✔ᵉⁿᵍˡⁱˢʰ War Dogs [The Punisher | Frank Castle]✔

─⌖❖ 20

The deal was simple. It goes like this. Anything and everything didn't give a shit, completely that the case only involved Homeland, Page would be in the loop, be there, and any action involving Frank Castle would have to be cleared and approved with her or one of her superiors, otherwise it would be over on the spot. No ifs, ands, or buts. Even if she had to babysit, perfectly equal, though she didn't say so, but on the trouble if something happened with Castle, she didn't want to experience in this life. The deal was as simple as that.

For that reason, Page was in the room with them when Frank made his statement, however, they have to keep a low profile, as Agent Madani told her, because after all, the case was none of the FBI's business, it belonged to Homeland. All good so they live.

[ Beginning of recording ]

'Please state your full name.'

>Frank Castle<

'Confirm that your testimony was not influenced and that you were not offered or implied any leniency or immunity in exchange for your testimony.'

>Wow, you need to back up, what Madani?<

'Answer question.'

>No deals, no guarantees.<

'Mister Castle...'

>Yes.<

'.... You served as a Marine in Force Recon for many years?'

>Right.

'But your last mission was not with that unit.'

>No, I was part of a covert CIA operation. Its name was Cerberus.<

'What was the objective of Cerberus?'

>Mission Cerberus was to capture, interrogate and.... kill key targets in Afghanistan.<

'There are no official documents on that.'

>Oh Madani, you know why. Then why are you asking me?<

'I need to have this on tape.'

>Okay, you didn't hear about any of this because the whole thing was illegal. A private homicide squad. Financed by smuggling heroin out of Kandahar. Good?<

'Okay, who was running this?'

>Colonel Schoonover, Colonel Morty Bennett and your friend Carson Wolf. All deceased.<

'Did you kill them?'

>Oh yes. Bennett didn't. They were his friends. I just made him a target.<

'Target for who?'

>The guy in charge. William J. Rawlins. Head of covert operations for the CIA. This is on his dime.<

[ End of recording]

"Just a moment," Page interrupted the pause in a shaky voice, hastily wiping her phone several times and walking over to Castle, where she placed the device on his desk, which showed a picture, "Would you tell me Mister Castle who this man is?"

"I just told you. That's him," to Page whose face paled and turned with uneven breathing where she stood back against the wall, "The man you just showed me is, William J. Rawlins."

"Thank you.", that was all Page could say at the moment, because that, she had to internalize first.

Once this was made public, it would hit like a bomb. A lot of heads would roll and the government would be pilloried.

And it didn't stop there. Someone else had been there, a Marine, Billy Russo.