“Joohyun…can we talk to you?” Mr. Jung asked, the moment Irene stepped inside the dining room for breakfast. The tone of his voice seemed serious that it made the younger girl curious.

What could possibly the reason for this? It might be important for her father to have this thick tension up in the morning.

Irene blinked several times before she nodded and occupied the seat across her mother. “Sure appa. Am I in trouble?” She joked but she shut when she got no playful response from the patriarch like he used to.

“Joohyun, do you personally know the girl who caused a scene at the party?”

Irene paused. Wendy?

“Yes, she’s actually~”

“Stay away from that young lady. You have to be careful Joo.” Mr. Jung said in finality, his eyes were on his plate while trying to slice the sausages. Mrs. Jung kept silent, as she sipped her coffee.

Irene could sense how tensed they were while talking to her. And she was slightly taken aback. Why would they act like this after seeing the commotion at the launch party of the Kang’s, unless…they know something about Wendy?

Her forehead creased. Do they know something about the Son’s?

“Appa, I…that person, I have to get close to her. I’m sorry but I have to go against your request this time.”

Mrs. Jung’s eyes widened in horror while the male adjacent to her stared at their daughter with disdain.

Clearly, he’s displeased with Joohyun’s decision.

“Bae Joohyun, you!” Mr. Jung was fuming as he stomped his hands on the table with a loud thud. It looked painful but he was driven by his annoyance that it didn’t bother him if it was aching. “Do you know something about that woman? For you to do this? Tell me honestly, did you make a move behind our backs?” The Jung patriarch asked with a gut feeling because he knew his daughter. For years, they’ve been watching over her and by now they were aware of the meaning of her every move.

Joohyun might have the skills at hiding her emotions but not to her love ones. They knew her so well for her to successfully cover up something beneath her unemotional being.

Irene’s jaw dropped. “H-how did y-you know? You know everything about her?”

Mr. Jung looked away, as if he was burnt by the hot gaze of Joohyun, not knowing how to continue. He fully knew that time would come and they won’t be able to hide the truth from Joohyun.

Especially now, when she’s doing her background check about Wendy.

“Appa, Eomma…please. Don’t make me discover everything the hard way. I’ve been through hell for the past years, and you…trying to hide this won’t exactly help me. You’re not protecting me, trust me. You’re just making me suffer more by not telling me the truth!” Irene’s voice rose than what she intended and she regretted it right away. She never meant to disrespect her elders. It’s just that her emotional outbursts were leading her on.

Tears began to pool around her eyes. She’s so frustrated that she can’t stop herself from getting drowned with this mental exhaustion. The moment she set foot in Korea, it’s nothing but chaotic and unnerving for her to even comprehend. And she definitely doesn’t need this kind of secrecy from her parents.

“Uncle…if you won’t tell me then fine. But I assure you, things won’t end well.” She spat and walked out of the place that made the couple exhaled a mouthful of air, troubled.

It didn’t cross their thoughts that this would even happen. They weren’t careful enough to prevent these kinds of events to even take place.

“We can’t let her experience hell again. We have to call someone to deescalate this problem before she does or we’re done for.” Mrs. Jung muttered darkly. “She called you uncle darling and it only meant one thing…if we let her deal with things, she’ll turn into someone direful. You know where we came from Yun. We can’t let that child take that path.”

Worry started to hug her like a leech, dreaded about what would happen next as she stared at the area where Joohyun left off. She sighed and looked at her husband meaningfully.

On her way to the hotel, she dialed a number with a different area code. She reached someone from internationally and with just three rings, someone picked up.

“You called, cousin. What’s up?” A feminine voice echoed inside the car since the call was on loudspeaker.

“I’ll need your help. Since, your biological parents are making it harder for me to extract information from them. They