Page 246 of The Redemption
A dangerous grin spreads across his face. He knows exactly what I mean.Create panic and chaos.The more confusion there is, the easier it will be for me to reach Raghav before anyone realises where the real attack is headed.
Michael gives me one final nod before disappearing into the darkness with his men, taking a different route towards the main resort area. Unlike the rest of us, he knows this place inside out. He has been here before with Siya, so he already knows every trail, every blind spot, and every approach route.
I watch them disappear between the trees. Then I turn and motion for my men to move. My target is the private villa sitting at the highest point of RK Estate, where Raghav resides. My source inside the estate confirmed just two hours ago that neither Siya nor Raghav had left. They are both still there, completely unaware that death is already climbing the mountain towards them.
We leave the road behind and move deeper into the forest. This is the one side of RK Estate nobody expects an attackfrom. It’s the same route Singhal once used to send his hitman after Siya. The dense trees and massive rock formations provide natural cover and is perfect for infiltration. The estate’s main security is focused around the gates, not out here in the woods, which is exactly why I chose this route.
My men move silently behind me, with weapons loaded and safety catches off. A few minutes later, I finally catch sight of the outer forest barricade surrounding RK Estate.
The first obstacle. The first line of defence. And the first thing that’s about to fall. I tighten my grip on my rifle and raise one hand. Every man behind me freezes instantly. No voices. No movement. Just predators waiting for the command to hunt. My eyes lock on the estate beyond the barricade. This is where it begins…
We cross the barricade and enter RK Estate. The moment my boots hit the ground beyond it, a gunshot cracks through the silence. The bullet tears through the darkness and slams into the tree beside me.
“Take cover!”
My men scatter as the peaceful estate erupts into a battlefield within a second. Gunfire breaks out from somewhere ahead, followed by another shot, and then another. Bullets rip through the trees from hidden positions across the estate. I duck behind a stone structure as one bullet tears past me. I then raise my rifle and fire back. Two of my men immediately join me.
The night explodes into chaos. Good. This is exactly what I came for.
Amidst the sound of gunfire, I hear another series of shots echoing from the main entrance of the resort. A grin spreads across my face, knowing that Michael has started his part. The attack is underway. By now, he and his men must have breached the resort grounds. The entire place must be descending into panic exactly as I planned.
I reload my weapon and push forward. “Move!” I bark.
My men follow. We advance through the darkness, taking cover behind trees, pillars, anything that can shield us from incoming fire. But within minutes, the real problem becomes obvious. Raghav’s men know these grounds too well. They are familiar with every corner, every blind spot, and every elevated position that allows them to shoot without being seen.This is their territory. Their hunting ground.And we’re the ones being hunted.
Suddenly, a burst of bullets rains down from somewhere above us. Three of my men fall instantly. One dead, and two screaming in agony as blood splashes across the pathway.
“Find the shooter!” I roar.
But nobody can. By the time we return fire, the b*stard has already disappeared. Another gunshot tears from our left. Then another from behind a fountain. Then another from a rooftop. Then from somewhere inside the trees. It’s like we’re fighting invisible ghosts with rifles.
I grit my teeth and keep moving. We know Raghav is at the villa. Everything else is irrelevant. Kill the king, and the kingdom collapses. That’s all that matters. But every hundred feet we gain costs me more men. Another body drops. Then another. The numbers behind me keep shrinking. Hundred becomes fifty. Then twenty. Until barely ten of us remain.
Something is wrong. Very, very wrong. This doesn’t look like Raghav’s men are defending themselves. This looks like they were already prepared for this attack, as though they knew exactly from where we would enter and when. A fresh burst of gunfire forces me behind cover again. A bullet grazes my shoulder. Pain burns across my skin, but I barely register it. My eyes keep sweeping through the darkness, searching for any sign of movement from the other side of the estate.
Where the f*ck are Parag and Singhal?
By now, they should have reached the southern side. They should have started their assault, and I should be hearing gunfire tearing through the estate from every direction. Instead, onlymymen are dying, bleeding, and onlymyarmy is being cut apart.
I shove the thought aside and keep moving. The villa is not even halfway from here. But somehow, I’ve already lost most of our strength. I can still hear gunshots echoing from the resort section, which means Michael is doing his job. At least one part of my plan is going exactly as it should. That thought keeps me moving.
I push forward again, and another firefight erupts around us. More bullets, more blood, and more bodies hit the ground. Suddenly, I run out of ammo.
F*ck. I reach for another magazine, but before I can reload, several of Raghav’s men charge out from behind cover and charge straight into us. In no time, my men and I are locked in brutal hand-to-hand combat with them. I drive my elbow into a man’s throat, smash my fist into another man’s nose,and grab a third by the collar and slam him hard into a stone pillar.
Then someone comes from behind me. I grab the man coming at my back and throw him over my shoulder. Someone else lunges towards me with a knife aimed at my ribs. But I catch his wrist and snap it. The man screams. Bodies crash around me. There are men fighting everywhere. Mine against his, the clash between them making it impossible for us to move any further towards the villa.
Then I see an opening. One of Raghav’s men is climbing to higher ground. If he reaches the top, he’ll have a clear shot at every man I have left. I spot a rifle lying abandoned a few feet away and lunge for it. My fingers are inches away from the weapon when a heavy boot slams down on the back of my hand and crushes it into the dirt.
I grit my teeth as pain shoots up my arm and look up. That’s when I see him.Raghav Khurana.Standing over me, calm and completely unfazed, as if he had been expecting me here all along. As if the bullets flying around us, the explosions shaking the hillside, and the bodies dropping with every passing minute mean absolutely nothing to him.
Smoke from the gunfire curls through the night behind him, but his eyes remain locked on mine. Cold. Steady. Like a hunter who has finally cornered his prey.
“Samarjeet Vardhaan.” His boot presses harder against my hand. “So eager to die that you walked straight into your own death trap?”
The bastard actually sounds amused, as though he already knows how tonight is going to end.
“We’ll see who dies tonight, Raghav.” I wipe the blood from the corner of my mouth and glare up at him. “You or me.”
