American TV Writer

As soon as Richard Castle entered the room, the chubby man skillfully opened a tracking software interface on the computer in front of him. A small red dot immediately appeared on the screen. Judging by the map, the red dot was located right in the capital of the USA, Washington D.C. The chubby man, still chewing on potato chips, mumbled, "Actually, this guy took a red-eye flight to D.C. last night. I thought it was too late to notify you then, and I forgot about it this morning, so I'm only telling you now. But it's strange—since he arrived in D.C., he's barely moved from that spot..."

Richard Castle walked over to the computer and carefully observed Nick Coonan's current location. He noticed that Nick was far from Congressman Gavin's residence in Washington, which left him puzzled. Was his assumption wrong? Did Nick go to D.C. for reasons other than on William Bracken's orders to eliminate the Congressman, who would surely cause big trouble for William?

This misunderstanding stemmed from Castle's lack of familiarity with FBI procedures. He had assumed that after anonymously tipping off the FBI about Congressman Gavin's secret support of Vincent—who had been shot dead by Castle and John right in front of FBI agents—the FBI would immediately retaliate and launch an investigation against the Congressman.

Castle's initial guesses and reasoning were correct, but he overlooked one key point: no matter how furious the embarrassed FBI was, they couldn't, and wouldn't, take immediate action against Congressman Gavin just because he lent his estate to Vincent. After all, Gavin was a sitting Congressman, not an ordinary citizen. Even if they wanted to bring him down, they'd need more evidence, and they would also require higher judicial approval, like a search or arrest warrant, before making any move against him. Moreover, Gavin wasn't without political backing, so the FBI wouldn't dare arrest him outright but would instead gather enough evidence before taking any action.

Castle, however, mistakenly believed that the FBI had already driven Gavin into a state of panic.

This misunderstanding highlighted one of Castle's weaknesses—his limited understanding of the political and legal systems in the USA. As someone with roots in China, he wasn't fully aware of how things operated there, leading to this blunder.

But Castle did correctly predict one thing: due to his understanding of human nature, he correctly guessed the first part of the situation. Gavin did indeed reach out to Senator William Bracken for help, and their conversation, laced with implicit threats, angered Bracken. Nick Coonan's trip to D.C. was, as Castle had predicted, meant to eliminate Congressman Gavin. However, Nick was waiting—waiting for developments, orders from Bracken, and the perfect moment to strike when Bracken lured Gavin out, ensuring a fatal blow.

Nick Coonan couldn't easily approach a now-alert Congressman, who, despite not being treated like a high-ranking official, still had tight security. Nick was no John Wick, after all.

Nick's advance trip to D.C. served two purposes. First, he needed to familiarize himself with the area and scout out escape routes in case the assassination plan went through. After all, killing a Congressman in the nation's capital would trigger a massive police response, so having a planned escape route was crucial to avoid implicating his boss. Second, he was in D.C. to observe the situation, to see whether it would favor Senator Bracken or not. If things turned unfavorable, he could quickly eliminate Congressman Gavin to remove this potential threat to his boss.

Moreover, when Vulcan Simmons assigned Nick this task, he had subtly warned him to be cautious, as Bracken was preparing to run for President. People like Simmons and Coonan, who handled Bracken's dirty work, had become liabilities—time bombs that Bracken would eventually need to defuse. Simmons, sensing some ominous signs during his recent meeting with Bracken, had secretly advised Coonan to watch his back.

While Simmons didn't spell it out, Nick understood his boss's message: complete the task, but also stay alert for any betrayal from Bracken.

Thus, when Nick received the order to head to D.C. and prepare to assassinate Congressman Gavin, he obeyed and took the red-eye flight immediately. But once he arrived, he stayed holed up in a safe house, under the pretense of waiting for final orders, while actually guarding against everyone, including Bracken's other subordinates.

This coincidence left Richard Castle puzzled as he stared at the red dot representing Nick Coonan. Why had Nick gone to D.C. only to stay hidden and not make a move?

Castle was so lost in thought in front of the computer that he didn't notice Gianna, heavily pregnant, being helped into the room by John. The couple walked in to find Castle standing there, deep in thought, until Gianna, the more outgoing of the two, called out to him, snapping him out of his reverie.

"Rick, what are you thinking about so deeply?" Gianna asked as she carefully sat down on the sofa in the small living room, with John's help. Castle, now seated across from her, suddenly realized that Gianna, unlike him, was well-versed in these kinds of political intrigues. Why not ask her for advice?

So, after Gianna's inquiry, Castle explained everything he knew—the situation with Senator William Bracken, Congressman Gavin, and Nick Coonan's odd behavior—hoping she could help him figure out what was really going on.

With her keen insight, Gianna immediately pinpointed the crucial issue: why hadn't Nick Coonan made a move after rushing to D.C.?

Without a doubt, the three men present combined didn't match Gianna's sharpness, honed from a lifetime of dealing with political maneuvering. She pointed out that Nick's inaction was likely due to a major flaw in Castle's initial assumptions. After questioning him thoroughly, Gianna burst into laughter.

"Rick, you're hilarious! Did you really think that after your anonymous tip-off about Congressman Gavin's ties to Vincent Adler, the embarrassed FBI would immediately arrest the Congressman? That doesn't work procedurally! How could you think that? You guessed completely wrong about how the FBI operates, leading to this mess!

And I think there's a good chance that Nick Coonan has already been marked as expendable by Senator Bracken. You must be careful!"

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