The internationally renowned money-laundering master, banker, and top-tier Texas Hold'em player, Mr. Le Chiffre, was quite lucky. When the large team of gunmen from the Italian mafia family, the D'Antonio family, arrived in Montenegro, he had just been called away by one of his African warlord clients to handle a new money-laundering job. As a result, when Castle easily took out the seven people guarding him in the mountain castle and leisurely drove their car to the capital of Montenegro, he couldn't help but feel that he and Le Chiffre really weren't destined to cross paths.
But Castle truly didn't have time to wait around for him. It was already the end of February, and by mid-March, something major was going to happen in the U.S. Castle simply didn't have time to waste here. According to the schedule he knew, the U.S. Air Force would be sending three B-2 stealth bombers from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri to bomb Gaddafi's military air defense facilities in Libya, escalating the so-called "Arab Spring" that the U.S. had initiated. Then, in mid-March, the Prime Minister of South Korea would enter the White House with Kim Yeon-ka, who had infiltrated the South Korean diplomatic delegation, setting the stage for "Olympus Has Fallen." And let's not forget the traitor within President Benjamin's Secret Service detail. With such important events unfolding, how could Castle waste time waiting for a small fry like Le Chiffre in this godforsaken country?
After all, this guy had crossed him, and once Castle returned to New York, he would turn Mr. Chiffre into an internet sensation. Jarvis had already uncovered all the details about this money-laundering master. All Castle needed to do was release the methods and bank records of Chiffre's money-laundering operations online, and plenty of people would come after him.
Not only would international forces target this unlucky fool who had kidnapped him without doing his homework, but his clients, who would suffer significant losses, wouldn't let him off the hook either.
Even if Chiffre managed to escape the fallout of this information leak through sheer luck or skill, it wouldn't be long before he was targeted by the old woman from MI6 and the 007 agent. So, after confirming that Chiffre had indeed left for Africa the day after he was brought to the castle, Castle firmly declined Cassian's offer to personally escort him back to New York. Instead, he boarded the D'Antonio family's private plane and returned to New York alone.
Meanwhile, Le Chiffre, who was in the heart of Africa on the territory of a warlord, had already learned from his men in Podgorica that a large group of gunmen from the D'Antonio family, a well-established Italian mafia family with a prominent seat at the High Table in the underworld, had arrived in Montenegro. They had rescued Castle, whom he had kidnapped from New York using sedatives and brought to Montenegro. This revelation shocked Le Chiffre, who had assumed Castle was just a lucky writer with some talent in weapons development.
To be honest, as someone who dealt with terrorists and African warlords, helping them launder money, Le Chiffre wasn't particularly afraid of national forces. After all, he still had the public identity of a banker (though everyone knew that "banker" was just a euphemism for money launderer). As long as no country had concrete evidence against him, being a Frenchman, Le Chiffre wasn't too worried.
But when it came to the D'Antonio family, a top-tier mafia family renowned in the underworld, Le Chiffre was terrified. Unlike governments, which needed evidence and maintained some semblance of decorum, mafia families didn't bother with such formalities. If you crossed them, they would simply eliminate you. The D'Antonio family was exactly like that. Moreover, in the past year or two, after reportedly resolving internal conflicts over succession, this once-declining family seemed to have regained its vitality and was thriving more than ever. Knowing all this, how could Le Chiffre not be afraid?
If he provoked the D'Antonio family, they wouldn't care that he was a white glove for African warlords who only dared to act tough within their own territories. They wouldn't care about his public identity as a banker or that he was doing dirty work for a board member of the European aircraft company. They would simply dump him into the Mediterranean.
Damn it, why hadn't anyone told him before he kidnapped that New York writer that the guy had such deep connections with this old Italian mafia family?
In the territory of a warlord in Central Africa, Le Chiffre finally came to his senses. Through his relatively extensive network, he finally looked into some information about Castle that he had previously ignored. That's when he discovered that the next heir of the D'Antonio family lived next door to Castle's estate in Long Island, New York. Moreover, Castle was the godfather of the daughter of Gianna, who was known in the underworld as the "Dark Queen." And the man of the next heir of the D'Antonio family was none other than John Wick, the former number one assassin in the underworld, who was also a close friend of Castle.
Damn it, this time he had really been led to his doom by that pig Pompeo!
How could someone so powerful be someone he could mess with?
Fortunately, Le Chiffre's men in Podgorica soon delivered more good news to the anxious money launderer. For some reason, after rescuing the writer and putting him on a private plane back to New York, the D'Antonio family's gunmen had all withdrawn from Montenegro. Not only had they left, but they hadn't even attacked Le Chiffre's base in Montenegro.
This move puzzled Le Chiffre. What? After I kidnapped the writer, they just rescued him and left? They didn't even think about coming after me?
What Le Chiffre didn't know was that Castle was in a hurry to return to New York to witness the upcoming events. Moreover, Castle knew that even if he didn't deal with this fool, Le Chiffre would soon be targeted by the old woman from MI6 and her violent subordinate. That's why he had temporarily let it go.
But for Le Chiffre, this was truly great news…
Meanwhile, Pompeo, who was in Paris hosting an orgy with countless beautiful women, also received the news. After his men explained in detail how powerful the D'Antonio family was in the underworld, this second-generation nobleman, whose brain had been dulled by alcohol and women, finally had a brief moment of clarity. Upon learning that if the family really wanted him dead, it would be as simple as placing an order at the Continental Hotel in Paris, Pompeo immediately understood…
Obedient.jpg!!!
Damn it, if he continued to provoke them, they really wouldn't hold back!
Yes, both Le Chiffre and Pompeo interpreted the D'Antonio family's large-scale operation in Montenegro, which only resulted in rescuing Castle and sending him back to New York without further action, as a warning. They believed it was a reminder that the writer was under the protection of the D'Antonio family. They had no idea that Castle had simply been in a hurry to return to New York to witness the upcoming events and needed to make some preparations in Washington, D.C., which was why he had temporarily let them off the hook.
Castle, who had returned to New York on the D'Antonio family's private plane arranged by Gianna, was greeted by a "warm welcome" from a large group of friends led by Gianna and her husband. After the plane landed, Castle was almost too embarrassed to step out, because on the tarmac, apart from his girlfriend Beckett, who was too busy with work and anger to come personally, even his daughter Alexis, who wasn't in school today, had come. She already knew that her father had been taken to Eastern Europe by three clumsy kidnappers due to his overconfidence and desire to play the hero.
Neil and Mozzie, who had been informed by the chubby kid, also learned that Rick, whom they hadn't seen in days, had been drugged and taken to Montenegro because of his own foolishness. So, the two of them joined the group to welcome their unlucky friend at MacArthur Airport in Long Island.
As Castle stepped off the plane and saw the teasing expressions on everyone's faces except his daughter's, he felt truly embarrassed. At the same time, he was grateful that Beckett, whose precinct was dealing with a particularly gruesome murder case, couldn't come to pick him up. Otherwise, he wouldn't have known how to console his girlfriend in front of so many people.
"So, Rick, how was the experience? Quite unforgettable, wasn't it?" John, holding little Eunoa, walked up with a rare smile to tease his unpredictable friend. "I'm curious why you let that Le Chiffre guy off the hook. Aren't you going to deal with him?"
After greeting everyone, Castle got into the car and explained to John, Neil, and Mozzie, who were curious about the follow-up to the incident, "Of course not. I'll tell you more when we get home…"
(End of Chapter)
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