~_____~

A theater stood erect ahead. The surrounding area was fenced up, behind it an empty area – its utilities perhaps removed for the building no longer functioned. Among the popular red bricked buildings in the area this one was built out of cemented stone. In this cold pouring rain, it appeared like a gloomy cathedral church.

Chilled down to the bones Lay stared at the structure, imagining how it might be like inside. How many men were there waiting for their arrival? Was Suho dead or alive? Who was the man speaking to them and what did he want?

The rain made everything seemed drearier than it already was, as if it was foretelling a terrible future. Again, he droned over how he had driven Suho off.

He needed to patch up his mistake.

“What are you waiting for?” Kris questioned from beside him. “Lets go get him.”

In unison, the two walked forward trying for the front door. For a second Lay feared getting inside would be another hard obstacle to pass today, but it easily opened when they pulled the door handle. It was dark inside, the only light received came through the windows. As expected, it wasn’t much due to the heavy clouds.

Emptiness loomed inside. The old red carpet reeked of abandonment and the counter stood alone in a ghost-like manner. Down the right the hallway ended where movie posters of films showing would have stood for advertising. Lay imagined plants in the corner before the turn to the longer hallway where refreshments were sold. Further down were separated sections where movies played hourly.

All was ghostly, desolate, and lonely. The darkness didn’t aid with how his nerves were becoming jittery, despite trying to remain calm and cool. In the open space around them it was obvious there wouldn’t be a surprise attack, but he always knew it was better to be on edge than to be relaxed.

Reaching toward his back he pulled out the Glock 17 assigned to him just in case he needed to fire. Kris silently moved along behind him, turning to look behind them every few seconds being the cautious team they were. As they neared the movie rooms nervousness started to ease into his system, the silence becoming louder.

They entered the first room with utmost caution to find the seats empty. Nauseas from fear he still forced himself to search the rows of seats for any clue that might lead them to Suho.

There was none.   

Quickly exiting the movie room they started into the next and the next and the next until all rooms had been searched. Feeling more lighthearted he and Kris paced the hallway, both lost and confused.

“You don’t think he lied to us?” Kris worried.

The air was stuffy and warm, none of which helped to drive away the cold glued to his clothes. Lay wiped invisible sweat off his forehead and looked around.

“I’ll kill him if he did.” Lay muttered.

Today was too long. What time was it?

“The basement.”

Lay immediately turned to look at Kris who he’d been slightly ignoring. His eyes widened at what he’d never thought of.

“In a small place like this, there’s always got to be a basement,” Kris continued turning after him.

“If not, there’s always a room…or a employee room,” Lay’s eyes grew bigger.

Running back down the hallway toward the refreshment stand, Lay paced around it in search of a door marked Employees Only. They discovered it a hall down from the bathroom and retaining his excitement pulled the door open. This time the hall loomed with complete darkness, a complete disadvantage to them.

Lay patted his pockets for his phone and asked, “Do you have your phone on you? Does it have a flashlight app?”

“I left mine in the car,” Kris said.

Clamping his eyes shut frustration Lay heaved a sigh. “I left mine behind too.”

He was starting to lean toward implementing a new policy into their teams; to allow one or more persons to carry a phone on them at all times in the case of an emergency. The greatest example to support the new policy was when Namjoo got shot down and they’d been without a phone. Promising to keep it in mind Lay bit his tongue and took a breath.

“Keep on lookout. We don’t know who’s up ahead.” He quietly whispered.

“Got it.”

Quietly creeping forward with eyes darting furious back and forth Lay fought to keep his breathing well under control. Be as quiet as mice, he’d been taught once.

No one up ahead and no one behind them, which made Lay all the more nervous. By now he honestly expected some kind of attack or something.

There was none.

And it was all too quiet.

Like Kris, he doubted whether the man from earlier had given them the truth. There was only one door ahead. Reaching it he turned to look at Kris for the confirmation that he was prepared to face whatever might happen next head on. Then pressing his lips together tightly reached for the knob and at felt the cool surface of it sink into his hand. Finally, with one full swing he pulled the door open.

Muffled cries breezed through the open doorway and Lay spotted the many girls squeezed into the room, expressions of fear drawn over their faces over the strange situation. From the windows near the ceiling light seeped in through the cracks of the clouds, as if telling them that the dark tunnel was coming to an end.

Through the dark he saw that they were shaking, some of them silently weeping in the ways they learned to since receiving the cruel treatment they had, being transported from one city to another, being uninformed where their dark future may lay and starved from freedom and food. The stench of sweat and fatigue mixed into the stuffy air made it hard to step in.

Lay’s heart twisted up into knots. Kris froze right behind him.

“Welcome,” a voice cheerily greeted. That was when his eyes swerved to the man he’d missed standing in the center of the window with arms outstretched.

He was a heavyset man, slightly bald and with a dark beard growing unevenly around his face, burned and dry from the sunny days outside. His eyes were deep and his clothes were a set of jeans, a Hawaiian styled button-up with an old tee underneath with a logo that was no longer readable.

Swinging his arm up, Lay aimed his gun at him. “Who are you?”

“Is that how you treat someone who’s gone out of his way to help you?” the man asked. “You ought to be taught some manners from my friend, Donghae.”

Lay’s brow twitched and he readjusted his hold on the gun. “What are you talking about? Where’s Suho?”

“Ah…” stepping aside Lay spotted Suho crumpled up on the ground behind him, unconscious.

“What did you…” Lay began with his voice raised but was cut off mid-sentence.

“I handled him a little too hard, my apologies.” The man apologized a little too cheerfully for Lay’s taste.

Footsteps pounded down the hallway and they turned to spot two figures nearing them. He recognized Donghae’s voice, “Don’t shoot!”

Lowering his aim Lay let Donghae push him back. “Where’s Suho?”

Kim Dae Ho gestured toward the ground where Donghae’s young teammate lay. Lay watched the heavyset man throw a set of keys toward Donghae before walking toward him.

“I kept my promise. You do yours,” he said. “Hyukjae’s men are knocked out in the car. Better thank me this time around for catching some fools you couldn’t. See you next time. I’ll stay in touch.”

~_____~

“We’re collaborating with a criminal?!” Suho screamed then moaned in pain and proceeded to press the ice pack even more against his cracked forehead.

After a three hour wait for Suho to get treated at the ER and sending in Hyukjae’s men to the crime division, Victoria worked on identifying the missing girls and getting them treatment. They would be rehabilitated and returned home to their normal lives.

It was late evening and they were finally on the road back home after Donghae bought them some fast food to settle their hungry stomachs. Suho’s head was throbbing with horrible pain and gnawing on food only made it more intense. What was worse was that they hadn’t been able to dry off, but instead had been handed towels to wrap around themselves. The ride was as uncomfortable as could be. They were still drenched and cold, but thanks to extreme blast of heat from the car heading back in their current condition was doable.

“Do you know how unethical this is?!” Suho protested. “And he’s Kim Dae Ho! We’re violating our own codes of conduct!” Groaning again he leaned into the ice pack he was holding against the window and murmured.

“I know,” Donghae answered. “We’ll make do with it for now. I’m not letting Kim Dae Ho off for his crimes either. Don’t worry.”

“Are you serious?!” Suho cried out. “This hurts my pride, you know.”   

“As so it does all of us,” Donghae nodded in agreement.

Suho’s expression contorted into disbelief and he sighed, imagining how Namjoo might react when she found out Donghae had agreed to work with one of the most wanted criminals they had spent years going after.

The throbbing in his head literally felt life threatening. Why wasn’t the pain killer kicking in already?

They rode on in silence and Suho began nodding off, waking only when Lay spoke quietly to him. When they all crammed into the car Suho had felt distaste at why Lay had chosen to be crammed in the middle, but kept to himself. He didn’t want Donghae to know that he and Lay had gone at each other’s necks.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized, “for making assumptions about you and your team. I really am.”

Rolling his eyes to the corner of his lids, Suho glanced at the man who had never once been impulsive with him till now. In his heart he never wanted to go at odds with anyone. Holding it against Lay for insulting his team only sounded right and he simply deserved it, but Suho couldn’t fathom not getting along with the man he saw daily as both comrade and friend.

“Forget it,” he mumbled. “Apologize to Namjoo instead then I’ll forgive you.”

Relaxing against the window, Suho continued to stare out into the streets. Now that they were headed toward Seoul it seemed as if they’d driven out of the gloomy storm – the bleak feelings – left behind.   

Suho shortly fell asleep before waking up when they finally arrived in Seoul and Donghae piped up, “So, who wants to get dropped off first?”

No one replied. As Donghae braked at a red light he turned to glance back.

“You’re all awake, thought you were sleeping,” he remarked. “So?”

Suho glanced at the other two before looking back at Donghae. “I want to go to the hospital.”

“Again?” he asked.

“I want to see if Namjoo is alright,” he told. “Just to make sure nothing happened while we were gone.”

“I’ll go too.” Kris piped up.

Donghae shot him a disapproving glance but said nothing. Shifting back into his seat he stated in a low murmur, “Guess it’s the hospital then.”

When they arrived at the hospital they headed in in a group. The door to Namjoo’s room was securely closed and Suho expected to see the girls inside, but the very second Donghae slid the door opened the room was empty. The sheets on the bed were left behind in a disorderly fashion and the pillow was halfway off the bed. Everything else seemed untouched.

A wave of panic flushed through him before he quickly darted down the hallway, worried that something had happened while they were gone. Reaching the customer service desk in the hallway he immediately inquired the nurse sitting there, “The patient in room 306, Kim Namjoo, where did she go?”

“306? Let me check,” the woman repeated calmly then browsed through the computer for whatever reason Suho didn’t quite understand. Then looking up at him explained, “She should still be inside. The doctor last checked up on her two hours ago…”

Swiveling around Suho quickly headed for the stairs, wondering if perhaps Chorong and Namjoo had been attacked while they were gone – the two most vulnerable persons on the team at this point. Leaving the group behind he dashed down the hallways screaming for Namjoo, running his eyes over every patient he saw. He randomly stopped people coming through in wheelchairs, but none were the partner he spent five years with.

“Namjoo!” he shouted hurrying through the doors to search outside.

“What?” Turning at the voice he spotted Namjoo sitting in a wheelchair near a bench to the left and let out a sigh of relief before trotting toward her, his blood pulsing and his heart palpitating.

“What the hell…” he mumbled walking over. “I thought your room was invaded.”

Grabbing the arm rest of the wheelchair he dropped onto his knee to catch his breath and heard Namjoo laugh.

“What happened to your head?” she asked. “Is there a time you don’t mess up?”

“Cracked it,” he replied.

“You were here?” Donghae panted, walking over with the pack. “You scared us for a second. What are you doing out here by yourself?”

“Chorong went to get us some drinks.” She replied. “How was the trip?”

“There’s nothing to worry about,” Donghae assured. Then asked Victoria, “Right?”

“It’s mission accomplished.” Victoria smiled in turn. “Then since it’s all good here, I think I’d like to get some rest.”

“I should also head back to check on Tao.” Donghae nodded. “I’ll be back tomorrow morning. Call me if you need anything.” As he turned to walk away he said, “Come on, Lay. I can drop you off at home.”

Suho watched Lay nod then turn to glance at Namjoo. “It’s good to hear everything’s fine. And I apologize.”

“Huh?” Namjoo raised her brows, but Lay didn’t bother to answer her and turned to follow Donghae with a wave of his hand. “What was that about?” She turned to Suho.

“Nothing.” He glanced up at her with a smile.

~_____~

Grabbing the drinks from the vending machine Chorong turned to head back outside, but paused when she spotted a familiar figure by the front doors. Slowly heading forward she stopped and leaned to the side to recognize Kris.

“You’re back?” she questioned, feeling light hearted at realizing that it meant Suho was back as well.

He turned to look at her, his eyes full of exhaustion. “Yea. We just got back.”

“Then what are you doing there?” she wondered. Following his gaze she spotted the others headed toward Namjoo, Suho already with her. She turned back to look at Kris.

“You’re not joining them?” Chorong asked, curious.

“I just wanted to get a glimpse of her.” he quietly responded then finally looked at her. “I’m off.”

Chorong watched him walk away, wondering if he was feeling bad about the loss of the baby. Then turning back she watched as Suho and Namjoo begin to talk about something she couldn’t hear from where she was.

~_____~

His apartment didn’t quite seem like his apartment when he returned. It was dark and the curtains were still closed. No one was around. The food he’d left on the table for Tao was untouched.

“Don’t tell me he’s still sleeping,” Donghae muttered to himself and walked toward Tao’s bedroom, expecting to find the youth sleeping in bed.

The second he turned the lights on he realized how wrong he was about it. The room was clean. A bundle of Tao’s clothes were folded on the bed and he was up, sitting at the foot of his bed with hands clasped between his legs, waiting for him.

“Why are you sitting in the dark?” Donghae asked. “Are you not hungry? You didn’t touch the food I left for you.”

Tao looked drained but clean as if he’d showered. Donghae noticed he’d had a change of clothes, maybe even possibly groomed himself.

Why?

“Tao?” Donghae asked, a sudden feeling dawning on him that something wasn’t quite right.

Tao said nothing for a good minute and then he finally looked up, locking eyes with Donghae. “I want to quit the force.” 

***Personally SuJoo's friendship feels get to me. I want to write another crime fic with just the two of them. Anyhow, we're finally to where I've wanted to be. Tao wants to leave. :O