House Of Cards || NCT Mafia

Chapter seventy-eight : The enemy of my enemy is my friend

It took the boys less than fifteen minutes to get rid of the bodies and clean the floor from all the blood, making it seem as if nothing happened.
Iseul was quietly watching them work, her eyes following their precise moves, and she couldn't help but wonder if they had done this a lot. Judging by their efficiency and the speed at which they worked, she guessed the answer must be yes. They worked without a word, their bodies moving as if they were used to it, movements repeating themselves.
Once they were done, Taeyong approached the scared owner, who was sitting in the corner of his store.
He gestured for Yuta to give him something, and then proceeded to hand the man the package.

"That should cover the expenses to replace your back door and install more cameras to ensure a better safety."

The man took the wad of bills Taeyong was giving him with shaky hands, slowly bowing his head as a thank you.
Looking at it more closely, he realized that was way more money than he actually needed, but Taeyong was already walking away, the others following him out of the store without a glance back.

As they were reaching the car, Iseul couldn't stop looking at Taeyong. She was surprised by the act of generosity and didn't think he would be the type of man to do such a kind gesture.

Feeling that someone was staring at him, Taeyong's eyes finally met Iseul's.

"What?" he asked her.

She shrugged, "I'm just surprised by the money you gave the store owner," she truthfully replied.

"He's just a collateral victim. A civilian, you know the rules," he said while remembering their conversation on the balcony the night before.

"I know you're not supposed to hurt a civilian or put them in danger, but the men who attacked us were just simple robbers. They weren't here because of us. Which means you didn't have to help the man."

"And yet, I did."

Some of them got in the car, before realizing not everyone could get in.

"Have a good walk back home," Renjun sneered once he quickly took the last seat in the vehicle next to Donghyuck.

Mark, Jeno, Jaemin, Chenle, Jisung and Iseul were standing next to the car, and before they could speak, Haechan got out.

"Iseul can take my seat," he offered, looking away.

The girl raised her eyebrows, touched by the sweet proposition. Taeyong, Yuta and Sicheng, unaware of what had happened in the store just looked at each other, confusion spreading on their faces. Since when was Donghyuck kind, and especially towards Iseul?

"I'm alright, thank you," she smiled at him. "I like to walk anyways, and I don't know when I'll be able to go out again..." she trailed off, looking at the leader who avoided her gaze. "I'd like to enjoy the most of it right now while I still can."

"Alright, then I'll come with you guys," Haechan said.

"You know what," Renjun spoke, "let's all go home together like before."

He got out of the car, joining the other Dreamies and Iseul on the sidewalk.

"Come on guys," Mark smiled while putting his arms around Jaemin's and Jeno's shoulders, "let's go home."

Yuta looked at Taeyong, a questioning look on his face, and the leader shrugged. "You heard them." That's how the three men took off with the vibrant sound of Yuta's car echoing through the street, as the younger members just laughed together while walking home.

For the first time in a while, Iseul felt good, like she was home, surrounded by people she was slowly growing attached to, and she wondered if that's what the feeling of belonging felt like.

On the other side of town, however, her father was pacing around his living room, his brows furrowed.

"So what do you suggest?" he asked the man sitting on his couch, dressed in a expensive suit.

"We inform the police," Park Min-Seok replied casually, sipping a bit of his coffee from the cup handed to him by a maid.

"I beg you pardon?" Kang turned on his heels, looking at the man, bewildered.

"I said, we inform the police about the current situation."

"Exepct we can't actually do that."

"Why not?"

Kang thought that Park was joking, as he looked at his stone-cold face, he understood he wasn't. In fact, he was dead serious.

"Maybe because the police and us aren't exactly friends," he sneered at the young man. "In case you forgot, they don't know about us being part of the mafia world, and I intend to keep it that way."

"I never said you had to expose yourself now, did I?" Park said as he got up from the expensive couch. "When I say we're going to inform the police, it's going to be as Kang Kyung-Ho, head of Kang Industries, and as Park Min-Seok, currently university president."

He put down his now empty coffee cup on the table before continuing, "We'll do it as public figures, simply worried about their respective daughter and student."

"And besides," he added. "NCT aren't on good terms with the police either. You know what they say, the enemy of my enemy is my friend."

"Not if they're our enemy too!" Kang retorted. "And why would we do this? Wouldn't it be simpler to just attack NCT as a gang?"

"Simpler, yes. Smarter, no."

"I'm not following."

Park sighed, rubbing his temples. That man really was a pain in the ass, and a stupid one that is. He wondered how he could be the creator of such an empire with such a useless brain.

"Because," he explained, "that way we'd have more power. If everyone is aware of your daughter's disappearance, the news will obviously cover the topic, making it the new public scandal. Now how do you think the population is going to react to the news of a twenty-year-old innocent girl kidnapped by one of the most dangerous and infamous gangs out there?"

"They're going to empathize with us," Kang replied, finally starting to understand Park's plan.

"Exactly. Which means we'll have the public opinion on our side. We know for a fact that NCT likes their discretion, and they clearly won't be happy when they'll see their name being on every media. They won't like the sudden attention they're given, and the fact that they're image is being tarnished."

"But they have my daughter!" Kang yelled. "Who knows what they'll do to her if they get angry?"

"We'll act before they can do anything to her."