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BANG BANG BANG CHAPTER 27: A NEW CHALLENGER
The pocket watch gleaned under the flickering street lamp, its rhythmic ticking filling the silence like a slow, deliberate countdown. Carrick narrowed his eyes, his grip tightening on the curtain as he watched the mysterious figure outside."Who the hell is that?" Victor’s voice was tense through the earpiece.Carrick exhaled. "Not sure. But he’s not just some random thug."Maximus grinned from where he sat on the couch, casually sharpening a knife. "You don’t say? The whole ‘ominous pocket watch in the dark’ thing didn’t give it away?"Carrick ignored him, studying the figure carefully. The man didn’t move—l, just stood there, flipping the watch open and closed, as if waiting for something.Jack’s voice crackled in. "Boss, I’ve run facial recognition through every database I could tap into. No match.""That’s impossible," Victor muttered. "If someone’s connected to a five-million-dollar bounty, they should have some kind of record."Jack sighed. "I don’t like it either, but this guy
BANG BANG BANG CHAPTER 28: HUNTING THE PREDATOR
Carrick sat in the dimly lit study, fingers steepled as he processed the night’s events. The assassin's cryptic message, Samael’s opening move, and the unseen forces pulling the strings.. it was all coming together in a twisted puzzle. He needed to move fast.Victor paced behind him, his frustration barely contained. "We need to hit back. Hard."Carrick exhaled. "Hitting back without a plan makes us reckless. Samael isn’t just some street thug we can intimidate."Maximus leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "The kid’s right. Samael doesn’t care about fear. He enjoys the hunt. If we go at him blind, we’re just giving him sport."Victor scowled. "So what’s your play?"Carrick’s fingers drummed against the desk. "We don’t fight him like a mafia boss. We fight him like a hunter."Jack’s voice came through the speaker. "Boss, if you’re thinking of tracking Samael, that’s a suicide mission. The guy’s a ghost."Carrick smirked. "So was our friend outside. And yet, he came to me."Jack hesi
BANG BANG BANG CHAPTER 29: SHADOWS AT MIDNIGHT
Midnight was a cruel mistress. It whispered secrets in the dark, concealed movements behind shadows, and turned even the bravest men into prey. But Carrick Gale had never feared the dark.He thrived in it.Warehouse 12 stood at the edge of an abandoned industrial district, its skeletal remains barely holding against the howling wind. Rusted shipping containers were scattered across the yard, silent sentinels to past dealings.Maximus crouched beside Carrick behind a stack of barrels, peering through binoculars. “Two snipers on the roof. Four guards at the entrance. Two more patrolling."Victor’s voice crackled through the earpiece. “And that’s just what we can see. There’s no way Samael meets anyone without extra precautions."Carrick smirked. “That’s why we aren’t walking in the front door."Maximus grinned. “What’s the play?"Carrick nodded toward the northeast side. “There’s an old access tunnel under the warehouse. Jack sent me the blueprints, it leads straight into the storage ro
BANG BANG BANG CHAPTER 30: A HUNTER'S RESOLVE
The night air was thick with the stench of burnt rubber and gunpowder as Carrick, Victor, and Maximus slipped through the industrial district’s back alleys. Sirens still wailed in the distance, their echoes bouncing off the rusted steel skeletons of abandoned warehouses. But Carrick’s mind wasn’t on their escape.It was on Samael.The assassin had been toying with him. Testing his reflexes, gauging his skill. Sizing him up.And that meant only one thing, Samael wasn’t done yet.Carrick’s fingers curled into fists as they reached their getaway car. The black SUV was parked in the shadows, waiting for them. Lila sat in the driver’s seat, her sniper rifle broken down into pieces beside her. Alex was in the back, typing furiously on his laptop.The moment they climbed in, Lila pulled away from the curb.Victor exhaled. “That could’ve gone better.”Maximus chuckled. “Could’ve gone worse.”Carrick’s eyes stayed on the passing streetlights. “We got what we came for.”Alex didn’t look up from
BANG BANG BANG SHADOWS IN THE GALE FAMILY
The Gale estate stood like a fortress on the outskirts of the city, surrounded by high walls, security checkpoints, and a network of guards patrolling its perimeter. The family’s influence stretched deep into politics, business, and the criminal underworld. Inside the grand estate, in a dimly lit study filled with antique furniture and the scent of cigar smoke, Domino Gale sat across from his father, Zachary Gale.The room was silent except for the occasional crackling of the fireplace. A glass of whiskey rested untouched in front of Domino, while Zachary leaned back in his leather chair, fingers tapping rhythmically against the desk. A cold, calculating gleam flickered in his eyes as he reviewed the latest reports.A manila folder lay open between them, filled with surveillance images and documents detailing Carrick’s recent movements. The latest entry included a grainy image of Maximus Perch shaking hands with Carrick at the Helios Hotel.Zachary exhaled slowly, his expression unrea
BANG BANG BANG CHAPTER 32: THE PRICE OF POWER
The city never truly slept. Beneath its glimmering skyline, the streets pulsed with secrets, deals, and blood-stained ambitions. In an abandoned warehouse on the east side, Carrick Gale sat at the head of a long table, surrounded by his closest allies. The air was thick with tension. The moment he had been waiting for, the moment he had been building towards, was finally here.Russell Wright sat across from him, sweat beading on his forehead. The financial strategist for the Gale Family had spent years working under Zachary’s thumb. Now, in the span of a few hours, his world had been turned upside down.“You’re asking me to betray the most powerful man in this city,” Russell said, his voice shaking slightly.Carrick leaned forward, his fingers laced together. “No, I’m telling you that you already have.”Russell swallowed. He knew Carrick wasn’t wrong. The moment he had answered that phone call, the moment he had even entertained the idea of switching sides, his fate had been sealed.V
BANG BANG BANG CHAPTER 33: BLOOD IN THE WATER
The night air was thick with tension. The city had shifted, Carrick could feel it in the way the streets moved, the way power pulsed beneath the surface like an unseen current. The war between him and the Gale Family was no longer a secret battle fought in the shadows.It was real.And it was only beginning.In the dimly lit operations room, Carrick stood before a large digital screen displaying a web of connections, names, numbers, offshore accounts. The lifeblood of Zachary Gale’s empire. Every second that ticked by, his father’s financial kingdom bled a little more.Russell sat at a desk nearby, fingers flying across the keyboard as he worked to reroute more of the Gale fortune into ghost accounts. He hadn’t slept in over twenty-four hours, but the thrill of tearing down the man who had controlled him for years kept him going.Alex paced the room, arms crossed. “We’ve got another batch of accounts frozen. That’s twenty percent of their liquid assets locked down.”Victor leaned agai
BANG BANG BANG CHAPTER 34: EYE FOR AN EYE
The warehouse smelled of blood and gunpowder. The bodies of Zachary’s assassins lay strewn across the floor, their black combat gear soaked in crimson. Bullet holes riddled the walls, and smoke curled from shattered light fixtures. The battle was over, but the war had just begun.Carrick stood in the center of the carnage, wiping the blood off his knife with a torn piece of cloth. His heartbeat had already steadied. Violence no longer shook him—it fueled him.Victor crouched beside one of the dead attackers, yanking off the man’s mask. “These aren’t just mercs. They’re Gale enforcers.”Lila kicked over another body, her lips tightening. “So Zachary finally decided to get his hands dirty.”Russell leaned against a toppled crate, still catching his breath. “What the hell are we supposed to do now? He just sent killers after us! We can’t stay here!”Carrick’s gaze flicked to the blood-streaked floor, then to the shattered security cameras. This place had been compromised.“We move to a s
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CHAPTER 151: TERMS OF WAR
The morning after the ambush, the city felt like a carcass picked clean by vultures. Smoke clung to the skyline, and the streets buzzed with a violence that no longer tried to hide itself. In the ruined conference room of what once was the Montrose Hotel, Carrick Gale leaned over a scarred table, maps and dossiers spread out like a battlefield. Marco arrived late, limping slightly, Victor and Silas flanking him like angry hounds. The air between the two leaders crackled. "You called for this meeting," Marco said, voice like gravel. "You better have something worth my time, Carrick." Carrick didn't look up right away. He tapped a folder at the center of the table. "Lucien," Carrick said. "And his pet ghost, Delilah Blackthorn. They're not just gunning for you anymore." Marco snorted, stepping closer. "No shit." Carrick finally met his gaze. His eyes were sharp, glacial. "They're coming for all of us." Silence stretched. Victor shifted, resting his hand on the butt of his p
CHAPTER 150 BLOOD IN THE STREETS
The first firebomb hit just after midnight.Carrick Gale stood on the balcony of the north wing of his estate, cigarette dangling from his lips, when the sky bloomed into angry red in the distance.Another explosion rumbled seconds later, closer this time.He ground the cigarette under his boot and turned on his heel, face hardening.Marco’s war had just escalated ... and it was bleeding into Carrick’s world.A knock rattled the door."Come," Carrick barked.Logan stepped in, breathless. His shirt was stained with soot and blood, his left sleeve shredded."They hit the Yarrow warehouse," Logan said. "Took out two guards. Set the whole place ablaze."Carrick’s eyes narrowed."And the DeSantis armory?"Logan hesitated."Gone," he said quietly. "Blew it sky-high twenty minutes ago. They're targeting every asset we have in the west sector."Carrick paced the room, the polished wood floors creaking under his boots."Marco’s desperation stinks like a dying dog," he muttered. "But this... th
CHAPTER 149: SMOKE AND MIRRORS
The smoke hadn’t even cleared from the ambush site when Marco slammed his fist onto the table back at the safehouse."Goddamn it!" he roared, sending a stack of blueprints flying.Victor stood nearby, a fresh gash bleeding across his brow, jaw set tight with anger.Silas limped in, clutching his side. "It was a setup," he rasped. "He knew every move we made."Marco’s face was carved from stone."He’s inside our circle," he said. "Somebody’s talking."Victor cursed low. "I’ll start running checks. Every man, every comm line.""No," Marco said, voice colder than steel. "I'll do it myself."He turned to Silas."Get patched up. You're no good to me bleeding out."Silas opened his mouth, thought better of it, and nodded, leaving the room.Only Victor stayed."You really think one of ours flipped?"Marco didn't answer right away. He poured himself a glass of whiskey, hands steady even though his gut boiled."Not just flipped," he said finally. "They sold their soul."Victor’s mouth tightene
CHAPTER 148: BLOOD IN THE SHADOWS
The first sign that something was wrong came with the silence.The war room was usually a hive ... phones ringing, men shouting, maps shifting. But tonight, there was nothing. Just an eerie, unnatural stillness.Marco paced the edge of the table, feeling the weight of it press down on his chest."Where’s Jax?" he snapped, glancing at Victor.Victor, frowning, checked his watch. "He should’ve reported in an hour ago."Silas lit a cigarette with trembling fingers. "Maybe he ran into heat. Cops, Carrick’s leftovers..."Marco shook his head. "Jax doesn’t miss check-ins. Not unless he’s dead."The word hung heavy in the air.A phone rang ... sharp and shrill.Everyone jolted.Victor grabbed it."Yeah?" His face paled almost instantly. "Boss... you need to hear this."Marco snatched the phone from him."Marco," a voice rasped. Jax’s voice ... barely recognizable, slurred and broken."It’s... a trap... he knew... he knew we were coming..."Gunshots crackled in the background. Screaming. Then
CHAPTER 147: FIRST STRIKE
Marco didn’t sleep that night.He sat in the war room ... a makeshift headquarters carved out of an abandoned speakeasy beneath the old theatre ... staring at the maps spread across the table. Each red pin marked a loyalty, each black pin a threat. And there were more black pins now than ever before.Victor entered, a mug of coffee in one hand, a pistol tucked into the back of his belt."You should rest," Victor said, setting the coffee down. "You look like hell."Marco didn’t move. "Carrick didn’t threaten me," he said, voice low. "He challenged me."Victor pulled a chair around and dropped into it, studying Marco."There's a difference?""Yeah," Marco said grimly. "One's a warning. The other’s a death sentence."Victor nodded slowly. "So what’s the play?"Marco leaned back, eyes burning. "We strike first."Victor's eyebrows lifted. "Now you’re speaking my language."But Marco wasn’t smiling."No messy fireworks. No grandstanding," he said. "We cut out Carrick’s heart while it’s stil
CHAPTER 146: SMOKE BEFORE THE FIRE
The night air was thick with mist and the sour stench of gasoline.Carrick Gale stood atop the rooftop of an abandoned textile mill, his coat whipping in the wind, a cigarette burning low between his fingers.Below him, the city lights flickered like dying embers."You were right," muttered Donovan, stepping up beside him. His breath steamed in the cold. "Marco’s moving against you."Carrick didn’t flinch. He didn’t even look at him."I know."Donovan hesitated. "It’s not just Marco. Salvatore met with him tonight. They're rallying others. Quiet-like, but... it's happening."Carrick took a slow drag from his cigarette, the tip flaring."So the rats finally show their teeth," he said softly.Donovan shifted uneasily. "What do you want to do?"Carrick turned, finally facing him. His eyes were pale blue and cold as glacial ice."Set a meet," Carrick said. "Invite Marco. Make it seem like I want to talk peace."Donovan frowned. "You think he’ll buy it?"Carrick smiled ... a thin, dead thi
CHAPTER 145: A KINGDOM OF ASH
The warehouse stank of oil, dust, and desperation.A single bare bulb swung from the ceiling, casting long, jittering shadows over the gathered men. Marco stood near the center, his fists shoved deep into the pockets of his coat, while Silas leaned casually against a rusted support beam, arms folded, eyes glittering like a serpent waiting for its moment to strike."So what’s the play?" Marco asked, his voice low.Silas smiled ... that same unsettling, knowing smile. "Simple. We bleed Carrick dry from the inside. Cut his supply lines. Peel away his allies one by one."Marco’s jaw tightened. "You make it sound easy."Silas shrugged lazily. "It's not easy. It's inevitable. Carrick's empire is rotting. All we have to do is give it a little... push.""Push too hard," Marco muttered, "and he'll lash out."Silas stepped closer, voice dropping. "That's the idea. Let him lash out. Let him make mistakes. Then we move in for the kill."Marco stared at him, heart pounding in his chest. The though
CHAPTER 144: A SERPENT AMONG WOLVES
The city was breaking apart at its seams, a rotting corpse wearing a golden crown.Marco walked through the crumbling alleys of the south side, the rain soaking through his jacket. He didn’t care. The world could drown for all it mattered.Carrick was slipping. And Marco ... once Carrick's sword arm, once his shield ... felt it deep in his bones: the time to choose sides had come.He wasn’t sure if he could betray the man who had once saved him.But as the blood pooled deeper around Carrick's throne, loyalty began to feel more like a noose.A sharp whistle echoed down the alley.Marco turned instantly, hand going to the gun beneath his jacket.Out of the shadows stepped a man ... tall, wiry, with an unsettling stillness to him. His long black coat clung to him like a second skin. A faint smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, but his eyes were dead."You must be Marco," the stranger said smoothly, voice like silk pulled across a blade."Depends who's asking," Marco replied, voice t
CHAPTER 143: KNIVES BENEATH SMILES
The storm rolled in over the city as dusk fell, shrouding the skyline in grim clouds. Thunder grumbled low in the distance, a warning growl before the lightning’s inevitable strike.Inside the upper floors of the old Salvi manor, Arturo stood at the head of a long table. Around him were faces ... some familiar, some recently turned ... all carrying the same grim set to their jaws. They were the last of the De Luca loyalists, the bitter remnants of broken families, and the wolves who had long waited for Carrick Gale to falter.Alessia De Luca sat to Arturo’s right, her hands neatly folded, a mask of calm that barely concealed the rage boiling underneath."Carrick’s bleeding," Arturo said, voice low but carrying. "The shipment hit hurt him worse than he’s letting on. His allies are whispering. Some are jumping ship."A younger man, Gaetano, leaned forward, his knuckles white against the table. "Then we press now. While he's weak. Burn the rest of his operations to the ground!"Arturo sh
