“Thank you for coming in, Mr. Anders,” Kate said as she led the trainer into the break room. “How well did you know Ms. Richardson?”
“Not much beyond our professional relationship,” the man answered. Kate could read the shock on his face. She knew that when Anders reported the jockey missing this morning he never thought the girl would end up dead.
“What can you tell me about her?” Kate prompted, softening her voice.
“She was a good jockey. Started late. Most kids go out for their license at 16 after having been an exercise rider for a couple of years. But Kaylan started riding racehorses when she was 16, maybe 17. Got her license at 18.” Anders smiled at some memory. “She was something to watch on the track. You could tell she really loved it. And the horses responded to it. She blew through her rookie status quickly, became a sought-after jockey by the time she turned 20 a few months ago.” He shook his head. “It’s a shame to lose her.”
“I’m sorry for your loss, Mr. Anders,” Kate empathized.
“Can you think of anyone who wanted to hurt her?” Castle piped up. “An argument she told you about, threats, a jealous competitor?”
Anders shook his head. “No. I mean, it’s a rough business, but no one really stands out,” he said, looking back and forth between the two. “Kaylan was respected. A few bumps and bruises along the way, but we’ve all been there. And Kaylan wasn’t going to ride forever. She’s got-had, she had dreams of owning her own stable one day.” Suddenly Anders eyes got big. “Jessie Rines.”
Kate wrote down the name in her notebook. “Who’s Jessie Rines?”
“Another jockey.”
“A rival of Kaylan’s?” Castle asked.
“You could say that,” Anders nodded. “I just remembered. Jessie works for Breaking Meadows Racing Stable. I overheard her ragging on Kaylan for coming in and messing up her racing career. You have to understand, Kaylan’s as close to a racing prodigy as I’ve ever seen. She had a way with the horses. She’s hardly run a race and not at least placed if not won. It’s amazing. Jessie was number one until Kaylan came along.” He paused and Kate nodded for Anders to go on. She noticed how Castle had leaned forward. He always loved a good story. “So Jessie’s talking about how she won’t be pushed into second place, that she isn’t some second-rate jock. That she’d find a way to make it back to number one and she wasn’t going to wait for Kaylan to move on. You could tell that Jessie didn’t appreciate the fact that Kaylan just appeared on the scene and wasn’t planning on sticking around. Like being a jockey wasn’t good enough.”
Kate finished noting all this in her notebook before she responded. It was certainly a place to start. “Thank you for your help, Mr. Anders. We’ll be in touch if we need anything. And please,” she said, handing him her business card, “If you think of anything else, don’t hesitate to call.”
Anders nodded. “Thank you, Detective Beckett, Mr. Castle.” Then he was gone.
“What do you think?” Kate asked as she finished writing the new information up on their murder board.
“I think Jessie Rines sounds like a shady character,” Castle answered, “But I also think we need more information.”
Kate turned around and looked at him, shocked.
Castle shrugged, a grin on his face. “Just trying to keep you on your toes, Detective.”
“No, it’s good,” she said. “I’m just not used to seeing you all reasonable.”
Castle approached her and leaned in close. “I’ve got moves you’ve never seen,” he whispered into her ears. “So, you ready for lunch?”
