In this so-called free and democratic country, who doesn't know that the idea of "equality before the law" is nothing more than a slogan? If you have money and power and can assemble a formidable team of lawyers, you can easily get away with murder—even if caught red-handed. The prime example of this is Simpson!
How did this man, guilty of first-degree murder, escape justice? It's because he had a powerful legal team that taught the world a lesson in how the American legal system can be manipulated by those who know how to exploit its loopholes.
Similarly, Vincent Adler was no less wealthy than Simpson. Whatever Simpson could do, Adler could do even better! After all, Adler had something Simpson didn't: close ties with many powerful figures in the USA. This was evident from the fact that upon returning to New York, he stayed at a congressman's estate in Long Island and managed to openly operate a semi-submersible, 10,000-ton salvage ship off the coast of New York, right under the Coast Guard's nose. The U.S. Coast Guard isn't a force to be trifled with; they're on par with the Air Force, Navy, Army, and Marines. Don't be fooled into thinking the Coast Guard is just a semi-military organization—they're as well-equipped as any branch of the military, even more so than the Marines in some cases. The only reason they didn't intervene during Adler's salvage operation was that powerful forces were backing him. Who would believe otherwise?
Thus, silencing Vincent, who had direct contact with Neil and Castle, would reduce the risk of exposing Castle and his crew. However, it wouldn't divert the FBI's attention from the missing treasures on that submarine. The only way to do that was to give the furious and humiliated FBI a bigger, more conspicuous target. Only then could Castle and his seven companions slip away unnoticed.
Castle had thought of this from the very beginning, ever since he was forced to get involved due to the System. Although the show didn't depict all of Vincent's connections, only showing his arrest by the FBI, Castle had gathered enough intel through his hacking skills to piece together Vincent's network. In fact, when Vincent had put a bounty on Castle's head after their conflict in Europe, Castle had pretended to make peace by handing over the music box, all the while planning to eliminate Vincent and expose those backing him. This was the only way to ensure that the FBI, disillusioned by their failed treasure hunt, would abandon their pursuit, leaving Castle and his companions unscathed.
Castle's plan didn't stop at physically eliminating Vincent. He also intended to expose the powerful individuals secretly supporting the notorious scammer. Emptying the submarine's treasure, clearing Neil's name, and killing Vincent was just the beginning. Castle had long suspected that Vincent's ability to evade the FBI for ten years, after embezzling $1 billion from Wall Street, was due to the influence of someone powerful. During his investigation, Castle discovered that Senator William Bracken, the mastermind behind Beckett's mother's murder, had ties to Vincent. It was no coincidence that Vincent's Wall Street exploits and Beckett's mother's murder occurred around the same time, ten years ago. This discovery led Castle to suspect that Bracken was the one leaking FBI information to Vincent, not the congressman providing refuge.
Initially, Castle had suspected the congressman who housed Vincent, but further investigation revealed that the congressman didn't have the necessary clout. So, Castle shifted his focus to New York's two senators: William Bracken and another, Senator Terrence Pratt, who had framed Neil's father, forcing Neil into the Federal Witness Protection Program at age three. Pratt, a former corrupt cop, was ultimately killed by Neil's father using FBI agent Peter Burke's gun in Castle's past life. This event forced Neil into a desperate situation, leading to a plotline where he had to steal gold to bribe a prosecutor. However, in this life, that wouldn't happen since Neil had signed a pardon that morning, granting him complete freedom, thus ending his partnership with the FBI and Peter.
Regardless, the connection between Bracken and Vincent excited Castle. If he could implicate Bracken while the FBI was investigating Vincent, Castle was confident that Beckett, with the independent New York District Attorney's Office and the Justice Department at her side, could take Bracken by surprise.
This was Castle's ultimate goal: to expose the secret relationship between Vincent Adler and Senator William Bracken using the FBI's greed-driven pursuit of the submarine treasure. As the FBI chased the congressman who provided Vincent refuge, they would inevitably uncover the deeper connection to Bracken. Then, as Bracken scrambled to cover his tracks, Beckett would strike with the incriminating evidence that could bring Bracken down. This was Castle's grand scheme, a plan to kill multiple birds with one stone.
Castle knew that when Bracken realized the FBI was onto him because of his ties to Vincent, he would panic and try to destroy the evidence linking him to Adler. But in focusing on this, Bracken would inevitably lower his guard elsewhere, giving Castle the perfect opportunity to strike.
John Wick, sitting across from Castle and listening to his friend's smug explanation of his elaborate plan, was utterly stunned. He had never imagined that his usually carefree and nonchalant friend had put so much effort into this. Castle wasn't just looking to keep the treasure and eliminate Vincent Adler; he intended to shake up New York's political scene. Was this the same laid-back Castle he knew?
Seeing John's shock, Castle felt immensely proud. Look at that—his plan had left the world's former number one assassin speechless! How terrifyingly brilliant he was… Ha!
Finally, John snapped out of his shock. "Rick, are you telling me that dating a cop makes you better at planning? Have you been taking something? How can you think of so much from just one situation?"
Surprisingly, Castle sighed at his friend's question: "Buddy, I don't want to be like this either, but Beckett's enemies are too powerful. I've had to wrack my brain constantly to figure out how to help her take them down. Who knew I'd find a connection between Bracken and Vincent while investigating Adler's backers? What's more surprising is that Bracken's first campaign funds partly came from Vincent. Over the years, as Bracken climbed higher in politics, his ties with Vincent only grew stronger. So, with such a golden opportunity, wouldn't I be an idiot not to seize it?"
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