Chapter 57: Frank Castle

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Frank was always on high alert. When he heard the door open, he quickly grabbed a pistol and hid it behind his back, moving swiftly toward the entrance.

Link pushed the door open and was immediately met by Frank Castle, who blocked the doorway. "What do you want?"

Link smiled and said, "You live on the rooftop?"

"Yeah, this is my spot. I don't let people in," Frank responded, acting like someone who had claimed the rooftop as his own territory.

Not wanting to beat around the bush, Link got straight to the point. "The Barrett AS50 sniper rifle you provided last time worked great. The heavy rounds were just my style."

Frank's eyes narrowed. In a flash, he pulled out the pistol hidden behind his back and pointed it directly at Link's head.

But Link didn't move. He continued smiling, which made Frank hesitate.

"Relax," Link said calmly. "If I was here to take you down, you'd already be dead."

"I'm just here to talk."

"Talk about what?" Frank asked cautiously.

"Are we going to talk like this?" Link asked, glancing at the gun still pointed at him.

After a moment's pause, Frank stepped back, allowing Link to enter. Link walked up onto the rooftop, closed the door behind him, and leaned against it, not bothering to move further inside.

"Let's talk about your recent actions. You've been affecting the peace in Hell's Kitchen," Link began.

Frank was momentarily stunned but then sneered, "Are you NYPD or FBI? You used my sniper rifle to blow someone to pieces last time."

"Exactly," Link admitted without hesitation. "That was an off-the-record mission. If you have access to detailed intelligence, you should know the situation."

"The person I shot wasn't an ordinary man. He could control others through speech, making them do whatever he commanded."

"This guy had been operating in secret for a long time because most people couldn't even remember being controlled by him. Even those who did have memories found them vague and unreliable."

"Anyone who talked about him wasn't believed."

Frank was surprised by what he heard. Could there really be someone like that?

"His codename is Kilgrave, real name Zebediah Kilgrave," Link explained. "His parents were scientists who experimented on him, resulting in a virus that he can spread to anyone nearby, making them obey his orders."

"You can see why he was such a threat."

Frank was still puzzled. "So, you really are with the government?"

"Want to see my credentials?" Link asked, opening his suit jacket. Frank nodded.

Link pulled out his ID and showed it to Frank, who didn't recognize the S.H.I.E.L.D. emblem.

"This is from the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division," Link explained. "We're not a government agency. We're a global organization that handles special individuals and objects."

"So there are more people like that?" Frank asked, still processing the information.

"Not many, but not few either," Link replied. "Some people keep to themselves or even fight for justice, like that guy who runs around at night."

"Ah, I know who you mean. People call him Daredevil, but he's been missing for a while," Frank said, showing familiarity with the vigilante.

"He hasn't disappeared. He's just laying low because the situation in Hell's Kitchen has improved. Crime has gone down," Link clarified. "To be honest, your actions don't fall under our jurisdiction. I'm here because I respect you."

"You want me to join your organization?" Frank asked.

"Not at all. You don't fit what we need," Link said, shaking his head. "I just sympathize with what you've been through, and I admire your tenacity."

"Sympathy?" Frank scoffed bitterly. "If you're so powerful, why don't you stop crime?"

Link shook his head. "We answer to the World Security Council. We protect Earth from bigger threats. Regular criminals aren't our concern. Aliens are much harder to deal with."

"Aliens?" Frank was startled. The information he had learned today could keep him shocked for a year. "You're not joking?"

"Not at all. Why do you think we're called a defense agency?" Link spread his hands. "Aliens have been coming to Earth for ages. They've conducted experiments on humans, then left, leaving behind things that are insignificant to them but deadly to us."

"An alien bacteria that could wipe out humanity, or an energy source that could blow up the entire planet."

"The worst part? Some aliens stayed behind. They live among us, hiding in plain sight because they live much longer than we do."

"Those are the problems we deal with. Now, do you see why we don't bother with everyday crime?"

Frank asked, "If you're so busy, why focus on me?"

"It's Fisk. Wilson Fisk came to me," Link answered honestly.

Frank's grip on his gun tightened. "Don't get tense," Link said calmly.

"My cover identity is that of a professional gambler. I got recruited because of my skills with firearms and psychology. It was a coincidence, really. Before that, I was a cop with the NYPD."

"After my probation, I got assigned to the Midtown precinct. You probably heard about it — I took down over twenty gang members."

Frank remembered hearing about that. There had been talk about an Asian cop who single-handedly killed more than twenty gangsters, and after that, the Irish mob had put out a hit on him. But the NYPD cracked down hard, and the mob was weakened. Afterward, the cop disappeared, and now Frank knew why — he'd been recruited.

"It was my idea to help Fisk change his ways, so crime rates in Hell's Kitchen would drop," Link continued. "He asked me to analyze your psychological state, so I volunteered to take on the task."

Frank asked, "So, you're here to stop me?"

"Yes. You're seeking revenge, but your targets are wrong," Link explained. "You think your family was collateral damage in a gang war, but it was no accident. They were the intended targets."

"What?" Frank was stunned. "Are you sure?"

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(End of Chapter)