Chapter 175 Someone Wants to Frame Me

John Wick remained unmoved by Ben Gates' words. "Hey, glasses guy, tie up Mr. Ben Gates here. You have two minutes. Once time's up, I shoot." He then glanced at his watch. "Time starts now. Get moving, buddy."

Riley looked at John Wick and then at Ben Gates, not making a move. This prompted Pat Gates to urgently shout, "Hurry up, Riley! While this gentleman is still patient, hurry! Do you really want to die?"

Hearing Pat's reminder, Riley hurriedly and clumsily tied up Ben Gates.

John Wick reminded him, "Do a good job, glasses brother. No tricks. Bullets don't have eyes."

Hearing this, Riley added several more layers of tape to secure Ben Gates thoroughly within the two minutes.

John Wick nodded in satisfaction. "Good. Thank you, buddy. Now turn around."

Riley, trembling, turned around as John Wick instructed. Before he could react out of fear, he rolled his eyes and fainted, after which John Wick tied him up as well.

After binding Riley, John Wick searched both Ben Gates and Riley, taking their watches, phones, and even their shoes.

"Damn it," Ben Gates thought as he watched this unfold. He realized that this masked man had been tampering with them. Their watches, phones, and shoes must have been bugged. Otherwise, how else could he have followed them to his father's house?

Ben Gates felt a chill run through him, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead. His every move had been monitored. This was a meticulously planned operation. He even suspected that his mother's place was also being watched and that there were people lying in wait for him.

Who could it be? Was it William? Or Ian? Or was it another group altogether that had been shadowing him, closely observing his every move?

Thinking about this, Ben Gates suddenly spoke up, "William Devonshire."

John Wick glanced at Ben Gates in confusion, then picked up some tape and sealed Ben's mouth shut.

As Ben Gates uttered William's full name, he kept a close eye on John Wick's expression and actions. When John Wick heard the name, he showed no reaction. His eyes remained clear, with no hint of evasion, which temporarily eliminated William from Ben Gates' list of suspects.

Could it be Ian? Ben Gates then shook his head. He didn't think Ian would need to hire a hitman. They could do the job themselves.

Moreover, this seemed like an expensive hitman who wasn't tempted by the mention of over a million dollars. God, could it really be that someone else had been watching him closely for a long, long time?

John Wick placed the confiscated items into a radiation-proof vacuum bag, sealed it, and said, "Thanks for cooperating. Let's hope we never meet again. One last piece of advice: don't tell the Secret Service about this, because we're not alone. Don't force us to come looking for you again. Lastly, sorry for what I just did."

With that, John Wick turned and drove away from Pat Gates' house.

This John Wick was not yet the man softened by the love of his wife. At this time, he had no mercy in his heart. Although he had spoken with a bullet in his mouth to disguise his voice, Ben Gates and the others had seen his physique. If William hadn't mentioned in his message to keep Ben Gates alive as a scapegoat, John Wick wouldn't have hesitated to put a bullet in each of them.

Therefore, John Wick deliberately displayed the bugs in front of Ben Gates to divert their attention and make them believe that he wasn't acting alone. No one would risk their family's safety by provoking a group that had been carefully monitoring them, especially when this group seemed to have very strong intelligence capabilities.

After dealing with the surveillance car, John Wick changed cars several times in safe houses across a few small cities before cheerfully driving to New York.

Half an hour after John Wick left, Secret Service agents, having sped all the way, took over an hour to reach Pittsburgh. By the time they arrived at Pat Gates' house, an hour and a half had passed.

Several agents, weapons drawn, cautiously approached Pat Gates' house.

With a bang, both the front and back doors of Pat Gates' house were simultaneously broken open. The agents who entered the hall were surprised to see Ben Gates and the others tied up. One agent approached Ben Gates, tore off the tape covering his mouth, and urgently asked, "What happened here? Where's the Declaration of Independence?"

Once the agents inside Pat Gates' house signaled that it was safe, William followed Church and the others into the house.

Even before entering, William's mental powers had sensed that John Wick had succeeded, which greatly relieved him.

However, despite his relief, William didn't forget to act. Upon entering and seeing the tied-up trio, he immediately put on a shocked expression.

Failing to catch any flaws in William's reaction, Sedes, who had hoped to catch William off guard, felt disappointed.

Who had beaten them to the punch and taken the Declaration of Independence? This matter was becoming increasingly complicated. However, with the capture of Ben Gates, the mastermind behind the theft, Sedes could at least report some progress to his superiors, possibly buying himself more time.

Sedes ordered his men to untie Ben Gates and the others before asking, "What happened here? Who tied you up? Where is the Declaration of Independence?"

Ben Gates didn't respond to Sedes' questions but instead looked at William with a face full of despair, prompting the surrounding agents to rest their hands on their gun holsters.

William felt a chill run down his spine under Ben Gates' gaze. Did this bastard figure something out or was he trying to frame him?

"Ben, why are you looking at me? Do you think this has something to do with me?" William hurriedly turned to Church and said, "Church, you have to vouch for me. I didn't have the time or opportunity to send out any messages. Besides, how would I know that Ben and Riley would come here?"

Church nodded to Sedes. "William indeed had no time or opportunity to send out any messages. As for whether he planned this in advance, I don't know."

"Go to hell, Church. Don't make baseless accusations," William shouted angrily. "If I had hired someone to steal the Declaration of Independence, do you think Ben Gates and the others would still be alive? Wouldn't it be more beneficial for me if their bodies just disappeared without a trace? God, the real mastermind behind this is trying to frame me!

Moreover, have you considered that I have a very close relationship with Abigail? I wouldn't need to steal the Declaration of Independence. With our relationship and my status, I could simply donate some money and get legitimate access to examine the Declaration of Independence in the archives. Why would I go to such lengths to steal it and end up being targeted by the Secret Service?"

Everyone pondered this and found William's words reasonable. He indeed had no need to steal or rob.

The key point was that Ben Gates and the others had been captured. The other party neither killed nor took them away but left them for the Secret Service. This inevitably raised suspicions about the true intentions of the other party.

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