Page 6 of K-Pop Double Life

“Already done. Ms. Park is in an executive suite suitable for holding team meetings. Jin, Haneul, and Min-kyu have their own rooms. Tae and Woo prefer to share a room since Woo is so young. They’re all on the same floor. My husband Jason and I are in another room on that floor as well.”

“How long have they been a group?” I asked.

“Six years next spring. Five since debut, though Woo hasn’t always been with them. He replaced another singer who was unable to continue.” Sunny didn’t look up from her tablet.

“And the name. Pryzm. Does it mean something in Korean?”

That earned a small smile. “No, it was chosen because a prism reflects light, and it looks good in all capital letters on merchandise.”

A man approached from the tent entrance. Late forties, solid build, moving with the deliberate awareness of someone with military or security training. He wore dark tactical pants and a fitted shirt, and had a radio clipped to his belt.

“This is Cho Jae-sung,” Eun-ji said. “Chief of Security for Starhouse. He’s been with the company for eight years and has managed security for all of Pryzm’s tours.”

Liam and I both shook hands with him. Firm grip, direct eye contact. “Please, call me Jason. I understand you will be joining us for the remainder of the tour.”

“That’s the plan,” I said. “We’ll coordinate with your team. What’s your current setup?”

“Two close protection officers who travel with the group. They’re at the Majestic now, securing the floor. Local security as needed at each venue, vetted through our European coordinator. I’d like to brief you both on our protocols and get your assessment of what happened tonight.”

“Agreed,” Liam said. “But first we get everyone secured at the hotel.”

Sunny touched Jason’s arm, a brief, familiar gesture that spoke of long partnership. “We’re leaving soon.”

Liam pulled out his tablet and motioned Jason aside. “Let’s confirm routes and comm protocols. I want everyone on the same channel.”

“Agreed.”

I looked at the rest of Pryzm, clustered near the far side of the tent. Tae was scrolling through his phone with shaking hands. Woo had his head on Min-kyu’s shoulder once again. Haneul stared at nothing, earbuds in, probably replaying the moment the stage tilted.

They were kids. Talented, famous, wealthy kids. But still kids who’d just survived something that could have killed them.

“Get them cleaned up and fed,” I said to Eun-ji. “Keep them together. And no social media posts until the police clear it.”

“Our PR team will need to make a statement⁠—”

“Technical malfunction,” I said. “Equipment failure under investigation. Anything else creates panic or tips off whoever did this that we’re taking it seriously.” I softened my tone slightly. “You can say the performers are shaken but safe, and you’re cooperating with authorities. That’s enough.”

She studied me for a moment, then nodded. She understood the balance between transparency and security.

I turned to Sang-hoon. “You’re staying with him tonight?”

“Yes.” No hesitation. Just fact.

“Good. If anything feels wrong, anyone approaches who shouldn’t, any message, any call, you contact me immediately.” I pulled out a business card, wrote my mobile number on the back. “Day or night. Don’t wait to see if it’s important.”

He took the card, studied it for a moment, then met my eyes. “Thank you. For getting us off that platform. And for... earlier. I understand why you stopped me.”

“You moved like you knew what you were doing. Most people would have frozen.”

“I’ve worked with Jin for five years.” His voice was quiet, but there was steel underneath. “I know when something’s wrong.”

3

INVESTMENT

AIDAN — CANNES

“We’re leaving in five minutes,” Eun-ji announced. “Three vehicles. Jin, Sang-hoon, and Mr. Greene in the first. The rest of the group in the second with Mr. McCullough. Then the support staff in the third.”