Wednesday - Nine am 
  
While Ko brewed morning tea and prepared for his day, he received a text message from Rica: 
  
At ten you meet my wolves. Pick me up from school later. Big and American. 
  
“What?” Ko giggled at the message on his phone. He generally understood the meaning, but still, “Are we in a spy movie or something?” he muttered with a smirk. But he didn’t understand the last part, Big and American? What did that mean? 
  
Either way he finished his tea before leaving the safe apartment. 
  
Brute Men 
  
Ko stepped out of the building and headed for a cafe on twenty-eighth street to meet Rica’s two wolves, Bling and Ian. These were her brute men from the dark SUV who killed the two Turks in the alley, and made Serhat disappear. All because Serhat tried to put his hands on Rica in the tea shop. A crime punished by death. 
  
When Ko reached the cafe, their meeting place, a vehicle honked in from the street. He turned to the noise and spotted dark SUV, of course. 
  
As Ko walked toward the large vehicle, the driver’s side tinted window lowered, and a black male with gold teeth smirked at him from the inside. This guy must be Bling. 
  
“Get in the back, yo!” The man barked at Ko. 
  
“Hmph,” Ko muttered while opening the back door. 
  
Once inside a white male passenger turned around to check Ko out with a cruel grin. This man was Ian, and him and Bling together were Rica’s loyal brute men, her wolves. Two fearsome felons in their early thirties, with tattoos on their hands and neck.  
  
“Look at this kid. Why does little boss like her boys so soft and pretty?” The man called Ian grunted at Bling, while glaring at Ko in the back. 
  
Bling turned to Ko, “He may be pretty, but she don’t like ‘em too soft. And if he popped Rafa and Kadir-” 
  
“So fuckin what!” Ian grunted with a hostile stare at Ko. 
  
But Ko was no punk, and he quickly tired of them. “So do you two speak English? Or are you just gonna grunt at each other? -because I can leave.” 
  
“What?” said Ian, locking eyes with Ko in a staredown. But Ko didn’t crack. For he was just as much a killer as they were. 
  
“Heh,” said Bling, breaking the tension. “Like I said. Little boss don’t like ‘em too soft.”  
  
“We’ll see,” said Ian facing forward. But Ko kept his eye on him. 
  
The vehicle went silent for a moment before Bling handed Ko a manilla folder with notes and a map image of a block and a building printed from the internet. Ko inspected the documents. 
  
“Do the Turks run this building?” he asked, pointing at the image.  
  
“Yes,” Bling answered. “Little boss and the two of us cased it last night. There’s activity. But what’s more important is who shows up here three times a week.” 
  
Ko scanned the notes and images. “You mean the Turk's boss Ahmed.” He looked up at Bling, “Is this a rumor or did you see him?” 
  
Bling smirked. “Nah, we ain't seen him yet but we’re sure the information is good. Cause the dude who told us swore on his life, heh heh!” 
  
The brute men laughed at the dark joke, referring to the torture and murder of Serhat, who most likely told them the information. Ko kept his cool, not entertaining their humor. “So what’s Rica’s plan?” he asked Bling. 
  
“She wants you and her to pop him when he shows. Ya’ll are going with hot rifles. She’ll pick the avenue of approach.” 
  
“Hmm, when?” Ko asked, handing the envelope back to Bling. 
  
“I would think tomorrow night,” said Bling gaping at the envelope. “Wait, why are you giving this back? The contents of that folder are for you and your-” 
  
“-I memorized them,” Ko said, cutting him off. 
  
“What? You memorized these block maps, just now?” Bling asked. 
  
“Yes,” Ko answered. 
  
Bling looked over at Ian who shrugged, before turning back to Ko. “Alright man. From what I understand you supposed to be a badass like Rica, but here’s the deal. Now little boss may have her eye on you. But my dude, you are not our priority. So if shit goes south and you gotta be the fall guy-” 
  
“Then what?” Ko snapped. “You and that guy will try to kill me?” 
  
Ian spun around, “I’m telling you now, if you put Rica in a bad way then I will fuckin bleed you in real time, you hear me?” he snarled at Ko. 
  
A silence, before.. 
  
“Are we done?” Ko asked Bling, ignoring Ian. 
  
Ian grit his teeth and faced forward. 
  
Bling, the calmer of the two, shook his head, “Nah man, one more thing.” He reached in his pocket and pulled out a set of Ford car keys. “Here. You need wheels if you gonna drive little boss.” He handed the keys to Ko. 
  
Ian turned around and looked at Ko with a cruel smirk, “Your new ride ain't no riceburner like that foreign crap you drove before. Nah, little boss likes her cars big and American.” 
  
Ko smirked and opened the door, “You’re a racist prick!” 
  
“Hey, what’d you say?” Ian barked. 
  
“Fuck you, is what I said,” Ko growled, giving Ian the finger as he exited the vehicle. 
  
Ian lowered his window and shouted a few obscenities at Ko. But Bling, laughing at him, calmed him down before the two brutes sped away from the scene. Ko spit on the sidewalk as he watched them leave. Then he realized he didn’t know where they parked the new car. 
  
How troublesome. 
  
Ko checked the cars around him for a moment before pressing the alarm button on the key. Lights flashed at a vehicle parked a few feet away. He turned and shook his head at the sight of a black Ford Sport Utility Vehicle, with limo tinted windows. The doors unlocked as he pressed the button again. 
  
Big and American, dark SUV. That’s what Rica likes, heh heh. 
  
But Ko hustled into the vehicle. He had another meeting to attend before picking up Rica at school later. 
  
One Good Guy 
  
Ko met with Sam the day prior to discuss the hostilities with the Kim clan and the Turks. During the meeting Ko asked Sam if he had one good guy he could loan him to help locate Jun-Seo Kim, boss of the Kim clan. And Sam chose a tough Han clan soldier name Gun Kae. Ko knew Gun, and they agreed to meet this morning on the upper west side of Manhattan. 
  
“Yo Ko!” said the burly Gun Kae as he met Ko on a street near central park’s west entrance. 
  
“Gun, good to see you again, how’s your sister?” Ko asked. Gun’s sister, Hyssop, was married to Kayla’s uncle, Art Han. Killed by the Turks last week. 
  
Gun lowered his eyes, “She’s hanging in there. But how’s Kayla?” 
  
“Safe,” said Ko. “Now, did Sam go over what I needed?” 
  
“Yes, I got the addresses to those bar clubs you mentioned in the meatpacking district. Are you sure Jun-Seo owns them?” 
  
“Maybe. And if he does he’ll show up at one. But I don’t want you staking out all of them. Just stick with the one by the westside highway.” 
  
“Right, and you want me to, Observe and Report,” He said the words in English. 
  
“Yes Gun, but listen to me. If you see Jun-Seo or his bodyguards, you don’t do anything. You just call me right away.” 
  
Gun nodded his head but looked away. Ko caught it. 
  
“Gun? Did you hear me?” 
  
“Yeah yeah, I won’t do anything to that piece of shit, I’ll just call you,” said Gun. 
  
Ko squinted at him but kept cool. He knew Gun hated Jun-Seo for ordering the hit on his friend and brother in law, Art Han. Gun wanted revenge, but he was no fool. 
  
“Please, Gun. Don’t do anything rash. If he shows up to that location you call me, I'll handle it, ok?” 
  
“Yeah, Ko. I heard you the first time, heh heh!” Gun patted Ko’s shoulder, assuring him. 
  
“Cool,” said Ko, “Now that that’s out of- Oh!” His phone rang in his pocket. He pulled it out and checked the screen. “Excuse me Gun. Hello?” 
  
“Hi Ko, I was just making sure you guys were stopping by today to pick up Kayla, or did you need me to come to you?” Reyna asked on the other end. 
  
“Oh yeah. I’m going to pick up Rica later, so we’ll be there around four, I guess.” 
  
“Ok, did you want to speak to Kayla?” 
  
“Oh no, I’m a little busy but tell her I’ll be there later, thanks.” 
  
“Alright, talk to you later, bye.” Reyna hung up. 
  
Ko hung up and turned back to Gun, “Sorry about that.” 
  
Gun wore a warm smile, “No problem. Sounds like Kayla is good. I’m happy about that. Now you were saying?” 
  
“Right! Let’s get some tea, and talk about this stalking Jun-Seo plan a bit more,” said Ko. 
  
Gun laughed, “Haha, let’s get some food too!” 
  
“Ha, yes! And talk some more!” Ko laughed too. “Because it’s good to speak Korean!” 

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