Police in America

The "Baja Triceratops Gang" was clearly much better armed than the "One-Nine Gang" members. They not only had more than a dozen handguns but also several shotguns. Under the command of a bald brute, the gang members toppled several stainless steel workbenches to use as cover, setting up a standoff with Jack and his team in the back of the room.

Suddenly, gunfire erupted. Despite the three HK416s and one HK417 on Jack's side, they couldn't immediately suppress the other side. Jack managed to take down two careless guys who exposed their heads, but he was soon hit by a barrage of shotgun fire, leaving him covered in concrete dust and forced to retreat in a hurry.

"We can't waste time here; let's go in hard." He said as he unstrapped his tactical backpack and pulled out a bunch of tear gas grenades.

Before entering the prison, Hondo had sent him to the armored vehicle to replenish his 7.62mm magazines. Jack had also stuffed his backpack full of these grenades and stun grenades.

Each SWAT member had specific responsibilities, and their tactical backpack space was limited. They had to carry various essential items like crowbars and ropes. Since Jack was an additional team member and quite strong, he had taken on the role of a mobile arsenal.

Besides carrying extra 5.56 magazines for the others' HK416s, Jack filled the remaining space with low-lethality but highly useful items for CQB (Close Quarters Battle).

"Put on your masks and cover him," Deacon shouted when he saw Jack piling up tear gas grenades at his feet, quickly alerting the others.

Three HK416s fired in unison, their rapid three-round bursts forcing the enemy to keep their heads down. Jack donned his gas mask, grabbed two tear gas grenades at a time, and within three or four seconds, he had thrown six of them across the room.

It wasn't that he was being excessive; throwing fewer wouldn't have been enough to break the enemy's resistance. Because the room was filled with washing and drying machines, the prison had installed two large ventilation fans.

As the tear gas spread throughout the room, everyone's exposed skin began to sting, and the prisoners, who had no gas masks, started coughing violently.

"Reloading!" Deacon was the first to empty his magazine.

Jack, having exhausted his supply of grenades, raised his HK417 again, only to find that the enemy had completely stopped shooting.

"Move, move, move!"

Deacon reloaded and led the charge forward. The deeper they went, the stronger the burning sensation on their exposed skin became. The prisoners were coughing so hard that they could barely hold their weapons.

"Drop your weapons and raise your hands!" The voice from behind the gas masks was muffled, but under the threat of the guns, even the fiercest thugs turned into obedient lambs.

Deacon and Jack kept their guns trained on the thugs, ready in case any of them tried to put up a last stand. Chris and Street opened the side door leading to the corridor and dragged out several guys who had collapsed and were on the verge of coughing their lungs out, preventing them from suffocating to death inside.

The room's ventilation fans hummed as they gradually cleared the choking smoke. Nearly twenty tattooed thugs, stripped of their bulletproof vests, sat shirtless against the wall. The eight construction workers, who had been rescued earlier, were called back by Chris to help tie up the prisoners.

Deacon checked each construction worker's identity, making sure no one was hiding among them. He also took out a photo of Moco Hernández but found no matching face. Frustrated, he checked the bodies on the ground, but still found nothing. He then kicked one of the red-eyed prisoners and asked, "Where's your boss? Did he ditch you and run?"

The prisoner, struggling to catch his breath, didn't reply. Instead, he tilted his head toward a makeshift toilet in the corner of the room.

"Bang!"

Almost simultaneously, the toilet door was kicked open, and a hulking "bear of a man" stormed out, dripping water from a towel draped over his head. It was none other than Moco Hernández, the leader of the "Baja Triceratops Gang."

"Get down, Moco Hernández! Get on the ground, big guy." Street and Chris both aimed their guns at him.

Although Hernández raised his hands, his eyes gleamed with menace as he continued to approach step by step. Street pulled off his gas mask and shouted, "Last warning! Get down now!"

Hernández snorted, seemingly mocking or provoking them, then angrily flung the wet towel from his head to the side. He raised his hands again and motioned for the group to come and get him.

The message was clear: if you've got the guts, come and take me down.

"If you guys are going in, I'll cover you from the back," Jack said, quickly backing down with a look of disgust. The small space had nothing but a toilet and no visible water source, so it was clear where the water on that towel had come from.

"Thanks, Jack," Chris rolled her eyes, then glanced at Deacon. "Can't we just shoot him, Sergeant?"

Deacon sighed and slung his gun over his shoulder. "Let's just get it over with. Hondo needs us on the other side."

"After you, ladies first?" Street cheekily gestured to Chris to go ahead.

"You're dead when we get back, Street," Chris snapped, giving him a scornful look before charging forward with a shout.

In a flurry of grunts and thuds, fists and bodies collided. With Street acting as a human shield and taking two heavy punches for Chris, the three of them finally managed to wrestle the nearly 280-pound giant to the ground. Jack stood by, helpfully offering a pair of extra-large handcuffs.

"Command, Zone B is secure. Send in the cleanup crew. We're heading to assist Hondo now."

While Deacon was reporting in over the radio, Jack was on another channel, talking to Rossi and Hannah.

"That's the situation. We didn't find Hotchner or Reid in Zones A or B, so they're most likely in Zone D."

Rossi sighed on the other end and reminded Jack to stay safe.

"Hannah, you might want to notify your 'friend' over at Channel 8 News in Los Angeles. I found some material here that she might find very interesting."

Maybe it was because of his bad mood from being woken up, but Jack was feeling particularly vengeful today and wanted to settle the score immediately.

"Roger that. JJ and Emily are taking statements from that guard named Terry. A few other guards are also willing to testify. That contractor, Ash Jones, still doesn't know what's coming. He's been sitting in the command vehicle the whole time."

Hannah didn't waste time giving Jack repeated instructions. Having teamed up with him on several occasions, she knew this was just a small situation for him.

Jack's team had easily secured Zone B, but when they rushed over to Zone C to meet up, they found Hondo looking worried and frowning.

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