SEVEN
"All good things are difficult to achieve; and bad things are very easy to get."
—Confucius
LISA
"Please, tell me I heard you wrong." I was doing my best to stay calm, but it seemed the world was on piss-the-fuck-out-of-Lisa mode.
Marco sighed, pouring himself a glass of brandy. "I'm afraid not. Apparently your grandfather will be making a stop in the States."
"But grandfather hates America," Nickhun stated the obvious, making me want to throw my glass at his face.
Jen leaned against the desk, forcing me to calm down with her eyes. She could do that now. Her own little superpower; where she could control what I was feeling with just her beautiful brown eyes. But she couldn't understand how much I hated my grandfather and how much he hated me. I didn't even want to give him the satisfaction of talking about him.
"When will he be here?" Bambam asked, not bothered at all. Out of all of he was the only one our grandfather "liked". If he had it his way, our grandfather would have killed me a long time ago.
"I don't give a fuck, he isn't staying here! He can take his old motherfucking cane and shov—"
"Shove it where, Lisa?" The devil himself said, dressed in a ten thousand dollar suit, as my mother opened the door for him and his three bodyguards.
My father, Bambam, Nickhun and even my own mother stood up straighter, each one of them gave my grandfather the respect his title commanded. I may be the one who ran the Manoban clan now, but my grandfather was the one who built it. He was the original. Before him, we were a bunch of street thugs. He created our empire after being a drug runner for a boss much older and wiser than himself. One day, he snapped and took an ax to the motherfucker. War broke out. My grandfather had three very simple skills: killing, thinking and stealing. If he wanted something, he could have it.
"I think she was going to say, 'shove it up your old ass.'" Jen stated with ease, causing the whole family to pause. Even I couldn't speak to the asshole like that.
No matter how high up I was, no matter how powerful, custom made it impossible. When our grandfather passed down the family business, he had my father sign a contract—the same one I had to sign—stating that he'd get five percent of everything, and that he was always treated with respect deserved. Everything was put into writing like this was some civilized business deal. It used to be based on honor, but everyone wised up to that real quick. Families had to sign their souls away in ink to make sure people knew their place.
His wrinkled old hand tightly gripped his wooden cane as he took a step forward. If you were to age my father thirty years and give him silver hair, he and my grandfather would look exactly the same.
As children, Nickhun and I used to joke that the reason he had so few wrinkles was the fact that he would scare them away when he looked in the mirror. Though now he did look rather worn out.
"You must be the Korean cow now sharing my last name." He looked her up and down with disgust. As I stood, Jen glared, telling me to back the down or else.
She moved from behind the desk and stood directly in front of his face, causing his bodyguards to step forward as well.
"Old man, you're in my house. That makes you a fucking guest. I don't owe you shit and you will respect me if you want my respect. My name is Jennie. Mrs. Manoban if it suits you, but…" She leaned in until their noses were almost touching. She was shorter, but the black heels helped. "If you ever call me a cow again, I will kill you painfully slow. I don't care how many motherfucking body guards you have."
Two of his bodyguards drew their guns and the last had a knife hidden in his sleeve.
Shit. I thought as she pulled her gun. Nickhun and Bambam were already backing her up. My father just rolled his eyes and took my mother into the corner, all while drinking his brandy. This was ridiculous.
"Lower your weapons," Grandfather said as he glared into her eyes. "The Korean cow…"
The moment he said it, three bullets went flying into them. One in the chest, one in the wrist and the other the knee; they all went down like cards. You don't out gun Jen.
"What the fuck? Where did she pull the gun out from?" Bambam whispered. "I swear, she's a motherfucking ninja."
"J-E-N-N-I-E. Jen-nie. I will let the second time slide due to your old age. I've heard hearing loss is common." She stepped back, looking to the guards as she took off the silencer on her gun. "Please stop bleeding all over our rug, it's quite rude."
My grandfather looked down and smirked. "Shame. It was their first day too, I warned them that you could be as ruthless as your repetition called for, Kim."
"Better…who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?" Jen replied, and my blood began to boil.
"You came across the fucking ocean just to test my wife?" I snapped, stepping forward as well.
"Adriana!" I roared, causing the ex-ugly duckling to come in, "Have a doctor see to these idiots, and then have a new rug brought up."
She nodded, opening the door for the men to crawl out like the pieces of shit they were.
My grandfather simply stepped around them, pulled out a pipe, cleaned the handle of the chair and sat down like he fucking owned it.
"I heard about the Bloody Jennie that was now part of my family and I figured a trip to this godforsaken country was worth it, so we could speak face to face," he said as he blew out smoke.
"Try using Skype next time." I glared at him.
He glared in return before turning to my parents. "You should have taken my advice and beat the wit out of her as a child."
"You can't beat out personality, Shamus," Evelyn said respectfully. "I kind of enjoy it actually."
"Of course you do." He sighed, turning to my father. "Son, do I not get a welcoming?"
"Welcome, Shamus," was all Marco said.
"Grandfather…"
"Speak when spoken to, child, or did all those seizures distort your brain as a youth?" he asked, reminding me once again why I hated him.
"They helped me become head of this fucking family, so, with respect, I'm asking you to get out of my chair," I hissed through my teeth.
"And what a Manoban you are. Allowing your home to burn down, your wife to lose her child, and losing millions in the process, I applaud you. I bow down to your greatness, child." He snickered and Jennie stood forward, but it was my turn to glare at her.
This was not her fight.
"Ms. And Mrs. Manoban," Jessica burst in. "We need to leave for the rally. Senator…" She froze at the sight of the blood on the carpet.
"We were just leaving, Jessica. You're dismissed." I didn't even bother to turn towards her.
When the door closed, I stepped forward, leaning across my desk. "My family and I will be leaving. I suggest…"
"Beautiful, I will come along." Shamus smirked, cutting me off once again. "What is the point of being so done up if no one can see me?" He rose to his feet, blowing the smoke from his pipe in my face.
He walked forward only to stop right next to Jen to present his arm.
"I'd rather hang myself while on fire," Jen told him, but he took her arm anyway.
"I wasn't asking, my dear. There is no need to be so hostile, we're family," he said as he led her to the door. He, like all Manoban men, had charm, and it disgusted me.
"You called me a cow. Twice," she said with no emotion.
"I'm sure you've been called worse." He winked and the look on Jen's face worried me. She didn't hate him.
Marco stood in front of me as he tried to figure out the words to say. But, like always, when it came to Shamus Manoban, there were no words. My mother kissed my cheek as I leaned against the desk. One by one, they all left as the clean up crew came in.
"There better not be a fucking spot left behind." I finished off the rest of my brandy before leaving.
JENNIE
"Where is Lisa?" I asked, stepping out of the car. I had been waiting for half an hour and that prick still hadn't come into the car.
The maids, who I didn't even bother to get to know, stood outside waiting. They weren't supposed to leave the driveway until we left. None of them looked uncomfortable, but that was years of training at work.
"Ma'am," one of them said. "She went to change in her room and never came back out."
"You're dismissed," I told them, as I walked in. I had no idea what the hell her problem was, but she needed to put on her big girl pants and deal with it.
The moment Marco brought up Shamus, Lisa went ridged. I knew of Shamus; he had killed, stolen and bribed his way into the history books…but then again, we all had. The things he had done were things that I myself had studied and copied. He impressed me, and I was not an easy person to impress. Shamus was deadly, cocky, and an asshole. He demanded respect, which he earned, but I would never give him that satisfaction. He was in my house.
The moment I stepped into our room, I followed the music drifting through the air from Lisa's closet. Her closet had to be as big as mine, if not bigger; the ass loved her suits.
On the far center wall was a black upright piano.
Walking up behind her, I grabbed her hair and pulled it back, bringing my face to the side of her cheek. "I hate being stood up, Lisa."
"Ask my grandfather to take you," she snapped like a child.
Letting go of her hair, I sat on her lap. "That was passive-aggressive. What the hell is wrong with you?"
She sighed, pulling me closer to her as she kissed me. I kissed her back before biting her bottom lip.
"You aren't going to use sex as a way out of this. As much as I enjoyed putting your grandfather in his place, I need to know what level of bitch to be," I told her truthfully.
"I loathe Shamus with a burning passion," she whispered as she held me tighter.
"I see that. Why?" There had to be some reason she held such hatred.
I found it sexy. However, she was in pain, and she was growing on me. I wasn't sure when we had changed into this lovely couple, but with each passing day, she was becoming a bigger part of my soul. Part of me was still worried about it.
"Shamus has always believed in survival of the fittest. My father thought the city was one of the reasons I was so sick. He took us all to Thailand and the very first time I met him, he looked me up and down and said, 'In the wild, animals eat their young if they're sick.' He and my father got in a fight…though it was more like my father yelling and Shamus smoking in his chair. He told my father that if he were too weak to put me down, he would do the honors. That a man in his position couldn't have a child like me; that he should be happy he was given another son and could raise Nickhun to replace me if he wanted to." Her grip on my thigh tightened, but I let her squeeze as hard as she needed.
"But you did survive, and you are the fittest," I whispered, holding onto the side of her face.
She kissed my palm. "Shamus likes things done his way. He wanted the company to go to Bambam and my father actually refused. My father has gotten quite good at refusing my grandfather. He was never supposed to marry my mother. She, after all, wasn't a pure breed. Being half-Thai is as good as being Korean." She leered at me, leaving me torn between kissing her and breaking her face open.
"My full blood Korean can kick any Thai—"
"Yes, I know, love. You're a badass." She grinned as she squeezed my ass.
"Didn't Evelyn have Bambam when she was young?" She had to have been sixteen or seventeen at the time.
"She had us all when she was young. My grandfather swears Marco got her pregnant on purpose. He knew Shamus wouldn't approve of his only living son marrying anyone other than his choosing. However, after Evelyn became pregnant, there was nothing he could do," she explained. "We are good Catholic folk, you know," she said in her accent.
"You're an iidiot." I said, as I got off of her.
"You love me, you hate me, make up your damn mind, wife. I'm getting whiplash." She smirked, rising as well.
"You're getting a whip? What kind of kinky shit are you into, Manoban?" I asked, causing her to push me up against her mirror.
Her expression darkened and her lips hovered over mine. "Let's find out. God only knows what I have in this closet."
I pushed up against her. "You mean the cheerleading uniform for the Chicago Bulls you have hidden behind your gray suits? Or the very whorish nun outfit you have in the hidden compartment under your socks?"
Her eyes widened and I could only grin.
"Keep your cock on lock, we're late for the rally," I said, pushing her away before leaving the closet.
"At least I get to look at your ass," she yelled behind me and I held my middle finger up.
LISA
"I know a lot of you don't know me," Mina said to the crowd. "I know a lot of you don't think you can relate to me, or the life I have been so blessed to live. However, I want to tell you a story. About a young college student, who was fresh faced and naïve to the world around her. Her father, the man who always checked under the bed for monsters, and who read to her in animated voices, wanted to do everything in his power to keep his daughter safe. Sadly, sometimes the world is a dark place. Sometimes, a young college student with everything going for her is given a new title: rape victim. It's a title I have tried so hard to hide because I didn't have the voice to stand up. I didn't have the courage to tell my father until last night. He pulled me into a hug and said, 'when I become President, there will no longer be a statute of limitations for rape.'"
The crowd cheered and screamed, blinding us with flashes as they ate up her words like candy.
"When people ask why do I think my father is the best man for the job, I think about moments like last night. When he held me and promised to always fight for justice. He will fight for me—he will fight for men and women all across this country. My father is a good man, and with your support, he will be a great president." Senator Myoi hugged his daughter once more before taking his place behind the podium to give his own scripted political bullshit.
Bambam held on tightly to Mina, which I'm sure would have made a great cover photo for the New York Times.
"She's good," I whispered to my wife as we stood like dolls on stage.
"She is. They will love her, and those who don't will get backlash for not supporting a rape victim," she replied, waving into the crowd.
That was my wife, always planning and trying to figure out how to get a leg up on all those around her.
I felt like we'd been on display for hours, waving and smiling as Senator Myoi talked about how he was going to save the environment, bring down the unemployment rate, and make sure borders were secure; the same bullshit all presidents say.
By the time we were free to go to the private screening rooms up stairs, I had almost forgotten all about Shamus…until I saw the asshole already eating his lamb, in the head chair of the dinner table. Behind him stood two much stronger looking guards, who eyed my wife with both lust and fear.
A misguided fear.
Taking Jen's hand, I pulled out her chair for her before taking a seat on the opposite side. The moment I sat down, the rest of the family took their seats as well.
"So, this is your big plan? Have the fool and his family as president?" he asked, but I didn't answer. Instead I took a sip of my brandy.
"We do not discuss business at the dinner table," Jen said kindly, throwing me off. I looked into her eyes and for a second I thought maybe the bodyguards were right in fearing her.
This seemed to be our new thing; the ability to look into each other's eyes and just read them.
"Don't be sweet, Kim. It doesn't suit you." He snickered like an old pig before turning to Mina. "Did some men violate ya' or was them some lies you told to the public?"
Mina glared, but nodded. "Yes, sir…"
"Bambam, I hope you've corrected this situation," he cut her off to give his attention to his favorite.
"Actually, grandpa, Mina has been handling things just fine on her own," he hissed out. But that anger had more to do with Mina's rape, and the fact that we couldn't find Harvey yet, than grandfather's words.
"Huh." He frowned, looking over at Victoria. "Nice hair, when did you become a lesbian?"
"Never," Nickhun and Victoria said at the same time. They didn't speak much when Shamus was around.
"How far you all have strayed from tradition," he said, cutting his lamb.
For a decrepit old man he had a strong grip.
"How long do you plan on staying, Shamus?" Evelyn asked softly as she ate.
"As long as I please," he snapped, causing my father to grab his knife. However, my mother held his arm. I wished she hadn't.
"For someone who says he came so far to see me, you and I haven't spoken much. I don't care how long you stay, my question is: why are you here?" Jen glared.
Shamus chuckled at her, taking his time to chew. "It's a shame you aren't male. I could respect you more."
"It's a shame you don't have manners. Now answer my question, old man, or I will pull it out of you," was her reply, causing Shamus to just laugh, allowing us to see all the food in his mouth.
"You try so very hard to be something you can never be. A woman will never be a boss. No matter how many people you kill, no matter how much you threaten. You will always be a cunt. All women are cunts, I wish my grandson would have found one with even a drop Thai blood in her veins to make up for it." I expected Jen to flip out, but instead, she regarded him carefully.
"You've lowered your standards. I've heard even being half Thai wasn't good enough for you," Jen stated, much calmer than I was.
He had come into my home uninvited and insulted us all. He spoke as if we were nothing but gum under his shoe. As if we weren't even family. Shamus was a pig. Every time he spoke, the pressure from keeping my mouth shut built up behind my eyes.
"I was not unreasonable. After all, if my son had chosen the woman I'd gotten for him, I'm sure he wouldn't have a dumbass, a mouse, and a cripple as children. But apparently, my words fall on deaf ears." The pig snickered.
A dumbass…Bambam
A mouse…Nickhun
A cripple…Me
We all knew our titles, he had made it clear to all of us when we were children, but he always said he'd rather have a dumbass than a mouse or a cripple.
"I would have sooner killed myself than marry Catharine McDonie," my father snapped, and again my mother held him back.
"Maybe you should have and saved me so much trouble!" Shamus yelled. I prayed the man would have a stroke.
"So you're here due to the McDonie's," Jen stated, eyeing him carefully. "Let me guess, you wanted Lisa to marry her daughter."
"Look at you, using that pretty little brain of yours. I wish you would have done the same when you locked Nancy McDonie away."
I tried to figure out where the dots connected. As far as I knew, the McDonie family didn't have anything worth taking, and yet he seemed adamant we marry the trash.
"That was your granddaughter's idea. I wanted to kill her. I came close one time in church," Jen confessed.
How she could manage to stay composed was beyond me.
Shamus turned to me as I watched him, biting my tongue once again. He looked me over, held his nose up high, as if I were filth.
"How did you two, of all people, become the Boss? You, Lisa, will never be great," he said. "You will always be the crippled kid trying so hard to be a man. I guess that was why you can handle being married to someone with bigger balls."
I grabbed the table knife just like my father, wanting to ram it into his goddamn throat, but Jennie squeezed my leg.
"I do believe I will take that as my queue to leave. These old bones of mine need to be rested," Shamus said as he rose with the help of his cane. "You all enjoy your evening."
"Father," Marco called out to him, stretching out the word to the point where he grimaced just by saying it.
Shamus stopped, turning back to him and looked just as surprised as I was.
"Do not spend the night in our house," he said.
"That's where you are wrong, son. It's my house. All of this—everything you have, everything you have accomplished—is because of the deals I made."
With that, he left.
JENNIE
No one said anything. With each passing moment, Shamus disgusted me. I was tempted to kill him the second I saw where he was sitting. But it wasn't my place. I had enough issues with my family line.
Lisa grabbed her plate and threw the damn thing at the door after Shamus left.
"I want him GONE!" she yelled. "I don't care how, duct tape him to the bottom of a goddamn plane and send him back to Thailand for all I care. He'd better not be back at our fucking house!"
"Lisa," I whispered, but she didn't say anything, just backed away from the table trying to breathe as she reached for the closet bottle.
"Ms. And Mrs. Manoban, I would like to remind you that this isn't your home." Jessica snapped. "There are cameras everywhere and not to mention, I don't know, a political candidate! Can you people stop going Rambo on whoever walks through the door?"
"Can't we just buy the building?" Victoria asked. Jessica took a deep breath before dragging Senator Myoi out of the room. Walking over to Lisa, I placed my hand on her shoulder.
"I thought we were quite civilized, didn't you?" I asked Lisa.
She looked around the building. "Honestly, if people would stop testing us, the world would be a better place."
"You both are so…" Mina started, but stopped, perhaps remembering she too had blood on her hands and she wanted more. When you are part of this family you then you can't judge anyone…We all made the choice to be here.
"Well then, my wife and I will be calling it a night," Lisa said, taking my hand.
Neither of us said anything as we left through the back, where all of our cars were now parked and waiting for us. Chanyeol and Hanbin had two cars up front while Jiwook, Lisa's new right hand since Jungkook's death, manned the cars behind ours.
It was only when we took our seats that Lisa pulled off her tie and leaned back, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"I need to kill my grandfather," she said to herself. "But if I do, it will be all-out war. We have a shit load of product coming in tomorrow, and I can't take out Thailand's superman. He knows it. He's been pumping money into the country for so long I'm surprised they haven't made him king yet. He's untouchable."
"If you can see him, he's touchable. Being untouchable is just an illusion people like us create to intimidate others. Everyone has a weakness. We will deal with him, he won't get away with talking to you like that, I swear," I said, staring out the window.
"When did you become so sweet?" She kissed into the back of my hand.
I hated how much I enjoyed that and how I couldn't admit it. "I don't know what you mean. Him calling you a cripple was insult to me. As if I would marry someone with less balls than me."
She smiled so wide it made me uncomfortable. Like she knew something I didn't.
"What?"
"Nothing. Anyway do you find it odd that my father, a former rival of your family, came into town around the same time your mother suddenly popped up?" she asked, staring out into the city.
"You don't think—"
"I don't know what I think. But if I were my grandfather, after everything that happened last year, maybe he wants to take back the business."
"Over my dead body," I muttered, pulling out my phone. "We're going into lock down until we can talk to father crime himself."