CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

In the auditorium, the men of Voodoo Guardians found themselves alone for the first time in many months. The seniors didn't join them, choosing to hold their own meeting on Belle ?le. They weren't upset by the decision, just a little perplexed.

In spite of creating their own security agency, their fathers and grandfathers still found time and interest in attending their morning meetings. They always had input, were always available for discussions, and never failed to tease them.

As much as they were relieved to finally be ‘on their own,' they were also somewhat bothered by it all. Why now? Why were they leaving them alone?

"Do you think everyone is alright out there?" asked Cam.

"I think they're all fine," said Luke. He looked at the others, shaking his head. "Listen to me. I don't know what's going on with the seniors, but Dad said that they're all fine, healthy, and happy. He said they just needed some time together as a team to learn some new things."

"New things? What new things?" frowned Ben.

"I don't know, Ben," said Luke, shaking his head. "Just let them be."

"But Mama Irene hasn't popped in on anyone in days," said Irish, sitting next to Ethan. Ethan nodded, then spoke up.

"I respect that they want time alone, but it feels a little odd," said Dunvegan.

"Look, I can't speak to what's happening out there, but we've been bitching for years that the seniors refused to retire and go out, truly, on their own and that Grandma was still shoving her nose in our business. Now they leave us alone for a few days, and no one seems to know what to do with that," said Luke. "Just let it be. If it were truly important, truly a big deal, they would let us know."

"Alright, Luke," said Eric. "We were just worried, brother." Luke raked his fingers through his hair, nodding at his friends.

"I know. I know you're all worried. Honestly? So am I, but we have to give them space. Whatever is happening involves them."

"Let's focus on what's happening in China," said Cam, taking the spotlight away from poor Luke. "Tanner checked in early this morning, and they're on the move to a monastery."

"A monastery?" frowned Cowboy.

"Sun-Jeo was pregnant, which might have been what prompted them to leave North Korea. Unfortunately, she lost the baby and killed herself."

"Damn," muttered Adam.

"Damn, indeed. Jae-Hua decided to enter a monastery and live a life of peace. The team is headed there to speak with him and see if we can find out anything of value. Poor bastard has to be devastated by this," said Cam.

"Did they find anything else?" asked Hoot.

"Had to use our own wi-fi device. There were bugs and search devices everywhere for the electronics. We scrambled everything but didn't touch them. If they did, they'd never make it out of China."

"The monastery is deep in northern China," said Pigsty, putting the map on the screen. "Yushu is here, but the monastery is to the east, here."

"Damn," muttered Axel. "They are in the middle of fucking nowhere. If they get into trouble, there's no river, no airport, no road to get them to safety. Are we prepared to send someone in?"

"We are," nodded Eric. "But we're hoping we won't have to. So far, no one has questioned why they're in the country other than the initial customs and border agents. May was able to convince them that she was seeing a cousin."

"Why would he go to a monastery? I mean, his wife and child are dead. Park is dead. Why not go back to North Korea?" asked Torres.

"I don't know. Those are all good questions that I'm sure they'll ask him when they arrive. Until then, our only goal is to ensure that Erica and Jennifer are safe and kept out of sight. She knows this and is cooperating with us fully," said Eric. "I will say that all this spare time she's had has led to some amazing new music by her, Mia, Bull, and Amanda. They expect to have a full album to release by the end of the month."

"That's great news," smiled Liffey. "Love the stuff they play, and it seems that Bull's voice only gets better with time."

"Um, good morning," said Hayes, seated beside Victoria.

"Good morning, Hayes," grinned Hex. "Did you have something to add?"

"I have some good news, sir. Using the same advanced technology of iris identification that I used for the other gentleman, I was able to infiltrate the camera systems of all the major hotels in the area."

"Infiltrate?" frowned Hex.

"Uh, yes, sir. Tap into, hack, infiltrate."

"I know what infiltrate means, Hayes. What did you do?"

"Oh, well, we, I mean, Victoria and me, we were able to use a rapid random selection process of identifying potential candidates."

"English," said Rory, rubbing his temples.

"I am speaking English," frowned Hayes. Victoria whispered in his ear, giggling at his innocent remarks. "Oh. Right. English. I made the facial recognition thingy speed up and catch the guy faster." Rory frowned.

"Smart-ass."

"We were able to create an algorithm attached to the facial recognition software that would allow for it to only identify Asian men between the ages of thirty and forty, with black hair and dark eyes, weighing less than one hundred and seventy pounds," said Victoria.

"That's pretty specific," said Luke.

"It is, but the unit that he came from was very specific. Men had to have no facial markings. They needed to look decidedly Korean, and they had to be of appropriate weight and height. You won't find men that are as tall or large as all of you in that unit. They're moved to other units."

"That's very clever, Victoria," smiled Luke.

"Thank you, sir. It was Hayes and I that figured it out." Luke turned to Pigsty and Sly, both men grinning, giving him an affirmative nod.

"They did it all," said Pigsty.

"Impressive. So, what did you find?" asked Hex.

"Three possibles. Two are staying at the Royal Orleans, and one is staying at the Monteleone."

"Both are pretty pricey hotels," said Cam. "They're not trying to hide out in fleabag motels, that's for damn sure. If it's just him, we should be alright. If there are more, we might have some issues."

"We need our best hand-to-hand fighters," said Luke. "Tanner and Hiro are obviously occupied. Rory, Piper, JB, Mike, Dunvegan, Cade, Bodhi, Frank, and Jax. Form two teams and split up, taking the different hotels. Don't get caught alone with this guy."

"Frank and Rory take lead," said Cam. Rory nodded.

"I'll take JB, Cade, and Jax. If I take my beautiful wife, I'm damn sure going to be distracted." The men all chuckled, Piper kissing her husband's cheek.

"Fantastic," said Frank. "That leaves me with the beautiful Piper, already making my team look better. Mike, Dunvegan, and Bodhi. Let's find this guy."