Korea didn't have many notable specialties, and Jack certainly wasn't about to bring back kimchi.
At least when he made it, he could control the nitrite content.
So, ginseng and cosmetics became his go-to gifts—along with a few cases of Yamazaki whiskey and Yanghe baijiu.
Going through diplomatic channels made it easy to bring in goods hassle-free. It wasn't about saving on taxes—it was just annoying to be stopped and searched over a few bottles of alcohol.
He mainly used the Yanghe for infusions—especially with Chinese bayberries, mixed with plenty of rock sugar.
A few drinks of that, and even Hannah would be knocked out.
Jack had only been in Korea for about a week, but by the time he returned, his fugitive task force teammates were already on another mission.
So, the one who picked him up was Danny Reagan.
This time, Jubal had sent the team after an art thief.
Jack knew his team was more than capable now, especially with Clay around, so he didn't bother chasing after them.
Instead, he chose to stay in New York and handle his own affairs.
He had a lot on his plate—mainly because his circle of friends had grown significantly.
For example, he had to maintain ties with his old Los Angeles crew.
He sent whiskey to John and Tim, cosmetics to Lucy, and both liquor and beauty products to Angela—since her husband Wesley was also an old friend.
For the older generation, he skipped the booze and went with ginseng—sending a whole box to each family, complete with detailed instructions on how to use it.
That included the Hunter family, as well as the grumpy police captain Greg, who he figured could use some health supplements.
Of course, he didn't forget his New York friends.
Aside from Castle and Beckett, he also sent cosmetics to Stella Bonasera, who had taken over as head of CSI New York after Taylor's departure.
And then… there was his vegetable garden.
The backyard of their fugitive task force's safehouse had been completely transformed into a thriving little farm.
It wasn't huge, but it had an impressive variety of fruits and vegetables.
While he was away, he had hired an old Mexican gardener to tend to it.
Now that he was back, it was time to get his hands dirty again.
By the time he was finished with all that, his teammates had returned from their mission successfully.
To celebrate, he surprised JJ and Hannah with two VIP invitations to New York Fashion Week.
He had also recently attended a Reagan family dinner, where Erin Reagan and Danny's wife, Linda, mentioned they'd be attending one of the shows.
Apparently, Linda's niece—the daughter of her fashion-world sister—was walking the runway.
Jack had zero interest in fashion shows unless they were Victoria's Secret.
So, he assumed that after giving away his two invitations, his connection to the fashion world was over.
But then… he got an unexpected call.
Lyla, Reid's girlfriend, was coming to New York for several events—including multiple runway shows and a "Fashion Rocks" concert.
Lyla was way more famous now than before.
Jack's advice to Chris had been to raise the production quality of their short dramas—using Hollywood-grade cameras, filming techniques, and editing.
This had made a huge difference.
The storylines were still cheesy, full of cringeworthy moments that made people want to curl their toes—but the audience was massive.
And Lyla's natural sweet, adorable looks had quickly turned her into a fan-favorite "big" star.
But, of course, popularity came with problems.
Ever since Lyla publicly confirmed she was dating Reid, she had been receiving threatening lettersnonstop.
So this time, Reid was personally accompanying her to New York.
Not only that—he called Jack and specifically asked if he could help out as a temporary bodyguard.
Jack couldn't refuse.
Not just because of his friendship with the BAU team—but because Lyla's status as their lead actress made her a valuable asset.
"Being a bodyguard is more of a hassle than I expected."
After a few days on the job, Jack had gained new respect for professional security teams.
Moving a single person through hundreds or thousands of screaming fans—without using a gun—was exhausting.
It wasn't just physically demanding—it required very specificskills and techniques.
Jack exhaled and turned to the experienced bodyguard next to him.
"Looks like we need to start a security company under 'Shangrila'… Bryan, what do you think about running it?"
Bryan Mills looked genuinely shocked.
"Me?"
He pointed at himself in surprise.
Bryan Mills was Lyla's full-time bodyguard—a grizzled ex-CIA operative who looked exactly like Liam Neeson.
One of the rare CIA agents who had managed to retire in peace.
Jack wasn't entirely sure about his past assignments, but based on his combat skills, he had likely been involved in high-risk protection missions—probably in war zones.
His fighting style was brutal and efficient, similar to Clay's.
Every move was designed to neutralize threats in one strike.
But unlike Clay, Bryan's techniques leaned more toward Army special forces tactics—possibly Delta Force training.
His security expertise was undeniable.
Even Jack had been taking cues from him over the past few days.
"I'm just a…" Bryan hesitated.
He had been with Lyla for over a year now.
He had visited the Wolf brothers' farm multiple times.
Even met Joe Mason, another former CIA agent.
He knew who he was really working for.
And he knew Jack was one of the few people who actually had the authority to make decisions.
Jack had left a good impression on him.
But they weren't exactly close—so why was Jack suddenly offering him this position?
"Do you have other plans?" Jack asked, grinning.
After observing Bryan for a while, Jack had pieced it together.
He was 80% sure this guy was from Taken.
Long career abroad.
Spent too much time away from family, leading to divorce.
A teenage daughter about 16 or 17.
After retiring, he settled in Los Angeles.
His ex-wife remarried—to a wealthy man.
Now, he had no plans to win her back—he just wanted to spend time with his daughter before she went off to college.
Sounded exactly like the plot of Taken.
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