Though Jack had confidently reassured Castle earlier, when it came to planning the operation, he found himself the most anxious of all. His "main character immunity" theory was just something he'd made up—this was the real world, and his experiences had shown him that nothing was set in stone.
In the original "Castle" series, Alexis made it to the end safe and happy. But the plot had clearly diverged now, with him as the butterfly causing these ripples.
The analysts had concluded that Alexis faced a low risk of danger during this operation—lower even than a typical ransom drop. Jack himself had analyzed "Greenbird"'s behavioral profile, over and over. Everything from his manipulation of young girls online to his complex setup of a deadly booby trap pointed to a man who preferred schemes over violence.
Even so, Jack personally went down to the river railing at Lighthouse Park to study the surroundings. He reviewed the park's daily foot traffic for the past few weeks and finally allowed himself a moment of relief.
That evening, the Shagas family was moved to a safe house under FBI supervision, with strict communication restrictions in place. Jack had assigned two female agents to stay close to Tara 24/7.
In movies and TV shows, it was always in these controlled environments where things went awry—ordinary civilians shaking off trained agents or somehow contacting the outside world from inside a safe house. If something went wrong with these precautions, Jack figured he'd just have to accept the bad luck.
Jack scrutinized the map of the operation area with the FBI SWAT team leader, reviewing each element: the distance from Alexis's position to the closest undercover agents, the river railing's stability, and the readiness of the disguised boat on the Hudson River. They had multiple backup plans.
As dawn broke, Castle, who had been watching from the sidelines all night with a coffee in hand, finally began to relax.
"Alexis is the smartest girl in the world. She'd never knowingly put herself in danger, and these preparations should be more than enough," he commented.
Jack gave him a sidelong glance, thinking, Your daughter's certainly more reliable than you. Given how you've risked your life for a pretty cop, I had to make sure you two were tied into the FBI for protection.
With Castle and Alexis now on good terms with the FBI, they'd become helpful allies. When Castle inevitably stumbled into his mother's cold case, it'd be easier for Jack to lend him a hand. Jack vaguely remembered that the villain behind that case was a senator or something. Even though Beckett would ultimately secure the evidence, she'd be forced to compromise for the safety of her loved ones.
Early the next morning, preparations began. Though it wasn't too cold yet, Hannah found a small bulletproof vest for Alexis to wear under her jacket.
Jubal brought out a few jewelry boxes containing tiny hidden microphones disguised as different earring styles for her to choose from.
"You can look around, but don't let your gaze linger on any one spot for too long, especially where undercover agents are positioned. Hannah will be near you, posing as a jogger by that large tree. She's got the reflexes to shoot down a bird in flight at that distance."
Jack looked at Alexis seriously. "Every single 'tourist' and 'bystander' around you will be our people, with twenty undercover agents within close range. Besides me, there will be two snipers in position, so as long as you stay calm and don't let him notice anything unusual, you'll be perfectly safe.
"And remember, under no circumstances should you take anything he hands you."
Alexis tilted her head and gave a sweet smile. "Realistically, I should probably be a bit nervous. After all, I'm just a teenager planning to run away from home."
"Smart girl," Dana Moyer said, clearly fond of the clever young woman. She wrapped an arm around Alexis's shoulders, giving her an encouraging squeeze.
"From now on, you're Tara. You know all about her background and experiences. You did great yesterday, so I'm confident today will go just as smoothly."
Before 10 a.m., the team had moved into the small manager's cabin inside Lighthouse Park. Overnight, the support team had disguised it as a maintenance crew, transforming it into a temporary surveillance center.
To avoid alerting the target, there hadn't been a single uniformed officer near the river railing since the night before. All surveillance cameras were hidden at a distance.
Inside the operations center, live footage from the scene played across a giant screen. Jubal, now stationed in the temporary surveillance cabin, was in command, while Dana Moyer handled the main operations center.
By 11:30 a.m., everyone was in position. Several female undercover agents set up a picnic blanket near the river, blending in as park visitors enjoying a sunny day.
The weather was as forecasted—bright and clear. Sunlight streamed through the trees, scattering light patches on the ground. Nearby, a few children were gleefully chasing soap bubbles, filling the air with laughter.
"Those kids—are they undercover agents, too?" Castle asked incredulously, pointing at the children, who looked no older than seven or eight.
Castle had refused to stay in the cabin and watch his daughter from a screen, so Jack had grudgingly assigned him as his spotter. Jack usually worked solo, and with his System perks, he didn't strictly need a spotter.
After checking the surroundings, Jack set up his Remington 700PSS sniper rifle, responding to Castle's naïve question in a low voice.
"We couldn't clear out all the civilians without drawing suspicion, and we can't guarantee there aren't eyes on us, hidden in the crowd."
"Oh." Castle lay flat on the rooftop, scanning the area through his binoculars. Just as he opened his mouth to ask something else, Jack turned and spoke into his earpiece.
"Charlie Two, ready. Release the chick."
"Base received. Releasing the chick," Jubal's voice crackled through the channel.
Moments later, Alexis strolled along the riverside path with her hands in her pockets, stopping near the railing. She glanced around, then checked her phone, pretending to be absorbed as she waited.
Time ticked by. As noon came and went, Castle grew impatient. "How much longer will she have to wait?"
"Until he finds her," Jack replied, his voice calm.
Hannah, dressed in workout gear, paused her jogging routine and leaned casually against a tree near Alexis, pretending to catch her breath.
"Possible target spotted," Hannah reported. "Female, headscarf, black top, 50 yards out, approaching from the south."
Jack shifted his rifle's scope slightly and soon saw the woman Hannah had indicated. Their position on a clock tower rooftop, about 300 yards from the railing, gave them excellent cover and a perfect vantage point.
Castle, still peering through his binoculars, murmured, "I thought this 'Greenbird' guy would be a man."
"Who knows? Maybe this woman is just one of his underlings. Given Greenbird's tactics, that seems more likely," Jack replied, his tone neutral as he focused on keeping the woman's head squarely in his crosshairs. In his view, Alexis's safety came before anything else.
As Hannah pretended to stretch, her line of sight obscured, another team of agents monitored the woman from across the Hudson, over 2000 yards away. With high-powered optics, they had a clear view of her face.
"Target confirmed," reported an agent, watching as the woman, holding a small photo, approached Alexis. She stopped to compare the picture to Alexis's face, smiling once she seemed satisfied.
"Tara?"
"Oh, yeah, that's me," Alexis replied, brushing some windblown hair out of her face.
"For safety reasons, Greenbird couldn't come personally, but he was moved by your dedication," the woman said, her voice transmitted clearly through the hidden earpiece in Alexis's earrings.
"Hold steady. Let's see what she intends for Tara to do," Jubal instructed.
------------------
Enjoying the story? Support the author and get early access to chapters by joining my Patre@n!
Find me at: patre@n*com/Mutter
You can read each novel for $5 or get them all for just $15.
Fairy Tail: Igneel's Eldest Son (Chapter 256)
I Am Thalos, Odin's Older Brother (Chapter 336)
Reborn in America's Anti-Terror Unit (Chapter 542)
Solomon in Marvel (Chapter 924)
Becoming the Wealthiest Tycoon on the Planet (Chapter 1284)
Surgical Fruit in the American Comics Universe (Chapter 1289)
American Detective: From TV Rookie to Seasoned Cop (Chapter 1316)
American TV Writer (Chapter 1402)
I Am Hades, The Supreme GOD of the Underworld! (Chapter 570)
Reborn as Humanity's Emperor Across the Multiverse (Chapter 660)
[+50 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter]
[+5 Reviews = +1 Extra Chapter]