A/N: Hey y'all, here's the next update! Technically 2/3of this chapter was ready for upload 2 weeks but I got busy with work and then I got sick (I'm better now though). Thanks for the patience!

I don't own pitch perfect.

Chicago had his head in his hands. His phone tossed to the other side of his couch just a few minutes ago. The weekend had passed rather quietly, with news about Babel spreading.

Unfortunately, it was a mix of good and bad. Their stocks were no longer plunging thanks to the deal they have made that Serenity Moist – or rather, Serenety Evermoist – signed in behalf of her daughter Calamity. That was the good. The bad? Calamity Evermoist being imprisoned for abuse and battery charges. Add to that the daring announcements both Aubrey Posen and Chloe that they would take Babel down still added to the negative publicity and the current uproar of ordinary citizens against Babel.

As if things couldn't get any worse, Chicago had tried to reach out to Chloe. He wasn't about to give up on getting her back to DSM and squashing her attempts at fueling the fire against Babel. For the entire weekend, Chloe wasn't answering her calls, until she did that Sunday morning, only to find an annoyed Chloe answering his video call. Chicago wanted to put on the charms but then she found Beca moving about in her background. Apparently, there was an attempt to Chloe's life, and now she's staying over with freaking Beca Bella of all people.

Which was news to him. He didn't send anyone after her.

The call ended as soon as it began because Beca had finished cooking breakfast for Chloe, and Chloe just had to hang up then and there.

Chicago didn't waste time figuring out who it was. The Kommissar was just as surprised to hear of the attack when he had called her, and Pietro was too much of a coward to do something that drastic. Theo however, was a surprise.

"I… I just wanted to give them a good scare," he had said, admitting it was his doing.

"I already told you, don't do the thinking, you moron!" Chicago had yelled. Theo sounded incredibly apologetic – as he should – for taking an initiative to ingratiate himself to Chicago. It was days like this that Chicago himself wondered if it was worth keeping his brother around as a patsy. His actions had only made matters worse, pushing Chloe even further into the arms of his enemy.

He'd have to do a lot of work to undo the damage done.

But when it rains, it pours.

And not only does he now face a setback with Chloe, he had to deal with something else entirely.

Chicago's phone rang and rang. He was loathed to move but the persistent ringing of his phone eventually urged him to do so. It could be important.

In a way it was.

He quirked his brow at the blocked caller ID, and when he answered, he was surprised to hear the voice of Dr. Matthews – the idiot who couldn't even deal with his wife – calling him.

"I know everything about you, remember that," he had said.

"What is this about?" Chicago asked.

"Babel's in deep waters right now? On top of your legal woes with the Beale and Posen law firm, a prosecutor is out to get you. I would know, I'm his precious witness. Right now, he's taking all the precautions. I've told him only little, but we both know you have an ever-growing list of sins, including your father's death."

"Are you calling to blackmail me?" Chicago asked with scoff. "I didn't kill him, you did. You were the one who injected the drug that gave him a cardia arrest in the hospital."

"Under your orders," Dr. Matthews replied. "I know who you really are. I know everything. Will you really risk it?"

"What do you want then?" Chicago then asked, as calm as he could.

"Let's see, how about 20 million dollars for my silence, and I disappear for good? I'll send you the account details to where to wire it."

"Sure," Chicago replied, hiding the displeasure in his tone. "I'd need a few days to get everything together."

"You have three," Dr. Matthews replied and ended the call.

Chicago took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

Problems just kept piling up, higher than the tower he wanted to build.

He pulled up his brother's contact details on his phone after a minute or two of trying to keep his composure. Perhaps he wasn't as useless as he thought.

It was time to clean up loose ends.

"Why are you even here?" Flo asked dryly as the tenants, minus their beloved lawyers and Emily, all gathered in her canteen for their weekly informal gatherings.

Who was she asking?

Bumper, Donald, and this random guy who was constantly on a unicycle that they just happen to call Unicycle.

Amy has been just as curious as Flo herself. The last few days, they've seen the three of them keeping a low profile and working on opening an office in the tower. Now, Bumper was here with a basket of fruits and a stack of calling cards.

"I think we should just call Beca and the others," Jessica then noted.

"Nonononononono," Bumper quickly rambled on. "Please, we're here to make peace not war. We're actually opening a travel agency, here," he went on to say, handing each of them a calling card.

"Bye Bye Balloon?" Ashley asked sounding incredibly confused.

"Yes! We're the premiere travel agency for those wanting to escape the country… I mean travel via hot air balloon, weather permitting." Bumper then said.

"Why?" Stacie then asked just as dryly as Flo did. "What new ploy is this to kick us out?"

"Not a ploy, ma'am," Donald then said.

"Do I look like a ma'am to you?" Stacie then asked with a raise of an eyebrow.

"No, no, s-sorry," Donald quickly apologized.

Bumper asked his associate to step aside and walked towards Amy and her fellow long-time tenants. He bowed down and muttered his apologies.

"We got off to a bad start, and that's probably because we were bad, but we're good now, I promise! We had a chilling epiphany, let's just say. And we're totally against Babel now too. So please, forgive us! Find mercy in your heart!"

"They seem sincere enough," Amy noted, and Bumper all but beamed at her with tears in his eyes. "But you'll have to understand, we're still a little wary. It's gonna take time for us to accept your sincerity."

"Oh, we know, we know! We're willing to do anything to prove to you all our sincerity. I for one surely am eager too!" Bumper then replied.

"Anything you say?" Amy then said.

"I still think you guys have an ulterior motive," CR then noted.

"Maybe they heard about the gold," Benji then let slip.

To which everyone else responded with "Shhhhhhhhhh!"

Lilly specifically looked about ready to slice and dice him up for opening his mouth about it.

"Gold?" Donald then asked, looking incredibly confused.

"It's just a tall tale," Denise quickly then said. "Buried treasure in the building or so they say, but it's all totally fake."

"Well, we don't know about any buried gold, but I do know a prospector if you all need help. To show you our gratitude, I'll connect you to him, and if he does find any, you guys don't need to share with us!" Bumper then said. "Just, let us stay here with you guys, please!"

"But the gold doesn't exist, it will be a waste of time," Stacie argued and Lilly all but nodded fervently in agreement. Amy herself wasn't so sure about what the hullaballoo about the gold was but the two of them were sure acting suspicious about it.

The rest of the tenants discussed it, however, eager to prove to themselves whether or not the gold was real.

"You're on probation," Flo then said.

The three former Trebles looked incredibly relieved. Amy wasn't sure where all this talk about prospectors and gold will lead to, but looking at Bumper, she could at least guarantee that there will be colorful days ahead of them.

Emily was rubbing her temples as she tried to follow the whole discussion. Much of the last few days was spent trying to trace who the head of Babel truly is, aka Babo, and how they can pin them down. Beca, who was awfully cheerful lately – since Chloe temporarily moved in with her, really – was contentedly sipping on her instant coffee – she also seemed to have grown used to the taste of the French Vanilla one that Chloe loves – while Chloe and Aubrey took turn explaining the details of their plans using the pointer with the small pink bunny plushie at the end.

All that Emily could make out of it, if she understood things right, was that based on their research, a lot of Babel's projects were aimed on making ridiculous sums of profit from projects doomed to fail anyways, or projects that will never work out. There was also something about fake investments and shell companies that Babo may be using to move money around illegally. Some were related to real estate investments and back-channel connections on when to invest where, and the others where on the collection of stolen art and re-selling the pieces, some through the black market, others through forging fake papers to legally sell them in an art gallery owned by Babel. The art gallery was the crucial piece of info. Because the money used to buy the more legal pieces were also made from Babel's more illicit businesses. In other words, they can catch Babo on money laundering charges.

They don't exactly have a plan yet, just that they need to understand the paper trail of evidences, how it connects to Babo who has yet to reveal himself. That was where most of the work would be focused on. How to obtain proof and where to look for it.

"And that's where I can come in!" they all heard Bumper chirrup as he stepped into their office.

"Scram," Beca said cooly and Bumper all but panicked before bowing and apologizing.

"I'm just here to give you all this," he said, handing his business cards to Emily, who then set it down on the table without so much as a glance. Even she was curious as to what the leader of the Trebles was doing there wearing a polo-shirt with the symbol of a hot air balloon embroidered above where his heart would be.

"I also swear to you, Beca Bella, boss, lady boss, ma'am, that we can help you here. I have an accountant in my gang… I mean team… and we know a lot of Babel's money laundering schemes. We helped in executing them."

Emily looked at Bumper in disbelief. Both Aubrey and Chloe looked at him skeptically.

"Why would you help us?" Beca then asked.

"We just want a place to stay and run our business in, please, we're desperate. Besides, Babel tried to kill is, so we are totally part of the good guys now. Near death experiences, change a man, you know."

"I suppose we can hear them out," Aubrey grumbled.

"Give us a day, and we'll present to you the perfect way to catch whoever Babo is," Bumper said before pointing to the white board. "Who is Babo, anyways?"

"The real boss of Babel," Chloe clarified. "I'm surprised you don't know anything."

"He's just a grunt, what did you expect," Beca then commented. "But a useful grunt, right? If you want to stay here, that is,"

"Yes! Absolutely! You can bet on it! You won't regret giving us a chance!" Bumper then said before excusing himself.

Emily wasn't sure if it was right to trust them just yet, but for as long as someone can break things down and properly explain it to her, she supposed they could give them a shot.

Understanding all the scheming and criminal activities Babel has done was starting to get on her nerves.

A/N Pt 2: Intense couple of chapters coming up next and a few more Bechloe moments of course xD

UPNEXT: Evil guys are evil; and the truth is revealed but to who? AND WHAT TRUTH GETS REVEALED?