Castle walked into the precinct alongside Beckett, completely unconcerned. Everything was going according to plan, with no unexpected developments. As Beckett led him to the interrogation room, Castle couldn't resist making faces at Esposito and Ryan, who were about to take his statement. Beckett caught him in the act and scolded him, "You better behave. This statement is crucial. Even though you're an official consultant for the NYPD, you still don't have the authority to open fire. We need to classify those two outside as armed assailants attempting to attack the precinct. And I'm already bending the rules by having Esposito and Ryan take your statement, so take this seriously!"
Castle finally got serious and followed the grinning Esposito and Ryan into the interrogation room. Beckett, meanwhile, returned to her office to report what had happened outside the Twelfth Precinct to her former boss, Montgomery. Since Castle was an official "consultant" for the NYPD, any assault on him, especially right outside the precinct, could be justified as him acting in self-defense. However, she still needed to inform her superiors about the situation.
Montgomery, on the other hand, had a different thought entirely when he received Beckett's report. He hadn't expected that right after appointing Beckett as the captain of the Twelfth Precinct, she would end up going head-to-head with her biggest enemy, Senator William Bracken. And from the looks of it, Beckett seemed to know that Bracken was her biggest enemy. How could this be possible?
After hanging up with Beckett, Montgomery felt a growing sense of unease. He knew Beckett had been to Internal Affairs earlier that day, which made him wonder if she had discovered the truth about her mother's murder ten years ago. Did she also know about the actions Montgomery had taken to protect her?
Sensing that a critical moment was approaching, Montgomery decided to leave work early and head home to check on the evidence he had hidden in his home safe.
Meanwhile, Castle had started his "confession" in the interrogation room. Following the script he had prepared in advance, he described how he had been followed by armed men the previous day and then spotted them outside the precinct with weapons, apparently planning to attack him. As Castle and Esposito exchanged animated remarks in the interrogation room, Beckett was approached by Castle's personal lawyer, Moz.
Looking at the short, bald man in front of her, Beckett sighed and said wearily, "Castle's situation is under control. At least ten officers can vouch that he shot those 'suspects' in self-defense. What are you doing here?"
Moz smiled smugly, "I'm here to handle Rick's situation and to bring you the latest intelligence..."
As the captain, Beckett had a few privileges. She hadn't officially filed charges against Castle for what had happened earlier, and when she saw that Castle had quickly explained why he had opened fire outside the precinct, she called him over as he and Esposito emerged from the interrogation room.
Seeing Moz at the precinct, Castle was delighted. After giving his friend a hug, he apologized, "Sorry, buddy. I didn't expect Senator Bracken to be so ruthless. He sent men to ambush Beckett and me yesterday, and even after we thwarted his plan, he's still coming after us with everything he's got..."
As Castle and Moz chatted, the Chief Assistant District Attorney, whom Beckett had notified on their way back, arrived at the precinct. Seeing him, Beckett's demeanor turned serious. "Castle, where's the evidence? Bring it out. The Chief Assistant DA is here. Let's officially declare war on William Bracken today!"
Castle saw the determination in Beckett's eyes and smiled, "The evidence is in my car. I'll go get it."
He turned and headed downstairs. Thanks to his earlier bold move of shooting the assassins at the precinct entrance, everyone at the Twelfth Precinct knew that the "captain's partner" had taken out two hitmen in a fit of righteous anger. As he passed by, officers greeted him with newfound respect, knowing now not to mess with the usually jovial but dangerously capable writer.
Moz stayed behind with Beckett, ready to help her handle the situation with the Chief Assistant DA. After all, despite Castle being an official NYPD consultant, he technically didn't have the authority to open fire without a direct threat to his life. They needed to frame the incident as Castle responding to a clear and present danger to avoid any legal repercussions.
When Castle returned from downstairs—having actually retrieved the evidence from his personal stash rather than his car—Beckett and Moz had already explained the situation to the Chief Assistant DA.
The Chief Assistant DA, understanding the bigger picture, knew that Castle's actions, though irregular, were justifiable under the circumstances. With a federal investigation against a sitting New York State senator imminent, Castle's earlier actions seemed insignificant by comparison.
When Castle handed over the evidence he had obtained from Montgomery's home, the Chief Assistant DA made his stance clear. He wouldn't dwell on Castle's shooting incident but would focus on using the evidence to launch a full-scale federal investigation against Senator William Bracken and his associates.
Beckett handed the evidence to the Chief Assistant DA without even looking at it, "This is what we've gathered on Senator William Bracken and the four corrupt cops still serving in the NYPD. Much of it dates back to before Bracken became a senator. And there's more—proof that Bracken ordered the murder of my mother and three of her colleagues ten years ago. The killer is currently being held in witness protection. If you need him, we can bring him back to New York at any time."
This promise had been made by the person who had previously approached Beckett on behalf of the political opposition. With Nick Coonan having confessed everything he knew or had done for Senator Bracken, his value to the opposition had diminished. They figured it would be better to hand him over to Beckett, who had a personal vendetta, hoping it would serve a greater purpose.
Knowing that Coonan could be handed over at any moment gave Beckett the final push she needed to declare all-out war on Senator Bracken. Castle's bold move of taking out two of Bracken's hitmen earlier had essentially sounded the battle cry.
The Chief Assistant DA glanced through the evidence Beckett handed him and then spoke gravely, "We're up against no ordinary person here. Fortunately, we've been preparing for this moment, just waiting for the evidence to come in. Now, I think we should first secure those four corrupt cops in the NYPD who are working for Bracken. Once we've taken out Bracken's underlings, we can go after the senator himself.
"I'll also need to report this to the Department of Justice immediately and seek approval from Capitol Hill to begin a formal criminal investigation against William Bracken. With the evidence we have now, I'm confident we can get Congress to authorize the investigation.
"As for the key witness you mentioned, we need to work out how to get him back to New York..."
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