CHAPTER TEN

Patrick and Christopher stared into the screen at the men seated in the auditorium. In the front row were Sydney and Conor.

"Looks like you were right, brother. William is dirty. The other men said they thought he was as well. Kid problems, women problems, money problems, all of it, and he definitely has a distaste for you and your leadership style," said Christopher.

"I checked his banking," said Pigsty. "His regular pay is going into an account through Navy Federal Credit. But he has a second account with First National. Every month for the last seven months, a deposit in the amount of fifty thousand has been direct deposited to that account. On the day you were captured, he got an additional fifty."

"Fucking asshole," muttered Conor. "I'm going to kill him."

"Looks like he bought a ticket to Seoul. Do you want TSA to hold him at the airport?" asked Pigsty.

"No. Let him leave. If he doesn't have what they want, they'll kill him. Either way, we'll find him again, and it won't be pretty," said Patrick. "Conor? Your team misses you. The rest of them were all very concerned for you. Stellar leadership, brother."

"Thanks, man. I appreciate it. Tell them all I said hello, and I'll see them soon."

"Will do. We're gonna search William's rack and bag. He didn't leave with much, so maybe we'll find something. After that, we'll head down to Coronado and speak with girlfriends or whatever the hell they are."

"Wait," said Hiro. "One of them is in San Francisco. He doesn't have three baby mamas. He's got four."

"What?"

"Yes, one of them lives in San Francisco. Guess where she is from originally?"

"If you say North Korea, I'm going to be pissed," said Christopher.

"Okay, be pissed. Hae-Won."

"Does she have a last name?" asked Patrick.

"She does, but you're not going to like it," said Hiro.

"I know," said Sydney. "Hae-Won Park. I know that name, but everyone thought she was dead. She's the general's daughter, isn't she?"

"See, the agency has a few smart people," smirked Pigsty. "Yes. She's General Park's daughter. She was attending Stanford on a music scholarship and met William at a party. He already had three children from two other women but proposed to her within a week. They were married in a private ceremony, and she was pregnant almost immediately."

"I had no clue he was married," said Conor. "He was always going off on the weekends, not letting anyone know where he was, but I figured it was a local girl. All of that should have been reported to the Navy. He doesn't have anyone listed as his next of kin."

"He was seeing her locally, sometimes," said Pigsty. "According to flight records, she's flown down to San Diego four times in the last eight months, but here's the odd thing. I don't think their marriage is legal. The names are wrong, dates, all of it. Either he or she made sure that nothing was permanent."

"Do we think she trapped him for her father, or was it a happy accident?"

"Only one way to find out. Is she booked on that flight with him?" asked Christopher. Pigsty tapped away, searching the records.

"No. I find nothing to indicate that she's on a flight. In fact, it shows her as getting ready to take a final exam at Stanford. You guys feel like taking a little trip down there?"

"On our way," said Patrick.

"Hey, guys?" called Sydney. "You might want to get out of the uniforms." Christopher smiled at the screen, nodding.

"Good idea."

"Miss Park, are you ready?" asked the man seated in the front row of the auditorium. She stared at her phone, reading the message again. Get to SFO now! We need to leave. "Miss Park?"

"Yes. Sorry, professor. I'm ready." Christopher and Patrick stood in the wings, watching the woman as she lifted the bow for her cello. She'd seemed terribly distracted by her phone, then tucked it away, ignoring it.

"I can't believe she chose Sinfonia Concertante," said the girl standing beside Patrick and Christopher. He looked down at her.

"Why? Is it difficult?" he asked.

"It's one of the most difficult pieces in the world. It's by Mozart, and it not only requires expert technical prowess, but you have to have incredible musical sensitivity. The scale passages are so fast, most cellists can't keep up."

"She seems to be doing well," whispered Patrick.

"Well? That's an understatement," said the girl. "Hae-Won is one of the most gifted musicians I've ever been around. I admire her. I'm an undergraduate student, and she's pursuing her doctorate in music and will most likely have it after this. She had a baby about a year ago and never missed one day of school. She strapped that baby to her chest and still came to class every day."

"You can do that?" frowned Christopher.

"Yes," she giggled. "You can do that here. Besides, she didn't have anyone to watch the baby, and the father is a complete jerk. I mean that guy doesn't even come up here to see her. He has a job in San Diego or something, but he's a total asshole."

"Then, how did someone so talented, so nice, get mixed up with an asshole?" The girl looked around the two men, then back at the woman on stage.

"If you ask me, it was arranged by her father. He's some big-shot military guy in North Korea. Not exactly the friendliest place on the planet. I know she doesn't like him and doesn't communicate with him on a regular basis. He's nothing like her."

"You seem like a big fan," said Patrick.

"Big fan? I wasn't going to be able to afford my final semester here, and she paid it for me. Took her own money and paid it for me. Do you have any idea what a semester at Stanford costs?"

"No. Actually, I don't," said Patrick.

"It's… Oh, wait. This is the end. Listen."

Patrick and Christopher watched as the woman drew the bow over the strings, the music seemingly unnatural. When the last note left the air, she stood and bowed as the small audience clapped. She lifted the cello and started to walk off stage.

"Miss Park?" said the professor. "Congratulations. Dr. Hae-Won Park."

"Thank you," she said softly, bowing to the man. She wasn't smiling. She didn't seem happy or cheerful. She just said thank you. As she exited the stage, the young girl beside them hugged her.

"That was so beautiful," she said to the woman.

"Thank you." Hae-Won looked up at the two men, walking around them as she did. Finding her cello case, she placed the instrument inside and secured it.

"Miss Park, may we speak with you?" asked Patrick.

"I assume this is about Gordon."

"Gordon?"

"Gordon William. My daughter's father."

"He's your husband, isn't he?" asked Patrick.

"No. That was all a ruse set up by my father. We are not legally married. Not now, not ever. I do not wish to have that man in my life."

"Are you aware that he's on a plane back to Korea?" asked Christopher. She nodded, holding up her phone for them to see the text messages.

"Forgive me, Miss Park, but you don't seem upset by this at all."

"Why should I be? I was forced to marry him. Forced to have his daughter, all so my father could ensure that he would be tied to him. I do not want anything to do with him. I have my doctorate now in music. I'll go somewhere else and teach, keeping my daughter away from him."

"Your name isn't exactly common," said Christopher.

"I'll get it changed," she said quietly, then thoughtfully looked up at him. "Can I do that?"

"Why don't we go somewhere that we can sit down and discuss this? I think it's a much bigger conversation."

"I have to pick up my daughter from the daycare first. It's on campus, so we can walk and go to the coffee shop next door."

The men nodded, insisting on carrying the cello for her. They were both shocked at how heavy it was, considering how very tiny the woman was. As they waited outside the daycare, they smiled when she returned with a one-year-old bundle of dark hair that stuck up everywhere and the cutest round face they'd ever seen. Patrick shoved the cello toward Christopher.

"Oh, man. You take this. I'm gonna hold this little cutie." The woman smiled as he lifted the little girl, babbling to her.

"You like children?" she asked.

"I hope so. I have triplets. So does my brother," he laughed.

"Oh. That's very unusual."

"Not where we come from. What can we get you?" asked Patrick as they took their seats in the coffee shop.

"Just green tea, please." A few moments later, Christopher returned with the drinks and a milk and cookie for the little one.

"What's her name?" he asked.

"Jennifer. I wanted her to have an American name so that she could blend in, be unseen."

"Is that what you're trying to do? Blend in and be unseen?" asked Patrick.

"It's occurred to me that I don't know who you are or what you want but that you know a great deal about me, or at least my child's father."

"My name is Patrick Jordan, and this is my twin, Christopher. Your father tried to kill a friend of ours." She stiffened in her seat, closing her eyes for a moment. "Your husband…"

"Child's father," she said quickly.

"My apologies. Your child's father is a United States Navy SEAL. We believe he's betrayed his country and his team."

"I see," her eyes looking down at the table. "My father convinced him to help him. He's very good at that. He uses people, things, anything he wants to use to get what he wants. Gordon was rather easy to manipulate with the right amount of money and expensive objects."

"What does he want?" asked Christopher.

"War. War with the United States and her allies." Both men nodded, knowing that was exactly what he wanted.

"Why did he allow you to come to the U.S. and go to school?" asked Patrick.

"He didn't allow it. My mother got me out of the country when I was eleven and brought me here. I thought I was free. I thought we were free. And we were for a few years. In my sophomore year of college, some men came while I was at school and took my mother back to Korea. I never saw her again.

"My father sent me messages, telling me that he would allow me to live here and finish school, but one day, I would owe him a favor for allowing me to live. Gordon was that favor. I was to marry him, have a child, and make sure that he did whatever my father said.

"I did two of those things. Except, while at the courthouse, I gave a false name. Our marriage isn't legal. I made sure of that. I also never put his name on my daughter's birth certificate. I didn't want any connection to him at all."

"And what about making sure he did what was asked of him?" said Christopher.

"I didn't care. I refused to allow him to stay with me here. I told him to get back to whatever he was doing in San Diego but to stay away from me, or I would report him to the authorities."

"That was very dangerous for you to do," said Patrick. "He's a highly-skilled, very well-trained man. He could have hurt you or your daughter." He looked down at the little girl with cookie crumbs all over her face.

"I need you to take her," said the woman in a shaky voice. She could feel the tears building in her eyes and the pit forming in her stomach.

"What? No, we're not taking your child," said Christopher, shaking his head. "That's not why we're here."

"You have to. If you don't, when my father comes for me, and he will come for me, he will kill her and make me watch. There is no place for women in my father's life. Not even a daughter and granddaughter."