The Elusive Sniper

Don Corleone was fuming, his eyes blazing with fury surveyed the wrecked poker den. Santino's lifeless form was a brutal testament to the attackers' skill.

"Find 'em! I want their damn heads for this!" he bellowed, the veins in his neck bulging.

Just then his phone buzzed. Corleone grabbed it roughly. "Hey, Lord V. Yeah, we lost the package, but trust me, we'll nab those intruders and get your stacks back," he promised, trying to sound confident amidst the chaos.

There was this awkward pause on the line. Lord Vicenzo was probably enjoying his cigar while tuning into the Don's rant. "I had my eyes on that place. Nico's got this unmistakable vibe, even under all that makeup. I know his bag of tricks. He placed his compass rightly, maybe a slip-up from your crew!" Lord Vicenzo's voice finally chimed in, cutting through the tension. "

"And for the stacks forget them, a father's riches are a son's too." Lord Vicenzo dropped a bombshell.

Corleone squeezed his eyes shut, cursing under his breath. "Ah, damn it! Gonna have to school Nico a bit about picking his fights. That punk had stuck his nose where it didn't belong... ''Don Corleone's words dripped with anger, but before he could finish, Lord Vicenzo dropped a bombshell: "Oh can it," Lord V snapped. "You can replace your lap dogs anytime. But Nico's my blood," his tone, icy.

Corleone tensed. "But Lord V, he took out my best man! Santino was like family-" Corleone reminded him, hoping for some leniency.

But Lord Vicenzo was stone-cold serious: "Now hold on," Lord V said sharply. That 'punk' is my son. You even look at him the wrong way, you'll answer to me. Men come and go, but sons... they're a whole different ball game. Clear your mess and keep Nico outta your trouble".

The tension hung thick in the air as the Don realized he was treading on dangerous ground with Lord Vicenzo.

"Are we clear?" Lord Vicenzo demanded.

Corleone's jaw tightened, but he knew better than to defy Lord V. "Yeah. Crystal," he bit out.

"Alright, let's talk shop. We've been playing cloak and dagger with Lord Vito for some heavy-duty arms. Made it seem like it's your deal. Talking serious firepower here, military-grade stuff. Don't screw this up. Set up the deal and get those weapons to the drop point," Lord Vicenzo's instructions dripped with authority and crystal-clear expectations.

"Got it, Lord V," Don Corleone acknowledged, trying to keep things cool despite the tension.

The line went dead. Corleone glared at the phone. For now, he'd let it go. But Nico would pay eventually, Lord V be damned. The kid had signed his own death warrant.

Their computer blared, rudely interrupting their post-midnight fun sleep.

Vixen stirred awake, the morning sun filtering into their forest hideaway. She glanced over at Nico, sprawled out naked beside her.

"Rise and shine, lover boy," she said with a grin. "We've got work to do."

Nico sat up groggily. "Ugh...what the scoop, Vix?" He said with his eyes lingering on Vixen's irresistible nakedness yet observing Vixen's focused demeanor

Vixen snapped into action, diving into intel and tactical city maps she'd printed out.

"I've been tracking every nugget from Don Corleone's encrypted calls. There's this big deal going down at some abandoned warehouse in the sticks. It's between him and my old man, Lord Vito. Loads of cash for some top-notch weapons, like the military-grade big dogs!" Vixen's eyes remained glued to the map.

"We need those weapons; prep is our armor," Nico stressed jumping out of bed now, his tone heavy with the gravity of their situation.

"I won't be caught off guard," she declared, her words laced with a vow of payback.

In their dim sanctuary, tension crackled as Vixen and Nico readied themselves. "Tomorrow at dawn, some abandoned warehouse on the outskirts." Vixen announces their destination from the computer that just beeped

Nico's gaze locked onto Vixen, a silent agreement on her unwavering determination. "Then dawn's the time; our window to grab those weapons," Nico voiced, his words carrying the weight of their shared mission for revenge.

Vixen met his fiery gaze and grinned. "Let's go crash ourselves a party babe."

The minutes crawled by as Vixen and Nico waited hidden near the warehouse for the deal to start. Felt like time was standing damn still.

Finally, Corleone and his thugs rolled in, followed closely by Vito's muscle led by Guiseppe (AKA The Brains).

Vixen tensed, gripping her gun. This was it. Time to crash this party.

She and Nico crept closer under the cover of shadows. The air was thick with tension as Corleone's crew faced off with Vito's men in the dim warehouse.

Then - BOOM! - an explosion ripped through the place, sending wood flying and smoke billowing out from some hidden spot. Chaos exploded, yells and gunshots ringing out towards the hidden spot.

Immediately, like a tornado, up on a nearby building, a dark figure with a sniper rifle took aim, picking targets with scary accuracy.

Lining up the first shot, crack! Don Corleone grabbed his chest and collapsed. Crack! Guiseppe hit the ground.

The place erupted into panic. The sniper kept picking off targets from above, unseen.

Vixen and Nico ducked behind cover, back to back. Weapons up.

"Shit, what the hell's happening?" Vixen whispered.

"No clue, just stay hidden," Nico muttered back.

Down below, everyone scrambled for cover, not knowing where the shots were coming from. The sniper was like a ghost, leaving everyone guessing why the heck they were doing this.

Trust flew out the window, replaced by suspicion among the survivors. Who was hitting them from the shadows?

Vixen's eyes narrowed, assessing the situation. Looked like their job just got messed up.

"Don't let that sniper slip away! Find the sucker!" Corleone yelled, clutching his bleeding heart behind a truck. His eyes darted around desperately for any sign of the shooter, while he hunkered behind cover, bleeding obviously.

Vito's men looked around wildly too, freaked out by the sudden loss of Guiseppe.

"This ain't us," one of Vito's lieutenants said. "They're targeting both sides here."

Tension was thick in the warehouse as the sniper kept picking people off methodically from the shadows.

Suddenly Guiseppe, who'd played dead, jumped up and made a break for it. "Wrap this up, boys! Back to base, pronto!" he barked, making a beeline for his car, as he drove off like a mad dog.

A heavy quiet settled in, only broken by the fading echoes of gunfire. The sniper, their work done, disappeared like a ghost into the night.

The whole scene was a mix of devastation and suspicion, as everyone began scrambling for escape.

Vixen peeked out from her hiding spot, eyes narrowed. "What the hell just happened?"