After pretending to have the butler of Gianna's estate inquire about the situation, Castle soon learned that the reason for the police cars and federal agents was an accident that had occurred at a distant estate involving a swimmer. Being the skilled actor he was, Castle quickly dismissed the matter.
Beckett, on the other hand, paid attention briefly out of professional police instinct, but soon refocused on playing with Alexis and Gianna, entertaining the bubbly little girl in the stroller named Onona. With her adorable appearance, thanks to great nutrition and the perfect genes of her parents, little Onona easily captivated Beckett and Alexis's full attention. Who would care about some swimmer who had an unfortunate accident?
The only person aware that this was orchestrated by the man happily teasing his daughter, John, stood to the side, shaking his head with an amused smile. Killing someone was nothing new for the infamous "Night Demon" John. Wasn't there already plenty of blood on his hands?
At first, John had been slightly surprised when he found out Castle had arranged the death of a swimming senator using two deadly sea creatures. But now, the former assassin, who had killed more than his share of people, had long adjusted his mindset.
However, the FBI agents investigating the incident weren't complete fools. After a preliminary examination at the scene, they quickly determined that Senator Pratt had died from poisoning—two different toxins, to be precise. A quick test using portable devices identified the poisons as those from a blue-ringed octopus, one of the most venomous marine animals, and a sea snake, native to the warm waters around Australia.
What puzzled the agents was how such toxins from tropical creatures could show up in the cooler waters of New York. They questioned the five bodyguards who had been on the yacht with the senator during his swim but found no useful leads.
At the time, the bodyguards had been following the swimming senator closely, no more than 30 meters behind in the yacht. When the senator cried out in pain, the bodyguards immediately jumped into the water to rescue him. Yet none of them saw any other person, boat, or aircraft nearby. Nor did they encounter any blue-ringed octopus or sea snake that might have attacked the senator.
This left the FBI agents scratching their heads.
Initially, when the agents discovered that the senator had been killed by creatures that didn't belong in these waters, they suspected foul play and a well-planned assassination. But after questioning the bodyguards who had been with the senator the whole time, the agents began to doubt this theory. Instead, they speculated that perhaps some misguided animal lover had released exotic pets into the sea, leading to the senator's tragic encounter.
No one would be surprised by this. After all, everyone knew that in this country, people kept all kinds of wild animals as pets. For example, Bengal tigers, endangered in China, numbered around 15,000 in the USA, many of which were unwanted. Leopards and other dangerous animals were also frequently kept as pets, only to be abandoned when their owners could no longer care for them.
It wasn't unusual for reckless people to own enormous, venomous spiders or illegally smuggled seven-meter African rock pythons. And when they could no longer manage these deadly creatures, they would often release them into the wild. This behavior led to frequent cases of invasive species, which had become almost a common occurrence.
Based on this line of thinking, the FBI agents were considering whether the senator had just been unlucky enough to encounter some abandoned exotic pet while swimming.
After all, to conclude that this was a premeditated murder, they would need undeniable evidence. The two small bite marks on the senator's legs only showed that he had been bitten by a blue-ringed octopus and a sea snake, both highly venomous, but there was no proof that this was part of an assassination plot.
Furthermore, their investigation of the surrounding waters yielded no evidence to support the theory of a premeditated attack. Despite the pressure to investigate thoroughly since the victim was a sitting New York State senator, the FBI agents felt obligated to interview the local residents, even though they knew this area was home to some of the wealthiest individuals in New York.
Fortunately for Castle and Gianna, their estate was located more than five kilometers away from the senator's. Thus, it wasn't initially included in the investigation. Castle, believing he had dodged a bullet, returned home with his daughter and girlfriend that evening—only to be visited by federal agents shortly afterward.
The reason for their visit wasn't suspicion that Castle was the killer. Rather, it was because the agents had learned that he frequently flew a military-certified drone over his estate. They hoped Castle's drone footage might provide some useful evidence from that day.
Although this development surprised Castle, Jarvis, his AI, had already prepared for such an event. Jarvis did indeed have footage from that day—clear video of the senator boarding his yacht, warming up on the deck, entering the water, and struggling within three minutes, before being rescued by his bodyguards. The entire sequence was captured in high-definition.
However, there was no way Castle would hand over that footage voluntarily. Doing so would be akin to admitting he had been spying on the senator.
Unfortunately for Castle, he underestimated the FBI's persistence. His evasive behavior during their questioning made them suspect that he had indeed recorded something. Sure enough, within ten minutes of the agents leaving, Castle received a call from a senior vice president of Northrop Grumman.
"Mr. Castle, I really don't want to bother you, but if you did happen to capture something with your drone today, I hope you can help us out. The chairman of Pratt & Whitney just personally called to ask for your cooperation. I'm not sure if you recorded anything, but if you did, this could be an opportunity for Northrop Grumman and Pratt & Whitney to strengthen their relationship…"
Castle couldn't believe it. The FBI had essentially thrown him under the bus! If not for Jarvis's precautions, Castle might have been in serious trouble.
Luckily, the drone controlled by Jarvis had only recorded scenes that were harmless to reveal—entirely legitimate footage. The drone that had followed Senator Pratt was a different one altogether. The one hovering over Castle's estate had only recorded the senator boarding the yacht, swimming, and encountering his fatal misfortune, all in one continuous, uncut high-definition shot.
Since Castle's homemade submarine had remained below the surface, it wasn't captured by the drone. After reviewing the footage to ensure there was nothing incriminating, Castle reluctantly called the Northrop Grumman executive to inform him that the video was available for pickup.
Castle agreed to hand over the footage mainly to clear himself of suspicion. The video could demonstrate that the senator's death really was just an unfortunate accident. The drone footage clearly showed that there were no other boats or aircraft in the area during the senator's swim.
Thanks to Northrop Grumman's cutting-edge military-grade drone, equipped with the latest reconnaissance technology, the ultra-high-definition, uncut footage could definitively prove that Senator Pratt's death had been nothing more than an unfortunate accident.
Shortly after making the call, a black sedan pulled into Castle's estate. A sharp-looking middle-aged man got out and approached Castle at the main entrance. "Hello, Mr. Castle. We greatly appreciate you providing the footage. On behalf of the Pratt family, thank you for your assistance."
Castle, not in the mood for small talk, handed over a USB drive containing the drone footage. "I've reviewed the video, and there's no evidence of anyone else being involved. As you know, the drone recorded everything in one continuous shot. It was only conducting routine surveillance of my estate at the time, so while it captured the senator's accident, I didn't notice anything unusual at first. My condolences for your loss."
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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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