- Javier Esposito: You guys okay?
- Kate Beckett: Yeah, thanks for rescuing us.
- Hayley Shipton: Yes, because clearly you were helpless without us.
- Richard Castle: How'd you guys even find us?
- Kevin Ryan: Well, we had our best person on it.
- Alexis Castle: [entering] I can't leave you alone for five minutes.
- Richard Castle: Does this mean no hug?
- [first lines]
- Richard Castle: Booyay!
- Martha Rodgers: God.
- Richard Castle: Guess who's about to have the best day ever?
- Martha Rodgers: Could it be the fellow who just interrupted us, rather rudely, with "booyah"?
- Alexis Castle: What's going on, dad?
- Richard Castle: I'm sorry. I can't tell you. I'm sworn to secrecy.
- Alexis Castle: Okay.
- [to Martha]
- Alexis Castle: Anyway, so my psych professor said...
- Martha Rodgers: Yeah.
- Alexis Castle: ...fear is an emotion, which it is, but then I arg...
- Richard Castle: [talking over Alexis] So you're not even gonna try to pry the secret out of me?
- Martha Rodgers: Darling, we are right in the middle of something here. So if you just wait for a moment, we will give you our full attention, okay?
- [to Alexis]
- Martha Rodgers: Okay. What is it, darling?
- Alexis Castle: Gram, you know he's just gonna keep pouting until he gets his way. Dad, just tell us your secret.
- Richard Castle: Okay. But only because you insisted.
- Richard Castle: I just got off the phone with the personal assistant of none other than... Stephen King.
- Martha Rodgers: Whoa!
- Richard Castle: He's in town visiting his New York apartment, has called to see if I'm available for a meeting to talk about a, dramatic pause... collaboration.
- Martha Rodgers: Ooh!
- Alexis Castle: Hold on. Isn't he still mad about... the thing?
- Martha Rodgers: What thing?
- Alexis Castle: The baseball thing. See, Stephen King is a huge Red Sox fan and Dad...
- Martha Rodgers: Oh, and your father is a Yankees fan. Oh, no, Richard, what did you do?
- Richard Castle: It was a silly joke.
- Alexis Castle: Mmm...
- Richard Castle: Ah.
- Alexis Castle: ...More like a thinly veiled threat.
- Richard Castle: Tomayto, tomahto. Obviously, it's water under the bridge, because he wants to talk about collaborating on a project. "Richard Castle and Stephen King present." Wish me luck, ladies.
- Martha Rodgers: Darling, if you think you're going to get top billing over Stephen King, you're gonna need more than luck.
- Richard Castle: [answers phone] Hey, Beckett.
- Kate Beckett: So how's the meeting going? Is Stephen still mad at you?
- Richard Castle: I just got here. And if he's not still mad at me, he will be when I tell him to fire his real-estate agent.
- Kate Beckett: Hey, Hey! Be nice.
- Richard Castle: What, to Stephen, or to the team of rats came to welcome me at the door? All right, I gotta go. I love you.
- Hayley Shipton: Okay. Sorry, sorry. I don't mean to get so bitchy. It's just that your father blew off that meeting I set up with potential clients.
- Alexis Castle: He had an impromptu get-together this morning with Stephen King. Maybe he's still there.
- Hayley Shipton: Do you have King's number?
- Alexis Castle: No, but his assistant called my dad's cell, which is linked the office computer. Okay. Here's his call log. Got it.
- [calls number]
- Alexis Castle: It's disconnected. I must have misdialed.
- [tries again]
- Alexis Castle: Something's wrong.
- Hayley Shipton: [checking her phone] No. There's a new tweet from Stephen King.
- [reading]
- Hayley Shipton: "Watch me live on Australia's '7PM Project' in twenty minutes."
- Alexis Castle: If Stephen King is in Australia... where's my dad?
- Todd: We're out of time. You need to choose which ones of you are staying in here with me.
- Richard Castle: I'll stay.
- Kate Beckett: Castle.
- [determined, he pushes one of the levers]
- Kate Beckett: Fine. But I'm not letting you stay here alone... Patricia, you leave with the others.
- Todd: But the instructions say "your better half." If you both stay, that's breaking the rules.
- Kate Beckett: Screw the rules!
- Kate Beckett: Hey, Lanie, how you doing?
- Lanie Parish: A heck of a lot better than our victim here. Name is Emma Matthews, thirty-four years old. Single GSW to the *upper* back. Through and through. Here's our exit wound. Based on lividity, I'm placing the time of death between 9:00 and 11:00 last night.
- Kate Beckett: And the neighbors *didn't* hear a gunshot?
- Kevin Ryan: No, the music was turned up too loud, but, neighbor next door said he saw a rusty white van parked outside near the time-of-death window. Didn't get a plate though.
- Kate Beckett: Does Emma have a roommate?
- Javier Esposito: No. She lives alone. But we've, uh, notified next of kin, and we've got a list of her friends and co-workers.
- Kevin Ryan: Emma was a television producer at Channel 8 News. Some of her co-workers are gonna meet us back at the precinct.
- Kate Beckett: And what's with the artwork?
- [everyone turns to look at image on the mirror]
- Javier Esposito: Not sure yet, but we think that our killer may have drawn it.
- Kate Beckett: All right. Check with the FBI, see if the M.O. or if the symbol matches anything in their database.
- Kate Beckett: Hey, Ryan, anything from the FBI?
- Kevin Ryan: No. The symbol's not in their database. Neither is our killer's M.O.
- Kate Beckett: And what about the white rusty van outside of Emma's apartment? You guys track it down?
- Kevin Ryan: No traffic cams on her block, so, so far, it's not looking good.
- Hayley Shipton: Alexis, where is your father?
- Alexis Castle: He's not with you?
- Hayley Shipton: If he were, would I be asking you where he is?
- Alexis Castle: Meow.
- Todd: Don't you see? We're powerless in here?
- Richard Castle: No, we're not... We have the power not to play.
- [to the camera]
- Richard Castle: You hear that? We're not gonna play your sick little game anymore. You lose.
- [a television monitor turns on]
- Richard Castle: It's another room... It's identical to this one.
- Simon: Meadow. What's my wife doing in there?
- Judah: That's my girlfriend, Patty.
- [a third woman turns to look up at the camera]
- Richard Castle: Beckett.
- Javier Esposito: [answering phone] Yo.
- Alexis Castle: Dad's missing, and we can't reach Beckett's cell.
- Javier Esposito: Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on, hold on.
- [puts on speakerphone]
- Javier Esposito: Beckett's at a forensics conference, Alexis.
- Alexis Castle: No, she never showed.
- Hayley Shipton: Rick was lured into an empty building this morning. I hacked a nearby street camera and got footage of a white van fleeing the scene.
- Javier Esposito: [to Ryan] Neighbors saw a white van in front of Emma's building.
- Alexis Castle: Who's Emma?
- Kevin Ryan: A murder victim. We think her killer might have been driving a rusty white van.
- Patty: What are we gonna do? This is all a game to our captor. We're being manipulated.
- Kate Beckett: We're gonna change the rules.
- Hayley Shipton: You worry a lot about your father.
- Alexis Castle: You would, too, if Richard Castle was your dad. I mean, the guy is abducted, like, what, twice a year? I think that's a tad above the national average.
- Hayley Shipton: Yet he always comes home. Do you know why that is?
- Alexis Castle: Yeah, he's really lucky.
- Hayley Shipton: No. He's really good at what he does.
- [last lines]
- Richard Castle: You okay?
- Kate Beckett: Yeah, I was just thinking about those little kids. I mean... a lot of people let them down.
- Richard Castle: And although their parents are finally being exposed, it's far too little too late.
- Kate Beckett: Mmm. This is not the day that I was expecting when I woke up this morning.
- Richard Castle: Tell me about it. But at least it's ending well.
- Kate Beckett: Yeah.
- [she takes his hand, but notices his expression]
- Kate Beckett: What's wrong?
- Richard Castle: Nothing. I- I- I ju- I was really looking forward to the prospect of collaborating with Stephen King, you know?
- Kate Beckett: Well, you know, Castle, look on the bright side. When Stephen King does call, at least you'll have one hell of an ice-breaker.
- [talking about Castle]
- Alexis Castle: Is he as good as you?
- Hayley Shipton: Good heavens, no! Why would you ask such a thing?