Chapter 141: Scheming

Having decided not to go anywhere else today, Castle went straight home. As soon as he opened the door, he found his mother Martha, who had been missing for several days, sitting at the dining table, quietly discussing something with Alexis. They were holding a pen and comparing notes on a piece of paper.

"Hello! What are you two up to?" Castle greeted his mother and daughter as he closed the door and walked into the dining room.

"Dad, Grandma came back from her spiritual retreat and announced some big news. She said her boyfriend Chet asked her to move in with him, so she's making a pros and cons list!" Alexis explained excitedly to her father.

Castle was a bit surprised. "Mom? Chet wants you to move in with him? What do you think about that?"

Martha hesitated. "I'm not sure yet, so I'm making a pros and cons list. Right now, the pros seem to outweigh the cons. For instance, moving in with him would make me feel young again, which is important at my age. But on the downside, I don't want to leave my darling Alexis."

Alexis immediately responded sweetly, "Grandma, I don't want to be away from you either, but I can't stop you from pursuing your own happiness!"

Seeing his mother and daughter embrace each other so affectionately, Castle interrupted their warm moment. "You two take your time discussing this. I'll be in my study. I sent my new book's manuscript to Gina today, so I need to organize my files. Let's order takeout for dinner."

Alexis wasn't surprised that her father had finished his new book, having seen him writing at home every day. But Martha was taken aback. "Rick, it's only been a few days, and you've cured your chronic procrastination? How did you finish writing so smoothly and quickly this time? Didn't you usually drag it out until Gina was ready to kill you?"

Castle rolled his eyes. "Mom, that's old news. You know I signed a new contract with the NYPD and the publisher. This novel, based on Detective Beckett, is just the first of a trilogy. I have to get the first one out quickly to see how the market responds. Plus, I need to work with Beckett to gather material for the next books. My mind is overflowing with inspiration!"

As he finished speaking, Castle noticed that his mother and daughter weren't really listening to him. They were whispering to each other instead. "See, I told you, Dad must have a thing for Detective Beckett. He's even cured his chronic procrastination to spend more time with her..."

Castle's face darkened visibly as he watched his mother gossip about him in front of his daughter. Even with his thick skin, he could hardly bear it. "Mom, isn't it a bit much to slander me in front of Alexis like this?"

Martha turned around in surprise. "Oh, you're still here eavesdropping? Didn't you say you were going to organize your files?"

Alexis covered her mouth, giggling, her big eyes sparkling as she watched her grandma roast her dad.

Castle sighed deeply. "Now I think Chet inviting you to move in with him is a great idea for me. I won't miss you at all. The only question is how long Chet can tolerate you."

With that, Castle turned and walked away, heading to his study and closing the door behind him, leaving Martha and Alexis in the dining room to continue their conversation and gossip.

Martha was infuriated by Castle's parting words. "Hey, what do you mean by saying Chet inviting me to move in is good for you? And how long can he tolerate me..."

Alexis comforted her grandma sweetly. "Grandma, I don't want you to leave..."

Martha hugged her obedient granddaughter, touched. "Sweetheart, don't be like your dad, always offending people with his sharp tongue..."

Castle entered his study, but instead of organizing his writing materials as he had told his mother and daughter, he opened his computer and started searching for information about the music box. Through his search, Castle learned that the music box was historically significant. It was originally a collection of the Russian Tsar, then, due to various reasons, it left Russia and ended up with a French collector. Later, because of World War II, it fell into the hands of the Germans occupying France. The last recorded public appearance of the music box was in early 1945 in Germany, after which it vanished.

However, Castle knew that the music box was actually brought to the sunken U-boat off the coast of New York by Alex Hunter's grandfather before the end of the war. He had escaped from the U-boat before it sank, and the key information needed to locate the wreck was encoded in the music box's comb using musical notes.

Years ago, Alex had invited Neal to steal the music box from a Spanish collector, but their plan failed. Many knew Neal and Alex attempted the theft, but few knew they didn't succeed, leading to the recent chain of events.

Vincent Adler kidnapped Kate to coerce Neal into handing over the music box, unaware Neal never stole it. Vincent's father, who was on the sunken U-boat, didn't record its exact location, unlike Alex's grandfather. Instead, a fellow radio operator hid the location in the music box's notes. After embezzling ten billion dollars in a Ponzi scheme on Wall Street eight years ago, Vincent dedicated himself to finding the U-boat. When he discovered Neal had the music box, he knew Neal wouldn't surrender it easily, so he manipulated Fowler to deceive Kate into thinking staying with Neal would endanger him, planning to use Kate's safety to force Neal to trade the music box.

Castle's unexpected interference disrupted Vincent's plans. Realizing Castle wasn't an intentional adversary, Vincent tried to manipulate Castle into handing over the music box, unaware Castle knew the plot from watching the original series. Castle intended to let Vincent do the heavy lifting to recover the U-boat, only to double-cross him later. For Vincent, a shrewd manipulator, this was a disaster waiting to happen.

Castle, browsing online for more information about the music box, printed out key details to use as evidence when discussing the matter with Neal the next day. He planned to hide his foreknowledge of the plot by using these documents as a cover.

Satisfied with his preparations, Castle printed the crucial information and then heard Alexis in the living room asking what they should order for dinner.

After a lively dinner of Italian takeout with his family, Castle spent the evening watching a classic movie with Alexis, consuming a large bowl of popcorn she had made, which annoyed her. Laughing, he took a bath and had a good night's sleep.

The next morning, after making breakfast, he called Mozzie and together they went to Neal's mansion once again.

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