murders in the city this year. I wish I could…." Loud raps on the door interrupt her train of thought. "That's got to be the guys."

Ryan strides in through Kate's open door with Esposito trudging behind him. He hands Kate a folder. "That's the list you asked for."

"I don't see how it will help," Esposito grumbles.

Kate hands Richard the file. "Any of those names ring a bell?"

Richard rapidly traces his finger over the listings. "Um, no, no, no, whoa! This might be the one. Carlton Snodgrass. Great name for a character! But it's his initials that matter. The last time I saw Eric at a game, he said he was developing a source he called C.S. I remember because Dennis Lehane made a lame joke about a séance with C.S. Lewis.

"A source for what?" Kate asks.

"The conversation didn't get that far. Patterson complained that Eric and Dennis were slowing down the game, and we went on with the hand. Patterson shouldn't have been in such a hurry. He had a full house, but I had four of a kind. Not that what he lost would have made even a dent in the bundle he pulls in, but he was pissed off."

"You pull it in pretty good yourself, don't you, Castle?" Ryan asks.

"I do OK, but not like Patterson."

"Are you dudes actually gonna talk about the case?" Esposito grouses.

"The impatient detective has a point," Richard allows. "As I said, Eric mentioned the source he was cultivating was a C.S. So you need to check if there's any link between Carlton Snodgrass and Donnelly."

Esposito grabs the list. "The primary on the Snodgrass murder is Everett Newsome. I know him from the 54th. He plays his cards pretty close to his vest."

"Henry Jackson is the captain at the 54th, isn't he?" Kate asks.

"Yeah," Esposito confirms. "Why?"

"I've heard Montgomery talk about him," Kate recalls. "And there's a picture in Montgomery's office of the two of them holding a big fish. If they're fishing buddies, maybe Montgomery can convince him to order Newsome to share the details of the Snodgrass case."

"Hey, if you guys don't want to talk to Montgomery, I can do it," Richard offers. "My dad and I fish sometimes when we go camping. I've got some stories I can share to loosen Montgomery up."

"We don't need you to loosen our captain up, Castle," Esposito returns. "We can talk to him." He locks gaze with Ryan. "Right, partner?"

"Yeah, right," Ryan agrees. "We can talk to him in the morning – right after he takes his coffee break."

Richard nods. "Good thinking."

That was interesting," Kate says after her door closes behind the two detectives.

"That's one word for it," Richard responds. "You think they'll talk to Montgomery about getting the details on the Snodgrass murder?"

Unless someone comes charging into the 12th and confesses between now and Montgomery's coffee break tomorrow," Kate replies, "they haven't got much choice."

Richard points to the dip and chips on the table. "There's enough left to make it through a poker game – or a movie. Do you subscribe to any of the services?"

"Showtime. They did a great reboot of The Outer Limits. I remember this one episode, 'Star Crossed,' that was a take-off on Casa Blanca. The actor they had starring in it looked a little like you – a younger you."

"Really? I must have missed that one. But Showtime does have some decent movies. You want to watch one?"

"Not many of them would top Forbidden Planet. I'd rather play poker."

Richard's brows ripple above his eyes. "Really? What's your game?"

"Seven-card stud."

A slow smile works its way up Richard's face. "The detective maneuvers with what she's dealt. Somehow, that figures."

"So, Castle," Kate says, dropping her ante of Gummie Bears into the pot, "you and your father went fishing?"

"When we were camping," Richard clarifies. "My father said that if we ever got separated somehow, I needed to be able to take care of myself until I was rescued, live off the land but avoid poisonous mushrooms and berries – that kind of thing. We had rods and reels, but he also showed me how to make a spear to fish with, kind of like Native Americans did. It was more work to sharpen sticks, but it was kind of interesting. It helped me when I wrote about my hero surviving after his plane crashed in the middle of nowhere."

"Yeah, I read that book, but I had no idea you'd actually done some of that stuff. I thought maybe you watched a lot of MacGyver."

Richard chuckles. "I did that too. I have an impressive collection of Swiss Army knives. How about you? I know you watched Temptation Lane with your mom. What else did you do with your family?"

"From the time I could sit up in a bleacher, Dad and I went to baseball games together. He loved keeping track of the Yankees' statistics. He still does."

"Have you ever been to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown?"

"Our family went when I was about eight, but I think my mother's favorite thing from the trip was some lemon soap she bought on the way up there. My dad and I were going to go again when I was home from Stanford, but then – you know."

"Yeah. Your mother's murder shut everything down. I'm sorry. But maybe you and your dad can go now – when you're all healed up, I mean, maybe after my fundraiser. Your dad will have a seat up front. He really helped out a lot. Of course, you can have a seat up front, too, if you want one."

"Castle, after everything you put into it, I wouldn't miss it."

"Great! Then we have a date. And maybe we can have a gala of our own afterward."

Kate cups Richard's cheek. "I'm looking forward to it."