Chapter 1224: Chapter 1207: Goodbye, or Farewell Forever.
Number Thirteen’s tone was calm, exceptionally composed.
“Save !”
Number Thirteen’s tone didn’t match the urgency of his words. Gao Yang was montarily stunned but soon replied gravely, “Where are you?”
“Riyadh, and I’m under tight surveillance. I can’t get out of this situation on my own. I have no choice but to turn to you for help.”
Number Thirteen was the kind of person who wouldn’t panic even if the sky were to fall. The problem was, because of this, Gao Yang couldn’t gauge the severity of the situation from his tone. He could only ask anxiously, “Do you have ti to explain what exactly happened? How can I help you?”
“Riyadh. I was caught while browsing classified files at the Shah Intelligence Agency. Although I managed to escape, I’m under such strict surveillance that I can’t return to my hideout. Now I’m trapped. Without outside assistance, there’s no way I can leave.”
Gao Yang felt a headache coming on. He rubbed his forehead and said, “Got it. I’ll co for you imdiately. What do I need to do?”
“Don’t co. It’s useless if you do. You would only resort to brute force, and that would get everyone killed here. What I need is soone familiar with the thods of intelligence personnel to assist .”
Gao Yang thought for a mont and said in a low voice, “Yake!”
“Exactly, only Yake. Listen, I’m currently at the Riyadh Marriott Hotel, one of my fallback locations. I’m registered under the alias ‘Aziz.’ If Yake can co, have him co directly to . No one else works—neither you nor Murphy. If you co, I’ll die even faster.”
Gao Yang asked gravely, “What’s the situation on your end now? If you haven’t been captured, why can’t you leave?”
“I’ve been shot. It hit my spleen. I’ve managed to stop the bleeding myself, but I can’t hold on for much longer. Soon, I’ll fall unconscious. Tell Yake about all this—he knows what to do.”
Gao Yang was shocked, shouting anxiously, “How long can you hold on?”
“Twenty-four hours at most, optimistically. The Intelligence Agency is looking for . They might catch even before I die or before Yake arrives. Listen, Ram, don’t co. If you do, you’ll only lead them here quicker, and you’ll end up in trouble too. If you want to understand how serious this is, just check the news. I don’t have the strength to keep talking. I have to hang up now. Buddy, everything’s in your hands. Hope we et again. Goodbye.”
Number Thirteen imdiately hung up. After Gao Yang put down the phone, he smiled at the people in front of him.
Looking worried, Yelena asked, “What’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing, really. Just a friend with a little trouble. Nothing major.”
Finishing with a smile, Gao Yang gestured to Rafael, then leaned closer to him and whispered, “Find soone to ask what’s making the news in Riyadh.”
Rafael nodded, pulled out his phone, and started making calls. anwhile, Gao Yang pulled out his satellite phone, searched for the contact information Yake had left, and dialed it.
The call connected, but no one picked up. anwhile, Rafael started conversing with soone after his call went through.
The surrounding area was crowded, making taking calls inconvenient. Yet, Gao Yang didn’t leave the crowd to find a quieter place. The primary reason was that there wasn’t any ti left.
Gao Yang made up his mind: if he really couldn’t get in touch with Yake, he’d have to go to Riyadh himself. There was a chance the rescue mission for Number Thirteen would fail, or it might land him in trouble, but he couldn’t just sit and do nothing.
He called Yake again. The call went through, but again, nobody picked up.
After the second call rang out and transitioned into a busy tone, Gao Yang coughed softly. When Rafael, still talking, glanced at him, Gao Yang gestured with his left hand.
Rafael sighed lightly, regretfully glancing at the nearby stadium, and then said loudly into his phone, “Buddy, it’s ti to wake up and get the people ready.”
“Wake up” was the ergency mobilization command, a signal for imdiate action. Once given, every mber of Satan’s group, regardless of their location, had to be ready to move out at a mont’s notice.
As for what awaited them? rcenaries had one purpose—to fight.
The ones in Arica wouldn’t make it in ti; only the mbers in Europe were an option. If Gao Yang went to Riyadh, only a select few could accompany him. But the selection could wait. Gao Yang dialed Yake for a third ti.
If the call wasn’t answered, he’d just keep trying—there was no other way.
When the phone rang for the third ti and was about to go unanswered again, it was suddenly picked up.
“Damn it, who is this?”
To Gao Yang, it sounded like the voice of an angel. He imdiately replied, “Ram here. I need your help.”
Yake answered grumpily, “Buddy, is this urgent? If not, call later.”
“It’s extrely urgent.”
“F**k! I was just about to get into bed with a beautiful, elegant woman, and now you’re telling it’s an ergency? Fine, how urgent? Say it quickly so I can get back to my business.”
“Leonard. He’s in Riyadh. He’s injured and close to dying. The Intelligence Agency is hunting him down. They could find him at any mont.”
“F**k! Was the Riyadh incident his doing?”
“What incident? I haven’t had a chance to find out what happened.”
“There was an explosion at the Shah Intelligence Agency’s headquarters today. Banda bin Prince, the newly appointed deputy director, was killed. Damn it, don’t tell I have to clean up Leonard’s ss! Do you know what this ans? Everyone at the Shah Intelligence Agency has gone mad.”
Gao Yang froze, grimaced, and made a few helpless expressions, then gestured for Rafael to approach. Once he did, Gao Yang whispered into his ear, “Did you find out? Tell right now what happened in Riyadh!”
“The Intelligence Bureau got bombed. Banda bin Prince is dead.”
“F**k!”
No wonder Number Thirteen had insisted Yake handle this. Cursing softly, Gao Yang removed his hand from covering the mic and said gravely, “You’re right; it’s that incident. Leonard only has twelve hours for you to reach him.”
Number Thirteen had ntioned twenty-four hours. Gao Yang cut the ti in half.
Yake sighed and said, “The Shah Intelligence Agency must be losing their minds. If you go now, it won’t help. Listen, don’t go, and don’t send anyone else. Doing so is suicidal. This is a matter for trained intelligence operatives.”
Gao Yang replied in a serious tone, “I have three questions: Where are you? Will you go? If you do, what’s your price?”
Yake hesitated for a few seconds before speaking lowly, “I’m in Greece. I just made a tidy sum from your last job, and I’m not soone who loves money. So, I wasn’t planning to go. However, I genuinely like Leonard, so I can give him a hand. But keep in mind, this is a face-off with the Shah Intelligence Agency. I might die there.”
Without hesitation, Gao Yang blurted, “Two million dollars—is that enough?”
Yake replied seriously, “I value my life at more than two million. I’m not planning to die.”
“How about ten million? Would that be enough?”
Yake sighed, “Ram, you’re incredibly generous. Honestly, even for ten million, I’m reluctant. This mission isn’t the sa. But fine, you’ve made a compelling offer. I’ll go. I can get to Riyadh within seven hours.”
Just as Gao Yang was about to discuss paynt arrangents, Yake interrupted, his voice serious: “Listen, there’s a good chance I won’t make it back. If tomorrow cos and you haven’t heard from , save your ten million. Don’t bother searching for or Leonard. Assu we no longer exist.”
The urgency of Number Thirteen’s situation was overwhelming, and Yake had no obligation to risk his life for soone who was little more than an acquaintance—a colleague at best. In desperation, Gao Yang had offered a staggering ten million.
What Gao Yang hadn’t expected was for Yake to agree, seemingly accepting this as a suicide mission. In light of that, the ten million didn’t seem so exorbitant anymore. If the probability of death from a mission was as high as 80-90%, no amount of money would make such a task appealing.
After a brief silence, Gao Yang softly asked, “Is it that hard?”
“Damn hard. Extrely hard. You wouldn’t understand, so I won’t bother explaining. Let’s talk technical. Give Leonard’s location.”
“The Riyadh Marriott Hotel. He’s registered under the na ‘Aziz.’ He took a gunshot to the spleen and managed to stop the bleeding himself, but I don’t know how much longer he can stay conscious. He believes he’s about to pass out soon.”
Yake chuckled bitterly and said helplessly, “You and Leonard are really making life tough for —a barely conscious man that I have to extract from the middle of the Shah Intelligence Agency’s bloodthirsty retaliation in Riyadh. Fine, I doubt I’ll earn that ten million, but I’ll go.”
Gao Yang said gravely, “Leonard insisted only you could save him. But Yake, tell —what can I do?”
Yake drew a deep breath and sighed, “Nothing. Just wait for my news. Leonard’s right; if you step in, you’ll only cause more damage. This is a battle for intelligence operatives, a one-man fight. against the Shah Intelligence Agency!”
As he spoke, his tone suddenly turned proud and resolute. After finishing, Yake’s voice grew flat again: “When did Leonard last contact you?”
“Just now.”
“Listen, don’t contact Leonard again. Don’t dial his number ever again. Sa goes for my number—if I don’t reach out, act like you never knew either of us.”
Unable to restrain himself, Gao Yang said, “Yake, my line is secure. No one can monitor or trace it. There won’t be any call records for what Leonard dialed either.”
“I said you don’t understand. You have no clue how intelligence operatives work. What you should do is nothing. Just eat your als, dance your dances, and leave everything else alone. That’s it, buddy. This might be our last conversation. Let’s make it official—goodbye, Ram. Farewell, Ram!”
“Goodbye, Yake.” (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian (qidian) to vote for recomndations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian to read.)
User Comments
0 comments from readers