Reaching for her laptop on her side, Hyoyeon started to access her account on the Hollows. It was good to see that she can access it again. She started browsing over files and names of people, especially the two ones she had just recently met. The file shows that Himchan is the group’s shooter and Eunji is the dealer. But then, after meeting the two, she came up with new conclusions on what does that two really does.

She started to look for Nickhun and Baekho’s files, but the info was very much outdated. ‘Someone needs to update this freaking website. We are lagging behind already,’ she thought and logged off. She checked her phone and dialed her brother’s number.

**********

“Where are you going?” Kyungsoo asked Lay just as he was about to get out of the door.

“Min Ah called,” comes his short reply.

“You had been going out more frequently than the usual. Is that what you call a fling?” the shorter one asked.

Lay turned around, looking irritated, which is new for him, “Look, I have no time to argue with you about the thing between me and Min Ah. All I want is just to meet her so she won’t pester Hyoyeon.”

Kyungsoo was just left gaping at him after he disappeared on the door.

‘Pester Hyoyeon?’Kyungsoo thought as he moves to get to the kitchen where Chen is waiting.

“What was that?” he asked the wide eyed man.

“Is there something going on between Hyoyeon and Min Ah?” Kyungsoo asked and took the opposite seat in front of Chen.

“What do you mean? One of them is biual?” Chen asked in confusion.

“That’s not what I mean, I mean, why would Min Ah pester Hyoyeon if Lay does not come on their dates?”

Chen looked at Kyungsoo, as if asking him the same question.

“APPA!” Kyle and Kirby ran up to get to the two followed by Sooyoung and Kris, the latter holding up Summer.

“Where have you been?” Kyungsoo asked the twins.

“Appa, we went to grandma’s house! They gave us presents and baked us cakes too!” Kyle chirped happily, showing the new shoes he is wearing.

“What did they give Summer?” Chen asked Kirby.

The couple had settled down beside Kyungsoo.

“They gave her a new dress but Mommy said she will wear it tomorrow and not today,” the little boy replied.

Summer yawned, reaching for her mother. “I’ll bring her up, I think she needs to take her afternoon nap,” Sooyoung said and reached for the little girl. Before leaving the table, she bent down and kissed her husband which made the two male roll their eyes from the gesture of affection. The twins followed their mother.

“So what are you two talking about?” Kris asked.

“We were just discussing what Lay had said before he left,” Chen replied.

“He left again?” Kris asked in disbelief.

“Yeah, and he has too or else Min Ah will ‘pester’ Hyoyeon,” Kyungsoo replied with actions of quotations.

“You know what; something is off from that Min Ah. I don’t think she is just some normal worker. She looks like someone who does double works,” Kris crossed his arms and leaned on his chair.

“What do you mean?” the two asked in unison.

“I saw her talking to one of the members of the Hollows,” he replied.

“Hollows?” Kyungsoo asked, not quite getting the idea, “Is that a group of some sort?” he added.

Chen had to roll his eyes from the naivety of their friend. Instead of explaining he prompted Kris to continue.

“Where did you saw them?” he asked the taller one.

“Just right before we came back today. I saw them on one of those small stop-over shops. The twins had been wailing on drinks so Sooyoung asked me to pick up something for them. Hyuna seems to be instructing something from the way Min Ah nods,” Kris narrated.

“But they might be friends or some sort too,” Chen replied.

“Maybe,” Kris casually reached for Kyungsoo’s drink, taking it in one gulp.

Kyungsoo was just left to look back and forth the two, not really getting what they are talking about.

**********

Mister Li had just finished his meal, wiping off the imaginary crumbs from his lips.

“So what do you have?”

A female of about Hyoyeon’s age but with a fiercer look stepped forward to hand a black folder. Her black trench coat reaches just below her knees with that stylish get-up on her brunette head with blond streaks.

Mister Li scanned briefly scanned on the details.

“The girl is very good in distracting him and keeping him off from the Hollow’s Apple. I have just learned that the Twin Trouble hired her to look after the guy. If you would allow then I could talk to the two and meet the lady so we can just let her do the job. I’ll just help Amber in looking over the progress of the mission and track down the Reaper as well,” the lady bowed after relating the details.

Mister Li placed down the folder on the table, “No Chaerin, continue with what you are doing. But since we have someone to ask for whatever that man is doing, I want you to look over my son’s wife and their children. The game about him and his mother regarding me is not yet over,” he said, looking at the stolen caption of a small family of five, leaving a restaurant.

“I want him to come over and crawl for forgiveness once I set the plan for his family,” he added, crumpling one of the pictures.

“Sir, here is the report regarding the Apple,” Amber handed another folder. He scanned it again.

“She had lost the first battle and from what I can see, she is lagging as of the moment on the second mission. Looks like she will be finally off after the third round. The Twin Trouble is helping the Reaper secretly and the said person is quicker in deducing things. If my calculations are right, he had finished labeling three of them and is down in tracking the last member for the second mission.”

“Just continue watching over the Apple. Don’t underestimate her. She may look distracted but trust me; she is much more dangerous than what you already know.”

Right after delivering their report the two finally left Mister Li alone. He has things to do now that his father had left and his so-called biological son didn’t even bother to visit during the wake.

**********

The sun had left the sky leaving the moon and the stars to reign again. Hyoyeon had been wandering endlessly, right after failing in contacting her brother. She even tried to call her younger sister, but she won’t pick up. She just stayed on her car and soon left to walk around and think over things. She did not notice the time.

She took up her dinner on the same restaurant, the one which was originally owned by Fei but is now managed by Luna.

After dinner, she started walking on the nearby premises, watching how the people and the vehicles go on and moves on wherever they are going into. With everything getting tangled in her head, she finally finds herself looking at the same alleyway where Lay had cornered her years ago which left a deeper scar in her heart.

 But something caught her eyes which made her move inside the alleyway. There are some people talking just right after the pile of trashes and boxes in front of her. She used the pile as a cover and peeked to check whoever those people are.

“We will close the deal right after we get the goods,” one of the man said, the one with his back on her.

Hyoyeon recognizes Nickhun, “No, we will close it today then we will deliver it.”

Baekho is just silently watching them from where he stands, a few feet away from Nickhun.

There were some exchange of words and some more bickering. She tried to move even more closely when she accidentally trips a bottle with half consumed soda. Its rolling sound echoed on the silent alleyway as the group looked at her direction.

“There she is!” one of the guys pointed which made her curse her luck.

‘ this day!’ she thought then started running away from them.

It was a long way as she finally hears some gunshots behind her. She can’t use her gun since she left it on her car. All she has to do is to lead them away. She moved among the crowd, going on the flow’s opposite direction. She turned and saw more than ten men in black running after her, others cursing when they bumped on people.

‘This is really bad!” she thought as she turns to an intersection leading them on the highway. The sidewalks have fewer people walking home. She cannot turn around to get to her car because the men running after her will surely catch up on her. She willed her legs to run with all her power when a black car zoomed past her, stopping ahead of her. It honked and a voice called her, “Hyo! Get in!”

She recognized Luna so she immediately jumped to get inside the car. As Luna started her car again, series of gunshots followed, some even cracking the mirror of the car. She stepped on the accelerator and drives faster even before the men could follow them.