Los Angeles defector

Task

At midnight, within the city of Los Angeles, gunfire filled the air, the sound of bullets creating a symphony. The battle raged on, disregarding the boundaries between night and day, dusk and dawn. The tides had turned, the retreat order had been issued. The troops responsible for the rear guard made their final stand within the city, fighting to buy time for the evacuation.

In the distance, flashes of light continued to illuminate the area, causing the windows to tremble incessantly, with light streaming in and out intermittently. A graceful figure stood by the window, gazing out at the street below, seemingly anxiously awaiting something. The room remained unlit, and a middle-aged man paced back and forth on the empty floor, circling repeatedly until he finally stopped and addressed the woman by the window, saying, "Old Chen is a man of his word. It's already midnight, and I suspect he might be in trouble. We can't wait any longer."

The woman continued to stare outside, sighing, "What about the roster? If it's not sent out, our work for this year will have been in vain."

"What can we do? The work requires a direct line of communication. If Old Chen's line is cut off, then our work will have to come to a halt."

After a moment of silence, the man seemed to have made a decision and spoke again, "The vampires haven't completed the encirclement yet. I reckon we can still make it out to the west. I'll personally deliver it."

The woman turned around at his words, "No. You are the linchpin of our team. The lower tiers can only contact you. If something happens to you, the losses will be even greater."

"This..." The man sighed in resignation and began pacing back and forth in the room.

After another moment of silence, the woman seemed to have made up her mind, "I'll go and deliver it."

"What? Isabella, do you know what's going on outside right now? It's chaos out there, with gunfire and chaos, and refugees flooding in! How can a woman like you manage? Besides, with Old Chen's situation unclear, his contact point may have failed. Absolutely not."

"I am the only suitable candidate, I have confidence. If Old Chen's contact point fails, I will go directly to Washington."

...

As dawn approached, Isabella hurriedly walked along the dim path. Her chin-length hair was damp with sweat, clinging to her flushed cheeks. The situation had arisen abruptly, and she had rushed out in a plain grey robe. Due to several falls in the darkness, large patches of mud stained her attire, turning her white stockings and black shoes into a uniform shade of gray.

Old Chen's home is in a small village east of Barona Creek. Isabella had been there before and, based on her intuition, she felt it shouldn't be far ahead. Just a moment ago, there was a distant sound of gunfire and an explosion from the south. Despite the distance, it made Isabella's heart race with anxiety. She tightened her grip on the bag in her hand, wanting to quicken her pace, but the rough and uneven night road left her feeling helpless.

The small village was silent and pitch black, with no one around. Isabella treaded lightly and approached a regular-sized gate. Leaning against the wall next to the gate, she placed a hand on her chest to catch her breath for a moment before tiptoeing to carefully feel for the top of the door frame.

If Old Chen had encountered an accident, he would have placed a brick on the top of the door frame as a signal for visitors. Isabella carefully felt around but found no brick. This meant that everything was normal. So why hadn't he appeared at the meeting point? With questions in her mind, Isabella attempted to push the door. It was not bolted, and it swung open. Isabella took out a handgun from her bag, a delicate Browning, and entered cautiously.

In the darkness, Isabella carefully searched the house. The kitchen was cold, indicating that Old Chen had been gone for a long time, and there was no one left here. Sitting on the edge of the bed in the darkness, Isabella's heart sank halfway. It seemed that this was indeed going to be a daunting task.

Suddenly, faint footsteps could be heard, causing a shiver in Isabella's heart. This small village was tiny, with just a few dozen houses clustered closely together. One could hear sounds from the east while walking in the west. Now that it was deserted, who else besides herself could be coming? Old Chen?

Isabella tightened her grip on the pistol, racked the slide, and disengaged the safety. Leaning in the darkness behind the door, her chest heaved rapidly, her heartbeats growing increasingly uncontrollable.

The footsteps passed by the front door, seeming to wander around for a while, intermittently appearing and disappearing. Subsequently, they were heard at the neighboring house, followed by a clattering of rummaging through boxes and cabinets. Then, they reappeared at the door of Old Chen's house.

Isabella bravely pressed her eye against the c***k of the door. The light in the yard was dim, but she could barely make out a figure appearing at the front door. The person was not tall, seemingly sneakily observing the surroundings before heading towards the door.

It could be concluded that this was definitely not Old Chen. It was either a vampire or a thief. Facing an emergency situation as soon as she arrived, Isabella couldn't help but feel a bit pessimistic. Could she really complete the mission?

Isabella had fired a g*n before, during past training sessions, shooting off a few rounds. After that, she had only kept it close by, never using it again. At this moment, the g*n in her hand was her only hope. Isabella struggled to force herself to stay calm, following her training, gripping the g*n firmly, keeping it steady, aimed at the doorway. However, her arm still trembled involuntarily, her heartbeat seemingly on the verge of bursting through her chest, as the footsteps outside grew closer and closer.

Creak—The door to the room opened.

Bang—The g*n went off. In Isabella's widened pupils, the figure collapsed at the doorway, curled up on the floor, emitting a few faint groans, then went still.

Isabella panted heavily, still holding the g*n, pointing it at the figure on the ground. She cautiously moved to the doorway, trying to discern the identity of the person through the dim light seeping in from outside. Suddenly, footsteps echoed outside the door again, causing Isabella to hastily raise the g*n, catching a glimpse of a blurry figure swiftly passing by the entrance.

Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang—Instinct took over as Isabella repeatedly pulled the trigger, unaware that the figure had long vanished. Under the impact of the bullets, only the door panel swayed slowly, emitting creaking and groaning noises.

Isabella was afraid, surrounded by an eerie silence. If it weren't for the body still curled up at the doorway, she wouldn't have believed that all of this was actually happening. The trembling g*n barrel still pointed towards the door, her terrified, widened dark eyes staring fixedly outside, unmoving.

However, it wasn't until Isabella's arm holding the g*n began to feel numb that no more sounds came from outside.

Could it be that I hit him as he passed through the door? Did he die outside the door? Maybe if I step outside, I'll see his body? No! I can't go out! Not that I can't, but that I dare not. It's almost dawn, and I'd rather hold out until morning in this room, the only place where I feel safe.

Isabella began to carefully retreat, not daring to touch anything, moving her feet slowly until her back was against the wall. Only then did she breathe a sigh of relief and slowly crouch down on the ground. She held the g*n tightly, unwilling to let go, aiming at the doorway through the open door.

Bang! The sound of shattering glass suddenly shattered the silence, causing Isabella's heart to jump to her throat. She quickly turned the g*n towards the window and fired.

Bang! Click! The last bullet had already flown out, but Isabella's fingers were still pulling the trigger.

The stone that smashed through the window was still rolling on the ground, and a figure appeared at the doorway. Like a cheetah, it swiftly pounced towards the stunned Isabella

...