It was a moonless night when Kangin first met Leeteuk.

To say that the Park family was near bankruptcy was an understatement. Ever since the Don’s late wife had died, the once-powerful Family had begun their descent to ruin. Rumors had it that the late wife had died in childbirth, although considering the world they lived in, it was more possible that she had actually been murdered. Not long after the incident, the Don Park began to withdraw from public eyes. He locked himself in his mansion, refusing to come out. All business transaction was handled by his Consigliere. But since the Consigliere himself was not a master in business deals, the Park Family quickly found themselves in a huge debt. The old noble clan could barely cover their expenses, let alone protect their territory. Neighboring families began to take over the Park’s Family territory little by little and the Kim family was no exception. A larger piece of land was always nice, and the Parks were never in good terms with the Kims after all. Still, the Don did nothing but stayed in his mansion.

Kangin cocked the gun he was holding, dark eyes watching the peaceful scenery ahead. The night was quiet and serene, betraying no indication at all that there soon would be an assault which most likely would end in bloodshed. Crouching at the rear of a tall Romanian statue, he sneaked a glance behind and saw Heechul and Hangeng, both using the thick bushes nearby as a cover. Heechul waved at him cheerfully, seemingly unconcerned that they were in the middle of full assault while Hangeng was carefully scanning the area. Shaking his head, Kangin turned his attention back to the double door ahead.

He knew that this assault would be a breeze (as Yesung had kindly pointed out for the nth time that afternoon), but Kangin yearned for action. Being locked up in his mansion for two weeks had nearly killed him out of boredom—Siwon could be very convincing when he said that there was some paperwork of business deals which needed to be taken care of immediately. Finally, when Kyuhyun informed him that they were ready to take on Park’s family land once and for all, Kangin decided that he had done enough pencil pushing for a lifetime and insisted on leading the attack.

“Boss.” The device in his earpiece received a transmission of Ryeowook’s clear voice. “There are only about five guards hiding behind the main door. It should be easy for you to tackle.”

“I’ll go,” Yesung’s voice interjected. “You stay behind, Boss.”

Kangin grumbled, “I thought I was the Boss.”

“In normal circumstances, yes,” Kyuhyun interrupted. “Do I need to repeat again that this is an overrated mission? Heechul and Hangeng alone should be able to take this Family down. These guys don’t have much left and they won’t stand a chance.”

Ignoring the background sound of Heechul making approving noises, Kangin muttered, “Yeah yeah, I heard you. Because I wanted to go, that means Siwon, Yesung, Ryeowook and you need to come as well, making sure that I would come home safely so that you all can tuck me in bed like a ing five-year-old.”

He could almost saw Kyuhyun’s smirk as the youngest replied, “Sorry, I don’t tuck anybody in except Siwon, Boss.”

“Kyuhyun,” Hangeng reprimanded (around the same time as Siwon let out a horrified screech of ”Kyuhyun!”), “shut the up and give me directions.”

“Go around the corner, hyung. Both you and Heechul-hyung will go through the back door. You should see some stairs and go to the second floor. Please clear the area once you’ve arrived,” Ryeowook’s voice interrupted them, effectively ending any forthcoming argument. Both Kyuhyun and Kangin grumbled but stayed quiet nonetheless.

“Okay, let’s start moving. I’m going in now,” said Yesung.

Rushing into a sprint, the second front-liner kicked the double door open and immediately shot the two surprised guards. Siwon readily came up behind him and shot the other two. Another shot was heard and it informed him that Kangin had killed the last guard. “Clear,” confirmed Kyuhyun via the transmitter.

Kangin looked at the five bodies lying on the floor, blood pooling around them. Their faces were pale and their eyes lifeless, a clear sign that they were now dead. Not bothering to wait any longer, he made his way towards the main foyer.

Heechul’s voice came through. “Boss, we’re in the second floor now. The Park Family’s Consigliere was the only one here and he has been taken care of.”

From behind, Siwon murmured, “That’s strange. Either this is a trap or they’re just that weak.”

“I agree. Wookie, can you scan the area for body heat?” Yesung replied.

“Hold on.” One minute later, Ryeowook spoke again, “There are two heat sources in the library. That’s the fourth door to your left, hyung. I think one of these two should be the Don. There’s nobody else here, and we have secured all exits from the area. They can’t escape.”

Kangin thought for a moment and decided with a nod to Yesung. “Kill him.”

Replying with a nod of his own, Yesung went to the fourth door and cautiously opened it. Sure enough, a gunshot rang and someone yelled, “Boss! You have to go!”

Assured that the Don had been found, Yesung immediately broke down the door and shot the last guard of Park Family, leaving the Don standing by himself in the middle of the large room. Kangin came in, and without even a blink, he pointed his gun at the Don of his rival Family and shot him dead.

“Damn, that was fast,” Heechul’s voice came from behind him and Siwon turned, brow furrowed.

“When did you get here?”

The diva rolled his eyes, “Puh-lease. I’m a master at this and you should pay more attention to your surroundings before your old age is catching up with you.” At this, Siwon’s brow furrowed even further in a disapproving manner that Hangeng thought the Consigliere’s face would probably stay that way for the rest of his life.

Ignoring his two subordinates, Kangin looked around and whistled at how massive that room was. The Parks were known as one the most educated families and their superiority was clearly shown from the sheer amount of books kept in the huge library. Rows and rows of books neatly arranged covered almost the entire walls, and as if there wasn’t enough space, more books were stacked in an orderly manner at every corner. The only part that was not covered in books was a heavy mahogany table which stood proudly in the middle of the room with a few chairs around it.

“Ryeowook would love this,” Yesung murmured as he also looked around.

Kangin nodded and instructed, “Take every book that we don’t have. Search all the rooms for anything valuable before we blow this place down.” He then walked around the big table and accidentally knocked over a chair into the floor.

But the noise that resulted from those two colliding objects didn’t sound right; it sounded…hollow, as if there was a room underneath that table. His curiosity tickled, Kangin pushed the heavy table aside and found a small trapdoor underneath. Seeing his boss was somewhat interested, Siwon immediately motioned at Hangeng to pull up the round handheld.

A stench permeated the room and even Yesung had to wrinkle his nose a bit at that. Kangin stepped forward, crouching besides the now opened trap door. A torchlight Hangeng had handed to him revealed a small room that was too small to be inhabited. But Kangin’s sharp eyes caught a movement ahead. Directing the light over there, he heard a gasp from behind (most likely Siwon’s) and immediately understood why.

A child, no older than six years old, cowered at one corner, his thin body covered by what looked like a blanket.

Before Siwon could stop him, Kangin jumped downward, eyes scanning his surroundings. It’s a bunker, he thought. The cause of the stench was quickly obvious. A bucket had obviously been used as a privy, and was filled to an overflow. A dishpan was filled with water which could be in no way fresh and a plate bore evidence of moldy leftovers of rice. A small ventilation at one corner was the only source of oxygen, and yet it was enough to keep the inhabitant alive.

The child cringed as Kangin got closer and the older male didn’t know whether it was from the cold (for the blanket was very thin) or from fear. Then the boy lifted his head, and all Kangin could remember was how blank those brown eyes were.


End Chapter 1