The Shadows of power

22

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As Taehyung arrived at the headquarters, Jin immediately stood up from his chair and rushed toward him with concern etched on his face. “Are you injured anywhere? Did something happen?” Jin’s voice was laced with worry.

Taehyung, trying to calm his hyung, shook his head and said softly, “Hyung, I’m fine. Nothing happened. You just need to relax.”

“How can I relax when you were out there?!” Jin retorted, his eyes full of concern.

Before Taehyung could reply, Namjoon entered the room. Jin’s attention quickly shifted to him. “Are you alright? You’re not hurt anywhere, are you?”

Namjoon smiled softly, cupping Jin’s face in his hands. “I’m fine,” he reassured him gently, his voice unusually soft. “You don’t need to worry. Let’s just focus on what’s happening now.” His tenderness surprised the other BTS members, who were used to seeing their leader in his commanding, cold demeanor, but no one commented on it.

As they all sat down, their eyes were drawn to the big screen, where Suga and the young girl were shown enjoying themselves at the amusement park. The park had been cleared out, thanks to BTS's arrangements, to provide the girl with a safe space due to her anxiety and fear of people. Despite her usual discomfort around others, she was remarkably at ease with Suga. The gentle touches, the easy laughter—everything indicated that she felt safe with him.

After spending hours on rides and games, the two finally sat down on a bench in a quiet, garden-like corner of the park. Suga watched the girl intently before asking the question that had been on his mind all day.

“How do you know me?” Suga’s voice was soft, his eyes searching her face for answers.

The girl looked at him for a long moment before she spoke. “Do you know Jessica?”

Suga frowned, recalling the name. “Yeah… she used to study with me at the university. We were close friends.”

The girl nodded. “I’m her daughter.”

Suga’s eyes widened in shock. His mind raced, trying to piece together the timeline. Jessica had a daughter, and she was already eighteen? It didn’t make sense. He had lost touch with Jessica years ago, but still, the revelation hit him hard.

“You’re Jessica’s daughter?” Suga repeated, the shock still evident in his voice.

The girl nodded again, this time with a sad smile. “I’ll start from the beginning, so you understand.”

Suga listened intently as she began recounting her mother’s story. “Back when you and my mom were at the university, she loved you. But there was this other man… JJ. He came after her, and she didn’t want anything to do with him.”

Suga clenched his fists, recognizing the name instantly. JJ was someone he had despised. “I remember him,” he muttered, his voice dark with anger.

The girl continued, her tone soft but steady. “My mom was forced to marry him, you probably know. But the night of the wedding… she ran away.”

Suga’s breath hitched. He hadn’t known that part.

“She told me she hid in a church for a week before she found out she was pregnant. That’s when things got worse.”

The words seemed to knock the air out of Suga’s lungs, but the girl wasn’t done. She pressed on with her story, her voice growing more emotional.

“My mom told me that after she found out she was pregnant, she was kidnapped… by a human trafficking ring.”

Suga’s eyes filled with tears as he listened. He couldn’t imagine the horrors Jessica had gone through. “What happened next?” he asked, his voice barely a whisper.

“She said she was taken to a place where there were a lot of young people like her, and when I was born, they took me away. They kept me in a separate place, where there were other babies too. But when I turned ten…” The girl’s voice faltered. Tears welled up in her eyes, and Suga felt his heart shatter as she continued. “When I turned ten, men… started doing things. Horrible things. They… they used me.”

Suga’s fists tightened so much that his knuckles turned white. He felt a burning rage inside him, but all he could do was listen as the girl spoke her painful truth.

“Before my mom helped me escape, she put something inside me. A chip. She told me to find you. That when I found you, I should tell you everything. She also gave me this,” the girl said, pulling out a pendant from her pocket and handing it to Suga.

Suga’s hands trembled as he took the pendant. He recognized it immediately—it had been Jessica’s favorite. His voice shook as he asked, “What else did she say?”

The girl looked up at him, tears streaming down her face. “She said… she was scared that those people would find out about the chip. If they did, they’d use it to hurt me. The chip… it’s connected to my heart. She said… if I take it out, I’ll die.”

Suga’s world spun. He stared at the girl in disbelief, unable to process the gravity of what she was saying. “There has to be a way. We’ll find someone—”

The girl shook her head, more tears spilling down her cheeks. “She said there’s no other way. The chip is designed to kill me if it’s removed.”

Suga was at a loss for words. All he could do was pull the girl into his arms, holding her as tightly as he could, vowing silently to protect her, no matter what.

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