Winning always had a cost.

**Sebastian’s POV**

The morning sun was beginning to break through the clouds as we reached the edge of the enemy’s territory. The silence inside the van was deafening, everyone focused on the task ahead. We were about to take on one of the most dangerous missions yet—a full-scale ambush against a heavily guarded compound.

As we drove through the wooded area surrounding the mansion, I signaled for everyone to prepare. Each of us knew what was at stake. The plan was simple in theory: infiltrate the compound, plant the explosives, retreat, and detonate. But we all knew nothing ever went as smoothly as planned and this one may be no different.

We parked the van just out of sight from the mansion. I looked at each of my crew members—Evander, Behemoth, Raven, Ratface, and Red Head Junkie. They were all focused, determined. They knew this could go sideways at any moment, but they were ready.

"Remember," I whispered, "we do this quietly. We can't afford to raise an alarm. Plant the bombs, and don’t get caught. If you do, you know what to do." My eyes locked with each of theirs, making sure they understood.

They nodded silently. No one had any doubts. This was our mission, and we were going to complete it or die trying.

**Raven’s POV**

I took my position on the high ground, overlooking the mansion. My sniper rifle was set up, the scope trained on the guards milling about the courtyard below. There were dozens of them, maybe even a hundred. All of them were armed to the teeth, expecting Sebastian to show up guns blazing. But they had no idea we were already here, moving silently in the shadows.

I scanned the perimeter, noting the positions of the guards. Their patterns, their routines—they were all familiar to me now. My job was to keep an eye out for any signs of trouble and to take out anyone who got too close to discovering our plan. I saw Behemoth and Ratface moving through the underbrush, each carrying a pack of explosives. They were moving quietly, like shadows, blending into the night.

Getting here, we made sure it would all be at night because at noon or in the morning, that would be too risky.

The mansion was a fortress, built to withstand an attack from the outside. But the inside was a different story. If we could get in and plant the bombs, the structure would collapse like a house of cards. I watched as they approached the walls, keeping low to the ground. A guard walked by, but neither of them moved a muscle until he passed. It was like watching predators stalking their prey.

**Evander’s POV**

Moving through the mansion was like navigating a maze. Every corridor seemed to have a guard, every corner another set of eyes. I felt the weight of the explosives in my bag as I moved through the dimly lit hallways, scanning for the best places to plant them. The challenge wasn’t just in setting the charges; it was in doing it without being noticed.

As I placed the first bomb behind a pillar, I heard footsteps. I pressed myself against the wall, holding my breath. The guard walked past, his boots echoing off the marble floor. I waited until he turned the corner before moving on. The tension was suffocating, but I couldn’t afford to lose focus.

I planted another bomb inside a large decorative vase. It was risky, but it had to be done. We needed to ensure that the entire mansion would go up in flames. I moved to the next spot, counting down the minutes. The longer we stayed here, the higher the risk of getting caught.

**Ratface’s POV**

As I moved through the mansion, I couldn’t shake the feeling that we were walking into a trap. The guards were everywhere, and they were on high alert. But I had my orders, and I wasn’t about to let Sebastian down.

I ducked into a small room, quickly placing an explosive behind a piece of furniture. As I turned to leave, I nearly ran into a guard. He looked at me suspiciously, his hand reaching for his gun. My heart pounded in my chest, but I kept my cool.

"Who are you?" the guard demanded, his voice low and threatening.

I acted quickly, pulling out my silenced pistol and firing a shot into his chest before he could react. The sound was barely a whisper, and the guard crumpled to the floor. I dragged his body into the room, hiding it behind the furniture before moving on.

Every step felt like a gamble. One wrong move, one misplaced footstep, and the whole mission could be blown. But we had no choice. We had to finish this.

**Sebastian’s POV**
We regrouped at the edge of the compound, just as the last bomb was planted. The sun was beginning to set, casting long shadows across the ground. We retreated back into the bushes, watching the mansion from a distance. Everything had gone according to plan so far, but the real test was about to begin.

We waited for the right moment. The guards were still patrolling, completely unaware of what was about to happen. I held the detonator in my hand, my thumb hovering over the button. We just needed to time it perfectly.

Then, a few guards walked toward the entrance. They stopped, chatting amongst themselves. This was it—the moment we had been waiting for. I pressed the button.

The explosion was deafening. The ground shook beneath us as the mansion erupted in flames. The guards were thrown off their feet, chaos erupting all around them. Shouts filled the air as the survivors scrambled to figure out what had happened.

**Raven’s POV**

From my vantage point, I watched as the mansion crumbled, the walls collapsing in on themselves. The guards were in complete disarray, their formation broken. I picked off a few of them with my rifle, making sure none of them could regroup.

But then I saw something that made my blood run cold. There were far more guards than we had anticipated. They had reinforcements, and they were already moving in to surround the area. We had to move fast if we wanted to get out of this alive.

**Sebastian’s POV**

The moment the mansion blew, we moved in. Our guns were equipped with silencers, and we took out the guards as we advanced through the wreckage. The heat from the flames was intense, and the smoke made it hard to see, but we pushed forward.

Guards came, one after another but we knocked them all down, the scenery was fire and brimstone, we were in a furnace, but what saved us was we weren’t in the building. There were bodies everywhere, some burning, some already crisp and some loosing their hands or limbs, it was a dreadful sight but it had to be done.

Then suddenly from nowhere someone threw in a Molotov cocktail. The fire spreaded fast from the ground all the way up to my leg.

“Shit!!” I let out as I began to use my hand to quench the fire but I was distracted, one of them tackled me to the ground. My gun skidded out of reach as we struggled.

Just when I thought it was over, a shot rang out, and the guard slumped over, dead. I looked up to see someone standing in front of me, the uniform was enough information for me to know this person was a guard.

“Hey boss.” I heard as the person removed her facemask and hat, face cap.

"Nancy?" I said, shocked. She was dressed like the back gate security guards, I could barely recognize her.

“what are you doing he…” I was saying when she said. “I’m sorry boss but we need to go, he may be here any minute from now so let’s move.” She said to me stretching her hand but I was still kind of skeptical so I stood up by myself.

“firstly, I wasn’t to say I am sorry for all I have done, for betraying you and being a jealous little witch.” She said as she lead me somewhere.

“Where are we going?” I asked and then she said. “We are headed to where he is, we are headed to where you can end this fight.”

“what do you mean.” I asked, stopping in my tracks. We had gotten to a place that was a little concealed by a burning wall and there I asked again.

“What are you doing here? Why are you here?” I said. “sigh.. Boss I know you don’t like me nor trust me but this is just the beginning of what I have found out.” She said but I looked at her in confusion.

“Boss there is evil under your nose, there is evil in your mansion, those who claim to be by you are not, they are liars and thieves.” She said but I was confused, who isn’t out to betray me agin, I mean it’s obvious so it’s nothing new.
“ sir…” she was saying…” Do you think I will believe you, after you kidnapped your own junior, you?” I lashed out in Anger.

“ I know you are not happy with me nor can you find it easy to trust me, ariella is a good person, I was jealous, I mean it’s obvious that she loves you but I am talking about the future of the name Ramiro, I am talking about your..” Then a shot rang out, and Nancy fell to the ground, clutching her side. I turned to see the leader of the rival gang, his gun smoking.

Rage boiled up inside me. I grabbed my gun and fired, but I was too slow. He shot me in the hand, causing me to drop my weapon.

“Awwn, isn’t this the cute Sabastian of back then, but look at you, so eager to die.” He said with a grin on his face. “ it was a good showoff, your fireworks but this is the end boy.” He said with his barrel pointed at me” But Before he could finish the job, a shot from Raven’s sniper rifle rang out, hitting him in the leg.

I didn’t hesitate. I lunged at him, grabbing his gun and firing a shot into his chest. It was instant, it was sudden and he looked at me in shock as I dropped my last word right in his ear. “I am no lion, I don’t rawr I am just a jaguar, and I bite to crush, be it beast or lion.” He collapsed, lifeless.

The battle was over, but the cost was high. I looked down at Nancy’s body, the pain in my hand nothing compared to the ache in my chest. She had saved my life, and now she was gone.

We rounded up the remaining guards, taking the ones with higher ranks as hostages. They would give us the information we needed. As we left the burning wreckage of the mansion behind, I couldn’t shake the feeling that Nancy was about to say something so important, no one else would know.