Chapter 149: Endgame

Chapter 149: Endgame
Kozar wasn’t bluffing.

Not with bombs or tactical strikes. With numbers.

Two hundred Syndicate soldiers came to New York in three days. Brought in by plane. From Europe. Eastern Europe. Asia. An army.

“This is crazy,” Dmitri said at the emergency war council. “Two hundred? How do you fight two hundred?”

“We don’t fight two hundred directly,” Anya said. “We break it apart. Isolate them. Pick them off in small numbers.”

“They’ll mass to overpower us.”

“Only if we let them.” Anya pulled up a map of the city. “New York is eight million people over three hundred square miles. Two hundred soldiers is nothing. They have to disperse to be a threat. When they do, we deal with them.”

“And if they don’t disperse?” Anthony asked.

“Then they accomplish nothing. They can’t hold territory they don’t physically control.” Anya looked around the table. “In either case, we win. Either by attrition or by patience.”

“This is going to get bloody,” Irina said quietly.

“It already is.” Anya’s voice was hard. “Kozar brought in an army. That means he’s desperate. Losing. The Syndicate bosses are squeezing him to produce.”

“So he’s putting all on one big strike.”

“Exactly. And when that fails, the Syndicate will discard him.” Anya marked positions on the map. “All we have to do is outlast it.”

Their conversation was interrupted by Elena bursting into the room.

“FBI raid. In progress. At the Carlyle.”

Everyone froze.

“Kozar?” Anya asked.

“Yes. And most of his leadership. Federal agents. Warrants. They’re arresting everyone.” Elena pulled up news feeds. “It’s all over the media.”

Anya stared in disbelief as Kozar was led out of the hotel in handcuffs. Federal agents everywhere. News cameras recording everything.

“How?” Dmitri breathed.

“Someone tipped them off.” Anya’s mind was racing. “Someone with an insider’s knowledge of Syndicate operations.”

“Giorgi?” Viktor suggested.

“Possibly. Or one of the specialists we captured.” Anya shook her head. “Doesn’t matter. What matters is Kozar is done. The Syndicate’s New York operation just got decapitated.”

“The soldiers?” Anthony asked. “The two hundred?”

“Leaderless. Disorganized. Trapped in a city where every cop is now looking for them.” Anya allowed herself a small smile. “The FBI just did our job for us.”

The room erupted in relieved laughter.

Anya didn’t join in. Something wasn’t right.

“What?” Viktor asked, noticing her expression.

“This is too convenient. The FBI doesn’t move that fast.” Anya pulled up the warrants. “RICO charges. Money laundering. Racketeering. This took months to develop.”

“So someone’s been feeding them information.”

“For months.” Anya’s eyes narrowed. “And whoever it is knew we’d benefit.”

“A friend in the FBI?”

“Or someone using the FBI to eliminate a mutual problem.” Anya stood. Paced. “We need to find out who. And why.”

Her phone rang. Unknown number.

She answered on speaker.

“Miss Kozlov?” A woman’s voice. Professional. Cool.

“Who is this?”

“Special Agent Sarah Chen. FBI Organized Crime Division.” A pause. “I think we should meet.”

Anya exchanged glances with Viktor.

“Why would I do that?”

“Because I have information about the Syndicate. About their operations. About what’s coming next.” Agent Chen’s voice was steady. “And because whether you like it or not, we’re on the same side.”

“I doubt that.”

“Then prove me wrong. Tomorrow. Noon. The steps of the public library. Come alone.”

The line went dead.

Anya set down the phone.

“Trap,” Dmitri said immediately.

“Probably.” Anya sat back down. “But I’m going anyway.”

“That’s suicide.”

“It’s information. And right now, information is the only advantage we have.” Anya looked at Viktor. “I’ll take precautions. But I need to know what she knows.”

The next day, Anya climbed the library steps at eleven fifty-five.

Agent Chen was already there. Asian woman. Early forties. Sharp eyes that missed nothing.

“Miss Kozlov.”

“Agent Chen.”

They walked. Through the library. Into a private reading room that Chen had reserved.

“Thank you for coming,” Chen said once the door was closed.

“I’m curious. Not cooperative.” Anya sat. “What do you want?”

“To warn you.” Chen pulled out a file. “The Syndicate. Kozar wasn’t the whole operation. He was middle management.”

“I know.”

“More than people. A council. Twelve members controlling operations across three continents.” Chen slid the file across. “And they’re not happy.”

Anya opened it. Photos. Names. Some familiar. Most not.

“What are you doing? Telling me this?”

“Because the Syndicate is a cancer. They corrupt governments. Traffic in misery.” Chen’s voice was passionate. “I’ve investigated them for five years. Kozar’s arrest is our biggest win. But it’s not enough.”

“So you want me to do your job for you.”

“I want you to survive.” Chen leaned forward. “The council is sending someone new. Someone worse than Kozar. His name is Mikhail Sokolov. Former KGB. Absolutely ruthless.”

“When?”

“Two weeks. Maybe less.” Chen closed the file. “Sokolov doesn’t negotiate. Doesn’t compromise. He eliminates obstacles.”

“And I’m an obstacle.”

“You’re the obstacle. The coalition you built stopped Kozar cold. Sokolov will come after you first. Personally.”

Anya absorbed this. “Why tell me? Why not just arrest him when he arrives?”

“Because we don’t have enough evidence yet. And because by the time we do, you might be dead.” Chen stood. “I’m not asking you to become an informant. I’m offering you information. Use it however you want.”

“Nothing is free.”

“No. It’s not.” Chen moved to the door. “If you happen to damage Syndicate operations in New York. If you happen to gather evidence of their crimes. I’d be very interested in seeing it.”

“You want me to build your case for you.”

“I want us to help each other. You keep the Syndicate out of New York. I put their leadership in prison.” Chen opened the door. “Everyone wins. Except them.”

Anya considered. An FBI agent offering alliance. Unexpected. But not unwelcome.

“I’ll think about it.”

“Don’t think too long. Sokolov arrives soon.” Chen handed her a card. “My number. If you need help.”

She left.

Anya sat alone. The file spread before her.

Twelve faces. The Syndicate council.

The real enemy.

Kozar had been a soldier. But these twelve? They were the source.

Anya pulled out her phone. Called Viktor.

“I need you to assemble everyone. Coalition leadership. Tonight.”

“What happened?”

“The war just got bigger.” Anya looked at the photos. “And we’re going to need help.”

She left the library with more questions than answers.

But for the first time, she saw a path.

Not just survival.

Victory.

The Syndicate had come to New York.

They were about to learn it was a fatal mistake.