Avianna changed into a Miran worksuit. It was a little tight on her around the waist and bust area. 'Korean sizes' she thought to herself.
She was sneaking out of the driveway when a car that was parked started flashing its lights at her. She clutched her chest for dear life. The lights almost sent her into a panic.
She had Miran's earpiece in and quickly she recognized one of the night agents talking to her through it.
"This is 102. Where are you going at this hour again?"
'Shit' she thought 'I need to figure out something quickly.'
Avianna lowered her voice to sound like Mirans. "This is J4 and I'm going to the store." She was hoping he would fall for it since she was a little far from the parked car.
"If you keep doing this, I'll have to report you to the Situation Room."
"Oh, c'mon. You don't have to do all that." She said in a joking manner.
"Just kidding. But bring me back a cup of coffee, okay?"
"Sure."
"Thanks, J4."
Immediately Avianna ran into town she left at around 5 in the morning and now the sun was coming up. She ran through a park and picked up a cab.
The first few moments of being in the car she kept looking back to see if anyone was following her.
"Where to miss?" The driver asked politely. Avianna relaxed in her seat once she found the coast was clear.
"Miss! Where do you want to go?"
"Oh I'm sorry, Yeonhui-Dong, please?" He nodded at her answer.
In the car, Avianna felt a sense of peace. She looked at her window and rolled it down. She closed her eyes letting the wind whip through her hair. The sun was starting to hurt her eyes a bit so she put on her sunglasses.
*
Back in Cloud Nine, Jeha and Madam Choi stay in silence for a moment. Taking in the new information that they've discovered.
"So this refugee woman ...... Rania? You ..... loved her, didn't you?"
Jeha thought about her question before answering. "Looking back, it's not certain. I don't know if the feeling was love or just some worthless sympathy." He put his head down looking at the floor.
"Worthless?"
"She started working as an interpreter for Blackstone ..... only because I introduced her to them." 'Oh wow,' Madam Choi thought to herself.
He exhaled and stood up from the table "Okay, then. I'll get going now."
"Where to?" Madam said cocking her head to the side in curiosity.
"To my place."
"Hmmmm. No need for that you, you are a member of Cloud Nine now. You get to stay at the JSS Residences."
"No, thank you. I like where I'm staying now."
"When someone becomes a member of Cloud Nine in JSS, it means I'm responsible for protecting them and their family."
Jeha tucked his hands in his pocket "To me that sounds like 'You're my slave from that moment'."
Madam Choi's tone went serious "I've never betrayed anyone..... who hasn't already betrayed me."
"There's no such thing as a master who doesn't betray his or her slave." Jeha walked up to the doors but then stopped and turned around to her. "People who don't betray their friends do exist, though. Isn't that right......... friend?"
And with that, he walked out completely. Once he was home Madam Choi smiled to herself. An ounce of admiration grows for him every day.
*
Avianna got out of the taxi and paid. The place that he had dropped her off at was one of their homes. It was like a wave of memories came flooding back to her when she saw the front of the house.
She remembers one of the nights of her mom grilling in the backyard. Her mother looked so happy and content in life. They listened to black soul artists and danced all night long.
A tear began to roll down Avianna's face. Life was so much simpler when her mother was alive. She wiped her face and began to walk to a photo studio not too far from the house.
When she reaches the studio and sees a picture of her and her mother when she was younger. They both were wearing light blue dresses and sitting in a brown couch portrait style. Emotion washed over her again.
She walked into the small studio. "Excuse me?" She called out.
An older Korean man wearing a blue and green plaid shirt walks out of a room. "Yes, welcome."
She does a slight bow to him. "An early customer. Do you need a passport photo? For class registration?"
Avianna pauses and points to the photos of her and her mom. "That photo on display over there....".
Realization hits the man. "Oh, oh. Your Alina Michels daughter, aren't you?"He snaps his fingers "Avi-Avi-?"
"Avianna." She finishes for him.
"Yes."
Jeha pulls up to the gate of the house and there are JSS agents outside waiting for him. He rolls down his window for them to report what's going on.
*
"It's been quite a while since J4 went out. We are about to report this to the Situation Room."Jeha nods his head. He pulls into the driveway and goes into the main house.
Immediately he walks in and sees Miran in her house clothes sleeping on the couch with her mess and snacks all over the table. He goes and snatches the pillow from underneath her head.
Miran wakes up and instantly covers herself. "Jeha, this isn't proper." She says biting her lip. 'This dumbass' he thought to himself. He throws the pillow at her face.
He then goes up the stairs to Avianna's room and she is nowhere to be found. Miran comes in running after him. "Jeha what's going on?" He walks out and ignores her. Miran then realizes that she messed up big time.
*
The studio owner hands Avianna the portrait. "Your mother was at her prettiest at this time." They were sitting at one of the tables talking.
"Her eyes were sparkling when we took this photo, too." He says in admiration.
She smiles "Were you close to my mother?"
"Huh? How could've I been close to her? She was a world-class supermodel, after all. To be frank, your mother wasn't the type of person to take photos at a place like this. She should've taken photos at a much nicer studio. But on this day she came to get your passport photo taken and then suddenly she said she wanted a family portrait done. I was lucky enough to even take the photo."
"Passport photo?"
"Yeah, a passport photo. You went to America right?"
"Pardon?" She has no idea what he's talking about.
"That's when... You had your photo taken for a US Visa. And this is the last family photo taken with your housekeeper. She was like family to your mother."
He took the picture and removed the picture frame. "I folded the picture because she wasn't as pretty as your mother." Avianna grabbed the photo and saw an older black lady.
She recognized her housekeeper "You're right. She was there."
*
Chief Joo and President Guk were on the phone trying to figure out this situation. By the end of it, Chief Joo doesn't want Madam Choi to know about anything
Everyone was stressed, specifically Chief Joo he took a vow to protect Avianna and now she was gone.
"Alright, what's missing? Did she leave a note or anything?!" Chief Joo asked Miran.
Miran had her head down in shame "There was no note. And she took my wallet and earpiece?"
"Earpiece?! Are you serious right now?" He said fuming in anger at her.
She got a notification on her cell phone and saw it was from her card.
"What?" Chief Joo says.
"My card. She's been using it to pay for taxis. I need to report this."
"Are you serious?! You aren't reporting anything. I'm going to get in touch with the Situation Room and you are going to continue to track her with your card."
Jeha felt pride and sadness for Avianna. She barely had any freedoms and definitely will probably lose even more after this. But he was proud because she somehow escaped them for about 3 hours.
*
The studio owner gave her the address and name of the care center that the housekeeper was at. She found it, paid for the taxi, and walked in with the photo.
The receptionist greeted her. Avianna showed her the photo and asked which room she was in.
"Miss Angelou is in Suite 101. Which is down that hall right there." Avianna said thank you and followed her directions. She got to her room and felt nervous but excited. She may be finally getting some answers after so many years.
She walked in and this particular hallway was for foreign patients. She immediately saw her and went to her bedside.
"Ma'am, it's me," Avianna said in English.
"Yea, yea go get my food that bitch over there has been eating my shit." It was very clear that Miss Angelou had become sick. It looks like a case of dementia.
"Don't worry she's already eaten." An American nurse said to her who was also a nun. All of the nurses here seemed to be nuns.
Avianna bit her lip and tried again. "Ma'am it's me, Avianna."
Miss Angelou sat up from her bed and touched Avianna's face. "Why are you here? Why are you not in America? You need to go Choi Yoojin knows everything!"
"Of course. It's Choi Yoojin." Arianna shook her head and grabbed the old lady's hand. "You know everything don't you? Please tell me."
And just like that the old woman started staring off into space and started talking about how to season gumbo. She wasn't in her right mind and it made Avianna's heart break.
"Ma'am." She called out for her through tears. "Maam." It was clear the old woman did not care about her presence anymore.
*
The agents pull up to the care center. "Block all of the exits and stay on patrol." Chief Joo said. Avianna heard this through her earpiece.
Chief Joo, Miran, and Jeha walked into the care center and asked if they had seen Avianna while showing their badges. The receptionist tells them to go to Suite 101.
Miran, Jeha, and other agents search for her only to not find her. Chief Joo gets a call from Assemblyman Jang.
"Yes sir, we will find her. Yes? Pardon? Yes. I understand."
Jeha walks up to him "Was that Mr. Jang? So the news did get to him after all. Such a short holdback. So what did he say?"
"Make sure she doesn't go to the church."
"So he's more worried about himself than her."
"Well, he's a politician." Jeha wanted to roll his eyes at that comment.
This care center was very diverse with all different types of nurses. So when Avianna walked passed them dressed up as one of them, it made sense that they didn't notice. She heard the conversation though.
'Dad isn't like that. This is all because of that bitch.' She said in her head walking out with a tray in her hand.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
• welp, she is very resourceful if I do say so myself. They will be meeting in the next chapter. I know I've been saying that for a while but they truly are. Do y'all think they're going to cut up at the church? Well, thank you so much and we are halfway through the story. Thank you all so much and I love you guys