Hannie's POV
I woke up when Mom suddenly splashed cold water all over me. I have to admit, she comes up with a more unique way of waking me up every day. Damn, it was freezing.
"Hey! Get up and clean yourself up!" she told me before leaving me alone again.
She left the basement door open, which was a clear sign that I was free to leave now.
Honestly, I don't even feel like leaving anymore. Damn it.
But since I didn't really have any freedom in this place, I simply followed her orders.
When I entered my room, I saw the three of them already there. I only noticed then that it was already nighttime again.
"Hyung!" Shua greeted me.
I simply smiled at him before heading straight to my bathroom. I couldn't stop myself from crying. I was already tearing up just thinking about what Mom was going to make me do later.
I should be used to this by now, given the situation I was in, but I wasn't. Just thinking about it already made me feel sick and disgusted.
'Is this really all my life is going to be? No! I need to get out of here. I have to leave this place.'
"No! Don't leave. Stay here with me, please."
I remembered the child I had left behind with a promise. That kid… I couldn't help but smile at the memory.
A part of me wanted to keep that promise, but deep down, I knew I wouldn't be able to.
I finished taking a shower and stepped out of the bathroom. The three of them were still there, all staring at me with worried expressions.
But there was nothing they could do. Their concern only made me feel even worse.
"Hyung, just hang in there, okay? Don't do anything that might anger Mom again so she won't add to your punishment," Shua reminded me.
I couldn't answer him. I was too afraid of what might happen later.
"Oh, are you ready now?"
Mom suddenly walked into my room. All of us froze when we saw three men standing behind her.
"What are the three of you waiting for? Get out, or do you want to come with him?" Mom asked my siblings sharply.
I wanted to stop them from leaving and hide behind them, but at the same time, I couldn't drag them down with me because of my stupidity.
I simply signaled the three of them to leave, forcing a smile as if everything was okay.
Once they were out of the room, Mom let the three men behind her enter.
"Hey, behave yourself. These are my clients. If they're not satisfied with you, you'll be the one held responsible. I'm warning you!" she said firmly, gripping my left wrist.
I could only nod in response.
"Okay, boys. Enjoy your dinner!" she said in a dramatic, almost playful tone to the three men who were now inside my room.
They stared at me like three hungry wolves ready to pounce.
I stood there trembling in front of them. Why three? There was usually only one. So why were there three this time?
"Awwww! Don't be scared. You're trembling," one of them said.
He was releasing a large amount of alpha pheromones. Shit! I was getting close to my heat cycle. Why did I have to make that mistake now? Pota, I was starting to regret the decision I had made.
One by one, they approached me, each releasing their own pheromones. I was getting dizzy from their scents. They were all different, and I really didn't like any of them. It was as if my own body was rejecting their scent.
I'm not usually like this when dealing with an alpha's pheromones. I don't like them, but my body has never rejected a scent this strongly before. Maybe it's because there are three of them.
I continued trembling. I couldn't control my emotions. I wanted to lash out at that moment. I felt even more disgusted as different hands touched my body all at once.
One of them roughly pushed me onto the bed. I let out a muffled groan when another suddenly yanked one of my legs. The tears I had been holding back finally began to fall.
"Your scent is very alluring. They were right—we won't regret ordering you. Shit, dude, this one is amazing. Look at that body," the man hovering over me said at length.
"Hyungwon! Hurry up. You're not the only one who wants to experience that body."
All of them were wearing masks, just like me. We weren't allowed to remove them. Even though they were the ones who had paid a large amount of money, they weren't allowed to take off our masks or force us to remove them either.
They continued using me. I wanted to fight back and resist, but the overwhelming amount of pheromones they were releasing left me incredibly weak. This was bad. If I stayed exposed to them for too long, my heat cycle might be triggered prematurely, and I might lose even more control over myself.
Several hours passed, and they finally finished. One by one, they left the room, throwing money at me as they walked out.
Once they were gone, I could only wrap my arms around myself and cry. I stayed curled up on my bed for several more minutes before finally deciding to clean myself up.
In the bathroom, it happened all over again. I could only keep crying over my situation. I stayed in the bathtub for several more minutes before finally getting out.
Once I stepped out, I fixed my bed, changed the bed covers, and picked up the money they had left behind.
I picked up the bills one by one, feeling completely miserable. Fuck, I wanted to burn this money, but I knew I'd be in deep trouble again if I did. This would end up going to Mommy anyway.
After I finished cleaning everything up, I took my medicine from the bedside drawer.
I only took this medicine during situations like this. The pheromones from those three men still hadn't faded from my room.
I sat in the corner of my room, crying once again. I just wanted all of this to end.
I was still sitting there when I felt someone wrap their arms around me. I didn't bother pulling away because I recognized his scent. He was the only one whose scent carried a calming aura. It wasn't very effective, but it still helped.
"Hannie, I'm here. You can cry all you want. Mommy left, so she might not be back until tomorrow. You can be yourself for a while."
"Shua!" I called out, still looking down.
"Hmm?"
I fell silent for a moment.
"Shua… I can't do this anymore!"
I finally looked at him, tears streaming down my face. I didn't care if I looked weak. Right now, all I wanted was to let out everything I was feeling.
"I just want this to end. Their hands!!! I can still feel them. How they touched me, how they used my body!" I complained to him like a child, continuing to cry as I remembered what had happened earlier.
"T-they forced me to use my mouth."
I suddenly felt sick after saying it. I quickly rushed to the bathroom and kept throwing up. I was completely exhausted afterward, but my tears continued to fall.
"Shua," I called for him again.
He simply nodded, tears streaming down his face just like mine. His only response to everything I told him was to hold me in his arms.
I don't even remember how, but somehow, we went from the bathroom to my bed.
I felt like I had used up every bit of strength I had left. I just lay there while Shua continued rubbing my back.
"Is there still hope in this world?" I asked him again.
He only looked at me and gave me a small smile.
"I know you don't have any hope left in you. But I know that one day, we'll be able to get out of here too," he answered.
I looked at him and asked again, "How can you know?"
"I just know, Hannie," he answered with a smile.
I looked at him again before closing my eyes.
Maybe this was what I needed right now—sleep.
"Hannie, you can't sleep here. You need to go back to the basement," Shua whispered softly.
I didn't argue with him anymore. I got up and returned to the basement.
I thought I wouldn't have to come back here, but Mommy told me that after I finished my work, I had to return to the basement on my own.
Looks like this was going to be my room for the time being.
When I went downstairs, there was already food waiting for me. The basement had also been given more light, and there was now a bed for me as well.
Looks like the only time I'd be allowed out of here was whenever she needed me to "work." If you could even call it work.
Shua didn't handcuff me anymore. He simply left me there. He wanted to stay with me, but he couldn't. He'd only get scolded too.
I lay down and went back to sleep. I didn't have the appetite to eat anyway. I felt like I would just throw up if I forced myself to eat.
_____________________________________________________________________
Cheol's POV
One of my favorite things to do with Dino is reading him bedtime stories every night. I'm often busy, so this is one of the ways I make it up to him. It brings me so much joy every time I see him smiling as he drifts off to sleep. Daddy would do anything for you, my baby.
"Dino, which bedtime story do you want Daddy to read to you?" I asked excitedly.
But I already knew he only had one answer for me every time, of course—his favorite one, which was—
"Dadda, I don't want a bedtaym stowii," he said with a pout.
I was surprised because this was the first time he had answered me like that. Most of the time, he was always excited whenever it was bedtime story time.
"Then what does my baby Dino want?" I asked, tickling him.
And finally, his pouty little face from earlier was replaced by loud laughter.
"Dadda, I want to see the guy who saved me again."
I really didn't know why Dino had gotten so attached to him. I remembered how, after waking up, he kept looking for that person and cried his eyes out while throwing a tantrum. It had been really difficult to calm him down.
"Daddy has some free time. We can go out and have some fun. Where do you want to go? The zoo? Enchanted Kingdom?" I asked, trying to change the subject.
Maybe I could distract him and get his attention off that person.
"Dadda, I really want to see him," he insisted.
Was I lacking something as a father that he had to seek someone else's attention?
"Why? Don't you like Daddy anymore?" I asked with a pout, pretending to sulk. I was already starting to feel jealous.
"Of course I wuv you, Dadda!" he said, wrapping his little arms tightly around me. I hugged him back just as tightly.
"I love you too," I said, gently squeezing his nose.
Haysss, my little sulk disappeared immediately. Seeing you happy is enough to make me happy too, son.
"But I also want to be with him, Dadda," he said with a pout.
Haysss, I really had no choice but to give in. He might start crying again later, and we'd end up disturbing everyone since most of the people staying with us would already be asleep, except for those on night watch.
"Daddy can't promise, but okay. I'll try to find a way for you two to meet," I told him.
"Really, Dadda? Yey!"
He started jumping up and down on the bed, so happy.
If that's really what you want and it will make you happy, then I guess there's nothing else Daddy can do.
He lay down afterward and told me, "Dadda, the bedtaym stowii I want is the one you read to me yesterday."
I started reading, but I hadn't even reached the middle of the story when he fell asleep. He must have been tired from playing earlier.
I also cleaned the wound he got from falling down. After that, I tucked him in and kissed his forehead.
"I love you, Dino. Sweet dreams."
I watched his peaceful face for a moment before turning off the light.
The next day.
I was sitting outside our house, drinking coffee while reading Mingyu's reports. Dino was sitting beside me, having breakfast—hotdog and eggs, which he had specially requested from Yaya earlier.
From where we were sitting, I could see my men training at the shooting range. Meanwhile, our newer recruits were being trained by the more experienced ones. They needed to be prepared in case we ever got dragged into a fight. It would be a disaster to go into a war with them acting like complete idiots.
"Gumoni Wonu Hyung," I heard my son say to Wonu, who was now sitting beside Dino.
"Good morning, Dino," he replied cheerfully. "Good morning, Boss," he greeted me as well.
I simply nodded. Looks like he already had some news about what I had asked him to do.
"Wonu, any news on the vehicle I asked you to track?" I asked seriously while taking a sip of my coffee.
"Cheol, the plate number is registered to Han Sewon. According to the report he recently filed at the police station, his vehicle was carjacked."
I expected this. They probably used a stolen vehicle, which meant finding them wasn't going to be easy.
"And Ji and I found CCTV footage showing several unidentified men burning the vehicle in an empty lot somewhere along Carat Street."
Whoever was behind this had planned everything carefully and got rid of the evidence quickly. They knew how their opponent would think. If their intention had simply been to kidnap Dino for ransom, they would have just abandoned the vehicle somewhere.
Whoever did this was experienced. This wasn't the work of some inexperienced rookie. They had deliberately planned to kidnap Dino, and this wasn't just some coincidence.
"I went to the location hoping I could still find some evidence that might lead us to whoever tried to kidnap Dino. But all that was left was the burned remains of the car. I couldn't find any useful information around the area either."
They knew Dino was my weakness. My blood immediately boiled at the thought that they were targeting my beloved son just to bring me down.
Those fucking bastards.
"I think I already know who's behind this," I said, showing Wonu the email I had received from my informant. It also came with files containing pictures of the vehicle as evidence, along with a voice recording.
From: *******
"돈 범주. 공룡을 납치하세요. (Don Bumzu. Kidnap Dino)"
"THAT FUCKING BASTARD WHY ISN'T HE DEAD YET. THEY ALREADY FUCKED WITH ME AND MY SON, AND NOW HE'S DRAGGING HIS OWN GRANDSON, DINO, INTO THIS?" I said furiously, my blood boiling with rage.
That fucking bald bastard. So that's why he had been keeping quiet. Just you wait. Damn you. The only thing that doesn't deserve revenge is the one who never existed, you bastard.
"I'M NOT GOING TO STOP UNTIL I'VE RIPPED THE SKIN RIGHT OFF THAT BASTARD'S BODY." I was already completely fed up with that fucking bald bastard.
"Now that you know who tried to take Dino, what's your plan, Boss?" Wonu asked me.
I thought about it for a moment, wondering what the best thing to do would be. I remembered another piece of information my informant had sent me, but maybe it still wasn't the right time to put it into action.
"Just wait. I already have a plan for that, but I'm not going to have you guys carry it out yet," I answered Wonu. He simply nodded in response.
Suddenly, my conversation with my son last night came to mind. Maybe this was the first thing I should have Wonu do. Dino wouldn't stop bothering me until I found the person who saved him anyway.
"I have a new task for you. Find the person who saved Dino. I need his information ASAP! Start looking at The Luxe Den Club."
"Noted, Boss."
He immediately started typing on his laptop and didn't pay attention to us again.
Jun's POV
"Is it all set?"
"Yes, sir. All set," the person on the other end replied.
Finally, it was done. I was sure Kuya would be happy with the outcome. I looked over everything again and reviewed each of the documents in my hands, just to make sure nothing would go wrong.
After reviewing them several times, I headed to Kuya Cheol's office. At this time of day, he was usually already there. He was never the type to slack off when it came to work.
When I entered his office, I found him sitting in front of his laptop, typing away.
And yes, I didn't knock. Why would I? I'm his sibling. Unlike everyone else, they can't do anything about it.
BWAHAHAHA
Hyung!" I called out excitedly.
"Hmm?" He turned to look at me, his head moving first before his eyes followed. He was so focused on what he was doing that if I didn't get his attention now, he probably wouldn't even notice me.
"Done!" I simply said as I placed the documents he had asked me to work on in front of him.
He looked at them and immediately gave them his full attention.
"That is a municipality in Palawan called Balabac. It is a second-class municipality in the province of Palawan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 42,527 people," I began explaining to him.
He remained quiet, simply listening to everything I had to say.
"That place is also pretty secluded, though it's been gaining more popularity lately because of its beautiful beaches. But all in all, that island would be a good hiding spot for them."
He nodded along as he listened to my explanation.
"What about the doctor I was telling you about? Were you able to find one?"
"Yep! I found one already. I also found a house in that area in case you're okay with it."
He looked through the documents several times before finally giving me his answer. I nervously waited for him. Damn, I looked like a student waiting for the teacher to check a late project.
"Yeah, that's good. Very good, Wen Junhui," he replied with a smile.
"Move them there as soon as possible. Make sure the enemy doesn't get wind of it," he ordered, reminding me to be careful.
"Yes, Hyung."
"Palawan is a big place. I know I suggested Palawan, but how are they supposed to live there? I mean, what are they going to do for a living?"
Got you there, Cheolito. Of course, we're not just going to move people to another place without a plan. There's a legal way to handle that.
"First of all, their documents are being processed legally, but the enemy won't know about it. Secondly, I bought a house—not something too big, just enough for their family. And lastly, I got them a spot in the marketplace in Balabac where they can sell things and earn enough to support their daily needs."
I gave him a long explanation.
"I'm planning to move them next week. Some of their other documents are still being finalized. I also transferred the land into the mother's name, and I'm providing them with enough money to maybe last them for six months as a starting fund."
I finished explaining, and he nodded again, a satisfied look on his face.
Guess I did a good job. Waaahh.
I mentally patted myself on the back, super proud of myself.
"We'll be funding her child's treatment. That should be enough, right? It should be sufficient. Just make sure they won't be found there, okay?" Kuya insisted, making sure everything was secure.
He can be so hard to convince sometimes.
After our long conversation, I stayed in his office for a few more hours. I didn't have anything else to do anyway, and I was bored as hell. Wonu was busy working on something, while the Tiger is not here, I really had no one to hang out with.
Side Story
Somewhere
Cheol's POV
We were having lunch when Ji suddenly appeared out of nowhere. We all stopped eating and looked at him.
He was already pale the last time I saw him, but somehow, he looked even paler now. We were still kids the last time we had a meal with him, so naturally, we were all shocked to see him again.
But Ji, on the other hand, acted like it was nothing and simply sat down beside Jun.
"Hi, Unkol Ji," Dino greeted him cutely, and Ji immediately smiled at him.
We all stared at him because it was the first time we had seen him smile like that in a long time.
"Is that really Ji?" I whispered to Gyu.
"Miracle. Ji's in a good mood," Gyu whispered back.
Wait… is this really Ji? Maybe he's so smart that he already managed to make a clone of himself.
"Hey, Ji. What a miracle. You finally came out of your cave," Jun broke the silence.
"Maybe the rat only comes out when the cat isn't around," I joked, making all of us laugh.
Tiger had been down bad for him ever since their first meeting and hadn't left him alone since. We weren't blind enough not to notice it.
"Will you guys stop it?" he grumbled, glaring at us.
We simply continued eating and stopped teasing him. I couldn't help but smile to myself.
Looks like Ji is finally making some progress.
*kring
(Caller ID: Tiger) 'speaking of the devil'
Hoshi was calling. And of course, Ji was right here. Hahahaha. I answered the call and put it on speaker.
"cries"
I could hear him crying on the other end.
"Hey, idiot, why are you crying?"
I could also hear the laughter of the others in the background. They were messing with him again. Poor guy.
"Because Ji still has me blocked until now. I miss him so much."
I saw Ji choke on his food. Jun immediately handed him some water and rubbed his back.
"Waaaaah, Jiiiiii. I lo—"
I hung up the call before this tiger could say anything else.
We all looked at Ji, whose expression had now completely darkened.
Looks like he had lost his appetite.