Could this French hereditary nobleman really be so brain-dead? Anyone with a bit of common sense would at least do some basic background checks on the target before carrying out such a kidnapping, right?
To undertake such an operation without any preliminary investigation into Castle—wasn't he afraid of the consequences?
Reality is often stranger than fiction. Not only did this second-generation nobleman fail to investigate Castle at all, but even Le Chiffre, the one who executed the plan, didn't conduct a thorough investigation into Castle's actual situation. Instead, he simply used a client of his money-laundering business, who happened to be a criminal acquaintance Castle had met during his writing days, to lure Castle out with a phone call.
Then, the ruthless Le Chiffre, who was well-versed in using mercenaries for dirty work, had his men kill the guy and dump him into the Hudson River. After that, he used an absurdly simple method—holding Castle at gunpoint and forcing him to drink a powerful anesthetic—to bring Castle to Eastern Europe.
Although the reason this worked was because Castle himself had been playing along, wanting to see who was behind the kidnapping, he hadn't expected to be drugged and flown all the way to Montenegro in Eastern Europe.
After roughly understanding the cause of this incident, everyone in the supercomputer lab was stunned. Did this supposedly skilled money-laundering banker, Le Chiffre, and the nobleman who hired him really think they could get their hands on the technology that had already caught the attention of the U.S. Air Force, Northrop Grumman, and Lockheed Martin?
While Beckett and the chubby kid were still in shock, Gianna turned to John, who was also quickly scanning through the information, and said, "Why does this guy, Pompeo, seem so familiar to me?"
John took a closer look at Pompeo's background on the screen and confirmed to his wife, "Because his past is quite similar to Santino's…"
Gianna suddenly laughed. "You're right! But this guy isn't even as capable as Santino. At least my brother had both ambition and the skills to back it up!
This guy, Pompeo, is only similar to Santino in terms of his debauchery and recklessness. In every other aspect, he's far inferior…"
The information showed that this second-generation nobleman, Pompeo, had only inherited his father's "title" and his seat on the board of the European aircraft company after his father unexpectedly died of a cardiovascular disease last year. Before that, he had been a typical playboy who knew nothing but drinking and womanizing.
No wonder Gianna felt that even her useless brother Santino was better than this guy. At least when Santino had tried to kill his sister to seize the family inheritance, he had the sense to hire John Wick, the former world's number one assassin who would dare to shoot through the Earth as long as he had a gun and bullets.
But this Mr. Pompeo?
Aside from knowing a money launderer like Le Chiffre, he couldn't even find someone to do his dirty work?
Compared to Santino, who at least had his own territory and a large number of loyal followers before being completely defeated by his sister, Pompeo had nothing!
In fact, many people have a misconception about so-called "second-generation" individuals, believing that none of them are any good.
This is actually a very mistaken view. Most of the time, the public's perception of this group is skewed by the small number of "second-generation" individuals who are exposed in the media for their reckless behavior.
In reality, no matter the country, "second-generation" individuals generally receive excellent education from a young age, giving them a significant advantage over their peers from the start.
Moreover, most of these second-generation individuals, having been exposed to more education and experiences than children from lower-class backgrounds, are actually quite capable in many aspects.
However, just as there are always underachievers in any group, there are also plenty of spoiled, brain-dead second-generation individuals, like Gianna's brother Santino, who is a prime example.
But even Santino had his strengths—he was very pragmatic. After realizing that his attempt to hire John to kill his sister had backfired, Santino quickly understood his situation and submitted to Gianna. Even now, with Gianna and John having established connections with the current U.S. President, it's highly likely that the couple will focus their operations on the East Coast of the U.S. Meanwhile, old man D'Antonio, though no longer as sickly as he was a year ago, is still getting on in years and lacks the energy to manage everything. As a result, a significant portion of the D'Antonio family's business in Italy is now handled by Santino.
Having willingly submitted to his sister, Santino now wields even more power than he did a year ago.
But among the second-generation individuals, there are excellent ones like Gianna, and there are also those like Santino, who are ambitious but know their limits. Then there are those like Pompeo, who are truly clueless and only excel at drinking, partying, and doing whatever they please!
Right now, Le Chiffre was on the phone with this second-generation nobleman, Pompeo, who was busy partying with beautiful women in Paris. Pompeo told Le Chiffre that he didn't care how Le Chiffre extracted the technology from the writer. All he wanted was to get his hands on the technology without anyone tracing it back to him. If Le Chiffre could complete this task perfectly, Pompeo had prepared a reward of 3 million euros for him. Additionally, Pompeo promised Le Chiffre 5% of all future profits generated by the technology as a continuous income stream.
So, Pompeo hoped that Le Chiffre would extract the technology from the writer as quickly as possible and then "clean up" the mess in that small Eastern European country. Meanwhile, Pompeo would be waiting in Paris for the good news.
But what these two didn't know was that all their communications were being monitored by Jarvis, who had been given full authorization by an enraged Beckett. Not only did everyone in the supercomputer lab at the Long Island estate know about their plans, but Castle, who was being held in a mountain castle in Montenegro and was connected to New York via satellite communication through his enhanced smart wristband and earpiece, also heard everything.
Hearing that this clueless second-generation nobleman was still partying in Paris while he was stuck in a castle in the mountains without even a TV, Castle was genuinely angry.
In truth, Castle could easily break out using the weapons and equipment in his personal space. Before being brought in, he had noticed that there were only seven people in the castle, including the two who had brought him there. With his skills and equipment, he could easily take them all out.
Le Chiffre and the French second-generation nobleman Pompeo clearly hadn't done a thorough investigation into Castle, which wasn't surprising. After all, different fields are like different worlds. Neither the money-laundering expert Le Chiffre nor the playboy Pompeo could have imagined that this seemingly harmless writer was actually a highly skilled killing machine!!!
The only thing Castle was hesitating about was whether he should just break out now. Although taking out the seven people in the castle wouldn't be difficult for someone with his skills and marksmanship, and his personal space was essentially a cheat code, he had already stored most of the weapons he had previously purchased in the estate's armory. However, the pistols, automatic rifles, bulletproof vests, and other equipment in his personal space were more than enough for his needs.
What made Castle hesitate was his current location—a castle in the mountains of Mojkovac, Montenegro, which was quite a distance from the city.
So, if he killed the seven people Le Chiffre had sent to guard him, should he drive northeast to Serbia, then fly from Belgrade to Vienna, Austria, and finally return to New York?
Or should he wait for Cassian, who was already on his way from Italy with a team across the Adriatic Sea, and then join forces with them to hunt down Le Chiffre in Podgorica, Montenegro, kill him, and then figure out a way to take out Pompeo in Paris?
In reality, Italy and Montenegro are just across the Adriatic Sea. Based on Gianna's arrangements, Castle suspected that the black bodyguard might already be in Montenegro.
If it weren't for the satellite call earlier, where Gianna had informed him of this, Castle would have been tempted to kill everyone in the castle, take their car, and head straight to Belgrade. After all, a wise man doesn't put himself in danger. Given his current status, there was no need for him to personally go after Le Chiffre with a gun. If he wanted Le Chiffre dead, wasn't that what the Continental Hotels, part of the High Table and present in many places around the world, were for?
(End of Chapter)
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