Chanyeol had no idea what to expect upon landing in San Jose. The warm night air hit his face as the doors of the jet opened, bringing him out of his slumber. He had done nothing but eat, sleep (at least try to) and small talk with Baekhyun. Right now, he was actually looking forward to going back to work, anything would be better than facing Baekhyun.

                After their little tipsy make-out incident, Chanyeol debated between avoiding Baekhyun or pretending it never happened. He messaged Jongin about it, who said the stupidest thing he could do right now was avoid Baekhyun. He didn’t actually give a proper answer to his question, he was too busy bragging about how he had asked Kyungsoo out and they were going on their first mission together.

                Luckily Baekhyun was an expert in pretending nothing happened, which was terribly unsettling. He spoke more carefully and tended to drifting off midway in a conversation. He kept calling and talking to Kyungsoo about something which Chanyeol couldn’t hear (he did try eavesdropping, but that was rude). Acting-Like-Nothing-Happened Baekhyun was worse than Regular Baekhyun, which also meant he wasn’t that much of an expert at acting like nothing happened.

                When they landed, Baekhyun became all giddy and excited again. The two P.I.E Agents that were supposed to meet them, Jungkook and Taehyung, were some of Baekhyun’s closest friends. They were waiting at the foot of the jet steps when the door opened and Baekhyun almost flew down to greet them.

                “Tae!! Kookie!!!”

                “Baekhyun hyung!” the two junior spies were enveloped in his hug. Chanyeol was frankly a little too jetlagged to even see anything and he nearly slipped down the steps.

                “Guys, this is Detective Park Chanyeol. He’s our client this time.” Baekhyun introduced Chanyeol, who had just arrived at the bottom.

                “Nice to meet you. Are you a private investigator or with the police?” Jungkook asked, shaking his hand.

                “I’m with the police. South Korean Police Force.”

                “Woah,” Taehyung’s eyes widen. “What’s an actual cop doing here?”

                “He needs help with a very intricate case that the police force doesn’t want to pick up. I sent you the case files didn’t I?”

                “You did but you didn’t mention anything about the client being a member of the police force.”

                “Do you guys keep your client’s profile anonymous?” Chanyeol asked as they made their way through the airport. He watched as Taehyung took their immigration papers and headed into an office. In rapid fire Spanish, the immigration officer glanced at them before stamping their papers.

                “Yeah. Standard operating procedure.” Baekhyun explained. “Our clients prefer animosity and it’s our job to provide that.”

                “This way guys.” Taehyun gestured with his arm as they followed him out of the airport. It was about 2am in the night in San Jose. Back in South Korea it would have been almost 4 o clock and Chanyeol can’t help but begin to wonder how Kyungsoo and Kai were holding up.

                “You can’t do much now. Let’s get you guys in the hotel and in a couple of hours we can get some work done. I suggest you guys sleep to combat the jetlag.”

                “Do we have to? We did nothing but sleep and eat on the plane.” Baekhyun groaned.

                “You’re gonna need every ounce of energy to work later in the morning. The earthquake you mentioned occurred in Limon, which is about 300km outside of San Jose. However it’s also a very popular tourist destination so I can tell you you’re not going to find what you need. We need to head to the national archives where everything is stored and we can also check the hospital records of the hospital The Dame and her family were in.” Jungkook explained. “Plus your partner here still looks extremely haggard. Are you sure all you did was sleep?”

                “I can’t sleep on planes. I at that.” Chanyeol just sighed out. It was too early to do anything, and without WiFi he couldn’t contact Jongin either, and quite honestly the jet lag was getting to him. He could feel a searing headache coming up and he just felt so tired and useless.

                Jungkook and Taehyun put them up in a hotel not too far from the centre of San Jose. The duo mentioned that their nightclub and bar was just around the corner. “You guys should at least come visit the hottest spot in San Jose before you return.” Jungkook laughed.

                “Yeah, and maybe Baekhyun hyung can sing again. Like what you did in Manhattan?” Chanyeol did not ask about Manhattan. He had no strength to. Baekhyun chuckled at Taehyung’s words.

                “We’ll talk about it when the time comes.” He yawned, barely keeping his head still.

                Chanyeol popped in two painkillers and shrugged himself out of his own clothing. Baekhyun had already fallen on the bed, making soft wheezing noises as he sang himself to sleep. He really didn’t think he needed any, but the bed was so warm and inviting that sleep became the best option here. Jungkook and Taehyung were helping them with their luggage. Chanyeol muttered a thanks of some sort before falling down on the bed and finally entering proper slumber.

                “Do you think we should tell them that they are sleeping on the same bed?” Taehyung whispered.

                “I thought Kyungsoo told us not to say a word. He said it was vital that we book a shared bed for them.” Jungkook pulled out his phone and snapped a few pictures for Kyungsoo. “I can see why though. They look so cute together like this.”

                “So not a word?”

                “Nah, doubt they would notice.” The two young agents sniggered and left the room.

*******************

                “I love my juniors.” Kyungsoo laughed at the pictures Jungkook sent. Baekhyun and Chanyeol had fallen asleep on the same bed, both fully clothed and clearly too exhausted to even take off their shoes.

                “If this is your idea of a prank then it’s kinda lame though.” Jongin shook his head, taking the car around the corner. Wu Sehun’s mansion was just a few feet away.

                “It’s not a prank, it’s a favour I’m doing for my dear best friend, who may or may not flip me off when he finds out.” Kyungsoo laughed. “I just wish he would get over it.”

                “Over what?”

                “It’s a long story.”

                “I like long stories.”

                “We don’t have time.”

                “I’ll just drive around the block a few more times until we finish the story. Sehun and Luhan can wait.”

                “KIM JONGIN!”

                “Fine.” Jongin sighed as they pulled up the Wu driveway. He wasn’t all too worried about interviewing high profile people because that was what he used to do (when he had a job) but Kyungsoo seemed a little panicky. Jongin guessed that it had something to do with Luhan.

                “Ready?”

                “Let’s just get it over with.” He sighed. A butler let them in and directed them to the garden outside. Luhan was drinking his favourite coffee under the shade of the pagoda by the outdoor pool while Sehun was playing with the family’s large Golden Retriever.

                “There you guys are!” Luhan got up and hugged Kyungsoo straight away. “Jongin right?” he asked, knitting his eyebrows together.

                “Right.” Jongin smiled, taking in Luhan’s form. Young, well built, impeccably dressed, not surprising considering he married a billionaire, soft features, looks much younger than his age, rather feminine appearance. His handshake tells otherwise. Strong and firm.

                Sehun appeared with the dog’s leash in hand. “Nice to meet you. You must be Luhan’s ex-colleagues I presume.” Stoic, handsome, well built and tall. Pretty nice .

                “They are working on your mother’s case and they wanted to know if it was appropriate to ask a few questions regarding her.” Luhan explained, hooking an arm around Sehun’s. Sehun simply nodded and motioned for them to sit down at the pagoda, his dog now in the hands of one of their staff.

                “First call of order we need to confirm your alibi on the day of the crime. Where were you when the incident occurred?” Jongin asked, taking out his notebook.

                “Luhan and I had arrived Jongdae’s place around 7.30p.m. Before that we were at home getting ready. I didn’t get off work until 5.00p.m that day.”

                “Did you meet or have any contact with your mother that day?” Jongin continued.

                “The last time I spoke to her was about two days before that. She was talking to me about Jongdae’s party.” Sehun crossed his legs and looked over at Luhan. “I only saw her in the morning. She came to have a meeting about having a charity auction to raise funds for the Nepalese earthquake victims. That was around 9.00a.m.”

                “What time did the meeting end? And was she behaving strangely?”

                “It lasted only about an hour, and she didn’t behave any differently from how she usually is.” Luhan shrugged. “After that she said she had a visit to make at the university so she left.”

                “And that was all you saw of her that day?” Kyungsoo raised an eyebrow.

                “Yes.”

                “Your mother has been making some very heavy investments lately. Did you two know anything about her partnering with Jongdae and this earthquake model?” Jongin scribbled.

                “Everyone knew about her partnering with Jongdae.” Luhan rolled his eyes. “I can’t say we all agreed but financially it was a good choice. They were going to work together and start up another technology firm. Apparently Jongdae has been planning this for a while.”

                “He has been wanting to work with her all these years.” Kyungsoo noted.

                “Yeah. For what other reason aside business is beyond me.” Sehun deadpanned. It was clear from his tone and attitude that he was not particularly fond of Jongdae.

                “I can take it you are not on good terms with Jongdae?”

                “It’s not like we had a fight or anything, I just don’t like him.” Sehun explained. “To me, he is my sister’s husband, and that’s it. He’s a shrewd businessman and smart man, but he treated my sister terribly. I told her to get a divorce but I don’t think my mother would agree to it.”

                “We’ve been telling her to divorce the jackass but so far nothing has happened. On the surface Jongdae still treats her right but we all know that man has a roving eye.”

                “Would you go so far as to say you suspect him of having an affair with your own mother?” Jongin just plainly asked. Kyungsoo watched the couple hold their breath for a few seconds.

                “I don’t think he would do that, right?” Luhan Looked at Sehun, whose eyes shifted left and right. “I don’t know.” He breathed out softly.

                “We know that Hani has been wanting to divorce Jongdae. Is it only because of Jongdae’s attitude towards her or were they having other problems?”

                “I’m afraid we don’t know much about that. My sister was never one to share what happens in her life with anyone except my mother.” Sehun shook his head. “She did tell me she was unhappy and she wanted a divorce. She said Jongdae was unfaithful and accused him of sleeping around and plotting behind her back, but that was all. I reckoned she told our mother, but the last thing she would do is allow the divorce to happen.”

                “She worked so hard to get Jongdae and Hani together. If Hani were to divorce him, she wouldn’t be allowed to open that firm with Jongdae anymore. Can you imagine what it would be like if the business world found out that Jongdae was working with his mother-in-law despite being divorced?”

                “People would be suspicious of their relationship.” Jongin nodded.

                “Exactly. Her reputation would go down the drain, and not like it wasn’t deep enough to begin with.”Luhan sighed. “She has already glided across thin ice with lots of other prominent businessmen over the earthquake thing.”

                “About that, can you explain what that earthquake thing is?” Kyungsoo asked the biggest question they had on their minds since the investigation started.

                “It’s a model headed by Professor Jung of SNU. Supposedly by detecting the earth’s tectonic plate’s movement and heartbeat, they could predict earthquakes using data and previous history of occurring earthquakes.” Sehun explained. “My mom was the first to jump on the wagon since news of it first came out. So far they have had tons of testing modules and none of them worked.”

                “We know that she has been hitting up everyone to invest in it with her.” Jongin remembered the business reports he read.

                “Exactly. I put in 15,000 USD myself, and after the first round of testing I pulled out immediately. There was no telling how much money you could lose on that thing.” Sehun explained. “Jongdae is probably the only person who still invests. But the man is shrewd, he always puts in the minimum amount.”

                “How much is that?”

                “Only 5000 USD.” Luhan shrugged. “I can understand why she feels so strongly though, what with her being an earthquake victim herself and lost her first husband and son.”

                “So you all know about it?”

                “It’s not a secret. We all knew ever since we were born.” Sehun shrugged. “I think she still holds on to that past, even when it clearly lost her millions.”

                “How about your own relationship with your mother? From what we hear, you guys are still somewhat estranged.” Kyungsoo asked.

                “My mother and I are not estranged like my parents. It’s just we have a purely business relationship.” Sehun clarified. “We don’t talk unless it’s about business these days. I’m sure you would know by now that my mother and I disagreed when it came to my relationships. I came out to her, about the same time she knew about my dad’s relationship with his secretary. I introduced her to Luhan, saying we were going to get married and she was livid.”

                “It got so bad he moved out. We’ve been on our own ever since.”

                “Do you harbour any ill feelings towards your mother for not understanding you?”

                “I resent the fact that she has always prioritised my sister against me. She took her to fashion shows and trips to Milan and Paris while I stayed to keep Dad company. She was my sister’s number one supporter and she practically threw me to my dad. I admit that Dad spent more time with me but that was because he was training me to take over the business. That was what I was born to do from day one, take over his empire. No matter how much I resented her I would never do anything to wish her dead.” Sehun crossed his arms. “She was still my mother and she did her part.”

                “Hani would do anything to keep her mother happy.” Luhan continued. “The divorce forced the family apart. I wouldn’t be surprised if she married Jongdae just to keep her happy.”

                “Yeah but sweetie we have no proof of that. That’s just what you think.” Sehun patted Luhan’s knee.

                “And I’m usually right. Hello, did you forget where I used to work?” the table burst into a fit of laughs at Luhan’s sass. “I know a woman in love and trust me, she is not one of them.”

                “Then I guess it’s safe to say you guys wouldn’t know if she was having an affair herself?”

                “No, I don’t know if she is.” Sehun shook his head smiling. “My sister would never admit to such a thing. I don’t think she would condone to it either.”

                “You two are really adorable together.” Kyungsoo smiled. “Luhan you never told us how you guys met, and we weren’t even there for your wedding!”

                “I don’t think the President of South Korea would have enjoyed dining next to the same group of secret agents who thwarted a plot to assassinate her.” Luhan laughed. “I met Sehun on our London case.”

                “He was working as a waiter in one of the restaurants, trying to secretly tape our conversations between me and his client.” Sehun chuckled, reliving fond memories of being spied on (no matter how strange it sounded). “He spilled wine and knocked over cutlery just to get closer to us.”

                “To be honest I was just nervous. Sehun was the most handsome man I had ever seen and all I did was just trying to get his attention. I followed them to a bar where I disguised myself as a patron in the bar but he saw right through my disguise.”

                “You never forget a face like that anyways.” Sehun teased and everyone laughed.

                “Needless to say we spent hours chatting that night and we hit it off. The next day we went out together in London and I knew then and there that after the London case, I would retire my job to be with him.”

                “And you did, but why?” Kyungsoo asked.

                “It’s simple. I found what I wanted.” Luhan simply answered.

                After a few more minutes of joyful banter, and a promise that The Dame’s murderer would be caught soon, Jongin and Kyungsoo got back into their car and drove off. Jongin kept replaying the conversation in his mind and he couldn’t stop laughing. “Those two are adorable aren’t they?”

                “I know.” Kyungsoo giggled. “It was great seeing Luhan so happy. I just wish it wasn’t his mother-in-law that was murdered.”

                “I know how you feel.” Jongin squeezed Kyungsoo’s hand reassuringly and Kyungsoo smiled at the affectionate gesture. “Now I believe you owe me a story?”

                “What story?”

                “Something about Baekhyun.”

                “Oh.” Kyungsoo sighed. “It doesn’t feel right to talk about it without his permission.”

                “What is it? Did he get hurt?”

                “He’s afraid Jongin. I know it doesn’t look like it, but he’s afraid.”

                “Of what?”

                “Of getting hurt.”

                “But he’s a spy. He fights for a living and murders at an order.”

                “It’s the scars you can’t see that inflict the most pain.” Kyungsoo shook his head. Memories seemed to float through his mind, the pain painted across his beautiful face. Jongin decided not to ask anymore. He sort of knew what it was about anyways.

A/N: I'M BAAAAACK!!! Not that I have been gone too long anyways hahahahahahahaha!! The earthquake model experiment was inspired by the movie San Andreas if you guys have ever seen it before you probably would find this familiar. I do plan to have a full chapter (or at the very least a section) of this story dedicated to Baekhyun's past, because it is his past that influenced him to be who he is today, and of course, some much needed .

This case is actually very close to it's unravelling. I've already written the finale if you guys want to know, there are still some bits I need to work on, but other than that this story is definitely going in the direction I want it to be.

Thank you for all your lovely comments and thousands of curses upon the pilot (I do enjoy those, seriously) but all your responses fuel my passion for continuing the story. I love you guys!!