Vrrr.
Suddenly, the phone inside KyungHyun’s suit pocket began to vibrate. It was an unknown number, but he felt like he knew who was calling. KyungHyun’s dark eyebrows twisted.
“Hello?”
– It’s me.
KyungHyun took a ragged breath when he heard EunHa’s voice. The hand holding the cellphone began to shake.
“…You, what are you trying to do?”
– I’m busy, so I’ll just get straight to the point. I’m on my way to Shenzhen right now. Once the date of the business deal has been determined, Kang SungHo will take note of the situation and follow me to China. So far, he’s only sent one other person to keep watch over me.
“I asked you what do you think you’re doing right now!”
KyungHyun roared into the phone like a furious beast. General Manager Cha, who had been in the middle of a call as he stood in front of the corpse, quickly hurried over to the door and closed it so that none of the other employees could see what was going on.
Boom. Boom. His heart raced so fast that it felt like it was going to burst out of his throat. Unlike his voice filled with white, hot rage, EunHa’s voice over the phone sounded calm.
– All Superintendent Shin has to do is follow everything according to plan. Once you secretly meet with the Chinese mafia and decide on the secret location, you said that the detectives will move in on site, right? That’s how you’re going to catch the YongSung head from Busan and the the Chinese police are going to capture the Chinese mafia. That was the plan.
“Did Kang SungHo, that fucking bastard, send you to China?”
KyungHyun ignored her and began to girnd his teeth. Knowing Kang SungHo, he wouldn’t put it past him to send a woman out on a dangerous mission.
“That fucking son of a bitch… That fucking bastard… I’m going to go and shoot him to death right now.”
His true thoughts burst out of his lips without hesitation. There was a moment of silence before EunHa replied.
– No.
“What are you talking about?”
– I’m the one who offered to go. Kang SungHo didn’t send me.
“Fuck, why?!”
KyungHyun’s bloodshot eyes trembled.
He definitely told EunHa not to leave Korea. Because it was dangerous. Once Kang SungHo left the country, he was going to extract her. So why? Why was she making him lose his mind? Why?
– I’ll tell you the details when we meet.
He liked this answer. His rage was boiling inside of him like a volcano that was about to erupt, but he managed to suppress it. With a trembling hand, he held the phone up to his ear and murmured.
“I’ll go to you immediately, so don’t take another step. Don’t move a muscle.”
– I’m getting on the plane in 5 minutes.
Shit. She had already gotten past the security. His twisted expression suddenly disappeared from his cold face. EunHa lowered her voice even more and quickly spoke.
– In the pleasure district of downtown Shenzhen, there’s a bar called ‘Egoist’. I’ll be there.
“What?”
– I’ll be waiting.
The call ended. KyungHyun’s hand trembled as it gripped his hair wet with sweat. It was his mistake believing Lee EunHa would obediently follow his orders.
“Damn it…!”
The cellphone and tablet flew across the room and rolled onto the floor. Unable to hold back his rage, his eyes looked around the room and settled on the golf club leaning against a corner of the room. KyungHyun grabbed the club and flung it in the air. The club hit the glass wall that faced outside and shattered it with a loud crash. The alarm on the ceiling went off and a siren began to ring deafeningly throughout the room.
“Superintendent Shin.”
General Manager Cha, who had always called KyungHyun ‘Director Shin’ for security reasons, was so shocked that he called him by his true title. Taken aback by this unexpected situation, General Manager Cha let out a ragged breath. He couldn’t even approach KyungHyun. Having worked with him for for many years now, General Manager Cha could say that he had seen many sides to his boss.
When he was angry, he would suppress that anger and turn it back on the opponent. He had even seen KyungHyun break someone’s spirit just through violence alone. Even while doing all these things, KyungHyun remained aloof and cold, to the point where it would bring a chill to General Manager Cha’s spine. However, the KyungHyun right now was far from cold.
“What is the matter? Is everything… okay?”
Having heard the alarm, security guards opened the door and crowded into the room. They saw the mess in the office and stopped in their tracks. General Manager Cha gestured to them with his eyes and quickly commanded them to leave. And like that, the door closed, and they were alone once again.
“Haa… Fuck…”
He had been on edge when he had been speaking with Im SungJoon, but KyungHyun managed to hold it back. However, when he found out that Lee EunHa had gone AWOL, he finally lost all reason. This was the first time General Manager Cha had seen KyungHyun be so reckless. Standing in front of the shattered window of the top floor of the building, KyungHyun panted as breaths hissed through his clenched teeth.
“I’m the fucking retard… I am…”
KyungHyun felt shame burning through his body. It was a horrible feeling. Even though he knew there was a chance EunHa would take out the chip they had installed inside her, why didn’t he do anything about it?
The answer was simple. He had completely fallen for this woman to the point where half of his brain was broken. His desire to trust her had completely blinded his eyes and his reason.
“It’s dangerous if you stand there. Please step back, Director.”
KyungHyun didn’t move a muscle despite General Manager Cha’s warning. Instead, he looked back at him with bloodshot eyes and issued a command.
“Look for the fastest flight to China.”
General Manager Cha clenched his fist and hesitated. Im SungJoon wasn’t the only one keeping a close eye on KyungHyun’s every move. They had pulled forward the schedule once already. If they moved it again, even their partners in China would begin to become suspicious.
“Didn’t you hear me?”
“…Yes, I’ll do that, sir.”
In the end, General Manager Cha could only helplessly nod to KyungHyun. He knew KyungHyun wasn’t the type of man to change his mind easily once he had come to a decision.
“Will you leave immediately?”
“I’ll stop by Noh HyungChul’s hospital before I leave.”
“I’ll go with you.”
“No. You stay with Lieutenant Han and observe the situation here. If Im SungJoon and I both leave Seoul, Mayor Kim will definitely come for Noh HyungChul. Don’t miss this opportunity.”
“Understood. Then what about our colleagues in China…”
“I’ll contact them. Either way, Im SungJoon is the one who is in charge of preparing the money. I’ll just go early and tell them I’m sightseeing.”
“If Im SungJoon finds out you left early, he’ll probably follow after you.”
“Then it’ll be for the better. It’ll only quicken our work.”
There was no hesitation in KyungHyun’s cold voice. He was overcome with sudden rage, but it seemed that his judgement hadn’t abandoned him. With that thought, General Manager Cha was secretly relieved.
“While Im SungJoon is in China, you stay here and request an arrest warrant for him. The charges are rape, blackmail, embezzlement, smuggling drugs, and now the murder of Baek YoungGi. Make it so that no lawyer will be able to worm him out of it this time.”
“But the evidence…”
“I’ll personally step up as a witness.”
General Manager Cha’s eyes widened in surprise. By stepping up publicly in court, he was basically agreeing to reveal his true identity. It meant that he would quit his 12 years of undercover life. KyungHyun was determined to conclude everything with this final project. General Manager Cha tensed up at KyungHyun’s words and swallowed, but his mouth was dry.
“Then Kang SungHo… What will you do about him?”
A terrifying gleam flashed across KyungHyun’s eyes. He tightly clenched his fist and spit out his next words in a bitter tone.
“Keep surveillance on him 24 hours a day. If he shows any sign of leaving the country, report it to me immediately.”
“Understood, sir.”
“But don’t let the superior officers know.
“…Excuse me?”
General Manager Cha asked in a low voice. Up until now, there had never been a time they didn’t report their every move to their superior officers. This was the first time KyungHyun had ordered him to do something like this.
“What do you mean by that, sir?”
General Manager Cha swallowed down the anxious feeling that was rising in his chest. KyungHyun swept his hair back with his large hand, the shapes of the knuckles clearly showing through the skin. He continued to look down the building but suddenly turned around and met General Manager Cha’s eyes. His voice remained steady without any tremor.
“I’m going to take care of that bastard on my own.”
General Manager Cha’s eyes slightly shook behind his glasses. KyungHyun wasn’t joking. He had already decided to end Kang SungHo on his own terms.
“I feel like a fucking idiot for having dragged this out for so long.”
KyungHyun mocked himself in a cold voice.
“Superintendent Shin.”
General Manager Cha called out to KyungHyun in a trembling voice. KyungHyun glanced back at him. KyungHyun’s usually cold eyes were now filled with a mix of unrecognizable emotions.
Within his black eyes, General Manager Cha could see rage, disappointment, and exhaustion. They silently seeped out of his eyes. No less than 12 years. Year after year, all the emotions that had piled up were now on the verge of exploding. General Manager Cha understood. Lee EunHa was merely the fuse as the first woman KyungHyun had shown any interest.
General Manager Cha knew this emotion very well and was very sympathetic. Having joined the police force himself for the sake of his childhood sweetheart, General Manager Cha understood most of what KyungHyun was going through.
“If you have nothing else to say to me, move.”
KyungHyun looked at him with sunken eyes and spoke.
“…Don’t you think you should at least go get checked out at the hospital? You don’t look very well.”
General Manager Cha’s voice was filled with genuine concern. For the past three days, KyungHyun had been suffering from a bone-breaking ache. His whole body was boiling hot, and his body looked noticeably weaker.
“There’s no need to go to a hospital for a mere cold.”
“…People die of mere colds all the time.”
General Manager Cha looked beseechingly at KyungHyun, but KyungHyun just pat him on the shoulder and walked past him.
“I’m fine.”
“Please take care of yourself.”
“Just worry about your own woman. Don’t be a fucking retard like me and regret it.”
KyungHyun’s steps were resolute as he walked out of the room. There wasn’t any time to waste. From here on out, he wasn’t going to let Lee EunHa out of his sight. One mistake was more than enough. He banged his head against the elevator wall. Cold sweat trickled down his neck and wet the collar of his shirt.
The announcement giving the final warning for boarding the flight rang throughout the airport. When EunHa finally left the restroom, YongJoon frowned anxiously.
“Hey, why did you take so long? Are you constipated?”
“Where did all your manners go? Up your ass? You shouldn’t ask a lady something like that.”
“Fuck, humans and animals alike eat and shit, so why’s there a need for manners? Are you some kind of goddess who doesn’t poop?”
Despite his words, YongJoon coughed awkwardly as he scratched his head. There was a slight dent on the right side of his half-shaven head. It was a scar from when she had hit him on the head with an ashtray two months ago. That small circular scar remained hairless on his head. It looked kind of cute.
“Don’t smile like that. You look like a crazy bitch.”
Cursing for no reason, YongJoon began to rummage in his pockets. He stood still and glared.
“Huh?”
“What’s wrong?”
“Where’s my phone?”
He definitely had it with him when he had gone to the smoking room for a cigarette. But his pockets were now empty.
“Hey, did you do it again…”
YongJoon had a frustrated expression on his face as he turned to EunHa who had already started walking towards the boarding gate. He grabbed her purse and looked inside, but it was empty. He had thought that her sticky fingers had taken his phone, but that didn’t seem to be the case.
“Hey, what do you think you’re doing? Do you wanna die?”
EunHa gave YongJoon a fierce glare.
“Fuck… Where did it go?”
How strange.
“Did you drop it while we were shopping?”
That truly seemed to be the case. Lee EunHa, being the superficial person she was, insisted that she needed to buy some high-end products while she was working abroad in a foreign country. YongJoon had no choice but to fulfill her demands.
Declaring that good shoes would lead a person to a good place, EunHa bought him a bunch of brand-name products that didn’t even seem to suit him. That’s where the problem began.
“Fuck, it’s all your fault! Thanks to your shopping spree bullshit, I lost my phone!”
It was time for take-off, and they needed to board the plane now. They didn’t have the luxury of going back to the shops to look for his phone. Frustrated beyond belief, YongJoon roared at EunHa. Thinking nothing of it, EunHa glanced at him.
“Is it a crime for a noona to buy her younger brother some nice shoes?”
“That’s funny. I’m the one who paid for it!”
“But I picked it out for you. Because your eye for design is dogshit.”
“Is that why you bought your things with my card, too?”
“You’re so stingy for a grown-ass man.”
“Ah, fuck. My phone!”
A flight attendant watched them squabble with a troubled expression on her face. Just from the look of these two, they didn’t look like they were flying for a normal reason. She had trouble speaking up to them due to YongJoon’s buzzcut and scary outfit. EunHa grabbed YongJoon by the collar and fiercely tugged.
“I can buy you a new phone when we land, so what’s the big deal? Don’t make any more trouble and get on the plane.”
“Don’t you dare spend money like crazy in China.”
YongJoon grumbled with a red face. Behind him, an old lady exited the restroom and began to push a trolley full of souvenirs. EunHa thought that even if YongJoon’s cellphone was discovered halfway around the earth, it wouldn’t be too much of an issue. Her newly-purchased heels shone in the light as they moved.
“EunHa, look at your mom.”
“You need to wear good shoes to go to good places. I’m serious.”
“You’re only saying that because you like buying heels, honey…”
In her distant memories, her mother scowled at her father from the corner of her eyes. Her father looked back at her lovingly. Looking at her loving parents, EunHa shook her head from side to side.
“You’re sending off your one and only daughter to study abroad right now. Why are you doing this in front of me?”
“Our lovely daughter, fighting!”
After escaping from the house where her bloody parents lay, EunHa only wore good heels from then on. She eagerly waited for the day she could avenge her parents and step out of this sewer hole of a life. And now, D-day was slowly approaching.