Roman's POV
We stepped out into the shadows, each of us in black. I had a pistol holstered at my waist, another tucked into my ankle. A switchblade sat warm in my palm. Alex was silent beside me, scanning the darkness.
“There,” he whispered. “Perimeter—two guards. Rifles. One smoking.”
I followed his line of sight. Two large men circled the gate. One had a scar across his temple. The other wore a black beanie and held an M4 like he was born with it.
I crouched lower. “We need one alive.”
Alex nodded.
The silence before violence always felt sacred. Like the moment before a storm touches ground.
We moved.
Alex went wide while I crept behind a fallen beam. The scar-faced one turned and I lunged.
I slammed into him with full force. He grunted, rifle falling as my blade sank into his t
