“Oh my holy god.” Jeongyeon’s eyes widened. “This is…This is so beautiful…Did you spend all your fortune on it!?”

“A simple ‘Thank you’ would suffice.” Nayeon rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t hold the smile on her lips either.

“T-Thank you…” Jeongyeon swallowed, gripping the silver bracelet in her palm. “I love it, bunny. This is the best gift I’ve ever received.”

“You won’t lose it, right? You’re kind of careless sometimes…”

“I promise that will never happen. Never. I’ll have it with me anytime, anywhere…I’ll cherish it more than my life.”

“Yah! Don’t say such words!”

“They are inside, I’ve checked.”

BamBam said the moment they got out of the car. “I also asked the uniforms to guard outside three main entrances. Unless they can fly, there’s no way they can get out.”

“How long did it take you to drive here?”

“About 20 minutes. Why?”

“They had time to escape, but they didn’t…no, he never planned to leave. Miss Im led us to here and it was not part of his plan, he was pissed off…but not because he didn’t want us to find him. He didn’t want us to find him that fast.”

“Why he needed those times then?”

Taecyeon stared at the old parking lot, trying to figure things out. Interns’ training court, place that relates to the bureau…

Luring attentions, hostage, violence…

“He’s fascinating…He’s recreating the scene from four years ago, only the cruise is changed into training court, but everything else is similar.”

“Recreating? There are…”

BamBam’s words halted halfway, everybody tensed when recalling that case. Even if some of them joined after it, they knew exactly what had happened four years ago.

“Bomb. He needed the time to set the bomb…Bombs. Get the officers out of there, we need SWAT and Bomb Disposal Unit now!”

By the time Jihyo ran through several red lights and arrived to the training court, the tactical team just started to deploy. She rushed over with all the devices she brought from the bureau.

“Both Northeast and southeast corners are detected positive, tell the SWAT there to enlarge the blockades. No one takes the next move until we order.”

“Sir.”

The disposal unit captain called Taecyeon. “The director is on the line.”

“Mr. Show-off-at-every-crisis.”

Yugyeom murmured and even though the others super agreed with him, none of them had the mood to echo.

“What’s the situation now?” Jihyo pulled out her laptop and asked Tzuyu.

“A mess. Ha Minwoo knows this parking lot well, snipers are in positions but they can’t even spot them, not to mention to have any clear shots. And even if we manage to dash in, who knows whether we would catch him before he detonates.”

“How many bombs did you find?”

“Two on the court, and there should be more inside the parking lot. He might not have the time to blow all of us up once we reach the gate, but he has to prevent us from going in.”

So Nayeon is there, injured…with two psychopaths and unknown number of bombs.

“Where is Yoo Jeongyeon? I mean Ryu…”

“She’s in that car.” Tzuyu gestured the car behind. Jihyo turned and was about to head to it, but Taecyeon walking over with a solemn look stopped her.

“Is everything alright, sir?”

“The director ordered a full tactical assault.”

“He does know there are bombs, doesn’t he?”

“He didn’t ask us to break through.” Taecyeon looked away. “The most notorious killer in recent years has trapped himself inside. Since there are bombs, why don’t we take the initiative and become the first to detonate?”

“W-What…?” The agents’ eyes could not be wider. “The hostage means nothing? The damages afterwards are nonexistent? What’s the problem with him!?”

“We are gonna violate this order, right?”

“Of course we are.” Taecyeon’s brows furrowed. “But how long we are able to do that? Right now, they won’t come out, we can’t get in, it’s a deadlock. If we can’t have progress which shuts the director up, he might take over me and take away the command.”

“…So what’s our best option now? Talk to them? Convince Shin Minseok to stop being so obedient? Is there even a chance to have a talk?”

“There is.”

They all turned to where the voice came from. Jeongyeon had stepped out the car since nobody noticed when, her hands were undoing the shoulder strap gun holster on her.

“I’m going in.”

Jihyo thought her body was going to explode without the bombs couple yards from them. “What do you think you’re doing?” She grabbed Jeongyeon’s wrist. “You? Going in? You want him to put a bullet in your head or blast you into pieces!? We can’t send him another hostage, not to mention it’s you!”

“Jihyo’s right. You’re in, you might never come out. Don’t let your anger and guilt trip manipulate you.”

“I am angry and I do feel that guilt trip, but I’m not insane, Taecyeon oppa.”

Jeongyeon used her other hand that was not gripped by Jihyo to undo the spare gun on her ankle. “This is my responsibility. He…He and I, we started this. So now only we can end everything.”

“Stop joking.” Jihyo muttered between her gritted teeth. “How are you planning to end this? Burn yourself down again with him?”

Jeongyeon gazed at her friend for a short while and turned to Taecyeon. “He’s waiting for me, you know that.” She’s also waiting for me. “He wants me to go in and see what I have done to him…and what his has done to me. So many people are gone because of me…”

“This is not just a war between you.”

“But I am the most possible turning point!” All everybody could give her was silence. “We don’t have much time. Either he blows up the whole court and causes more casualties, either we blow them up and still destroy here…or send me in, I’ll try to minimize the damages.” And bring her back.

“What makes you so sure he won’t detonate once you walk in?”

“I have some times before it, I know that.”

From the way Taecyeon looked, he was not hundred percent convinced, but he wouldn’t object either.

“What do you have in mind?”

Jeongyeon unloaded her gun and took the bullets out.

“He thinks he knows this place, and I know no less than him. I gonna try my luck. And our techniques.”

A pair of hands were pushing her. It hurt like hell. Faint talks and hot exhales were near her ear, Nayeon wanted to dodge, but the only body part she was able to move was her fingertips.

Coldness streamed down her nose and mouth, making her choke and cough. The pain spread up from her feet to her head, her eyes slowly opened, and the first thing she saw was the mask man’s none-eyelid eyes. He was kneeling right next to her, staring at her with a bottle in his hand.

“I have to ask you to stay focus.” Ha Minwoo said. “In order to do that, you should stop spitting out the water. You need it.”

He put the bottle on her lower lip and tilted. Swallowing was hard for Nayeon and he practically poured the remaining liquid in , she choked again and coughed out most of the water with blood mixing. Her body was aching worse.

“Tsk, never mind.” Minwoo brushed his glove on his coat, wiping off the splashed water drops. “At least you’re conscious. Oh, by the way,”

Nayeon felt his hand reached under her and tapped something. “I strongly suggest you not to get up…Oops, as if you can do that. My bad.”

He rolled the water bottle to the corner, used his foot to sweep away some glass shards and sat down on her left. Nayeon’s vision was blurry, but she could see more clearly than she had woken up.

The place she was lying at looked much like the previous. Few cars and vans, stacked boxes, the smell of dust and rust. It was another storey of the parking lot. She spotted the stairs not far from her, she also saw the corner of the broken window on the top of it.

“Yeah, we are at the second floor now. You fell from the third and I shifted you for couple meters.” Minwoo chuckled. “When I was an intern, the first thing I noticed when I sneaked in here was these stairs. They are particularly high. It was good for physical training though, we had run up and down for like a hundred times. What I said was, WE. Me, Jeongyeon, Jinyoung and Mark. I kinda miss those old days. ”

Nayeon felt the sting as he traced his fingers on her jaw and the side of her neck, picking out some glasses from her wounds. She could move her head, just a little, and her wrists, also a little. The rest of her body parts stayed numb on the cold ground.

“Hey, I warned you, don’t move. If it’s hurting you, you should stop.”

A smirk appeared from behind the mask on those distorted lips. “You are a fighter, aren’t you? Your story must be interesting.” Minwoo switched to a more relaxing posture. “Tell me about it. You know, it’s a good way to kill some times.”

Noticing the breathless girl had no intention to speak, he shrugged.

“Fine, I’ll ask and you just answer. When was the first time you met Ryu Jaehee? When you…saw that face you thought belonged to a stranger?”

Minwoo pressed his palm on Nayeon’s waist, pain immediately rushed up as there was a broken rib. Nayeon flinched.

“B-Banquet…” She breathed out between her trembling lips and he reduced some pressure.

“On a banquet? Ah, I see, your husband was an enterprise. Attending a banquet was quite normal. So um…When did you first realize she might be that same person you’ve loved for so many years? And what did she do to make you have this thought?” He touched a bigger piece of shard in the cut on her thigh.

“…Press conference. S-She tried to…protect…me.”

“Oh, my guess is she succeeded? Did you confront her right there?”

Nayeon’s eyes yet not drifted to his hand and a tearing-like pain . He pulled out the shard, ripping her wound, more blood soon damped her jeans and the floor under her.

“Sorry, I have to keep you conscious and talking. Besides…you wouldn’t be in this status if it wasn’t your Jeongyeonnie, so blame her.”

He moved to her left arm this time, which she had fallen on first when being pushed down the stairs. It was half pressed under her body with a large piece of swelling and bruised skin.

“Did you confront her or not?”

“N-No…”

“Why?”

“I thought ah…I…mistook…”

“I understand.” Minwoo nodded as if he had the same experience. “I couldn’t believe my own eyes when I first saw her too. Everyone chooses to believe a reasonable fantasy instead of a bloody truth, happens all the time right? But there’s one thing I’ve been curious and always want to ask you about. If Ryu Jaehee didn’t receive good helps, if she looked like me today…” Thought of taking off his mask had flown by, but in the end he withdrew it. “Would you try to find out if she is really Yoo Jeongyeon? Would you be happy that she’s actually alive? Would you still love her…like you used to and like you do now?”

Fury cropped up when the girl on the floor just shot him a glare. “Why aren’t you answering, can’t speak? Or you don’t dare to speak!?”

His fist rose in midair when Shin Minseok called out, “Hyung,” he turned, a tablet was shoved in his sight. “She’s coming.”

“Ah, finally.” He smirked to Nayeon. “We’re both expecting her, aren’t we?”

Nayeon gulped hard, eyes couldn’t control but locked on the footage that was playing on the tablet.

Jeongyeon was coming. She was coming because of her. They would be in the same danger with an unforeseeable ending.

As a technician and a backup, Jihyo disliked to watch her teammates—her partner, risking her life on the field while she could only listen from the earpieces or watch from the pinholes. As a mutual who knew everything, she hated to let her buddy ran directly to the hurricane to pull her best friend out while herself, still had to stay behind.

“Why aren’t you carrying your gun?” Jihyo crossed her arms like she was picking a fight.

“They have the upper hand, I will be unarmed once I’m inside. And I’m not there to start a shootout.”

“Then why are you holding those bullets? What’s the use of them if you don’t have a gun!?”

“Jihyo.” Jeongyeon called and she swallowed when their eyes met. “I know I look stupid and reckless, but right now…I really need you to trust me.”

She’s scared too. She’s the least one would want this to become a tragedy, like the prophe…

“Who said I don’t trust you? It’s them I don’t trust.” Jihyo grabbed a vest over, shaking off the fear in her head. “Can’t you at least put this on?”

“…Nayeon doesn’t have it. She didn’t even have a chance to protect herself.”

Jihyo’s hands dropped in defeat. “My bug. You can refuse any other equipment, but not this.” Jeongyeon let her paste the mini tapping device at the back of her ear, covering it with her hair. “I’ll be there with you like always.”

“I-I know you will.” Her left hand reached to her right wrist. “And Jihyo, I want you to keep…”

“No.” Jihyo didn’t give her a chance to unhook the bracelet. “Keep it yourself and come back with it.”

“Whenever you’re ready, Jeongyeon.” Taecyeon walked closer, the concern in his eyes was visible. “You sure you want to do this?”

Jeongyeon simply nodded. She then looked at Tzuyu who kept silence behind her, the latter nodded back, her forearms and knees had wrapped with plastic cloths.

“See you later.”

Jihyo watched her partner walk past the gate and step on the court. She watched her wait for few seconds while Taecyeon talked through speakers about sending agent in, she watched her start walking again with both her hands in the air. Jeongyeon passed by the vacant teaching building and the small gym, it didn’t take long for her to stop in front of the parking lot, where they could barely see her now.

“I’m ready too, Jihyo unnie.”

Tzuyu had tied her hair to a ponytail and unlike Jeongyeon, the bulletproof vest and two guns were all on her.

“You memorized the locations?”

“Yes.”

“You have the diagram with you?”

“In my back pocket.”

“…Ok.” Jihyo handed her an earphone. “Don’t forget this. Be careful, kid.”

Tzuyu’s figure shuttled between the officers and cars and the last time Jihyo spotted her was around the outer wall at the northwest corner. She looked up, Yugyeom crouched on the rooftop across the street, with a submachine gun in his hold. She looked back at her laptop, the signals never ceased transmitting.

The battle had started.

The closer Jeongyeon got to the driveway, the more her stomach twitched, the less she