She looks at Auntie Okja, her eyes like pinpricks. “I don’t trust you, Okja, but I do believe you. So let’s go find this monster of a human and stop him before he destroys the world.”

24: Let’s Get Down to Business

MY PARENTS, AUNTIE OKJA, the three Horangi, Emmett (with Boris), and I all drive to the Woori America Bank’s LA headquarters. When we park and I jump out of Eomma’s SUV, the sky goes dark. I frown and look up, only to find that it’s not a storm cloud that’s blocked the sun, but a bird. A ginormous bird with a human woman’s face.

“What are you doing here?” I ask Areum. “What if the saram see you? You don’t exactly…well, blend in.”

She shrinks to dove size and gently lowers herself onto my shoulder. “I yielded to you, Riley Oh. Wherever you go, I now go.”

That alarms me. I’m flattered that this mighty bird-woman has decided I’m important enough to follow around, but I’m finding it hard to imagine having her on my shoulder for the rest of my life. It’s a bit too pirate-y for my liking.

Taeyo studies Areum’s shrunken form curiously, but all the adults keep a safe distance. They’ve seen her in fury mode, so I can understand why they’re wary.

Emmett nudges me in the side. “Come on, Rye, you tamed her. You gotta take responsibility for her now. Besides, she might come in handy—you never know.”

Areum turns her little head and stares expectantly at me. I guess it can’t hurt for her to stay with us for the time being. “Well, you can’t come into the building with us, or else the saram are gonna think they’re hallucinating,” I say. “But maybe you can stay outside until we come back? And keep out of sight, if you can?”

She squawks in response and flies toward the roof of the bank.

Auntie Okja ushers us to the front of the mid-rise office building, and then she turns to Sora, Austin, and Taeyo. “I’m sure you already know this, but Elder Pyo, when not acting as chairperson of the gifted council, is also chair of the Woori America Bank.” Then she addresses the rest of us. “I called his assistant earlier, and he said Elder Pyo is here for a board meeting today. I say we go in there now and strike while the iron’s hot.”

“That’s all good and well,” Eomma says, “but how are we going to get past security? They won’t let us through unless we have an appointment.”

“Already ahead of you.” Taeyo holds up a slim laptop that he brought from campus. “On the ride over, I hacked into Mr. Pyo’s calendar and added an appointment with his relatives from out of town. His assistant won’t know any better.”