New York, July 2009
Starfox5
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New York, July 2009
Richard Castle certainly was living in a nice house, Kate Beckett thought as she stepped out of the cab, but she would have expected something a bit more ostentatious. It was almost discreet, if one forgot about the prices for such real estate in Manhattan. She was quite curious though if the author's apartment itself would be decorated in a less understated way. Castle had a reputation as a womanizer, and an impressive bachelor's pad would certainly help with the kind of women he seemed to be looking for.
The large mirror opposite the door to Castle's apartment was a surprise though. Or not. While the detective could imagine a bimbo or gold digger using them to check their appearance one last time, it would also allow anyone inside to check the hallway for an ambush - and harder to spoof than cameras.
She shook her head at her own thoughts. She was getting paranoid. Next she'd expect remote-controlled weapons hidden in the ceiling, and then? Sharks with lasers on their heads? Grinning at herself, she rang.
She waited longer than expected before the door was opened by a widely smiling teenager she recognized as Castle's daughter. She was wearing a nice but far from fancy dress, and Kate was suddenly fearing she was a bit overdressed.
"Hi Detective Beckett! I am so glad you could make it!" Alexis Castle beamed at her, then stepped aside.
Kate raised an eyebrow at the lack of an invitation, then smiled. It was like in Castle's books. "Do you suspect I could be a vampire?" she joked.
Alexis shook her head. "No, you'd not have a reflection if that was the case."
"Good point." Beckett chuckled, and stepped inside. She noticed that the door was far thicker than she would have expected. Castle apparently could take his security seriously, when he was not trying to fight killers on his own. On second thought, he doted on his daughter, and was probably worried about a kidnapping.
The flat was stylishly furnished. Castle had to have spent a small fortune on an interior decorator's budget. The sword hanging on the wall next to the door took her by surprise, though.
The redhead had noticed her reaction, and nodded at the blade. "That's a German longsword, 13th century."
That sounded expensive, Kate thought. It seemed as if Vi wasn't the only one to collect swords. She didn't comment on the wisdom of having such a weapon ready to be drawn in an apartment. That would have been rude. Then she saw the other weapons on the walls.
"Detective Beckett! Welcome to my humble abode!" Castle, wearing slacks and a shirt, threw an apron on a chair in the kitchen area and walked over to her, shaking her hand.
"Humble?" Beckett asked, with her eyebrows raised, and making a show of looking around.
"Compared to my ex-wife's mansion, it is quite humble," the author explained. "I try to live more sensibly than her."
"That would be more believable if you hadn't ensured that your house in the Hamptons was as big as Mary's mansion, Kiddo," a middle-aged woman cut in, descending from the upper floor with both grace and a rather dramatic flair. "Martha Rodgers," she stated while extending her hand. She was wearing stylish but comfortable clothes.
Kate smirked at the betrayed look Castle shot at his mother, and at the giggling from his daughter, and shook the actress's hand. "Kate Beckett."
"It's a pleasure to finally meet the famous Detective that has my son so worked up," the older woman smiled
"Mother!" Castle sounded indignant. "As I mentioned before, you already met her at my last book launching party."
"Only you would think that getting arrested counts as meeting someone, Richard. I don't know why though, I certainly raised you better." Martha sighed dramatically.
"You didn't raise me at all. And I wasn't arrested, I was asked to help with an investigation!" Castle glared at the woman, and probably would have said something else, if not for a beeping noise from the kitchen. "Oh, the hors d'oeuvres are ready!" With that, the man left.
Beckett smiled. This evening was turning out to be far more entertaining than she had thought and hoped for. Then she noticed that both Castle's mother and daughter were turning towards the door. She looked back as well, just when the door opened and Violet O'Malley entered.
"Right on time for the food," Alexis whispered next to Kate.
"Hi Detective!" the redhead waved to her, then ruffled Alexis hair and kissed Martha on the cheek. Unlike Castle's family, the redhead had dressed up a tad. Her dress looked both too sexy for the occasion, and too expensive. Kate didn't think she was overdressed anymore though.
They shook hands as well, and Kate smiled both friendly and politely. "Good evening, Miss O'Malley."
"Call me Vi!" the girl said. "Miss O'Malley makes me feel far too old."
Kate's smile grew a bit forced at the barb. "Call me Kate then. But I assure you, you're far more likely to be seen as too young than as too old." She smiled when she spotted the redhead twitching at that.
"Shall we sit down?" Alexis, showing a slightly fake looking smile herself, pointed at the large couch with matching seats in the middle of the living room. "Dad is ready with the bruscetti."
"My own recipe," Castle declared proudly as he set the tray down on the couch table, next to the glasses already filled with wine - and, presumably for Alexis, water. Vi reached out, and he slapped her hand away. "Guests first, Vi."
"Technically, I am a guest too!" the redhead retorted, with a hungry look at the snacks.
"You're part of the family," Castle told her, which seemed to placate her. He turned his attention to Kate. "Please try some before the vacuum cleaner inhales the rest," he said, and handed her a glass of wine at the same time.
Kate hadn't known Castle could cook - but then again, he was a single father. The bruschetti did look different from those she was used too. They were very good though, and she made appreciative noises as she ate one. "Very good," she added, after swallowing, and smiled at her host. The wine was great too, but then, that was to be expected from a rich author.
Castle beamed at her while the three redheads reached for the tray. Beckett was about to comment on the recipe when she noticed just how fast and how much Vi was eating. "Should I be worried about the main course, if she's eating that many of the hors d'oeuvres?"
Castle sent a glare at the redhead in question, whose innocent expression was hampered a bit by her stuffed cheeks, and answered: "No. She's just a glutton." The innocent expression turned into a scowl.
"Dad!" Alexis scolded him. "Vi's an active woman and a healthy eater, not a glutton!"
Vi nodded. "It's not my fault I burn calories like no one else." The smug smirk showed though that she seemed to be very glad about it. Unless she was bulimic - but the girl did look too athletic to have an eating disorder.
Beckett had been a bit surprised by the number of crosses on display. Looking to change the topic, she nodded at an ornate one on the wall. "Is that the model for the cross used in 'Winter Raid', or did you buy it after the book was written?"
"Well spotted!" Castle beamed at her. "I had it before I wrote the book. It's an antique, made for the abbot of Saint Gall in the 14th century. It keeps vampires at bay."
"That must come in very handy," Kate commented in a very dry tone. "With vampires being such a widespread threat."
For a moment, no one said anything, then Castle laughed, a bit forcedly, followed by the others. "It's too heavy to carry around, it's more of a deterrent." He stood up. "Let me give you the tour, now that Vi is not about to raid the kitchen for at least half an hour."
"You mean the lasagna won't be ready until then?" Vi looked as if Castle had just announced her dog had died. Or her sword collection had been confiscated. The man ignored her whining though, and gestured at Beckett to follow him.
Apart from the plethora of ancient but very functional weapons on display all around the flat - even Alexis had a sword and crossbow on her room's wall, and judging by the fencing gear stored in the corner there, she might even be able to use the blade - and the four hundred years old tome on demons on the girl's bed, the flat looked normal to Beckett. Normal for an apartment usually featured in magazines detailing the lifestyles of the rich and famous, of course.
That was until Castle opened the door to his office. "Here's where I write my books! My sanctum sanctorum, so to speak." Kate had to restrain herself from gaping, and from squealing as if she was still twelve years old. The office, if one could call the large library that, was filled with books of all kinds, more weapons - a lot more - and all sorts of props! Tons of old books, with exotic covers, lined the shelves. There were dozens of stakes, bandoliers holding holy water vials, the blunderbuss from 'The Master of Munich', the two-handed sword that took the the demon's head in 'Direwolf'... Castle had even a couple 'Vampire Hunter' leather armor suits on display! They were of a much better quality than her own costume at home, if a tad more revealing as well.
Matter of fact, now that she took closer looks, with the exception of those armor suits, all those 'props' looked far too functional, and far too old, for replicas. "So, you really used actual weapons as models for the ones mentioned in your book!"
Castle acted as if offended, but he was grinning as he took up a saber. "My dear detective, I took care to get all the details right for my fighting scenes." He demonstrated a few moves with the saber. Kate realized that he could fence as well.
"With the exception of the fake trophies," she pointed out, staring at what looked like a demon skull on the wall.
Castle actually pouted. "I have it on good authority that this is an authentic hellhound skull."
"Of course," Kate rolled her eyes at the man's antics. Who did he think he was fooling with his eccentric act? "Where did you get it from then?"
"Ah, it was a gift from Vi," Castle answered. "Though I kind of paid for it."
She wasn't surprised by that admission. If only she could tell if Castle was taking advantage of an impressionable young woman, or if the redhead was a gold digger taking advantage of a man old enough to be her father. They were far too close for a purely professional relationship, after all. "You never told me how the two of you met," she said.
"I did, actually. I was acting as a chaperone on a camping trip in California, and she was one of my charges." Castle smiled.
"Ah. I thought you had known her before the trip."
"No, I was drafted by a colleague while I was in California on business."
"A fellow author?"
"No, a fellow librarian. I worked for years at a private library in London. It was a surprise to meet him in California, and before I knew it, I was overseeing a bunch of teenagers. One of the scariest experiences of my life."
Kate raised her eyebrows at him. "Scarier than getting attacked by a crazy killer in a demon mask?"
Castle nodded solemnly. "You should see Vi when she's drunk and hungry. Vampires run away screaming in fear from her!"
"I heard that!" Vi glared at him from the door. "You need to check on the Lasagna, Rick," she added.
Castle frowned. "It shouldn't be time yet..." he looked at the woman. "You didn't fiddle with the oven again, did you?"
"No!" Vi shook her head.
Castle sighed. "I think I have to leave you for a bit to make sure the meal's coming along on schedule."
"Of course," Beckett nodded at him.
The author left for the kitchen, and Vi waved at her. "Come on, join the rest of us while he saves our dinner."
Kate would have liked to nose around a bit, but she couldn't very well tell that to Vi, and so found herself back on the couch, facing Castle's daughter, mother and 'not-girlfriend', as he put it.
Alexis smiled widely at her, a bit too widely, Kate thought. "So, Detective, please tell us a bit about yourself! We're very curious about the woman that is the inspiration for my dad's new book!"
Both Martha and Vi leaned forward with eager expressions, and Kate realized with a sinking feeling that this evening was turning into an interrogation. And it wasn't her asking the questions.
Richard Castle certainly was living in a nice house, Kate Beckett thought as she stepped out of the cab, but she would have expected something a bit more ostentatious. It was almost discreet, if one forgot about the prices for such real estate in Manhattan. She was quite curious though if the author's apartment itself would be decorated in a less understated way. Castle had a reputation as a womanizer, and an impressive bachelor's pad would certainly help with the kind of women he seemed to be looking for.
The large mirror opposite the door to Castle's apartment was a surprise though. Or not. While the detective could imagine a bimbo or gold digger using them to check their appearance one last time, it would also allow anyone inside to check the hallway for an ambush - and harder to spoof than cameras.
She shook her head at her own thoughts. She was getting paranoid. Next she'd expect remote-controlled weapons hidden in the ceiling, and then? Sharks with lasers on their heads? Grinning at herself, she rang.
She waited longer than expected before the door was opened by a widely smiling teenager she recognized as Castle's daughter. She was wearing a nice but far from fancy dress, and Kate was suddenly fearing she was a bit overdressed.
"Hi Detective Beckett! I am so glad you could make it!" Alexis Castle beamed at her, then stepped aside.
Kate raised an eyebrow at the lack of an invitation, then smiled. It was like in Castle's books. "Do you suspect I could be a vampire?" she joked.
Alexis shook her head. "No, you'd not have a reflection if that was the case."
"Good point." Beckett chuckled, and stepped inside. She noticed that the door was far thicker than she would have expected. Castle apparently could take his security seriously, when he was not trying to fight killers on his own. On second thought, he doted on his daughter, and was probably worried about a kidnapping.
The flat was stylishly furnished. Castle had to have spent a small fortune on an interior decorator's budget. The sword hanging on the wall next to the door took her by surprise, though.
The redhead had noticed her reaction, and nodded at the blade. "That's a German longsword, 13th century."
That sounded expensive, Kate thought. It seemed as if Vi wasn't the only one to collect swords. She didn't comment on the wisdom of having such a weapon ready to be drawn in an apartment. That would have been rude. Then she saw the other weapons on the walls.
"Detective Beckett! Welcome to my humble abode!" Castle, wearing slacks and a shirt, threw an apron on a chair in the kitchen area and walked over to her, shaking her hand.
"Humble?" Beckett asked, with her eyebrows raised, and making a show of looking around.
"Compared to my ex-wife's mansion, it is quite humble," the author explained. "I try to live more sensibly than her."
"That would be more believable if you hadn't ensured that your house in the Hamptons was as big as Mary's mansion, Kiddo," a middle-aged woman cut in, descending from the upper floor with both grace and a rather dramatic flair. "Martha Rodgers," she stated while extending her hand. She was wearing stylish but comfortable clothes.
Kate smirked at the betrayed look Castle shot at his mother, and at the giggling from his daughter, and shook the actress's hand. "Kate Beckett."
"It's a pleasure to finally meet the famous Detective that has my son so worked up," the older woman smiled
"Mother!" Castle sounded indignant. "As I mentioned before, you already met her at my last book launching party."
"Only you would think that getting arrested counts as meeting someone, Richard. I don't know why though, I certainly raised you better." Martha sighed dramatically.
"You didn't raise me at all. And I wasn't arrested, I was asked to help with an investigation!" Castle glared at the woman, and probably would have said something else, if not for a beeping noise from the kitchen. "Oh, the hors d'oeuvres are ready!" With that, the man left.
Beckett smiled. This evening was turning out to be far more entertaining than she had thought and hoped for. Then she noticed that both Castle's mother and daughter were turning towards the door. She looked back as well, just when the door opened and Violet O'Malley entered.
"Right on time for the food," Alexis whispered next to Kate.
"Hi Detective!" the redhead waved to her, then ruffled Alexis hair and kissed Martha on the cheek. Unlike Castle's family, the redhead had dressed up a tad. Her dress looked both too sexy for the occasion, and too expensive. Kate didn't think she was overdressed anymore though.
They shook hands as well, and Kate smiled both friendly and politely. "Good evening, Miss O'Malley."
"Call me Vi!" the girl said. "Miss O'Malley makes me feel far too old."
Kate's smile grew a bit forced at the barb. "Call me Kate then. But I assure you, you're far more likely to be seen as too young than as too old." She smiled when she spotted the redhead twitching at that.
"Shall we sit down?" Alexis, showing a slightly fake looking smile herself, pointed at the large couch with matching seats in the middle of the living room. "Dad is ready with the bruscetti."
"My own recipe," Castle declared proudly as he set the tray down on the couch table, next to the glasses already filled with wine - and, presumably for Alexis, water. Vi reached out, and he slapped her hand away. "Guests first, Vi."
"Technically, I am a guest too!" the redhead retorted, with a hungry look at the snacks.
"You're part of the family," Castle told her, which seemed to placate her. He turned his attention to Kate. "Please try some before the vacuum cleaner inhales the rest," he said, and handed her a glass of wine at the same time.
Kate hadn't known Castle could cook - but then again, he was a single father. The bruschetti did look different from those she was used too. They were very good though, and she made appreciative noises as she ate one. "Very good," she added, after swallowing, and smiled at her host. The wine was great too, but then, that was to be expected from a rich author.
Castle beamed at her while the three redheads reached for the tray. Beckett was about to comment on the recipe when she noticed just how fast and how much Vi was eating. "Should I be worried about the main course, if she's eating that many of the hors d'oeuvres?"
Castle sent a glare at the redhead in question, whose innocent expression was hampered a bit by her stuffed cheeks, and answered: "No. She's just a glutton." The innocent expression turned into a scowl.
"Dad!" Alexis scolded him. "Vi's an active woman and a healthy eater, not a glutton!"
Vi nodded. "It's not my fault I burn calories like no one else." The smug smirk showed though that she seemed to be very glad about it. Unless she was bulimic - but the girl did look too athletic to have an eating disorder.
Beckett had been a bit surprised by the number of crosses on display. Looking to change the topic, she nodded at an ornate one on the wall. "Is that the model for the cross used in 'Winter Raid', or did you buy it after the book was written?"
"Well spotted!" Castle beamed at her. "I had it before I wrote the book. It's an antique, made for the abbot of Saint Gall in the 14th century. It keeps vampires at bay."
"That must come in very handy," Kate commented in a very dry tone. "With vampires being such a widespread threat."
For a moment, no one said anything, then Castle laughed, a bit forcedly, followed by the others. "It's too heavy to carry around, it's more of a deterrent." He stood up. "Let me give you the tour, now that Vi is not about to raid the kitchen for at least half an hour."
"You mean the lasagna won't be ready until then?" Vi looked as if Castle had just announced her dog had died. Or her sword collection had been confiscated. The man ignored her whining though, and gestured at Beckett to follow him.
Apart from the plethora of ancient but very functional weapons on display all around the flat - even Alexis had a sword and crossbow on her room's wall, and judging by the fencing gear stored in the corner there, she might even be able to use the blade - and the four hundred years old tome on demons on the girl's bed, the flat looked normal to Beckett. Normal for an apartment usually featured in magazines detailing the lifestyles of the rich and famous, of course.
That was until Castle opened the door to his office. "Here's where I write my books! My sanctum sanctorum, so to speak." Kate had to restrain herself from gaping, and from squealing as if she was still twelve years old. The office, if one could call the large library that, was filled with books of all kinds, more weapons - a lot more - and all sorts of props! Tons of old books, with exotic covers, lined the shelves. There were dozens of stakes, bandoliers holding holy water vials, the blunderbuss from 'The Master of Munich', the two-handed sword that took the the demon's head in 'Direwolf'... Castle had even a couple 'Vampire Hunter' leather armor suits on display! They were of a much better quality than her own costume at home, if a tad more revealing as well.
Matter of fact, now that she took closer looks, with the exception of those armor suits, all those 'props' looked far too functional, and far too old, for replicas. "So, you really used actual weapons as models for the ones mentioned in your book!"
Castle acted as if offended, but he was grinning as he took up a saber. "My dear detective, I took care to get all the details right for my fighting scenes." He demonstrated a few moves with the saber. Kate realized that he could fence as well.
"With the exception of the fake trophies," she pointed out, staring at what looked like a demon skull on the wall.
Castle actually pouted. "I have it on good authority that this is an authentic hellhound skull."
"Of course," Kate rolled her eyes at the man's antics. Who did he think he was fooling with his eccentric act? "Where did you get it from then?"
"Ah, it was a gift from Vi," Castle answered. "Though I kind of paid for it."
She wasn't surprised by that admission. If only she could tell if Castle was taking advantage of an impressionable young woman, or if the redhead was a gold digger taking advantage of a man old enough to be her father. They were far too close for a purely professional relationship, after all. "You never told me how the two of you met," she said.
"I did, actually. I was acting as a chaperone on a camping trip in California, and she was one of my charges." Castle smiled.
"Ah. I thought you had known her before the trip."
"No, I was drafted by a colleague while I was in California on business."
"A fellow author?"
"No, a fellow librarian. I worked for years at a private library in London. It was a surprise to meet him in California, and before I knew it, I was overseeing a bunch of teenagers. One of the scariest experiences of my life."
Kate raised her eyebrows at him. "Scarier than getting attacked by a crazy killer in a demon mask?"
Castle nodded solemnly. "You should see Vi when she's drunk and hungry. Vampires run away screaming in fear from her!"
"I heard that!" Vi glared at him from the door. "You need to check on the Lasagna, Rick," she added.
Castle frowned. "It shouldn't be time yet..." he looked at the woman. "You didn't fiddle with the oven again, did you?"
"No!" Vi shook her head.
Castle sighed. "I think I have to leave you for a bit to make sure the meal's coming along on schedule."
"Of course," Beckett nodded at him.
The author left for the kitchen, and Vi waved at her. "Come on, join the rest of us while he saves our dinner."
Kate would have liked to nose around a bit, but she couldn't very well tell that to Vi, and so found herself back on the couch, facing Castle's daughter, mother and 'not-girlfriend', as he put it.
Alexis smiled widely at her, a bit too widely, Kate thought. "So, Detective, please tell us a bit about yourself! We're very curious about the woman that is the inspiration for my dad's new book!"
Both Martha and Vi leaned forward with eager expressions, and Kate realized with a sinking feeling that this evening was turning into an interrogation. And it wasn't her asking the questions.
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