“He left without even saying thank you? And stole money on top of that?”
“His memories must have come back all at once. He was probably confused.”
“Check the house and make sure nothing else is missing. Did you look through the documents in the safe? I told you from the start something was off. Does it make sense for someone to lose their memory and suddenly turn into a child? What is this, a TV drama? I’m telling you, that bastard targeted you from the beginning.”
“Targeted what?”
“You, idiot. You’re too nice for your own good. Why would you bring a complete stranger into your house in the first place? You should’ve sent him to a facility or something.”
“Uncle!”
As his brother’s nagging continued, his niece Yoonji toddled over with something in her hands.
It was a toy hair salon set.
She clung to Yieum and began putting earrings on him, then placed a crown on his head and draped a necklace around his neck. Since this was hardly the first time, Yieum remained perfectly calm and continued drinking his beer.
“Yoonji, how does your uncle look? Pretty?”
“Yeah, pretty. Wait a minute!”
Yoonji scampered into the master bedroom and soon returned with cosmetics.
The moment Yieum saw the lipstick, his brow furrowed.
Surely you’re not planning to put that on your uncle.
He glanced toward his brother, but the man merely chewed his beef jerky with the calm of someone who had endured this many times before.
“Just let her do it. Our daughter wants to try.”
“Uncle, pucker up! Pucker, pucker!”
She stuck out her plump little lips in demonstration. It was so cute that Yieum couldn’t help laughing.
When he obediently puckered up, Yoonji gripped the lipstick in her tiny hand and smeared it across his mouth.
Then she smiled brightly, clearly pleased with her work, showing the gap where one of her front teeth was missing.
Afterward, Yoonji brought over a mirror and showed him his face.
Yieum raised an eyebrow at his reflection.
The crookedly applied pink lipstick created a truly horrifying sight—one he would rather no one else ever witness.
“Does Uncle like it?”
Yieum nodded.
“Yeah… Yoonji’s really good. It’s pretty.”
Across from him, his brother snickered.
“You got off easy. Last time, she used bright red on me. I looked like the Joker.”
Yoonji whipped her head toward her father.
“Should I do Daddy too?”
At his daughter’s innocent offer, Yieum’s brother immediately shook his head.
Yieum took a picture with Yoonji.
The image was undeniably ridiculous, but when he thought of it as a memory with his niece, it became nothing but precious.
After taking the photo, he was gazing at it fondly when the news came on TV.
The report announced that the country’s largest multicultural complex was being built, and that Sehwa Construction had been selected as the final contractor.
At the news that Sehwa, a latecomer in the field, had beaten out prominent corporations and secured the construction rights, his brother scoffed.
“Those bastards really know how to get things done.”
“Sehwa Construction?”
“Yeah.”
“You handled that Sehwa Group case last year, didn’t you, hyung? What were they like?”
“Don’t even get me started. The higher-ups came down on me hard just for poking at them a little. At this point, I doubt there’s a single person living off a government paycheck who hasn’t taken their money. Maybe it’s because their roots are in organized crime, but those bastards don’t care what methods they use once they want something.”
“You know the victim in the case we’re working now? I think he had some kind of arrangement with an executive director at Sehwa Construction.”
“The hiking trail case?”
“Yeah. No matter how I look at it, something’s suspicious. I want to meet this Executive Director Park and ask a few more questions, but I can’t get in touch with him at all. I went to the company myself to talk to his coworkers, but getting inside was harder than I expected.”
“That’s because those bastards have too much to hide. The second you say you’re a detective, they bristle like cornered dogs.”
“Right. So I’m thinking of going back tomorrow.”
Yieum took another sip of beer and turned his gaze back to the TV.
A different news segment was already playing.
He finished his beer and was wondering whether he should head home when Yoonji emerged from her room, dragging something behind her with a grunt.
The moment Yieum saw it, his expression darkened.
“Hyung.”
“Yeah?”
“That’s not… what I think it is, is it?”
“Wait, I need the bathroom.”
His brother feigned ignorance and immediately rose from his seat.
Yieum tried to grab him, but he was one step too late.
Meanwhile, Yoonji began taking toy plates and plastic food out of the box she had dragged over.
“Okay. From now on, we’re playing restaurant. Uncle is the customer, and I’m the owner.”
“Yoonji. Isn’t it time for bed? Mommy told me to put you to sleep early.”
Yoonji ignored him completely and began pretending to scoop something into a bowl with a ladle.
“Customer, what would you like to eat? The menu is in front of you.”
Yieum glared toward the bathroom his brother had vanished into, then quickly smoothed his expression into a bright smile.
“Yes, Ms. Owner. I’d like some delicious noodles, please.”
“That’s great. I’m good at making noodles. Please wait.”
She turned on the pretend gas stove, placed a pot on top, and copied the motions surprisingly well, as though she had seen them many times before.
The sight was so adorable that Yieum started recording another video.
Then his phone rang.
Seeing the restricted caller ID, Yieum tilted his head slightly.
He answered.
“Hello?”
No sound came through.
The person on the other end remained silent.
So did Yieum.
A moment later, the call ended.
By then, Yoonji had placed the noodles she had made in front of him.
“Your noodles are ready. Enjoy your meal.”
What was that?
A threatening call?
Sometimes criminals made threatening calls after being released from prison.
As Yieum sank into thought, Yoonji stared at him from across the table, her eyes sparkling with expectation.
Yieum pushed the thought aside and gave her a gentle smile.
“Thank you for the meal, Ms. Owner.”
Choi Wonjoon stared at the disconnected call, lost in thought.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door, and his guest arrived.
The person who opened the door and stepped inside was none other than Park Seoktae, the boss of an organized crime group. A middle-aged man, he had brought one of his subordinates with him and appeared remarkably composed.
Wonjoon gestured politely toward him.
“Have a seat. I’ll skip the introductions. I’m sure you know who I am.”
The moment Park Seoktae sat down, Manager Lee closed the door.
Loud music filled the room.
On Park Seoktae’s face was a faint mixture of wariness and anticipation.
“I was surprised to be contacted by Sehwa Construction first.”
“Well, I didn’t expect us to meet like this either.”
Wonjoon poured a drink only into his own glass, making no move to offer one to the other man.
“We’re both busy people, so let’s get straight to the point. President Park, you know Yang Taekil, don’t you?”
“Yes. He worked under me.”
“Detectives came to our company because of him.”
“Is that so?”
Choi Wonjoon took out a cigarette, placed it between his lips, and lit it.
Then he crossed his legs and leaned back deep into the sofa.
Fatigue made his features look even more languid than usual, and his gaze was openly vulgar.
“To be honest, I don’t give a shit whether your subordinate and my employee were plotting together or screwing around behind my back. But they shouldn’t have splattered their mess all over us.”
“I’m not sure what you mean, Mr. Chairman.”
“Ah. Playing dumb?”
“Haha. Of course not.”
“Or was this what you were aiming for? Putting me in an inconvenient position?”
Park Seoktae smiled with a face that looked almost good-natured.
“I really don’t understand. If you tell me exactly what happened, I’ll look into it. Have you perhaps been put in a difficult position because of Yang Taekil?”
Watching Park Seoktae feign innocence, Choi Wonjoon laughed around the cigarette between his teeth.
Then, in the next instant, he shot up with startling speed and kicked him squarely in the face.
With a loud crack, Park Seoktae toppled to the floor.
The liquor and snacks on the table scattered everywhere.
His subordinate immediately reached into his jacket for a knife, but Manager Lee was faster.
The cold, sharpened tip of a blade was already pressed near the subordinate’s throat.
“Ugh… fuck…”
Blood dripped from Park Seoktae’s head as he staggered to his feet.
The moment he saw the blood, a murderous gleam flashed through his eyes, turning them bloodshot as though he might charge at Wonjoon and kill him on the spot.
But Park Seoktae went no further.
Wonjoon spoke in an even voice.
“You’ve got a sturdy chin. Anyone else would’ve passed out.”
Then he tossed the wet wipes from the table at him.
The packet landed precisely in front of Park Seoktae’s nose.
“Wipe it. I have a weak stomach.”
Without another word, Park Seoktae sat back down and pressed the wipes to his split forehead.
He no longer met Wonjoon’s eyes.
Wonjoon swirled the glass in his hand.
“Clean this up by tomorrow. You can do that, can’t you?”
“…”
“President Park. Do I have to ask twice?”
“…I understand.”
“There we go. Good. You can leave now.”
“…”
“Or stay and have a drink with me.”
As if he knew perfectly well the offer was insincere, Park Seoktae rose to his feet.
As he turned to leave, Manager Lee took a cashier’s check from his wallet.
When he held it out, Park Seoktae’s expression turned incomparably vicious.
With a blank face, Manager Lee folded the check in half and slipped it into Park Seoktae’s shirt pocket.
The gesture was polite.
That only made it more humiliating.
“For your hospital bill. Get home safely.”
The moment the door opened, Park Seoktae and his subordinate disappeared outside.
A short while later, the owner of the establishment carefully opened the closed door and entered.
He quickly called people in to clean up and reset the table, then turned to Wonjoon with an eager expression.
“My goodness, Chairman Choi. It’s been so long since you last visited. We were worried because you’d been away for quite a while. Some fresh new girls just came in—”
Before he could finish, Wonjoon gestured for him to shut up and get out.
The owner bowed repeatedly and scurried away.
Only Choi Wonjoon and Manager Lee remained in the room.
When Wonjoon’s glass emptied, Manager Lee stepped to his side and refilled it.
“Should I have someone tail Park Seoktae?”
“Leave him. He’s not stupid enough to miss the message.”
“Will it be possible to find the culprit by tomorrow?”
“Jihun. Do you think I beat the shit out of that bastard because I wanted him to find the culprit?”
“Then…”
Choi Wonjoon smiled like a villain.
Only then did Manager Lee understand.
It had been an order for the other side to wrap things up so the police would stop looking in their direction.
Who the culprit was, or where they might be, was none of Choi Wonjoon’s concern.