Be Mine

Chapter 8

I sat on the driver's seat tapping the steering wheel impatiently. I was not allowed to go in with the others.

I kept looking at the entrance. There was quite a commotion going on in there, from what was visible through the windows. My attention drifted to a side door a little distance away from where my car was parked. A woman in a lavender gown, dragged along by a man in a suit followed by some bodyguards appeared through it, and quickly got into a car parked away from the hotel. "Chelsea!" I screamed as I recognised the woman and got the engine fired up.

I was noticed soon enough as I followed the people out of the hotel. One of the car's windows came down and an arm holding a gun emerged, shooting my car. A bullet went through the passenger side windshield, cracking the glass and making a hole. The impact made me hit the brakes and spin to a stop. I got out of the car only to find that they had given me the slip. I kicked the car door in frustration.

I got back into the car with a sigh. There was no point following them. I was halfway back when my eyes fell on two people walking quickly along the road. One was a man and the other was a woman. The woman clutched her arm. There were blood stains on her sleeve which made me pull my car over. They were startled when they saw me get down and approach them. "Are you all right? Let me take you to the hospital," I said. The woman's eyes scanned me suspiciously before she agreed. I helped them into the car and drove to the nearest hospital. A nurse approached us as soon as we went inside. The shock on her face was notable when she saw a bullet stuck in the woman's bleeding arm. Her expression attracted another nurse to us, her face having both curious and suspicious looks. "I'll deal with this. Take her inside," the man turned towards me. I nodded and left.

I helped the woman onto one of the hospital beds and watched while a nurse tended to her. I thought about the man who had accompanied her. He looked familiar. I tried to recollect where I had seen him before.

"What's your name?" the woman's voice broke into my thoughts. "Yin," I replied, "And yours?". The woman suppressed a giggle. "I'd like it if you call me eomeonim."

My eyes widened. "What? No way! You look so young!" I said, visibly surprised. She laughed, "Now that you see me as someone your age, just call me A-Yeong." "Nice to meet you, A-Yeong," I grinned and asked, "How did you get shot?"

A-Yeong sighed. "We returned from our trip to Jakarta today," she said, "We were lodged in Palace Dream hotel. Cops suddenly showed up, saying the mafia was there. Some of the staff panicked when they drew out their guns, and in the scuffle, I got shot. They let us leave to get treatment, but our stupid driver had been drinking and ran away seeing the police. We made a call for a replacement and proceeded to the hospital. You showed up on the way, and here we are now."

I bit my lip. I felt a little guilty for being the cause of their trouble. "It's time to go," a voice broke into our conversation. The man who had accompanied A-Yeong stood waiting at the door. "Ah, Yin, let me introduce you to my son, Yoongi. Yoongi, this is Yin. Give her your number so we can stay in touch."

Yoongi arched his eyebrows. I thought he was going to say something, but he quietly came over and dictated his number to me. "How will you go? Would you like me to drop you home?" I asked. "It's okay, our vehicle is here," A-Yeong replied and got up to leave. I followed them out and waved as they got into the black car which had arrived, before driving back to the hotel.

~ x ~

"Search the entire hotel for any more clues, and send a team out to follow them," the chief instructed his agents. He turned to Do Hyun, "Your efforts have not gone wasted, young man. I will certainly suggest a promotion for you. We have been working tirelessly to get our hands on that most wanted and dangerous mafia family in Korea - the Min family, without any luck. We would have caught them today if we had come a little earlier. But now they cannot escape! Now we know where they have been making all their deals. They'll be behind bars before they know it!" Do Hyun made a bow, "I will do my best to catch these criminals, sir!" "Good," the chief smiled and left. Do Hyun grinned from ear to ear. "You owe it to Yin," Seo Joon quietly came up to him.

A car pulled up near them just then. It had a hole in its windshield. Seo Joon and Do Hyun quickly made their way towards it. A young girl got out of the car. Do Hyun started angrily at her, "Where have you been, Yin? We told you to stay in the car! Speaking of which, what happened to the car!?" "The don escaped from the hotel with Chelsea," Yin grumbled, "I saw them and followed them, but they gave me the slip."

Do Hyun hugged Yin. "It's okay," he rubbed her back, "You have been a great help, Yin. But you can go home now. Your kidnapper has been associating with the Min family. The agents recognized the mafias in the hotel and almost caught them. We are on their trail now. We'll take it from here. They'll soon be behind bars and Chelsea will be back safely. Go home and keep yourself out of this."

Yin pushed Do Hyun away. "The Mins? THE MOST DANGEROUS MAFIA IN KOREA?" her eyes widened as she stared at Do Hyun. Do Hyun shrugged. "We have to rescue Chelsea soon!" Yin was greatly perturbed. "Not we, I," Do Hyun corrected her, "You go home and-" "Why won't you let me help you, Do Hyun?" Yin screamed, "Why do you always ask me to stay away?"

"Ssh!" Do Hyun whispered harshly. He had noticed quite a few people turning around to look at them when Yin screamed. Yin found herself in tears. "Oh, Yin, please don't cry," Do Hyun tried to comfort her. "Then don't make me!" she replied. "It's for your good," Do Hyun changed his tone to a gentle one. Yin grew more agitated at this. "Stop treating me like a baby! You incompetent fool! I am the one who brought you here! You think I need protection!? Nothing has happened to me! Even the mafia left me unharmed! You failed to find me! You-" "That's enough!" It was Do Hyun's turn to shout now. "To hell with you!" Yin shouted back and got into the car. Do Hyun watched her drive away. "She's right. You've been harsh on her," Seo Joon looked expressionlessly at Do Hyun. "She's impulsive and does not know how to control her temper," Do Hyun frowned, "Come on, let's go."

~ x ~

"Who is that girl? I feel like I've seen her before," he asked. "Have you?" she asked back. "I don't really remember. She looks familiar though," he replied. "I want you to marry her," she said.

Yoongi looked at his mother. She had never been the type to beat around the bush. Always got straight to the point. "I refuse," he said.

"And why is that so?" A-Yeong raised an eyebrow. Yoongi sighed, "Why are you so hell-bent on getting me married?" "Is my son frustrated because none of his marriage alliances have been successful?" A-Yeong smiled. "That doesn't answer my question," Yoongi had a serious expression. "You have to get married if you want the Min family to continue ruling Korea," A-Yeong replied, "Also, I don't want you to die a lonely death. Black Bird may be a feared mafia, but he's still human." "I don't need people sticking around me all the time," Yoongi said, "As for passing on the business, I can pick an heir from the best of our men. Wouldn't that be enough?" "Why would you go through all that trouble of picking an heir when you can easily make one?" A-Yeong asked. Yoongi smirked, "That girl is no mafia's daughter. What about that?" "I wanted you to marry a mafia's daughter to keep the criminal blood going, but the way these mafias have raised their families disappoints me," A-Yeong scrunched her nose in disdain. "And what makes you think this girl is up to the challenge?" Yoongi raised his eyebrows.

"She's fearless, and I have a good feeling about her."

Yoongi didn't argue further. He never doubted his mother.

Yoongi's father passed away when he was just a boy. After his death, his mother took over his father's business and single-handedly rebuilt the diminishing Korean mafia. She was gifted with exceptional intuition and was very wise. It led her to success in the Korean mafia world, where there was a serious lack of level-headed and intelligent criminals.

Yoongi spent most of his time with his mother. Even when his father was alive, he had never given Yoongi much time or attention. A-Yeong was both a mother and a father figure to Yoongi, and he trusted her implicitly. When Yoongi turned 22, his mother handed over her empire to him, which he ably expanded overseas under the name 'Black Bird'. Yoongi had proven himself a worthy successor. A-Yeong now wanted the legacy to go on.