The situation developed exactly as Castle, Moz, and the others had anticipated. The assassination attempt in Times Square, seemingly targeting the Vice President, quickly faded from public discussion. This was clearly due to an unspoken agreement between the two major political parties, the Elephants and the Donkeys. They tacitly instructed their respective media outlets to tone down coverage of the event. After all, the public's attention had already been diverted to the sensational news of a famous celebrity coming out, complete with pictures and evidence. Public focus is always easily manipulated by those who control the media, isn't it?
Castle and Moz remained calm. This was entirely within their expectations. If the two dominant political parties, who have long monopolized the stage, didn't have this level of control, could they even claim to be in charge?
In preparation for the party he'd been dreaming about, Castle secretly made a phone call while Beckett wandered the estate. He contacted a company that specialized in event organization and also called Esposito and Ryan, asking them to bring their girlfriends, Renée and Jenny, who regularly made honey milk for Ryan. He even reached out to Abraham to invite both Abe and Henry, but unfortunately, Henry was busy with work and had to miss out.
When Beckett returned with Alexis, who had just completed a "jerk detection" course, they were surprised to find her father and her eccentric boyfriend, with Big Ivan's help, directing a large crew to set up a bonfire event. The two women could only facepalm at the scene—they had known he wouldn't be able to resist his party cravings.
Castle, still orchestrating the setup, was thrilled to see Beckett and his daughter approaching. "Hey, look at this! I hired a top New York event company. They set this all up in less than an hour."
"Bob's leaving tomorrow, so we're throwing a little farewell party for him and celebrating the fact that he made it through the recent events unscathed."
Beckett and Alexis, aware that Castle just wanted an excuse to party, didn't have much to say. With the event company nearly finished, there was no point in dismantling everything.
Meanwhile, after concluding their "art history and jerk identification" class for Castle's daughter, Neal and Moz had been busy briefing Bob on Charles Hahn, the senator from Montana. Everyone knew Bob wouldn't let the assassination attempt slide. He had already stated he'd be leaving New York tomorrow, and it wasn't hard to guess where he would go next.
To ensure Bob's revenge was successful without him being charged with murder, Neal and Moz, both brilliant "bad guys," had been using the high-performance computer set up for the little chubby guy by his uncle Rick at Castle's estate. They meticulously reviewed all the intelligence they had on Charles Hahn, trying to close the information gap between Bob and the senator due to their different statuses.
Everyone at the estate, except for the uninformed Alexis, was confident that with the same level of intelligence as Charles Hahn, Bob, whom Castle jokingly called the world's best sniper, could easily take out the senator without arousing suspicion.
Few people in the world could match Bob's accuracy at 1,800 meters, but as long as he didn't display such extraordinary shooting skills in his revenge, who could point the finger at him without evidence?
Even if the whole world knew Bob had a motive to kill Senator Hahn, where was the proof?
So, with an unspoken understanding between various parties, this incident seemed to come to a premature end. Aside from the CIA Director, who was in a foul mood after being blamed for Johnson's unexpected death, everyone else—from Senator Charles Hahn to Vice President Andrew—assumed the "minor probe" had concluded. But only Castle, who was hosting the bonfire party at his Long Island estate, knew that this was just the first act. The real drama, the more thrilling second half, was set to begin tomorrow night, starring a reinvigorated Vice President Andrew, who thought he'd escaped unscathed.
Elsewhere, Frank Moses and his team were holed up in a safehouse, discussing tomorrow's plan. Unlike the movie Castle had seen in his previous life, Frank's team didn't include the Russian retiree who was in love with Victoria, nor the old-timer Joe. It was just Frank, Marvin, Victoria, and the not-so-useful Sarah. However, this time, they had intelligence far beyond the original plot. With the help of Castle's connections and technical support, they didn't even need to attend the event in person. Their plan was simple: expose Vice President Andrew's involvement in a village massacre in Africa through the event's large screens during his speech.
With Castle's intel and tech backing, they didn't need to be on-site, allowing them to relax as they discussed the plan at the safehouse.
Sarah was rather frustrated, though. She had joined Frank in hopes of some adventure, but today, all she got was a brief trip with Marvin, who unexpectedly encountered the real mastermind behind their troubles, Colonel Johnson. After they quickly dealt with him, everything seemed to spiral in a bizarre direction.
Victoria laughed as she spoke about the situation: "Who would've thought, after you two took out Johnson, things would unfold exactly as that writer said. The Elephants and Donkeys pinned everything on the dead man and called it quits—for now. If we hadn't already had a solid plan in place, we wouldn't have been able to adjust in time! Marvin, what's with that face?"
Marvin sat on the sofa, grumpy. "Why can't we just use a bomb to kill that jerk Andrew tomorrow? We've got plenty of explosives and two heavy machine guns. I want to try them out!"
Frank, exasperated by his partner's antics, sighed. "I told you already, our goal isn't to directly confront Andrew or Charles Hahn. We need them to fight each other. Tomorrow, we'll expose Andrew's past crimes during the fundraiser, and he'll think it was Hahn who broke their agreement. Even if they suspect someone's pulling the strings, Andrew will still need someone to blame. And who do you think he'll target when he can't find us?"
Marvin, still sulking, muttered, "I just want to use a grenade launcher on that jerk. If it weren't for him, I'd still be in the Florida swamps playing with alligators."
Frank, shaking his head in amusement, gave up on convincing his old friend and turned to Victoria. "Andrew isn't that formidable. I'm sure tomorrow's reveal will take him down quickly. But the real issue comes afterward. We need to figure out if Dr. Edward Bailey is truly being held in the Tower of London by your MI6. That's what really matters."
Victoria had long been puzzled by Frank's obsession with someone who'd been declared dead over thirty years ago.
But Frank couldn't tell her the real reason—that years ago, he and Marvin had helped the doctor plant a device in a hidden room inside the Russian president's residence.
Back then, their superiors had told them it was just a tracker, but Castle's conversation had made Frank suspicious. He had a gut feeling that if it were really just a tracking device, his old commander's son wouldn't have warned him with such an odd tone. That device, which they'd placed in the Kremlin's secret chamber over thirty years ago, might not be what it seemed.
This lingering concern over a more serious issue had led Frank to swiftly kill Colonel Johnson upon discovering him, eager to wrap up their current situation quickly so he could dig deeper into what Castle had revealed.
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Fairy Tail: Igneel's Eldest Son (Chapter 256)
I Am Thalos, Odin's Older Brother (Chapter 336)
Reborn in America's Anti-Terror Unit (Chapter 542)
Solomon in Marvel (Chapter 924)
Becoming the Wealthiest Tycoon on the Planet (Chapter 1284)
Surgical Fruit in the American Comics Universe (Chapter 1289)
American Detective: From TV Rookie to Seasoned Cop (Chapter 1316)
American TV Writer (Chapter 1402)
I Am Hades, The Supreme GOD of the Underworld! (Chapter 570)
Reborn as Humanity's Emperor Across the Multiverse (Chapter 660)
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