As Beckett questioned Castle, he casually maneuvered their car through the traffic, heading back to his estate. His plan? Sneak off early with the NYPD's captain for a quiet afternoon. He responded lightheartedly,
"Well, during Jabot's briefing, when he was going over the dead guy's background, I had an idea. Right now, I'm working with Lockheed Martin and two other defense contractors on a project. All I have to do is let them know that foreign intelligence agencies are targeting me. You think those capitalists would sit idly by while their golden goose gets harassed? No way. They'll go all out to protect their investment.
"Besides," Castle continued, "this whole mess started because of internal leaks at Lockheed Martin. Since both the British and the Turks are stakeholders in the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter project, they have technical and research personnel stationed at Lockheed. Once those techies caught wind of the optical camouflage technology I'm collaborating on, they reported it back to their respective governments. And here we are.
"So, really, this is Lockheed's fault. Their sloppy information management got me dragged into this mess. Maybe I should exploit this and squeeze a few perks out of them, huh?"
Beckett rolled her eyes.
"You're unbelievable. We're discussing serious threats here, and all you can think about is extorting Lockheed Martin? When will you ever grow up?"
Castle chuckled, quickly steering the conversation back on track.
"Alright, alright. As for the Turks, they're not a major threat. Their agents can't exactly storm my heavily fortified estate to steal anything. After the Alexis kidnapping, no one's dumb enough to target my family. More likely, they'll try a different tactic—maybe approach me under the guise of a business deal."
Beckett crossed her arms, skeptical.
"Business deal? You think they'd bother sending a spy just to make a corporate offer? Quit joking. What's really going on?"
Castle, realizing Beckett was about to unleash her full fury, quickly sobered up.
"Okay, okay. Jarvis already found the British agent's mission file. The MI6 really dropped the ball. They left classified intel on a networked server and transmitted it online. The agent they sent here was tasked with sneaking into my estate to steal data from my supercomputer lab."
Beckett knew Jarvis was thorough. Fixing her intense gaze on Castle, she waited silently, signaling that he wouldn't get away with any half-truths. Castle scratched his head, grinning sheepishly.
"Right, right. Here's the full story..."
Straightening up, Castle explained,
"According to what Jarvis uncovered, MI6 saw me as a jackpot. They found out through Lockheed that I possess some pretty advanced tech. They're especially interested because I previously licensed an engine efficiency enhancement technology to General Electric and Pratt & Whitney—but not to their precious Rolls-Royce, which was left out in the cold.
"Now that they've heard I'm working with Lockheed on optical camouflage, the British military brass got greedy. They sent their top computer and infiltration expert to New York to hack my servers and steal the data."
Beckett snorted.
"They really thought they could break into your fortress? What were they smoking?"
Castle grinned.
"Exactly. But that's not all. Since both the Brits and Turks have spies embedded at Lockheed, this info leak isn't just a one-off. Now that Joe's team is handling the case, I'm going to tell Lockheed to investigate the breach themselves. Then..."
He paused, a devious glint in his eye.
Beckett leaned in, intrigued.
"Then what?"
"Then I'll sit back and watch Lockheed Martin go after the Brits and Turks. Remember, both nations invested in the F-35 program, but my optical camouflage tech isn't part of that project. Lockheed and other defense contractors like Boeing and Northrop Grumman won't tolerate foreign governments trying to steal their proprietary technology.
"I'll also notify General Electric and Pratt & Whitney that Rolls-Royce is after my engine tech. You think they'll just let that slide? Not a chance. This will set off a chain reaction where all these defense giants gang up on the Brits."
Beckett shook her head with a mixture of amusement and admiration.
"And you? You won't lift a finger, huh?"
"Exactly. You're pregnant, and I want you to stay stress-free. No need for us to confront these spies head-on when others can handle it. You're my priority."
Castle's words brought a satisfied smile to Beckett's face. He wasn't the same impulsive risk-taker he used to be. He had learned to use his connections and influence wisely. By leveraging the power of defense corporations, Castle could avoid direct conflict with foreign intelligence operatives. It was a much smarter strategy than recklessly putting himself in danger.
Back at the estate, Castle and Beckett parted ways. Beckett headed to the bedroom to change before taking a walk to visit Gianna and spend time with the young Onona by the beach. Castle, meanwhile, went straight to his supercomputer lab.
He briefed his tech team, including his close allies Ramsey and the "little genius," before having Jarvis compile a comprehensive report on the situation. This report, complete with the leaked MI6 mission documents, was then sent directly to the CEO of Lockheed Martin.
Castle followed up with a phone call. He calmly explained that the British and Turkish interest in his technology was a direct consequence of their personnel at Lockheed leaking sensitive information. Though Castle didn't explicitly blame Lockheed or threaten to terminate their partnership, the message was clear: this breach had serious consequences.
The Lockheed executive was furious. It didn't take long for him to verify Castle's claims. Learning that foreign spies within their own company had caused a major security breach was an insult to Lockheed's reputation.
Lockheed Martin had accepted foreign investments to mitigate development costs for the F-35 program, but that didn't mean they would tolerate espionage. Castle knew that unleashing the full wrath of America's largest defense corporations would send a powerful message: no one messes with their interests and walks away unscathed.
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