6. Saturday Evening

Beckett and Lanie arrived at the alley where the girl they now believed to be Serafina Valduerez had been murdered the day before. The area had been cleared of any evidence and someone had tried to wash away the blood, though a hint of it could still be seen on the gray concrete. Yellow police tape blocked the area, just in case they found more evidence later.

“So, the victim was standing here when she was shot,” said Beckett. She recreated the crime scene in her mind while she took her position, standing where Serafina had fallen.

“She was lying on her back, with her feet pointed towards the street.” Lanie kept her distance and glanced down the alley, looking for anything that might have been missed previously.

“But she was shot in the front, so she must have been facing away from the alley. Why would she go into the alley in the first place, only to turn around and be attacked by the killer?” Beckett frowned as she tried to imagine the last few minutes before the girl’s murder.

“The murderer could have been hiding behind some of these trash bins,” said Lanie. She pointed to a group of smelly tin cans. “She’s far enough into the alley that she might have tried to investigate some noise and when she passed the killer, he snuck up behind her.”

“That’s possible. If the killer had been watching her, he or she would know that Serafina passed this alley on her way to the school.” Beckett listened carefully for a second, but all she could make out was the din of the traffic on 34th and the closest café. “It’s too loud for her to have heard something worth investigating. She must have been meeting someone.”

“The killer?”

“Maybe.” Beckett walked towards the street, leaving behind the darker, mustier alley. “She always came from that direction. Let’s walk that way to see if we can find out where she encountered chlorine.”

“It was a match for the concentration typically found in pool chemicals,” said Lanie. “If we can find an apartment building or hotel with a pool near here, we may find our other crime scene.” The two women stepped completely out of the alley and into the warm afternoon sun. Beckett kept her eyes open for suspicious people or items. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary by the time they reached one of the Central Park luxury hotels and meeting centers.

“Indoor pool,” read Beckett aloud from the sign advertising the hotel’s numerous amenities.

“What would an eight year-old girl or a druggie woman be doing in a place like this?” asked Lanie. The building wasn’t one of the fanciest ones in the city, nor was it owned by one of the major hotel chains. Still, its proximity to Central Park was worth more than a prestigious name and that fact was more than reflected in the price of the rooms.

“Robbing someone.” Beckett pointed to a tasteful placard in the window which directed visitors towards the main ballroom where a convention was being held. The week-long event was centered around buying and selling antique and rare jewelry.

“Oh, I heard about this show,” said Lanie. “Supposedly it costs two hundred dollars just to be admitted and that doesn’t go towards anything you might buy inside.”

“When we get back to the precinct, I’m going to put a rush on the analysis of those studs found in the victim’s ears. In the meantime, let’s ask around. You’d think someone would be squawking if they’d been relieved of expensive diamond earrings.” Beckett pulled out her badge to have ready as she approached the main entrance of the hotel. Predictably, they were stopped by a uniformed hotel employee.

“Do you have tickets to the convention?” The man, who was hardly as tall as Lanie, looked down his nose at the two women. Beckett realized that most of the women who would attend this sort of event probably dressed to impress. Her work suit and Lanie’s casual wear didn’t pass inspection.

“Will this suffice?” Beckett shoved her badge in the man’s snooty face. “Detective Beckett, NYPD. I’m investigating a murder and possible robbery. Is there anyone I can speak with in this regard?”

“Let me call my manager. Please wait out here.” The man gave them one last distrustful look before moving a few feet away and picking up the house phone near the exterior concierge stand. He returned after a short conversation. “Mr. Peller will be with you shortly.” He resumed his position guarding the door and looked less than likely to allow them inside before the manager arrived. Beckett sighed and resigned herself to waiting without.

Eventually the manager, Mr. Peller, stepped out of the hotel and approached them with an air of severe inconvenience. “How may I help you, detective?”

“Information has come to light in one of my murder investigations that may have something to do with the jewelry show that your hotel is hosting. Have any of the guests reported missing items?”

“Our hotel has state of the art security equipment,” replied Peller.

“That’s not what I asked,” said Beckett. The man frowned and shifted his weight in aggravation.

“If something had been taken from one of our guests or visitors, we would handle it internally. That way, the victims remain anonymous. Dealing with the NYPD always results in a media circus.”

“Circus or no, any recent thefts may be related to my homicide and I’m going to insist that you inform me of any such incidents.” Beckett hated it when people were difficult. If Mr. Peller would just work with her, they could all go home at a reasonable hour and the criminals could get their just rewards.

“I’m afraid you’re going to need a warrant to subpoena our records. Until you have one of those, I ask you to please vacate the premises.”

“Listen, Mr. Peller,” started Lanie, but Beckett cut her off.

“Thank you for your time.” Beckett guided Lanie away from the hotel. “He’s not worth it.”

“I can’t believe how unhelpful he was,” said the ME. “Do you deal with that on every case?”

“It happens a lot.” Beckett ran her fingers through her loose hair. “I’ll see if I can get a judge to grant me a warrant but this lead seems like a stretch, even to me. Maybe if I combine it with the possible chlorine from the pool, I can at least get inside.”

“Maybe you could send Castle inside,” suggested Lanie. “He might be enough of a celebrity to bypass Mr. Unhelpful.”

“Possibly.” Beckett tossed the idea around and found that she liked it. She would suggest it to the writer that evening. “Let’s return to the station. I’ll try Randy Bellefonte one more time.” Together, she and Lanie made the trek back to the 12th Precinct. This wasn’t her first case with difficult suspects or witnesses but the extra personal aspect of it was making the trials all the more infuriating. She was definitely looking forward to an evening with Castle’s finest liquid relaxant.

Because she was a glutton for punishment - figuratively, of course - she decided to stop by holding after leaving yet another voicemail on Randy Bellefonte’s cell phone. She knew that Rayford had been released earlier, having somehow managed to make bail on his assault charge. Nora Bellefonte should still be in the temporary jail cells since her crime had been a bit more grievous and they were also holding her for murder.

The holding cells were devoid of any females. The only occupants were a couple of middle-aged drunkards who had been dragged from the streets on disorderly conduct charges. The guard informed her that Ms. Bellefonte had been moved to a minimum security prison pending the investigation. She would have to wait until tomorrow if she wanted to push the older woman to reverse the curse she’d put on Ryan and Esposito.

Feeling acutely dejected, Beckett retrieved her car keys and purse from her desk. As she was straightening up, she glanced towards the pair of desks where her partners usually sat. She suddenly remembered Ryan’s offer during lunch. Even though they were in children’s bodies, the two could still help her reason out and track down suspects. She marched over to Ryan’s desk and logged into his computer. It took a few simple steps to set up the remote access feature. He could probably access the machine from Castle’s laptop. Tomorrow, she’d take his keys and pick up his laptop from his apartment.

She sent a short text message to Castle, alerting him that she was on her way home. Even though she didn’t have any good news to share with her team, she was looking forward to spending the evening with her favorite people.

xXx

“Hey, you,” greeted Castle when he spotted her. He was seated in the middle of the couch with a large bowl of popcorn in his lap. One of her detectives sat on either side of him, transfixed by the movie and eating absently from the snack bowl. Alexis had claimed one of the armchairs, though she was concentrating on a text book instead of the television.

“What are you watching?”

“Iron Man,” said Javier. He looked up at her with a welcoming smile, but his attention was quickly drawn back to the action on the television. Beckett wedged her way onto the couch beside him. The three males shifted to give her more room. Castle offered her the bowl of popcorn. She snagged a few kernels.

“Did you have fun in the park after I left?” Beckett asked. She ran the back of her index finger down the side of Javier’s face, marveling at how soft the skin was just in front of his ear. It wasn’t like she spent a lot of time touching her partner’s face when he was full-size, but she knew her own skin wasn’t as baby soft anymore. At least, it was not soft without the help of a lot of moisturizer.

“We left right after you,” he answered without looking at her.

“What happened to your football game?”

“The other people left.” He glanced at her briefly from the corner of his eye as if wondering with how many more questions she was going to pester him. She rolled her eyes. Of course he was more interested in the action movie than her. Boys.

Beckett leaned forward a little bit so she should see her younger partner. He was equally fixated on the television, with wide eyes directed solely towards the screen. She didn’t miss that his baby blues were circled with a tinge of red, as if he’d been upset recently. This caused her to frown. She’d never seen either of her partners shed tears outside of the tragic death of their previous captain, Montgomery.

“Castle?”

“Yes, Kate?” He actually turned to look at her.

“Can I talk to you?” The “in private” was strongly implied. Castle seemed to understand. He handed the popcorn bowl to Javier with specific instructions to not eat all of it before the writer returned. Castle stood up and offered a hand to Beckett. She allowed him to pull her off the couch. Together, they made their way into the kitchen.

“How did your investigating go this afternoon?” he asked.

“Another roadblock.” She sighed. “Lanie and I may have found where Valduerez was before her murder, but the manager of the hotel wouldn’t speak to us without a warrant. It seems like this whole case is just one hurdle after another.”

“Which hotel? I may have connections there.”

“The Clairemont near Central Park. Actually, I was hoping you could go over there and do a little snooping. They’re hosting a jewelry convention, which may be where Serafina got those diamond earrings she was wearing.”

“So you want me to attend the show and see if anyone was robbed recently?”

“Yes.”

“I can do that.” Castle pulled open the refrigerator and retrieved two bottles of water. He offered one to Beckett.

“Actually, I was hoping for something a little stronger.”

“I can do that, too. I have just the thing for frustrating cases.” The writer raided his liquor cabinet and poured them both a shot of scotch whiskey. “Cheers.”

Beckett slammed hers back, thrilling at the burn as it scorched down her throat. Castle poured her another. This time, she didn’t rush in order to enjoy the taste and the warmth in her mouth. “Did something happen after the park?”

“What do you mean?”

“The boys don’t seem as upbeat as they were this afternoon. Kevin’s eyes are a little red, too.”

“Ah, yes. There was an… incident… when we got home. We were all quite smelly, so I took a quick shower before helping the boys clean up. We once again got to argue about who needs what kind of supervision in a tub full of water, but that was finally resolved by my sitting outside the bathroom while Javier gave a stirring monologue about how insulted he was that I didn’t trust him to clean himself without drowning.”

“I bet that was entertaining.”

“I’ll show you the video later,” offered Castle. “Since he was behind the door, he couldn’t see me recording. Unfortunately, all you can see is the carpet, but the audio is entertaining.”

“So what happened to Kevin?”

“First of all, he’s a little less stubborn than Javi, so he let me help him to some degree. He’s so little that reaching stuff and being able to hold things are difficult. His mind remembers how to perform basic motor skills, but his body has forgotten.”

“I can’t even imagine. He’s been dealing with it pretty well, from what I can see.”

“For the most part, yes,” said Castle. “I was helping him rinse the shampoo out of his hair and I guess I scared him.”

“How did you scare him?” Beckett was surprised at how protective she suddenly felt. If anyone should be responsible for two kids, it was the real life father. Still, she wanted to gather the shrunken detective in her arms and not let anyone else near him.

“Apparently, having water dumped over his head brings back bad memories that haven’t been fully put away yet.” Castle rubbed his forehead as if he had a headache.

“Lockwood.” Beckett frowned deeply as she looked into the living room where her junior partners were still focused on the movie, which was nearing the end. That particular case had wrapped up over a year and a half ago. She didn’t like that it was still affecting her partner, even if only subconsciously.

“That was the last straw and the camel’s back broke. First, he cried from being startled, which turned into tears of humiliation from crying in the first place, and then finally ended with sobbing about how this whole situation is completely unfair.” Castle looked pained as he recounted the story. “Honestly, I prefer that to his tendency to just shut down when feeling overwhelmed, but it still wasn’t any fun.”

“God, I hate this case so much.” Beckett swallowed with difficulty thanks to the lump in her throat. “How did Javi react?”

“Oh, he just looked angry and helpless. For a minute I was worried I was going to have both of them freaking out, but thankfully Javier kept it together.”

“Good.”

“Sounds like drama all around.” Castle refilled their shot glasses. “Did you speak to Bellefonte the Younger yet?”

“No. His brother is out on bail, but Nora Bellefonte is now at the minimum security joint just outside of town. I’ll press her for information again tomorrow.”

“Why did they move her out of the holding cell?” asked Alexis. She came up from behind Beckett and set her textbook on the bar counter before reaching for her dad’s bottled water.

“We try not to keep people in the precinct for extended periods,” said Beckett. “The judge is keeping her without bail since she admitted to purposefully putting a foreign agent in the drinks of two NYPD detectives.”

“Did you find out anything in your other leads?”

“No, Beckett was just telling me that everything has been a dead end so far,” replied Castle. “It looks like we’re stuck babysitting again tomorrow.”

“I don’t mind. They’re cute and funny, especially when they gang up on you,” said Alexis.

“Whatever you do, don’t let them think you’re enjoying their curse,” said Castle. “Javier might hide something precious to you.”

“First, I don’t have a video camera, and secondly, I’m not enjoying that they’re trapped in kid bodies. I just don’t think they’re so bad to be around.” Alexis smiled sweetly at her father. “I think they like me more than you.”

“I’m sure they do,” said Beckett. “Little Castle has always been less trying than Big Castle.”

“I feel very ganged up on, here,” complained Big Castle. Alexis laughed.

“I think the movie is pretty much over. What are we doing for dinner?”

“How about breakfast? Pancakes sound wonderful to me.”

“Dad, we had pancakes for breakfast.”

“Are you implying that one can only eat pancakes once a day?” Castle looked completely crestfallen.

“No. I love your pancakes, but maybe Beckett and the boys don’t want that again.”

“Kate didn’t have pancakes this morning.”

“Javier?” Beckett decided to put an end to the debate sooner rather than later.

“What?”

“Are you and Kevin fine with pancakes for dinner?”

“We had pancakes for breakfast.”

“So?” Castle pouted.

“Whatever, bro. Sounds good to me.”

“Pancakes it is,” said Beckett. With renewed spirits, Castle set to work making their dinner. The movie finally ended a few minutes later. Javier waited until Kevin finished shutting down the system and then they walked over to the kitchen together.

Javier stepped up on the bottom rung of Beckett’s barstool and hung off the backrest in order to see over the counter. Kevin plopped down on the carpet near her feet so he could lean back against the bar while fiddling with his smart phone. Beckett discretely wrapped her arm around Javier to keep him from slipping off the side of her stool. “So you like me now?” she asked.

“I always like you, Becks. You just pick bad times to try to start conversations.”

“And this is why you’re single.”

“And this is why you’re with Castle. He’s always willing to have a conversation.” Javier pushed himself up to the higher rung since he still couldn’t really see anything. Now, his upper body easily cleared the countertop and he could rest his elbows on the hard surface.

“Hey, I resemble that remark,” said Castle. He shook his spatula in Javier’s direction. The younger man just shook his head.

“Did that witch tell you how to make us big again?” Javier asked. He twisted around so he could see his senior partner.

“No, and you’re making me nervous.” Beckett gently grasped his upper arm. “Can’t you sit in a chair like a person instead of a monkey?” Javier scowled at her, but Beckett held his gaze steadily until he huffed and let himself drop to the floor. He made his way to the third stool and climbed up to sit normally in it.

“All right, first round of Pancakes à la Castle is ready,” announced the writer. He set a platter piled high with golden round disks in the center of the bar. A stack of plates appeared next, which he distributed to his friends. Beckett hadn’t thought she was that hungry until the first buttery bite hit her tongue. After that she dug in enthusiastically. Castle made really good pancakes.

Javier and Alexis also helped themselves while Castle poured everyone glasses of milk. He finally made himself a plate, only to notice that he still had one extra plate and glass. “Where’s Kev?”

Beckett glanced down at the floor. The blond was still there, flipping through various screens on his phone and acting completely uninterested in the meal. “Aren’t you hungry, sweetie?” she asked.

“Oh, no, I’m fine.” He looked up to give her a brief grin. Beckett looked over at Castle and shrugged. He frowned but didn’t comment. The rest of the group tucked into their breakfast-dinner, making small talk and laughing at the amusing antidotes that Alexis or Javier would tell about the day. Even though they were crowded around the bar (Castle had to stand since all the seats were taken) she had rarely enjoyed a meal so much. She liked the intimacy of it and she felt like she was with family instead of just friends and co-workers.

When they were finished, Beckett and Alexis joined forces to clean up the kitchen. Castle talked Kevin into an apple, which the youngest detective sparingly ate from his spot in Beckett’s vacated stool. It was already nearing eight by the time they finished and Beckett was keen to the yawns that Javier and Kevin tried to hide. The two were notorious for staying up much later than they should, either out at bars or playing video games, so their fatigue had to be due to their new sizes. Surprisingly, neither put up any resistance when Castle suggested they head to bed.

Alexis also made her excuses to retreat to her room, probably vying for some privacy. That left Castle and Beckett alone in the main part of the loft, which suited the detective just fine. They snuggled together in one of the large armchairs before the fireplace with a nightcap each. After a hard day of trying to work through a murder by herself, it felt wonderful to Beckett to curl into Castle’s warm chest and just let it all go. They sat in peace for a long while, with Beckett staring mindlessly into the flickering flames and Castle absently stroking her hair.

“I missed you today,” said Beckett eventually. “I guess I take for granted how much humor you bring to my day.”

“Likewise,” said Castle. “Well, not humor so much, but lots of sexiness.” She giggled and leaned up to kiss him. He heartedly welcomed her attention and responded in kind. She really was too tired for anything beyond an extended make-out session. Being close to her lover was good enough for tonight. Castle’s warm hands slid under her shirt, resting just above the waistband of her pants. His touch anchored her there. She imagined that nothing could go wrong as long as she was with Castle.

They finally drew apart when the clock on the mantle started chiming the ten o’clock hour. Beckett had no idea what had happened to the nine o’clock hour. “Twenty-four hours, give or take,” said Castle.

“We all survived the first day.”

“Shall we retire to the bedroom?”

“Yes.” Beckett slid off the chair to allow Castle to stand as well. Hand in hand they headed towards the back of the loft. Castle detoured them briefly to peak into the guest room. Beckett smiled softly at the sight of her two partners curled up together in the middle of the bed. Castle once again left the door cracked open. Finally, they made it to their own bed.

to be continued…