The moment Hines led the mixed team of FBI and CIA operatives into the fray, he completely cut off Kenichi Miura's last escape route. With their land-based assault force now trapped, the fate of the seven remaining operatives, including Miura himself, was sealed.
Meanwhile, on the beach, B-Team's four-man sniper and machine gun crew—led by Rey—held the high ground, dominating their nine incoming adversaries.
The three-nation alliance operatives had no chance.
Amphibious landings were always a tactical nightmare for the attackers. Worse still, these men had no contingency plan—they had been so convinced that they were the ambushers that they never prepared for the possibility of walking into a trap.
They had brought heavy firepower, including man-portable surface-to-air missiles, but none of it mattered now. The sudden ambush left them no time to deploy their heavy weapons.
Every operative carried an automatic rifle, but what good were they against a 200-round belt-fed machine gun?
The battle was utterly one-sided.
Landing on an open beach against entrenched defenders was suicide.
Malatika's group had already been devastated by the initial sniper barrage, losing three men in the first seconds. Before they could even organize, the first wave of suppressive fire from Sonny and the others took down four more.
Now, with only two operatives left standing, Malatika's team had lost its numerical advantage.
Worse, the beach provided no cover. They were pinned down, forced into the only tiny spot of temporary shelter available.
—
Meanwhile, Miura's land-based assault force fared no better.
At first glance, it appeared that only Jason and John were defending the estate. But those two alone were enough.
Both men were elite combatants—and, like the beachside ambush, they had the advantage of foreknowledge.
Despite outnumbering the defenders, Miura's operatives couldn't even return fire. They were forced to cower behind their massive Chevrolet Suburban SUVs, desperately trying to survive.
Of the eight men who stormed the main gate, three had already been shot within seconds.
Now, Miura had only three men left with any fighting capability.
His operatives wore body armor, but their lightweight vests were useless against Jason and John's modified 7.62mm HK-416 rifles.
Miura had severely miscalculated.
He had assumed that Castle's bodyguards wouldn't be armed with military-grade weapons.
Only now, as high-velocity rounds tore through his men, did he realize how wrong he was.
—
By now, Miura was desperately searching for an escape route.
Everything about this operation screamed "trap."
The more he thought about it, the more puzzled he became—how could Castle, a famous, wealthy writer, be willing to use himself as bait?
Had he really been willing to risk his life just to lure them into a trap?
What if they had managed to break through his bodyguards?
Would he have risked getting shot?
Miura shook the thought away. That didn't matter now. What mattered was getting out alive.
And then, he heard the sound of engines behind him.
His heart sank.
Turning around, he saw several FBI-marked SUVs speeding toward them.
At that moment, all hope of escape vanished.
Miura had no illusions about what this meant. The U.S. had been waiting for this moment.
Even if he surrendered, he wouldn't make it out of this alive—his own government would silence him long before he could be interrogated.
Meanwhile, on the beach, Malatika had reached a different conclusion.
After losing six or seven men to gunfire, he and the Turkish leader—along with one incredibly lucky operative who had survived the hail of bullets—finally found a tiny patch of cover.
That surviving Turkish operative happened to be carrying a foldable rocket launcher.
Malatika grinned.
Their biggest threat wasn't the unseen sniper.
It was the machine gun nest.
If they could suppress it, they might have a chance to run from the beach into the tree line.
After a brief discussion, they made their decision.
They weren't going to give up.
Their mission had failed—kidnapping Castle was impossible now—but at this point, escaping with their lives was the priority.
—
At the same time...
U.S. Coast Guard vessels were racing toward the estate.
Many assumed that the U.S. military was the most powerful force on American soil, but in reality, it was the Coast Guard that had the broadest legal authority.
In fact, before Steve McGarrett had officially mobilized the Coast Guard, he had to receive direct approval from Governor James.
And the moment James learned that Castle was involved, he didn't hesitate.
James—a Democratic Party governor—knew exactly how important Castle was to his party's biggest donors.
Not only did he immediately approve McGarrett's request to send Coast Guard units to block the escape freighter in Hilo, but he also personally called U.S. Navy and Coast Guard leadership, demanding they intercept the Indian cargo ship that had smuggled weapons into Hawaii.
With James' direct orders, McGarrett was free to use the Coast Guard as much as he wanted.
Not only did he send units to Hilo, but he also deployed a Coast Guard warship to Castle's estate.
—
Meanwhile, the U.S. Air Force had called Castle three times.
They were eager to deploy their two A-10 Warthogs, which had been standing by at Hickam Air Force Base.
Castle, annoyed, refused them outright.
But these Air Force officers were persistent.
After Castle turned them down, they immediately contacted Steve McGarrett, trying to convince him to authorize an airstrike on the Panama-registered freighter at Hilo Port.
McGarrett, holding the phone, could only stare in disbelief.
What the hell is wrong with these guys?!
He had expected the Air Force to be desperate to use their A-10s, but this was insane.
Now, they wanted to bomb a civilian port?!
With an exasperated sigh, McGarrett firmly rejected the Air Force's offer and ordered his pilot to fly faster.
If he didn't get to Hilo first, the Air Force might actually bomb the place before he arrived.
—
Back at the estate, Castle sat in his study, grumbling.
Jason had forbidden him from stepping outside.
This wasn't what he had planned.
Originally, he had wanted to get in on the action, but everyone had refused.
Even John Wick—his most reliable ally—had betrayed him.
After being scolded by Gianna, John had suddenly decided that listening to Jason was the "logical" choice.
Now, while the battle raged outside, Castle had nothing to do except monitor the satellite feeds and provide real-time enemy positions to Hines' team.
Meanwhile, in New York, the mood was much lighter.
Bob Lee Swagger and Seeley Booth—who had come to reinforce the team against the two unexpected Assassin Brotherhood killers—were so relaxed that they even joked about Castle's situation over video call.
Gianna, utterly unconcerned, simply reminded them:
"Once you two take out those two assassins with sniper fire, your job is done."
______
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