It wasn't surprising that India ended up exposing its carefully built intelligence networks and covert transport channels within the U.S. Initially, there had been no need for such a reckless move. However, as the leader of the joint task force, India had been racking its brains trying to find a way to lure Castle out of New York—only for him to suddenly leave of his own accord, heading straight to Hawaii.
It was well known that India's intelligence presence in Hawaii wasn't as deeply entrenched as Japan's. But the problem was that Japan's operatives in Hawaii had been completely wiped out in their previous clash with Castle, leaving them powerless to take on this mission.
As for Turkey?
Well, much like India, they had some low-level arrangements and sleeper agents on U.S. soil. But when it came to Hawaii, they were just as ineffective.
At this point, the responsibility naturally fell on India, the self-proclaimed third greatest military power in the world, to step up.
The Turks and Japanese, fully aware of the mess they were pushing onto India, played along masterfully—lavishing India with praise and graciously allowing them to take the lead on this delicate operation.
India, ever eager to prove its greatness, took the bait completely.
So drunk on their own hype that they nearly forgot their own names, the Indian operatives pounded their chests and swore to handle everything—mobilizing their intelligence assets and logistical networks in a desperate bid to impress their so-called allies.
As an aspiring major power, India couldn't afford to back down from the admiring words of their so-called partners. And truthfully, the sheer number of Indian immigrants in the U.S. provided them with a large support base.
After all, India had once been a British colony, and the U.S. had never actively restricted Indian immigration. As a result, the Indian diaspora in the U.S. was vast, providing ample cover for intelligence operations.
Just look at the CEO of You-Know-Which major software company—an Indian national. That was a huge source of national pride for India.
Silicon Valley alone was teeming with Indian professionals. It didn't matter what they were doing or how high they climbed—the numbers spoke for themselves.
So, under a wave of flattery from Turkey and Japan, India—completely oblivious to the long-term consequences—blindly ordered its covert operatives to begin transporting weapons and planning escape routes.
All because they wanted to prove their strength to their so-called allies.
They never even realized they were being played.
The reality of this so-called Three-Nation Alliance was an open secret.
Sure, the joint kidnapping operation had been approved by the intelligence chiefs of all three nations, but everything had been rushed. No one had fully prepared for the sudden shift in circumstances—namely, Castle voluntarily leaving New York for Hawaii.
That threw everything into chaos.
Originally, the plan had been to abduct Castle abroad, far from U.S. jurisdiction. Now, the only viable option was to follow his itinerary and attempt the kidnapping in Hawaii—a place that at least technically counted as outside the continental U.S.
But since Hawaii had never been part of their original plans, none of the necessary equipment or escape strategies were in place.
So, once again, India had to step up.
Unfortunately for them, everything was being monitored by Jarvis.
Castle had even instructed Jarvis to tip off Joe—head of the Joint Operations Command (JOC), the highest intelligence coordination center in the U.S.
The moment India's operatives began moving, Joe had the entire picture laid out in front of her.
For the first time, the real extent of India's intelligence presence in the U.S. was exposed.
And the U.S. intelligence community was furious.
For years, India had played the role of a harmless, obedient ally. But now, it turned out they had been secretly embedding a vast network of spies and operatives on U.S. soil?
These idiots really thought they could pull a fast one on us?
The moment this operation was over, every single Indian intelligence asset in the U.S. would be systematically wiped out.
The American government was now fully aware of the scale of the problem.
If Castle hadn't volunteered to be bait, they might never have discovered the depth of India's covert operations.
Even more concerning was the who and where of these Indian operatives.
Most of them worked in low-level service industries—particularly in transportation.
Taxi drivers, freight handlers, truck operators—these were the exact roles that allowed them to facilitate covert shipments of weapons and equipment.
And the sheer number of Indian operatives spread across major cities—New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco—was staggering.
Even worse, an alarming number of these operatives had direct ties to the Indian Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA).
This was far beyond what anyone had suspected.
Then there was the shipping company on the West Coast.
Who would've guessed? The entire operation was Indian-controlled, and it had been quietly expanding for years—right under the FBI's nose.
The U.S. intelligence agencies had failed spectacularly to notice.
Heads would roll for this.
There would be consequences.
Joe, however, remained calm.
After all, most of the exposed Indian operations were concentrated on the West Coast. In New York, where she had direct authority, it was just a matter of cleaning up loose ends.
Right now, her primary role was as the liaison between Castle (or more accurately, Jarvis) and the intelligence agencies.
She also had another task.
Now that Castle had left Long Island, she would temporarily move into his estate to live with Beckett.
On the surface, it was a security measure—representing both the FBI and the JOC to protect Castle's supercomputer lab and database arrays.
But let's be honest.
It was also a perfect excuse for her to play with Castle's ridiculously adorable son while keeping Beckett company.
Of course, there was also Gianna's little girl.
With John out of town, Gianna wouldn't be going to work at her family's company. Instead, she'd be helping Beckett take care of both kids.
Meanwhile, Martha had also returned to the estate.
Castle wasn't taking any chances—he knew that if the abduction failed, the enemy might target his family in retaliation.
Alexis, however, was relatively safe.
She had two dedicated security teams (ten operatives in total), her school was in central Manhattan, and she had already been kidnapped once—so she knew how to handle herself.
Not to mention, Jarvis and the drones were watching over her 24/7.
Mozz, however, had a different concern.
He knew exactly what was stored in Castle's underground supercomputer lab—classified data so valuable that it made Castle a prime target.
Who could guarantee that the enemy wouldn't try to break into the estate while Castle was away?
Even with Ivan and the Russian bodyguards inside, the risk was too great.
If Castle successfully dismantled the enemy's plot in Hawaii, only to have his estate looted in the process… that would be a disaster.
Fortunately, Joe was one of Castle's trusted allies.
Under the guise of "official FBI business," she would move in and take charge of security personally.
Castle didn't object—Joe already knew about Jarvis.
Having her around was far less disruptive than assigning a bunch of clueless FBI agents to the estate.
Beckett, naturally, had no objections.
As NYPD Commissioner, even the most reckless foreign agents wouldn't dare make a move against her in her own city.
With his family secured, Castle finally felt comfortable boarding the plane with John and Jason's team.
And when Jarvis reported that the enemy agents in Bangalore would take several days to reach Hawaii in small tourist groups, Castle relaxed completely.
Jason even suggested simply arresting them all at Honolulu Airport.
Castle immediately shot down the idea.
If these fools didn't take action, how could the U.S. justify confronting India, Turkey, and Japan over this incident?
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