"What’s going on?" one of the Bellemonte captives, who had been working with Lola, leaned back as a truck sped through the wide street.
He watched multiple cars follow it, with the lackey. Their group was split into a few groups. One Bellemonte man in each; he was leading this one.
anwhile, his colleague was with the boss and a few more Gigante n. Then, the third group was composed solely of Gigante n, while Lola went off on her own.
"Are they leaving?" the lackey wondered, his body almost fusing with the alley. "Where are they going?"
"In the west district?" One of the residents blurted out, earning looks from the others. "That’s what that street leads to... from what I know."
"West district side?" the Bellemonte captive muttered. "What’s in there?"
All of them shrugged, having no idea what was going on. After all, what they needed was to survey and understand the situation so they would know what they were supposed to do.
"Never mind them," he said, shaking his head to clear his thoughts. He turned to everyone and continued, "Let’s head to the bar."
They nodded, determination shining in their eyes. And just as they had been doing, they moved stealthily toward the bar.
*****
anwhile, the other group—where the other Bellemonte captive was—paused when they saw a figure suddenly appear at the other end of the alley.
"It’s ! It’s —" the boss panted, hand braced against the wall, his back slightly hunched. "It’s . Don’t shoot."
One of the residents approached him, head lowered, checking him over. "Are you alright?"
"Ye—yes! Yes, I am!" the boss breathed out, nodding before gulping. When he straightened, he turned to them and cleared his throat. But just as he was about to speak, Lola’s face flickered in his mind.
He held his breath, eyes scanning the faces around him. He couldn’t trust anyone. He wasn’t a mole—he was certain of that. But if soone here was secretly leaking information, he had to make sure that mole wasn’t in this group.
"She already made contact with those in the bar," he announced. "We’ve got to distract the guys as they try to exit toward the east side district."
"East side district?" soone repeated, making the boss nod.
"Yes, there!" he intoned. "That’s where they’re headed, so we have to move to the bar."
The others nodded, knowing these were Lola’s orders. However, the Bellemonte captive couldn’t help but narrow his brows.
"She said we’re going to attack the bar?" he asked, making the boss glance at him. "A surprise attack?"
The boss narrowed his eyes slightly, not fully trusting these people they had saved. Even if Lola rescued them, those who lived in this land knew better than to trust easily. Gratitude often ant nothing compared to greed in this territory.
"Then let’s go," one of them said, and everyone nodded in agreent.
As they were about to leave, the boss cleared his throat loudly. Everyone paused and turned to him.
The boss smiled like an angel. "I was told to go back and assist her."
"What?" they asked in unison.
"She’s alone, and she said I’m a... genius," he nearly choked on his lie, but he wasn’t about to put himself in more danger until he confird this group was clean. "So, you go ahead. I’ll let her know I already relayed her orders."
They frowned, uncertain. They didn’t know Lola well enough to know whether she preferred working alone.
In the end, the group split up—heading toward the bar—while the boss went the other way. But once they disappeared down the alley, the boss slipped back in and quietly crept toward the opposite end to watch them.
"Phew!" he sighed in relief. "If there’s a traitor among them, we’d expect a balanced force at both the bar and the east."
He nodded to himself, letting out a small giggle as he patted his own back.
Of course, he knew that if there was a traitor, the innocent ones might be shot dead instantly. But his life mattered more to him. He didn’t know them, and the only reason he was helping at all was that Lola would kill him if he didn’t.
"She’s gonna be very impressed if I figure it out," he muttered, then slapped his cheeks. "No—focus."
Nodding to himself, he slipped out of the alley and took a different route to follow the group.
*
*
*
Minutes later, the group reached the bar and stopped a few blocks away. They slipped into an abandoned house with a second floor, and from a broken wall, they could see the bar.
Unbeknownst to them, the boss was idling in a different building, also watching the bar.
"That’s surprising," one of them muttered, stretching his neck. "We need to get closer to see how many people are left in the bar."
"We can’t," another man shook his head. "Their numbers are lower than expected, but there are still more of them in the area than us."
"He’s right," one of the Bellemonte captives said quietly, spotting n stationed a few blocks away. "We can’t approach head-on. With how fully geared they are... it’d be too dangerous, even for ."
"Then what should we do?"
They exchanged looks as silence settled over them.
The sa was happening with the other group, led by the lackey and the other Bellemonte captive. They were also holed up in an abandoned building, racking their brains for a solution.
Even if they combined forces with the other groups, it still wouldn’t be enough. These rcenaries were different from those sent to Gigante—better trained, better equipped, and ard with more than just rifles.
While they struggled to think of a plan, those in the underground facility faced the sa dilemma.
"What should we do?" one of the townsn asked, turning to Florida and Ransom.
Both n wore grim expressions, eyes fixed on the tablet.
"You wait," Long answered for them, drawing everyone’s attention. He scrunched his nose and studied the two n supposedly working with Lola. "How could you go on a mission with her without knowing the person you’re working with?"
He clicked his tongue, shaking his head. "The best thing we can do is wait," he continued. "That woman’s a psycho—and she’s on the top wanted list in this territory. You could probably find her face in every governor’s bedroom, pinned up with darts."
He leaned back, eyes flicking between the tablet and the room. "What I’m saying is... you either wait until the war she’s starting is over, or you prepare yourselves to fight back once she sets everything on fire."
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