Big Ivan, driving the bulletproof Ford F-350, mimicked Alexis's usual driving speed as he cruised leisurely down the Long Island Expressway. Alexis, who attended high school in Manhattan, typically traveled this route every morning, crossing through Brooklyn on her way to school. The five operatives tasked with kidnapping her had chosen to set their ambush on the Long Island Expressway to avoid the congestion of Brooklyn's rush-hour traffic. They knew that if they executed the kidnapping there, they risked being trapped in a gridlock of morning commuters, turning their escape into a farce.
By staging the kidnapping on the highway, they aimed for a quick getaway westward toward the coast, where they could flee via speedboat. Their southwestern escape route also created a diversion, drawing attention away from the Impossible Mission Force team operating 30 kilometers northeast in Chester Port. This setup was designed to split Castle's focus: if he pursued the kidnappers west, Ethan's team would have an easier time infiltrating Castle's estate to complete their mission.
Unfortunately for the operatives, Castle had known about their plan long before they even arrived in New York. He had laid his own trap, waiting for them to fall right into it.
As Ethan's team boarded their yacht, with Benji disguising Ethan for the infiltration mission, Big Ivan finally reached the location where the "kidnappers" had staged their ambush.
Inside the heavily tinted, bulletproof truck, Big Ivan smirked as he observed the two cars about 100 meters ahead. They had been positioned to create a fake collision in the middle of the road. The setup was laughable. As a seasoned veteran, Big Ivan immediately dismissed their amateurish attempt at staging an accident. If Alexis had been driving, she might have been fooled into stopping to help. But Big Ivan, with his extensive experience in warfare, saw through the ruse in an instant.
The five operatives waiting on the roadside had underestimated their target. They had planned to exploit Alexis's compassionate nature, banking on her stopping to assist the "accident victims." Castle, however, had foreseen this possibility. He instructed Big Ivan to take Alexis's truck while keeping her safely at home.
As the operatives watched their "target" approach, they prepared for action. Two of them stood by the supposedly "crashed" vehicles, pretending to argue over the fender bender. The other three were stationed 20 meters away, ready to block any attempt by the truck to reverse and escape.
Meanwhile, Castle was on the phone with the editor-in-chief of The New York Times. Initially, Castle had instructed Big Ivan to eliminate all five operatives without mercy. However, upon further reflection that morning, he realized he needed more evidence to directly implicate the CIA in the plot to kidnap his daughter. Simply capturing Ethan's team might not be enough to pin the blame squarely on the agency.
Thus, Castle revised his orders. He instructed Big Ivan to capture the two "actors" pretending to argue by the vehicles alive, while the three blocking the road were to be killed outright. This approach would ensure both justice and maximum publicity for the incident.
To that end, Castle personally tipped off multiple media outlets, including The New York Times and CBS. Reporters and news helicopters were already racing to the scene, eager to cover the unfolding drama on the Long Island Expressway.
Back on the road, Big Ivan's bulletproof truck, with its darkened windows, continued to approach the ambush site. The two operatives near the staged "accident" began waving their arms frantically, shouting "Help me!" and other pleas, hoping to coax Alexis into stopping. Behind the truck, the three operatives moved to block its escape route, oblivious to the ten armed, grinning ex-Special Forces operatives quietly closing in from the flanks and rear.
Big Ivan, seeing through the act, slowed the truck as though considering stopping. The two "actors" became visibly excited when the vehicle came to a complete stop just five meters away. Believing their target had fallen into their trap, they dropped their friendly façade and pulled out handguns, shouting, "Alexis, turn off the engine! We don't want to hurt you!"
The three operatives behind the truck emerged from cover, ready to assist. However, before they could act, a burst of automatic rifle fire from behind them mowed them down. The three never stood a chance.
The sudden gunfire startled the two operatives at the front of the truck. Well-trained, they instinctively lunged toward the driver's side door, hoping to control their target. They had realized too late that their mission had been compromised and that their only chance of survival was to take Alexis hostage.
But reality shattered their plans. As they reached the driver's side, they were met with a terrifying sight: the driver wasn't Alexis. Instead, it was Big Ivan, a massive, grinning Russian bear of a man. His face twisted into a menacing smile as he stared them down. Recognizing him instantly, the two operatives froze in terror. Big Ivan was infamous in their circles as Castle's chief of security, a former commander of a Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs Special Forces unit.
"This is a trap..." The realization struck the two men like a hammer.
Turning around in desperation, they hoped to flee. What they saw next drained all color from their faces. Behind them stood five more heavily armed operatives, their rifles trained on the pair.
Panic-stricken, the two men dropped their weapons and raised their hands. Their voices cracked as they shouted, "Don't shoot! We're CIA agents!"
Big Ivan, still sitting in the truck, chuckled at their pathetic display. "No backbone at all," he muttered. "Not only do they surrender immediately, but they also admit who sent them? What amateurs!"
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