Since there was no new Castle last night for me to talk about, I thought I'd give you a sneak peek into my new novella! I am so excited for you all to read this one. (And in case you forgot, this is a novella that continues Colby and Sophia's story from
Colby Black rolled
over in bed to look at the clock. Who would be ringing my doorbell at 7 a.m.? He ran a hand over
his face and pushed the covers back. He
knew he wasn’t due at the police station for another hour. If there was a situation someone would have
called him, they wouldn’t be at his house.
He quickly pulled on a t-shirt and sweats before he padded to the front
door. Glancing out the little window to
the side of the door he could see a well-dressed woman on his front porch. With a cameraman at the ready. What was going on?
He opened the
door, but not all the way. “Can I help
you?”
“Are you Detective
Colby Black?” She took a step toward
him, and Colby tightened his grip on the door handle.
“And you are?” he
asked, without answering her question.
“I’m Laura Northam
from Channel 2 news. Do you have any
comment about Sophia Naziri? I’m told you were part of the mission to Bulgaria
that got her out of a murder charge in Senator DeMarco’s case?”
Colby tensed at
her words. How would any news agencies
have this story? And how did they find
out where he lived? He forced his face
to look impassive. “I’m sorry. I’m not sure what you mean.”
She didn’t have
time to answer as two more news vans pulled up in front of his house. In Colby’s limited experience with the press,
things like this got out of control really fast. “No comment,” he said quickly, before shutting the door.
He walked back to
his bedroom and got his smart phone.
Quickly scrolling through his news tabs, he found several articles with
Sophia’s name in them detailing her participation in the Bulgaria mission to
bring down Viktor Dragonov. They
definitely had one thing wrong, though.
Bulgaria hadn’t been something that got Sophia out of a murder
charge. It had always been about
bringing Philip DeMarco’s killer to justice and she’d paid a high personal
price to do it. He ran a hand through
his hair. Sophia didn’t need this. She was already going through so much trying
to put her life back together.
His phone buzzed
and fellow detective Claire Michaels’s face flashed across the screen. He pushed the accept button, hoping they
didn’t have a hostage case. He wanted to talk to Sophia before he went in to
work and see if she’d heard any of this yet. “Hey, Claire.”
“Have you seen the
news this morning?” she asked, without even a hello.
Colby’s jaw
clenched. “I got it up close and
personal with a reporter at my door.”
“It’s not looking
good for Sophia. Whoever is leaking
information is making her look as bad as possible. Have you talked to her yet?”
“I was just about
to call her.” He sat down on the edge
of his bed. “Stories like this can take
on a life of their own. Sophia is
having such a hard time recovering as it is.”
“Is she doing any
better?” Claire asked, concern in her voice.
“Some. It’s going to take time.” On his last visit to see her, she’d nearly
jumped out of her skin anytime a door slammed too hard and she’d been trying a
little too hard to put on a happy face for him. He knew she was suffering emotional fallout from witnessing
Philip’s murder, then being held hostage herself. She’d nearly been killed trying to escape and was still trying to
process everything. It was difficult
for Colby to have to watch her go through this and not be able to do anything
to help her.
“She’ll get through
it. Tell her I’m thinking about her and
if she ever wants to talk, I’m here.”
Claire paused. “Are you coming
in to work or are you going to take a personal day to deal with this?”
“I need to come
in. I took so much time off for the
Bulgaria mission, I don’t want to risk the captain making my vacation
permanent, you know?” He pushed off the
bed. “See you in a few.”
He hung up from
Claire and immediately dialed Sophia’s number, but it went straight to
voicemail. Without leaving a message,
he grabbed some clothes and headed for the shower. The doorbell rang again, but there was no way he was going to
answer it. It rang twice more,
accentuating the fact that this day could only get worse from here. With a grimace he shut the bathroom door and
turned on the water to drown out the sound.
So many things were running through his head, but his first concern was
Sophia. Was she okay? Had anyone been
bothering her? How was she handling it?
Colby finished his
shower in record time and got dressed in his favorite blue button down shirt
and comfortable dress pants. Grabbing
his shoulder holster and gun, he slipped that on and then threw his tie around
his neck, but didn’t tie it up yet.
Heading downstairs he took a glass out of the cupboard and poured himself
some cold milk from the fridge. Getting
out of his driveway would be a problem, he mused, unless he took his motorcycle
to get through the crowd. With that
decision made, he tied his tie, then took his jacket off the chair and put it
on. He was ready for this.
He opened the door
to the garage and took a deep breath.
Usually a ride on his bike would relax him, but this one was going to be
anything but that. Hopefully he could get away with minimal fuss. He grabbed his bike and braced himself for
the barrage of people as he pressed the garage button. Jamming on his helmet, he backed out quickly
and shut the garage door. Within
seconds, people surrounded him, just as he’d expected.
“What really
happened in Bulgaria?” “How many men
were killed?” “What kind of deal did Sophia Naziri get?” “Was she an accessory to murder?”
He turned at that
last one. “You don’t have any idea what
you’re talking about.” He backed up a
little more. “Get out of my way.”
The reporter
shoved the microphone closer to Colby.
“Why don’t you tell the story and set me straight?”
“No comment.”
Colby started the bike and turned toward the road that would take him into the
city. “That’s all you’ll get from
me.” And with that, he weaved in
between the last of the crowd near his lawn and sidewalk and sped away.
When he got into
work it wasn’t any better. Another
crowd had gathered in the parking lot and around the entrance of the police
station. With a groan, Colby parked his
bike. This was worse than he
thought. Maybe they wouldn’t recognize
him. Thinking this might be the last
bit of privacy he’d get before work, he grabbed his phone to call Sophia again,
but a determined looking man with a microphone had spotted him and was headed
his way.
Colby put his
phone back in his pocket before he took off his helmet. After making sure his bike was secure, he
wasted no time heading toward the station entrance.
“Sir, are you
Colby Black?” the reporter asked, running to catch up to him.
Colby didn’t
answer, but kept walking. The reporter
followed him, trying to match his stride to Colby’s. “I’d like to interview you about what happened in Bulgaria. How high does this cover-up go?” He dogged
his steps, but Colby was faster, so he was able to stay ahead.
“I have no
comment,” he said as he turned his head toward the reporter. The people loitering near the entrance now
converged upon them and he was getting swallowed up in the mass of people.
“Don’t you think
the American people deserve to know how the government is offering assignments
on dangerous missions in exchange for dropping possible accessory to murder
charges?” the first reporter shouted over the larger man that had elbowed his
way in front of him.
Colby opened the
door, a retort on the tip of his tongue about exactly what Sophia had done for
her country, but when he turned back to address them all, he knew it wouldn’t
make a difference. They were after a
specific quote to support this ridiculous rumor of a story and he wouldn’t give
them anything to twist to their own agenda.
“No comment.”
The crowd surged
toward him, like a wave about to crash the shore, but Colby ducked inside and
walked behind the security doors. He
rolled his neck. Maybe he’d have to
stay at the precinct tonight. It was
crazy out there.
He walked to his
desk, but didn’t even have time to take his jacket off before Captain Reed
called him into his office. “Colby, can
I see you a minute, please?”
Colby nodded and
joined his boss in his office. The
captain held out his desk phone. “It’s
for you.”
“Sir?” He took the
receiver. “Hello?”
“Colby, it’s Skip
Michaels. I’m sure you know by now about the leak on the Bulgaria task force
mission. I’ve been called in to consult
on this case since I was part of it. I don’t know who the leak is yet, but I want
you to know that mission was classified and we’re going to find out who’s
giving out the information.” He paused and Colby could hear some papers
rustling in the background. “Here’s
what we need you to do. Keep your head
down and don’t give any statements about what happened on that mission. If we can pinpoint exactly what information
the press has been given, maybe we can figure out who’s giving it out.”
“Okay. As long as you keep me apprised on the
search for the leak. I want to know who this is as well.” He took a breath. “Have you heard from Sophia? I can’t get hold of her.”
“I just talked to
her. She’s pretty much pinned down in
her house with the press staking out her place. She said she was going to call you with an idea on what to do
until this dies down.”
Colby’s shoulders
tensed at hearing she was pinned down.
He was all ears if she had an idea on how to get out of this mess. “Thanks, sir. I hope to hear from her soon then.”
“You’ve got a good
woman there.” Skip’s voice was gentle for a second before it turned gruff
again. “I’ll let you know when I’ve got
something.”
Colby said goodbye
and hung up. He was more anxious to
talk to Sophia now and get her out of there somehow. Fast.
“Is there anything
I can do, Colby?” the captain asked. He
folded his arms and leaned one hip against his desk. It looked casual, but
Colby knew that was his no-nonsense stance.
He also knew the Captain would do anything for him if he asked.
“I don’t think
so. Skip says they’re searching for the
leak and I’m supposed to hold tight.
Sophia has some sort of an idea on how to wait out this thing.” Even as he spoke his cell phone rang. He looked down and saw with some relief that
it was Sophia. “May I take this, sir?
It’s Sophia,” he said to the captain.
Captain Reed
nodded and Colby accepted the call.
“Hey, are you okay?”
“I’m fine, just
stuck in my house.” She sounded
stressed and upset. Anger at whoever
was leaking the information ratcheted up a notch in Colby’s gut. “Did Skip talk to you?”
“Yeah, he said you
had an idea for riding this out.” He
pressed the phone closer to his ear like it would draw him closer to her. It had only been two days since he’d seen
her, but he missed her. It was good to
hear her voice.
“Carina DeMarco is
going to spread Philip’s ashes up at his family cabin near Candlewood
Lake. She invited us up to be part of
that since we’re nearly family.” Sophia’s voice caught and Colby knew she was
thinking of the senator. His public
funeral had happened right before they’d all returned from Bulgaria and she’d
had to miss it.
“So you’re going
to go up there then?” He squelched a sigh.
There’s no way he’d be able to see her anytime soon if she was up in
some cabin. But at least she’ll be
safe and away from the reporters.
“She said I could
invite you, too. From the little I
could gather this morning, the press is hounding you just as badly. You can come hide out with us until the next
news cycle and the press forgets they ever heard of me.”
A cabin. With Sophia. Now that made everything look a
lot better. “That sounds great.”
She must have
heard the enthusiasm in his voice because she laughed. “Don’t get too
excited. Remember my dad will be there
with us, as well as Carina and her son John.”
Colby looked over
at the captain. “I’ll have to clear
taking more time off.”
The captain waved
his hand. “Done. There’s no way you can work until this is
taken care of.”
“Looks like it’s
all set. Where should I meet you?”
“I’ll text you the
directions.”
Colby gripped the
phone, a light seeming to appear over the black-cloud way this day had
started. “I’ll see you later then.”
“See you
soon.”
He disconnected
the call, suddenly anxious to get home, pack a few things, and get out of
there. Who wouldn’t with Sophia waiting
at the end of the trip?
Putting his phone
in his pocket, he glanced up at his captain.
“Thank you, sir.”
“Keep in touch
with me, Colby. I can only give you a
few days at the most, so hopefully this will all go away by then.” He clapped Colby on the shoulder.
Colby nodded. “Let’s hope.” He opened the door. “Do
you want to break it to Bart or should I?”
“I’ll leave that
to you.” The captain grimaced. “We’ll be nearly doubling his caseload.”
“I’ll owe him,
that’s for sure.” He paused at the
door. “The sooner Skip finds this leak,
the better. Then we can all get our lives back.”
“Exactly. Let’s get this taken care of so we can get
you back on the job sooner, rather than later.”
“Thanks again,
Captain.” With that, he walked out the
door. He spied Bart heading toward his
desk and erased the smile he’d had on his face at the thought of spending a
weekend with Sophia at a cabin. Bart
was as close to him as a brother would be and Colby knew he would cover for
him, double caseload or not. Hopefully, though, he wouldn’t have to leave Bart
hanging for long and Colby could figure out a way to make it up to him. His plan was that by the time the weekend
was over, the leak would be found, Sophia could work on her recovery, and
Colby’s life would be back to normal.
And he’d do
everything in his power to make that come true.
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