728. Chapter 728

After Law and Boarder

Episode 6.21

By

UCSBdad

Disclaimer: Cowabunga, dudes and dudettes. I don't own Castle. Rating: K Time: See above.

The two girls walking along the beach were friends, but they were very different. One was blonde, smiling, and wearing a very small pink bikini. The other was tall, brunette and wore a severely cut one piece swim suit. She glared at the world from behind aviator sunglasses.

"Becks, can't you just try to enjoy yourself?" The blonde asked.

"Why?"

"Because I scored two free tickets to Hawaii and we're on the North Shore of Oahu, and the place is literally covered with good looking guys."

Becks slowly looked from side to side. "And they all look like they have the IQ of an ice cube. Suppose I want to talk or something? I'd have to teach them how to do that."

Maddie just shook her head. "Maybe you could learn to surf? This is the Banzai Pipeline. All the best surfers in the world come here."

"You honestly mean there are worse surfers someplace? That's worse than I thought."

Maddie decided to give up as they were approached by a tall, handsome young man.

"Hey, dudettes. I'm Josh, and when I'm not tearing up the surf with my board, I'm tearing up the dry land with my Harley. So, which do you two want to do first?"

Although Becks had her own Harley, she wasn't impressed. "Obviously, you make up for your tiny manhood by substituting a surf board and a motorcycle."

"Oh, yeah?" Josh growled at her. Then he turned to a red head standing near him. "Meredith, what did she just say to me?"

The redhead walked up and slapped him. "She said that you must be cheating on me if she knows you're hung like a hamster." Then she walked quickly away.

"Meredith, honey. You know I'm the only one for you." Josh cried, as he followed her down the beach.

"You two were right to pass up that loser. You need someone with higher aspirations." The speaker was a short fellow, slathered in sunblock which still left him pale. "They call me "Moondoggie" Perlmutter. Would you ladies like to help me learn anatomy?"

"Who exactly calls you Moondoggie?" Maddie asked.

"My mom."

"I thought so." Maddie replied and the two walked off.

"You two young ladies should be careful. There are an awful lot of weirdos around here."

The two turned around to face the speaker, a dark haired young man in a conservative blue wet suit, with neoprene white shirt and a rubber striped tie. "And you are?" Maddie asked. Becks not being at all interested.

"My name is Will and I just want to make everyone safe."

"Then you should keep an eye on everyone. From a safe distance." Becks said.

"Right." Will said and trotted off.

"Hi, girls, how are you enjoying Hawaii?" This man was tall, well built and had the most amazing blue eyes.

"Who are you?" Becks said coldly.

"I'm Rick Rodgers, but they call me the Big Kahuna. Would either of you like to go out with me tonight?"

Becks laughed. "And where do you think you'd take me?"

"How about to a poetry slam?"

"You even know what a poetry slam is?"

"Of course. I'm taking part tonight."

Becks decided things were finally looking up. "Okay, when will you pick me up?"

"Seven o'clock. Maybe we can get some food after. Have you ever had real Hawaiian food? Not the stuff they serve to tourists?"

"It's a date."

Promptly at seven o'clock, Rick picked her up in a spotless 1934 station wagon, the kind Kate thought was called a Woodie. He even opened the door for her.

Kate was surprised to find that the poetry was all in native Hawaiian, and while she understood none of it, Rick did his best to translate for her and an older man helped her when it was Rick's turn to read his poetry.

"Rick is a good man, not like so many of the haoles who come here."

"Haoles?"

"The white kids who come to the islands. They think the beaches, and everything else, belongs to them."

Rick's poem was done and be came back to sit next to Kate. "Your poem got a lot of laughs. Was it funny?"

Rick smiled. "Not intentionally. My pronunciation of Hawaiian is still pretty rough. But the laughter was in good fun, I think."

Later they went to an eatery frequented mostly by locals where the feasted on lau lau, kalua pork, lomi lomi, poi and haupia. And beer, although Kate wasn't really old enough to order it.

Afterwards, they walked down to the beach and sat and talked of many things. When the sun rose, Kate was snuggled against Rick, who had his back against a palm tree. They were woken by a piercing scream.

Both jumped up and look around. A few yards down the beach was a bottle blonde, still screaming. They ran to her.

"Gina? What is it?" Rick yelled, grabbing the girl.

"It's that." Kate said, pointing to a headless corpse with the head a few yards away with a mass of blood between the two.

"It's Moondoggie Perlmutter." Rick said.

Gina's screams brought other surfers, who gathered around the corpse, in spite of Rick and Kate's efforts to keep them away. "Come on, guys, you'll contaminate the crime scene." Rick said, to no avail.

Suddenly Josh ran up and looked. "Oh my god! It's the old dead Hawaiian surfer killer ghost dude!" He screamed.

"A ghost? Where did you hear a silly story like that?" Rick asked, although somewhat intrigued.

"It's this old Hawaiian killer ghost dude. He kills surfers because he's a bad ass. He's a ghost."

"That's absurd." Kate said firmly.

"Maybe, but I'm getting the hell out of Dodge." Josh ran for his Harley and took off, leaving Meredith running after him, screaming for him to wait for her.

Seconds later, a police car pulled up and an officer of the law got out. He looked around him, making sure everyone could see his distaste for them all. "Well, you drug crazed, free loving, surf scum finally did one of your own in. What was it? Some kind of satanic ritual? Or, considering the victim, did you need a virgin and couldn't find another one?" His eyes turned to Rick. "And who do I find right in the middle of this? Rick Rodgers. Why'd you kill him, Rodgers?"

"Good morning, Officer Tyson," Rick said politely. "I didn't kill him."

Officer Tyson glared at him. "Oh? I bet a few hours of sweating you down at the station would get the truth out of you quick enough."

Before Officer Tyson could put his threat into action, other police cars arrived and he was relegated to crowd control. But, all of the surfers left as quickly as possible.

"That was no ghost killing." Kate said, once they were away from the crime scene.

"The tracks?" Rick said with a smile.

"You saw them too?"

"Someone was following Perlmutter, chopped his head off, then kept walking. Even before the prints got all messed up, the sand was too soft to tell anything about the killer. But it was no ghost."

"But why kill Perlmutter?" Kate asked.

Rick shrugged. "He was hardly a surfer. I don't think I ever saw him get water over his ankles.

"Maybe he saw something?"

"Good idea. I'll sneak out here after dark and see what I can see."

"We'll sneak out here after dark."

"No. I'll sneak out. This is too dangerous for a girl."

That night, Rick and Kate were sitting in a low stand of bushes that let them see almost the whole beach. They sat in companionable silence for many hours until they saw a couple moving furtively towards them. The couple disappeared behind some bushes and they could soon hear the sound of lovemaking.

"Hell. Just a couple making out. And with all the noise they're making no one else will come near this place. We should go."

As they left, Rick stepped on a dry branch, causing a loud crack.

A flashlight beam suddenly covered them. "Stop right there!"

"Officer Tyson?"

"That's right, Rodgers. You just can't keep your nose out where it doesn't belong, can you?"

"Jerry, what is it?" A girl's voice called.

"It's more snoopers, Kelly."

"Are we going to kill them, too?"

"You bet."

Suddenly Tyson was in a powerful flashlight beam. "Hold it right there, son. This is the FBI. Throw down your weapon. We have you surrounded."

Officer Tyson smiled and threw down his pistol. "They haven't built the prison that can hold me."

"Rodgers, pick up his gun." The voice commanded.

As soon as Rick had Tyson's gun, Will stepped out from behind a palm tree. "Wow! That was awesome!"

"You mean you really are an FBI agent?" Kate asked.

"No, but I'm going to become one." As several police cars approached, Will yelled, "Book 'em, Dano. Murder One."

No one had any idea what that meant.

It turned out that Perlmutter had stumbled upon Tyson and Kelly Nieman and had threatened to tell her father, who thoroughly disapproved of Tyson and they had killed him.

All too soon, the vacations were over and Rick took Kate to the airport. They kissed on last time, exchanged addresses and promised to write, but as they left each other they had oddly similar thoughts.

He's going back to New York where his mom's a Broadway actress? He must have dozens of beautiful women throwing themselves at him every day. I need to keep it real. Rick Rodgers will never have time for me in his life.

Stanford? And she wants to be a lawyer? I gotta keep my head on my shoulders. A chick like that is never going to be interested in some guy who may well end up just another failed writer.