Downstairs, Owen had just stepped out of the building when he bumped into an approaching Keel.
"What the hell happened here?"
Keel's eyes were bloodshot. There were at least a dozen dead in sight, and many more injured. And it had all happened in the economic heart of the United States—Wall Street.
An incident this severe was likely to end Keel's tenure as Director of Operations for CTU New York.
Owen hadn't even gotten a word out when a man and woman suddenly burst through the front doors. The man spotted Owen in the crowd—and without warning, walked up and punched him hard in the face.
"Hands in the air! Now!"
The surrounding police officers all instinctively stepped back and drew their weapons at the unexpected assault.
"Hold your fire—I'll handle this myself," Owen said, raising a hand to calm them.
He rubbed his sore jaw. Truth be told, that punch had packed a real sting—Walker had gotten stronger.
"Sorry."
Owen hadn't dodged on purpose. He could've avoided it, but he chose to take the hit. Given the circumstances, his earlier methods had been reckless. He'd gambled with both his life and Walker's. In that sense, one punch was getting off easy.
"Asshole," Walker muttered and turned to leave. Jennifer followed him, seething. Before she left, she stomped on Owen's foot with her heel, making his eyes water.
"What the hell happened?" Keel demanded, losing patience.
"The shooter was a white male with a civilian-issue M4A1. He opened fire on the plaza and the office tower across the street. His motive is still unknown, but you saw the rest yourself…"
"Doctor, I need a doctor!"
Owen flagged down a passing medic. A shard of glass had slashed his arm open, blood running freely. But with the chaos and the injured count nearing triple digits, he wasn't high on the priority list.
The medic took one look and directed a nurse to take him to an ambulance for basic treatment.
Police cruisers and ambulances were still arriving by the minute. The impact was massive. A rough count placed the number of confirmed dead at 25, with 88 injured. And all of it had happened—on Wall Street.
"Damn it… Tomorrow the global markets are gonna crash," a nearby cop muttered bitterly as he passed Owen.
…
Upstairs
Keel stepped over debris and into the shooter's perch with his team. Jim's body still lay where it had fallen, surrounded by spent brass and three empty mags.
Fuck.
Keel cursed under his breath. This lunatic had launched an attack on Wall Street. Things were only going to get worse for him now.
The implications were terrifying—he'd just created a playbook for every future extremist. Now they'd start targeting symbolic American landmarks.
Wall Street.
The Twin Towers.
The Federal Reserve.
Hoover Dam.
The Statue of Liberty.
Even the White House or the Pentagon.
Keel didn't even want to imagine what could happen next.
The forensics team was tagging every piece of evidence. Numbered markers were being placed on the ground.
Keel's face was grim. He circled the body, inspecting the room. At the door, officers were removing the barricade furniture. Owen had only cleared a small gap earlier to squeeze through.
Everyone was quiet—his men knew better than to speak when Keel was in this mood.
He finally snapped. "Get moving! I want to know who this guy is. Why he did it. Where he got his weapon. Especially those grenades—what the hell is the black market in New York doing selling that? I want everything—and why Owen was here. I want a full timeline—everything."
His agents scattered. They were veterans, and they knew exactly what had Keel so angry.
This was Wall Street.
Just recently, when the LA movie premiere bombing happened, they'd been laughing at CTU Los Angeles. Now? It had happened in their own backyard—on one of the most high-security blocks in the country.
But that wasn't all that pissed Keel off.
No, what really stung was that once again, it was Owen—that outsider from Los Angeles CTU—who had handled everything.
The previous tunnel incident? Owen. And that had at least been minor enough to pass off to the police.
But this? A mass shooting on Wall Street—and once again it was Owen who resolved it.
For someone like Keel, who held the same position as Owen—Director of Field Operations—it was humiliating.
…
While Keel was fuming upstairs, Owen was downstairs talking with Beth. He was praising her new bodyguards, who had performed admirably under pressure.
Beth was pleased. She handed each of them a $10,000 cash bonus on the spot—instantly buying a new level of loyalty.
"Should I give you a bonus, too?" she teased.
"That'd be bribery," Owen replied with a grin. "Take the money, and Internal Affairs'll have me in their office by morning."
As they laughed, Owen's phone rang. He held up a finger to Beth and answered. It was Jack Bauer.
"Jack. What's up?"
"Owen. Your friend Beth Ginny just made a $10 million donation to CTU—through Danone Group."
"What? She didn't tell me anything."
"It was done privately. No media. No press releases."
Owen glanced at Beth. "Why?"
Beth knew what he was asking. She shrugged. "It's my way of thanking you."
When Owen opened his mouth again, she cut him off.
"I know we're friends. I also know you don't care about money. But I still wanted to express my gratitude. Giving it directly to you would cause problems—so I gave it to CTU. At least this way, you'll have more pull within the agency."
Owen looked at her in silence, then nodded. He appreciated the gesture. He returned to the phone.
"Alright. I didn't know about it ahead of time. What are you going to do with the money?"
"Some of it will be distributed as bonuses—but not much, for obvious reasons. The rest will be split between upgrading CTU facilities nationwide and funding your rapid response team."
Jack didn't have to tell Owen this. But since the money was given because of Owen, it would be political suicide not to keep him in the loop. Respecting internal credit-sharing protocols was how you ensured future donors.
"I'm fine with that," Owen said.
"There's one more thing…" Jack added.
"What is it?"
"I need you to let CTU New York take the credit for today's incident."
That was asking a lot—especially after just receiving such a massive donation because of Owen's efforts. It could've come off as opportunistic, even ungrateful.
But Owen understood.
He was no longer the hotheaded, impulsive field agent he'd once been. As a department head now, he had to think about things from a leadership and political standpoint.
This incident had huge implications. A mass shooting on Wall Street.
Owen had intervened before the police even got involved. That meant massive credit.
Sure, some would say—how can you talk about credit when 25 people died? But if Owen hadn't acted, that number could've been a hundred.
The shooter had been methodical. With that firepower, everyone on that plaza could've died. Owen had prevented that.
If the media reported the truth—that Los Angeles CTU's Owen had resolved the attack on New York soil—it would be a PR disaster.
CTU would be buried in criticism. Lawmakers already uneasy about CTU's growing power—granted thanks to President Palmer's trust—would seize the opportunity to cut it down.
If it looked like CTU New York failed at basic prevention in their own territory, while LA's CTU had to save the day? It would validate every critic in Congress.
Jack's proposal wasn't fair. But it was necessary.
And Owen? He agreed without hesitation.
He had his own team to build now—the Rapid Response Unit.
They would be sent into the most dangerous, shadowy operations. Their victories wouldn't be publicized. Their names wouldn't be known.
He didn't need fame. He needed freedom.
Staying invisible was not just better—it was safer.
------------------
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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)
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