Castle s06e04 Episode Script

Emma Riggs, N.
Y.
P.
D.
Open the door! We hear you moving around in there! Open up! immediate backup.
Possible homicide suspect.
White female, brown hair, fleeing down southwest fire escape.
Stop her! - Excuse me? What are you doing? - Nobody move! Oh, God! Castle Are you asleep? Yes.
Then why'd you answer me? I'm sleep-talking.
Also known as somniloquy.
Just ignore me.
I don't know what to do.
I have some ideas.
No, Castle.
I'm talking about my life.
I don't know what to do about my life.
I haven't been out of work since I was 15.
I cannot believe that the F.
B.
I.
Fired me, and I can't get my job back at the N.
Y.
P.
D.
Because of the commissioner's stupid hiring freeze.
I might as well just apply to become a mall cop.
Ooh.
You would look great on a segway.
But, you know, Beckett, you don't have to decide right away.
Come on, Castle.
What are you saying? What am I gonna do, just sleep in every morning and screw around till the phone rings? - What kind of life is that? - Mine.
Sorry.
I just mean that you're with me now.
You don't have to work.
I don't need to work? Does that mean you're my sugar daddy? Oh.
Hold on.
That didn't come out-- actually, I'm still sleep-talking.
I can't really be held responsible for whatever I say.
Even when you're fighting, you two are super cute.
(Sighs) Pi.
Morning, Mr.
c.
, Mrs.
C.
-To-be.
Hey, uh, do you mind if I borrow a razor? Alexis gets all fired up when I shave with the one she uses for her legs.
- Under the sink.
- Yep.
Cool.
- Why is he still sleeping on your couch? - I don't know.
Good morning, darlings.
- Doesn't anyone knock? - Door was open.
Don't be an old maid.
Nothing going on here that I haven't seen and done before.
So how can I help you, mother? As you know, my studio is being painted, so I am having my stage combat class in the living room in-- whoo-hoo--15 minutes, so, please, feel free to join.
Triple blade razors! Nice, Mr.
C.
! You know what? I think I'm gonna sleep at my old place tonight.
- I think I might join you.
- What is this, a house meeting? - No.
- No.
Captain Gates is on the phone.
She's asking for you, dad.
Hello? Thanks for coming, Mr.
Castle.
You, too, Beckett.
Mm-hmm.
Again, I'm sorry your reinstatement didn't work out.
Yeah.
Thanks.
So what do we got? Angelo Vázquez, stabbed to death in his girlfriend's apartment, and this is Mr.
Vázquez.
And you are calling on my expertise to unmask the killer.
No.
Actually, we've already I.
D.
'D the suspect.
She's the victim's girlfriend-- Emma Riggs.
- How do you know it's her? - Because she fled from the scene and took hostages in a dental office up the street.
Oh, okay.
So this involves me how? Hostage negotiators have been trying to talk to Emma, but she's demanding to speak to only you, Mr.
Castle.
- Me? Why me? - We were hoping you could tell us.
Is she familiar to you? Uh I've never seen her before.
What do we know about her? Not much so far.
Emma Riggs, 31, waitress, no record-- at least until now.
Sergeant? This is sergeant Roman from the hostage negotiating team.
Richard Castle and Kate Beckett.
Deputy Chief.
Excuse me.
Mr.
Castle, are you open to talking to Emma - over the phone? - Yeah, of course.
Anything I can do to help.
So what's the situation inside? It's not ideal for our purposes.
The windows in the office are covered, and there's only one door leading in or out.
Can't you just drill in fiber optics? Cement's too thick.
But we have ascertained that she's taken five hostages-- the dentist-- Dr.
Abe kogan, his receptionist-- sue Williams, and suki chung, who's 9 years old, and suki's mother Lisa.
There's a 9-year-old in there? But what if I say the wrong thing? I'll be with you the whole time.
We'll make contact, see how everyone's doing, take Emma's temperature, find out what she wants.
And then we'll put a plan together.
All you have to do is talk.
Well, if there's one thing you excel at, Castle, it's talking.
You ready? No, but let's do this anyway.
- Hello.
- Hello, Emma.
This is Richard Castle.
I heard you wanted to speak with me.
How do I know it's really you? Uh, well, if you care to step outside, - I'd be happy to show you my driver's license.
- Yeah.
That's not gonna happen.
Okay, you say you're Richard Castle? You're gonna have to prove it, all right? In the "Nikki heat" series, - what's rook and Nikki's wine of choice? - Sancerre.
In "deadly heat," what's Douglas sandmann's nickname? Bedbug Doug.
In "storm rising," what's Pierre Dubois' last words? Trick question.
Pierre was a trappist monk.
He took a vow of silence.
He never spoke.
Boom! Believe it's me now, Emma? Because I could play Richard Castle trivia with you all day.
I will crush you.
Okay.
It's you.
- So let me ask you a few questions.
- No, no, no, no, no, no.
Not on the phone.
The cops are listening.
So? So I don't trust them, okay? Just come inside the dental office and we can talk here.
You've got to be kidding.
Hey! Shut up! - Uh, look, Emma-- - we need to speak face-to-face.
Do you hear me? It is the only way.
Okay, but only if you send out suki and her mother.
Deal? Deal.
Be outside in five minutes.
God, Castle, what the hell were you thinking? I have no idea.
Honestly, I didn't think she would take the deal, but, look, she's a fan.
Okay? I know my fans.
She won't hurt me.
You don't know that.
I'm not blind to the risks, but I already got her to give up a little girl and her mother.
I can reach her.
Right? Maybe even get her to surrender? So let me go in.
The goal is to get in and get out, you understand? Get her demands, check the status of the hostages, and make mental notes of where everyone is.
That'll help us if we have to breach.
- You with me so far? - Demands, status, mental notes--got it.
And if anything-- and I mean anything-- seems off, tell Emma you have to call us.
Tell her it's to make sure that we're not gonna - do anything stupid, okay? - Okay.
So we're gonna need a code word that tells us that you need help.
What, uh, what's your favorite food? Oh.
Um are we talking everyday food, or fine dining? - If desserts are included-- - cheeseburgers.
- He loves cheeseburgers.
- I do enjoy a good cheeseburger.
Okay.
Anything goes wrong, call, mention cheeseburgers, and we'll come running.
Good luck in there.
Thank you.
Cheeseburgers.
Listen I'm kinda looking forward to spending the rest of my life with you, so Don't do anything stupid in there, okay? Hey, don't worry.
I think I already hit my "stupid" quota for the day.
My God.
It really is you.
So we have a deal? Come on.
Come on! Let's go, come in! - How you guys doing? - How the hell you think we're doing? Hey! I told you to shut up! Okay--Emma--Emma, easy! I'm here now, all right? So let's talk.
You want to tell me your demands? What do you mean, demands? Uh, money, transportation outta here? No, no, I-I don't-- I don't want any of that.
Okay, then what do you want? You.
I just-- I just want you.
You want me? My boyfriend is dead.
And I know what it looks like.
I do.
I kn I it.
It looks like I killed him.
- But I didn't kill him.
I didn't.
- Uh-huh.
- Shut up! - Emma, please.
Stay calm.
I know what you're capable of, Richard Castle, how you solve murders.
You want demands? Okay.
I want you to prove my innocence.
- So she wants you to prove her innocence? - Right.
So I hate to break it to you, but I don't think this is going to be a traditional hostage negotiation.
Why you? She's read all my books, all those articles about you and I working homicides together.
So she's your number-one fan and this is some sort of hail Mary? Pretty much.
So look, I think we should-- don't tell them anything else.
Why? Because they're cops.
Are you okay in there, Mr.
Castle? Yeah, I'm fine.
I'm just-- I'm just gonna talk to her, and then I'll call you back.
Are you sure? Yes.
No cheeseburgers.
I repeat-- no cheeseburgers.
Cutting down on red meat.
- So what do we do now? - We wait.
But I-- but what? Sir? Excuse me.
Yeah.
What are you thinking? - Sir, are you sure that this woman doesn't have a record? - Why? Because she seems to have a deep mistrust of the police.
Well, obviously, there's more to it than what's in the system.
Look, I know I'm not on the job anymore, but-- you want to work the crime scene.
It can't hurt to have an extra pair of eyes.
And the more we find out about Emma, the better chance we'll have of getting Castle and the hostages-- go.
All right, Emma.
So you didn't kill your boyfriend.
Let's figure out who did.
As you know, all my stories start in the same place-- in the beginning.
So tell me what happened.
I got home late last night.
Why did you get home late? Well, after work, I-I-- I, um, I bought a dress.
Because today's my birthday.
Um Angelo was, uh, was gonna take me out to dinner tonight.
He worked out some sort of surprise.
Said it'd be a birthday I'd never forget, so Any idea what the surprise was? A marriage proposal.
At least I was-- that's what I was hoping.
That's why I bought the dress, even though I couldn't afford it.
Just stupid, huh? No.
Not at all.
So you have your dress, and When I got home, I, um, I poured my nightly two fingers of scotch.
Scotch girl? Me, too.
Boy.
And then what happened? When I woke up in the morning, I I found angelo on the floor, dead.
There was so much blood.
It was But I don't--I don't-- I don't know what happened.
I, um I don't even know why angelo was at my apartment in the first place.
- Well, what did you do? - I-I panicked.
Tried to get out of there, and the-- the cops came, and Here I am.
Yeah, holding us at gunpoint.
Talk about a psycho girlfriend.
- What did you say?! - Are you trying to get us killed? Okay, okay.
Emma, relax.
Ignore him.
Just focus on me, all right? Did angelo have a key to your place? Yes.
But you didn't make any plans for him to come over last night? No.
How were things going in the relationship? No problems? Mnh-mnh.
None.
How much scotch did you have? One glass.
The--the two fingers.
Okay.
I'm gonna need you to walk me through this again.
Girl, what are you doing here? Uh, Captain Gates said that I could come.
That's not what I meant.
Shouldn't you be off looking at wedding venues or something? No, we haven't even set a date.
We're just trying to enjoy our engagement.
Why is everyone trying to rush us? Think you're being rushed now, wait until after the wedding.
Not ten minutes from the altar, they'll all be like, "when are you two having a baby?" Bro, your wife's hormonal because she's pregnant.
What's your excuse? So I take it this is Emma's boyfriend? He was, until she stabbed him three times with a knife From the kitchen butcher block.
Emma's claiming that she's innocent.
Is there any chance that someone else did this? No foreign fibers or prints.
All evidence is pointing towards Emma.
- Any ideas on motive? - Oh, yeah.
This is angelo's cell phone.
Check out the text history between him and Emma.
She was accusing him of having an affair with some chick up in scarsdale.
And we found this in angelo's pocket.
"S.
H.
Off saw mill river parkway.
" Saw mill river parkway is the way to scarsdale from the city.
"S.
H.
" Could be the initials of the lady he was seeing on the side.
A-and listen to this-- Emma texts angelo last night at 9:47 saying she's drunk, lonely, and wants to see him.
And here is an empty bottle of scotch.
Ladies and gentlemen, this is a Booty call gone wrong.
None of this makes any sense.
I mean, if she actually killed him, then why isn't she asking for a flight out of the country? Why is she insisting that she's innocent? Uh, maybe because she's crazy.
I found Emma's prescriptions-- clonazepam and aripiprazole.
Lanie, aren't those antipsychotics? One is, the other one's for mood disorders.
Hey, you know, if Emma stopped taking her meds, she could have had a psychotic break.
Which means she wouldn't remember what she did.
We have to warn Castle.
Beckett, relax.
He's just on the phone with the woman.
No.
He went in.
Uh-huh.
Okay.
Let me call you back.
Did detective Beckett find anything? Emma, I can't help you if you're not honest with me.
But I have been honest.
You said everything between you and angelo was all right.
Yeah, it was.
So you didn't suspect him of cheating? No, it--it's just that he kept going up to scarsdale without saying why.
I-I'm sure it was nothing.
Are you? Or could it be that you wanted to confront him? And maybe that's why you texted angelo last night and invited him over.
What are you talking about? Look at your phone, Emma.
Wait, I don't No, I don't remember writing these texts.
Just because you don't remember doesn't mean you didn't.
Just like you only remember having one glass of scotch.
But what if you had more? They found your scotch bottle, Emma.
It was empty.
I-I didn't finish the bottle.
- Maybe you did, and you just can't remember.
- That is ridiculous! Uh, um, a-actually, it's not.
If someone's had too much to drink, they can suffer what's called an en bloc blackout.
It prevents the brain from creating new memories.
Emma, you wanted me To uncover the truth.
No.
Not you.
Please don't tell me that you don't believe me.
I didn't kill angelo, okay? I mean, I-I wanted to marry him.
I wouldn't do this! Oh, God.
Huh.
What? How do you text "love you"? What do you mean? When you write "love you," how do you spell it? Do a sideways heart and the letter "u.
" Right, except for last night, when you just spelled it out-- "love you.
" No.
Mnh-mnh.
I never spell it out.
And the voice in those texts from last night-- it's--it's different from the others.
As if somebody else wrote them? Maybe.
I don't know.
Well, if I didn't write these, that means that somebody else did, right? Which means the killer used my phone! You have to dust this for prints.
Come on.
Come on.
You have to find the killer.
- Wait, what? - You're not leaving us, are you? No.
I-I'm gonna get you outta here.
Like hell you are.
Look, if you or the cops aren't gonna do anything, I sure as hell am.
Shut up! What are you waiting for? Come on! Just go, okay? Mickey, don't do anything.
Please.
Castle! Mr.
Castle, what happened? What is going on in there? We got problems.
Emma is unstable, to say the least.
But that's not the worst of it.
There's a hostage in there-- he's seen "die hard" too many times.
He's gonna try and be a hero.
- And there's something else I think you need to know.
- What's that? Emma might actually be telling the truth.
The truth about what? Beckett, I think she's being framed for murder.
But what if Emma is right? What if someone else wrote those texts and this is all just an elaborate frame-up, and Emma's just a patsy? Syntax, bro? You're gonna base Emma's innocence on how she writes her texts? I'm just saying, it's possible.
Look, if we found d.
N.
A.
Or prints or fibers at the crime scene, maybe.
Sully, we get any usable prints off Emma's cell phone? No, but even if we did, how could someone else have pulled this off? To use her phone without her knowing, Emma would have had to have been unconscious, so someone could have knocked her out.
She has a scotch every night.
Someone could have dosed her bottle.
Or maybe she's just some crazed fan, like Kathy bates in "misery.
" You should be happy you didn't get hobbled.
Right? Okay.
This is your investigation.
Keep running the case on ea.
A.
But, captain, I'm-- let me finish.
Look, Mr.
Castle, over the years, I have learned not to discount your little theories, no matter how fanciful.
So why don't you and Beckett work with detective Sully, and let's see if there's something to this? - Thank you, sir.
- Thank you.
So, where do we start? By looking into our victim-- Angelo Vázquez.
Everything here tells the same story.
Angelo was a decent guy.
Ten years ago, after some petty b&es, he turned his life around.
He volunteered with at-risk youth, he was well-liked.
He had been recently laid off from his mechanic's job, but he was still upbeat.
There's nothing that explains who killed him or why, other than Emma.
Castle, you're forgetting about scarsdale.
You think Emma's suspicious are true, that he was having an affair? That some woman in scarsdale killed him? Well, something was going on in scarsdale.
Look at this.
Three nights ago, - a resident complained about angelo's car.
- Why? How does Sully find anything on this desk? I don't know.
He must have a system.
- I think that was once a bagel.
- Okay, you know what? Here we go.
A scarsdale resident on overlook road Reported angelo's license plate to the police.
He said the driver spent two hours drinking coffee alone in his car.
Two hours drinking coffee alone doesn't sound like much of an affair.
Yeah, but what was angelo up to? Beckett.
Hey, it's Sully.
There was nothing of interest at angelo's apartment, but his car is a whole other matter.
Get this.
Angelo had a duffel bag filled with tools of the burglar variety, a floor plan to what looks like a house And a manual for a ramco-4700 alarm system.
I don't think he was installing home security systems.
Angelo was out of work.
Do you think he went back to committing b&es? I only know one person with the answer to that question.
Okay, here's the plan.
Doc, act like you're having a seizure.
Excuse me? And then, sue, you squirt out a few tears, beg Emma to help him.
When she does, boom, I take her out, we end this, then we meet at the bar around the corner, and the first round's on me.
Are you out of your mind? That is the dumbest plan ever.
Fine, I'll do it by myself.
It's Castle.
Hey.
And I brought doughnuts.
Um gluten-free? Dude, they're doughnuts.
Either you're in or you're out.
You find out anything? Emma, what do you know about angelo's trips to scarsdale? Nothing.
He wouldn't tell me.
Is it possible he was there casing a house for a burglary? Wha--no.
That's ridiculous.
Do the initials "s.
H.
" Mean anything to you? Could someone from angelo's criminal past have come back? Look, that was all petty stuff when he was a kid, that's all.
Yes, but he wasn't a kid anymore.
The stakes were higher.
He was out of work.
He wanted to surprise you on your birthday, maybe propose.
What if he got into trouble trying to make that happen? Yo, Beckett.
Where's Castle? He's not in there, is he? - Why? - We found something.
Something about Emma.
Emma.
Let these people go.
It worked.
You got my attention.
There's hope now.
No.
Unh-unh.
Not until my name is cleared.
No.
- It's Beckett.
- Go.
(Beeps) Hey, Beckett.
Do not react to what I'm about to tell you.
Okay.
Emma has been playing you this whole time.
Interesting.
Can you elaborate? Angelo is not her first victim.
She's done this before.
She has a sealed juvie record under her original name-- Emma Jones.
When she was 16, she killed her foster brother Billy Koss.
Apparently, she got drunk, lured him into their basement, and then stabbed him with a knife.
Well, that's a coincidence.
Also known as an M.
O.
Castle, it's exactly what she did to angelo.
She's unstable.
You need to get out of there--now.
Don't say another word.
Hang up.
She told you about Billy Koss, didn't she? - Look, Emma - Back up! I am not a murderer.
Says the lady pointing a gun at me.
You weren't supposed to find out about Billy Koss.
I mean, what is the point of a sealed record when the cops can open it whenever they feel like it?! I'm sure they got a subpoena first.
And I'm sure they all had a laugh off all the adjectives describing me, right? Manic.
Bipolar.
Violent.
Murderer! Well, not to be a stickler, but "murderer" isn't an adjective.
I'm not an idiot.
Sorry.
I just get sarcastic when I'm nervous.
That's not what I was talking about.
Look, I knew what you were going to think.
Two deaths happening the exact same way? That's why I didn't tell you.
But I am innocent! I didn't kill angelo.
I didn't! If that's true, Emma, and you want me to help you, you have to tell me everything.
When I was 16, I was sent to this foster home.
Twin orphans lived there-- the Koss brothers.
Warren and Billy.
What happened? Those two bullied me for weeks.
Foster parents were in it for the money, so they didn't care.
But then one day, the twins were nice to me all of a sudden.
And I thought they, um I thought they'd finally accepted me, you know? So we We went down to the basement.
We drank schnapps, and then Billy pulled a knife on me.
I was just trying to stop him.
I didn't mean to And then when the cops came Warren lied.
He said I pulled the knife on them, and they just--they just took him at his word.
Which is why you hate cops.
But I didn't kill angelo.
I didn't.
You have to believe me.
I do, Emma.
I believe you.
But why were angelo and Billy's deaths staged exactly the same way? I have no idea.
I don't know.
It has to be someone who knew something about your past.
Yeah.
I mean, I guess so.
But who? Warren Koss.
What better way to get revenge for the death of his brother than by killing your boyfriend - and pinning the murder on you? - No, it's not Warren.
Warren's doing eight years up in sing sing for assault.
- You kept track of him? - Of course.
He's the reason why I changed my name.
I mean, I have been really careful about staying off of Warren's radar ever since he testified against me in court.
He almost got me thrown in prison for life.
If it wasn't for the sisters of St.
Helena's home for children, I-- whoa, whoa.
Go back.
- St.
Helena's home for children--where is that? - In yonkers.
The note we found in angelo's jacket said "S.
H.
Off saw mill river parkway.
" "S.
H.
" Has to be St.
Helena's.
Yonkers is off saw mill river parkway.
Somehow St.
Helena's is connected to this.
But I--how? I mean, I haven't been back there in years.
I spoke with sister frances at St.
Helena's.
She said that there was a break-in three nights ago.
And they have a ramco-4700 alarm.
Ramco-4700.
That's the manual Angelo had in his car.
Why would he break into my old orpnanage? We have a pretty good idea.
Sister frances checked the records room.
And Emma's sealed foster care file is missing.
Looks like angelo stole it.
- Why would he do that? - To find out something about you? No, I already told him everything about me.
Oh, God.
Guys, let me call you back.
You figured it out? I was given up for adoption when I was born.
Angelo knew I always wanted to find out where I came from.
And that file had your adoption papers with your birth parents' names.
I tried to get 'em in the past, but they were sealed.
That's the surprise angelo was gonna give you tonight At your birthday dinner.
The gift of knowing who your real parents are.
Watch out.
Stop it! Stop it! No! Listen-- Mickey! Drop it! All units, full breach! Go, go, go! God! Oh, my God! I just killed Richard Castle! Oh! Oh! N.
Y.
P.
D.
! Let me see your hands! It was her! It was her! It was her! Get him up! Get him up! - We're gonna need an E.
M.
T.
Right away! Let's go! - Castle! Castle! Cheeseburgers! Cheeseburgers.
Ow, it worked.
She dotted the "I"! Yeah! Chest! Ooh! - That hurts.
- Sorry.
Yeah, well, getting hit by a projectile traveling at 1,000 feet per second's gonna sting a bit.
Yeah, I think that's gonna leave a mark.
All that matters is you're okay now.
Oh, I'm better than okay, Beckett.
I know who the killer is.
She shot you in the chest, and you still think she's innocent? No, she shot me in the chest, and now I know she's innocent.
Thank you.
Don't you see? Just like that vest protected me, Emma's adoption papers-- they're protecting the killer.
You know that made no sense, right? I-I think what Castle is suggesting is that one of Emma's birth parents may be behind all of this.
That's why Angelo took those records-- to find her birth parents.
What if he found one of them? Perhaps living on overlook road in scarsdale.
But what if that birth parent didn't want to be found? What if Emma learning the truth was a threat somehow? Castle, that's just speculation.
And if you're right, we'll probably never know.
The killer's most likely destroyed the records by now.
Unless angelo hid them.
I mean, they were supposed to be a surprise.
Head back to Angelo's place.
We need to search it again.
You are aware that you don't actually work here anymore, right? I'm sorry.
Old habits.
Okay.
Uh, we'll grab Sully Go check again, just in case.
But not because you asked me to.
Okay.
'Cause I was actually on my way to Okay.
So let's suppose it is one of Emma's birth parents.
If Angelo's murder was a setup, then how would they know how to stage it? I mean, they gave her up for adoption, so how would they know about Emma's violent history? - Newspaper articles.
- No.
I checked.
Because she was a minor, her name was withheld.
So then our killer had to have had access to Emma's sealed juvie records.
And for that, you need a subpoena.
Looks like someone skipped that step.
Emma's sealed records were opened three days ago.
By who? Ah.
Julian Carter? Hi.
I'm detective Ryan.
This is Kate Beckett.
We're from the 12th.
Do you have a second to help us out with something? Sure.
What's up? The system tagged you for opening a file of an Emma Jones.
Yeah.
That's my job.
I open files, I close files.
Right now I'm filing files.
Is there a problem? I'm afraid so.
You see, it was a juvie file, and you didn't have the court's permission to unseal it.
Well, I sometimes forget to log out of my computer, so maybe somebody-- just stop it.
You've already lost your job.
Now the only question is whether you're losing your freedom, too, because I'm about two seconds away from arresting you for accessory to murder.
W-wait.
Wait.
Hold on.
You better start talking before he pulls out his cuffs.
Okay.
Okay.
Okay! From time to time, I slip information to a lawyer.
What kind of information? Rap sheets, witness statements, things like that.
What about with Emma? Three days ago, the lawyer called, said a client wanted all the information that the police had on Emma Riggs.
- What for? - He didn't say.
But when I told him that Emma had a juvie file under a different last name, he paid me an extra grand to unseal it.
What's the name of this lawyer? No, I'm having breakfast with the judge-- hi, Mr.
vance.
I'm detective Ryan.
Uh, he's a friend of a friend.
Yeah.
And then-- he's gonna need to call you back.
What is your problem? Actually, Mr.
Vance, I'm not the one with the problem.
- You are.
- Okay.
I'm listening.
On behalf of a client, you paid to have Emma Riggs' juvenile records unsealed.
Buying secured police files is illegal And grounds for disbarment.
I would never do that.
Really? Because I have an N.
Y.
P.
D.
Civilian employee who begs to differ.
He's willing to testify to it.
Detective, I'm not some ambulance chaser.
I'm a respected attorney at Kirkpatrick & Young.
So unless you have any real proof of those claims, good luck getting any court to take the word of a disgraced civilian employee.
Mr.
vance, you have a client who's mixed up in a homicide.
By withholding their name, you're obstructing justice.
Even if I wanted to, I can't disclose my client's name.
As you're well aware, that falls under privileged information.
Hey.
Oh, don't tell me we struck out on the lawyer.
Yeah, I'm afraid so.
So what do we do now? Come on, you guys.
If we don't figure this out, Emma is going away for life.
What about her scotch bottle? Did the lab report come back? Lanie just texted.
There's no evidence of any drugs or sedatives.
I'm sorry.
It looks like we're dead in the water.
No.
Far from it.
Guess what we found in Angelo's apartment.
Angelo's birthday present to Emma.
- I missed it before because it was wrapped.
- You wanna guess what's inside? - I was I was gonna have them guess.
- Oh, I didn't According to these adoption papers, Emma's birth mother was a woman named Stacy Moore.
She died ten years ago.
And her birth father is Espo, is this right? It's right.
Emma's dad is Aaron Stokes.
The real estate developer? Yeah.
He's considering taking a run at governor.
Yeah, and I wonder how the governor's mansion compares to his big house on overlook road in scarsdale.
And let me guess.
He's a client of Kirkpatrick & Young.
That's right.
Looks like Mr.
Stokes is gonna be trading in his big house for the Big house.
You ordered Aaron Stokes in for questioning? Are you serious? You told us to build our case, and Mr.
Stokes is where it went.
This is a very powerful man who happens to be golfing buddies with the police commissioner! So because he has a standing tee time with your boss, he gets away with murder? I'm handling the interview.
What-- what? No.
Sir! - This is our case.
- Yes, and it'll be your jobs if there's any blowback.
I am not gonna have you two risk your careers.
Captain I don't have a career to risk.
How about I back you up in there? Okay.
Captain, I, too, have no career to risk.
Why don't I-- maybe I should You know what I'm gonna do, is I'm gonna stay here.
I think you guys got this handled.
Why am I here? Do you know who I am? Why do you think you're in this room, Mr.
Stokes? A room with no recording devices.
Okay.
So what do you want from me? We know that while you were married to your wife You were having an affair with Stacy Moore that produced a baby girl.
Her name is Emma Riggs.
Have you been in touch with her, Mr.
Stokes? No, I've--I've never seen her before.
What about her boyfriend? Angelo Vázquez.
Have you been in touch with him? No.
Is Emma in trouble? Well, you could say that.
She's under arrest for murdering Angelo.
But don't worry.
We know that she's being framed for that murder.
Who's framing her? Did you know that Angelo stole her adoption records from St.
Helena's home for children? St.
Helena's? Stacy and I went there to make the arrangements.
What was I supposed to do, tell my wife I was having a baby with another woman? and not a day has gone by where I haven't said to myself, "I should try to find her.
" And not a day has gone by where I haven't then said, "no, no Maybe tomorrow.
" It's her birthday.
You still haven't answered my question.
Did you know that Angelo stole those adoption records? What are you two getting at? Look at it from our perspective, Mr.
Stokes.
The last thing you need right now is for some love child to emerge and destroy your marriage and any chance of running for public office.
Are you suggesting that I had something to do with this? We know that angelo showed up at your home three days ago.
Did you meet him then? I was in Chicago three days ago.
If that is true, then why did you pay to unseal Emma's juvenile record? Where are you getting this? From your lawyer, Mr.
Stokes.
What lawyer? Okay, this is borderline police harassment.
If you continue to hold me here against my will, you either need to-- just wait.
Before you get all lawyer-y, we already know everything.
Starting with you being Aaron Stokes' son-in-law.
So? So when your in-laws were out of town, you were staying in their scarsdale house.
So when Angelo went to go look for Mr.
Stokes, he met you instead.
That's when he told you the story about Mr.
Stokes' long-lost daughter Emma.
L-look.
Yes, I stayed at my father-in-law's house, but I've never seen this guy before in my life.
Are you sure? Because Well, this is security footage From inside Angelo's apartment building taken about an hour after his death down at Emma's place.
Now wait a minute.
Who who is that? That That's you.
Using Angelo's keys to get in.
How'd you get those? Now I can only think of one reason that you'd break into in his, uh, apartment, and that would be to find Emma's adoption records to cover up any link back to your family.
Now according to this video, you were inside that apartment searching for a good two hours.
Damn You didn't think to look At the wrapped gift for Emma, did you? Oops.
Her adoption records.
Up until then, your plan was going perfectly.
You spiked Emma's scotch bottle with knockout drops and you swapped it out for an empty one.
Th-that was pretty clever.
But not so clever to throw the dosed bottle away at your house.
Yeah.
We found the bottle in your recycle bin.
It tested positive for chloral hydrate.
Oops again.
All of this is circumstantial.
I mean, what could possibly be my motive? Oh, your father-in-law helped us out with that one.
Your law firm represents the stokeses.
Now you knew that they were about to transfer a majority of their wealth into a trust for their daughter-- your wife.
And you didn't want some little orphan Annie coming around, making a claim for half.
That's when you decided to kill the one man who knew the truth and frame it on the unknowing heir.
There's just one thing that we're not so sure about.
Are you gonna make a deal and plea to murder? Or you gonna take your chances in court? Do lawyers have lawyers? Emma? He confessed.
It's over.
Bullet.
Sorry.
Sorry.
Um, I hope you don't mind, but someone wants to meet you.
I'm Aaron.
Emma.
Happy Birthday.
Well Nice having you back.
Oh, it was nice to be back, even if it was just for one day.
Mr.
Stokes.
What can we do for you? Earlier, you two were only doing your jobs, but I assumed the worst, and I'm sorry.
- Well, how are you doing? - Not really sure.
But I do know this.
I am going to be there for Emma this time.
No matter what happens at her trial, she's not going to be alone.
Well, I should leave the both of you to your work.
Captain, thank you for everything.
You, too, detective.
Uh, actually, I'm not a detective, but But your golfing buddy's budget cuts have gotten in the way.
Really? And to think you boys mocked me when I had this made four years ago.
I think I'll have it framed.
Hey, what does it say about your writing when your number-one fan tries to kill you? That was an accident.
Been one inch higher, it would have been a tragedy.
But on the bright side, your autographed copies of "deadly heat" would be worth way more.
Not funny, castle.
Little bit funny.
You know, Beckett, despite your fiancé's near-death, - today was fun.
- Yeah.
We miss working with you.
Good.
'Cause I'm back.
- What? - What hap--what-- what about the commissioner's hiring freeze? Mr.
Stokes had a conversation with the commissioner, and apparently he found some money.
So you are back.
Which means I'm back.
Am--am I back? Yes.
Captain Gates said that you can serve as a consultant again.
But how does that-- because now we're in a-- so do we have to hide our relationship, - to keep it a secret? - Uh, well, the commissioner is aware of it and said that it's okay as long as we behave professionally in the workplace, and captain gates said that that can be our engagement gift.
Hey, everybody, listen up.
Beckett is back! Beckett's back! And tonight at the old haunt, drinks are on the house! All right! - Congratulations.
- Thank you.
Uh--whoa! Actually, no, we can't, not here.
It's, uh, inappropriate.
This is the workplace.
- We gotta be professional.
-Uh, well, you know, I'm not officially back until tomorrow.
I see.