ꗃ: 𝗘𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗟 𔘓. 𝗍𝖺𝖾𝗃𝖾𝗇𝗆𝗂𝗇𝗄𝗈𝗈𝗄 ! 𓂅

14 | 再び訪問者

"WOULD YOU STAY?"

She nodded before she thought better of her response.

"Then it's settled," Taehyung said, satisfaction glimmering in his eyes. "We'll tell Jin to proceed with the divorce action, and we'll come up with a plan to make sure the bastard doesn't come within a square mile of you."

She opened her mouth to protest but he shushed her with his finger.

"Trust us, baby."

She sighed. The thing was, she did trust them. It was insane. She'd only known them a few days, and yet she trusted them more than she'd ever trusted another living soul.

"Okay," she said quietly.
Taehyung bent his head and kissed her hungrily. His hand shoved into her hair and kneaded the back of her neck as his tongue delved into her mouth.

When he pulled away, she was breathless.

"Well, I must say, this is a surprise," a feminine voice drawled.

Jennie whirled around to see a tall redhead in a cowboy hat and wearing a badge.

Taehyung swore. "Damn it, Park Soo-young, don't you know how to knock?

Jimin grasped Jennie's wrist and shoved her behind him. His face darkened into a thundercloud, and Taehyung stepped forward in an effort to defuse a potentially explosive situation.

He knew Jimin didn't like Soo-young at all, and if she posed a threat to Jennie, he wasn't sure what Jimin would do.

"What the hell are you doing here, and what do you want?" Taehyung demanded.

Soo-young raised a brow in surprise at his vehemence.

"The question is what is she doing here?" she said with a nod in Jennie direction. "Unless I'm mistaken, she bears an uncanny resemblance to the woman on a missing person's report lying on my desk."

Fuck, fuck, fuck. Why did she have to show up now of all times?

"Her husband claims she was abducted," she continued. "What does the lady have to say about that?"

"I wasn't kidnapped," Jennie said hotly.

Jimin shoved her back behind him and glared harder at Soo-young.

"As you can see, she's perfectly fine," Jimin said icily. "I'm sure your services are required elsewhere. They aren't here."

Soo-young flinched. "You never did like me." She shook her head. "But that's not the point. The point is I have a worried husband searching for his missing wife. Now if she's here of her own free will, that's her business, but I need her to come to the station with me and give me a statement. Away from any undue influence," she said looking pointedly at the three brothers.

"Over my dead body," Taehyung growled.

"She's not going anywhere near her bastard husband," Jungkook spoke up.

Soo-young sighed and moved her hand to rest on her hip, mere inches from her gun. "You guys aren't going to make this easy I see."

"I'll go," Jennie said softly, moving in front of Jimin.
Taehyung's chest clenched at the blatant fear in her eyes.

"No, baby. You're not going."
She turned troubled eyes on him. "I won't cause you any trouble. I'll go."

"Fuck that," Jimin said. "Soo-young can take your damn statement here."

"Look, I don't know what the hell is going on here, but I need to hear Mrs. Kim version. One that isn't colored by three huge-ass men glowering over her shoulder. She'll need to come with me. Don't make me force the issue, Tae. You know I don't want to have to do that."

"What the fuck is your problem?" Jungkook interjected, surprising Taehyung with the anger in his voice.

"I'm doing my job," she said in an even voice. "You lied to me when I asked if you'd seen her. I have a very important man raising all sorts of hell in my town looking for his missing wife. His new wife I might add. Now I find her here. She looks frightened out of her mind, so you'll have to excuse me if I want to hear from her own mouth what the hell is going on."

"It's not us she's frightened of," Jimin pointed out.

"Fine, then she can come with me and explain,"she said.

Jennie sucked in her breath, trying valiantly not to panic. She couldn't allow the brothers to get into trouble because they were protecting her. And it was time she stood up for herself.

Taehyung had said his friend could handle her divorce. She would have to go with this Soo-young person and explain as much as she dared. Otherwise all hell might break loose.

She moved toward the tall woman, determined not to be intimidated. Jimin caught at her arm and tried to drag her back.

She turned to him, trying to keep the fear from her eyes. "I have to do this," she said.

"We'll go with you," he said.

She shook her head. "No, you can't. This is something I have to do."

Uncertainty flashed in Jimin's eyes, and for a brief moment, she could swear she saw fear. Then his expression hardened into an impenetrable mask.

"I'll come back," she said softly.

"I don't like it," Jungkook broke in.

"Her husband goes nowhere near her," Taehyung bit out. "You hear me, Soo-young? You get your damn statement, but you keep that bastard away from her. I'm charging you with her safety."

Jennie shivered at the hardness in his voice. Soo-young blanched but nodded.

Hand on her holster, she dipped her head toward the door. "After you, ma'am."

Jennie turned to look at the three brothers, a sudden surge of uncertainty gripping her. She didn't want to leave the safe haven she'd found here.

Before she could follow her, Taehyung stepped forward and hauled her against him. His lips found hers, pressing hungrily against her as if infusing his strength into her.

Soo-young cleared her throat by the door, and Jennie turned to leave. She stepped into the cold and shivered. She hadn't thought to get her coat.

She trekked to the Jeep Cherokee, her boots crunching in the snow. Soo-young gestured toward the passenger seat before stalking around to the driver's side.

Jennie slid into the warm interior, grateful Soo-young had left the engine running. She glanced out the window as Soo-young backed out of the drive, a knot swelling in her throat as they drifted further away from the cabin.

"We can't just let her go!" Jungkook said.

Jimin stood where Jennie had left him, staring broodingly at the door.

Taehyung scrubbed a hand through his hair and wondered what the hell they had done. "I don't trust that bastard as far as I could throw him. I vote we ride into town and keep an eye on things. If she needs us, we'll be a lot more use than if we sit here on our fucking hands."

Jungkook nodded his agreement.

Taehyung looked at Jimin who still hadn't moved. "You coming, bro?"

"She left," he said in a strained voice. "How do we know she'll want to come back?"

Even as the statement angered Taehyung, he knew Jimin was voicing his fears.

"She left to protect us," Jungkook snarled. "It's our job to protect her."

"Let's go, we're wasting time," Taehyung said. He had no desire to mediate a fight between his younger siblings.