<51>
Il-hyeon stared intently at the drawing Ja-gyeong was making on the paper. On the day of the sniper operation, he was drawing the position where he would stand and the position where Lee Ja-gyeong would take the shot. Her drawing skills were so terrible that he remembered her lie about being an art major and burst out laughing.
Ja-gyeong had already scouted the building beforehand, so she precisely designated the position where Kang Il-hyeon should stand.
"See here. When the Managing Director comes out to the side of the platform to greet people, I'll shoot right away."
She drew Kang Il-hyeon on the opposite building, but while she should have just drawn a head, torso, and limbs, she drew the eyes particularly sharp and fierce. Il-hyeon looked at it with dissatisfaction. They say drawings reveal a person's unconscious—was this really what he looked like in Lee Ja-gyeong's unconscious? A face that messed up?
He had treated her so well, yet he felt a slight sense of betrayal.
The bullet flew at high speed and hit Kang Il-hyeon's left chest. Leaving Lee Ja-gyeong to explain the drawing, Kang Il-hyeon sat on the opposite side and just stared at her face. When Ja-gyeong finally noticed, she tapped the paper with her hand.
"Focus. You're listening, right?"
"Continue."
"As you know, the vest will block the bullet, but it can't block the impact. In unlucky cases, ribs or internal organs can be damaged. Looking at the Managing Director's frame, that shouldn't happen, though."
"Of course. There's not a single weak part in my body."
Saying that, he lifted his chin and spread his shoulders wider. Ja-gyeong pretended not to see it.
"Anyway, you'll have to bear that much."
Il-hyeon still gazed at Ja-gyeong's face. He thought only her eyes were pretty, but looking more, her lips were plump and pretty too.
"And you must not make any claims for damages regarding that to me."
Hearing her speak firmly, he snorted and laughed.
"Do I look that stingy to you?"
"Yes."
At the answer given without hesitation, he looked at her with hurt feelings.
"Why are you like this. Want me to show you what being really stingy looks like?"
"Forget it. Anyway, my work ends there. You'll have to handle the rest yourself. If you're really worried, you can station a separate medical team nearby."
Il-hyeon laughed.
"I won't worry about that. Because I trust you."
Ja-gyeong's pupils shook slightly. Il-hyeon took Ja-gyeong's hand and placed it on his chest.
"You're going to shoot properly. Right here."
Ja-gyeong moved that hand a little further inward again. The heart is here. Thump, thump, thump. His heartbeat, though quiet, transmitted directly to her palm. Feeling it travel through her body, she hurriedly tried to pull her hand away, but he held it and this time pressed it against his cock.
"But I think my heart is in my dick."
"……."
"How is it? Throbbing, isn't it?"
It twitched and started growing, so she grimaced and slapped his hand away. Ah. Il-hyeon frowned then laughed, and then took the fountain pen Ja-gyeong had been holding. Wondering what he was doing, she watched as he drew his shoulders a bit wider. Saying this suited him better.
Ja-gyeong laughed in disbelief. What the matriarch said about there being nothing he couldn't do must have been true. He drew it roughly but it looked quite decent. Then he drew Ja-gyeong's eyes as large as an alien's on her face. Next to the face, he carefully wrote Lee Ja-gyeong's three characters. The letters were as neat as if printed.
When he even drew a heart next to the name, Ja-gyeong frowned and snatched the paper away. She was annoyed but her neck and cheeks felt a bit hot.
Kang Il-hyeon spun the fountain pen between his fingers, propped his chin on his hand, and gazed at her.
"Like a teenage boy. Getting embarrassed over one heart."
"Don't you think it's creepy and infuriating?"
"Not at all."
He smiled shamelessly and crooked his finger.
Come here.
"Why?"
"We won't see each other for two days, so I want to at least get a goodbye kiss."
"I don't want to."
As soon as the words ended, Il-hyeon rose from his chair, leaned his hand on the table, and moved his upper body forward. Ja-gyeong tried to run away but was already too late. The back of her head was grabbed and soft lips touched hers. As he sucked her lips, his tongue pushed its way inside.
Tongues tangled and breathing grew rapid. Il-hyeon reached out and began unbuttoning Ja-gyeong's shirt. Ja-gyeong didn't particularly stop him either. Just then, knock knock, a knocking sound came and both stopped their movements. Lips separated and Il-hyeon looked at the door with dissatisfaction.
"Is the Managing Director there?"
It was Park Tae-soo's voice. Il-hyeon sighed and looked down at Ja-gyeong, who had her head lowered. Her ear tips were red, and seeing her hide the paper and act indifferent was quite lovely, making him burst into laughter without realizing.
Terrible pain shot through his left thigh. Il-hyeon looked down at his leg. Red blood spurted from his thigh. This time a gunshot hit his right leg, and his body fell backward, the back of his head hitting the floor with a thud.
People gathered around, and Kang Yu-jeong's pale white face came into view. She was near his legs, applying pressure with her hands while calling Park Tae-soo. Breathing grew rapid and consciousness blurred. People's screams and shouts, the murmuring sounds made his ears ring.
His body was suddenly lifted up. His eyelids grew heavy and he felt all the blood draining from his body. Instead, coldness rushed in. His head turned sideways and he saw the faces of family members ahead. Kim Sun-young. Kang Tae-han. Kang Seok-ju. Everyone looked clearly panicked, but amidst it all, Chairman Kang's expression was calm. No, rather he seemed to be smiling.
Il-hyeon glared at Chairman Kang and pulled his lip corner into a crooked smile.
Old man. It's too early to celebrate.
Even if I die and fall to hell, I'll definitely come for you.
So wait.
He clenched his teeth as his vision grew blurrier. Suddenly Lee Ja-gyeong's face came to mind. How clever. With that pretty face, she really bashed the back of my head properly. His eyelids dropped, his vision completely closed, and the noisy sounds now grew distant.
Everything became total darkness, and consciousness sank to that dark bottom.
***
The warehouse was filled with unused items. It was a factory run by an acquaintance of Wang Ryun, but now it was closed. Outsiders couldn't freely enter, making it perfect for hiding for a while.
Near the harbor, Kang Il-hyeon's subordinates had already set up camp. A contact had been reached by an acquaintance saying they came with Lee Ja-gyeong's photo and swept through the area.
They would stay here for a few days, observe the situation, and when their surveillance grew lax, take a fishing boat out and switch to a smuggling ship. Wang Ryun would also go with Ja-gyeong to where Wang Han was. Wang Han had settled all his affairs in Thailand and crossed over to Russia.
Ja-gyeong swallowed several types of pills with water in one gulp. Beside her, Wang Ryun sat in a chair, having finished preparing to stitch the wound on Ja-gyeong's forearm with medical needle and thread. Wang Ryun was good at making things with his hands, and perhaps because of that, among the three, his skill at stitching wounds was the best.
After disinfecting the needle, as he stitched and closed the open flesh, Ja-gyeong clenched her teeth and endured without making a single groan. Cold sweat formed on her forehead and veins stood out on her neck. Watching this, Wang Ryun shook his head.
"Tough, really tough. Not making a sound?"
[Don't put on airs. Let me hear your voice.]
Why did Kang Il-hyeon come to mind at that moment? Ja-gyeong clenched her teeth even tighter and tried not to think of him anymore. She should have died if she hadn't shot him anyway. But she didn't blow his head apart, so he probably survived. Though he said no, she knew in advance that a medical team would be stationed.
"Take off your clothes. Let me see if you're hurt elsewhere."
Ja-gyeong, about to take off her clothes, hesitated. The numerous marks Kang Il-hyeong had made with his lips would still be vivid. While she hesitated, Wang Ryun lifted the back of her shirt and his eyes went wide. Seeing several marks that weren't bruises, he looked at Ja-gyeong.
"Huh?"
Ja-gyeong hurriedly pulled down her shirt and laughed.
"No, it's nothing like that."
"I've lived 8 years longer than you. You think I can't tell just by looking?"
"I said it's not."
"Quite skilled. How did you meet a woman there?"
Ja-gyeong kept her mouth shut and feigned ignorance. It wasn't a woman. If the Wang brothers found out, it would be something to mock her about until death. That Lee Ja-gyeong got fucked by a man.
"Must be a really hot woman."
He tried to lift it again to check, so Ja-gyeong quickly stood up and fled elsewhere. Wang Ryun chuckled as he organized the medicine. Ja-gyeong, sitting by the window, stared outside and said nothing more. Wang Ryun found that appearance unfamiliar.
Usually after finishing a job, she looked relieved, but this time was different. A face that seemed to have left something behind.
"What are you thinking?"
Ja-gyeong smiled bitterly.
"Thinking I shouldn't do acting anymore."
At those words, Wang Ryun agreed and nodded.
"A wise decision."
Of course, even he hadn't imagined she would act that desperately. The reason Wang Han worried beforehand wasn't for nothing. Moreover, since the opponent acted so unexpectedly, it was even more overwhelming.
After their conversation, Wang Ryun said he'd sleep first, roughly made a sleeping spot and lay down. Ja-gyeong left him and went outside the warehouse for a moment, pulling out a cigarette. Beside them, the car they had parked was covered with a tarp for concealment, and the entrance was tightly blocked with CCTV and alarm systems running 24 hours.
Looking up at the sky, it was full of black storm clouds. Is it going to rain?
After lighting it, she exhaled smoke and rubbed her face. The painkillers must be taking effect as the pain in her arm quieted down too. Looking up at the sky, a rustling sound came from nearby. She immediately reached into her clothes to touch her gun when meow—two eyes flashed in the darkness.
A small kitten poked its face out from beside a drum. It looked newly born as it walked out. When she tried to go look, a jet-black mother cat came slinking out from behind, looking at Ja-gyeong with eyes full of wariness.
Ja-gyeong stopped in her tracks. The mother hissed and bared her teeth. Ja-gyeong stepped back and laughed. Then the cat picked up the kitten and disappeared somewhere. Ja-gyeong ground the cigarette against the ground and came inside the warehouse, locking the door.
Wang Ryun's snoring could be heard droning on. She envied his personality that could sleep comfortably in any situation. She lay on the old sofa and sought sleep. Fortunately, thanks to the medicine's effect, she would probably be able to sleep comfortably today.
But whenever she fell deep asleep, the damn employer's face kept coming to mind, tormenting her. She repeated waking up several times, and before she knew it, she had to face dawn.