her killer who let him go. The girl's body was never found and she was never identified so no one believed his story. According to Castle, this encounter is what causes him to do what he does: he never was able to solve the mystery of what happened to him in the woods that day so he's driven to solve all the other mysteries he can. In the present of the episode, Castle is confronted by a similar case and finally gets to learn the truth of what happened that day and personally stop a serial killer of an unknown, but presumably large, number of murdered women. Castle is something of a "method writer", endlessly researching his subjects and acquiring new skills to put himself in the mind of his characters. Amongst the useful skills Castle (and to some extent, partner-in-crime Alexis) have acquired are lock picking, safe cracking, fencing, and a basic grounding in forensic science and criminal psychology. Because he's a writer, although he notoriously shirks "boring paperwork," his ability to speed-read allows him to sift through information faster than most of the precinct (a skill Gates puts to use when hunting for a bomber) and he retains almost everything he reads, especially when it comes to case files (making him the closest approximation to an expert when Jerry Tyson, aka 3XK, returns in Season 7 after stealing his entire case file in Season 6). He also has researched crimes and serial killers, such as the original crime spree of serial killer Jerry Tyson aka The Triple Killer or 3XK for When It Comes to Slaughter. In the pilot episode, "Flowers For Your Grave", Castle displays an uncanny knack for behavioral observation when he observes Beckett and is able to accurately profile her, to which a visibly shaken Beckett responds "cute trick". Kyra Blaine, an ex-girlfriend of Castle to whom he dedicated A Rose for Everafter, told Beckett that Castle only dedicates his books to people he truly cares about. In "Hollander's Woods", Castle is awarded the Poe's Pen Achievement Award which he says is the highest award a mystery writer can receive. Although shaken by an encounter with the serial killer who inspired his writing interest, Castle accepts the award and dedicates it to his family and friends as he recognizes that, without them, he wouldn't have won it. Police consulting In the pilot episode of Castle,