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>88
One thing to note about Bratva territory was that they were rooted in a purely residential district. Gone were the days of shady warehouse meetings and underground speakeasies. Most thriving mobs were more likely to hold secret meetings in nice looking townhouses similar to what Vic had owned before the vampire attack. Politics and secrecy took the place of overt displays of power and influence.
Rich could be in any one of the houses in this neighborhood. So you guessed it was a good thing that your contacts managed to narrow down which one he was dragged into. You’d be buying drinks for whichever brave idiot got close enough to figure that one out.
You, Cat and Prowler spent a few hours scoping out the neighborhood and figuring out which people were Bratva, which were under their protection, and which were just under their thumb. Once you’d figured that out, you laid out the plans for the houses that Prowler had managed to snag. You had no idea where he’d gotten them from, but you appreciated his contributions. Made this all feel like a proper heist instead of a hostage rescue.
After that, you began assigning roles. Flint and Glass would be in charge of distracting the Bratva and diminishing their numbers. Both were best suited for combat, and you doubted that any of these guys could take them out on a good day.
Cat would be in charge of going around and swiping valuables, and Prowler would find and steal info from any computers that he could find, along with any valuable tech.
With everyone assigned their roles, you had one final team huddle and confirmed the obvious danger in attacking these people in their own territory. You would either be bringing a shitstorm down on top of your heads, or you’d be doing the city a favor by getting rid of another gang. One outcome was more preferable to the other, but you weren’t terribly concerned about either of them at the moment. So long as your brother was safe and your team got out alive, nothing else mattered.
—---
It didn’t come as much of a shock when the screams and gunshots started ringing out. Your assault team must be putting actual work in. Considering who you’d chosen, you figured that they’d both make quick work of anyone that wasn’t a metahuman, and even then it would be a stretch.
Slipping inside the extravagant townhouse was easier than you expected. It was avoiding detection that proved to be the real challenge. Most of their sentries had gone out to see what was causing the ruckus, but some did stay to protect whoever had chosen to stay. That didn’t surprise you, though.
What did come as a shock, was when you’d stumbled across your first fresh corpse. He was lying on the floor, and had been dragged into a dark corner, a bloody smile carved below his chin. His lifeless eyes were dispassionately staring off into the distance. Into some afterlife that was governed by some God or entity that you couldn’t properly put your faith in.
(Cont.)
