Chapter 39: Mission Completed
"This is the apartment where Ao Si Ta Wo lives." Lily Cross stared at the rain-slicked high-rise before her. "Finally found you."
She turned to her team. "Ethan, take the other side of the apartment and find a good sniping point. Youdou, you and Mike will handle the frontal assault. I'll provide communication support from below."
Among the four, Lily Cross, with her excellent logistical and analytical skills, naturally took the lead as team captain.
The others nodded. Silently, they collected their gear, pulled up their hoods, and slipped out of the car, disappearing into the rainy streets like ghosts.
What they didn't know, however, was that a woman in a black van nearby was watching their every move through a hidden camera.
"They're making their move," the hacker monitoring the signal reported. A sudden spike in digital activity confirmed it.
Communication link established.
Lily glanced at the large screen in front of her, split into multiple sections—each one displaying a live feed from her team's body cameras.
"Signal check complete. Network stable. All units, report positions."
"One in position." Ethan Cross had already found his spot: tucked inside the outer wall of a public restroom attached to the apartment block. He opened a small case and began assembling his custom sniper rifle with mechanical precision.
Sniping was clean. Efficient. One bullet, one kill. No mess, no noise. But the downside? They'd lose out on intel and spoils of war. Still, given the risks of a direct firefight, sniping remained the squad's go-to tactic.
"There's surveillance on the twenty-first floor. It's on the move," Youdou reported quietly as he scanned the hallway of the twenty-third floor. "Can you cut their network feed?"
"Trying now," Lily replied, fingers flying across the keyboard of a nearby terminal. She was good with systems—basic hacking at least.
"I'll assist." Youdou ducked into a blind spot, popped open his laptop, and began cracking the apartment's firewalls alongside her.
The building used a common security system—not especially difficult to breach. But when they reached the twenty-first floor, where Ao Si Ta Wo lived, they hit a digital black hole.
"He has his own hacker," Lily muttered.
The two carefully navigated the system without tripping any alarms. If they alerted the enemy, the mission's difficulty would skyrocket.
"What's the situation, Ethan?" she asked through comms.
"No window," Ethan replied, frustration in his voice. "Heavy blackout curtains. No line of sight."
"Not surprising. He's a minor boss. Of course, he'd take precautions," Lily replied, popping a lollipop into her mouth.
Assassination missions weren't like security details. Speed was everything. The longer the operation dragged on, the higher the risk of detection.
"If we can't snipe, then we go in."
"Ethan, prep flashbang rounds. Armor-piercing. Youdou, go in with Mike. Find Ao Si Ta Wo and eliminate him."
"Roger!" Youdou flexed his fingers, cracking his knuckles. Usually this kind of job was handled by Lena Fox, but with her recovering from surgery, it was finally his time to shine.
"Begin."
As Lily's voice rang out, two streams of digital data shot forward like lightning, assaulting the firewall around the twenty-first floor.
Inside the apartment, the hacker monitoring the system immediately tensed.
"Breach attempt! They're in!" he shouted, hands flying over his keyboard.
Ao Si Ta Wo, lounging with a drink while watching TV, heard the shout. His relaxed expression hardened into a scowl.
"Damn it! Someone's actually dumb enough to hit me here?" he cursed. "Track them down. Now!"
Before the hacker could respond, a faint thwump echoed from the distance.
Ethan's grenade launched from across the complex, trailing red light before crashing into the apartment window.
CRACK—BOOM!
The glass shattered. The grenade exploded with a blinding white flash and deafening bang. The whole room shook. Everyone inside reeled, eyes clenched, ears ringing.
Ao Si Ta Wo staggered, blinded and disoriented. He covered his ears instinctively.
As the light began to fade and the pain dulled, he slowly opened his eyes—
Only to find a massive figure standing silently in front of him.
"Who—who are you?" he managed to whisper.
Mike Taylor, silent as ever, offered no reply.
He simply stepped forward.
His enormous hands reached out and gripped Ao Si Ta Wo's head and shoulder with bone-crushing force.
Ao Si Ta Wo's eyes widened. He wanted to scream, to plead—but Mike gave him no chance.
CRACK.
A sickening snap echoed through the room as the man's neck was brutally twisted.
Ao Si Ta Wo's vision dimmed. The last thing he heard was the wet rip of torn flesh.
Death was immediate.
Mike dropped the corpse, blood soaking into the carpet. He wiped his hands clean like he'd just finished washing up.
Behind him, Ao Si Ta Wo's men were only just recovering from the flashbang's effects. As their vision cleared, they saw the lifeless body—and the mountain of a man who had killed him without effort.
Fear gripped them. Their legs trembled. Some dropped their weapons instinctively.
"It's done," Mike finally said, pressing his earpiece.
Lily, watching through his camera feed, sighed.
"I'm starting to think all my planning was a waste."
What kind of mission required this much strategy for one petty gang leader? It almost felt insulting.
But this was how the original trio operated. Brutal. Efficient. Direct.
Mike didn't mind letting the younger members see how things were done.
"Wait—don't go!"
A voice shouted. A burly figure stepped in front of Mike, blocking the exit.
Mike paused and turned slowly, his gaze calm, cold.
The man was well-built. Clearly stronger than the rest.
"You think you can just kill our boss and leave?" he barked, fists clenched.
Mike's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Are you looking for death?" he asked flatly. The calmness of his voice was more terrifying than any rage.
The man's muscles twitched with tension.
"So what?" Mike continued. "He's dead. That makes you the boss, doesn't it?"
He didn't wait for a reply. He turned and walked away.
The man stood frozen in place, seething. But he didn't move.
No one dared follow.
The Valentinos were tight-knit, but they weren't stupid. Going up against a monster like Mike wasn't loyalty—it was suicide.
They would wait. Regroup. Look for an opportunity for revenge.
---
Outside, Youdou met Mike at the elevator.
"That was fast, huh?" Youdou grinned as he looked at the head in the containment box. "Job well done, Kui."
But there was no response from Lily.
He frowned. "Kui? You there?"
Silence.
Youdou blinked and tapped his earpiece again. "Kui? Respond."
Still nothing.
His gut twisted. When the elevator doors opened, he dashed toward the getaway car.
There stood Ethan Cross, face pale and jaw clenched.
"What happened?" Youdou asked, heart racing. "Where's Lily?"
Ethan didn't answer immediately. He simply handed over a crumpled note.
On it, a single message was scrawled:
> "Want your friend back? Wait for my call."
Lily Cross… had been kidnapped.
Øóffer going on for diamond tier
pàtreøn (Gk31)