They landed in the late hours of the night. Her body ached with fatigue, her eyes drooping as she struggled to keep them open. The days of strain where finally catching up to her, yet the game she had started had only just begun, her move taking out the pawn instantly. Yet on this board of chess, she knew better then to doubt her enemy. Especially considering she was playing against an unknown opponent. She knew better to anticipate quietly. Over the years through various people she had been taught to observe before attacking, and she was still in that phase. She had been taught to remain silent until it was time to say checkmate. The rows of pieces in her defence hadn't moved much, and she knew she had to play very carefully, she looked down at the board in front of her grasping a piece as she sipped lightly on her alcohol. Her thoughts were like untamed waves. And she spent her time trying to organise them. To try and work out the reality of the conspiracy that this city was entangled within. She sighed slightly, her eyes casting out the window as they descended onto the city she had once loved to call home, and with the thoughts of home, her thoughts against her will retreated to a certain man. A man who had managed to intrigue her through his aura, and presence. Jackson Wang. His name in itself was enough to make her heart flutter, and when her eyes closed, the flash of him made it pound harder. She couldn't understand what it was about him. But he felt familiar, like she could open up to him about anything. It was dangerous. And she knew it. The fact that she couldn't find any information about him proved that he couldn't be trusted, but even the ice queen couldn't ignore her heart. She leaned into her seat slightly. She had bigger problems to deal with. She knew that. But she couldn't help but think back to him.

And like a parasite, he had already made his entry.

Moments merged into more until finally they touched down on the city. She sat up, struggling slightly. The pain apparent, yet still she remained focused on her job at hand. The plane door opened, and as they descended the steps, flashes from the media blinded them, shouts and praises directed in her way for catching the criminal. Yet her grip on him slipped, due to her exhaustion. A fatal error as he tried to run. Irene barged past the cameras that followed her desperately as she ran forward. And just as he stopped trying to work out which way to go she jumped slightly, raising her foot in a kick to his back. The pilot fell forward, and Irene had him back in her grasp. She saw Kai from the corner of her eye push through to help her alongside Lay. They passed her small smiles, her own features struggling to bring one to the forefront. She let the boys take him, as she was swamped with media. She just wanted to go home, yet with all the shouts in her face alongside the microphones she knew this is what she had signed up for. "Quiet!" She shouted. "If you want answers let me speak." Instantly with her power, the crowd shushed into a waiting silence. "The court case will be resumed shortly, first I need to compile all of the evidence and interrogate the suspect. It's not as simple as you all seem to think. I'm sure you've seen the video, this goes far deeper then what anybody could have predicted. In order to ensure that the right people are placed behind bars, things need to be conducted in a orderly fashion legal way. I'll be starting work tomorrow and will be posting updates regarding the trial. I know that this is a period of unrest and uncertainty. You feel lied and betrayed to and that's completely understandable, I share that pain and hence reason why I pledge to do my best. I will fight for what is right. I will protect what I know. And I will serve justice regardless. Now I have an early morning tomorrow and I would like to get some rest. So that's all I will be answering today. To help I'll set up a conference to answer more questions. But until then I ask that you be patient with the process and for you to trust me. Thank you." She moved past them, not bothering to answer any of the questions that were shot her way.

Jackson sat in his office, his eyes going over some important files regarding a simple case. He watched as Mark barged into the office, his eyes wild as he switched on the tv screen. "She's back. And she didn't come home empty handed." Jackson's eyes widened, as he ditched his seat standing in front of the screen as Mark went onto the main news. She looked tired, battered and bruised. He could see the annoyance in her features. And just as her grip slipped, the culprit tried to slip past. He watched as she ran fly kicking him in the back before handing him over to what he assumed where her friends. The media was relentless however, and he could see her resolve cracking as she tried to maintain her facade. As usual, prim and proper she said her piece before leaving flaring with sophistication, her head held high. He watched the screen until Mark switched it off. "We need to be careful about her. She has literally brought a dead man back to life for justification." Jackson nodded slightly, looking towards a file he had complied. "I'll get to work on that soon. We have a 'date' scheduled, I'll get as much information as I can out of her but we need to wait for this case to die down, I won't be able to get anywhere near her at this moment in time because she's too focused on this case. Whatever I plan i need to plan it against her strategically to get the information out of her accordingly." Mark nodded as Jackson opened another file, his eyes watching his brothers movements carefully. "And will 'Batman' still be paying her a visit." Jackson turned to glare at him. "When it's necessary." Mark sighed. "You need to be careful Jackson. Do not get caught in the crossfire. Do not get caught between your feelings and your duty." Jackson hummed as he looked at the file. "I know." He heard mark sigh. "She's just a job Mark. Just like the rest of them." He passed Mark on his way to the door, squeezing his shoulder as he left. Mark stared after him. Knowing that it was a lie. She meant more than Jackson was willing to admit. He was intrigued and that curiosity would prove dangerous if it developed into more. Mark knew it, and deep down Jackson knew it too.

Irene sat at home, grateful to be in her own bedsheets, the smell of lavender hitting her senses as she let out a breath of relief. She pushed herself further into her covers trying to receive some form of comfort. She knew how hectic things were going to get. She knew that her stress levels were about to go through the roof and all the procrastinations hindered her from getting the much needed sleep that her body and mind desired. She shuffled slightly, wrapping her arms around her pillow for comfort, burying herself into the self made haven. It took awhile, but soon the exhaustion over took any other part of her mind, her body slumping as she slept, her mind haunted by her lingering demons. The demons of her past.
It wasn't until the early hours of the morning did she shoot out of her bed breaking out in cold sweats, and panting slightly. Another nightmare. They weren't uncommon for her. In fact over the years she had suffered from insomnia, her conscious and moral compass reprimanding her through the darkness of the night, her heart weighed down by loss.
She raked a hand through her hair, her eyes closing as she rested her hand on her head, trying to gain the momentum to start her hectic day, yet the motivation seemed to flood out of her veins. She was already so goddamn tired, yet there was so much that she need to uncover, to reveal. She couldn't fail now. She couldn't give up now.  Not when so many people were relying on her to fight. To fight for what was right. But it was moments like this that Irene found herself questioning what was right and what was wrong. The definition always changed depending on people and their thinking. She had spent so long in conditioning herself to believe that there was no set definition and therefore she wasn't morally inclined or incorrect for that monstrosities she had committed In order to gain the reigns in her favour. She pushed herself up. Finally fed up of staring at her ceiling, her eyes locking onto her form. She looked like crap. She turned on the scorching hot water, letting it burn her skin slightly as she tried to clean the frantic nature of her mind. She always overthought things. It was a habit she had learned to ensure that she was protected. That she had everything covered, but still it proved detrimental. Her thoughts were always so loud, that they made her ears bleed at times. She wished for peace, but she knew the moment her feet stepped on this path that peace was what she had to sacrifice. And she had. Over and over again. Until finally she stood tormented everyday. She moved out, pulling her clothes onto her body and styling her hair accordingly alongside doing her make up. It wasn't until an hour later did she finally manage to push herself out of her house, and just as she suspected. The media was waiting.

She pushed herself through the swamp of people for the second time within twenty four hours, adamant to get this interrogation done so she could head back and also have time to check in her now neglected business. Of course it wasn't completely neglected, there were people keeping it running alongside her girls that she trusted with her life, but still it was her baby. She made her way towards the room that had been set up, ignoring the looks that were directed her way. Some looks of fear. Others resentment. Yet she remained oblivious to the form that remained on the other side watching her, as she sat down. Jackson looked towards her, the door opening to reveal Mr Kang who silently took a seat besides Jackson, who eyed him cautiously. Irene looked towards him, not caring about the potential officers and agents that stood on the other side watching the interrogation. "You know how much shit your putting me through Mr Choi?" Irene leaned back causally, a tactic that seemingly baffled Jackson as a man he recognised from the previous night on the news handed her a file before leaving. "Why couldn't you sleep." "That obvious." "You look like crap. Still a goddess of course." Irene smirked as he returned it. Jackson couldn't help but agree. It was true. But he could now see what she was doing. She was playing around with her food. He watched on, as Irene looked towards him. "You seemed to have slept well." "Of course. My conscious is clear. I know that someone will get me out of this. You'll fail at convicting me. Aren't you a rookie?" Irene looked towards him. "Seems like someone's already tipped you off." He smirked at her. "So you should know what I really do." She watched the smile fade. "You should have also been told just how dangerous I can be when it comes to getting what I want." Irene opened the file, sliding some photos in his direction. Jackson, Mark and Mr Kang watching on in silence. They watched the mans face drop in horror, turning pale, as Irene turned to look at her nails. She spared him a quick glance. "The fact of the matter here, Mr Choi, is that your in custody. The people who are saying that they will get you out, won't hesitate to sacrifice you. It's a common tactic. You have played chess right?" He remained quite. "The pawns are the first to go in the game, you are clearly surrounded by some big people, but what happens when they turn on each other? What happens when you're sacrificed? Your wife won't be seeing the light of day again, nor will you . And your kids? Well that's just tragic. You were used Mr Choi. Pawns never last more then five minutes, and if they serve another purpose then that is to protect, to be sacrificed at the right time." Jackson looked at her, astonished. She had manipulated the situation completely. "You don't know what your talking about." Irene smiled, looking up at him. "Of course I do. I've played the game one too many times. It's the fastest way to survive in this world. Sacrifice those who are foolish enough to swear allegiance with no context. To manipulate information to make it look like they will get something, but the reality being to cheat them from that very thing." Jackson looked on, his eyebrows tensed as he watched her, listening intently to each and every single word. She stood up walking around to Mr Choi. Her hands shoved into her pockets as she circled her prey. "Your stuck Mr Choi. The evidence I have, well let's see shall we...at precisely, 11:05 you administrated a dose of euthanasia like drug to your fellow pilot. You want to know how we caught that, we did a simple blood test. So we have a pilot who was already dead before the impact, so even if he wanted to stop this, he couldn't. Then at approximately 11:20 you received a phone call. Which you made out like it was your wife. I didn't know you spoke Spanish as well..." she watched his eyes widen. She smirked, as she re told the conversation. "You want to know how I got that. Well one of the passengers. A child no older then eight had been filming a vlog. A vlog that cemented exactly what we needed. And then at 11:30 the first bomb planted on the plane jet blew. 11:45 the second. And at 11:50 the plane crashed. All matching precisely to the conversation you had with passenger 321." Irene sat back down in her seat, a cruel, smug look on her features. She picked up the photos she had placed in front of him. Her eyes looking back into his. "How do they plan on saving you from that?" Irene leaned back again. "They gave you a weapon Mr Choi and you stupidly shot yourself with it. They won't come for you. They will do what is necessary to protect their asses. The evidence is against you and you only. Passenger 321 isn't in the picture. And I wonder why?" Irene crossed her arms. She deliberately made it out like she hadn't caught passenger 321, she needed her answers and lawyers always left out the bigger picture to get what they want."I've showed you the consequences of what happens when I don't get what I want. You're not playing just a lawyer Mr Choi, i have a lot more under my sleeve." Irene closed the file. Her nails lightly tapping on the table as she looked towards him. "I know you won't tell me what I want straight away. That's fine. But when your resolve begins to break, and you realise how trapped you are..." she slid her card over the table. "Call me so I can get my answers. Who knows maybe I can reduce your sentence." Irene watched as he took the card, a smirk ghosting her features. She stood up. "El mate. (Checkmate)"  she watched his eyes widen in satisfaction as she walked out the door. Mark quickly translated it and Jackson was left with a small smirk on his face. She was exceptional. Careful to not blow his cover he watched as she placed some sunglasses over her eyes whilst talking over the phone and walking alongside a man.

TBC

Authors note:
Hey guys hope you enjoyed this one. Let me know what your thoughts are about this chapter. Lots of love and best wishes to you all. Stay safe x