The Heist at the Docks
Midnight cloaked the city in shadows as Cillian and his crew approached the docks. The tip had been solid—Sokolov’s shipment was arriving tonight. If they intercepted it, they could uncover what Valeria was truly planning. If they failed, they wouldn’t live to see the sunrise.
Cillian crouched behind a stack of shipping containers, his pistol cold in his grip. Beside him, Connor and Luis—two of his most trusted men—waited for his signal.
“There,” Connor whispered, pointing to a group of armed men unloading a large, reinforced crate from the cargo ship.
Cillian’s gut tightened. Sokolov didn’t deal in ordinary shipments. Whatever was inside that crate, it wasn’t drugs or weapons. This was something bigger.
“Luis, cut the lights,” Cillian ordered.
Luis slipped away, and moments later, the floodlights around the docks flickered and died, plunging the area into darkness. Shouts erupted as Sokolov’s men scrambled to regain control.
Cillian and his crew moved in fast, silenced weapons taking down the guards before they could raise the alarm. As they reached the shipment, Cillian pried open the crate, his breath hitching at what lay inside.
Stacks of high-grade military tech—encrypted communication devices, surveillance drones, and something far worse… schematics for a biochemical agent.
A slow realization crept over him. This wasn’t just about controlling the city’s underworld. Valeria and Sokolov were preparing for something far more dangerous—something that could shake the balance of power far beyond their turf.
A Betrayal Confirmed
Before he could process his next move, a familiar voice rang out behind him.
“Cillian. You really shouldn’t have come here.”
He turned, gun raised, to find Valeria standing under the dim glow of the emergency lights, flanked by a dozen of her best enforcers.
“You’ve been busy,” Cillian said, stepping away from the crate.
Valeria smirked, but there was no amusement in her eyes. “You always were too smart for your own good.”
Cillian’s grip tightened on his gun. “This isn’t just about smuggling, is it? You’re playing on a whole new level.”
She sighed, almost as if she regretted how things had turned out. “You could’ve been part of this, Cillian. But instead, you chose the losing side.”
“Whose side?” he shot back. “Sokolov’s? The Feds’? Or just yours?”
Valeria’s eyes darkened. “Mine.”
She raised her hand—a silent command.
Gunfire erupted.
Escape and Retaliation
Cillian dove behind the nearest crate as bullets ripped through the air. Connor and Luis returned fire, taking down two of Valeria’s men before retreating into cover.
“We need an exit, now!” Connor barked.
Cillian’s mind raced. They were outnumbered, outgunned, and trapped in an open kill zone. But then he spotted it—a fuel truck parked near the loading dock. A single shot to the tank could turn the tide.
“Cover me!” he shouted, sprinting toward it.
Luis laid down suppressing fire as Cillian aimed and fired. The explosion tore through the dockyard, sending flames and debris into the air. In the chaos, Cillian and his men bolted for the exit, bullets whizzing past them.
By the time the dust settled, they were gone.
Valeria stood amidst the wreckage, watching the flames dance. Her expression was unreadable, but one thing was clear—this wasn’t over.
The War Begins
Back at a safe house, Cillian patched up a graze on his arm as he processed what had just happened.
“She’s gone too far,” Luis muttered. “We should disappear before she sends the whole city after us.”
“No,” Cillian said, voice steel. “We hit back.”
Connor frowned. “Hit back? She owns half the city.”
“She owns fear,” Cillian corrected. “We take that away, and she’s nothing.”
He glanced at the stolen schematics on the table. This was bigger than a turf war now. If Valeria and Sokolov were playing at this level, the whole underworld was at stake.
It was time to make a move that Valeria wouldn’t see coming.
The war had begun.