Page 17 of Lay It Bare

Rei blinked twice more, then twisted around, looking towards his computer. “What happened?”

“Bak Sahyuk was arrested by border patrol. I need to know if it’s linked to Gang Junseo.”

Rei’s eyes sharpened. He nodded. “Do I do breakfast first?”

“I’ll do breakfast, and Lisa’s meds. Put on pants and do what you do best.”

“Yes, master.”

Sevastyan

Fallout from Bak Sahyuk’s arrest continued throughout the day. There were compromised shipments, some of them Sevastyan’s, to be redirected, sites to shut down, and individuals who might or might not take advantage of the situation. Sevastyan confirmed with the Yadro that his target, Gang Junseo, was staying put and behind security and that he had reliable inside information. Never mind that his insider information was Ellisandre who confidently informed Sevastyan that Jun was safe and well guarded. Sevastyan made his recommendation that no movement be made to try to get to Jun at the moment, that attempts appeared expected and would be expensive. “There are not currently the resources on the ground for a successful attempt,” was the summary report. The fact that California was taking up many available resources went unsaid. The Yadro appeared to believe him, at least.

Dirk called in the middle of it all. “Tell me you have eyes on the asset.”

Sevastyan snorted. “My assignment is need to know. Let’s say it’s handled. Until the wider situation is battened down, consider your information as coming through headquarters."

Dirk swore colorfully. “At least tell me you have the asset’s location on lock down.”

“My orders are being followed.”

“Goddammit, you Rus. We’re on the same forking side. I got a meltdown on my hands. Throw me a rope.”

“You weren’t included in my brief,” Sevastyan snapped. “Forgive me for following protocol and locking down channels in light of what’s going down out west. Who the hell authorized that clusterfuck?”

Dirk growled but didn’t answer.

“I’m starting to regret ‘helping’ out in Seoul,” Sevastyan snarled. “I have operations elsewhere but instead I’m here.”

“Yeah, well, look at it from my perspective.”

“I don’t know what your perspective is.” Sevastyan snorted in derision through his nose. “What’s even your interest in this?”

“I work with Seoul a lot,” Dirk spat. “Look. I’ll be in California. If you can just stay in Chicago and keep an eye on the target, at least someone outside the clusterfuck is over there for the moment.”

It sounded like Dirk was trying to find a way to “give” Sevastyan instructions. “That’s up to the Yadro.”

Dirk grunted and got off the phone. Dirk lacked a few of the concrete powerhouses Sevastyan had behind him, such as Raska and someone on the same standing as Alexi. He made up for it by having a larger list of ties to mid-level movers and shakers. Bak Sahyuk was certainly up there in terms of someone Dirk might have tied himself to. It was all too much to think about. Hopefully, Dirk would stay bogged down in California and wouldn’t try to bring his blustering attempts at authority to Chicago. Not that Sevastyan wouldn’t mind taking the man down a peg or two, but Rei and Lisa were too likely to get caught up in the mix. The question was why he was getting his hands into it at all. Greed, probably. That was the simple answer. He’d found some advantage to exploit, or was protecting an advantage he had been enjoying.

Towards evening, Lisa’s fever was almost entirely gone. Rei kept a timer and made sure Lisa was woken up hourly for liquids and tea with honey. There was no more throwing up. Rei reheated leftovers and brought them to the living room for himself and Sevastyan. “I found the link between Bak Sahyuk and Bak Gyeong.

Sevastyan slid his fork into the lasagna. Spinach and white crumbly cheese squeezed out on both sides. It was a good, thick meal for a cold night, although potato pierogi would have been better. Perhaps another day. It wasn’t something Rei had the tools or the training to make, but they could order some.

“Report.”

Rei reached for his tablet and brought up a slideshow of pictures. “They’re cousins. Fathers are brothers.” He handed over the tablet.

Sevastyan swiped through the evidence: obituaries, some public records, and old photographs from a niece's social media. He set the tablet down thoughtfully. “Good work.”

Rei nodded.

Sevastyan motioned him to eat, but continued thinking over Rei’s insight. “Bak Gyeong sells you into the Merchari network. Bak Sahyuk rises through the ranks to become the head of Merchari operations in California. They don’t really acknowledge each other. Bak Sahyuk rarely goes to Korea from what I’ve been able to tell. He prefers the United States and Australia.”

“And the Caribbean,” Rei added. “He’s shown up in conversations about operations there a lot in the last three years.”

Sevastyan nodded. “So, we have to assume that they are actually close with each other in some way. Does BBB3’s legal issues with Gang Junseo have ramifications for Bak Sahyuk here in the United States, or is Sahyuk getting arrested soon after Gyeong loses control of Gang Junseo a coincidence?”

“Are there charges yet?” Rei asked.