They were about to run to the staircase when they heard a familiar feminine voice saying, “Mr. Jo. You are such an embarrassment.”

Yena and Hitomi looked at each other, wondering why that person was there. They turned back and peeked through the small space between the door and the door hinge to confirm their guesses.

The familiar voice continued, “Did you seriously think you’ll be able to run away with our money like that?”

“Nobody lives after breaking a Jang’s trust.”

Yena and Hitomi were left speechless and their mouths dropped to the ground when they saw who was talking.

Jang Wonyoung.

“Crazy Kim, you know what to do.”

It happened quickly. A couple of thuds and crashes followed by a soft chuckle and the sound of footsteps leaving the room. The temporary silence was quickly replaced by a scream loud enough for the two con artists to feel the pain of its source. The scream turned into a series of muffled groans coupled with an eerie feminine laugh that they assumed to be from someone named Crazy Kim. Then, everything went silent.

*END FLASHBACK*

Yuri could not believe what she just heard from Hitomi. She knew that there was something fishy with her father’s death. She had always known deep in her heart that her father’s death was not a suicide, which was what was written in the police report. Little did she know that it was Wonyoung, her most trusted friend and confidante, that ordered to have her father killed. She didn’t even know how to react; there were just too many facts that had blindsided her that night that she just wanted to curl up and cry.

“Why—Why didn’t Yena tell me all of this? She knew about the pain I had been carrying about my father’s death. Why did she keep quiet about all this?” Yuri couldn’t hold back her tears anymore as she asked these questions. It had been two years since the two of them formally met, three if you count the stalker-ish behavior Yena was doing during the con, but Yena didn’t say a word during those nights when Yuri cried her heart out because she missed her father so much. Yena had all the answers, but none were given to Yuri until now.

“If Yena-unnie told you about it, she would have had to tell you that she was a con artist. Not only a common con artist, but the con artist who masterminded the con that got your father killed and almost framed for it. Tell me, how would that make you feel?” Hitomi’s face was now expressionless, trying hard to hold back her tears and to be strong for her crew leader’s girlfriend, who was breaking down.

 Yuri was stunned by what Hitomi said. Her father’s death was the reason she hated con artists with a passion, and she always talked about them whenever they get brought up in conversations, which might have hurt Yena even more. However, Yena did not react violently when she bashed con artists in front of her.

Hitomi continued with her voice almost breaking, “She knew you hated con artists with a passion, so she didn’t say anything about it. After your father died, we tried our best to counter the frame up job that Jang Wonyoung was planning to do with your father. It would have landed you in so much trouble if that happened. Wonyoung would have transferred the responsibility to you, and you wouldn’t have been able to debut and pursue your dreams.”

“Then, was it you who wrote the note that said my father did not steal anything?” asked Yuri.

“It was Yena. Yena is an excellent forger, and having read a lot of documents with your father’s handwriting in it, she was able to forge your father’s handwriting. Yena was very determined to not let your father take the fall for what we did. She was so determined that…

She picked you over me.”

FLASHBACK

“Now that you’ve planted the note, what’s next?” Hitomi asked Yena. They were gathered in their headquarters. The table had been surrounded by half-filled boxes and files were scattered all over the place. They had been unpacking to move out and away from the headquarters and each other, a standard procedure for when a con ends. When they learned about what happened to the PA of Jang Taeho and how he was still free to roam around, they immediately stopped packing and gathered for an emergency meeting.

“Why do we even care about this? If anything, this leaves us unscathed. We didn’t get all the money, but we did get more than what we expected. What are we still doing here?” interrupted Nako, who had a look of frustration on her face. Sakura and Chaeyeon nodded to concur with what Nako said.’

“An innocent man died because of us, Nako. His daughter’s life will be ruined if Jang Wonyoung’s plan succeeds. Are you really alright with that?” asked Yena.

Nako did not say another word. She slowly sat back down and stared back at Yena. Confused, Sakura tugged at Chaeyeon’s shirt as she sat down, as if she was telling the thief to do the same.

“Yena, I know you’re invested in this because you care about Mr. Jo’s daughter, but we can only do so much for her without getting our asses caught,” said Chaeyeon. She had a worry line on her forehead indicating the sincerity of her intentions. “If you have a plan, we’ll support you. But you can’t ask us to return the money because not everyone shares your selflessness towards this girl.”

Yena put her head on her hands in frustration. She didn’t know what to do at this point. Jang Wonyoung, as young as she was, was a genius. Wonyoung was able to keep her family’s honor by using Mr. Jo as a sacrificial lamb and at the same time, play the victim card to get public sympathy.

Chaeyeon continued, “I am NOT goi