Today, the reason Castle and Beckett came to the police station was to prepare for an event two days from now. Although Bob Lee Swagger, who was surveying the scene, was already being closely watched by the team of Moz and the chubby guy, they had also managed to locate the most dangerous sniper spot that Bob had envisioned. Furthermore, the chubby guy impressively tracked down Johnson's men, who had been quietly tailing Bob during his investigation. They had essentially pinpointed the location of these troublemakers and successfully discovered the sniper point they had set up above Bob, who was regarded as the strongest sniper on the planet.
So, after receiving this information early in the morning, it was only natural for Castle to join Beckett in coming to the police station to arrange matters for the upcoming event.
First, according to what they had discussed the night before at home, they planned to surround the building where Bob was located as soon as the shot from above alerted him. This way, they could discreetly let the unlucky Bob escape using the advantage of police numbers, while simultaneously trapping Johnson's men inside the building. These guys were using 'Intervention' sniper rifles equipped with full electronic targeting systems, so the idea of them making a quick escape after firing was nothing short of a dream.
In the original events, Johnson had bribed the local police, causing chaos when they shot at Bob even after he had surrendered. This allowed Johnson's men to blend in with the confusion and sneak away with the actual sniper rifle that was used.
But here? Heh, this is New York!
Beckett's jurisdiction. These idiots dared to stir up trouble in Beckett's territory—was Castle supposed to turn a blind eye?
Castle was eager to see how Johnson would explain a room full of his men and that sniper rifle when Beckett's officers trapped them. Was he going to claim that Bob, while being watched by everyone, was the one who fired the shot?
This was precisely why Castle was determined to teach the conniving senator from Montana and the underhanded Colonel Johnson a harsh lesson. They picked a fight with his girlfriend—how could they think they could get away with it unscathed?
Castle and Beckett had already decided the previous night that while they wouldn't get involved in the political battle between the Montana senator and the vice president, they absolutely wouldn't let Johnson's cronies, who recklessly used high-powered sniper rifles in New York, off the hook. Not only was the CIA unauthorized to operate domestically, but any actions they took in New York were black operations. With this falling into the hands of Castle and Beckett, who were eager to cause them trouble, there was no way they would be allowed to get away easily. And especially since these scumbags were from the same party as Beckett's nemesis, William Bracken.
If they caught Johnson's men in that room, Bob Lee Swagger might not even be charged. After all, the sniper rifle in Bob's room wouldn't have fired a single shot. But in Johnson's men's room, it definitely would have—the one that killed that so-called "peace envoy" from Africa. Castle was curious: how would Johnson, who even bossed around the Attorney General, handle things when Beckett's team caught his men red-handed with the murder weapon?
Beckett wasn't someone Johnson could easily intimidate, and with Castle, a shareholder in Northrop Grumman, backing her up, Castle could hardly suppress a grin at the thought.
He considered himself a genius for coming up with such a sneaky yet simple plan to clear Bob of the charges!
Since his system only required him to help Bob Lee Swagger clear his name, and didn't specify how he should do it, Castle chose the simplest method—catch the real culprits! The location Bob picked was 1,800 meters from Times Square, far beyond the Secret Service, FBI, and NYPD's security perimeter. So, unlike in the original events, where a federal agent accidentally discovered the sniper rifle barrel, this time, there would be no such mishap.
Coincidentally, Beckett's 12th precinct was responsible for the outer perimeter security. Once Castle and the chubby guy identified Johnson's men and their weapon, the chances of Bob being wrongfully accused would drop to almost zero. This meant Castle could complete the first task of his system mission in the easiest way possible.
And once Johnson's men fell into the hands of the 12th precinct, Castle didn't care if the FBI or the Secret Service were involved—Beckett would never let those guys leave without extracting every ounce of information from them.
The NYPD, having been caught in this storm, would likely side with Beckett, who would have apprehended the shooting suspects right after the incident. Things were about to get very interesting!
All Castle needed to do was have Beckett surround the building immediately after the shooting, then discreetly allow Bob to escape once he realized he'd fallen into a trap. After that, Johnson's men, along with their weapon, would be cornered. With the real culprits in custody, there was no way to pin the crime on the innocent Bob. Beckett, playing ignorant, would arrest Johnson's men and bring them back to the station, throwing a wrench in the plans of the Montana senator and Colonel Johnson. Castle was curious to see how these two crooks would react when he and Beckett disrupted their scheme.
Castle also suspected that part of their plan was motivated by the fact that this was Beckett's jurisdiction. After all, their party's golden boy had ended up in prison because of Beckett, so it wouldn't be surprising if these black-hearted jerks planned to not only frame Bob but also embarrass Beckett and the NYPD in the process.
What Castle didn't know was that his father's trusted ally, Frank Moses, had already been dragged into the situation. Otherwise, Castle might have realized that the senator and Johnson weren't pushovers. These two masterminds had concocted a layered plan that didn't just involve a former Marine sniper like Bob—they had also pulled in several top-tier retired operatives!
Frank Moses had just kidnapped his girlfriend and was racing toward the Florida swamps, hoping to meet up with his old partner Marvin to figure out who was disturbing his peaceful retirement. Based on his abilities, Frank would likely find out by tomorrow that Vice President Andrew was behind the attacks on him. However, whether or not he would uncover in time that it was all part of the Montana senator's and Johnson's conspiracy was anyone's guess. Either way, the senator and Johnson, who thought their plan was flawless, were in for a surprise, as it was destined to encounter major setbacks.
After a morning of careful planning, Castle and Beckett finally reached a consensus—they would not reveal any information about the upcoming events within the precinct.
First, this was to avoid the Secret Service or FBI from shifting blame onto them in the aftermath.
Second, after studying Bob's chosen sniper location in detail, Beckett concluded that there was no need to inform her officers in advance. After all, Beckett intended to personally lead her team to trap Johnson's men inside that building.
This would also give Bob the best chance to escape.
Since the building was nearly 2,000 meters from Times Square, far beyond the security perimeter of the Secret Service, FBI, and NYPD, Beckett could comfortably station her team outside. Following Castle's logic, even if the real target wasn't the African "peace envoy" but Vice President Andrew, it would still be a dogfight between two political factions. As long as Beckett caught the real culprits, there was no way the blame could fall on the NYPD. The embarrassment would land on the Secret Service and the FBI. So, even if they did assassinate the vice president, what could they do?
Beckett, fully agreeing with Castle's plan, eagerly went along with his suggestion.
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