“Hello” The voice chimed brightly.

Min Ah groaned as an excessive pain radiated from the back of her head. Her eyes were shut tightly as she tried to remember what had caused all this pain. She tried to think back, but could only come up with blanks. Had she been out drinking? If so, it had better be worth it because this was the hangover of a lifetime she thought glumly as she tried to touch her head only to find her movement was restricted. She frowned as she finally found the strength to open her eyes slightly. The lights were dim which helped, but at the same time she found herself wondering why she was staring at a pair of black shoes and a dark brown carpeted floor.

There was a panicked and frantic thought nagging at the back of her mind, but she couldn’t get to it yet. She was just so confused at the moment. The carpet had a foul stench that made her breath a little shallower so that she wouldn’t keep inhaling it. She finally glanced up, even though her instincts wanted to protect her by keeping her gaze low. Her eyes traveled up the black suit until they landed on the face that had probably been the last thing all those women in those files saw.

Fear washed over her and wrapped itself all around her, there wasn’t a corner that was left untouched. Her eyes opened fully and she quickly tried to look at the hands she had tied behind her back. She tried to forcefully pull them apart despite the fact that she knew that the cold metal of the handcuffs would never give. Her feet too, failed to move this time trapped in layers of duct tape. She blinked a few times trying to gather herself. Why was she here? She thought back to the burned home and the fireman. Min Ah mentally kicked herself for following him, but she had never thought it would end like this.

“I said hello” He said, his voice taking an edge of annoyance as he lightly kicked the side of her face with the tip of his shoe.

“... Why am I here?” She asked trying to sound calm.

“You’re here for playing such a dangerous game” He said with an arrogant smile, “Messing with two men at the same time? You must think of yourself as some hot stuff right? Especially two men who have been actively trying to kill themselves too!” He lowered himself besides her and grabbed a piece of her hair in his hands.

She stifled the cry that built up in as she jerked backwards as best as she could.

“Don’t touch me!” She snapped and he smirked.

“What are you doing?” A sharp voice said from the entranceway. Park Min Guk walked in as he shot his son a reproachful glare, “I told you not to come in here Min Jun” He said towards his son.

“Sorry I’ll get out of your way dad” He said before leaning in a couple inches, “I can’t wait to find out what’s so special about you” He whispered in Min Ah’s ear quickly as he stood up and she felt her stomach twist in on itself. Dozens of grotesque images flickered past in her head and she decided she would rather kill herself than leave herself at that man’s mercy.

Min Guk waited until his son left before closing the door behind him and nearing Min Ah. She kept her eyes fixed on the carpet as she tried to think of a way out of this. So far there was absolutely nothing in her mind aside from the fear she felt.

“You must be worried. Don’t be. I’ll make sure my son doesn’t kill you so long as everyone involved cooperates” He said and Min Ah was not appeased. There are some things worse than death she thought quietly.

“What do you want from me?” She asked.

“You can’t give me anything. What I want comes from the two men you’ve got wrapped around your little fingers” He said, contempt and disgust in his voice and she almost laughed at the irony.

“The two men I’ve got wrapped around my finger? Ha, I’ve always been clear about my intentions and you’re out of luck because one of them is long gone. He’s disappeared from your reach” She said, unable to help the trickle of pride that came with her words.

“A disguised as a law enforcer.  Isn’t that hilarious? I’m making it a race! Let’s see who can protect you the best. It's actually one of my better ideas. I didn't believe my son at first when he swore he had seen you before back in China so I put surveillance on you merely to humor him and what would you know? You've been a busy woman" Min Guk said with a frigid voice, "Do any of them know that you've been lying? I assume Kris does, but I'd bet my life your boss doesn't"

"What do you want from them?" She asked.

"That's none of your business. You're simply the pawn in the trade. Nothing more"

Min Ah kept shut and merely resorted to shooting him a dirty look. He had been following her? She tried to recall any specific signs, but couldn't come up with anything concrete. She wanted to kick herself, she hadn't been careful enough. There had been no indications that she should worry about this end though. Min Guk stared at her and she took the moment to study him in return. Just like they had thought he was the complete opposite of his son. Whereas his son was impulsive and reckless, Park Min Guk was intelligent and strategic. If she was alive there was a very specific reason why and she had no clue whether that reason would keep her alive much longer.

"Even if you get what you want... you're going to kill me aren't you?" She asked suddenly, the questions surprising herself because she hadn't particular been wanting to think about that.

He seemed to think it over a moment before answering, "Of course"

Min Ah felt her wrists instinctively jerk at the metal and the soft sound put a smile on that man's face as he watched with a sense of bored interest. He nodded to himself as if he was done with her, which in a way he was, and walked towards the door. Min Ah was only able to get a quick look at the room before the lights were shut off and the door closed with a slam. She stifled the small gasp that had almost escaped as she strained to see and instead heard a lock sliding into place. She didn't scream, she knew that was the first thing he would have covered. Either the room was soundproof or no one would be able to hear anyways. It would be a waste of breath.

She tried to get her eyes to ease into the darkness. She wasn't making much process so she tried to instead remember the little bit of the room that she could. It looked like a basement but smaller. There was a workbench in front of her full of tools, no windows, and who knew what was behind her? She hadn't had time to look. Arching her back, she tried to touch her ankles with her hands to at least free her feet, but even before she did it she knew she'd never be able to tear away all that duct tape. She remembered the tools and wondered if she could reach them?

That was it, that was her glimmer of hope she realized with relief. It wasn't over.

She was about to move forward when she heard the lock make a noise again. Min Guk walked back in and flipped on the lights. He met her gaze with one that made her paranoid that he might've been able to read her mind. Without a word he walked over to her and she noticed the metal chain jingling in his hand. He grabbed her hair roughly and dragged her back a few feet. The force pulled at her scalp and she could taste blood in from biting her lip to keep from screaming. Quickly he turned her and pulled out a metal collar. She looked up at him in disbelief before he moved out of the way and there was no doubt in her mind it was a deliberate method to show her the second half of the room. It was longer, but that's not what she noticed first. No, it was the mass on the table feet away from her. There were long dark hairs hanging out from under the white sheet over it.

Min Ah felt that stomach churning sensation once more and didn't bother to ask why she needed a collar. It wouldn't change anything and at the end he would still be playing games with her. Leaving her alone was only to give her the illusion that she had hopes of escaping if she was clever enough. He wanted her to know that he could crush that in a minute. She would have bet anything that this room belonged to his son. Min Guk smirked as he saw realization strike the girl as he fastened on the metal collar before she had time to react. He clipped the end of the chain to a hanger that his son had installed to the pole in the middle of the room and without another word he turned the lights back off and locked the door behind him.

After what must've been a full hour Min Ah finally managed to sit herself up. She carefully backed up to the pole in the center of the room and put her back against it. She wondered who the girl was as she stared into the pitch black darkness. Wu Fan was gone so she had no choice, but to rely on Myungsoo. Did he know she was gone yet? A wave of despair suddenly swept over her. If he knew about Wu Fan would he still try to save her? If this man told him... would he just leave her here? She looked in the direction of the mass and felt her chest tightening. She didn't want to die, she hadn't even really begun to live. This wasn't how her life was supposed to end she thought desperately as her chest tightened. She frantically started to try to pull her wrists apart. Metal cut into her skin as she grit her teeth and tried to part her legs free. Her mind spun, she wasn't ready, she couldn't die, she was terrified. Jerking forward, the collar choked her as she pulled on it with her neck. Tears welled up in her eyes and she fought to breathe in the dark room with the stench of torture and death.

Myungsoo had to come she repeated in her mind as tears spilled over and her movements became fiercer with no results. Exhausted, she collapsed back as her chest shuddered with the gasping breaths she took. She couldn't end up like that girl she thought miserably. She absolutely wouldn't.

~~~~~~

She had her eyes closed when the door opened next. She felt like she had been here days, but it could have been hours. The lights flickered on and it burned as she desperately tried to adjust to the change once more. Min Guk's son walked in calmly, his expression was different. It was concentrated and at peace as he hummed an upbeat tune. She watched him wearily as he took in her red eyes and tear stricken face. A small smile played at the edges of his lips as he double checked the door was closed and went to his workbench. She watched him hold up various instruments that she could almost match up to the injuries she had seen on the women.

He met her eyes each and every time, wanting to make sure she was paying full attention. It was his show of power and she was aware that she was not to make a sound. Seeing as how her options were limited she stayed quiet. Her body froze as he inspected his last instrument and unlocked the wheels on the bottom of the workbench. With a rickety noise he pushed it to the table and Min Ah tried to calm herself. If she died like this and if anything like a ghost existed she would pour all her hatred for this man into coming back and haunting him for the rest of his miserable life.

"They're not for you" He said suddenly and she blinked because she didn't understand and then, she did.

The girl on the table wasn't dead she realized with horror. She had been heavily sedated, but she wasn't dead. At once she knew what was going to happen. She shut her eyes tightly and looked at the ground. Steps approached her.

"Open your eyes and watch" He said slowly. When she didn't reply he got closer and gave her a firm slap on the face, "WATCH!" He screamed.

Min Ah refused. His face contorted into something ugly as he stomped back, picked up something and like lightening made a cut in her arm. Her sleeves protected her and the cut was superficial, but it got her to look up.

"Watch the whole thing or I'm skipping her and going straight for you" He hissed, "Be lucky I hate wasting. You have until she finally dies" He said calmly.

Her head pounded loudly and her blood rushed as she watched him begin.

3 hours later, Min Ah thought that the screaming would never end after the girl had been brought out of her sedation. In front of her lay the remains of her own stomach content after she had thrown up and tasted disgusting as she tried to forget what she had just seen. She watched as the girl was sedated once more and as if nothing had happened he threw the sheet over her once more. He washed his instruments carefully before walking past her without even sparing her a glance.

"When you pray that this girl lives, you should at least be honest that it's only because you don't want to be in her place" He said as he came to Min Ah and took a few steps back, "Almost forgot" He murmured to himself as he pulled out a phone from his pocket and took a photograph of her before walking out. For the first time Min Ah would have given anything for him to at least shut the lights off.

Only when he was done did she leaned forward and gagged. Nothing came out and she let out a soft cry as she leaned back and slowly let her eyes go back to the girl. She could still picture the desperate look in the girl's eyes as she had made eye contact with Min Ah. Deep in that woman's eyes there had also been resignation and pity because she knew what awaited Min Ah once she finally died. A drop of blood hung from the end of the table and fell down with a splat. Min Ah slowly shifted to the side and tried to move forward. She knew it was useless, but if that girl could wake up even just a little they might both be able to escape. She extended her body as much as she could, the collar digging painfully into her neck before she gave up. She was too far away.

"Hey! Wake up!" Min Ah said in a loud voice, not quite a scream but something that should be able to wake up someone.

She watched intently and her breath caught as a finger twitched from underneath the sheet. Her excitement was wasted because the girl never woke up or moved again. It must've been a lone automatic movement and once again Min Ah was back to step one except now her nerves were going haywire.

~~~~~~

Myungsoo laid in bed and stared blankly at the ceiling above his bed. He hadn't seen Min Ah in four days and he was worried. The last anyone heard of her she was working on the Min Guk case and she had gone out to see the burned house of Min Guk's ex-wife. Past that there was nothing. Only a few men reported seeing her on the site, but by the time the rest of them had arrived there was no trace of her. He had tried calling her and going to her house, but there had been no reply. His initial thought was that she had been ignoring him because he had pulled her off the EXO case, but as it stretched into the third day and she hadn't even showed up to work genuine worry had blossomed.

There was no sudden vacation request, no contact whatsoever. Because of that he had the flu support of his team when he requested Min Ah's phone to be traced down through GPS. It went against a few privacy laws, but the main concern was finding her. That proved to be useless because her phone had been shut off. They made calls and combed the last place she had been at and even though it was a burned down house there were still business around and people that might've seen something.

The worry turned more severe when earlier today, the fourth day of her disappearance, her car had popped up. It had been completely stripped of parts and left in some wreck yard, but the registration number matched the records so it was without a doubt hers. The search became an official missing persons investigation of the highest priority because it was one of them and because Myungsoo would tolerate no slacking on this. Until she was found no one would take a moment of relaxation.

As the day wore on he became more agitated as simple commands were barked out and it was then that Dongwoo had intervened. The talk was way out of line from an employee to his boss, but he made his point. Sleep deprived, Myungsoo was no help. So he had come to his apartment to sleep. He had laid down at midnight and had only fallen asleep at 4am and now it was 6 am so two hours would have to be enough. He blinked as he sat up, that technically made this her 5th day missing he realized with dread. He knew all the statistics and as he took a shower and got dressed ready to return to work he went over them. After the first 24 hours the chances of finding her were basically shot to hell, but that wouldn't stop him he said making up his mind as he opened the front door.

On the way down he passed the doorman to his building who promptly stopped him, "Mr. Kim!" The man called out waving an envelope in his hand.

"What is it?" He asked.

"I forgot to hand this to you last night! Someone dropped this letter off for you two days ago" The man said apologetically as he handed Myungsoo the letter.

Myungsoo shot him a glare and muttered a quick thanks as he stepped out and went to his car. It was only when he had taken a seat inside that he paused and held up the letter. It only had his name written on it and he opened it. Two things came out. A letter and a photograph. He didn't read the letter as he stared at the photograph in shock. He slowly and mechanically opened the letter and scanned its contents once then one more time to make sure he had gotten everything right. His hand trembled, something that never happened to him, as he placed the letter and photograph back into the envelope.

He pulled out his cell phone and dialed Woohyun's number.

"Are you coming in yet?"

"I need you to get everyone together in our conference room right now. I'll be there in 15 minutes. In the mean time gather everything on Min Ah's disappearance and bring it with you. Don't leave anything behind, say it's a direct order from me" Myungsoo said as he quickly got onto the road.

"What's wrong? What's happening?"

"I need you to just listen to me and do what you're told. I'll explain everything when I come in. Most of all, pretend everything is fine to everyone else. If they ask about the case just laugh it off. I'll see you soon" He said and with that hung up the phone.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

Will update once more tonight! I'm devoting the last of my winter break to relaxing and writing this fic especially since it's getting colder and colder outside!

Thanks for reading!