Castle was not one to hold back. Seeing the hopeful expressions of the father and son before him, he did not hesitate to continue his persuasive pitch: "At the time, I was just conducting a routine investigation, only learning that the African Queen belonged to a British noble family named Morgan. I didn't pay it much attention beyond that.
Until one day, I forgot to turn off a fuzzy search program, which popped up a potential related person—it was you!! Dr. Henry Morgan, the chief medical examiner in New York.
Dr. Morgan, you should know, today's big data on the internet can reveal many incredible things. Initially, I thought you might be a descendant of that family. On a whim, I researched your life trajectory and was surprised to find that you seemed to be hiding a huge secret."
To alleviate Henry's suspicions and to willingly recruit him as an ally, Richard Castle—bereft of any scruples and unabashed con artist—came online once again. Combining what he knew from the original series with some of his own embellishments, he ardently bamboozled Henry, whose judgment was clouded by excitement.
"At first, I only discovered your odd diploma issued by the University of Guam. Then I found out you had worked as a gravedigger for a while before becoming a medical examiner in New York. However, what was strange was your far-above-average understanding of human anatomy, which piqued my curiosity.
Thus, I employed my top-tier hacking skills, known to few, along with some underground channels, and the consolidated intelligence showed that you, Henry Morgan, were the very Henry Morgan from the Morgan family declared missing at sea by the captain of the African Queen. You can't imagine my surprise when I realized that, counting from your disappearance to now, you must be a legendary figure who has lived for over two hundred years.
You know, Dr. Morgan, I've always believed that miracles exist in this world, and you are one of those miracles.
However, after some investigation, I noticed you were always cautiously avoiding public attention. That made me realize you were hiding from the world. If I had approached you directly with this information, it likely would have panicked you. So, out of respect for your choices, after investigating your past, I decided to keep this information about you confidential.
Until today, when I met you at the crime scene, I still harbored the same thought and had no plans of confronting you. But truth be told, the murderer in today's case is also an immortal, a lonely soul from the Roman era who has been calling and harassing you because he has noticed you and thinks you are like him. He plans to coerce you into compliance with his directives.
His goal is to destroy your humanity and turn you into a cold, indifferent observer like himself.
Remember the subway derailment a while ago? If I remember correctly, you were in that subway car, right? Yes, the person who poisoned the subway driver was him!!!"
Castle's speech, packed with so many explosive secrets, utterly shocked Henry and Abraham.
Initially, Henry only thought Castle somehow knew his secret of immortality, but he hadn't realized how transparent he had been to Castle.
Abraham was also frightened. Are novelists nowadays really so formidable? To easily dig up an old man who had been hiding for two hundred years seemed unimaginable. Castle surely didn't know about his youthful fling with his mother, Martha, did he? That would be awkward.
Yes, Abraham, who had once been an actor, actually knew Castle, but only through his mother, Martha. This was actually their first real-life meeting.
Abraham's feelings about the current situation were a mix of hilarity and dismay. He was an old friend of Castle's mother, yet Castle was a friend of his father. Abraham puzzled over how he should regard and address Castle.
Seeing the astonished expression on Henry's face, Castle couldn't help but internally gloat, confident that this home-bound, old-fashioned man without even a cell phone couldn't escape his ruse.
Over the years, Henry had been dedicated to understanding why he would revive in the river immediately after dying, stark naked, making him quite out of touch with technological advancements. From his lack of a smartphone—a staple for modern people—it was clear that while Henry kept up academically, he had sealed himself off from the outside world ever since Abigail had left home, which was over twenty years ago.
Thus, Castle felt no guilt in bamboozling the father and son duo with tales of hacking and big data, his words exposing little risk of being caught, especially since he truly possessed top-tier hacking skills, allowing him to be unrestrained in his deception.
It took a while for Henry to recover from the bombshell Castle had dropped: "Mr. Castle, are you saying that the murder case, the mysterious person who has been calling me, is the same person who has lived since Roman times? Because he thinks
I am like him?"
Castle nodded emphatically; "Yes, Dr. Morgan, about this person, oh right, his name is Adam, and his current cover is a psychiatrist working at the Seventh Psychiatric Hospital!"
"All this, you found out through your computer?"
Henry was somewhat dizzy. Had computer technology really reached such incredible levels? Was it so powerful that not only could it uncover someone who had been hiding for two hundred years like himself, but also another who had lived for more than ten times that long?
"Oh, of course not, didn't I just say? I also utilized some underground channels and intelligence networks, and finally, I needed some help from sources I'd rather not introduce to you," Castle said, banking on Henry's gentlemanly nature, which would prevent him from pressing for more details on the sources.
"Let me summarize, then. So, starting from the subway incident, the mysterious person who has been calling me, who lived since the Roman era, discovered me and thought I was like him. So, he murdered the subway driver while I was on board to test if I was an immortal like him?
After he got the answer he wanted, he has been calling me to increase the pressure, including the incident today, all to exert his influence over me?"
Henry methodically pieced together the information he had received from Castle.
"Yes, and moreover, Dr. Morgan, he is also the murderer of Abigail!!"
Castle decided to spill all the beans about the mysterious Adam from the original series, delivering the most devastating news to Henry and Abraham.
"What did you say? He killed Abigail? Do you know where Abigail is now?"
Henry's usually composed demeanor completely vanished, his eyes red as he stared at Castle on the sofa, almost unable to believe what he had just heard.
Abraham's eyes also narrowed sternly at Castle, trying to discern the truth in his words.
Seeing the ferocious expressions of the father and son ready to pounce, Castle spoke seriously: "Dr. Morgan, since I met you, I have emphasized that I have no ill intentions towards you and that I understand you well. Do you think I would joke about something like this?"
Overwhelmed by his emotions, Henry abruptly stood up from the sofa, fixing his gaze on Castle: "Tell me, where is she?!!!"
___________________
Read Ahead
P@treon.com/Mutter