บท 52: Chapter 52: Explosive Revelations
Castle was not one to hold back. Seeing the hopeful expressions of the father and son before him, he did not hesitate to continue his persuasive pitch: "At the time, I was just conducting a routine investigation, only learning that the African Queen belonged to a British noble family named Morgan. I didn't pay it much attention beyond that.
Until one day, I forgot to turn off a fuzzy search program, which popped up a potential related person—it was you!! Dr. Henry Morgan, the chief medical examiner in New York.
Dr. Morgan, you should know, today's big data on the internet can reveal many incredible things. Initially, I thought you might be a descendant of that family. On a whim, I researched your life trajectory and was surprised to find that you seemed to be hiding a huge secret."
To alleviate Henry's suspicions and to willingly recruit him as an ally, Richard Castle—bereft of any scruples and unabashed con artist—came online once again. Combining what he knew from the original series with some of his own embellishments, he ardently bamboozled Henry, whose judgment was clouded by excitement.
"At first, I only discovered your odd diploma issued by the University of Guam. Then I found out you had worked as a gravedigger for a while before becoming a medical examiner in New York. However, what was strange was your far-above-average understanding of human anatomy, which piqued my curiosity.
Thus, I employed my top-tier hacking skills, known to few, along with some underground channels, and the consolidated intelligence showed that you, Henry Morgan, were the very Henry Morgan from the Morgan family declared missing at sea by the captain of the African Queen. You can't imagine my surprise when I realized that, counting from your disappearance to now, you must be a legendary figure who has lived for over two hundred years.
You know, Dr. Morgan, I've always believed that miracles exist in this world, and you are one of those miracles.
However, after some investigation, I noticed you were always cautiously avoiding public attention. That made me realize you were hiding from the world. If I had approached you directly with this information, it likely would have panicked you. So, out of respect for your choices, after investigating your past, I decided to keep this information about you confidential.
Until today, when I met you at the crime scene, I still harbored the same thought and had no plans of confronting you. But truth be told, the murderer in today's case is also an immortal, a lonely soul from the Roman era who has been calling and harassing you because he has noticed you and thinks you are like him. He plans to coerce you into compliance with his directives.
His goal is to destroy your humanity and turn you into a cold, indifferent observer like himself.
Remember the subway derailment a while ago? If I remember correctly, you were in that subway car, right? Yes, the person who poisoned the subway driver was him!!!"
Castle's speech, packed with so many explosive secrets, utterly shocked Henry and Abraham.
Initially, Henry only thought Castle somehow knew his secret of immortality, but he hadn't realized how transparent he had been to Castle.
Abraham was also frightened. Are novelists nowadays really so formidable? To easily dig up an old man who had been hiding for two hundred years seemed unimaginable. Castle surely didn't know about his youthful fling with his mother, Martha, did he? That would be awkward.
Yes, Abraham, who had once been an actor, actually knew Castle, but only through his mother, Martha. This was actually their first real-life meeting.
Abraham's feelings about the current situation were a mix of hilarity and dismay. He was an old friend of Castle's mother, yet Castle was a friend of his father. Abraham puzzled over how he should regard and address Castle.
Seeing the astonished expression on Henry's face, Castle couldn't help but internally gloat, confident that this home-bound, old-fashioned man without even a cell phone couldn't escape his ruse.
Over the years, Henry had been dedicated to understanding why he would revive in the river immediately after dying, stark naked, making him quite out of touch with technological advancements. From his lack of a smartphone—a staple for modern people—it was clear that while Henry kept up academically, he had sealed himself off from the outside world ever since Abigail had left home, which was over twenty years ago.
Thus, Castle felt no guilt in bamboozling the father and son duo with tales of hacking and big data, his words exposing little risk of being caught, especially since he truly possessed top-tier hacking skills, allowing him to be unrestrained in his deception.
It took a while for Henry to recover from the bombshell Castle had dropped: "Mr. Castle, are you saying that the murder case, the mysterious person who has been calling me, is the same person who has lived since Roman times? Because he thinks
I am like him?"
Castle nodded emphatically; "Yes, Dr. Morgan, about this person, oh right, his name is Adam, and his current cover is a psychiatrist working at the Seventh Psychiatric Hospital!"
"All this, you found out through your computer?"
Henry was somewhat dizzy. Had computer technology really reached such incredible levels? Was it so powerful that not only could it uncover someone who had been hiding for two hundred years like himself, but also another who had lived for more than ten times that long?
"Oh, of course not, didn't I just say? I also utilized some underground channels and intelligence networks, and finally, I needed some help from sources I'd rather not introduce to you," Castle said, banking on Henry's gentlemanly nature, which would prevent him from pressing for more details on the sources.
"Let me summarize, then. So, starting from the subway incident, the mysterious person who has been calling me, who lived since the Roman era, discovered me and thought I was like him. So, he murdered the subway driver while I was on board to test if I was an immortal like him?
After he got the answer he wanted, he has been calling me to increase the pressure, including the incident today, all to exert his influence over me?"
Henry methodically pieced together the information he had received from Castle.
"Yes, and moreover, Dr. Morgan, he is also the murderer of Abigail!!"
Castle decided to spill all the beans about the mysterious Adam from the original series, delivering the most devastating news to Henry and Abraham.
"What did you say? He killed Abigail? Do you know where Abigail is now?"
Henry's usually composed demeanor completely vanished, his eyes red as he stared at Castle on the sofa, almost unable to believe what he had just heard.
Abraham's eyes also narrowed sternly at Castle, trying to discern the truth in his words.
Seeing the ferocious expressions of the father and son ready to pounce, Castle spoke seriously: "Dr. Morgan, since I met you, I have emphasized that I have no ill intentions towards you and that I understand you well. Do you think I would joke about something like this?"
Overwhelmed by his emotions, Henry abruptly stood up from the sofa, fixing his gaze on Castle: "Tell me, where is she?!!!"
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บท 53: Chapter 53: Santino's Compromise
"Calm down, Dr. Morgan, of course I will tell you where Abigail is. Once we finish our conversation, I can take you there today!"
Castle tried to calm Henry down, but Henry, who had been frantically searching for his wife for twenty years, and Abraham, equally anxious to find his foster mother, were not in the mood to stay calm.
"Forget everything else now, just tell me where Abigail is!"
Henry Morgan had lost his usual composure and, looking nearly mad, clutched Castle's hands tightly.
Seeing Henry's state, Castle knew further conversation was futile and reluctantly compromised: "Her body is still in a small town in New Jersey. I can take you there right now!"
"Her body? She hasn't been buried??"
Henry could no longer contain himself and urgently signaled to Abraham to start the car.
Embarrassed, Castle responded to Henry's query: "Yes, Dr. Morgan, I only recently confirmed your wife's situation and the location of her body. She's currently in a forest on the outskirts of New Jersey. I think she would prefer you to personally bring her home!!!"
As they spoke, the three quickly descended from the second-floor drawing room. Henry, abandoning his usual demeanor, hurried towards Abraham's car parked by the curb, urging them, "Hurry, hurry, Abraham, we're going to bring your mother home."
Instead of immediately getting into the driver's seat, Abraham handed the keys to Castle. Considering the emotional state of the father and son, Castle agreed they weren't fit to drive. So he took the keys without hesitation, started the car, and headed straight for the forest in New Jersey where Abigail was killed by Adam.
Meanwhile, in Rome, Italy, within the ancient castle of the D'Antonio family.
Santino D'Antonio walked ahead alone while Gianna, smiling charmingly, flirted with John Wick as she escorted her brother towards his room.
Initially, Santino planned to delay, hoping for a turn of events, but Gianna saw right through him. She not only threatened her foolish brother that if he didn't hand over John's blood oath marker immediately, she would declare war on all of Santino's forces today.
She also informed Santino that she would not only destroy his power base but would also capture and imprison him, though she wouldn't kill him. Freedom, however, would be out of his reach. If he doubted her, he was welcome to test her resolve.
Upon being threatened by Gianna, Santino hastily tried to claim that the blood oath marker wasn't on him, hoping to momentarily escape her scrutiny and consult his advisors.
Unfortunately, Gianna, fully committed to the issue with John Wick, left no room for Santino to maneuver. Hearing that Santino didn't have the marker on him, she immediately declared that they would accompany him to his room to retrieve it, sternly asserting that she would turn against her brother if she didn't get her hands on John's blood oath marker today.
Thus, a tearful Santino, subdued under the fierce will of his sister, led the way to his room. It was clear Gianna wouldn't relent until the marker was surrendered. Any thoughts or plans Santino harbored would have to wait until after today's issues were resolved.
Santino knew well that by handing over the blood oath marker, he was effectively acknowledging Gianna's leadership, marking his definitive exit from the family's power struggle.
If he had managed to have John Wick act against Gianna as per his original plan, there might still be hope. But now, with John at Gianna's side and even protecting her, even if Santino found an assassin bold enough to strike at Gianna, whether they could surpass John was another critical question.
Walking towards his room, Santino was filled with reluctance and helplessness. Standing in front of his room door, he dared not delay any longer. With a heavy sigh, he opened the door, went to a hidden safe, and took out the blood oath marker he had treasured—the symbol representing John Wick's life.
Turning around, with great reluctance and his body trembling with anger but facing a situation stronger than himself, Santino realized he couldn't leave the castle today unless he complied. Once again, with a heavy heart, he looked at the blood oath marker in his hand and resentfully handed it over to Gianna, who was blocking his doorway.
Gianna's mood was the polar opposite of Santino's. Laughing heartily, she took the marker from her brother's hand and even flirted with John, who stood by her side expressionless, before she solemnly told Santino, "You've shown good sense, Santino. So, I won't overlook our sibling relationship. You'll no longer have a chance at the family head position, but I assure you, as long as you obey, John and I will always be your support..."
Watching his sister
declare victory in front of him and helplessly seeing the last safeguard of his position as family head disappear, Santino was overwhelmed with mixed emotions. Wanting to express his loyalty but unable to accept his defeat, he mumbled and finally said, "Just go, I'm tired, I need to rest!!"
Understanding Santino's feelings of loss, Gianna didn't provoke him further. Joyously, she returned the blood oath marker to its rightful owner, her lover John Wick, then, arm in arm with John, she turned and left.
Leaving Santino, who had lost everything, standing at his room door, sorrowfully shedding tears alone.
Meanwhile, back in New York, as Castle, driving Abraham's car with Henry and his son, rushed towards New Jersey to find Abigail's body, he suddenly received a system notification.
"Ding... Due to John Wick retrieving his blood oath marker from Santino D'Antonio, the plot of 'John Wick 2' has been completely altered. This outcome is the result of relentless efforts by the host, and the plot has been changed by one hundred percent (the plot had no chance to begin). Therefore, a targeted reward is awarded to the host.
Congratulations to the host, you've received the 'Underwater Breathing' skill.
Skill description: 'Underwater Breathing' allows the host to extract oxygen directly from water, enabling breathing underwater without time constraints!"
"Wow, did John get his blood oath marker back from Santino? Gianna must have helped, huh? Man, John's so lucky to have a girlfriend like Gianna who's utterly devoted to him.
Eh, underwater breathing? Does that mean I'm practically a merman now? Um... a merman, damn, that's not a pretty picture!
So, like a less impressive Aquaman? Haha, I won't need to carry around an oxygen tank when I dive anymore!"
Foolishly shortsighted, Castle failed to appreciate the formidable potential of unlimited underwater breathing, focusing only on the convenience it provided for diving—an utter waste of such a magnificent gift!
Still basking in self-satisfaction in the driver's seat and caught up in his excitement, Castle suddenly remembered that now was not the time to be joyful, with two anxious father and son in the backseat. Snapping back to reality, Castle quickly subdued his excitement, driving with utmost seriousness. He applied his driving skills, learned from 'Vanessa Lopez,' to the fullest, turning Abraham's gray BMW into a streak of lightning.
"I'm helping Abraham find his mother, huh... he probably won't mind a speeding ticket, right?"
With this in mind, Castle, showing off his almost divine driving skills to Henry and his son in the backseat, couldn't help but think cheekily!
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