Yoongi woke up when the van came to a halt, raising his head up from where it had been resting on Namjoon's shoulder.

"What's going on?" He asked, scrubbing his eye tiredly. 

"We arrived." Namjoon whispered.

They heard the car doors open as the men climbed out, and then heard their footsteps walking away.

"Wait, where are they going?" Yoongi jumped to his feet, yanking Namjoon along with him. He peered out the dirty window. "Why are they leaving us in here?"

"I don't know, but I don't think they'll be happy when Arabella starts to cry." Namjoon looked out too, seeing they were parked on a dirt driveway next to an old, abandoned looking barn.

Even from inside the van, the two heard it when the doll started crying suddenly, too far away from them.

The men immediately started arguing, pushing each other and clamping their hands over their ears.

"They're coming back." Yoongi ducked down.

A moment later the van doors were unlocked and the two boys raised their free hands to block the sunlight from blinding them.

"Looks like you were telling the truth." Bryan grumbled. "Baby sounds like it's being murdered."

"Please, you can take the doll, just don't hurt us." Yoongi tried to keep his voice level.

"And have to deal with its screaming?" The man scoffed. "Shits breaking my eardrums."

"Maybe it'll still work if their corpses are close enough." The other man mused. "No one said they had to be alive."

"We'll do what you want." Namjoon said quickly, eyeing the gun resting in one man's pocket. "Please, there's no need for threats, we'll comply."

"You better," Kent warned, and grabbed the small chain between the two handcuffs, yanking them out of the van. "One word out of either of you and you'll regret it."

Yoongi glared in anger but bit his tongue, knowing the only way out of this was if they somehow got the gun out of these mens hands.

They were led into the dirty, old barn, and were surprised to see that the inside was fully functioning- although not for farm animal purposes.

"It's a gold mining system." Namjoon whispered, eyes wide in shock.

Yoongi frowned, seeing thug looking men hunched over microchips, carefully scraping them with sharp instruments. "They don't look like miners."

Namjoon rolled his eyes. "No, you idiot- they're mining the gold from microchips! That's why they wanted Arabella- to take the gold inside of her! The gold plated wires and lids are actually pretty valuable once collected in a large quantity."

He looked around and saw a pile of mutilated dolls similar to Arabella tossed in a corner of the barn, confirming his suspicions. These people had to have collected nearly a millions dollars worth by now.

Namjoon wondered how they got these dolls, since he and Yoongi seemed to be the only kidnapped parents here.

"Probably robbed the factories before the dolls were even shipped out." Yoongi whispered to Namjoon, thinking the same thing, apparently, as they were led to the back of the barn. "Then they got greedy and started taking them one by one from students."

"Who the hell are these kids?" A gruff voice demanded to know, and Yoongi saw a buff man with scars and tattoos storming over to them.

"Don't get mad," Kent started, "But we had to take them. The doll would start screaming if we didn't."

The man scowled. "What are you- stupid? The dolls aren't real!"

"We know, but this must be some new kind of doll, one that has different features than the older ones." Bryan explained. "It starts screaming bloody murder if it gets more than a few feet away from the kids."

"So bash the shits head in." The man snapped. "Then it'll shut up."

Bryan and Kent looked at each other, like that hadn't occurred to them.

And if the baby wasn't screaming, there was nothing keeping Namjoon and Yoongi from being murdered.

"Wait!" Namjoon quickly took a step closer. "You might damage the chip if you break her. You said she was a newer model, right? Then the chip might be someplace different than usual- like in the head, and you could lose the gold. After all this hassle, you definitely wouldn't want it all to go to waste, especially if the newer models are worth more."

The man studied him for a moment, stroking his beard with dirty fingers. "Hmm. Kids got a point. Alright, put them aside for now. Jason! How far are we?"

He stalked off and all four of them let out a silent sigh of relief.

"C'mon." Kent tugged on the handcuff chain and pulled them to a back corner, where there was straw and hay thrown around in piles.

He pushed the two boys onto a pile. "Place your hands down flat on the ground."

The students listened, watching warily as the man picked up a large, heavy bolt and a hammer.

Yoongi flinched at the loud sound of the man hammering the nail through one of the holes of the chain, bolting the two boys to the wooden floor.

Namjoon tried tugging on the top of it, but it wasn't budging, having been driven in too deep.

The two men stalked off, taking Arabella with them.

Yoongi sighed, stretching his legs out since it seemed like they were going to be here a while. "Well, nothing to do now but wait to die."

"If you don't have anything helpful to say then just keep your mouth shut." Namjoon muttered, still struggling with the chain and nail.

"You know as well as I do, we're dead meat as soon as they take Steve apart." Yoongi said. "The only thing keeping us alive right now is her annoying screaming, and once they remove that chip, they'll remove us from existing."

"Maybe not." Namjoon looked around, seeing they were being ignored and leaned in closer to Yoongi. "With the amount of gold in those microchips, they most likely have a GPS in them. If we can just get to a phone and call the police then they can track our location."

Yoongi felt a surge of hope. "But how can we call them? We left our phones back in your room."

Namjoon glanced at the men walking around. "There's got to be at least one phone here. We just have to get close enough to them to pickpocket it."

"And how do you propose we do that?" Yoongi motioned to the way they were chained. "Stealthily rip up the entire floor?"

"You know, you could come up with an idea too." Namjoon huffed. "Since your life is on the line as well."

"Hey, you got me into this mess, you can get me out." Yoongi said, settling back against the hay.

Namjoon grumbled under his breath, before raising his head, scanning the room.

He spotted the scarred and tattooed man from before, the one who seemed to be the leader of this operation.

Waiting until the man looked over at him, Namjoon raised his hand, like he was in class.

To his surprise, the man actually walked over.

Yoongi went still and silent as the man three times his size stood over them, hoping Namjoon knew what the fuck he was doing.

"Yeah?" The man asked gruffly, arms crossed.

"Just wondering, is that a Litz wire I saw?" Namjoon asked innocently. "Connected to the actuator?"

The fucking what connected to a fucking what?

Yoongi had no idea what the boy was saying, but the man seemed impressed.

"You know techterms?" He asked.

"I took a few robotics classes." Namjoon shrugged. "I've had a picture of Karel Čapek in my room since elementary school. You guys have a pretty good set up here considering the location and absence of any real technological structures, it's impressive."

The man smiled, shocking Yoongi. "You seem pretty smart. What you know about gold mining?"

"Not a lot," Namjoon admitted. "But you guys are pretty genius for coming up with this, not a lot of people realize the value in chips, especially not after 1998 when they changed the whole manufacturing process."

The man rubbed his beard, thinking. "Tell you what. You help us out here, and maybe I won't kill you."

Yoongi whipped his head around to stare at Namjoon with wide eyes, seeing Namjoon nod once.

"I don't want to die, so I'll do my best." Namjoon said.

The man turned around and whistled. "Dylan! Bring the keys!"

Yoongi tensed as another buff man walked over and knelt down, unlocking Namjoon from the cuffs.

He could only watch as the men grabbed Namjoon, hauling him over to a work table.

Yoongi was still chained to the floor by his own cuff, and he experimented trying to pull his slim wrist free of the handcuff while casting a nervous look to Namjoon.

He was worried for the students safety.

"C'mon, Namjoon..." he whispered, tugging on the cuff. "Be the genius that I know you are."

-

Namjoon eyed the sharp instruments laid out before him, and the mutilated autopsied doll, with its wires and small green circuit board spilling out like intestines and organs.

"The 1970 dolls had barely any gold in them." The man was saying, sounding annoyed that manufacturers fifty years ago hadn't stuffed gold bars in the dolls. "The ones in the 80s were easier to break but still didn't have much, same with the 90s. But these new 2000's models? A fucking gold mine."

He held up Arabella, and Namjoon fought the urge to snatch her pristine face out from under the mans strong hand.

"And this 2020 model should be worth a fortune." He went on, studying her as if using X ray vision to see inside. "Maybe I should give you the honor of cutting it open."

"She's not an it, she's Kim Arabella." Namjoon stated. He held his hand out for her.

The man chuckled, tossing her over. "Call it whatever you want, she's my one way ticket to the Maldives."

Namjoon laid her down gently on the table, thankful she hadn't cried since he had left her bag of bottles and diapers back in his bedroom.

He picked up a long, thin, silver instrument, which ended in a sharp point.

He could probably be fast enough to stab this into the man, but it was so thin that it wouldn't go very deep, and would probably break.

Plus, the man certainly wouldn't die from the attack, just get pissed off and would not hesitate to shoot Namjoon and probably kill Yoongi too.

So he faced the table, and picked up the circuit board, carefully scraping the incredibly tiny line of gold that wound around the small levers and knobs.

It fell in flakes to the metal work table top, and the man looked pleased.

"I know it looks like it's not much, but that's like fifty bucks already. It adds up quickly."

Namjoon said nothing, concentrating on his task.

Every few seconds, his eyes flicked up, glancing around quickly for a phone.

Most of the men were working, hunched over their own tables, while some with guns walked around, guarding the front and back door, as well as the few windows that were on each side of the barn.

Not a phone in sight.

Namjoon scraped some more gold off, then risked a quick glance to Yoongi.

The student was still sitting on the floor, looking around the room and it occurred to Namjoon that he was also looking for a phone.

"I think that's all the gold this ones got."

The man snatched the doll up, examining it.

He seemed pleased with Namjoon's work. "You have skilled hands, boy."

"Thank you, sir."

Namjoon hoped at the very least some respect and manners might spare his life.

"Now," the man picked up Arabella and pushed her in front of Namjoon. "Do this one. I want to see how much gold it has."

Namjoon froze, metal instrument still clutched in his hand.

"Are you waiting for an invitation?" The man asked when Namjoon did nothing. "It won't feel a thing, you know."

He laughed, like something here was hilarious.

Namjoon still stood frozen, unable to cut into his grade.

"Namjoon!"

The student looked up, looking over to Yoongi again.

"Your 3 o'clock!" Yoongi called. "Careful! There's a giant bug!"

The man quickly stepped back, examining the air, and Namjoon turned too, but instead of an insect, he saw what Yoongi really meant.

The man at the table next to him had pulled out his phone, tapping at the screen.

A cell phone.

They could call for help.

Namjoon quickly stepped back. "Fuck! Everybody stay calm! That's a flying enchripiede, it's bite is venomous!"

Of course, that made everyone stop and look around, heads popping up from their work tables.

"A fucking what?"

"Did he say venomous?"

"Where?!"

Yoongi screamed and pointed. "You! Duck!"

The men in the general direction of Yoongi's index finger hit the floor, shouting and cursing as the insect that didn't actually exist "flew around them".

Namjoon stepped back, hands held out as if calming everyone, carefully stepping close to the man with the phone.

He had put it away after the commotion, eyes trained solely on the air, looking for the bug, but Namjoon saw the phone peeking out of the mans back pocket.

"Where? I don't see anything!" The leader barked, squinting.

"There, there!" Yoongi was hysteric, shuffling as far away as he could go, pointing up, then straight, then to the left. "Please, let me go! It's attracted to the smell of sugar and I have chocolate in my pocket!"

He reached in and pulled out a small Hershey kiss, still wrapped up in its silver tinfoil.

"Oh fuck that!" One man dropped his tools and raced out of the barn.

"Get this away from me!" Yoongi sobbed, throwing the candy at the man with the phone.

Namjoon's hand shot out and grabbed the top of the phone, just as the man screamed and booked it out of the barn as well, followed by a few others who had also ingested sugar recently.

He didn't even feel Namjoon slip the phone out of his pocket in all the commotion.

"Hey, hey!" The leader yelled, chasing after them. "You fucking pussies! Get back in here!"

Namjoon quickly raced back to Yoongi, keeping the phone hidden up his sleeve.

"Here, you call the police." Namjoon whispered, letting the phone fall out and into his hand, quickly handing it to Yoongi. "And good idea with the bug."

"No problem." Yoongi hid behind Namjoon's broad form, turning on the phone. "What the hells an enchri-whatever thing anyways?"

Namjoon grinned. "I have no idea, I made it up."

Yoongi chuckled. "Maybe being a nerd isn't such a bad thing after all. Now hurry and get back to the table, they're coming back."

Namjoon nodded and quickly raced back, while the leader dragged his scared men back into the barn, still loudly scolding them.

Yoongi turned around, pretending to be cowering in fear as he looked at the phone.

It needed a PIN to unlock, but thankfully you didn't need that to make an emergency call.

Yoongi quickly tapped the green button on the bottom corner of the screen, and it took him right to a dial pad.

9...1...1...call.

The phone dialed, and Yoongi quickly turned the volume down low, leaning over the device just as someone picked up.

"911, what's the address of your emergency?"

"I don't know, we were kidnapped to the middle of nowhere." He whispered, heart pounding. He didn't dare glance behind him to see if anyone was looking at him.

"Okay sir, please stay calm, help is on the way. Are the kidnappers armed, and how many are there?"

"Yeah, like half of them are. There's like, ten or so, I don't know for sure but I can't talk- they'll hear me and know I called you. Can you please trace this call?"

"Doing it now, sir. It will take about three minutes, please stay on the line."

"I'll try." Yoongi turned the volume all the way off and stuffed the phone under some hay, face down.

He glanced over his shoulder, seeing the leader pick up the piece of candy off the dirt floor and throw it out the window.

"There, now will everyone calm down?" He demanded. "Stop wasting time and get back to work!"

The men slowly filed back in, still looking around and up at the ceiling for the bug.

The man scoffed and shook his head, walking up to Namjoon.

"Unbelievable. You give a man a gun and he still flinches at insects."

"We should all wait outside for a few minutes." Namjoon said. "Enchripiede's are known to be vicious and travel in packs. A whole swarm could converge in here any minute."

The man frowned. "I've never heard of this bug before, how do you know so much about it?"

"I'm studying entomology." Namjoon lied.

"You seem to know a lot." The man looked him over. "You some kind of genius?"

"Well, technically there is no way to determine whether or not someone is a genius, since a genius is a person who displays exceptional intellectual ability, creative productivity, universality in genres, or originality, typically to a degree that is associated with the achievement of new discoveries or advances in a domain of knowledge." Namjoon stalled. "But the average IQ is 100, and anyone over 140 is considered of high intelligence. Mines 148, so I guess one could think of me as a genius, if they wanted to."

The man nodded. "Sounds genius enough to me. You're hired."

Namjoon blinked. "H-hired?"

"Yeah, you're my new recruit. Welcome to the team. Now get back to work." The man patted the boys shoulder, nearly bowling him over.

Namjoon threw a panicked look to Yoongi, hoping he had managed to call the police before this man decided to tattoo him as initiation into this new job he didn't want.

Yoongi coughed into his hand, and flipped a thumbs up for a brief second.

Namjoon's relief was short lived when the leader also looked to the other student.

"What about him? Is he a genius too?"

Namjoon bit his lip. "Please don't hurt him, he's my friend."

"I won't hurt him if he has something to offer us." The man said.

To Namjoon's horror, he started walking over to Yoongi.

"Hey, where the hells my phone?" A voice asked, and Namjoon's fear escalated.

The man patted his pockets, frowning. He glared. "Brandon! Dude, I swear of this shit is another one of your stupid pranks I'll fucking kill you!"

"Calm down, Trent. I didn't take your crappy old iPod." Another man rolled his eyes.

"Then where the hell is it?" Trent demanded. "Huh? Call it for me then, if you didn't take it!"

Brandon huffed. "Dude, come on."

"Fucking call it!"

Namjoon looked to Yoongi, whose eyes were wide.

"Don't call!" He blurted out.

Everyone looked to him.

The leader stopped, turning to face the student.

"Why not?" He asked suspiciously.

"The...waves." Namjoon stammered.

Brandon looked confused. "Who's surfing?"

"No, not waves like that. Electronic waves, the sound waves from other devices!" Namjoon said, heart pounding. "They could interfere with the chips of the new dolls. It's sensitive technology, it if overheats it could damage the gold."

Brandon snorted. "That doesn't sound factual in the slightest."

"Hey!" The leader snapped, walking away from Yoongi to storm over to the man. "Newbie here is a genius, so whatever he says goes!"

"Newbie?" Trent frowned. "You recruited a high school student? He hasn't even graduated yet."

"And you still haven't matured yet." The leader retorted. "Shut up and get back to work."

"What about my phone?" Trent whined.

"You must have dropped it when you ran like a little bitch." The leader shoved him back to his work station. "Finish your job and then you can look for it."

Relieved the attention had been drawn away, Yoongi sighed silently.

He didn't dare to even look at the pile of hey where the phone was still hidden under, and he wondered if the police had tracked their call yet, and if they were close.

He hoped the phone had enough battery, and wondered why he hadn't even checked that when he had a chance.

Namjoon started walking over to him, and a hand caught his shoulder.

"Where are you going? Get back to work." The leader said.

"Can I just have a minute with my friend first, please, sir?" Namjoon asked.

"Why?"

"I just want to make sure he's okay." Namjoon fiddled with his hands nervously. "Please. I'll come right back, I promise."

The man looked him over, but nodded. "Make it quick, newbie."

Namjoon thanked him and hurried over, dropping down to his knees quickly to hug Yoongi tightly.

Surprised, Yoongi raised his free arm and awkwardly hugged him back.

"Did you call?" Namjoon whispered in the boys ear, hidden by the hug.

"Yeah. Should be here soon. Stall." Yoongi hurried to say.

Namjoon nodded, pulling back.

"And Joon," Yoongi smirked. "Don't kill Steve."

"I would never hurt Arabella." Namjoon smiled.

"Boss!" A sudden, frantic cry.

It was Bryan, hurrying over from where he had been guarding the front door.

"We got a problem! Cops! Theres like six cars out there!"

"What?!" The leader demanded, pulling out his gun.

Everyone was instantly on their feet, dolls abandoned as they shouted and raced to the entrance.

Namjoon grabbed some tools off the table and ran back to Yoongi, jamming the sharp instrument in the handcuff lock.

"They're here!" Yoongi couldn't believe it as he watched Namjoon try to pick the lock. "I can't believe that actually worked!"

"We're not out of the woods yet." Namjoon reminded him. "They've still got one play left- hostages."

Yoongi yanked the tool out of the boys hand. "Then we don't have time to waste. Let me do this."

Namjoon sat back and watched as Yoongi quickly unlocked himself, jumping up once he was free.

"Impressive. How many times have you done that?" Namjoon asked.

Yoongi just winked.

Their moment was short lived when gunshots started firing.

Namjoon flinched, and Yoongi grabbed his hand, racing to the back entrance.

"Come on, we'll hide out here until it dies down and then-"

He was cut off when he was suddenly grabbed, his shout of surprise muffled by a strong hand clamping down over his mouth.

"Yoongi!" Namjoon gasped, fearfully staring at the leader who held a gun to the students head.

"How did the cops know where to find us, newbie?" The man asked calmly. Too calmly.

"I-I...please let him go." Namjoon pleaded.

"You tricked us. Got Trents phone somehow and called them." The man nodded. "Impressive. But then again, you're a genius, so I should have seen this coming."

"I'm not, please, just let us go!" Namjoon begged, hands raised in surrender.

Yoongi struggled in the mans hold, trying to pry the hand off of his mouth, until the gun jabbing into his temple made him still.

"I was going to kill everyone here after we mined all the gold." The man explained. "But you hear those gunshots out there? They seem to be doing all that work for me. Only loose ends here are you two, then I can grab the gold and get out of here."

"I'll help you!" Namjoon said quickly. "I'll help you, I'll carry the gold out for you- you can get away with twice as much that way!"

The man laughed, clicking the safety off. "You really think I would trust you again?"

Yoongi froze when he heard that click, seeing from his peripheral vision as the mans finger tightened on the trigger.

"Fool me once, shame on me...but fool me twice..." He sighed. "You could have been a great asset, kid. Too bad you had to fuck it all up."

"No!" Namjoon screamed, just as the gun went off.

Bang!

It echoed through the air, and Yoongi fell.