"V got raided."

Ara groaned, desperately hoping that she had misheard. The look on Rap Monster's face assured her that she hadn't. ". When?"

"Last night. There was an attack during his deal. We lost men. The other side lost men. The deal didn't get made."

Ara closed her eyes, taking one slow breath and then another. "Did we lose anyone important?"

Rap Monster shook his head. "Only a few rookies that were either too lazy or too incompetent to wear their vests. The rest are fine--a few bumps and bruises here and there, but nothing serious."

"That's good. I assume V is trying to get the deal back?"

"Not really..." Rap Monster let his voice trail off.

Ara narrowed her eyes, catching Rap Monster's hesitation. It wasn't often that her partner sounded worried. If he was worried now, it meant that there was something seriously wrong.

"RapMon, what do you mean not really?"

The man gazed at her for a few moments, his eyes slightly frantic, before looking down with a huff as he ran his hands through has platinum blonde hair. "V said the deal looked like a setup. The men the other side lost were jumpy throughout the entire meeting, and didn't seem to know how to fight when the attack happened." He paused for a minute, as if considering his next words. Then he continued. "The man V was trying to make the deal with didn't show his face. He wore a mask the entire time."

Ara stiffened. "A mask? That's incredibly rude."

"V thought the same. But when he asked the other side's representative to take it off the man refused, with the excuse that he was sick. V says he got shifty after that"

"This isn't good," Ara moaned. "What about Jin?"

"He's fine. Suga too."

"And J-hope?"

"Still on vacation. Last I heard he was in California, learning how to surf."

"Call him and tell him to get his back here. We need to meet up. Get Jin and Suga too. I need to talk to V."

Rap Monster nodded, knowing better than to ask why. Ara would explain it when the other guys arrived. Until then, she would stay quiet, like always, carefully amending her idea until it transformed into a foolproof plan.

*ring ring* *ring*

"J-hope here! Who are you and how the hell did you get this number?"

"It's Rap Mon. Vacation's over. Get your on a plane and back to Korea."

"What!? Why?"

"We got raided."

"We always get raided."

"We think this one might have been a set up."

"So?"

"So what?"

"So why do you want me back?"

"I don't want you back you . If it were me, I'd leave you in California."

"Then why call?"

"Because Ara wants you."

"Oh."

"Yeah. Oh."

"I'll leave tonight."

"Good."

"I won't have a ride when I get back."

"I'll pick you up at the airport."

"Okay... By the way, I'm not in California."