FOOLS

Chapter 5

Namjoon leaned back in his chair as he stared at the board. His eyes trailing the red lines that connect point A to point B. Printed out photographs also hung on the board, but they were all blurry, none could show Namjoon who he was looking for. They did show factories and buildings that Namjoon and his team had searched to no prevail. They served as reminders of Namjoon's biggest failures.

He pressed his face closer to one particular picture, it was the hazy one of Adelfós that Taehyung managed to capture before he made his escape a few months ago. He saw dark curly hair covering his eyes, it seemed as though he wanted his photo to be taken, judging by how he looked directly at the camera. Namjoon felt a strange sense of nostalgia and familiarity looking into those eyes, something about them reminded him of himself. There's a scar on his cheek, further back near his right ear.

His door opened, and one by one, the team gathered for their daily report. Namjoon leaned back and listen as they go over anything they managed to gather over the weekend. He felt indebted to them, even when they're supposed to rest, they can't because of him.

"Yoongi and I monitored camera activities from that night on and there are a few routes that we believe could lead us somewhere." Seokjin explained. He even made detailed folders with maps and name of possible buildings where Black Pandora can plan any activities. Namjoon nodded as he scanned the contents of the folder, his hope was slowly rebuilding again.

"Alright, thank you for this, you two." Namjoon closed the folder and threw it lightly on his table. "Let's split up and we each group can take a route. Don't do anything rash until you confront each other, alright? Hoseok, go with Yoongi. Taehyung will be with Seokjin. And I'll go with Jimin." Namjoon looked at them in the eye as he went over the team, but one seat was missing. "Wait, where's Jimin?"

As if to answer the question, the door opened again to reveal a distressed and confused Jimin. It didn't quite match with his parted black hair that made him an even deadlier combat fighter. He held something in his hand, a sealed envelope and from what Namjoon would see, had gold trimmings and lacing. "It's for you, hyung." Jimin said, handing Namjoon the envelope. It was surprisingly light. His name plastered on the front of it. The stamp was missing from its place and instead had the Black Pandora's seal. The address of the police station wasn't present either. "Someone came in this morning to deliver it." Jimin continued.

"Do we know who?" Hoseok asked, already on edge. His eyes narrowed in on Namjoon's hands as he opened it carefully. He already had gloves on in case it can be counted as evident in some ways.

Jimin shook his head. "I checked the surveillance camera. It was a mother and a child. They came in earlier this morning and left without any further explanations."

"So now he's using women and children." Yoongi scoffed.

"How despicable." Taehyung mumbled.

Namjoon listened to the comments of his colleagues as he read the letter. "It's an invitation." he said aloud. His team all turned their heads to him. Eyebrows scrunched together.

"To what?" Seokjin asked. "What could he possibly invite you to?"

Namjoon cleared his throat and began reading the content. "I am pleased to invite you to the first ever Black Pandora masquerade that we are hosting. The event will be black tie, please dress appropriately. A mask and the location will be delivered to you on the day of the event. I look forward to seeing you, Kim Namjoon. Yours dearest, Adelfós."

"He's crazy. Does he really think you would go?" Hoseok asked, voice raised and fists clenched. Out of everyone on his team, Namjoon was most afraid of this hyung, especially when Hoseok is angry.

"Exactly! And how would he know we won't storm in to arrest him?" Jimin added. This was another member that will become a monster if something rubs him the wrong way. Namjoon was glad to be on their good side as their leader.

"We can have a team set up outside, I can wait somewhere high up to get a kill shot." Hoseok said, already going through the motions in his head of how he would carry out the mission.

"We can't do anything." Namjoon said sternly.

"Why not?" Yoongi asked. "This is the perfect opportunity!"

"It's too perfect." Namjoon argued. "I mean, they're literally inviting us. Well, just me. But even so, it's too risky. It could be an ambush. I will not take that risk."

"Hyung, it's the only chance we have. We have to take it." Taehyung huffed, his featured darkened.

"Trust us, Namjoon. We can handle it." Hoseok said. On a normal basis, Namjoon would listen to his second in command. But this was too dangerous and he won't have their blood on his hands. It would be too painful for him and he couldn't handle the loss.

"I'm going by myself and that's final." Namjoon said quietly. He didn't need the volume for the team to listen. They all look up to him and his commands.

"Yes sir." they said in unison. They never questioned an order, no matter how outrageous it could be. To them, fighting together was worth any hardship, even the risk of death. As they left, Namjoon could feel some air of hesitations. They wanted to say more, but at the same time, respect his decision. It was something Namjoon hated, when he had to hide something from his team. He hadn't read the full content of the letter. The last part gave him unsettling chills.

I am only inviting you. If you bring anyone with you, I'll kill them on the spot.