Fire & Silk

21. Deadly Decisions

T/W: There will be mentions of death and graphic violence! If you do not want to read this, please skip the last few paragraphs and read the end for a short summary!

The clock ticking in one of the interview rooms was the only sound filling in the empty space. Jeongyeon excused herself and sat down almost half an hour ago to try and process what was happening and to call the team as well. Only, she hadn't called them yet. She knew she had to but for some reason she thought that if she held off for a little, everything wouldn't keep going downhill. She stared at her phone that had been sitting on the table, text messages causing it to buzz every few minutes. They were all from Mina and Nayeon. She reached out and picked the phone up, ignoring the barrage of texts and dialed Mina's number. It only took two rings and the woman quickly answered.

"Have you guys made any progress? Is everything okay?" Mina tried her best to sound calm but it was hard when people's lives were on the line. She picked at a paper clip that was holding one of the court documents together that they drafted, trying to distract her busy brain. It had only been a few hours since they left Jeongyeon but it felt like centuries. Nayeon walked into the room, holding two coffees and sat down beside Mina who put the phone on speaker. "You're on speaker now by the way. Nayeon's here."

Jeongyeon took a shaky breath and tried to explain everything, her voice only getting caught in her throat when she mentioned Sana's name. "He wants me to bring the money he's demanding or he's going to kill S-Sana."

It was dead silent. Neither woman could believe what they had just heard nor could they believe that Jeongyeon was directly being targeted. "Wait Jeong is this the same guy that called you over the phone that one night?" Nayeon turned to Mina, confused at the sudden nickname.

"It has to be. I mean he literally spelled out my last name instead of 'y-o-u'. The Chief's working right now to see if they can get him on the phone long enough to track his location. He provided an address but it seems too easy. Like he's setting up some kind of trap." Jeongyeon leaned back in her chair and rubbed her face with her free hand, feeling the stress of the entire case crashing down on her. "I just want to stop him so he doesn't hurt anyone el-"

"Miss Yoo we need you. We've got a phone line set up and he's willing to talk to you but you have to be alone." Jeongyeon was cut off before she could finish. The Chief walked in and she excused herself from the call, slipping her phone back in her pocket. She turned her attention to the chief and patiently watched as the IT team set up the phone and tracking software on one of the laptops. "We'll be listening and watching from outside. You just need to answer his questions. Do the best you can to not show any emotion in your voice."

Jeongyeon nodded and tried her best to shake the tension from her body. Her palms were sweating profusely as she waited for the phone to ring. It felt like minutes passed but in reality it was only a few seconds. The first ring caused Jeongyeon to jump out of her seat but she quickly composed herself, taking a few deep breaths before picking up the phone. "What do you want from me and my team?"

"You know what I want. If you don't bring the money to that address tonight at 1am alone, your friend dies."

"How do you know me?" She felt a chill run down her spine. His voice wasn't threatening but something about it was eerie. Empty.

"I've been watching you. For months you've passed me on the elevator on your way in to work. Didn't you see me?"

Jeongyeon was trying. She was trying so hard to remember but she didn't know what in the hell he was talking about. She got on the elevator with at least 5 to 7 other people every day. How was she supposed to remember one guy? "I don't know what you mean."