They had done as San had advised them to. Before noon they had checked out the trail leading up the mountains to where San had told them the bandits were believed to live in an old mine. It had not been used for quite some time and he was sure that by now the water of the mountain's springs had filled it up nearly halfway but it also was the only place where they assumed the bandits to hide.

Hongjoong had observed everything with thinned lips, still agitated from the encounter the night before. His fingers itched to put a bullet through that mysterious man, to see him put behind the bars of the cell in Hongjoong's office. Maybe he should ask Jaebeom about them again, whether he had been mocked by a particular person too.

But for now they had to retreat. Hongjoong did not dare venture further with just the three of them around so after checking out the trail they left for home again. This time it was Hongjoong leading them, speeding through the dusty plains and only swerving around some tricky spots that San warned him of.

Wooyoung was close at his side again, telling him about his family and past raids, trying to remember as much information as possible. He did not mention some man with an annoying need of wanting to mock people but he did account some important data.

Hongjoong needed more time. It was more difficult than he had expected to outsmart these guys and he wanted to have them gone already.

They rode through the plains while the sun was leaving its hot trail over the clear sky, letting their shadows slowly circle around them with the passing hours.

Fort Davis came into view after noon, the moon already having made its pale appearance on the sky. They entered the eerily quiet town after putting away the horses, Hongjoong feeling sore all over.

They also met Mingi who was busy rolling over the fields not far from the barn and everybody had greeted him politely. Hongjoong tried his best to ignore that this was no person at all, just nodding at him without asking any more questions.

However, after stepping into the main street of the town the air seemed oddly heavy, the silence disturbing. Hongjoong narrowed his eyes when he could see no one out, hearing no laughter or noise anywhere. The town was eerily quiet.

"Where is everybody?", Wooyoung wondered out loud, carefully checking the locked doors and empty windows. San was walking soundlessly on the other side, carefully peeking into the narrow alleys between houses before he passed them.

So where-

"The inn. Let's go to the inn.", Hongjoong quickly decided, feeling his gut clench with a horrible presentiment and the other two men nodded quickly. Wooyoung looked absolutely serious and suddenly all sharp features, his usual soft and smiley persona gone with the wind.

Hongjoong motioned for them to stay back when reaching the inn, carefully lifting a hand to knock at the door.

"Yeosang? It's us. Are you in there?" He had lowered his voice to a careful mumble, waiting with tensed muscles. For a second nothing moved, but then the door was pushed open the barest bit, a tuft of blonde hair and Yeosang's sharp eyes peeking out.

When he saw Hongjoong the man visibly relaxed, opening the door wide to curiously peek around at the street.

"Did they leave?"

Hongjoong copied the gesture, glancing around and feeling his body lock up when he indeed saw somebody in the shadow between two houses. For an agonizing second they just stared at each other, then the man rose the dark hat on his head at Hongjoong before disappearing with a grin.

It was him, Hongjoong was absolutely sure.

He already turned to hunt him down, when Yeosang's whisper held him back.

"The bandits."

So that guy was a bandit indeed. This came to no surprise. Hongjoong stayed when Yeosang spoke up again, quickly nodding at San and Wooyoung too.

"They came around noon. We were expecting them to come around these days but we thought they would wait until you were here. We dodged them quite well but Yunho is upstairs caring for the wounded."

"How many were hurt?" Hongjoong felt his jaw clench in seething rage, trying to breathe deeply as to not scare Yeosang who still looked a bit rough.

"Six of them, but no deaths this time. Jaebeom already left to check on the people who did not manage to hide here. So far everybody is accounted for, no one missing. Well, except for Mary, that is." Yeosang pulled the door open a bit more, showing the inside of the room where the people had huddled together, staying on the ground as not to be seen through the windows.

Hongjoong gave another curse.

"Mary? She told me she is looking after Mister Park. Did you count him in?"

Yeosang's eyes widened a bit before he turned around, quickly scanning the room.

"Gods no, I never do, he normally does not come up here to hide! Maybe-" He stopped talking when in the distance a scream was to be heard, loud and pained and unmistakeably female. It came from east. That was where the railroad was.

Hongjoong pulled out his gun when he finally connected the dots, the shadow from earlier having left in that direction too and he quickly started running, yelling at Wooyoung and San to follow.

Together they stumbled down the street, some trappy stones making them trip and stumble but they did arrive at the house after a few minutes, bursting through the door immediately.

"Seonghwa?! Mary?!", Wooyoung started screaming their names already, the three of them quickly scanning the room.

There was nothing out of the ordinary, the things still clean and orderly. But where were they?

"Upstairs.", San quickly guessed, jumping up the stairs with Hongjoong hot on his heels.

San swerved left, his gun at the ready while Hongjoong jumped right, doing the same.

He needed a second to oversee the room that obviously was the sleeping chamber, a big bed standing in the middle of the wall with other furniture sorted neatly around it. On that bed however there were two people in a big puddle of blood that shimmered fresh on their naked skin, making Hongjoong's stomach churn.

"They're here!"

He quickly looked around, only seeing an opened window but no bandit and with another curse he scrambled to put the gun away, rushing over to the bed.

San followed him quickly, looking out the window and then giving up too, when there was obviously only dark night out. Wooyoung's heavy footsteps where heard on the stairs when he joined them too.

"Oh God."

He arrived just in the moment that Hongjoong carefully pulled Mary's still body around, her limbs heavy but still warm. They got a fine view of her bloodied temple, the hole a deadly bullet had left. Her eyes were wide open and empty.

Hongjoong carefully laid her down next to Seonghwa, searching his still body for injuries too.

At first glance he could see none but the pale man was obviously very unconscious too so Hongjoong had no other choice than to scoot closer to the other man's body, carefully searching his head.

There was some blood on one of his temples that seemed to be his own and when Hongjoong placed a thumb at the other's opened lips he also felt him breathing flatly.

Hongjoong sat back on his haunches, trying to calm down a bit before he looked at Wooyoung who was still staring at Mary with pity.

"We have to bring him to the inn. It's much too dangerous to keep him around here."

Both of them nodded, Wooyoung immediately looking around to find some clothes they could put on Seonghwa.

"Let's just wrap him in a blanket. He can do that himself when we know everybody safe. They could be back any moment and we are outnumbered right now.", San hurriedly decided, stepping over to wrap the sheets around Mary's body. He lifted her easily on his shoulder, nodding at them to follow.

"Woo, pack some clothes for him. I'm counting on you watching our backs."

Hongjoong felt his heart clench when he watched Mary's slender wrists limply hanging down behind San's back, her blood leaving a trail on the floor.

He was so going to kill those bastards.

Hongjoong made quick work of Seonghwa's body, wrapping him securely in another blood stained sheet and then lifting him on his shoulder with a grunt. He was careful not to touch his injured leg, gripping his thighs instead as they hurried outside. Wooyoung was looking left and right, checking the darkness for any suspicious movements and everything seemed to have gone back to normal already.

The cicadas were doing their nightly song, the moon bathed them in its pale light and the town had gone back to its busy hustle as if the bandits had never been there. And it pained Hongjoong to see. It pained him to know that fear, pain and death were normal occurences in the daily lives of these people. He needed to stop this.

They hurried to the doors of Hehetmon without any disturbance, the townsfolk they passed worriedly looking at the people they were carrying. When they had reached the building San gave a quick nod at Hongjoong, inclining his head down west.

"I'll take her to the graveyard immediately. Don't need the crows feeding on her pretty body. Come help me?" He directed that last part at Wooyoung who nodded just a tad to quick but Hongjoong was too empty, his head too full with plans to dwell on it.

"You do that. I'll send her parents over to help as soon as possible." The cool distance they held actually helped Hongjoong with coping , helped him pretend that this had not been a friend of theirs dying. Five other people might die too, he had to hurry.

They split up there, Hongjoong hurrying inside of the inn where everybody had dispersed already. Yeosang was standing behind the counter with Jongho leaning against it, his dark frown contrasting with that dress again.

At Hongjoong stepping in they immediately moved closer, eyes wide.

"It's Park.", he declared out of breath, looking at Yeosang helplessly.

"He's hurt? Oh, uhh... The rooms are all occupied right now so I have to move some people around maybe. I can ask Yunho to-"

Hongjoong made a dismissive gesture.

"It's alright, they are hurt. I'll take him to my room. He's only unconscious but please do tell Yunho to come by as soon as he has time." Hongjoong sincerely hoped that the man could save everybody, that no one had to die anymore.

Yeosang nodded quickly, promising to prepare another blanket for Seonghwa. Hongjoong left them to their own chores, groaningly carrying Seonghwa up the stairs. The man did become heavy after some time.

Back in his room Hongjoong carefully placed Seonghwa down on his bed and then went to take a bath. He needed to free his head of any thoughts right now, needed to concentrate on the important things.

And still, while the cool water washed away the worries of his day Hongjoong could not let go of the treacherous thoughts eating away in his mind.

A person had died under his watch. He had failed them already, not having protected them well enough. He needed a new plan, could not indulge in that game of cat and mouse and therefore he needed that strange man that kept following him. If he could get some information out of that guy, if he could somehow get to the rest of the group through him, Hongjoong might be able to stop them from taking more innocent lives.

He actually might be able to make those bandits being the ones taken to the graveyard while the town could rest assured.