Castle and The Originals

Chapter 17

"Pretend I'm not here." Rick kicked the loft door closed behind himself and dropped an armful of shopping bags on the floor.

"You're home early, where's Kate?" Alexis and her houseguest were headed toward the study.

"She had to testify in court today; boring." He practically sang the last word. "She should be home pretty soon. How's the homework coming?"

"Done! Just heading to the study to type it up." Alexis waved a handful of notebook paper in the air. "Do you mind if I use your laptop."

She stopped when he hesitated.

"What?" Alexis asked.

Rick rubbed his chin with feigned concern. "Just trying to remember if I downloaded that last set of pictures. I'm not sure Kate would appreciate you seeing her..."

"Oh my God, you have got to be kidding me!" Alexis was blushing for what must have been the hundredth time in the last twenty-four hours.

"Child, college has made you soft; you haven't been this easy since you were eight years old." He gives her a slight nudge toward the study. "Go finish your paper. That way the rest of the weekend will be wide open for more torture."

Alexis gives her dad a stern look and then a quick hug. "Hey what are those?"

She pointed to the numerous shopping bags piled just inside the front door; each one displaying the same logo, Shoegasm.

Rick turned and quickly scooped them up. "These, my dear, are motive for murder."

"Murder? Whose?"

Rick winked at Shelby as he passed by Alexis on his way to his bedroom. "Mine of course."

"Dad, what did you do?"

Rick didn't stop, just tossed his response over his shoulder. "I have two words for you pumpkin; Plausible Deniability."

"I can type for awhile if you'd like."

Alexis looked up from the screen; she was already halfway through the ten or so handwritten pages. "It's okay; I don't want to subject you to my dad's laptop."

"Oh, I thought he was just kidding about the pictures."

Alexis laughed.

"He was." She tilted the computer so her friend could see what she was referring to. Most of the letters were worn off, a few of the keys were cracked or broken and there was even one missing altogether. Even though her dad was a self proclaimed techno-fascist he was also nostalgic and a little bit superstitious. This being the laptop that he had written all three Nikki Heat novels on; he was hesitant to replace it. Because of that, it didn't surprise Alexis that the letter k had gone first; with as many times as the words Nikki and Rook had been typed. "He uses this to write his novels on."

Shelby turned to the bookshelf across the room that Alexis was nodding toward, it was a few seconds before she noticed the twenty or so colorful books with the name Richard Castle printed along the spine. "He wrote all of those?"

"Yep, bestsellers everyone." The pride was evident in Alexis's voice.

"So he's famous, huh?"

"Relatively." Alexis returned to the task at hand.

Shelby briefly skimmed Rick's books as well as some of the many other ones filling the expansive shelving unit. She stopped to admire a few pictures; one of Alexis and an older red-headed woman on the beach but dressed in formal attire. There was one with the same older woman and a much younger Richard Castle; they were standing in front of a theater with a glowing marquee. The name of the movie was not visible but it starred someone named Martha Rogers. Finally she noticed the one of Alexis's parents; it couldn't have been too old because Kate was obviously pregnant. The couple was sitting arm-in-arm at a linen covered table with palm trees blowing in the background.