Invasion of America

Chapter 88 Counterattack
It was late at night and thick darkness enveloped the suburban woods. Only sporadic moonlight shone through the clouds onto the ground, casting mottled light and shadows.

Six "cleaners" in black combat uniforms quietly appeared near the villa where old man Hammer lived in seclusion, like a group of nocturnal hunters, moving quickly and silently.

In order to identify friend or foe, the five people had fluorescent barcodes on their backs, which were clearly visible under the drone's infrared camera.

The drone operators stayed behind and directed their actions through real-time images.

"The targets are Victor and Hammer, both of whom have received some training." Luxor repeated the order on the radio, "Prioritize capturing Hammer alive. If that's not possible, kill them both."

The five of them nodded in unison and walked along the tree-lined road toward the villa. They stopped every ten meters or so, waiting for their companions to pass them while receiving instructions from the drone operator.

There were only brief commands in the encrypted channel, without any unnecessary nonsense.

The villa stood quietly in the night, with a lonely night light on in the front yard and the back yard, and the dim light was particularly bright in the darkness.

A taxi was parked outside the yard, and the engine was still emitting high heat, looking like a burning flame in the infrared image of the drone.

Luxor's eyes swept over the taxi and his brows furrowed slightly - if the taxi was there, then the driver should probably be there too.

But the villa was too quiet, not like any signs of human activity. But the operation had already begun, and this question could only be answered by entering the villa.

Two minutes later, the five men had half-surrounded the villa and were ready to launch an attack at any time.

"George, you and Tom go in through the front door." Luxor ordered in a low voice, "Roger, you and I will storm the back door.

Olin, you stay outside and be ready to respond at any time. If the target flees, you can kill him directly."

A few steady replies came from the radio, and the five people quickly split into three teams and took action separately.

Luxor took Roger around to the backyard of the villa, gently pushed open the unlocked wooden door, quickly crossed the lawn, and squatted outside the kitchen window.

He glanced at the backyard and saw a rocking chair and a barbecue grill on the lawn, which looked particularly quiet.

Meanwhile, the team at the front door had arrived.

A 'cleaner' whispered, "This is George, arriving at the front door, ready to open it."

This is necessary communication to avoid misjudgment and accidental shooting between the two groups of people.

However, the smoother the operation went, the more uneasy Luxor felt. He always felt that something was wrong, as if a pair of eyes were staring at him coldly in the darkness.

He warned over the radio: "Please check the doors and windows. Although Hammer has dementia, he has been a CIA agent for decades. It is impossible that his retreat is completely unprotected."

The 'cleaners' at the front and back doors were very obedient, scanning the surroundings vigilantly, trying to find some hidden alarms or surveillance devices.

Yet, everything seemed normal.

At this moment, in the shadow of the utility room outside the villa, Zhou Qingfeng was squatting on the ground with a tablet computer in his hand.

The screen displayed real-time images from several surveillance cameras inside and outside the villa, clearly showing every move of Luxor and others after they arrived at the villa.

"Luxor, I didn't expect it to be you. You take my $300,000 annual salary and yet you still want to kill me."

Zhou Qingfeng muttered to himself and casually screwed the silencer on the M4 carbine.

The two 'cleaners' at the front door checked for a long time but found nothing unusual. They gently pushed the front door of the villa.
The door slid open silently and was not locked at all, as if inviting them into the unknown darkness.

Outside the door, the two intruders were like clumsy thieves. After a brief pause, they slipped into the living room of the villa silently.

Their movements were skillful and their footsteps were light, but in the quiet night, they were particularly harsh.

The room was pitch black, with only the light from the night lamp shining through the window, casting a hazy shadow and outlining a vague outline.

There is a stale smell in the air, as if time has stopped here.

The leading 'cleaner' made a quick gesture and reported in a low voice over the radio: "I've entered the living room."

His voice was low and calm as he gestured for his companions to follow closely.

The two men stood in front and behind, their guns pointed cautiously at every corner of the living room. But there was no movement in the villa, as if no one lived there.

The silence was unsettling, as if something was watching them from the shadows.

However, when they tried to turn from the living room to the dining room, there was a sudden crisp "click" sound under their feet.

The sound was undisguised and extremely harsh, causing all the cleaners present to feel a pang of fear. The carpet in the living room suddenly bounced up, and a bear trap snapped shut.

North America is vast and sparsely populated, with abundant wildlife. Hunting products abound, including firearms and traps for wild animals.

Old man Hammer is old and no longer trusts his marksmanship, so he relies on traps to protect himself.

There was a pit dug under the floor of the living room of his villa, which was usually covered with floorboards and carpets and looked normal.

When necessary, the floorboards are removed, the bear traps are taken from the basement, placed in the pit, and covered with carpet, leaving the exterior impeccable.

The bear trap resembled a giant mousetrap, but the carbon steel spring was incredibly powerful. Even a strong man like Zhou Qingfeng couldn't open it with his bare hands, requiring the use of a ratchet tool.

When it closed, its two steel saw-like teeth bit tightly together, digging deep into the prey's calf. The trapped "cleaner" immediately let out a heartbreaking scream.

This pinch not only tore the skin and flesh, but also instantly shattered the tibia of the calf.

This powerful trap wasn't a sharp blade, but it held its grip without breaking, continuing to torture its prey. The trapped 'cleaner' immediately dropped his gun and tried to open the trap with his bare hands.

However, when he glanced down at the model of the animal trap and felt the thickness of the carbon steel spring sheet, he immediately realized that he had no way out.

This ruthless fellow knew that if his operation failed, he would not only become useless but also drag down his companions. Without hesitation, he pulled out the pistol from his ribs, pointed it at his temple, and pulled the trigger.

With a bang, a gunshot rang out, and the trapped 'cleaner's' head exploded, and he fell to the ground dead.

Another 'cleaner's' face suddenly changed, and he hurriedly shouted on the radio: "Be careful, there is a trap, George is dead!"

Luxor was still lingering in the backyard when he heard screams and gunfire, and soon learned that one of his men had been killed. However, the target of the operation still had not appeared, and he was at a loss as to what to do in the short period of time.

At this moment, Zhou Qingfeng, who was hiding in the utility room, took out a detonator remote control and pressed it decisively.

A bomb planted in the villa's kitchen exploded instantly, a roaring, surging wave of air spreading through the darkness. The wooden villa walls instantly shattered, turning into countless sharp wood splinters. Luxor's two-man team was caught directly in the explosion, bearing the brunt of the shockwave head-on.

Even the 'cleaner' in the living room was not spared. His body was blown away by the air wave, knocking open the front door and falling heavily on the lawn in the yard.

The surging air wave was like a solid wall, rushing out of the villa and continuing to wreak havoc.

The 'cleaner' who was on standby outside the villa felt a black screen before his eyes, and a large amount of debris rushed towards him. He fell to the ground involuntarily, and the aftermath of the explosion echoed in his ears, as if the world collapsed at this moment.
-
As the explosion roared, the monitoring signal of the tablet computer in the villa was suddenly interrupted, and the screen turned blue.

Zhou Qingfeng rushed out from the hidden utility room and, relying on the direction he remembered, first locked onto the 'cleaner' who was on standby outside the villa.

The guy was originally standing on the road outside the villa. The blast knocked him to the ground. The strong shock wave and noise almost deprived him of his hearing and sense of direction.

When he managed to raise his head, the narrow field of view of the night vision goggles became his fatal weakness - he failed to notice Zhou Qingfeng approaching quietly from the side.

The M4 rifle equipped with a silencer fired a series of short bursts, and the low "puff puff puff" sound was completely drowned out by the roar of the villa collapsing.

The 'cleaner' who stayed outside the villa was instantly hit by several bullets. Although the heavy bulletproof vest blocked some of the bullets, as the rain of bullets poured down, his head, face and limbs were quickly beaten into a bloody mess.

At this moment, a hurried shout came from the radio: "Olin, turn around, the target is behind you!" It was a belated warning from the 'cleaner' who was controlling the drone, but it was of no avail.

The M4 rifle magazine in Zhou Qingfeng's hand was tied together with tape. After emptying half of the magazine, he quickly pressed the eject button and replaced it with a full magazine. His movements were smooth and there was no delay.

While changing the bullet, he did not stop and ran quickly towards the front yard of the villa.

One of the two 'cleaners' who entered from the front door was killed and the other was injured. Although the man who was blown away was injured, he was still able to fight and must be eliminated as soon as possible.

At this moment, the 'cleaner' in the front yard was stumbling out, dragging his leg with a splinter from the door frame. After removing the splinter, blood dripped down his trouser leg, staining the ground red.

"Tom, side and rear, fire!" The 'cleaner' who was controlling the drone shouted anxiously on the radio, but was unable to change the situation.

The 'cleaner' in the front yard immediately turned his gun around upon hearing the sound, and fired wildly to the side and rear. The flames from the muzzle were particularly dazzling in the dark night.

However, his random shooting missed the target and instead exposed his position.

In the darkness, the slightly old M4 rifle locked onto him accurately. After a few low gunshots, he fell to the ground and died.

The villa was now engulfed in flames, with tongues of flame gushing out from the wooden structure. Amidst the billowing smoke, the flames illuminated an area of ​​more than ten meters around it.

Zhou Qingfeng quickly turned the gun around and moved towards the backyard.

Through the hedge he saw that the bomb planted in the kitchen had blown a huge hole in the back door.

Amidst the scattered debris lay a fully armed corpse, one of the 'cleaners' who had sneaked in from the backyard.

However, the other person disappeared.

In the light of the fire, a series of messy footprints and a few drops of wet blood were left on the lawn in the backyard.
-
Luxor gritted his teeth and tried to keep his pace steady, trying to ease the tearing pain in his chest.

The rapid breathing made the pain more intense, as if a blunt knife was stirring in the chest with every breath.

His vision was sometimes blurry, sometimes black, and his brain felt like it was filled with lead, heavy and chaotic.

After running twenty or thirty meters, his strength was not yet exhausted, but the severe pain in his chest came in waves like a tide, almost drowning him.

When the explosion occurred, he was in the center of the shock wave, and the air wave knocked him over as if he was hit by a sledgehammer.

His face, neck and limbs were covered with blood marks from broken doors and windows. The blood slowly flowed down his skin, staining his clothes red.

If it weren't for the bulletproof vest providing some cushioning, he would have probably fallen into the ruins and never gotten up again.

At this moment, Luxor felt a surge of regret. He should have thought of bringing a few mechanical dogs with him earlier.

Remote-controlled mechanical dogs have long been popular. They are cheap and easy to use, and are especially suitable for serving as cannon fodder in the front.

During the last attack on the Caribbean cruise ship, the robotic dog performed exceptionally well, routing the Secret Service.

But this time, how could he forget to bring it?
While running, Luxor suddenly realized that the taxi parked outside the villa was actually a bait.

Old man Hammer has been an agent for decades, and he is best at tracking and counter-tracking. How could he make such a low-level mistake?
As Hammer's granddaughter, Lucy has been influenced by him since childhood. How could she be so careless when she knew she was being followed?

Even Victor, as the "President of Holy Light" and a leader in the technology world, used "Holy Light No. 1" to escape and covered up all tracking signals.

How could he ignore the threat posed by casual photo-taking, and how could he be so defenseless as to put himself in danger?
So, this is a trap.

Luxor mechanically moved his legs, stumbling and continuing his retreat. He felt like he had been running for a long time, but he still couldn't return to the starting point.

He desperately called for help on the radio: "Backup! I need support!"

Now, he could only hope that his companion who was controlling the drone would be smarter.

If that guy was brave enough and drove quickly to provide support, it wouldn't take long for him to cover the distance of over 100 meters and he could still escape.

However, in the flames and thick smoke behind him, a figure was looming, approaching like the god of death.

Luxor kept looking back, his heartbeat quickening, his steps becoming unsteady. Then, a gunshot rang out from behind him, and a bullet struck his back like a sledgehammer.

Despite the bulletproof vest, Luxor still fell to the ground with a thud. He struggled to stand up again, but another bullet hit him, pinning him to the ground like a nail.

Hahahaha. Luxor's mouth and nose were blocked by the dirt on the ground. He struggled to turn over so that he could breathe more freely. He spread his hands, panting violently and laughing.

"Victor, it's you, isn't it?"

"When you play paintball, you love to shoot people in the back."

"To be honest, it's not that I don't want to work for you. You're very generous and easy to get along with. But I didn't expect you to be so difficult to deal with. I just..."

Bang! A bullet fired from seven or eight meters away, hitting Luxor's head and ending his rambling. It also loosened his grip, and a high-explosive grenade rolled out.

A few seconds later, the grenade exploded, sending the body tumbling on the spot.

In the distance, the 'cleaner' in charge of controlling the drone finally stopped hesitating and did not even retrieve the drone. He simply threw away the control handle, jumped into the black SUV, and reversed to escape.

(End of this chapter)