For some reason, Bom couldn't contact Hyuna. She tried calling the female, and was constantly on the lookout for a woman in some kind of scandalous attire walking by with sunglasses on to no avail. It was Saturday, and the show was happening in less than 5 hours. Bom squeezed in time between breaks to try and locate Hyuna, yet it was as if the other woman vanished off the face of the earth. 

"Bom! We're doing another run in 3." Yoona called, and Bom distractedly nodded in response. Ever since the discovery of Hyuna's boyfriend just 24 hours earlier, her head had been spinning around and around nonstop. 

How could it be? The male was dead. But he wasn't! He was alive. In a shabby condition, yes, but alive. When she went in his hospital room to look, she recognized his features with the man in the articles she read. He had a noticeable scar on his forehead, no doubt from the gunshot wound he sustained. 

The discovery of Bang Yongguk opened up a whole new can of worms. He definitely knew what was going on in Wallflowers, or-at the least-about what Taeyeon was involved in. He was the key to unlocking the secrets surrounding the glossy neighborhood. 

Unfortunately, however, when she engaged him in a conversation yesterday, he had no clue about his identity and his past. 

"Do you know a woman by the name of Taeyeon?" 

"Taeyeon?" His brow quirked, his head leaned slightly to the side as if she just asked if he came from Mars. "Am I supposed to know her?"

"Then do you remember Hyuna? Your girlfriend?" 

He frowned, lowering his eyes. Then suddenly he gripped his head and started grunting in discomfort, and the nurse quickly ushered Bom out of the room. 

"It's amnesia." The doctor stated, looking inside at Yongguk sleeping on his bed. "The wound he sustained must have damaged a part of his brain that housed his memories. Of course, plasticity will allow him to recover them, but we can't be certain how long it will take." 

Considering the time he was supposedly 'dead' but was still alive, Bom mused that he must have lost his memories for quite some time. That would mean there was a good chance he could recover those memories in the very near future. This thought caused her to realize the fact that she and Kris found him in the subway where he was shot. Not just any subway, but the very same place where he was supposedly killed. 

She just had to wait. Then she could have the answers to her questions. 

Amidst all this musing, the one question that really bothered her was whether she really wanted to discover the truth or not. Did she really want to uncover something that triggered her such uneasiness? Couldn't she just pretend like nothing was going on?

Yet, deep down inside, even as she stood on that stage and rehearsed her song for the show, she knew it was too late. 

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Men dressed in expensive-looking suits started trickling inside the interior of Taeyeon's house, chatting and laughing boisterously among themselves. Most of them were middle-aged, even though some could be in their thirties. Once again, it struck her as odd that the audience consisted of exclusively males. 

"Everyone get ready! Bom you're up in 10!" Yoona announced to Bom, who was sitting inside the dressing room getting her hair and makeup retouched. Her hair was pulled up into a neat buns laced with intricate hair ornaments, and her red Oriental dress clung to her like a second skin. She couldn't help but feel like she was dressing a little too provocative, and immediately thought of her husband. A tinge of guilt gnawed at her, but she quickly swatted it away. She would tell him everything when the time was right. 

Taeyeon suddenly came into the room, inspecting Bom's reflection in the mirror with an undescribable expression. The woman dismissed the hair/makeup stylist and strode over to where Bom was sitting. 

"Nervous?" Taeyeon's silky voice somehow raised little goosebumps along her arms, and Bom tried her best not to show any sign of anxiety. The other woman gently picked up a pearl necklace laid on the table and put it around Bom's neck. Bom maintained a steady gaze into the mirror as Taeyeon leaned into her ear. 

"I think this arrangement is going to work out after all." Bom inhaled when Taryeon suddenly pulled the necklace up higher, the pearls grazing Bom's neck and one movement away from choking her. She was about to stand up when Taeyeon fastened the clasp and the necklace hung loosely around Bom's neck as it should be. "Good luck."

Then, the woman left, leaving an anxious-and scared-Bom behind.

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Bom blinked against the bright stage light when the red curtains lifted up. She glanced at the audience full of males, who were eyeing her closely as if they were dissecting her apart. She took a deep breath and calmed herself as the music started.

"The cherry blossoms bloom ever so radiantly 

Tis was spring, the season of love

Yet we ended-you and I

Now I'm here once again, with the soft petals upon me..."

She sung, her voice carrying each note melliflously and soothingly. Her audience listened, bewitched by the lady in red on the stage who was putting current trendy singers out there to shame. The paper petals prepared beforehand started falling upon the stage as she sung the last chorus, surrounding her with floating pieces of softness. Some fell on her hair and most pooled around her feet. As she ended the last note the last petals landed, and she bowed gracefully to her audience just like how she practiced. The applause was enthusiastic and loud, and some even stood up to clap for her. As she turned to leave the stage she took note of how the men in the audience were holding a strange black remote in their hands. 

"Great job Bom!" Yoona greeted her  behind the stage. "The reception is great! You'll be busy tonight for sure."

"Busy? What do you mean?" 

As if getting caught saying something she shouldn't have, Yoona immediately covered with her hand. The woman quickly undid the action, once she regained her composure. 

"Oh it's nothing. Some of the performers here have cleanup duty too you know, so I was just referring to that." Yoona laughed nervously. "See you later!" Then the female hastily ran off.

Something was off. She could feel it. As she walked back to her dressing room she thought about whether she should try to contact Hyuna again. When she reached the room there were loud noises and bustling women inside getting ready, and Jessica met her at the door.

"Sorry Bom we're still getting ready. Just hang around and you can use it when we''really performing." Bom nodded, glancing at the housewives getting ready inside. "You were great, by the way." Jessica remarked before turning and continuing to apply her mascara. 

"Thanks." Bom whispered inaudibly, and started walking away from the noisy room. Taeyeon's house was huge, and as she wandered around she thought it wouldn't be a surprise if someone got lost inside one of the many rooms. Bom took a left at the end of the hall of the dressing room to a strangely eerie corridor, and she was about to turn to go back when she noticed a faint light coming at the very end to the right. 

What was that? She wondered. Despite her mind telling her to go back, she ventured down the dark corridor and kept on walking until she reached the end and looked to the right. To her astonishment, she saw a dimly-lit and cleverly-hidden staircase leading up. There were no lights on the stairs, but the light was coming from up there. The stairs were practically invisible in the dark. 

Bom have watched enough movies to know that this could lead to nothing good. Even a movie like Sleeping Beauty showed the danger of walking upstairs in pursuit of the unknown. 

She began to turn back, but suddenly she remembered that night when she and Hyuna got attacked by a mysterious assailant, and she decided that if she didn't have the answers now she could very well be dead.

With that thought in mind, she commenced climbing up the stairs. 

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What she found when she reached the upper landing beyond the stairs was another corridor, lit by the faint golden lights of small lamps hanging on the walls. This corridor had mahogany doors lined up on both sides with golden numbers etched on them, like a hotel. Bom started walking up the corridor, looking at the rooms and wondering why on earth they were there. Why did Taeyeon need this many rooms?

Bom stopped in front of a door with the number 1950 on the front, and without thinking she twisted the knob and opend the doors. Inside there was soft light, revealing a medium-sized bed with curtains hanging from the ceiling. There was as all nightstand next to it, and a door to the bathroom on the right. Bom frowned in confusion as she approached the nightstand. Why did Taeyeon have that many bedrooms that looked like they came straight out of hotels? She was about to open the nightstand's drawer when an unknown voice stopped her.

"You were bewitching out there."

Bom whipped around to see a man, probably one of the audience, standing behind her. He was about middle-age with a tall built and slicked hair. 

"T...thank you." Somehow, the sight of the man unnerved her. "If you'll excuse me, I have to...." She walked towards the door, but stopped when the man reached out and blocked it.

"Don't be shy." He stated, like she was the prey and he the predator. Before she could react he pushed her onto the bed and went on top of her. He started burrowing his face in her neck and began groping her in various places.

"Get off me!" She yelled, struggling underneath the male and turning her head form side to side agaisnt his violation. She used her hands to claw and hit his chest to no avail. He easily pinned them to the side and continued his despicable deed. "Get off me!"

She was screaming now, her bun becoming undone. She wrestled against the man's strength and clawed at his hand when he tried to touch her. She yelled whenever his filthy mouth touched her skin, and when he used his arm to try and silence her she bit him hard. 

"Argh!" He roared, yanking his hand out from her bite. She bit him so hard his skin was bleeding, and he turned to her with an enraged look upon his eyes. "You !"

He swung his hand and slapped her harshly across the face. The stinging attack left her dizzy and as she tried to recover he was upon her again. 

"I'll teach you a lesson!" He started ripping at her dress, and it was then her instincts kicked in. If she didn't do something quick he would her without hesitation. Tears started running down her cheeks, both from pain and from fear. Then, with all her might, she screamed and kneed the man in his family jewels. He roared in pain and rolled off her . She didn't wait before springing up and dashing out of the room, her dress ripped and her hair flailing about her face. 

She ran down the corridor through the hidden set of stairs. When she reached the dark corridor she looked behind her to see if the man was chasing and bumped into none other than Taeyeon.

"What's going on?" The woman asked, examining Bom's disheveled state. "Why are you crying?"

At this moment, she didn't care if Taeyeon was the suspicious one. Bom grabbed the woman's shoulders and sobbed as she tried to recount what happened.

"There.....there was a man and.....and he tried to me!" She stuttered from crying, her chest heaving up and down from fear. Taeyeon frowned, and opened to say something when Bom heard footsteps behind them. She turned and, to her horror, saw the man limping towards them. "That's.....that's him!"

"Taeyeon! What is the meaning of this?!!! This was in my reserved room, but she bit me and kicked me in my...." He started grunting from anger and pain, his hands cupping his crotch. Bom stood frozen in fear as turned to Taeyeon, whose expression was eerily calm.

"Sir, I believe this has all been a misunderstanding." Taeyeon smiled, contrary to the reaction Bom thought the woman would have. "Please follow me and I'll explain." Taeyeon led the man off, and motioned for Bom to wait in the dressing room. Bom wobbled over to the room, her mind spinning and her feet unsteady from the man's assault. She wrapped her arms around herself as she sat down and started crying thinking about what could have happened. 

Lit was then that the truth struck her like a lightning bolt. The show, Taeyeon, the housewives, the men, the room, the attacks, the articles,...Everything clicked together like a puzzle. dropped open as she realized the danger she was in. She immediately stood up, and was ready to run for her life when Taeyeon appeared at the door.

"Going somewhere?" The woman looked at Bom, her eyes like sharp knives piercing through her skin. Bom gulped and started backing away, her eyes blinking rapidly and her heart beating a thousand miles a minute. 

"Look," Bom babbled, her speech interrupted by short intakes of breath from fear. "I won't tell anyone I swear. I'll go on like nothing happened. I'll keep everything with me to my grave. I...I won't say a word."

"You already know too much, Bom." Taeyeon's icy voice froze Bom in her spot. "Know that you've found out my secret, I can't let you go."

In a flash, the other housewives trickled inside the room and the last thing Bom remembered was something being thrown over her face before all faded into darkness. 

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She opened her eyes to realize that her arms and legs were bound to a wooden chair. A piece of cloth was tied around , rendering her unable to scream. Her whole body was confined to the chair, and no matter how much she struggled she couldn't break free.  She panted heavily, her head filled with visions of her getting killed and her heart filled with fear. She recalled talking to Taeyeon just before she out, and everything came crashing back.

The shows, the housewives, Wallflowers,...Everything was just a facade, a cover for something dirty and despicable hiding inside this very place.

A ion ring. 

She saw things clearly now. The housewives were the es; that was why she never saw their husbands. They didn't have any. Taeyeon was the mastermind behind this whole thing, and everyone worked under her. The shows Taeyeon put on every month-supposedly for PR and promotion of her model status-was nothing but a sickening display of the 'merchandise.' The men who attended were all people who came to receive 'special services.'

Everything made sense now, even though there still were a few details bothering her. What about Hyuna? What about that attack on her and Hyuna? Undoubtedly it was Taeyeon's doing, but why?

She didn't have the answers to those questions, nor did she wanted to have answers anymore. Her whole objective, ever since she woke up, was to escape and stay alive.

Her ears picked up the faint sound of something dripping, and she turned to look next to her. The strip of cloth stifled Bom's loud gasp, for she saw Hyuna tied up on a chair just like her with a bleeding forehead and bruises on her arms.The female was unconscious, if not dead.

Before Bom could regain her bearing, the door opened and Taeyeon strode in. Following her were some-not all-of the housewives. 

"Having a good time?" Taeyeon asked, her lips quirking in derision at Bom's helpless state. "I take it you understand everything now, Bom?" 

As the woman spoke, Jessica approached Bom and yanked off the cloth around . Like the others, Jessica had an expressionless face, like that of a brainwashed person. Whatever Taeyeon offered to these women must have been so powerful that they didn't give a second thought to disobeying her every command.

That must have been what happened with Sooyoung. The image of the female's fearful face and desperation filled Bom's head. She could t shake off the feeling that soon he fate will be just like that of Sooyoung's.

"You won't get away with this, Taeyeon." Bom found her voice despite her fear. Taeyeon laughed, a laugh that contained no real joy nor humor.

"But I already have." Taeyeon regarded Bom with a pitiful expression. "I did years ago, and I will now. You see, Bom, I'm the one who pulls the strings. But I'm not the mastermind."

Bom frowned at what Taeyeon was saying, and at that moment, another person strode in the room. 

When Bom saw who it was, dropped in utter shock. 

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