<120> Side Story. 12
Wang Lun, who had been scrolling through the CCTV footage, bit down on the cigarette between his front teeth. The man who had intruded into Ja-kyung's old house examined the place starting from the yard, then disappeared the same way he had first entered. The CCTV installed there was ultra-compact, positioned where it would be difficult to spot with the naked eye. Even so, for someone of the rank of prosecutor to illegally trespass into someone else's house in broad daylight.
Ja-kyung remained silent as he gazed out the window. Darkness had settled in all directions, and only the occasional lights of cars passing on the distant road could be seen. When Kang Il-hyun comes home from work, his car enters along the small road connecting from there. It seems he's running late from work today.
After thinking deeply, Ja-kyung turned around and called to Wang Lun.
"Hyung. Shall we go out?"
"Where?"
"Do you remember what your late grandmother said?"
Wang Lun, not understanding, frowned. Huh?
"Never send a guest away empty-handed."
A smile gradually spread across Wang Lun's face as he blinked, and Ja-kyung immediately added.
"I want to give a gift. A very splendid one."
"Will that be okay? President Kang will throw a fit if he finds out."
"Who said anything about killing anyone? I'm just thinking of teasing him a little. What does eldest hyung think?"
Han, who had been silent, nodded. Sounds like it'll be fun. The three people's glances exchanged. Immediately, Lee Ja-kyung took out his mobile phone and contacted Kang Il-hyun. While on the call, he asked for permission about when he'd be coming home today and whether it was okay to go out and have fun with his hyungs.
At Ja-kyung's situation of having to ask permission for everything like a child, Wang Lun mocked him by mouthing the words along, and Wang Han smacked his back, telling him not to do that. This is all because of whom, exactly? If you hadn't lied and taken us to Hong Kong, this wouldn't have happened either.
While the two were bickering, Ja-kyung finished the call and smiled leisurely.
"He said to come back safely."
Il-hyun placed the disconnected phone on the table. Kang Yu-jeong, sitting in front of him, held her coffee cup and stared at his face intently. He had suddenly showed up near the hospital asking to have tea together, so she wondered what was going on.
"Who was it? Ja-kyung-ssi?"
Instead of answering, Il-hyun looked at Yu-jeong's gown. The soiled gown proved that she had just been saving someone's life until recently. Even during the conversation, she checked the time intermittently.
"If you're busy, go ahead."
"Didn't you come because you had something to say?"
"I just came. Thought I'd see your face too."
"That's unusual."
"If I said I came because I missed noona, would you believe me?"
Surprised, Yu-jeong opened her eyes wide then soon made a suspicious expression.
"Did I do something wrong to you?"
Il-hyun chuckled. After receiving the test results, he couldn't focus on work at all. There was a lost younger brother, and that brother's face looked exactly like Lee Ja-kyung, and up to that point he had thought it was a coincidence, but the moment he learned the two were brothers, strangely, Kang Yu-jeong came to mind.
"There's something I'm curious about."
"Go ahead and ask."
She brought the coffee cup to her mouth. Il-hyun leaned back on the sofa and gazed quietly at Yu-jeong. The one who used to carry him on her back and hug him in place of his mother when he was young had now become much smaller than him.
"Why did you do that?"
Yu-jeong removed her lips from the coffee cup and looked up.
"Do what?"
"That day. Why did you save me?"
The hand setting down the cup hesitated. There was no change in her expression as she looked at Il-hyun.
"Are you trying to condemn me?"
"No. I'm really just curious. You could have saved Father."
Yu-jeong answered as if there was nothing to deliberate.
"I wanted to do that."
"So, why."
"Because you were more precious to me than Father."
"……."
"Even if the same thing happened again, my choice wouldn't change. I have no regrets."
Her face was resolute. Sincerity could be felt, yet Kang Il-hyun's heart sank darkly.
"Is that what a sibling is supposed to be?"
Il-hyun asked with a curious expression. Meanwhile, Yu-jeong thought that Kang Il-hyun was acting strange today. Just then, an announcement calling for Kang Yu-jeong came on. She took out the pager she had kept in her pocket to check it and stood up from her seat. I need to go. See you later. As she waved her hand in greeting, Il-hyun grabbed her arm.
She stopped and turned back to see Il-hyun giving a faint smile.
"Thank you."
His eyes held sincerity. Yu-jeong, surprised, opened her mouth and stammered, then looked at Park Tae-soo. Is he okay right now? Did Lee Ja-kyung run away again? Park Tae-soo wouldn't answer. After letting out a short sigh, Yu-jeong removed Il-hyun's hand and tapped the back of his hand as if to comfort him.
Then, saying they'd see each other later, she hurriedly ran toward the emergency room. Watching her retreating figure from afar, Kang Il-hyun quietly called Park Tae-soo.
"Tae-soo."
"Yes, President."
Park Tae-soo, who had been standing about two steps away, approached closer. He lowered his body and tilted his ear. In that instant, emotion disappeared from Il-hyun's eyes.
"Kill Prosecutor Jang."
***
"Is this the right place?"
Finding the house visible outside the car window, Wang Lun asked Ja-kyung. On the day he stole the wallet, he had written down the address, but upon arriving, it was a single-family house not far from Ja-kyung's old home. At a glance, the old house had paint peeling here and there showing traces of time, and even the tree in the yard had withered so much it was hard to recognize its original form.
"Looks like ghosts might come out."
"If that prosecutor dies today, he'll really become a ghost."
At Ja-kyung's joke, Wang Lun laughed out loud. The two got out of the car with their faces covered with black hoods and masks. They thought there might be CCTV, but there was nothing. While the two moved closer to the house, Wang Han drove the car and disappeared down the alley. As soon as they climbed over the wall, crack, the sound of an old branch breaking was heard. Thud thud. As they walked toward the house, no presence could be felt.
They carefully went up the stairs and checked the front door. When they inserted a pointed piece of metal into the keyhole and turned it, it rotated instantly. For someone who's a prosecutor, he has no security measures. Finding it ridiculous, they turned on the flashlight and went inside. Ja-kyung instructed Wang Lun to go to the right, and Ja-kyung moved to the opposite side.
While looking for a suitable place to plant the camera, Wang Han's voice came through the earpiece.
[Did you get in okay?]
"Yeah. We're working on it now..."
Trailing off, Ja-kyung shined the flashlight on the wall. A family photo was hanging. A young couple and two children. One was a boy about ten years old, and the other was a toddler who had just started walking. After looking at it briefly, he passed through the kitchen and entered the master bedroom.
Judging by how he lives, he doesn't seem like someone who takes bribes. Books and documents were piled up, and there were lots of miscellaneous items too. And on top of that, dust was piled high. He looked neat and tidy, but he should clean up a bit.
After placing cameras and wiretaps in various places with gloved hands, he contacted Wang Han to test if the signal was being picked up. Then one wiretap rolled and fell into the gap between drawers. Damn it. He put his hand into the gap, but it was narrow and wouldn't catch.
When he pulled the drawer forward, the stack of papers that had been on top slid to the floor. He tried to catch them with his hand but was a beat too late. Whish, the papers scattered as individual sheets and spread across the floor. Shit. He cursed as he gathered them up.
[Wei. What's wrong?]
"It's nothing. I'll be out soon."
Ja-kyung's hand, which had been picking up the papers, stopped. When the flashlight's beam illuminated exactly that spot, letters became visible.
Finding a missing child.
Name: Jang Gyeong-jun.
Age at the time: 3 years old.
Current age: 4 years old.
Black-brown hair, on the shorter side. Speaks later than peers.
Was wearing jeans and a blue t-shirt.
The location and date where the child was lost, and minor characteristics were written down.
Ja-kyung unknowingly turned to the next page. The faded paper also showed traces of time. A feeling similar to when he first saw this house. A house where time had stopped. And the objects. On the flyer, the child's current age had changed to 5 years old, but the photo was still from when he was 3. And then, 6 years old, 7 years old, 8 years old... It seemed he went around looking for the child without fail every year, as the numbers increased annually.
"Wei?"
Wang Lun, who had suddenly appeared, touched Ja-kyung's shoulder. Startled, Ja-kyung turned around and dropped the flashlight to the floor. As he hurriedly picked it up, Wang Lun looked at him with concern. Are you okay?
Ja-kyung gave a hollow laugh.
"Yeah. I dropped some papers."
"You're so clumsy. I'll finish installing it, so you gather those up."
Wang Lun sat down next to him and helped pick up the papers, and Ja-kyung had found the rolled wiretap and was about to stand up to finish installing it. Wang Lun, who had been crouching, made a sound. Huh? Ja-kyung, who had been planting a wiretap behind a picture frame, stopped and looked down.
He was looking at the paper Ja-kyung had been examining just moments ago. But this time, there was another face next to the photo of the 3-year-old child. Estimated current appearance at 23 years old. And a familiar face. Wang Lun looked up at Ja-kyung with an expression of disbelief.
"Wei... this looks like you...?"
Ja-kyung laughed in disbelief.
"That again?"
Wang Lun slowly stood up and placed the composite sketch next to Ja-kyung's face. Look, it resembles you a lot. Ja-kyung alternated between checking the person in the composite sketch and his own face through the mirror on the wall.
It does look similar. A missing child. A face so similar it could be believed to have been drawn from seeing him. Ja-kyung felt strangely uncomfortable and put the paper back in its place. Just then, Wang Han's voice came through the earpiece.
[Both of you, come out quickly.]
Wang Lun said excitedly.
"Hyung, I found something amazing. There's someone here who looks exactly like Wei—"
[Cut the chatter and come out quickly.]
His voice was urgent. Had Prosecutor Jang appeared? The two people inside the house exchanged glances.
But unfortunately, the prediction was off.
[Another guest has appeared, not us.]