Capítulo 74: Chapter 74: Beckett's Surveillance
"Rick, is what Abraham said true? Beckett actually followed you? Why?"
Henry was shocked. He and Castle had put on such a convincing performance today to divert the attention of the two exceptionally astute female detectives. Could it be that Castle had slipped up in front of Beckett? Otherwise, why would she suddenly start tailing Castle?
"Don't worry, Henry. This was part of my plan. Her following me will only make Beckett more convinced that we aren't up to anything secretive. She'll just think I got close to you because we share common interests."
Castle, lounging on the sofa, reassured Henry without a hint of panic. Instead, he looked rather pleased with himself, which eased Henry's initial alarm.
"What exactly is going on? You need to tell us our current situation. I followed your instructions with Martinez at the precinct today, but now you need to explain if what we're doing will affect your upcoming plan."
Henry's concern stemmed from the chaos of Castle revealing that Adam was responsible for Abigail's death, which had thrown Henry into disarray. Castle had taken charge of the revenge plan, which was full of holes, forcing them to scramble to cover their tracks and deceive the police.
Hearing Henry's serious tone, Castle dropped his casual demeanor. He realized it was time to clarify the situation.
"Henry, you're right. The initial plan was a bit rough. While I covered our tracks with Adam's kidnapping, I overlooked the fact that my unusual behavior regarding the case would raise Beckett's suspicions.
But, I can assure you, her suspicion is only because I didn't follow her lead with my usual enthusiasm in investigating such a bizarre copycat murder. Instead, I disappeared and started hanging out with you.
I've already used today's performance to mislead Beckett into thinking I'm just like a kid with a new toy, fascinated by you because of our shared interests or your position as Chief Medical Examiner. She thinks I'm ignoring the case because it's not as interesting to me compared to learning about strange cases from you."
"Wait, Rick, what do you mean by 'not enough clues to investigate'?"
Henry interrupted Castle's rambling, sensing something amiss.
"Oh, that's referring to Adam's case. Do you really think we can help the police find clues and solve it? Adam planned to mimic the Black Dahlia case next, but we acted quickly, preventing him from continuing.
Because he didn't get to continue, the police only have minimal leads from the Jack the Ripper imitation. There's a clean crime scene meticulously arranged by him, leaving no extra clues. The police know he used an alias at the New York Public Library to look up the old reports and that he specifically targeted the victim using the alias Mary Kelly, a name from the Jack the Ripper case. That's it—very few leads.
We haven't even found the primary crime scene yet. How can the police find Adam in such a vast population with just these scant clues?
This is our chance. The police must realize that due to the lack of clues and evidence, they can't sustain their investigation. They might shelve the case as a cold one, reducing our exposure risk."
Even Henry, with his usual calm demeanor, was irritated by Castle's verbose explanation. Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, he summarized, "So, you're saying we need to lure the police into finding some traces left by Adam, but ensure these traces aren't enough to continue the investigation, right? Any other plans?"
Castle, not bothered by the interruption, continued, "Yes. That's why I came here immediately after leaving the precinct to discuss with you. I think we should wrap up Adam's matter tonight while Beckett and Martinez are busy following up on the fake signature clue from the library. They won't be watching us.
Beckett thinks I'm here to gather stories from you for my new book. For at least a day or two, they won't pay attention to us. Let's take this opportunity to finish off Adam and ensure our plan remains hidden."
"Henry, I think Rick has a point," Abraham suddenly voiced his support.
Seeing Henry deep in thought, Castle added fuel to the fire, "Henry, I think you and Abraham shouldn't come to the hospital tonight. I'll go alone. Not only will it be less noticeable, but I'll also need some help from people in the underground world afterward. Your presence wouldn't be appropriate."
Henry looked at Castle, "Can you handle it alone?"
Castle laughed, "You forget, who took down Adam in the first place? That was all me."
Henry and Abraham exchanged glances and eventually agreed to Castle's plan. Henry also instructed Castle to have his friend at the private hospital arrange Adam's transfer to avoid unnecessary attention when Adam disappears.
After finalizing their plan, Castle retrieved the dagger that could nullify Adam's resurrection ability from Henry. Ensuring everything was in place, he bid the two farewell and drove away.
Castle didn't head home but instead made a call to Italy. He needed assistance from John Wick, who was in Italy, relaxing after settling a personal vendetta.
"John, I need to ask you something. You mentioned that we could use Continental Hotel's gold coins to hire cleaners to dispose of bodies, right?"
John Wick, in high spirits after reclaiming his blood oath medallion and eliminating a major threat, was surprised by Castle's question.
"Rick, what trouble have you gotten into now?"
"Nothing, it's not me. Don't jump to conclusions," Castle quickly denied, then explained, "I need to dispose of a body tonight, one that's inconvenient for others to find out about. But I don't know how to contact the cleaners. I can't just call Winston, can I? He'd give me a lecture."
John, sensing Castle didn't want to divulge details, didn't press further. Everyone has their secrets, after all. He laughed, "Rick, to hire cleaners, just call the Continental Hotel, specify your request and the number of people needed. They'll handle the rest. Just make sure you pay them with the gold coins, specifically the ones worth ten thousand. Don't mix them up!"
"Got it. Thanks, John!"
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Capítulo 75: Chapter 75: John Becomes a Dad
Having received John's guidance, Castle set aside the issue with Adam and shifted his attention to his friend's recent affairs.
"John, how's everything going? Did Santino return the blood oath medallion without any ulterior motives? Is he really willing to just let it go?"
John, who hadn't had a good chat with Castle for a while, had mellowed considerably since being with Gianna. The once stoic and cold-hearted killer now seemed like a middle-aged man tired of being nagged by his wife. Delighted by the opportunity to catch up while Gianna was getting ready for bed, John started to talk more.
"Rick, you wouldn't believe it. Gianna confronted Santino directly, demanding he return the medallion or face immediate war. You know Santino—he's always been a coward, a pampered brat. He wouldn't dare defy his sister. Besides, once his schemes were exposed, he was more afraid of Gianna causing trouble for him. So, despite his reluctance, he had no choice..."
"Ah..." As the two friends chatted, Castle suddenly heard a loud, high-pitched scream from John's end, interrupting their conversation.
Startled, John instinctively turned towards the source of Gianna's scream, quickly drawing his Glock 17 from its holster. He saw Gianna, wearing only a bathrobe, running towards him with something in her hand, her face lit up with excitement.
"John, John... what's happening? What's going on over there?" Castle, having heard Gianna's scream, anxiously called out, trying to figure out what had caused the usually composed Gianna to shout so loudly.
John, watching the jubilant Gianna rush towards him, lowered his gun but kept talking to Castle. "Rick, it's nothing. Gianna seems to have some good news. Hold on, don't hang up. Let me ask her."
Before he could finish, Gianna, her face flushed with excitement, ran up to John, waving a pregnancy test. "John... John, look, look... two lines... ah... two lines..."
John, a man of action but not always the quickest on the uptake, was still confused by Gianna's excitement. Meanwhile, Castle, listening on the phone, had already figured it out. "John, my friend, you're going to be a father!"
"Boom..." The realization hit John like a ton of bricks, rendering him momentarily speechless.
Gianna, now noticing that John was still on the phone, took it from his stunned hand. Seeing Castle's name on the screen, she exclaimed, "Rick, is that you?"
"Hi, Gianna. Congratulations! You're going to be a mom!"
Castle felt genuine joy for John and Gianna. After all, he had played a pivotal role in altering John's fate. Instead of the relentless, tragic figure from the original story, John now had a loving partner and a child on the way. Castle couldn't help but laugh at the thought of the deadly assassin handling diapers and baby bottles.
"Rick, thank you so much. You have no idea how grateful I am that you brought John into my life. From today onwards, you will always be the most respected friend of the D'Antonio family."
Gianna, overwhelmed with emotion, made a heartfelt promise to Castle, despite not yet officially taking over as head of the family.
"Come on, Gianna, you and John are my friends. I was hoping John would be the godfather to my daughter, so maybe I can be the godfather to your child! How's John doing? Is he still in shock? Too bad I can't see his face right now; it must be priceless!"
"Ha ha ha... Rick, you're right. John is completely out of it. Look, we've been talking all this time, and he hasn't even reacted..."
Gianna, touched by Castle's words, turned to see John, who was still smiling stupidly. She felt incredibly lucky, knowing this happiness was thanks to Castle.
"Gianna, you need to take care of yourself now that you're pregnant. I think John will be too busy to talk to me now, so I'll hang up. You two enjoy your time. I'll come visit you in Rome after I finish my business here!"
Castle realized it wasn't the best time to keep talking to a pregnant woman. It was already late in Rome, and she needed rest. He hung up, leaving the couple to their joy.
A system notification pinged, catching Castle's attention.
"System panel," he thought, and a bright message appeared: "Plot of 'John Wick' has been completely altered. The fate of John Wick has been fundamentally changed by the host. As a reward, the system will present the host with a mysterious gift upon the birth of John Wick's child. Stay tuned..."
"What? A 'stay tuned' reward? Is the system getting cheeky now? I fundamentally change John's fate, and you give me a 'future' reward?"
"The host has indeed changed John Wick's fate, but the system acknowledges the true change when his child is born."
"Alright, fine. Better than nothing. Nine more months isn't that long..."
Castle grumbled a bit but knew he couldn't argue with the system. Annoying it might mean losing the reward altogether.
Setting aside his thoughts about the system's reward, Castle prepared to restart his car when his phone rang again.
It was Mozzie, signaling he had results from his meeting with Neal.
"Rick, where are you? I just finished meeting Neal. You were right; he had a compelling reason to break out of prison with only four months left on his sentence. Can you come over? You won't believe what Neal's done."
"Of course I know what Neal Caffrey did. He made a deal with Peter Burke, helping the FBI solve cases in exchange for freedom within a two-mile radius."
Castle thought, but he responded to Mozzie, "Mozzie, I have an urgent matter to handle, but I'll be free in two hours. How about we meet then?"
"Sure, take care of your business first. I'll contact you later."
Mozzie quickly agreed and hung up.
"Alright, time to head to that private hospital and deal with Adam. It should be past working hours now, so there shouldn't be many people around. Hopefully, Henry's friend has arranged the transfer."
Castle, not in a rush, finally started his car and headed towards the private hospital. About an hour later, he arrived at what seemed more like a scenic sanatorium than a hospital. The place lacked the towering buildings of a typical urban hospital, featuring instead single-story buildings and small cottages, which would facilitate his upcoming actions.
Following Henry's directions, Castle found Building 17, a single-story structure. A doctor in a white coat stood at the entrance, awaiting Castle's arrival.
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