Perplex

                                    

                                          
"What the hell is that?" The silver Ford truck came to a slow stop along the side of the road. 
A body laid face up in the dark without moving. The two men stared at it in silence. The driver shifted the gear shift into park. The other moved himself forward and squinted at the person. "You don't think he's dead, do you?" 
"He doesn't seem to be breathing. We should check it out." The driver unbuckled his seat belt and began to leave his seat. 
"Wait, don't leave me here alone!" The passenger unbuckled his own belt and hurried out of the truck. 
The driver glanced around the area. Two deep ditches were on the side of the back road. The nearest house was, at least, half a mile away. Traffic was slow in this area, so it was the perfect place to dump a body. 
Their work boots clomped along the pavement as they stepped closer. The passenger held his breath. The man's eyes were closed. Russet hair spread out along the pavement. His hands were limp at his sides. Just by the youthfulness of his face, they knew he was young. 
The driver reached out and nudged the man's side. It rolled slightly from the force of the man's boot. "Goddamn it," the man mumbled. He crouched down onto a knee and pulled out two fingers to find a pulse.
Before he could reach the man, a loud yelp caused him to turn around. His eyes widened in shock. His friend was being dragged back by a man in a ski mask. An arm locked around his neck. The man scrambled for his friend, but before he could reach him, a bag was shoved over his own head. 
Panicking, he flung his arms and attempted to throw the perpetrator over his shoulder. Another set of hands grabbed him. Duct tape ripped from its roll. The sticky side wrapped tight around his arms. He let out a yell and swung his head hoping to head-butt his attackers. 
His friend beside him was already unconscious and slumped against Lee Know. Changbin jabbed a needle into the man still squirming and hit the plunger. The man's body went limp and he slumped forward. Changbin didn't bother to catch him. 
"That went so much better than expected. Keep your phones on vibrate and we'll text you when we're ready." Chan spoke beneath the latex mask. He tapped I.N on the shoulder and nodded towards the truck. 
I.N nodded and the pair began heading over to it. The headlights lit up the spot where Seungmin's body used to lay. Once the guys were attacked, he stood back up and helped Changbin with the stronger man. The two climbed into the vehicle and Chan began to drive towards the white house.
 Down in the depths of the white house bunker, something had shifted among the three guys. Ever since they saw Kiera, nothing made sense. Question after question built up, but no matter how much they discussed them, there were no answers. Why was Kiera back at the white house? 
Did something happen to the rest of the group members? Were they ambushed or did Kiera run away? Were the rest of the guys dead? Willie nearly shot Felix and killed him. If he came back, what was their fate? 
After Willie and Kiera left, Suzie came back with their dinner like usual. The three ate without discussing what happened. Suzie seemed to be in high spirits, so they realized she didn't know what just happened. Maybe it was for the best. Suzie didn't seem to play around. Who knew what would conjure if she found out Willie was shoving his daughter around. 
Felix scratched at a section of the table. Han had his head resting on his arms. Beside him, Hyunjin was staring up at the ceiling. He counted the seconds passing by in his head. The three were bored out of their minds. 
"Do you guys think Willie usually hurts Kiera like that?" 
"What?" Han picked his head up. 
"He shoved her in here and then grabbed her multiple times. Do you think he does that all the time?" 
When Kiera was jerked away, her terror filled eyes met Felix's. He wanted to say something desperately to reassure her that things would be okay, but he couldn't. Her father had just nearly blown his head off. He couldn't get his lips to form words. 
"I think if Willie was physically abusive to Kiera, she would have told us." Han sat all the way up in his chair. "Kiera learned to live with us and told us a lot of things. More specifically, she told Chan a lot of things. I bet she's told him things we've never known about. She was pretty close to you. I'm sure she would have said something if it was that severe." 
"You also have to think about the physical effects of physical abuse. Physical abuse can leave behind physical marks like bruises and scratches. Kiera was with her parents in the public eye a lot. She wore clothes ranging from shorts and pants to short sleeves and tank tops." 
"If she would have been physically abused," Hyunjin went on, "we would have seen it or she would have told us. I hate the guy, but Willie isn't dumb. He can yell and scream all he wants. Without being recorded, it's harder for him to get caught. There were never any strange bruises or marks on Kiera's body." 
"Unless she hid them with makeup," Han countered. 
Hyunjin shook his head, "she would have told us. What's happening right now is different. Kiera is here and he's pissed off at her. It means something that he doesn't like has happened. Something he can't control has happened." 
"What about that video? The one where she exposed both parents?" 
"That'd do it. Plus, he asked her if she worked with us. Somehow he's learned that we're all tied together." 
"She really made a video about her parents?" Felix raised an eyebrow. 
"Were you there for that or was that after you left? She made a video pretty much exposing everything including the hit her father put on her mother and the hit on her that was supposedly made by Philip." 
"I wish I could watch it." 
"I can tell you about it," Han offered. "I got a chance to watch it before Hyunjin and I were kidnapped. It's a really emotional video, so it was difficult to watch." 
Felix nodded and Han began to retell the beginning of Kiera's video.