San ended up hanging around the aquarium until Jongho finished his shift even thought he was completely exhausted. He really shouldn't have flipped his schedule like this, but he was starting to get desperate.

The drive home was filled with a seething silence. Jongho continuously rapped his fingers against the steering wheel and would let out several harsh sighs as his thoughts churned in his head. "Why does it have to be such a common name." He finally growled.

"You didn't recognize him at all? I mean, besides the fact he's been visiting so much?" San asked.

"I mean, he does? But he could just have one of those faces. I just can't seem to think of anything or anywhere I know him from..."

"I'll try to do some research and see what I can find." A yawn took over the sentence and San stretched in his seat.

"No, what you need to do is get some sleep. I put in for you to be off tomorrow night too." Jongho held up a hand when San started to protest. "Things aren't going to change after just one night, and you've been working yourself to the bone. Take a three day weekend, get some rest, and I promise I will keep an eye on Wooyoung for you."

"Bu-"

"You are not going to be able to save him if you're dead on your feet."

San snapped his mouth shut and sank into a little pout. He knew the younger was right, and he had a feeling Yeosang was waiting at home to tell him the same exact thing.

If this was really going to happen, then he was going to take advantage of the free time to do as much digging as possible.

He was right about Yeosang. After ushering both him and Jongho inside with the promise of dinner, he immediately rounded on San. "How could you be so irresponsible? San you look awful!" He pushed the younger toward the couch and made him sit down. "I know getting Wooyoung out is important, but we know where he is and that he's relatively safe. You need to take care of yourself."

"Yes, Mom." San muttered but he allowed Yeosang to pull his shoes of.

"You're damn right I'm going to 'mom' you if you're going to do this to yourself!" He threw his hands up in frustration before storming into the kitchen.

Jongho laughed from where he was leaning against the wall. "Damn he's scary."

"You're the one who wants to date that." San smirked when he saw Jongho turn bright red and pull out his phone to distract himself.

With a sigh, he laid down on the couch and let his arm fall over his eyes. The darkness was a welcome thing that had him slipping away from the horror that was his reality.

But then it started to fill with swirls of blue and purple and red. They slowly formed into the body he had come to know so well. Wooyoung bobbed up and down in front of him, bubbles floating lazily around him, with a large smile on his face.

There was no sounds, but San watched as he giggled and waved at him before flipping over backward.

Oh how San longed to be with him. He was right there, within reach, and yet still so far away.

Without realizing it, a tear escaped the corner of San's eye and rolled down his cheek. He let it happen, savoring it against his skin in a weird, twisted way.

"San?" Yeosang placed a gentle had on his arm.

"What if we never get him out?" San said. His voice was hoarse and barely above a whisper. He knew he barely moved his lips but somehow Yeosang understood him.

"Don't give up. We will find a way." His friend said. "Did you find out anything today?"

Jongho huffed and pushed himself off the wall. "Kind of? The new benefactor is a Mr. Park, but we weren't able to get any other information about him. The scientists are upping their studies though. They mention that..." The younger hesitated, "They took some of Wooyoung's blood and scales and said they had special properties."

"Those sick bastards. We aren't going to let them get away with this. San, you get some rest, I'll do some searching and try to compile a list of the upper class Parks to see if we can narrow down some suspects."

San just nodded under his arm. He could feel himself drifting...

Right into Wooyoung's open arms.

"Everything is going as planned."

"Yes. It's perfect. I can't believe they found one in such good condition." The man in black smirked from the back seat of his limo. "It's so close I can taste it."

"I'm happy for you, Sir."

"Oh come now," he leaned over to press the button which closed the partition separating him and his assistant from the driver. "You could be a little happier. This is your accomplishment too."

"I only did it for you."

The man in black moved closer to his assistant and slowly raked his fingers through the soft, light brown hair. "Always so formal. He can't hear you through the partition." His hand moved to cup the other's chin and tilted it back. "I know you love how powerful I am."

His assistant's eyes quivered slightly before giving a reluctant nod.

"And once we figure out the key to all of this, then I will be the most powerful man in the world." The man's voice dropped to a low growl before he started kissing along the other's jaw. He didn't care that he could feel his assistant tense beneath his touch or that a small whimper could be heard when he found the sweet spot he was looking for on his assistant's neck.

He continued running his lips and tongue over the sweet skin before him the entire drive home, all the way through the ornate iron gates and into the large covered garage.

When he door opened, his assistant scrambled out and waited diligently for him to exit as well, then the two of them made their way to the elevator.

The man pressed the down button and clasped his hands behind his back. It took five minutes for the doors to open again and allow them access to his most prized possession.

"Ah, welcome back Sir. How is the Asset doing?" A young woman asked from her desk by the door. The earpiece she had on flashed a couple of times, but she waited for an reply before answering the incoming call.

"Well, thank you. Any messages?"

"No, Sir. And everything is normal down here."

The man nodded and kept walking down the hall. It eventually opened up into a large room that he had custom built to support all his needs.

A cruel smile crossed his face while he slowly made his way over to a rather small tank in the corner where a mermaid with faded green scales was curled up. It was all the room she was allowed. He couldn't have her struggling and breaking free now, could he? Several tubes were hooked to her arms and were filled with her red blood, which was all being funneled to a separate area to be cooled and stored.

Four more tanks lined the wall, each holding their own defeated merman or mermaid.

It was a collection he was proud of, for he was one of the few people who knew of the creature's existence, and the amazing uses for their magic filled bodies.

That was a secret that had been passed down through his family, although the process on how to actually use it had been lost. But he was determined to bring it back.

"Check them." He said.

His assistant hurried to each tank and jotted down the numbers on each little screen. "All the same, Sir." He answered after a few minutes.

"Good. You heard what the scientist said. I require scales from each of them. Make sure it's done." He said as he walked over to a man with faded yellow scales on his tail. "And make sure to up the nutrients. This one looks thin."

"Yes, Sir."

"When will the next tank be here?"

"In a few days. They had to special order the parts you wanted to make everything work properly."

"Very well." The man sighed and turned to look at the empty spot on the other side of the room. He had ordered a larger tank for the merman waiting for him at the aquarium. Part of the deal he had with that place was that he would fund the research being done there for years to come, but at some point he would come and take the merman for himself. The director had tried to argue with him on it, but every man had his price, and the director crumbled easily once one more zero was added to the check.

With a dark chuckle, the man reached over and pulled his assistant to his side and squeezed his ass. "Soon. I can feel it."

"Y-Yes, Sir. Soon you'll have everything you want." There was a little hesitation in his assistant's voice but he let it slide. It was cute how flustered he would get, so to some extent that made it worth it.

The man used his other hand to tilt back his assistant's head by his chin and dipped down to capture his lips in a hungry, lust driven kiss. "I know something I want right now." He growled.

His assistant shuddered but didn't move away. He knew better than to do that.

"Excuse me?" The woman from the front said hesitantly from the edge of the room. "It's the aquarium. They... have some concerns." She kept her eyes on the floor, avoiding the scene in front of them.

The man just scoffed. "They always have concerns. The fools don't know what they are doing. Most of the animals there are miserable, you can see it in the way they lazily drift about in their tanks. Take a message."

"I already did. They want you to call them. But it sounds like the Asset is causing some issues tonight."

"Well, I can't really blame It after they ripped scales away from It's body." The man continued to rub circles in his assistant's ass and smirked when he saw how red and uncomfortable he was. "Just tell them to call me if anything serious happens."

"Yes, Sir." She bowed and hurried away.

"Now, where were we?" He purred, capturing the delectable lips below him. A small whimper of protest joined the motion, but he didn't let that stop him. "How about we move this back to my room? I want to hear you scream, Baby."

"P-Please, Sir. I h-have work to do."

"Someone else will do it. You work for me, remember?" The man dipped his hand down the back of his assistant's pants to run a finger over his entrance. "I tell you what to do and when."

"Of c-course, Sir." His assistant closed his eyes and bit his lip before jerking his hips a little.

"We have a lot of celebrating to do. Soon I will be the most powerful man in the world, and you will serve me dutifully. Together we will never have to worry about anyone else telling us what to do, or how we should live our lives. How does that sound, Precious?"

His assistant looked up at him with hazy eyes. They always got that way when he started making promises, entrapping the poor boy even more. "That sounds g-good, Sir."

"Of course it does, you greedy little thing." The man said with a chuckle. "That's what got you into this position in the first place." He watched the man in front of him swallow and bite the inside of his cheek, confirming his words. "But don't you worry. I will make sure you're taken care of."

"Thank you. I will always serve you."

"Oh my precious, Hongjoong. I know."