Chapter 208: NYPD Luke Hobbs

Half an hour later, Yuri stood on his balcony, watching as several NYPD SWAT vehicles swiftly pulled up around the corner from Jack Valentine's surveillance van.

A dozen heavily armed NYPD SWAT officers divided into two teams, approaching the van in tactical formation.

To Yuri's surprise, the NYPD officers didn't follow standard procedure; instead, they immediately breached the rear door of the surveillance van with a battering ram and tossed a flashbang inside.

A loud bang followed, and the SWAT officers shouted, "NYPD, hands up! NYPD, hands up!"

Inside the van, Jack Valentine and his team were left dazed and disoriented by the flashbang. Two of them, who were closest to the blast, were bleeding from their ears.

Jack Valentine tried to shout, "We're on the same side," but his mouth couldn't keep up with his thoughts, and all he could manage was incoherent mumbling.

He was quickly tasered by an NYPD officer and lost consciousness, only waking up the next afternoon.

From his balcony, Yuri watched as the NYPD officers roughly dragged Jack Valentine and his team out of the van. A towering South American man, nearly 2 meters tall and bursting with muscles, reported to a middle-aged man:

"Chief, all four suspects are in custody. We found a lot of surveillance equipment in their van, consistent with the intelligence we received. They might have been planning something against the financial center vault. What's our next move, sir?"

The chief smiled and replied, "Good job. Lock them up, and don't let anyone contact them. Wait for the Special Task Force to take over. Luke Hobbs, if you don't want trouble, tell your men to be careful. We don't interfere with Special Task Force operations, got it?"

The man called Luke Hobbs hesitated, and the chief leaned in to whisper angrily, "For God's sake, if you want a promotion or anything else, don't drag us into this. Luke, even if you find something suspicious, keep it to yourself. Do I need to remind you what the Special Task Force does? Even if things go wrong, we're just following orders. If there's a problem, let higher-ups handle it. Now, just lock them up. Got it?"

Luke Hobbs, feeling uneasy with his colleagues all watching him, understood that everyone had reservations about the operation. They hadn't followed standard procedure, but no one spoke up, and they were all staring at him, making him feel pressured.

"Alright, Chief, I'll do as you say," Hobbs responded, realizing there was more to this operation than met the eye. The four suspects had clearly crossed someone powerful or gotten in the way of something.

Hobbs knew that by the time anyone came to question them, a few days would have passed, giving whoever was behind this operation enough time to complete their plans. Any follow-up would involve different departments blaming each other, with the excuse of acting on intelligence. If they had arrested the wrong people, at worst, they'd apologize and pay some medical bills, using a scapegoat to take the fall.

Feeling downcast, Luke Hobbs told his team, "Did you hear that? Take them back, treat their injuries, and isolate them until the appropriate authorities arrive."

"Understood," his team replied.

Yuri watched from the balcony until the NYPD officers left before happily returning to his study. He opened a specially encrypted computer and accessed the dark web to find the goods list William had sent him.

Seeing the list, Yuri felt a rush of excitement. "God, no wonder the super-rich are called that. Is he planning a war?" The list included 2,000 AKs, 100 full sets of polar bear single-soldier equipment, 3 Mil Mi-24 helicopters, 20 rocket launchers, and ammunition for three engagements. "Huh? Only enough ammo for three engagements? That's just 900 rounds for long guns. What's that supposed to accomplish? For Uncle Sam's troops, a standard engagement requires at least ten times that."

Yuri speculated that William Devonshire wasn't planning a war but rather a hit-and-run operation.

There were also 100 polar bear mercenaries, each costing $20,000, with a $20,000 bonus for every battle won.

Yuri cursed the wealthy, imagining the 100 polar bear mercenaries eagerly taking on anyone in their way for that kind of money.

But that wasn't his concern. Yuri knew he could easily source the personnel, thanks to his connections in Russia. After calculating, he realized this was a $20 million deal. With a 1.2 multiplier, that totaled $24 million.

Yuri's excitement grew at the prospect of a $14 million profit. Doing business with someone like William, who was wealthy and didn't care about the cost, was exhilarating.

This deal alone was worth more than half of his previous year's profits. Yuri now felt disdain for Libya's General André, who often ordered just a few hundred AKs at a time, sometimes even defaulting on payments. A few years ago, Yuri had generously sent André a few armored vehicles, only to be told upon arrival that they no longer needed them, resulting in a loss of tens of thousands of dollars.

Yuri decided that for André, he would only send goods worth a fraction of the 100-carat diamond he had given in return. He had bigger deals waiting, and 500 AKs, ten sets of ammunition, a few hundred grenades, and a few dozen rocket launchers would suffice. He didn't care if André was overthrown.

Having made up his mind, Yuri began making calls to his contacts in Ukraine. With Jack Valentine arrested, Yuri no longer worried about being monitored.

After securing the weapons, Yuri arranged for 100 retired Russian special forces soldiers to be transported to Sierra Leone. Surprisingly, within half an hour, the soldiers were discharged and ready for transport.

Once everything was in place, Yuri got dressed, grabbed his briefcase, and headed downstairs, where he saw his wife, Ava, and their son getting ready to leave.

Yuri approached Ava and said, "Honey, I need to..." Remembering William's warning, he quickly changed his destination from South Africa to Brazil.

"I need to go to Brazil for an oil procurement meeting, so I can't join you at the pool."

Kneeling to apologize to his son, Yuri said, "Sorry, buddy, I can't go swimming with you today. But I'll bring you a gift when I get back, okay?"

Nick, excited by the promise of a gift, kissed Yuri's cheek. "You have to come back soon. I'll be waiting for you, Dad."

"No problem, I'll be home soon. Bye, buddy."

"Bye, Dad," Nick replied in his sweet, childlike voice.

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