Yes, early this morning, Castle announced to the chubby guy the 'good news' that he would be moving to the D'Antonio family's estate in Long Island for the next while. Upon hearing that he would be staying in a huge estate by the beautiful Long Island shore, the chubby guy surrendered without any objection, especially after Uncle Rick told him he had personally hired John Wick, the world's former number one assassin known as "The Night Demon," as his bodyguard. This news nearly drove the chubby guy crazy with excitement!
The chubby guy, who had always been a homebody, had admired John Wick for a long time. Don't forget, when John Wick was persuaded by Castle to take on the Tanasov family, it was the chubby guy who helped Castle delete the surveillance footage of John Wick's killings from the police's radar. The chubby guy witnessed the entire process of John killing at the Tanasov family's nightclub. From that moment on, John, agile and ruthless, became the homebody's idol. Now, knowing that his safety was being entrusted to John Wick, who had been specially brought back from Italy by Uncle Rick, and that he would be staying in the heavily guarded D'Antonio family estate, the chubby guy was beyond ecstatic.
After Castle told him the news, the chubby guy started mumbling about moving his equipment to the estate. Seeing the ever-growing list, Castle had to make him calm down a bit.
"Listen, you just need to bring your laptop and the drone control console. You can always come back home to get anything you miss, but the control console and the drones must go. I've already arranged with the technical director sent by Northrop Grumman for a demonstration this afternoon at John and Gianna's estate. The rest can wait."
The chubby guy, now aware that Castle had contacted General Atomics' rival last night, put down his notebook and grinned at the relaxed-looking Castle on the sofa. "Uncle Rick, your efficiency is impressive. We just found out about General Atomics' interest in our drone, and today you've already scheduled a demo with their competitor. You really don't want to give General Atomics any chance at getting their hands on our flight control system, do you?"
Castle chuckled. "Who would have thought they'd be so shameless, trying to kidnap you and steal the drones? I can understand their motive but can't accept their method. I know they didn't want this news to leak and wanted to save on a hefty transfer fee by kidnapping you. If it were someone else, I'd have no say, but when it involves us, I can't just accept it. Besides, I've always been a fan of Northrop Grumman, isn't that right?"
The chubby guy, knowing he couldn't outtalk his Uncle Rick, focused back on his list. He knew it was better to pack his things quickly, as the movers Rick called would arrive soon, and his idol John Wick would be landing in New York in less than seven hours. He had no time to listen to Rick's banter.
Seeing the chubby guy refocus on his list, Castle fell silent, contemplating the afternoon meeting with Northrop Grumman. Though a long-time fan of theirs, he wouldn't make unconditional concessions in the meeting. His painstakingly developed code wouldn't be sold cheaply.
Northrop Grumman would likely use last night's incident as leverage in negotiations. Castle, however, wasn't looking to break ties with General Atomics completely. If they were willing to pay, he might still collaborate with them. Thus, if Northrop Grumman tried to use the incident for pressure, they'd be mistaken.
Moreover, he arranged the meeting at Gianna's estate not just for the demonstration's suitability. If his intel was correct, the D'Antonio family owned a plane manufacturing company in Italy!
Few knew that Italy's aviation industry was also quite formidable, with Gianna holding shares in one such company. While Castle didn't plan to involve Gianna as leverage, if she wanted to invest in his advanced drone technology, he wouldn't refuse. After all, she was carrying his brother's child, keeping the benefits within the family.
Last night, after a successful call with John Wick, who dissuaded him from hiring Bryan Mills as the chubby guy's bodyguard, Castle learned that Gianna was a shareholder in a well-known Italian aviation company. This company also designed drones for the EU. Considering that the EU hadn't been able to equip themselves with the US military's Global Hawk due to restrictions, knowing his brother had created a drone that even General Atomics coveted was impressive. John, having been tamed by Gianna, whimsically suggested involving her company.
Given their relationship, Castle had no objections. Thus, accompanying John and the bodyguards to New York today was the technical director from Gianna's aviation company, there to evaluate Castle's drone.
Castle knew Northrop Grumman's intelligence capabilities and their knowledge of last night's incident. They likely thought he reached out in desperation to shield himself from General Atomics. They'd be wrong.
While Northrop Grumman and General Atomics dominated the US military drone market, Lockheed Martin and Boeing also had their UAV plans. Castle, a fan of Northrop Grumman, reached out first but wouldn't hesitate to turn to others if necessary.
Watching the chubby guy finish packing his essentials and the drone control console, the movers from the D'Antonio family arrived with trucks to transport the drones. Given last night's kidnapping attempt, flying the drones to Long Island wasn't an option. Armed escorts from Gianna's team provided a safer solution.
As Castle busied himself with the move, Gianna, several months pregnant and starting to show, sipped juice hand-pressed by her beloved John Wick on a private jet from Rome. Curiously, she asked, "Jonathan, Rick invented an impressive drone? How come I find this so unbelievable? Isn't Rick a successful writer? Why is he suddenly into drones? And you asked me to bring our aviation company's people to New York. Did Rick really create something extraordinary?"
John Wick, the legendary assassin, simply smiled, knowing Castle always had a few surprises up his sleeve.
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