Max twisted her purse. "So… uh… I gotta tell you something. And no, I'm not pregnant, dying, or starting a cult. Yet."
Alex waited. "Alright. Hit me."
She took a breath. "I applied to take the exam I missed in high school. I'm getting my GED."
Alex blinked. "Max. That's amazing."
She held up a finger. "Ah ah. Before you get all emotional Hallmark channel on me, there's more. I gotta study. Like a lot. Which means I can't go to the Bahamas with you and Angelina. Sorry for being the party pooper. As much as I'd love to go and laze around in a bikini as you rub oil on my boobs, I can't. If I miss this, I'll have to wait another year. God! This doesn't sound like me at all. Like I got confidence and I want to do it without backing out."
Alex frowned. "Max, we can do the trip after your exam."
She shook her head so fast her earrings jingled. "Nope. Negative. Absolutely not. You are not cancelling a romantic vacation with Ange just because of me. She already picked swimsuits. She is going. You are going. You two need sun, sand, and suspicious hotel towels."
Alex tried again. "Max, seriously. We can wait."
She poked him in the chest. "No waiting. I refuse to be the reason your girlfriend loses her well deserved tropical getaway. Besides, after my exam, I'm dragging your butt to Australia. I wanna see real Australian kangaroos. Authentic ones. Not the ones from YouTube that look like they bench press refrigerators."
Alex laughed. "Australia, huh?"
Max grinned. "Yes. I want to stand in front of a kangaroo and say hello sir nice biceps."
Alex rubbed her shoulder. "You know, the old Max would've had multiple second thoughts by now. But seeing you right now... I'm proud of you, Max."
She shrugged like it was nothing. "Yeah well, time to prove I can do more than bake cupcakes and traumatize accountants."
He smiled. "You'll crush it."
Max finally relaxed. "Caroline and I are leaving tomorrow. She already has flashcards. She said the words structured study plan. I got scared."
"Sounds like Caroline," Alex said.
Max smirked. "Yup. She's going full nerd trainer. I'm probably gonna cry by Wednesday."
He pulled her into a hug. "You got this."
She hugged tight. "Thanks. And have fun in the Bahamas. Seriously. Do not dare show up at my study table like a romantic hero. Let Angelina enjoy her vacation."
Alex nodded. "Deal."
"Good." She looked around. There was no one in the hallway. So, she walked closer and put her arms around his neck. "I'm horny as hell and studying starts the moment we land. So, before we leave, I want you to fuck me good and hard." She gave him a little peck on his lips. "Now I'll go to the penthouse and prepare my back door and front door. And you are allowed to enter without knocking."
Alex chuckled before kissing her back. It was a small kiss. "I'll be home as fast as I can. And when I enter the bedroom, I want to see both you and Caroline... naked on the bed with legs wide open for me and vanilla cream on your pussy and strawberry on Caroline's pussy."
"Oohh, threesome. I love it," Max said with a smile before pulling back. "Well, won't hold you back anymore."
"Drive safely," Alex said as Max turned around and walked toward the elevator.
"Always do," Max replied with a wave.
After Max left...
Alex rode the elevator up to the animation floor. The doors slid open, and the familiar hum of computers, soft chatter, and the occasional "Why is this file named final_final_FINAL_v6" greeted him.
Night crew.
Alex has two teams, one works during the day and the other at night. Plus, if someone works overtime, they get a bonus. All in all, the pay and atmosphere were good, unlike the most toxic anime studios.
Brad B. spotted him before he made it to the main workstation.
"Boss in the house," Brad said. "Figured you'd be celebrating."
"I did. Lots of praise, cupcakes, and at least two mentions of explosions being too realistic. Balanced diet." Alex stopped beside him. "How's everything here?"
Brad adjusted his glasses and pulled up two monitors like a magician revealing his final trick. "Teen Titans Go launch is set. April tenth. All edits finished, color pass locked, VFX cleaned, marketing uploads scheduled. We're wrapping up the finishing touches tomorrow, but honestly, it's ready."
Alex nodded. "Good. The last thing I need is a launch day surprise. How's Spider-Man coming along?"
Brad switched screens. Spiderman's animated form swung across a half-rendered Manhattan skyline in clean loops. "Series is almost done. Voice-overs are one hundred percent locked. Editing and animation are at eighty-eight percent. We're on schedule. No issues."
"And the movie?" Alex asked.
That was when Brad's expression shifted. Not worried. Just determined.
"Ten percent done, but progressing steady." He tapped the waveform at the bottom of the screen. "Although I'm not happy with the music options for the action themes. Especially the Spidey versus Kraven fight. The cues we approved earlier feel flat. It needs something stronger. Something with punch. Right now the scene looks like Spidey is fighting Kraven to the soundtrack of a polite disagreement."
Alex chuckled. "Yeah, no one wants a boss fight scored like a customer service call."
"Exactly," Brad said. "We need something bold. Something you feel in your chest."
Alex crossed his arms. "I can talk to Jennifer Lopez. If she can pull off the right sound, great. If not, give me your top suggestions, and I'll start making calls."
Brad brightened. "That would help a lot. We want the movie to feel big. The music has to hit every beat."
"Then we'll get it," Alex said. "I'll send the details in a few days."
Brad nodded and turned back to his screens. "Aside from that, everything is smooth. The night crew is pushing hard but they're good. They'll have everything polished by the deadline."
Alex scanned the floor. Artists, animators, editors, each locked in. Some with headphones, some quietly humming, some sipping coffee like it was holy water. It wasn't chaos. It was controlled energy. Productive and reliable.
Exactly why he kept two crews. Morning handled the heavy lifting. Night handled the precision work. Together, they made the impossible look routine.
"Good work, Brad," Alex said. "And tell the team if these two projects get praised for the animation, I'll increase their pay by 5%."
Brad grinned. "Consider morale boosted."
Alex checked a few more screens, nodded at a few animators, then headed toward his office. He still had emails to skim and notes to review.
...
On his way to the office, Alex wondered how Rachel was doing. She missed the premiere, saying she needed a couple of days off due to a personal matter. Alex knew from her expression that she was actually talking about the High Table mission. So, he didn't press her for details and simply said to be careful.
So, he decided to focus on the emails and other documents that needed to be signed and approved.
..
..
Meanwhile…
Private airport
Two hangars. One runway. A dozen cargo trucks lined up like they were waiting for inspection. Except this inspection involved crates of rifles, crates of ammo, and enough black market hardware to arm a medium-sized war.
The cartel thought tonight would be quiet.
They were wrong.
Inside the tower, a lookout glanced at his phone. He barely noticed the faint rumble in the distance. Then he saw headlights. A long line of armored vehicles rolled across the access road.
He stood to raise the alarm.
A red dot appeared on his chest.
Kate pulled the trigger. The glass shattered. The lookout dropped.
Operation Cartel has finally started.
Chloe's voice echoed through comms. "All teams move in. Cut off exits. The weapons deal ends tonight."
SWAT split into two groups. One took the runway, shields raised and rifles steady. The other circled around the hangars to flank.
Nolan checked his rifle and grinned. "Finally some exercise."
Lucy elbowed him. "Try not to get shot during your cardio."
Angela motioned forward. "Jokes later. Focus."
Cartel guards rushed out of the first hangar. Some carried rifles. Some held shotguns. A few were still zipping up bulletproof vests as they scrambled.
The first shots exploded through the night.
The SWAT team began shooting in controlled bursts. They targeted the cartel's position with precision. Bullets hit metal crates, creating sparks. In response, the cartel fired back wildly, shooting bullets across the runway.
Raymond led the flank team. "Move. Move."
Chloe dashed to cover behind a forklift and popped two shots that dropped two cartel men instantly. "Left side clear. Push in."
Kate slid behind a concrete barrier. "Snipers ready. Marking targets."
Her first bullet took out a guard sprinting for the truck keys. The second shattered the engine block of a pickup trying to drive off.
Lucy sprinted toward the closest hangar with two SWAT officers. She kicked open a side door. Inside were crates stacked to the ceiling. Five cartel members scrambled for rifles. They opened fire before those fuckers even grabbed their rifles. They went down. One somehow survived and dove behind a crate.
"Fall back," Angela yelled.
Lucy and the officers fell back.
Angela squeezed the trigger of her grenade launcher, which she picked up from one of the outside crates.
An explosion rocked the place.
"You're welcome."
A truck engine started loudly. The driver pressed the gas pedal and tried to drive around the blockade.
"Stop the truck!" someone yelled.
"No problem!" Nolan planted his feet and fired a full-auto burst at the tires. The truck skidded sideways. It tipped and slammed onto its side in a shower of sparks.
Nolan exhaled. "Truck stopped."
Raymond shouted over comms. "They are trying to escape through Hangar Two. We need to cut them off now."
Kate saw the movement from the tower's remains. "Multiple hostiles heading for a plane. They are prepping for takeoff."
Lucy cursed. "Not happening."
Chloe dashed through open ground, bullets zipping past her heels. She slid behind the landing gear of a private jet and pointed toward the cockpit. "Shoot!"
Angela climbed up the stairs and cleared the control room, then she fired a single, precise round. The cockpit glass cracked. Sparks blew out. The pilots ducked and scrambled backward.
Raymond threw a flashbang through the open door of the hangar. A sharp crack lit up the shadows. The cartel team inside staggered out, blind and stumbling.
SWAT tackled them before they even hit the ground.
A second wave of cartel gunmen poured out from the back of the hangar with heavy machine guns. The sound ripped through the air like a chainsaw chewing steel.
Nolan dropped behind a row of oil barrels. "Heavy guns on the right!"
Kate responded instantly. "I see them. Marked."
Her sniper round cracked through the night and nailed the gunner in the collarbone. The machine gun jerked sideways. Angela and Chloe wasted no time and finished the rest with coordinated shots.
The surviving cartel members tried to surrender. A few tossed rifles aside. One threw himself face first onto the ground like he had rehearsed it.
Lucy cuffed him. "Good choice."
Chloe signaled all clear. "Area secure. All hostiles down or detained. Weapons seized. No casualties."
Raymond surveyed the wreckage. Trucks disabled. Weapons secured. The entire smuggling base was neutralized.
Nolan stretched his back. "Nice. Who wants pizza?"
Kate rolled her eyes. "Debrief first."
Angela wiped her hands. "Then pizza."
Lucy smirked. "Finally, a plan everyone agrees on."
Chloe, on the other side, noticed a hidden grate on the floor. She moved the table and pointed her gun down at the grate. The flashlight on her shoulder fell between the gaps. "Get out. Don't try anything funny."
The woman climbed fully out of the hidden grate. Dirt streaked her face and she looked way too calm for someone who just crawled out of a smuggler's hideout while her entire crew was being cuffed like an assembly line.
Angela turned just as the newcomer stepped into the light.
She stopped.
Her eyes narrowed.
"Well look at that," Angela said, voice low with recognition. "We got the boss."
Nolan blinked. "Wait. That's her?"
Lucy muttered, "Abril Rodas. Fantastic. Tonight just upgraded from great to legendary."
Chloe motioned with her rifle. "Hands where I can see them. Walk."
Abril lifted her chin, expression unimpressed. She walked toward the line of captured cartel members with all the grace of someone stepping onto a red carpet instead of a crime scene.
Raymond approached, jaw tight. "Abril Rodas, leader of the Malos Dorados cartel. Arms trafficking, kidnapping, racketeering. Kill count over 20. And somehow you still got a fan club on the dark web."
Abril smirked. "People admire efficiency."
Chloe flinched as she felt a little pain in her left arm. She looked and saw the bullet graze.
"Let's take another sweep and call it a night," Kate ordered.
---
AN: This wraps up the cop parts. I'll take 2 days off to stockpile.
*****[Spoilers. Upcoming chs names][1]
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Support link: www.patr eon.com/UnknownMaster
[5 advance chs] [All chs available for all tiers] [No double billing.]
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[1] Ch: 224 [A night of pleasure] Ch: 225 [Dreamhouse, promotion & Supergirl] Ch: 226 [Choices, Covers, and Late-Night Crossroads] Ch: 227 [Bahamas with Angelina]