Chapter 95: Winston’s Puzzlement

Winston was utterly shocked. Santino came all the way to New York just to find Castle? And Castle, that little rascal, had already clashed with Santino's men in Paris a few days ago? Judging by Santino's furious demeanor, Castle must have given him quite a beating.

When Castle had gotten involved in John Wick's feud with the Tarasov family and bought a load of weapons from him, Winston knew Castle would stir up trouble sooner or later. But he never imagined that Castle would be bold enough to directly confront one of the twelve ruling families of the High Table, the D'Antonio family.

What puzzled Winston was why Santino, who had John's blood oath marker, would come to New York to trouble Castle. 

Filled with questions, Winston couldn't waste time pondering why Santino, despite holding John's blood oath marker, would personally come to New York to mess with Castle. Unbeknownst to Winston, both old D'Antonio and Gianna, along with Santino, had kept this internal family conflict under wraps. The last thing the D'Antonio family needed was for the outside world to know about their internal strife, which had persisted since Gianna and Santino had fought over who would inherit the family leadership and Gianna's determination to protect John.

Therefore, only a handful of people knew that John was free and had reclaimed his blood oath marker from Santino—Castle being one of them, leading to Winston's misjudgment.

For Winston, the most pressing issue was Santino's request for information on Castle. He knew that trying to dissuade Santino was futile. Santino was a proud, rebellious person from a prominent family who only respected Winston because he was the owner of the New York Continental Hotel and because Santino was currently residing there. If Winston outright told him to drop his vendetta against Castle, it would not only be ineffective but would also make Santino suspicious of his relationship with Castle.

While Winston didn't mind such suspicions, it was better to avoid unnecessary complications. So, his eyes returned to their usual hazy state as he calmly spoke, "Santino, I cannot break the High Table's rules for you. The person you mentioned has always been under the protection of the High Table and the Continental. As to why, don't ask me. Even if you did, I couldn't answer. I can only tell you that if you seek trouble with this person or plan revenge, the Continental Hotel will remain neutral and not assist you."

Santino's heart skipped a beat. Had he overlooked something crucial? Why did Winston react so strongly upon hearing Castle's name and refuse his request outright?

Santino, though arrogant, wasn't stupid. Realizing that Castle wasn't just an ordinary writer but likely someone with significant backing, he felt a rare sense of caution. His family upbringing finally kicked in, making him wary of the potential consequences.

Without further delay, Santino stood up, nodded to Winston to indicate his understanding, and quickly left the bar with his bodyguards and aides, planning to reassess his opponent and ensure there were no major oversights in his plan.

Winston remained seated, his mind buzzing with questions. He pondered for a while before calling over his assistant, Garon. "Garon, use our intelligence network to investigate any major events in France recently. Also, look into how Castle got involved and why he has a grudge against Santino D'Antonio. Check on John's recent activities too. I've been too focused on New York lately. These two troublemakers are becoming more capable. Go, and report back quickly."

"Yes, sir, I'll get on it right away…"

Garon left to carry out the orders, leaving Winston alone in the dimly lit bar, slowly becoming engulfed in cigar smoke.

"Damn it… Why did Winston refuse to help me just because that writer is under the High Table's protection? Why didn't you guys find this out earlier?"

Back in his room, Santino raged at his aides. His arrogance had led him to act hastily out of hatred, not realizing that Castle was more than just a writer. Now, after being rebuffed by Winston, he blamed his aides for the oversight.

His two close aides, who had followed him from Rome to New York, stood in the middle of the room, sweating profusely and pale-faced, waiting for Santino to finish his tirade. One of them, who was usually favored by Santino, timidly offered a suggestion, "Master, the Continental not helping us isn't a big issue. Now that we know the writer is under the hotel's protection, they won't help him either. We can frame this as a personal vendetta. If we act, no one can say anything against it.

For intelligence, remember that much of the Continental's information comes from Barry Street. KING is the true underground intelligence king of New York. We can approach him directly using the D'Antonio family's name and have him gather information on the writer for us. It might cost us, but it would save us time and trouble. We're blind in New York, after all."

Having finished his outburst, Santino, panting heavily, sat on the sofa and considered the suggestion. After a moment, he agreed it was the best course of action. He instructed his aide, "Alright, handle it. Use the family's name or money if needed. I want everything on that writer, especially if he has any powerful backers. This is crucial, understand?"

The harshly commanded aide nodded and left to carry out the order, while Santino's suspicions grew. Until he understood Castle's potential backing, he decided to tread carefully.

Meanwhile, Garon returned with the information from the intelligence department and handed it to Winston, who was waiting in his office.

Reading through the report detailing Castle's actions in Paris—hiring mercenaries, slaughtering human traffickers, and somehow orchestrating the bombing of Santino's club by a squad directly under the Elder's command—Winston couldn't help but chuckle.

"Garon, this report says Jonathan (John Wick) went to Paris over a month ago and has been with Gianna D'Antonio? Why didn't you tell me something this important?"

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