DAY 4

The NYPD task force managed to trace the heroine from the compound which matches most of the heroine sold in the lower east area of New York. Detective Esposito managed to discover Burns’ missing phone who they think purposely dropped it in order for the police force to find. The NYPD task force discover various photos of the drug lab and of Miss Wyatt indicating that she was involved in the case. 

They storm Wyatt’s home only to find her on the ground saying that Carvallo tried to kill her. They brought her in to the station where she explained that she provided the ring with various places where they could process the heroine because they offered her money to clear her debts in exchange for a few favours years ago. She explained that Romero was the one who had tried to attack her earlier. Castle and Beckett then ask Wyatt for her help in tracking which pizza parlor stores the drugs for Carvallo. Wyatt told the NYPD task force that the film noir character names were last week’s codes for heroine dealing and that this week’s codes were from Burns’ favourite film, The Maltese Falcon. Detective Esposito brought in all the four Nicks while Beckett and Castle head to the pizza parlors to test their luck with the codes. 

At Terrific Authentic Nick’s pizza parlor, they try the codes again which turned out to be successful as they discover multiple packets of heroine inside the takeaway package. Terrific Authentic Nick denied knowing about the drug trafficking and said that Harley had helped him out when business was bad in exchange for letting him use the shop for a couple of months. He explained that Harley tried to dump Burns’ body in his place but he turned him away and it had ended up in Authentic Nick’s oven instead. He goes on to say that Carvallo could not be found because whenever Terrific Authentic Nick runs out of product, he is the one who has to call him and he delivers. Detective Beckett orders him to make the call. 

Packets of heroine found inside the pizza box

 Meanwhile, the call reaches Romero who turns up at Terrific Authentic Nick’s pizza parlor to drop off the drugs when he is cornered by the NYPD task force and taken into custody. Romero refuses to cooperate with the NYPD and they ship him away to prison. The NYPD then finish running narcotic tests with Miss Wyatt and release her along with deciding to place a few lookout cops around Miss Wyatt’s home in order to prevent Carvallo’s allies from reaching her. Castle however, states that it was weird for Burns to leave his phone for the police because he had no picture of Carvallo or anything highly important towards the case but only had a picture of Miss Wyatt. Beckett and Castle realize that Wyatt is actually Carvallo and immediately catch her just in time before she manages to leave the station. 

During the interrogation, Detective Beckett and Castle managed to dig up information which revealed that a drug addict named Monica Wyatt had been murdered years ago and the woman in front of them now was not really who she claims to be. Wyatt brushes the accusation aside and states that she is a real estate agent, however Detective Beckett counters by saying that the other apartments which Wyatt supposedly handles can only be previewed online and that she had made sales with people using the names of characters from noir films meaning that they were not real. They continue on to press that all the noir films had something in common, which was a femme fatale. Monica Wyatt smiles in response and states that she would like a lawyer, clearly showing that she is guilty.

DAY 3

After interviewing Miss Wyatt, the duo head back to the police station where they found that Miss Wyatt’s alibi had been viable along with a clean record. Detective Ryan discovers that the victim used his credit card at an ATM machine that night not too far from a bad neighbourhood but did not complete his transaction. The machine ate the credit card after a few minutes of inactivity. Detective Beckett found out that Burns had requested files regarding the 2003 murder of a drug trafficker named Harley Romero. Castle suggests that it may be some form of a mafia tie-in with one of the Nicks but there were no connections to any of the major crime families in New York.   

The police file on Harley Romero stating his death

 Romero was supposedly killed by a dealer over a turf war. Detective Ryan finds a surveillance video of the ATM machine and the task force sees Burns looking fearful and frantic writing something on a piece of paper when a man apparently swooped in and dragged him away with a knife. The task force then watch in astonishment as they identify the man when they freezed the video as Romero himself who was supposedly dead. However, Beckett is still unable to find any link between Romero and the pizza parlors while the captain suggested that the murder may have nothing to do with pizza.

Castle and Beckett interview the victim’s employer again who states that he did not recognize Romero at all and Burns had never mentioned Romero in any of the stories that he wrote. However, he did recognize the names, Johnny Farell and Swede Anderson, explaining that they were characters from old film noir movies.   

Burns’ employer asked Beckett regarding the drugs Harley was dealing in to which she replied was heroine. He then added that the only heroine story that Burns ever chased was the one which he could never finish which was about a high end distribution ring that operates in New York hiding amongst legitimate businesses. He explained that when someone requires heroine, they used a code word and that their code happens to be names of characters from film noir. The victim’s employer stated that the story had destroyed Burns because of the man behind the distribution ring, Carvallo. Detective Beckett was skeptical of Carvallo stating that he was only an urban legend stating that he was not real. The victim’s employer on the other hand stated that Burns had told him he had someone who can get him close to Carvallo and Carvallo was apparently responsible for his daughter’s death.

Detective Beckett theorizes that Romero was responsible for creating the Carvallo myth because it had started in 2003 which was the year in which he faked his own death. The NYPD task force then rewatch the video in an attempt to see what Burns was trying to write on the piece of paper in front of the ATM machine. Castle suggests flipping the video and slowing it down as he tries to mimic his hand movements to write it out. They then discover that it was an address leading them to a basement along 127^th street. The NYPD task force storms the basement and discovers all the hallmarks of a well-known heroine processing compound.

DAY 2

Detective Esposito returned to Burns’ home and his neighbor had told him that Burns was spotted having an argument with Authentic Terrific Nick who stated that if he printed the article he would kill Burns. During the interrogation, he said that it was only an argument and lied about being at home. His wife however, stated that he went to see another woman. Authentic Terrific Nick said that he was with the other woman and stated that Burns had found out that his pizza is made of real cheese and it was not really low-fat.  However, Burns had called him the previous night and told him that he would not print the article if Authentic Terrific Nick would do him an unknown favor. Apparently, the victim made a phone call to him which the NYPD task force managed to discover that it originated from the Hotel Beta in mid town. 

Detective Beckett and Castle immediately head towards the victim’s hotel room which was booked under a false name where they find the victim’s computer on the bed. They then discover a notepad which contains a phone number indicating that he was planning on meeting someone the night he died along with a pair of mysterious names; Johnny Farell and Swede Anderson. Detective Beckett immediately key in the number on her NYPD application and discover that the number belongs to the mysterious girl who was not identified in the photo found in the victim’s wallet. Her name is Monica Wyatt and both of them conclude that she might have been the last person to have seen the victim alive before heading off to look for her. 

Victim's notepad with phone number

Wyatt said that she had only seen the victim once or twice a year after his daughter’s accident adding that last night’s meeting was supposed to be a date but the victim failed to turn up. She added that the victim did not seem out of the ordinary and explained that the names Johnny Farell and Swede Anderson did not mean anything to her.

DAY 1

Authentic Nick believes that his competitors Terrific Authentic Nick, Terrific Nick and Authentic Terrific Nick are the culprits because one of them had tried to sabotage his business before. Authentic Nick’s employees managed to alibi out however, the employees at the other Nicks have records of pulling pranks and vandalizing. The coroner stated that the body was burned too badly to scour for prints but victim’s shinbones have titanium plates which contained serial numbers leading to an identity. The victim’s name is Gordon Burns who is a reporter. A melted cell phone belt clip even though the cell phone was missing  and a wallet containing the picture of a mysterious woman. Castle states that Burns had been a war correspondent and found it odd that he was in a pizza parlor. 

 

Detective Beckett and Castle head to his employer who states that Burns had stopped doing war articles because his child had died and started doing a puff piece on the pizza wars between the Nicks. However, Burns had called his employer stating that the pizza wars was much bigger than he had thought indicating that there was something suspicious about it. Detective Ryan could not locate the missing cell phone thinking that it was switched off or out of battery. Detective Beckett and Castle then decide to scour Gordon’s home to find the articles he wrote but searched in vain for them because the area was completely trashed. Detective Espesito mentioned that Burns’ neighbor said that she had been holding his mail for the last week because Burns told her that he was going out of the country for a while even though he was in the city all the while. 

Detective Ryan calls in to inform Detective Beckett that Terrific Authentic Nick’s fingerprints were found on the oven in Authentic Nick’s pizza parlor. The task force then brings Terrific Authentic Nick into custody. During the interrogation, Terrific Authentic Nick stated that he knew the victim who asked him and the other nicks questions for his article. Terrific Authentic Nick denies killing the victim and says that he had tried stealing the oven because Authentic Nick had tried to sabotage him and accused Authentic Nick of laundering money for his friends along with mentioning Burns to him. 

Authentic Nick was brought into interrogation and said that he had connections with the mob because of his cousin whom he sees once a year. He stated that the police had already searched his place before and no evidence was found to make him guilty.  In his defence he accused Terrific Authentic Nick and his alibi was that he was at home with his wife and that victim had only asked him about pizza.

Case Introduction

A man was found murdered and the body dumped into the oven of a pizza parlor. The cause of murder was through stabbing and not the oven itself. The body was discovered around 4:30am at Authentic Nick’s pizza parlor by the owner’s son.

DAY 3

Detective Beckett then forcefully interviews Whittaker and discovers the artwork of Sword of Lone Vengeance at his apartment. Whittaker then states that Lone Vengeance is supposed to stamp out crime and was not real. However, Detective Beckett stated that Whittaker had been mugged previously and he had been non-compliant for the police interview. Castle implies that that was the turning point in his life when he had donned the costume of Lone Vengeance. 

Detective Beckett offers a deal to place him in segregated confinement should he confess to the crime. Whittaker then hesitantly confesses that he murdered the victim because he had discovered his identity. Castle states that a superhero has a code and if he or she should go and break it, the event would trigger a crisis of fate which would devastate the superhero. Castle then asks Whittaker’s feelings regarding the murder who then replies that he had only felt really bad about it. Detective Beckett then asks why Whittaker had chopped off the victim’s hand after he killed him which was a rouse to try and figure out if he had been lying to which he replied he did not know. Both her and Castle believe that Whittaker is covering for someone and discover that the vigilante could be hiding at an abandoned tenant building where Whittaker had been mugged and where Chad had found Lone Vengeance which only proves that that was the place where the vigilante would be hiding.

Castle and Detective Beckett then infiltrate the hideout and discover various samurai swords through a hidden door. Detective Espesito radios in and states that he had seen an unknown person climb up the fire exit. Detective Beckett managed to catch Lone Vengeance off-guard and orders the vigilante to remove the mask and discovers that it was actually Officer Hastings, a police officer at the NYPD. During the interrogation, Hastings revealed that the reason why she had turned to a vigilante was because her father was murdered and decided to take justice into her own hands. 

Castle discovers that the reason Whittaker confessed was because he had loved Hastings and tried to protect her. Hastings denied that she murdered the victim and explained that she had stolen the knuckle piece was not hers and took it to test it for fingerprints. She said that the victim was a creature of habit and that the killer knew that the victim would end up in the alley. Detective Beckett believes that Hastings is innocent and that there is another person impersonating Lone Vengeance. Castle and Beckett decide that the killer was someone who knew the victim and who had experience in wielding swords. 

They arrive at the conclusion that Tony, the first suspect, was the real culprit. During the interrogation, they press Tony for answers that he had impersonated Lone Vengeance in order to point them in the wrong direction and to stop the real vigilante from interrupting his criminal business. Although Tony denied the charges, Detective Beckett showed him the knuckle plates which were found to have fingerprints belonging to Tony’s cousin Ernesto who confessed to making the outfit for Tony. 

So Tony Valtini was the murderer.

DAY 2

Castle believes the vigilante is a comic book collector and theorizes that the killer would definitely visit one particular place in town, Comic Cadia. Castle and Detective Beckett head to Comic Cadia in order to gather some answers regarding the vigilante and discover that the store clerk recognizes the vigilante because the murderer bears a great resemblance to an online comic named Sword of Lone Vengeance which was being written by a man named Sean Elt.

The Lone Vengeance online comic

Castle believes that he spotted the knuckle plate which is part of the vigilante’s costume at the crime scene. He and Detective Beckett immediately return to the area in order to retrieve it. Meanwhile, Detective Esposito receives a phone call informing him that a samurai sword was bought off Jake’s Pawnshop recently and the buyer matches the suspect in the photo. As Castle and Detective Beckett return to the area, they found the knuckle piece they were searching for but the vigilante made a sudden appearance at the scene and stole the evidence which they wanted before hopping on a motorbike and fleeing the scene. 

Detective Beckett receives a phone call from Detective Esposito who tells her that he has the location of the suspect, Chad Hockney, who had purchased the samurai sword from the pawnshop. Castle and Detective Beckett then break down the door only to find the vigilante helpless and they successfully take him into custody. In the precinct, both of them try to extract a confession from Chad. However, he stated that he was a fake and there was another vigilante who was the real Lone Vengeance who happened to be a legend in the superhero community and frequented lower Manhattan near Beakman and Theatre Alley. His alibi was that he had been sewing the Lone Vengeance costume on the night of the murder and neighbours had been complaining about the noise.

Castle begins studying the online Sword of Lone Vengeance comics in order to try and understand the vigilante’s motives and identity. Suddenly, he discovers that the comic books bear a resemblance to the events that have happened such as what had happened to the first suspect and immediately goes to tell Detective Beckett about his discovery. He then suggests that the writer of the comic book, Sean Elt, is the vigilante. 

However, at the precinct both he and Detective Beckett discover that Sean Elt is an anagram and not a real name. The NYPD task force then discovers further evidence of the vigilante’s previous crimes. Castle theorizes that Lone Vengeance had turned to crime because the murder victim had known the identity of Lone Vengeance. Both he and Detective Beckett turn to the victim’s mother who said that she did not know anyone named Sean Elt but claimed that her son had been reading Sword of Lone Vengeance and was seen arguing with someone with fair hair and a beard holding a green card saying that he knew the truth about his identity. 

Detective Beckett and Castle discover that the unknown man was the reporter at the crime scene named Paul Whittaker stating that it was the perfect cover up as he would be seeing crime spiral out of control first-hand and decided to take justice into his own hands. The NYPD task force discover that the murder victim made several calls to Whittaker however they lacked the evidence to expose him. Detective Beckett then receives a call telling her that Whittaker just maxed out his credit card at an ATM near Comic Cadia. They then arrive at the scene just in time to bring him into custody as he was trying to sell his comic books in a rush at the area.