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Story Chapter Name: Savor the Chase
Book name : The Price of Silence
Series name: Sigil of Silence
Sequence : Book 3 of the series
Author: Zyphar Animas
Editor: Nimo Verin
Publisher: Print & Digital
Published: 2026
ISBN Ebook: 978-984-35-9353-5
ISBN paper back: 978-984-35-9368-9
Two operatives. One target.
Endless patience before the kill.
Savor the Chase
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Chris and Joseph hadn’t touched anything since Türkiye fallout. They needed a hole to vanish into—this city gave them one. Chris already had work scheduled here, so they dug in.
They’d underestimated that Spets bitch.
Paid for it.
Joseph got the worst of it.
To this day, he’s still half-convinced that girl was Darius himself. What else could explain it? They’d hit her hard—enough to crack the bone. She stood up smiling.
Chris called it paranoia. Didn’t mean he wasn’t rattled. He trusted his own force. And that kick to her ribs—It should’ve collapsed her cage. Should’ve kept her down. Instead, she tanked it.
Got up.
Grinned.
Chris didn’t say it out loud, but the thought lingered—maybe it’s time to rethink about female anatomy. Because what he saw didn’t match his experience.
The Kuala Lumpur job started simple.
Target: Hadi al-Batsh.
Electrical engineer.
Track him, find the window, take him off the map.
They picked up his scent in Penang Island. Turns out he was deep into some sultry restaurant owner—local girl.
Hooked.
Every weekend, same routine.
That was enough.
As soon as they confirmed the schedule, both their brains clicked into the same place: make it a show.
The Istanbul hit on that old fucker had been textbook creative. Clean. Untraceable. Even Rexi had no clue who did it, or how.
All the police in the world couldn’t stop it from looking like an accident. That wasn’t just style—it was necessity. Joseph would’ve been screwed otherwise.
The next Istanbul target—no such need for subtlety. No risk, no diplomacy.
She died slow.
Chris took his time. He had a thing for beautiful women—tearing them open, watching them bleed.
The kind of sickness people whispered about.
They called it a mental disorder.
Chris called them idiots.
—Go fuck yourselves, he’d say. —You think I cut for therapy? It’s called pleasure, you spineless fucks.
The Istanbul hit had gone so well, may be that why they got greedy in Cyprus.
Rushed it.
Those two prisoners? Could’ve drowned them slower. Could’ve made it count. But that wasn’t all on them.
Ludwig was supposed to handle the lawyer. Said he’d keep him busy. So when they didn’t see the guy with the others, Chris and Joseph figured Ludwig had already claimed him.
Wrong call.
Right as the fun started, gunshots lit up from outside. The lawyer, stood there, firing. What followed was a rush job. They had to shut it down fast. Exit hot. Leave the mess half-done. That’s why Cyprus ended with gaps. Too many.
And the Spets bitch? She exploited every one of them.
Rexi’s still out of reach. But management’s already pulled the plug on Istanbul.
For now, at least.
Game’s moved East.
They were told to forget Türkiye.
New region.
New focus.
So they did.
For the past week, Chris and Joseph had been tracking Hadi al-Batsh.
Every move.
Every whisper.
Even the sounds he made in bed with his girlfriend.
They had all of it.
Live.
Kidon never explain why the target needed to die. They didn’t have to. None of that mattered.
Still, Joseph being Joseph—while monitoring the guy’s phone and pillow talk, he dug deeper. Couldn’t help it.
Hadi al-Batsh was 35. A rising Palestinian electrical engineer. Born in Gaza City, came to Malaysia on a government scholarship to do a PhD in power systems and energy saving.
On weekends, he liked to escape to Penang Island. That’s where he met the girl. She wasn’t just some fling. Seemed to be the restaurant owner or maybe a shareholder.
Name: Antasia Voltava.
Joseph pulled a separate thread on her.
What came back was interesting.
Years ago, she was trafficked under a Russian cartel. Worked as a sex slave. Moved around South Asia, serving clients as assigned.
Girls like her weren’t supposed to live free. Especially not in the same city as her former masters. But here she was.
Holding hands with Hadi, strolling through Kuala Lumpur—right under the Russians’ nose. And from what they picked up in bed chatter, Hadi knew everything.
Knew about her past.
She knew about his present.
Because Hadi al-Batsh was an open Hamas supporter. No shame about it.
—Perfect couple.
Joseph muttered when Chris relayed the data.
Dry. Icy.
And yet—This same bad girl had planted the idea in Hadi’s head to go soft tonight. Suggested something different.
They were supposed to finish the job tonight. All setup was done. Entry mapped. They’d prepped to breach Hadi’s apartment. But fate flipped it.
The couple didn’t go home. They checked into a Times Square apartment instead. Short-term rental. Like a hotel.
Joseph flagged the detail—if it’s rented, it’s monitored. Likely security. Could be breached, but would it be worth the hassle?
They debated it.
Cold. Tactical.
No emotion.
In the end, they called it: one more night. If the couple didn’t return to Hadi’s apartment tomorrow, they’d execute at Times Square.
For now, they stayed in the car.
Surveillance audio piped in.
Two killers.
Sitting in the dark.
Listening to a couple make love on a rented bed.
No rush.
No guilt.
Just patience.
—*—
You have just read a Clandestine Operations Fiction chapter from The Price of Silence, the third installment of the Sigil of Silence series by Zyphar Animas. If this glimpse into the meticulous world of covert surveillance, operational patience, and deadly precision drew you in, you can continue the story by getting the complete novel from your preferred platform below.
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Story Summary
Savor the Chase is Clandestine Operations Fiction that follows Chris and Joseph as they disappear into Kuala Lumpur after the failed Cyprus operation, rebuilding their momentum through the quiet discipline of surveillance rather than immediate violence. Assigned a new target, Palestinian engineer Hadi al-Batsh, the two operatives begin a methodical observation campaign, studying routines, relationships, and vulnerabilities while waiting for the precise moment to strike.
As Clandestine Operations Fiction, the chapter reveals that the most dangerous phase of an operation often unfolds long before the first weapon is drawn. Every movement of the target is documented, every conversation analyzed, and every unexpected change in routine forces a fresh tactical calculation. For Chris and Joseph, patience is not hesitation but a weapon, allowing them to shape the mission before it reaches its final stage.
Set between Kuala Lumpur and Penang Island, the story introduces Hadi al-Batsh and Antasia Voltava, whose personal relationship unexpectedly complicates an otherwise straightforward assignment. As surveillance uncovers fragments of their lives, the chapter quietly expands beyond operational planning, revealing how ordinary human relationships become collateral within larger geopolitical conflicts that neither of them fully controls.
What distinguishes this Clandestine Operations Fiction chapter is its procedural realism. Rather than rushing toward violence, it examines the preparation behind professional covert operations—the observation, restraint, and adaptability that separate experienced operatives from impulsive killers. Chris and Joseph postpone the mission not because they lack opportunity, but because successful operations depend upon choosing the right moment rather than the first available one.
At its core, Savor the Chase is Clandestine Operations Fiction about discipline, anticipation, and the psychology of professionals who understand that the operation truly begins long before the trigger is ever pulled. By lingering in the silence before the inevitable confrontation, the chapter strengthens both the tension surrounding the coming assassination and the unsettling professionalism of the men preparing to carry it out.
Critical Review
Savor the Chase succeeds as Clandestine Operations Fiction because it understands that the most important part of an assassination is often everything that happens beforehand. Rather than rushing toward violence, the chapter allows surveillance, routine, and patience to become sources of tension, demonstrating how professional operatives shape an operation long before they execute it.
Chris and Joseph are particularly effective here because the narrative presents them at work rather than at war. Their conversations, tactical decisions, and willingness to postpone the mission reveal disciplined professionals whose greatest weapon is restraint. That measured approach makes their eventual actions feel more credible and considerably more unsettling.
Within The Price of Silence, this chapter functions as a strategic bridge. It quietly resets the narrative after the events in Cyprus, introduces the next target, and reminds readers that in the world of covert operations, silence is often the first stage of violence.
Featured Characters in this Clandestine Operations Fiction
This chapter features Chris and Joseph, the two Kidon operatives whose missions repeatedly shape the hidden conflicts throughout The Price of Silence. Savor the Chase offers a rare look at their operational discipline before violence begins, revealing the surveillance, patience, and calculated precision that define their work long before they pull a trigger. To learn more about Chris and Joseph, explore their complete character dossiers below, and discover other free chapters that follow their clandestine missions across the Sigil of Silence series.