"Fear is the mother of betrayal."
— George R. R. Martin
______
Even after work hours, the forensics team still hadn't turned up anything useful.
Putting on his trench coat, Lynn stood and said, "If there's nothing else, I'm heading out."
After exchanging a quick goodbye with George, he left the Police Precinct and walked toward his car.
Watching Lynn drive away, Jennifer—sitting in her own car—pressed the button on her earpiece. "Lynn Hall has left. Do you need me to take action?"
"Don't do anything for now. Continue maintaining your cover. Since you can't get close enough to eliminate Lynn, remain in the Manhattan Police Department."
"Yes."
Hearing the cold command in her ear, Jennifer lowered her hand, her expression dark and conflicted.
At first, she had approached Lynn simply because she genuinely liked him. He wasn't just handsome—his humor, charm, and effortless wit made him endlessly attractive.
As one of HYDRA's lowest-level embedded agents, she had thought she would spend her whole career unnoticed, quietly buried in the Manhattan Police Department.
But the long-silent activation signal had come two days ago.
And the target was Lynn Hall—the man she was fond of.
Thinking back to the brutal training HYDRA had forced her through, Jennifer's eyes filled with pain.
What she truly wanted… was just an ordinary life.
Not World domination.
Not blind devotion to HYDRA.
Just a normal future.. far away from all of this.
To Jennifer, all of it was utter nonsense.
But she couldn't betray HYDRA—her family was still under their surveillance.
Letting out a long, exhausted breath, Jennifer raised her hand and slammed it against the steering wheel.
At that moment, Lina suddenly knocked on her window.
The sharp sound made Jennifer jump, and she instinctively reached for the pistol at her waist.
Only when she saw Lina did she force a bright smile onto her face.
Rolling down the window, Jennifer said, "Lina, did you need something?"
"Nope, nothing important."
Leaning casually against the window, Lina smiled. "Still angry at Detective Stacy?"
"No, no… I was just thinking about some things."
"That's fine, then. By the way, do you have plans tonight? If not, want to grab a drink together?"
Jennifer smiled and politely declined the invitation.
After her car pulled away, Lina shrugged.
Looks like winning over Jennifer was going to take a lot more effort.
Lynn had no idea what was happening outside after he left.
After grabbing dinner ingredients at the supermarket, he returned straight to his apartment.
Hanging his trench coat on the rack, he walked into the kitchen.
He cracked a few eggs, whisked them, poured them into a hot pan, then began preparing the rest of his dishes while the omelet sizzled.
Soft, calming music drifted from the stereo in the living room.
George was right—Lynn really should let his body rest for a few days.
After all, he had gone a little overboard with the Miami Hotties, and his body deserved to take it easy for a bit.
Humming lightly, he placed the freshly cooked dinner on the table.
Taking off his apron and setting out his plate and fork, Lynn was just about to start eating when his Super Senses suddenly flared.
!!!
In the next instant, Lynn rolled backward and took cover behind the sofa.
Bang!
Almost at the exact same moment, a flashbang shattered the window and detonated in the living room.
A burst of sound above 170 decibels and light brighter than 600 candela could instantly overwhelm an ordinary person's senses.
Unfortunately for the attackers, it had absolutely no effect on Lynn.
His enhanced physical fitness meant the flashbang barely affected his ability to move.
The moment it detonated, a squad of fully armed soldiers with submachine guns kicked open Lynn's apartment door.
Seeing them rush in, Lynn—still behind the sofa—quickly flipped open the hidden compartment and pulled out his sidearm.
Rolling out from cover, he raised the pistol and opened fire.
Bang!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A sharp burst of gunfire echoed through the apartment as the front-line soldiers were knocked to the ground, their armor unable to fully absorb the impact.
The remaining soldiers reacted almost instantly, lifting their weapons and firing at Lynn.
Lynn dove sideways, sliding behind the wall for cover. Realizing the pistol rounds couldn't punch through their vests, he tossed the handgun aside, yanked open a kitchen cabinet, and pulled out a P90 loaded with high-velocity armor-piercing rounds.
Click.
He racked the bolt, flicked off the safety, and with his Super Senses fully active, burst out from behind cover, unleashing a storm of bullets.
Ra Ta Ta Ta Ta Ta Ta Ta Ta Ta Ta Ta !!!!
The staccato roar of gunfire filled the room. Blood sprayed through the air as several soldiers were torn open by the armor-piercing rounds and collapsed onto the floor.
Using the walls and furniture as shifting cover, Lynn burst toward another soldier.
Crack!
A clean, sharp snap echoed as Lynn broke the man's arm and yanked him forward, using him as a human shield while firing at the rest of the squad.
In the cramped living room, the fighting grew fiercer by the second.
Right now, Lynn was like a hunter of death itself, cutting down one life after another with ruthless precision.
His Super-Senses suddenly flared—danger!!
Without hesitation, Lynn pivoted and slipped behind a wall.
A bullet shattered the window an instant later, punching through the shoulder of the last standing soldier.
Keeping tight to the corner, Lynn stayed in the sniper's blind spot and fired short, controlled bursts whenever another soldier dared peek.
At the same time, he kept his senses fixed on the outside.
Damn it—there was a sniper on the rooftop across the street.
Who the hell wanted him dead?
Mercenaries hired by the Vampires?
Impossible. The Avengers were cleaning up the Vampires right now—there was no way they could organize something this fast.
Then who?
Who exactly wanted his life?
Outside on the street, Jennifer sat in her car, watching the scene unfold through binoculars.
Her heart twisted painfully. She desperately hoped Lynn would survive this attack—but she couldn't warn him.
All she could do was silently pray, over and over, begging that nothing would happen to him.
Meanwhile, on the rooftop across the street, the sniper lay prone, scope trained on Lynn's apartment.
He had seen Lynn dive into a corner earlier, so now he kept his sights fixed on the wrecked living room, watching his teammates go down one after another.
Once the entire assault squad was wiped out, he stayed locked in position.
The moment Lynn exposed even a fraction of his head, he was certain he could put a bullet straight through it.
But minutes ticked by.
No movement.
No silhouette.
No sign of Lynn Hall.
A creeping unease settled over the sniper. Sensing something was off, he prepared to retreat—"Urg!"
But the next second, an overwhelming force slammed him flat onto the rooftop.
Crack!
Crack!
Two sharp pops echoed as agony shot through his arms—Lynn had dislocated both joints in an instant.
The pistol's cold muzzle pressed harder against the sniper's forehead, forcing his head into the gravel.
Lynn's eyes held no fury.
Just a terrifying, controlled stillness—like a reaper deciding whether a life was worth keeping.
"Tell me,"
When he finally spoke, his voice was barely above a whisper… yet colder than the barrel of the gun. "Who sent you to assassinate me?"
_______
To everyone who confidently declared that Jennifer was "best girl" and "definitely love-interest material"… HYDRA says hi.
Honestly, if she thinks of Lynn as just a regular person or maybe has some reports suggesting he's as strong as a supersoldier, shouldn't she have tried to poison the coffee she always gives Lynn? ...Not that it would've mattered to him.
But hey! That only shows that she doesn't wanna see him dead, right? She's just following orders.. not to mention her vulnerable parents..
(づ￣ 3￣)づ
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