[Captain's Office]
Kate knocked once and stepped inside without waiting for an answer. Captain Montgomery stood near the window with his hands on his hips, staring out at the city.
He glanced back at her. "To think that the husband was the killer."
Kate closed the door behind her and walked toward his desk. "He confessed everything. Extraction method, antidote, backup plan with the vitamins. He laid it all out."
Montgomery exhaled slowly and sank into his chair. He rubbed his jaw like he was trying to grind the frustration out of it.
"The things some people do in the name of pride as a man," he muttered. "He wanted to be seen and take care of his family. That part I understand. Every man wants that. But all he wanted was money and the illusion of control."
Kate folded her arms loosely across her chest. "He said he felt small and always lived in her shadow."
Montgomery snorted softly. "Lots of people feel small. They do not go poisoning their wives with lab-grade toxins to feel taller."
Kate nodded once. "He kept the plant after the lab shut down. Told himself it was a souvenir. That was the moment he crossed the line in his head. Everything after that was just math and resentment."
Montgomery leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling for a second. "Three people died in that greenhouse explosion. He walked away from that and still chose to use the same poison on someone who trusted him. That tells you everything you need to know about what kind of man he is."
There was a moment of silence.
"So, how is our new detective doing?" He asked with a curious expression.
Kate took the chair across from Montgomery and leaned forward a little. She kept her tone even but let the respect show through clearly.
"Travis is doing more than just holding his own," she said. "He has been instrumental in both major cases we closed since he joined the team. His instincts are sharp, and he spots patterns most people miss. Each one wrapped up in a single day because he cut straight to the key details that would have taken us much longer to find on our own."
Montgomery raised an eyebrow and gave a slow nod. He looked interested now instead of tired.
"Single day on both," he repeated. "That is impressive for someone fresh off desk duty."
Kate continued without missing a beat. "He brings experience from deep cover that translates directly to homicide work. The way he reads motives, timelines, and physical evidence saves hours of chasing dead ends. We have a stack of cold cases sitting in the files that have been gathering dust for months or even years. If we pull him in on some of those, his fresh perspective could move things forward fast."
Montgomery sat up straighter and tapped a finger on the desk. A small smile started at the corner of his mouth.
"That is a great idea," he said. "If the solve rate climbs even a little, the numbers will shine in the inspection reports. Higher clearance percentage looks good on paper, and the brass pays attention to numbers like that. We might actually see a budget bump this year instead of the usual flatline. And who knows, a few solid wins could push through raises for the whole squad."
He paused and looked toward the bullpen through the glass.
Montgomery continued. "We can start assigning him to the older files right away. Pick the ones with the strongest physical evidence or witness statements that never quite lined up. Let him dig in and see what he pulls out."
Kate stood up and gave a quick nod.
"I will get him started on a couple tomorrow morning," she said.
Montgomery nodded.
"Good. Keep me posted on progress. And tell him I said nice work on the poison case. The department needs more wins like that."
...
[Outside]
The bullpen had quieted down for the evening, with most of the day shift gone home and the night crew scattered at their desks. A few fluorescent lights stayed on over the case board, casting long shadows across the floor. Espo and Ryan had dragged chairs over to Travis's desk, forming a loose semicircle. Castle sat on the edge of the desk, legs swinging slightly, already holding a fresh coffee like he expected the story to last until sunrise.
Travis leaned back in his chair, arms crossed loosely over his chest. He had loosened his tie earlier and rolled up his sleeves, revealing the faint scars that ran along his forearms from years nobody asked about anymore. The panda clock blinked its blue eyes steadily beside his monitor.
Castle broke the silence first. "Come on. You cannot drop a line about cartel ghosts and then clam up. Spill it. What happened three months into your undercover run?"
Travis gave a small, tired smile that did not quite reach his eyes. He glanced around the circle once, making sure nobody else was close enough to overhear, then started talking in a low, steady voice.
"Three months in, I had earned the crew's trust to handle small jobs. I moved products from one stash house to another in the Bronx. One night, I got a call to pick up a package at an old theater on Fordham Road. The building had been closed for years, with boards on the windows and graffiti everywhere. The boss told me to go alone because the regular guy called in sick. I entered through the side door, holding a flashlight in one hand and a gun in the other. Inside, it was completely dark except for a single spotlight on the stage."
Ryan leaned forward. "Classic horror movie setup."
Travis nodded. "Exactly. I step onto the stage and the spotlight snaps off. It was total darkness. Then I hear footsteps circling me, slowly... the creak of floorboards..."
Castle's mouth went dry as he looked very serious.
"I turned around, gun up, but nobody was there. But I'm pretty sure I heard the footsteps. Then I heard a laugh from the balcony. It was a woman. I pointed my light up and saw a floating white mask, without a body. It disappeared the moment the light hit it."
Castle's eyes went wide. "Floating mask. Please continue."
Travis kept going without breaking rhythm. "I backed toward the exit. I could hear my heart hammering like crazy. Then something cold brushed my shoulder quickly. I turned and shot once into the dark. The bullet hit wood, and sparks flew. Then all the lights turned on suddenly, blinding me. The stage was empty. There were no footprints, no shell casings, nothing. Just me, sweating through my shirt with my gun still smoking. I ran out of there fast and told the crew the drop was clean. They laugh it off, say the place is haunted. I started thinking maybe they are right. Maybe the ghosts really do run the Bronx."
Esposito chuckled low in his throat. "You actually believed in ghosts?"
"For about forty-eight hours," Travis admitted. "I could not sleep. Every shadow looked like it had eyes."
Ryan looked at Castle. "What do you think, Castle?"
Castle leaned forward slowly, eyes bright like someone just handed him the best bedtime story in Manhattan.
"Oh, I absolutely think that place was haunted," he said, lowering his voice for dramatic effect. "Old theaters are basically emotional storage units. All that applause, all that jealousy, all those broken dreams, it sticks to the walls. Especially if someone died there."
Esposito groaned. "Here we go."
Castle ignored him completely and pointed at Travis like a professor calling on a student.
"Picture this. 1928. The theater is brand new, with velvet curtains, packed every night. There is a rising star actress headlining the biggest show in the Bronx. Beautiful, talented, adored by everyone except one person."
Ryan folded his arms, clearly entertained. "Let me guess. A jealous co-star."
Castle snapped his fingers. "Exactly. A jealous understudy who thinks the role should have been hers. Opening night, tension backstage is thick enough to slice with a prop dagger. During the final act, the lead actress steps into that spotlight you described. The same spotlight. The audience goes silent."
He paused and widened his eyes.
"Then she collapses right there on the stage. Poisoned. Maybe something slipped into her tea. Maybe powder in her makeup. The crowd thinks it is part of the performance until the curtain falls and she does not get up."
Esposito rubbed his face. "You are making this up."
"Of course, I am making it up," Castle replied. "That is how imagination works. But who can say that there isn't any truth to what I'm saying? So, stay with me."
He shifted on the desk and leaned closer to Travis.
"They cover it up. Theater investors do not want scandal. The understudy takes over the role within a week and becomes a star. Meanwhile, the original actress is buried quietly and forgotten by the world. Except she does not forget. She loved that stage. It was her life. Her spotlight."
Ryan tilted his head. "So now she haunts drug dealers for fun?"
Castle grinned. "Not for fun. For revenge. Anyone who steps onto her stage without earning it gets a reminder. Lights flicker, footsteps circle in the dark and a floating mask from the prop room glides across the balcony like it has a mind of its own."
He pointed at Travis again.
"You walked right into her territory while carrying illegal cargo. She probably thought you were another criminal using her sacred space for shady business. So she gave you a warning. Cold brush on the shoulder. Little laugh from the balcony. One free scare to get you out of her theater."
Travis raised an eyebrow but did not interrupt.
Castle continued, warming up now.
"And here is the best part. You fired a shot into the dark. You challenged the ghost. She turns on all the lights to show you that the stage is empty. That is her way of saying she could have done worse if she wanted to. Instead, she let you leave with nothing but a story and a bruised ego."
Esposito shook his head slowly. "You turned an abandoned building with bad wiring into Broadway Phantom."
Castle looked offended. "Bad wiring does not laugh from the balcony. Faulty circuits do not brush your shoulder like an icy finger."
Ryan smirked. "Draft from a broken window might."
Castle waved him off. "You are all missing the emotional weight here. The ghost was not trying to hurt him. She was protecting her stage. Travis survived because deep down she sensed he did not belong with those criminals."
Kate stepped out of the office and walked to the group. "So, what are you guys whispering about?"
Travis did not even hesitate.
"Ghost in a theater," he said, leaning back in his chair like this was a perfectly reasonable topic for a homicide bullpen at night. "It's an old place on Fordham Road. The spotlight turned off by itself. I heard footsteps around me in the dark and saw a floating white mask on the balcony. Then, I felt a cold hand on my shoulder... Whole production."
Kate blinked once. Then she looked at Castle.
Castle slowly raised both hands like he had been caught encouraging a bad influence. "In my defense, I only provided historical context and emotional motivation for the spirit." He turned toward Travis and asked, "Can I use this as a context for my new book?"
"Go ahead," Travis nodded.
Ryan pointed at Travis. "He says he heard a woman laugh from the balcony."
Esposito added, "And then the lights snapped on like the place was putting on a show just for him."
Kate looked back at Travis, one eyebrow climbing higher than the other. "You're serious."
"For about forty-eight hours, yeah," Travis admitted. "I was running on no sleep, living with cartel guys who thought burning sage solved everything. You spend enough nights in abandoned buildings and your brain starts filling in the blanks for you."
Castle leaned forward, eyes bright again. "He challenged the ghost, Kate. Fired a shot into the darkness. That is classic third-act escalation."
Kate crossed her arms and stared at him. "Really. You believe in ghosts."
Castle put a hand to his chest as if she had insulted him. "I believe in possibilities. Also in very drafty old theaters with dramatic lighting potential."
Ryan asked Travis, "So, you ever gone back there to check things out?"
"Oh, yeah," Travis nodded. "I went back on the third day and..."
The panda clock started beeping. It was 7 PM and he got a date tonight with Lanie.
Travis looked at it, then at his watch, and let out a quiet breath.
"Seven already," he said. "I've got somewhere to be."
Castle moved so fast, his coffee nearly sloshed over the rim.
"Whoa, whoa, no. You cannot do that. You do not get to drop haunted theater lore on a homicide bullpen and then casually check your watch like you just remembered you left the stove on."
Travis slipped his arms into his coat and grabbed his bag from under the desk.
"I just did."
Ryan leaned back in his chair and pointed at him. "You said you went back on the third day. That's the part where we get answers."
Esposito nodded. "Yeah. Did you find wires? Hidden speakers? Some punk kid with a Halloween projector?"
Castle stepped in front of Travis like a dramatic roadblock. "Please tell me. I won't be able to sleep unless I know exactly what you found."
Travis adjusted his collar and tried not to smile. He was already walking toward the elevator.
Castle, Ryan, and Espo followed him.
Castle asked. "What happened when you went back?"
"I walked in during the afternoon. Sunlight coming through the broken boards."
"And?"
"And I found something," Travis said.
Ryan and Esposito narrowed their eyebrows at the same time.
Castle pointed at him like he was accusing a suspect. "There it is. I knew it. Hidden trapdoor. Old stage rigging. Some cartel prank to test your nerves. Tell me it was a cartel prank."
"Maybe," Travis shrugged.
Castle groaned. "Maybe is not an answer."
"Did you find footprints?" Ryan asked.
"Speaker system?" Esposito added.
Castle kept going. "Tell me you at least found the mask. Please tell me there was a physical mask and not just ghost couture."
Travis pressed the elevator button and turned around to face them. The faintest grin tugged at the corner of his mouth.
"I found something that blew my mind," he said.
Castle threw his hands up. "That is worse than saying nothing."
The elevator doors slid open with a soft ding.
"You cannot leave us hanging like that," Castle insisted. "What happened? Did you find something real? I'll pay you a thousand bucks for the story."
Travis stepped inside and turned to face them, one hand resting casually on the door frame.
He smiled.
"Maybe another time, Castle."
The doors began to close.
Castle lunged forward a half step. "This is emotional sabotage."
Travis's voice drifted out just before the doors met.
"Goodnight, guys."
The doors shut.
Castle stood there staring at his own reflection in the metal.
"That man is doing this on purpose," he muttered.
Ryan chuckled. "You walked right into it."
Esposito clapped Castle on the shoulder. "Think of it this way. Now you have material for at least three chapters of suspense."
Castle shook his head slowly, already reaching for his phone to jot something down.
"Oh, I am absolutely writing that ghost," he said. "And in my version, the spotlight comes back on by itself at the end."
"Aren't you even a little bit curious?" Ryan asked, looking back at Kate, who was at her desk, filing the final report.
Kate smiled as she said, "No."
"She knows something," Espo whispered beside Castle.
"Yeah," Ryan nodded. "Look at that smile. She definitely knows something."
Castle instantly ran over to her, dragged a chair and sat beside her. He gave his signature grin.
"Wipe that grin off your face, Castle," Kate replied.
"Give me something, I'm begging you," Castle said, wiping off his grin.
"Well, it's not my place to reveal classified information related to another detective. So, sorry," Kate replied, already typing the report.
Castle looked really disappointed. Kate stopped for a moment and looked at him.
"Maybe you can go to the theatre and experience it yourself. Why don't you take Ryan and Esposito? I'm sure it'd be a fun night," Kate said, looking really amused.
Castle looked back at the duo. He looked as if he was really considering Kate's words.
"Hey, guys!" He stood up.
"I think I left my garage door open," Ryan turned back and walked straight to is desk.
"I got a date tonight, gotta go," Espo said as he quickly walked to his desk.
Find me in the link below for advance chapters: https://unknownmaster.carrd.co/
[24 advance chs] + [Modern Family: 12 chs Early access]