Empire of Shadows

Chapter 308: Lost [333+5]

A thin mist had unexpectedly risen over the sea at night. Compared to Lance and the others' surprise, McCook and his men seemed much calmer.

They had seen it for decades and were long used to it.

The sound of the waves attacked their nerves day and night, accompanying this treacherous, ever-changing sea that remained constant through the seasons.

Many people who didn't often see the sea would feel refreshed when they came to the ocean, as if the world suddenly became much bigger, and they could feel their own insignificance, feeling the magnificence of the ocean.

People always said that the ocean nurtured life, and in fact, it was true. From the unreliable theory of evolution, the ocean was indeed the origin of life.

It was mysterious, beautiful, and full of attraction.

But for those who had stayed by the sea, on the sea, for a long time, they couldn't see these things in their eyes, only desolation, boredom, and even despair.

McCook sat in the observation room, lighting his pipe. This armed gunboat only had two small cannons, but even so, it was much stronger than before.

Lance and the others took the goods from Luigi, knew the general sea area, and after arriving at the location, they turned off the lights, dropped anchor, and waited in place.

No one spoke, and in the darkness, everything seemed mysterious and terrifying.

Everyone was thinking about their own things. McCook was thinking about what forty thousand plus fifty thousand could bring to his life, just like others were thinking about what fourteen thousand could change for them.

The Coast Patrol had never been a strong department, before receiving this epic upgrade.

They couldn't defeat smugglers, couldn't patrol the coastline, and their most common job was probably towing and rescue work for Gold Harbor Wharf.

They wore the Coast Patrol badge while doing the work of dockworkers. The only thing that might make them feel a little better was that their wages were slightly higher.

But it was only slightly higher, not even exceeding the level of a class. They were actually poor people.

No one knew how long they waited. Everyone was observing the surrounding sea with binoculars when suddenly someone said, "There's a ship at the four o'clock position!"

Soon, everyone gathered around him, looking through the binoculars at a ship with several lights on, drifting on the sea.

They could vaguely see many goods on it, and some figures swaying.

"Move closer, and keep it quiet."

McCook ordered. The sound of the anchor being raised came, and the ship began to move slowly.

The sound of the waves covered up the sound of the ship moving, and the mist became the best cover on the sea.

On the ship in the distance, several Somalian people were eating and chatting, unaware of the danger that was approaching.

Luigi's life had become much better, and naturally, the people around him could get a little more money. On this point, Luigi was still clear-headed.

Everyone's income had become very high, and the Republic of Aldera wasn't a wealthy country.

The money Luigi gave them was enough for them to live a life of luxury in the Republic of Aldera!

Money, weapons, and power, this was a paradise-like life!

Several people were chatting and eating, drinking wine, when suddenly one person stopped moving.

He stared blankly ahead. The others noticed something was wrong and waved their hands, but there was no response.

They thought he might have had a sudden illness, or some other emergency, but someone inadvertently caught a glimpse of the warship piercing through the mist, and their mouths gradually widened.

This armed ship wasn't very big, but it was much larger than this kind of fishing boat converted into a transport ship, and the ironclad ship, in addition to being imposing, also gave people a sense of oppression.

The "Federal Coast Patrol" logo and badge on the hull made them realize that they were in big trouble!

"What do we do now?" someone asked.

The small boss in charge of escorting this batch of wine looked at the approaching armed ship and lowered his voice a little, "Cooperate first, and if there's a chance... kill them!"

His eyes were slightly red. If such a large batch of goods was lost in his hands, Luigi would definitely not let him die easily!

That fat bastard wasn't a kind person, he knew this very well.

But now...

"This is the Federal Coast Patrol, please stop immediately for inspection."

"Stand in a place where we can see you, with your hands raised."

"Repeat, stand in a place where we can see you, with your hands raised."

Under the illumination of the searchlights, the people on the ship finally gathered together, waiting for an opportunity.

If these patrol officers were to board their ship, then this would be the opportunity!

They thought it was very likely that the other party would come over. As long as they wanted to check the goods here, they would definitely come up.

But what they didn't expect was that these people appeared here, at such a coincidental time, at such a coincidental place, just for the things on their ship!

So what they waited for was only bullets, and death!

The sudden sound of gunfire, breaking the midnight silence, tore through the curtain of silence. Several submachine guns fired together, and the people standing in the spotlight were immediately shot into sieves.

They seemed unwilling to believe until their deaths that these Federal Coast Patrol people would shoot at them regardless of what was on their ship.

When no one on the deck could stand anymore, Lance and the others slid down from the armed ship along the ropes.

The small boss lying on the deck, on the verge of death, saw Lance. His expression went from confusion to shock, and then to regret, in a very short time.

He was the one who delivered the goods to Lance last time. He was very familiar with the situation here and had run several times. He recognized Lance.

He couldn't believe that Lance was colluding with these Coast Patrol people, and he couldn't believe that someone had betrayed their information.

Blood flowed from his mouth, nose, and wounds. Everything in front of him began to become dim, becoming dark...

A bloodless slaughter. They threw the corpses on the deck into the water, and everything returned to calm.

"There are no patrols in these areas between four and five o'clock."

Ninety thousand dollars was already within reach, and McCook became somewhat... uneasy. He was now a little impatient to see the dawn.

Only then could he see his money!

Lance had him arrange for two trusted aides to help sail the ship. Two coast guards actively jumped over to help.

The two ships circled around one after the other, and began to return from the other side.

The dead sea was as silent as ever in the deep night, and did not become different because there were a few more corpses in the water.

After about forty minutes, several more transport ships approached. They used searchlights to continuously signal the surrounding sea according to the agreed-upon contact signal.

But after signaling for more than half an hour, there was no response.

Shi Dong (the older brother among the younger generation of the Coda family) was a little irritable and took out his pistol, emptying the magazine into the sky. When the gunfire ended, there was still no response.

At this time, even if he was slow-witted, he knew that if he hadn't taken the wrong road, then something must have happened to the other party!

The Coda family had several batches of wine seized in a row, which had caused problems with their casino's supply. Buying wine locally was too expensive, so they also took a fancy to various low, medium, and high-end wines from Yalan.

This time, they contacted Luigi through some connections. Although Luigi's wine wasn't the best, it was the fastest to ship.

What the Coda family wanted was an emergency supply. Whoever could provide them with a batch of wine faster, they would order from them.

Unexpectedly, there was a problem the first time they did business. These Somalian people were indeed unreliable!

But what he didn't know was that, under the escort of the Coast Patrol, the wine that should have been sold to him was being sent to their warehouse by Lance!

As soon as a large amount of wine arrived at the shore, people began to load it onto trucks. At the same time, Melo also brought two large travel bags, both full of money.

Two hundred thousand, not two hundred and fifty thousand, because McCook and Lance had privately agreed that the fifty thousand was what he deserved.

In the dim light, Lance threw the two travel bags to McCook, "This is your money."

The breathing of the surrounding coast guards became rapid. Their eyes kept shifting between McCook, Lance, and those travel bags, wishing they could help McCook open those travel bags and carefully count whether there was enough money!

McCook was also a little nervous at this time. He looked at the two travel bags on the deck, and signaled his absolute confidant to put the money away first, "I trust you."

He said to Lance, but it wasn't that he trusted Lance, it was that he believed that Lance's business was big, and he would need them if he wanted to smuggle in the future!

This was only the first contact, and he might as well do it beautifully.

The two did not shake hands. After a brief exchange of glances, they separated. Lance returned to the shore, and the patrol boat set sail again.

Under the urging of the crew, McCook opened the two travel bags. The dense bundles of banknotes tied with rubber bands made everyone's faces show a smile!

It was still not dawn, and Luigi was awakened by the ringing of the phone. He picked up the phone, cursing, "You better find a reason for me to forgive you!"

His temper wasn't very good. After he started making big money, his temper wasn't very good.

Shi Dong's voice came from the other end of the phone, "Your goods didn't arrive at the designated place."

Luigi woke up all of a sudden, "That's impossible, I watched them get on the ship!"

Shi Dong was also a little annoyed, "Are you saying I'm lying to you?"

"Do I fucking need to lie to you?"

"What are you joking about?!"

Luigi calmed down a bit. “Maybe they were delayed on the road…”

Stone didn't give him any face. “Do you even believe what you're saying yourself?”

“It only takes a day to get from Aldera to the Federation, don't fucking tell me they got lost.”

“Luigi, I'm giving you two options.”

“Either return my deposit.”

“Or send me another batch of booze!”

“Don't force me to come to you!”