Unexpected Lover | S. 'Ghost' Riley

26.

(TW: MENTIONS OF BLOOD AND KNIFE)

The gunshot echoed through the ballroom, civilians screaming and running as quickly as they could from danger. I saw my hands covered in blood, but it wasn't mine. König had gotten shot. Leaving my trance of fright, I dragged könig behind cover with me.

"I have a visual on target, shots fired! We need medical, Now!" I yelled into comms. As civilians ran out, I pulled my gun out, shooting whoever else came from backup on the other side. I quickly glanced at könig, applying pressure to his chest wound, "König, stay with me." I continued shooting the henchmen as I waited for backup.

After defending for a few minutes, Price, Ghost, and Soap arrived. We were still under moderate fire, so they took shots, trying to take them out one by one. I attended to könig while they defended. König's eyes flustered in and out as his blood was oozing every time he breathed. "I'm going to get you out of here; just hang on a bit longer, okay?" He groaned in agony as I lifted his arm on me and dragged him out of the mansion.

There, we saw a medical chopper with two paramedics. As they pulled out a stretcher, they picked up könig, masked him with oxygen, and put him into the chopper. I hope he's okay.

As the chopper lifted off, I ripped the bottom half of my dress, exposing my bare legs with my holsters clipped on my thighs. I ran back inside with shots still being fired and men screaming back and forth. Price signaled to follow him, and I stood behind him. As we walked, I pulled my gun out and held it tightly in my grip. My heart was racing with adrenaline as I was still in shock, but I needed to complete the mission.

We quietly went up the stairs, trying to hit them from behind as Ghost and Soap kept them occupied up front. I holstered my gun and brought out my knife as I scoped out how many men were in our sight—two on the left and three on the right. Price motioned his head to take the left as he took the right.

I moved to a cover spot behind one of the men, and at an appropriate time, I jumped over and pierced him in the neck. As his body dropped, the other henchman heard his thud and started shooting towards me. As he let gunfire ablaze, I slid onto the marble floor, took out my pistol, and shot him in the head, through and through. Blood was seeping out of his head, causing it to make a puddle behind his skull.

I stood up and hovered over the balcony, looking at Ghost. As he finished, he looked up and came across mine. His eyebrows looked as if they were relieved as they slowly went down, "Rose, where's könig?" he asked in comms. I looked down at my hands again, his blood all over.

"He uh—, g-got shot during the assault; he's with medical," I replied with a minor stutter. The aftermath left bodies lying dead around the ballroom; it was a bloodbath. Overall, the mission failed. Our target had gotten away. "All teams, Evac is on the way." Price spoke on comms.
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After being picked up by evac, we debriefed. We had to find another way of getting more Intel on Esteban and who this 'jester' was. Since we are dealing with a significant enemy, we will be lucky if we get another lead again.

I was exhausted after the mission, and it was currently 3 am. As I headed to my room, I started unclipping my gear and letting my hair loose. I removed my heels and held them as my feet were killing me. Reaching my room, I saw Ghost smoking on the terrace. I dropped my stuff in front of my door and headed towards him.

The breeze felt warm but peaceful. I stood beside him, looking at the scenery from the base. Lights from the city that was hours away but yet seemed close.

I let out a faint laugh, "Never took you as a scenery type," he took another drag of his cigarette and looked at me, "You still have a lot to learn," his voice husky but firm. "What a mission today. Didn't expect it to go the way it did." My face dropped as the gunshot echoed through my head again, replaying the very moment könig got shot.

*POW*

I then felt a soothing touch on my shoulder. Blinking out of my trance, I saw Ghost have his hand on my shoulder, softly caressing for support. He was being gentle with me. His eyes looked delicate as if he knew I was traumatized. "This line of work is never easy. After a while, it only gets somewhat harder every time," Simon spoke.

There was a stillness but a comforting feeling. I knew Simon was still upset about the whole könig situation, but he pushed his feelings aside to comfort my pain. It only made me fall in love with him more.

I shifted my body to look towards his; he took his last puff of smoke and then put out his cigarette. I gave a fragile but soft smile, "Thank you, Simon." my eyes started watering as I looked at his. His eyes widened slightly, and his eyebrows lifted. I could see the movement through his mask. I knew he had to have a soft spot for me still—the kiss we had meant something.

I softly put out my hand to hold his, "I will wait for you." a tear shed down my cheek, and I let go of his hand gently. I walked towards my room and glanced back to the terrace; he was standing there as if he were wordless. I picked up my stuff and headed inside my room.

Finally, it was time to rest.