"Mr. Castle, as a bestselling author, your record is... quite colorful."
Beckett's impression of Castle had already been less than favorable since the Central Park assault case. Being a straightforward and disciplined woman, she instinctively distrusted this type of charming playboy.
Now, under the pretext of assisting in the investigation, she had pulled his records from the system. The more she read, the deeper her frown grew. Although the charges had all been dismissed, the nature of his misdemeanors was downright ridiculous.
"Disturbing the peace, resisting arrest."
"Ah, boys will be boys, right?" Castle shrugged nonchalantly.
Alexis, watching from the adjacent observation room, felt her last shred of worry vanish as she saw her father sitting comfortably in the interrogation room. He wasn't even handcuffed and still managed to banter with the serious-looking Detective Beckett.
"There's a note here about you stealing a mounted officer's patrol horse," Beckett read from his file with a bemused smile.
"I borrowed it," Castle corrected immediately.
"And you were naked at the time?" Beckett's eyes widened.
"It was spring," Castle replied with a straight face, as if that explained everything.
Beckett couldn't help but laugh in exasperation. "Conveniently, every charge against you has been dropped."
"What can I say?" Castle smirked, clearly enjoying himself. "I have influential fans. But if it would make you feel better, Detective, I'd be happy to let you spank me."
Alexis, now mortified, buried her face in her hands. Her father's attempts at flirting were even worse than the clumsy advances of her high school classmates. She could practically feel her toes curling in secondhand embarrassment.
Standing nearby, Hannah was thoroughly entertained. She loved eavesdropping on situations like this. From the start, she had noticed the underlying tension between the two. The dynamic of a cheeky, wealthy playboy clashing with a feisty, no-nonsense female detective was right up her alley.
Meanwhile, the interrogation continued. Beckett set the folder down, leaned forward, and fixed Castle with a steely gaze.
"Mr. Castle, your bad-boy charm might work on naïve debutantes or starstruck socialites, but me? I'm here to do my job and make a living. Now, you have two choices: make my life easier or make it harder. Trust me, you don't want to pick the latter."
Sensing an edge of real menace in her tone, Castle's grin faltered, and he awkwardly muttered, "Okay."
Seeing him finally cooperate, Beckett slapped a photo down on the table in front of him. "Alison Tisdale, daughter of real estate tycoon Jonathan Tisdale."
"She's cute," Castle remarked after a glance at the photo.
"She's dead," Beckett snapped, snatching the photo back and slapping it down on the table again. "Do you know her? From a book signing or maybe a charity event?"
"Possibly. But she's not in my contacts. If that's all you need, I'll just—" Castle trailed off, glancing toward the door. Though he loved mysteries, he was far less enthusiastic about ones that could implicate him.
"What about this guy?" Beckett produced another photo. "Marvin Fisk, a small-claims attorney."
"My cases usually involve larger sums," Castle replied, sinking back into his chair with a smug look that made Beckett roll her eyes.
"He's dead too, isn't he? Look, these cases don't have anything to—"
Before he could finish, Beckett interrupted by laying two more crime scene photos in front of him, causing Castle to jump to his feet in shock.
In the observation room, Alexis pressed closer to the one-way glass, trying to make out the images on the table.
"Two weeks ago, Fisk was found dead in his office. The case was still under investigation until tonight, when Alison Tisdale's murder led me to connect the two."
The first photo depicted Alison Tisdale's body, nude and surrounded by rose petals, her eyes covered with two bright sunflowers.
"'Flowers for Your Grave'?" Castle murmured, recognizing the scene as one described in one of his bestselling suspense novels.
"And this one, 'Hell Hath No Fury.'" Beckett moved the first photo aside, revealing a second image: a middle-aged man's corpse lying in a salt-drawn pentagram with five candles at its points.
Both scenes were recreations of deaths described in Castle's books. After a moment of stunned silence, a look of exhilaration crossed Castle's face.
"Looks like I have a superfan," he said, almost gleeful.
"No," Beckett corrected sternly. "A deranged fan."
"Funny, you seem pretty normal to me." Castle's quip left Beckett momentarily confused.
Castle's grin widened. "Come on, 'Hell Hath No Fury'? 'The vengeful witch bathed in blood'—only the most dedicated Castle fan would read that far. And now you're sitting right across from me."
It was obvious he was teasing her, implying that Beckett herself was the obsessive fan. Her annoyed expression only confirmed it.
In the observation room, Alexis watched with a mix of fascination and mortification. Hannah, on the other hand, was thoroughly enjoying the lively back-and-forth, while Jack chuckled quietly. He too appreciated the chemistry between Castle and Beckett. After all, Castle's relentless teasing and Beckett's exasperated reactions were some of the best moments from the show.
Beckett's cheeks flushed slightly, and she quickly redirected the conversation. "I'm talking about the kind of fan who sends threatening letters. Have you ever received anything like that?"
"Sometimes... uh... we've found that killers tend to—" Beckett faltered, clearly uncomfortable revealing too much.
"Reach out to their object of obsession," Castle finished for her, flashing a triumphant smile. "See? I don't need that FBI kid to explain criminal psychology. I know it just as well—an occupational hazard, maybe?"
Beckett groaned inwardly, realizing she'd walked right into his trap again.
------------------
Enjoying the story? Support the author and get early access to chapters by joining my Patre@n!
Find me at: patre@n*com/Mutter
You can read each novel for $5 or get them all for just $15.
Fairy Tail: Igneel's Eldest Son (Chapter 256)
I Am Thalos, Odin's Older Brother (Chapter 336)
Reborn in America's Anti-Terror Unit (Chapter 542)
Solomon in Marvel (Chapter 924)
Becoming the Wealthiest Tycoon on the Planet (Chapter 1284)
Surgical Fruit in the American Comics Universe (Chapter 1289)
American Detective: From TV Rookie to Seasoned Cop (Chapter 1316)
American TV Writer (Chapter 1402)
I Am Hades, The Supreme GOD of the Underworld! (Chapter 570)
Reborn as Humanity's Emperor Across the Multiverse (Chapter 660)
[+50 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter]
[+5 Reviews = +1 Extra Chapter]