Castle (2009–2016): Season 8, Episode 4 - What Lies Beneath - full transcript

O lord...

Am I on the right path?

If so, please...

give me a sign.

Nothing worse than bad coffee.

Martha? Is everything okay?

You tell me, kiddo.

Last time we were together,
you and Richard were,

uh, "ha ha," you know?

And now,
just a few short weeks later,

you and Richard are, uh
"pfft," you know?

It's complicated.

Mm.

So were his last two divorces.

Oh, God. Martha,
we're not getting a divorce.

Well, call me old-fashioned,

but don't married couples
live together?

Yes, but i-it's complicated,

and... and I'm working through
a few things.

Richard told me that...

right before he declared
he was going to win you back.

Look, as you know,
my son is a lot of things...

some of them good,
some of them not so good.

But he is someone
you can always count on.

And that is a rare thing, kiddo.

Beckett.

Uh, yeah.

All right.
I'll have detectives respond.

Uh, Martha, I'm sorry.
Uh, there's a murder, and...

Katherine, darling...

Look, be honest with yourself

and be honest with your husband.

Man, I thought
the second kid would be cheaper.

But Jenny...
she wants all new stuff.

You should see the baby stroller
that she picked out.

Seriously, I might have to get
a second full-time job.

Or you can make more money
from your first job.

What, like overtime?

No... promotion.

Sergeant's exam is in a week.
Let's take it.

A week?! When are we
gonna have time to study?

How hard can it be?

Sergeant Wilkie passed,

and he's, like, a chromosome
away from a neanderthal.

Maybe you're right.

Okay, I'll call 1PP, sign us both up.

Good morning.

Allow me the pleasure
of introducing you

to Dave Johnson, 52,
single GSW to the sternum.

Killer popped him
while he was praying.

What? Did you guys
rehearse that?

Former altar boys.

Yeah. Probably an involuntary
reflex or something.

Wound suggests he was shot

between 8:00 and 11:00 p.m.
last night.

Kind of late for a church to be
open to the public, isn't it?

It wasn't...
the sisters of the parish

said the place was locked
at 6:00,

but discovered this morning

that the front door
had been jimmied.

So, what... Dave and the killer
broke in together?

Doubt it... evidence shows

that the killer snuck in
and shot Dave from behind

what was a decorative
stained-glass window for prayer.

Ah.

Really?!

What is going on here?

Father, did you know Dave Johnson?

Oh, yes.
He was a faithful parishioner.

Do you have any idea

what Dave was doing
at the church last night?

Not a clue.

Perhaps his wife knows.

Have you spoken to Wendy?

No. We haven't notified her yet.

But what can you tell us
about Dave?

Did... did he have any enemies?

Oh, no.

He was a good man,
a loving husband,

and arguably
one of the greatest...

Greatest what?

Well, it's going to come out
sooner or later.

Dave was one
of the greatest novelists

of the last 50 years.

Dave Johnson?

Uh, I've never heard of him, father.

That's because
he wrote under a pseudonym.

Dad? Did you hear?

Dad?

It's my pony! You can't pet it!

Your pony?

What? Hey.

What's up?

P.J. Moffet's dead.

P.J. Moffet was
one of my literary heroes.

Mine too.

Remember, I wrote that paper
about him in eighth grade.

Every author dreams of writing
the great American novel,

but P.J. Moffet actually did it.

On his first try, too...
"The Butcherbird's Song."

And in 25 years,
he never wrote another word.

Just one book, then he
disappeared from public life.

According to Twitter,

he was murdered at St. Mark's on 3rd.

That's wonderful.

Dad, a little respect
for the dead.

Not wonderful
that he was murdered...

wonderful where he was murdered.

St. Mark's...

that's in the jurisdiction
of the 12th precinct,

and I am an expert
on all things P.J. Moffet.

So you're still going with
the "win Beckett back

by working homicides
with her" plan?

That's how I got her to
fall for me the first time...

that and... when I kiss her,
I use the bottom...

Dad, when it comes
to your sex life, how about

we stick with the
"afterschool special" version?

That's fair.

Okay, so, what's going to be

your way into the case
this time?

Well, all I need is, uh...

a client.

You guys, Lanie called.

No usable prints
from the crime scene,

and no hits off ballistics.

Yo, "The Butcherbird Song"
is still a popular novel, right?

I mean, it's 25 years old,

but our victim should still be
getting huge royalty checks.

Yeah. It's required reading
in most high schools.

Then why was he living
in a one-bedroom apartment

and working as a janitor
for the past five years?

I'll call the publisher,
have them confirm who he is.

No need.

We can do that for you.

Uh... Castle,
what are you doing here?

Meet my client.

This is Wendy Johnson,
wife of Dave Johnson,

also known as
famed novelist P.J. Moffet.

We're here to make a statement.

Well, we'll... escort her
to Captain Beckett's office.

Your client, Castle?

Please don't tell me
you ambulance-chased this woman.

Beckett, that is
an outrageous accusation.

I, as a member
of the writing community,

merely went by her home
to offer my condolences.

Hmm. And I suppose you told her
that you're a P.I.

Who just happens to have
connections with the NYPD.

The topic may have come up.

You look gorgeous, by the way.

Uh, we should go
and talk to your client.

We'd only been married
for eight months.

I felt like I'd known him
my entire life.

Probably because I grew up
just loving that book.

Uh, yeah,
about that, Mrs. Johnson...

considering
your husband's success,

why was he working as a janitor?

Well, that was research
for a new book.

A second P.J. Moffet novel?

He was doing research
for over five years?

Mm-hmm.

Moffet was legendary

for total immersion
in his subject matter...

much like me with you.

Uh, did you know that
before writing a single word

of "The Butcherbird Song,"
Moffet spent seven years

living as
a drug-addicted eskimo?

It's true.

He was extremely dedicated
to his craft.

Even though
he owns a ranch in Wyoming,

he insisted we live in Brooklyn
for authenticity.

Why did he break into
St. Mark's church last night?

I can only guess it was to pray.

He had been
extremely troubled recently.

Do you know about what?

I think it had to be
his research.

When Dave left,

he told me he met with someone
that morning,

and things got heated.

And who did he meet with?

He didn't say...
just that the man was dangerous.

Well, what was
his new book about?

Um, the mafia.

Hey. Where's Castle?

He took his client home.

Remember, he doesn't work cases
with us anymore.

Hey. So, I found out where
our vic was yesterday morning.

According to his financials,
he took a cab ride to Brooklyn.

Where was he dropped off?

This guy's house...
Milton Cicero.

Works in sanitation.

Word is he's totally mobbed up.

If our vic was
doing research for his book

and he asked too many questions,

Milton here might have gotten
suspicious and taken Dave out.

Okay.

He did come to my house,

but I didn't kill him...
I swear.

- So, how do you know him?
- I don't.

He just came over, started
asking me all these questions.

About what?

Union kickbacks.

He wanted to know
where all the money comes from.

Say...

You two have any idea
who he really is?

- Yeah. He's P.J. Moffet, the novelist.
- Yeah.

P.J. What? The what?

No.

That is
Jimmy "two guns" O'Malley.

Whoa. Wait. Wha... uh...

The Irish mobster

who ratted out his whole crew
back in the '80s?

Bingo.

He starts telling me
all about Witness Protection

and how the feds gave him
a new name... Dave Johnson.

Hold up... doesn't the mob
have a contract out

on Jimmy "two guns'" life?

Do they?

I wouldn't know
anything about that.

Milton?

Did you try to collect
on that reward?

Don't tell me that you made
a call up to the mob in Boston.

I didn't... not call them.

Okay, bye-bye.

So, I just got off the phone
with P.J. Moffet's publisher.

Our author
is still very much alive.

Dave Johnson was lying
about who he was.

Yeah, we figured.

So, Dave tells Milton that
he's Jimmy "two guns" O'Malley,

and then Milton rats him out
to the Irish mob.

Maybe our vic was a con man.

And conning the wrong guy
got him killed.

S08E04
What Lies Beneath

Captain Beckett?

Hey.

You heard back from the FBI?

Yeah, it's looking more and more
like the Irish mob

are responsible
for Dave's murder.

Meet Billy o'Rourke, a suspected
hit man from southie.

Word on the street is he landed
at jfk yesterday afternoon.

Is he still in town?

Well, as of two minutes ago,

he hadn't checked out
of the Biltmore Hotel.

Okay.

Go find espo and pick him up.

Yeah.

- Ryan?
- Hmm?

Be careful.

You got it.

Yeah.

Is he in there?

All right, thanks.
Get out of here, kid.

So, she's telling me
she needs space.

I'm saying
that's a cry for help.

Yeah, Ricky.
I completely agree.

- Thank you.
- Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

NYPD!

Hey, guys! How are...
are you hungry?

Uh, sorry. Neither of us
ordered pigs wrapped in kevlar.

Get out.

On your feet right now, O'Rourke.

Castle, how'd you get here?

Uh, when I gave Dave's wife
a ride home,

I saw a receipt
from yesterday...

a rush dry-cleaning job
on Dave's jacket.

The bill was charged
to this room.

How did you get here?

The FBI.

Castle, this guy...

he's a hit man
for the Irish mob.

No!

Well, yes, yes.

But w-when you get to know him,

he's actually
really a l-lovely person.

You know, he's a...
he's a good listener.

Yeah.
Thank you for that.

- Uh, very hospitable.
- There you go.

And he actually told me
that Dave...

Ricky, they're cops. Shut up.

No, they're my cops, though.
These guys are okay.

Just...

guys, Billy's not your killer.

Oh, you know this how?

Billy told me.

Ohhhh. Yeah.

Oh, and did he also
cross his heart and hope to die?

Billy, tell them
what you told me.

Okay.

Uh, let's say, uh,
hypothetically...

Hypothetically.

Uh, I came to town
to whack Jimmy "two guns"

and, uh... hypothetically...

I threw him
in the trunk of my rental

and drove him out to the marsh
by the meadowlands.

You know where that is.

Only, just before...

- hypothetically...
- Of course.

I could put a bullet
through his brain, I realized

the guy doesn't look
anything like Jimmy "two guns."

Right? So Dave explains it's all
just a misunderstanding,

that he's actually
P.J. Moffet...

Yeah.

And he's telling everybody
he's Jimmy "two guns"

so he can do research
for his new novel.

Yeah, and I'm a huge fan.

"The Butcherbird Song"...
it's my everything.

Oh, please. That's...
I have a copy myself.

Hey, hey, hey, hey!

- Whoa!
- No, no!

So Billy brings Dave back here,

and he pays
to have his jacket cleaned.

Yeah. He even
autographed the book for me.

Huh?

Oh, isn't that lovely?

Oh.

Oh, hate to burst your bubble,
though.

He ended up not being
P.J. Moffet after all.

Guy was a con man.

- Come on!
- Really?! No!

And, by the way, Castle,
no matter what you say here,

it doesn't prove

that your new bff, Billy,
didn't off Dave.

No, it doesn't,
but his alibi does.

Yeah. At the time of the murder,

he was front row
at "The Lion King."

Uh-huh. Arguably
the best musical in town.

Yeah, well, you're not wrong.

But tell them what you saw

before you put Dave
in the trunk.

- Hypothetically.
- Hypothetically.

Yeah, before I snatched up Dave,
I saw him

having this knockdown,
drag-out argument

with some tall guy
outside his apartment house.

So the guy says to Dave,

"hey, you better come through,
like you promised,

or there's gonna be
serious consequences."

Admit it...
he's not so bad of a guy.

Castle,
just because his alibi held

and he paid for lunch doesn't
make him a great humanitarian.

He kills people for a living.

Yes, but without
people like him,

people like us
would be out of a job.

Now, what's our next move?

Locate and identify
this mystery man?

No. That's our next move.

Your next move is to go home.

Beckett doesn't want you
working the case. I'm sorry.

No. Uh, I get it.
Totally understand.

I'll circle back 'round
and, uh, update my client.

Castle.

- That's...
- Yeah. That's too much.

O Captain, my Captain.

Carl. Hey.

Thank you
for coming up from CSU...

I need you to give me a rundown
of narcotic signatures...

specifically heroin.

Basically, every batch of heroin
is like a snowflake.

No two are alike.

To determine if samples
are from the same batch, we run

a chromatographic impurity
signature profile analysis.

Okay.

Um, let's say
I have a sample of heroin

and I compare it
to another sample,

and that'll help me determine

whether they originated
from the same source?

Exactamundo.

Thank you. That's all I needed.

- What's up, Carl?
- Hey.

Hey, what are you meeting
with CSU's narcotics guy for?

You know, espo,
I do have other cases

that I have to supervise.

My apologies, Capitan.

So, any luck
on finding that mystery man?

Ryan's scrubbing street-cam
footage near David's apartment.

But, yo, I think
we're missing something here.

What do you mean?

Well, if Dave was a scam artist,

he is the oddest one
I ever heard of.

I mean, yes, he was exhibiting
con-man behavior,

but to what end?

Uh, to rip people off.

Who? His wife?

She didn't come from money.

The priest
took a vow of poverty.

And the union guy... Dave never
asked him for a payoff.

Okay, that's a good point.

So what's the upside
to Dave's cons?

Hey.

So, I I.D.'d our mystery man
who threatened Dave.

Guy's name is Eric Logan.
He's a convicted scam artist.

Two collars for assault,

including one
with a deadly weapon.

You know, maybe Eric and Dave
were working a con together

and something went wrong.

Any idea where Eric is now?

Yeah. I pinged his cell.
We got a location.

Let's go pick him up.

Evidence room.

Yeah, this is Captain Beckett.

Do we still have
the seized heroin

from the Vulcan Simmons case?

Hang on. Let me check.

Yeah, I'll hold.

Yes, we do.

Good.

That's all I needed.

All right.
Well, thanks anyway for trying.

Hey, bad news.

There's no more slots open
for the sergeant's exam.

Damn!

Well, I guess
we're gonna have to wait

till the next slot opens up.

Yeah.

Bogey, 3:00.

NYPD!

Whoa! Geez!

Castle.

Hey.

I was just going to that, uh...

Just going to the bodega there.

Pick you something up...
little slim Jim, yoo-hoo?

Castle, how did you know
that we were here?

Did you put this tracker on me

when you gave me
that awkward hug?

I have no idea what that is.
But I'll take it off your hands.

Yeah, sure. Here you go.

Oops.

You know I can find that, right?

Hey, guys. It's Eric.

But I never really had
a fair shot in life, you know?

Uh, my parents...

they died in a plane crash
when I was a kid.

That's a lie.

Actually,
my parents live in Denver.

Cleveland.

Anyway, uh, my name's Steve.

Thanks for listening.

Thanks, Bob.

Before we close, friends,
today is a sad day,

because we just lost
one of our own...

Dave Johnson.

His is a cautionary tale,
because last night...

Dave's lies
finally caught up with him.

Let's take a moment for Dave.

What is this, an A.A. meeting?

P.L.A.

- What the hell is P.L.A.?
- Pathological liars anonymous.

Makes perfect sense.

Dave wasn't a con man.
He was a pathological liar.

This is ridiculous.
I didn't kill Dave.

- He was my friend.
- You sure about that?

Because the day he was killed,

a witness saw you
threatening him.

I was his sponsor.
He was in trouble.

I was pushing him to attend

the pathological liars anonymous
meeting.

Yeah!
That's the ticket. That's it.

- Remember?
- Oh, yeah.

How dare you, sir.

Compulsive
and pathological lying

is a mental disorder
caused by psychological trauma.

This is not something
to joke around about.

Okay.

Fine.

But, then, how can we believe
anything you say about Dave?

You're a self-confessed liar.

I'm reformed.

I took a vow of honesty,
a pledge to refrain from lying.

Come on.

Everybody lies.

Not me... not anymore.

- Not even a little fib?
- No.

- A white lie?
- No.

I can prove it to you.

Ask me what I think
about your writing.

What do you think of my writing?

I think
you're a Patterson wannabe,

and I think your last book
was a boring retread.

You see? Brutal truth.

Uh, no. That's just being mean.

No, honest... unlike you,

a man who obviously wears lifts
so he can lie about his height.

No, no. T-these aren't lifts.

These are custom,
prescription insoles.

Uh-huh.

What are you laughing about?

You clearly dye your hair
so you can lie about your age.

Just... just a little bit
in... in the temples.

Okay, l-l-let's assume
what you're saying...

Is...

Is true.

You said Dave was in trouble.

What kind of trouble?

It started a couple weeks ago.

He fell off the wagon.

He started lying out of control,
and he was scared.

Scared of what?

And he had uncovered
something...

something dangerous, illegal.

Why didn't he come to the cops?

Oh, he'd lied so many times
to so many people...

even his own wife...

he knew
nobody would believe him.

He was the boy that cried wolf.

But whatever it was,

he said he needed proof
before he could go public.

Go public with what?

He didn't know.

And you think that this
sponsor's telling the truth?

Well, as far as we could tell.

Plus, his alibi is rock-solid
for the murder.

We got to figure out
what Dave was onto

two weeks ago
that got him killed.

Already on it.

Great job, guys.
I'll see you in the morning?

- All right.
- Thanks.

Text from Castle.

Yeah, me too.

"My place. Important."

Maybe he found something.

What do we do?

We go over to his place.
We find out what's what.

Whatever we do, we don't...

Oh, hell no.

But what if she finds out?

We lie our asses off.

Yeah.

Wait... do you hear something?

No. don't think so.

Hola, amigos!

Bienvenidos a casa Castle, huh?

♪ Ay, arriba arriba ♪

♪ Yo no soy marinero ♪

♪ Yo no soy marinero,
por ti sere ♪

♪ Por ti sere, por ti sere ♪

Nice! Very nice!

Gentlemen, very nice.

Grab a drink.

Uh, what is this?

This is just me saying thank you

to my family
at the 12th precinct.

Oh! You're trying
to buy our love.

- What?!
- So we'll help you win Beckett back.

No! Come on, guys.

These are for you.

Well, you're putting us
in a really tough spot here.

You know we're friends
with Beckett, too.

Plus, Beckett's our boss now.

She doesn't want you
working cases.

Guys, I love her, okay?
And I'm gonna get her back.

The only way
I know how to do that

is solving murders together,
so I'm not going anywhere.

So sit back, relax,
and enjoy the ride.

And try the tostadas.
They're wagyu beef.

Ah. I do love me some wagyu.

Thank you.

What's up?

Oh, nothing.

Uh, Jenny just...
you know, she wants me

to pick up some stuff
on the way home.

Really?

'Cause that text message said
"sergeant's exam."

Okay. Uh,
I may have lied... earlier.

There was an exam slot open,
but only one.

So you took it...
without even talking to me?

- Bro, that was my idea.
- I'm sorry.

You know how stressed out
about money I've been lately.

A bump in pay would really help.

Javi... hey!

No. Save it.

Hey, Ryan, I couldn't help
but overhear

about your financial concerns.

Maybe you and I
could work together.

How?

Well...

Do a little,
uh, moonlighting for me.

Just keep me in the loop as
to what's going on at the 12th.

You want me to be a rat for you?
Hell no.

I would pay you $500 a week.

I'll do it.

Hey, partner.

Food truck is here,
so I got you some breakfast...

double salsa,
just the way you like it.

Oh. Hey. Thanks.

What the hell?

Uh, I was just treating that
burrito like you treated me.

Okay, I lied to you.
I'm... I'm sorry.

I have responsibilities.

I guess looking out
for your partner's back

isn't one of them.

You guys okay?

Fine. What's up?

I need you
to go down to city hall.

Dave's boss said
that Dave had an incident there

two weeks ago,
and his janitorial company

was forced to reassign him
to another facility.

What kind of incident?

I think that's what
she's sending us down there

to find out.

Yeah, we're on it.

Okay.

What have you got for me?

Yeah, apparently,

our vic had some sort of
confrontation down at city hall,

so we're running down there to
talk to the deputy chief of staff.

Okay, yeah.

I love you, too, sweetie.
Bye-bye.

That was weird.

What?

Ryan just told me he loved me.

I'm sure he was just covering.

Don't you feel
the least bit conflicted

about turning him into a mole?

He's not stealing state secrets.

I'm just paying him to keep me
in the loop on their cases.

So you can ingratiate yourself
in said cases

and find new ways
to interact with Beckett.

Well, if by "ingratiate myself,"

you mean "dazzle her
with my sherlockian genius,"

then, yes,
that's exactly what I mean.

So, what did Ryan say?

That our victim got himself
into some trouble at city hall

that might have got him killed.

So what do you say we call
my good buddy the mayor?

Dave was a janitor, dad.

I sincerely doubt
he was on the mayor's radar.

We fired Dave Johnson

after he broke into
the accounting office.

And he tried to run
when security caught him.

Well, what did he say
when they caught him?

Oh, some nonsense

about being on a mission
from God or something...

which was
incredibly disrespectful,

given how he got the job
in the first place.

And how's that?

Oh, he was recommended
by Father Arguello

at St. Mark's.

The blind priest?

Yeah. So?

Dave was killed
in Arguello's church.

Oh. Uh...

Well, look, I-I'm no detective,
but that sounds like a clue.

Uh, if you'll excuse me...

Yeah. Thank you.

Looks like we need to talk
to the good father. Let's go.

Oh, wait. Just a second.

Um, make a quick phone call
to Jenny.

Be right there.

A mission from God?

Well,
that's what Ryan said.

On the other hand,
Dave was a compulsive liar.

Still, most lies
have a kernel of truth in them.

Like when you went
to fashion week,

but you neglected to mention

that you were taking
my platinum credit card?

I was more thinking
about our victim

and how he lied
about being a fugitive mobster

in order to investigate
union kickbacks.

Kickbacks that could be
connected to city hall...

hence, Dave breaking into
the accounting office.

But what does any of this
have to do with a blind priest?

Well...

Ask, and ye shall receive.

Uh, excuse me, Father.

We are investigating
Dave Johnson's murder.

We'd like to ask you
a few questions

regarding your relationship
with him.

I was his priest, my son.

I gave him spiritual guidance.

And which part of that guidance

included breaking and entering
at city hall?

The blind priest just ran away.

This cannot end well.

- Hey!
- Hey, watch it!

Huh.

Should we...

Damn it. Yes.

What?!

So, let me get this straight...

you got parkoured
by a blind priest?

I'd say the blindness
is under dispute.

Uh-huh.

And what about the fact
that he's 60?

Was he faking his age, too?

60 is the new 20.

Did you call
just to bust my chops?

Yeah. Pretty much.

Um, all right, Speedy,
I got to go.

Make sure
you stretch before bed.

They got the priest.

How do you know?

Beckett was having too much fun.

Wait.

Beckett was having fun...
with me.

Score.

Imagine how much fun she's gonna
have with the runaway priest.

Can I be honest with you?

I went blind
to get out of Tampa.

It was miserable down there.

The humidity
was just oppressive.

When I learned that priests
with certain disabilities

have their pick of assignments,
I-I didn't even hesitate.

I don't understand
what any of this

has to do
with Dave Johnson's murder.

Dave's lying
was a terrible burden...

one that he'd been carrying
since childhood.

I offered him
a way to make amends.

And this is you
still being honest?

Yes.

Dave's lying torpedoed
his accounting career.

That's why he was working
as a janitor at city hall,

pretending to be
a reclusive author.

My parish was about to miss
a payment to the city,

due to my...
mismanagement of funds.

I simply asked Dave to
sneak into the accounting office

and log the payment
into the computer as received.

Ohhh! So this wasn't
about making amends.

This was about helping you.

When Dave was
hacked into the city budget,

he found evidence
of a secret slush fund...

$10 million siphoned
from social programs

to line someone's pocket.

It was a lie
Dave couldn't stomach,

so he vowed to expose it.

And you believe

that whoever controlled
this alleged slush fund

discovered Dave's intrusion?

And they killed him for it.

So, what do you think?

It tracks with what our victim
told his sponsor.

And with Dave's questions
about union kickbacks.

It doesn't matter.
It's non-actionable.

There's no way we're gonna get
a subpoena for city hall

based on hearsay
told to a not-blind priest

from a pathological liar.

I guess Dave was right...

no one believes
the boy who cries wolf.

So what are you saying...
we give up?

Because that's not
the Beckett that I know.

No, I'm not saying
that we should give up.

What I am saying is, I've been a
captain for about five minutes.

If we take this to the D.A.,

nobody's gonna
take me seriously ever.

Okay. We'll get proof.

Money's gone.

Even if there is
a secret slush fund,

the person controlling it
killed Dave to cover it up,

buried the money deep,
covered his tracks.

So what are we supposed to do?

We do our homework.

We find out who could pull off
a slush fund in the city budget,

which means
we have to talk to someone

with contacts and resources
in city hall.

Someone who's best friends
with the mayor?

Someone like... Castle?

He's gonna be so smug
about this.

I'm sorry. Did you say
you... needed my help?

Castle.

You heard her say it, right?

- Dad, let it go.
- Thank you.

Castle, do you have
the intel we need or not?

Tell her.

When I was in middle school,

dad did four months
of extensive research

into the inner workings
of city finance

for a novel he was writing.

Yes, but then I realized
that that novel would be

the most boring novel
in the history of novels,

so I wrote a Derek Storm book instead.

Okay, so, then,
you have a pretty good idea

of which city officials

would be able to hide
a $10 million slush fund.

Yes,
and it's a pretty small list.

The only people with access
to the entire budget

are the comptroller,
the mayor's chief of staff,

and the deputy chief.

Stephen Reed...
the guy we met with.

I know for a fact
that the chief of staff

is in London with the mayor.

And I made
a few discreet calls.

The city comptroller was at a
fundraiser when Dave was shot.

Which means
Reed is our main suspect.

Okay, so, how do we
get this guy?

May I suggest
the "midnight run" stratagem?

- The what?
- "Midnight run."

It's one of the top five
buddy movies of all time.

And you're suggesting
we base our legal strategy

upon this buddy-cop movie?

No, he's right. It could work.

At the end of the movie,

Robert de Niro tricks a mobster
into taking computer discs

he thinks
contain evidence against him,

and just by showing up
to take them,

the mobster is committing
conspiracy to obstruct justice.

If we can trick Reed
the same way,

then we've got all the leverage
we need to expose the slush fund

and go after him
for Dave's murder.

But, Kate,
you can't be involved.

Why not?

Because if Reed isn't involved,

then all this
blows up in our face,

and you take the hit.

And you don't need that.

Let us shield you, Captain.

Okay.

I'm out... for now.

Thanks.

Okay, how do we do this?

First, I'm gonna need to borrow
your blind priest.

Mr. Reed?

Mr. Reed!

- Father.
- Oh!

What are you doing here?

Uh, your office told me
where to find you.

Ah. Well, sorry, Father.

I'm appointment-only,
even for the clergy.

I don't think
you want your office to hear

what we're about to discuss.

Dave Johnson
was one of my flock.

Who got fired for being
where he didn't belong.

Yes, but while he was there,
Dave told me

he stumbled across
your little secret account.

Uh, I have no idea
what you're talking about.

And, uh,
my hot dog's waiting, so...

Dave was a cautious man,
Mr. Reed.

He took proof of the account...

proof that he left
on a thumb drive

on the altar of my church
behind the chalice

before he was killed.

I give you this information
as a gift.

If you were to make
the church's debt disappear,

as a token of appreciation,

well, the lord
would be grateful.

Well...

Like I said... Father...

I got no clue
what you're talking about.

Don't ever come see me again.

Bless you, my child.

Think it worked?

Of course it worked.

We'll know tonight.

That it worked.

All right.

You know what to do.

Are you sure about this?

Go big or go home,

except... in this case,
home might be jail.

Is that him?

I don't know.

It's got to be him.

- Don't move! NYPD!
- Stop! Reed!

It's gone.

Damn it!

Where'd he go? We're screwed.

Catching him
with that empty thumb drive

was our whole conspiracy charge.

Did it work?

Did what work?

Are you the one
that turned the lights out?

I-I told her to do that.

Why in the hell
would you do that?

Well, I thought
our "midnight run" stratagem

needed a little twist.

Trust me, guys... if this works,
we're gonna have him

on a whole lot more
than just obstruction.

What if it doesn't?

Hi.

I'm Richard Castle,
private investigator.

The moment you plugged this
thumb drive into your computer,

it injected a virus
into your system.

By now, that virus
has searched your keystroke history

and found where you've moved
your hidden slush fund.

It's the computer equivalent
of an exploding dye pack.

Oops.

So, I guess we can add
destruction of city property

to those charges.

I didn't kill him.

Why would I? He was a liar.

Plus, I have an alibi.

Oh, let me guess...
you were home, alone, asleep?

No, I was out
playing poker with your boss,

the police commissioner.

Which means
your killer's still out there.

So, what do we know?

Dave Johnson...
he was a pathological liar

who stumbled upon
a secret slush fund

and then decided to expose it.

And everyone connected to that
alibi'd out.

So we've got nothing?

No. We can safely assume
that Dave was killed over a lie.

Which lie, then?

Well, if I was writing this,

I would fall back on a theme.

A lie is a betrayal of trust.

And there is
no greater betrayal...

than a lie in a marriage.

Yeah, well, that might be,

but Wendy thought
that Dave was P.J. Moffet.

What if she found out he wasn't?

You have this all wrong.
I didn't kill Dave.

We found fragments
of stained glass in your car.

It matches the broken glass
found in the church.

I only married Dave

because he told me
he was a famous author.

I-I just... I thought
I was gonna be living in luxury.

And... and he insisted
that we live in poverty,

even though he had millions.

Only, he was lying.

And you found out.

You know,
what I don't understand is,

why would you kill him?

Why didn't you
just divorce the guy?

Because he had to pay.

For what he cost me.

I could have married Ben Shapiro,

the carpet king of Nassau County.

But instead, I married a liar

who ruined my life.

Wendy Johnson,
you are under arrest

for the murder of your husband.

Wait. Wait!

Oh.

In a few days,
you're gonna receive an invoice.

I'd appreciate prompt payment.

- Hey.
- Hey.

Hey, hey! Stop!
Stop, stop, stop!

Listen.

I'm gonna call 1PP,

and I'm gonna ask them
to give you

that last sergeant's exam slot
instead of me.

I don't need your charity.

It's not charity.

Hey!

Hey, I did wrong by you.

I'm trying to make amends here.

Hey, bozos.

Did it ever occur to you
that your captain

could pull some strings
and get you both a slot?

Did you?

Yeah.

And I expect you to pass.

Good job today.

- Thanks, Captain.
- Thanks, Captain.

All right.

Good luck, man.

Castle?

Relax. Doesn't mean anything.

It's just a little
congratulatory coffee

after solving a tough case.

Wow.

I can never make it like you.

Even though you taught me how.

That's 'cause I lied.

There's a, uh...
Special ingredient.

I kept it a secret.

Really?

What is it?

Well, now, if I told you that,

you might not need me anymore.

Then don't tell me.

And since we're being honest,

there's something
that I have to tell you.

I hated Moffet's book.

What?! Wha...

Why didn't you tell me?

Because you gave it to me
when we first started dating,

and I knew
it was important to you,

so... I lied.

I'm sorry. I have to get this.

Okay.

Have a good night.

You too.

Vikram. Hey.

Did you get the test results
on the heroin

from the Vulcan Simmons case?

Okay.

Now we can get to work.