[CONTENTID1]re:scue[/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2]Chapter 17[/CONTENTID2]

[CONTENTID3]

This situation was unlike any other Baekhyun had ever been confronted with. The stakes were too high to allow himself even the smallest mistake. He had been on edge ever since they had lost Soojin, and even as they closed in on her presumed location, he couldn’t calm down. Thanks to the tracking device hidden in Soojin’s phone—thank God she had it in her pocket when she had been taken—Baekhyun and his team had found Eunwoo’s safe house. The phone hadn’t changed its position in about an hour, so Baekhyun was convinced that this was the place they were looking for. It was on the edge of a residential area, but the houses in the vicinity were up for sale and seemed deserted.

Taemin had notified the local police since the agents would team up with them to make sure none of the criminals would escape. The strategy was for the agents to sneak into the building first and rescue Soojin. Then, the police would move in and take care of the rest. If everything went according to plan, Baekhyun would be reunited with Soojin in a short time. Baekhyun’s team members had received specific orders from him for this part of the mission. Just like before, Mark and Taeyong would be the team’s eyes and ears; they used a drone to survey the area from above. Jongin, Taemin, Ten, and Jeno on the other hand would join Baekhyun and break into the building with him. They had already confirmed that Eunwoo was inside, so there was no reason to delay their mission any further.

The group lay in wait behind bushes and a barbed wire fence that surrounded the property. A few windows of the house were lit up and the sound of music and voices reached them. The people inside seemed busy partying and were unlikely to notice the special agents, but Baekhyun took no chances. He waited until Mark and Taeyong had confirmed that the coast was clear. Only then did he give the order to move.

“We’re starting,” he muttered and slipped through an opening in the fence that they had cut moments ago. The five agents stealthily moved through the dark backyard, getting closer to the house. The ground was littered with junk; old furniture, scrapped cars, and even building materials had been dumped here.

The agents’ earpieces clicked. “Check the window to your right. Can you open it from outside?” Taeyong asked.

“Should be easy,” Jongin whispered after assessing the window for a moment. Jongin and Taemin made quick work of it and opened it in the span of a minute, climbing through it. Jeno, Ten, and Baekhyun followed. The room they found themselves in reeked of cigarette smoke and , but it was empty.

“She’s not in here. We’re moving on,” Baekhyun told Taeyong and Mark.

“I’m placing my bets on the basement,” Jongin muttered—he, like everyone else, disliked the idea of their team member being locked up like a criminal, possibly with severe injuries from the car accident.

“Me too. We should look for a staircase,” Jeno whispered and pointed at the door opposite the window. It was closed, so Baekhyun cracked it open, peering through the gap. The hallway was dark and empty, but faint noises reached Baekhyun’s ears from a room further away. Whatever Eunwoo and his people were doing, they had no clue they were in the process of being raided. And Baekhyun planned on keeping it that way. They would quietly rescue Soojin and then let the police arrest the criminals.

He was about to step into the hallway but froze when he heard a clicking sound. A door nearby was opened and light flooded the hallway as a man appeared and moved in the agents’ direction. Baekhyun confirmed that he was alone, separated from the other criminals—this would be a perfect chance to strike… However, Baekhyun also had the option to let him pass by without a confrontation—attacking him might alert the other criminals to the agents’ presence. It was risky, so Baekhyun waited for the man to come closer, his body tensing up. He observed the stranger as if he was a snake fixated on its next prey. The man briefly turned his head, light illuminating his features.

Baekhyun saw red. He recognized the man from Soojin’s description—it was Eunwoo himself. Baekhyun’s rage boiled over and took control of his actions. He left his hiding spot and grabbed Eunwoo by the neck before he had a chance to scream. Eunwoo’s body got slammed against the wall with so much force that he couldn’t breathe for a few heartbeats. His eyes widened, meeting Baekhyun’s vengeful gaze.

Quickly adapting to the leader’s rash actions, Jongin followed and raised his gun to Eunwoo’s temple. “Scream and you’re dead,” the agent threatened. “Do what I tell you and I’ll leave your brain where it belongs.” Eunwoo gritted his teeth while he assessed the four intruders that assembled next to Baekhyun. He didn’t recognize any of them.

“Where is Eunji?” Baekhyun hissed, and when he did not receive an immediate answer, his hand grabbed Eunwoo’s neck like a vice, cutting off his air supply for a few seconds. “Tell me!”

Realization lit up the criminal’s eyes after he took a closer look at Baekhyun’s clothing. “You’re not working for the police, are you? Don’t tell me you’re special agents. I had no idea the Secret Service got involved...”

“If you don’t answer my question in five seconds, I will end you.” Baekhyun’s glare and ruthless tone of voice left no doubts about his intentions. He was dead serious, and he would act on his words if Eunwoo wouldn’t cooperate. This man’s life wasn’t worth a dime; he was merely an obstacle that needed to be removed. Anyone who got in between Baekhyun and his partner would have to pay a high price.

Eunwoo swallowed, his thoughts racing. He knew that the agent was capable of killing him, and there was no way to escape while he was held at gunpoint and surrounded. A bead of sweat trickled down his temple as he weighed his options. “She’s in the basement,” he ultimately answered.

Baekhyun searched his face for any sign of a lie, but he found nothing. His gaze briefly met Jongin’s. The agent rammed his gun against Eunwoo’s head, and he lost consciousness. Nobody cared enough to catch him when he fell, so he collapsed on the ground at their feet.

“Tie him up, Jongin, and guard him in the room over there until we’re done. We don’t have much time until the others will notice his absence,” Baekhyun ordered.

Jongin grabbed the unconscious Eunwoo and dragged him into a room. Then, he shut the door, leaving no traces of his presence. Meanwhile, Jeno, Ten, and Taemin followed Baekhyun through the dark hallway. They found the stairway and reached the basement where they encountered several doors, but only one of them was locked. Taemin skillfully broke the lock and opened the door. The agents entered a bleak room without furniture and only one small window. Their flashlights illuminated the darkness and allowed them to see a body laying on the floor, dressed in a neon-colored top and black skirt. Soojin.

“It’s her,” Jeno whispered. “We found her!”

Taeyong and Mark heaved an audible sigh of relief when they heard this, and Taemin immediately contacted the police so that their plan could move into its second round. “We located the hostage and caught the main target. You can move in,” he spoke in his earpiece. “Send the paramedics to the basement after the house has been cleared.”

Baekhyun didn’t pay attention to his team members—he was already kneeling on the ground, carefully brushing her hair out of her face. Her body was in terrible shape. The way her leg was bent could only mean one thing, and the dried blood on her temple showed that she had hit her head very hard. What if she had a concussion? Her bruises were barely visible due to the amount of ash on her skin. She was in a worse condition than he had thought…

“Soojin,” he said, touching her cool cheek. “Wake up. Can you hear me? You need to wake up!”

Something warm touched her cheek. A familiar voice spoke close to her ear—it belonged to her partner. Not even her dreadful headache could stop her from recognizing it. However, Baekhyun’s voice didn’t sound as calm and soothing as she would have liked. It was distorted, dripping with urgency and fear, unsettling her further—her pulse began to race. Why was he so agitated?

She willed her heavy eyelids to open. Soojin blinked and gazed at a blurry face. A flashlight illuminated her small prison, allowing her to see the handsome features of her partner above her. Indeed, it was Baekhyun—and she also discovered Jeno, Ten, and Taemin behind him, guarding the door. She heard distant shouting, the sounds of a fight, and an occasional gunshot. The building seemed to be in the process of being raided.

“You’re awake,” Baekhyun sighed. The tenseness in his muscles eased a little. “Soojin, can you hear me?”

“Yes,” she mumbled, and then it finally dawned on her. He was here. She wasn’t dreaming, he was really here! How was this possible? Not even a day had passed since her accident, had it? He really was incredible at his job…

Baekhyun gently turned her on her back and removed his jacket, spreading it over her shivering body like a blanket. “Can you tell me where you’re injured? Where does it hurt the most?”

She pointed at her ribcage, her head, and her leg. “My ankle is either sprained or broken,” she whispered. “I can’t feel it at all.”

“I see,” he frowned, taking her bruised hand. “Don’t worry, Soo, we’ll get it fixed in no time. The paramedics are almost here. They’ll take you to