#187

“Dong-Hee. You have a phone call.”

Park Dong-Hee opened his eyes at the sound of someone banging violently on his door.

“Ah, goddamn it. I told you not to wake me up.”

Park Dong-Hee had become someone who cursed at his parents without a second thought.

Park Dong-Hee himself never imagined he would change like this. He didn’t know he was someone who could dare to hit his Father and hurl abuse at his Mother. He also didn’t know he would go to his Hyung and sister, who had practically dumped their parents on him under the pretense of being married, and cause trouble and extort money from them, and even less that he would use that money to drink heavily and buy women.

A waste of a human being. A parricide. That was the most fitting description of Park Dong-Hee now.

He, who had never considered a job other than a police officer his entire life, was frustrated by his dismissal. Not everyone lives like him when they’re frustrated, but it’s only been two weeks, right? What’s wrong with living like this? It’s only been two weeks, not three months or a year. He rationalized it that way.

“It’s the Chairman.”

Park Dong-Hee, who was covered in his blanket, forced his eyes open at his Mother’s cautious voice.

“Who?”

He threw back the blanket and asked loudly.

“The Chairman! From some Financial company, I think?”

As soon as Park Dong-Hee heard the word “Financial,” he jumped out of his bedding and opened the door. It must be Financial, not Financial.

“Ah, goddamn it. Why are you giving me such an important call now?”

He immediately started cursing at his Mother.

“I told you to answer the phone earlier.”

“You useless woman.”

Park Dong-Hee spoke fiercely and snatched the cordless phone from his Mother’s hand.

Then, his Mother, who had been stammering in embarrassment, glared at him.

“Useless woman?? You little son of a bitch!! How dare you say that to your Mother? You double-crossing bastard!”

His Mother screamed at the top of her lungs, her face turning red.

Park Dong-Hee ignored her and put the phone to his ear.

“Hello?”

The call had already ended.

“Ah, goddamn it! It’s disconnected!!”

He yelled at his innocent Mother.

“Who told you to sleep so late? Why are you still sleeping, sleeping, sleeping, instead of getting up and answering the phone?”

His Mother didn’t back down and retorted.

She slapped him on the back, saying, “Get out! Get out right now! I don’t need a son like you.”

When Park Dong-Hee got angry and raised his hand, his Mother stepped forward and pushed her head towards him.

“Go ahead, hit me. Go on and hit me like you hit your Father. Huh? Let’s die together. Let’s die together!!”

“Ugh, so noisy.”

Park Dong-Hee slammed the door shut.

It was definitely Il-gwang Financial. The Chairman of Il-gwang himself was looking for Park Dong-Hee.

He said he had something to offer. When Senior Oh Dae-ho gave him Lee Seok-doo’s business card, he couldn’t believe his eyes, but it seemed Senior Oh had also joined them and was making money.

‘Didn’t Lee Seon-jae ruin our lives? So, we should get properly compensated this time. Don’t you think?’

Senior Oh said this, encouraging Park Dong-Hee.

In fact, it was all his fault that Senior Oh had ended up like that. It was because he couldn’t control his impulse and went to those gangster bastards. And it was because he couldn’t withstand the torture-like violence and blurted out names. However, as a result, he was helping Lee Seon-jae, so Senior Oh’s words weren’t entirely wrong.

Park Dong-Hee was just grateful that Senior Oh, whom he thought he would never see again, had come to his house in person. When Park Dong-Hee was caught and released by Nam Ji-hoon’s gang, Senior Oh scolded him so severely that he had never heard such harsh words in his life. He was so harsh that it was upsetting.

Of course, he had nothing to say even if he had ten mouths. He knew better than anyone how much Senior Oh had taken care of a mere patrolman like him, who had no ability or connections. If this operation had been successful, he would have been guaranteed a promotion, and a bright future awaited him with bonuses and reward vacations.

But he ruined it. Not only did he ruin himself, but he also put his Senior in a position where he had to take off his police uniform. He couldn’t even bring himself to say sorry. He wanted to die.

‘I’m quitting being a detective. I’m quitting and starting my own business.’

‘A business?’

‘Yeah. There’s something I’ve wanted to do for a long time.’

Senior Oh starting a business was something he had never heard of before.

Besides, you need money to start a business, and as far as Park Dong-Hee knew, his Senior was rather poor. He wasn’t from a wealthy family to begin with, and he lost his already meager deposit on his rented house due to his divorce. He was also giving monthly child support, so he had almost no spare money.

But suddenly, he brought up Lee Seok-doo and said he was starting a business, so it was clear that he had received money from him.

He wondered what kind of information he had sold and how much he had received to be talking about starting a business. Park Dong-Hee had no information to sell. All he knew was Lee Seon-jae’s alias and the neighborhood he lived in, but even that became useless because he voluntarily blurted it out to the gangster bastards.

On the other hand, Senior Oh knew a lot. He was much more deeply involved in that operation than he was. He said he had been involved since before the operation even had a name, so he probably knew as much as Prosecutor Jeong Jae-jin.

He was a little worried. No matter how good money was, was it okay to sell information related to a secret operation? He was sure he would go to jail. Then again, he thought, if the money was guaranteed, he wouldn’t mind going to jail.

Park Dong-Hee was currently under investigation without detention. He was being called to the police station almost every day for internal investigations, and the charges kept increasing, including bribery, buying sex, and taking illegal drugs. At this rate, dismissal was inevitable. Even though he had only been a police officer for five years, he was about to lose almost all of his meager retirement pay.

That would be fortunate. Even if it ended with dismissal, the prosecution’s investigation would continue. The police and prosecution were conducting a joint secret operation, and above all, he had revealed a key figure in that operation to a mere gangster, so he wouldn’t be able to avoid prison. Prosecutor Jeong Jae-jin was determined to punish Park Dong-Hee and Oh Dae-ho no matter what. There was plenty of evidence, so even if it wasn’t Jeong Jae-jin, he would still be going to jail.

Since he was going to become a criminal anyway, he thought he should make some money.

‘Senior, I’ll do whatever you tell me to do. Just contact me.’

‘Okay, that’s a good attitude. The Chairman will call you directly.’

Senior Oh, who always referred to Lee Seok-doo by his full name, was now calling him the Chairman. He became anxious, wondering if his Senior had already secured a position.

‘Please, just take me in, Senior. I’ll do anything. I’ll really give my life to be loyal.’

‘You little punk. I know, man. Don’t worry about anything and just wait for the Chairman’s call. He’ll call you when he really needs you.’

‘Yes, Senior. Thank you, Senior.’

He nodded his head until it touched the floor.

That was only two days ago, but he had already completely forgotten about it.

Did he eat crow?

He scratched his head vigorously.

It was because he had drunk too much. He was just going to drink moderately, but when he met up with his friends, he ended up drinking excessively. He pretended to be someone he wasn’t, even though he wasn’t getting married. He still acted like a detective and told them to contact him if anything happened, puffing up his chest. A penniless bastard, who had been dismissed and was doing nothing, that’s who he was.

With trembling hands, Park Dong-Hee pressed the redial button.

The other party answered the phone quickly. He was about to say “Chairman” right away, but he heard, “This is Beat Karaoke.”

That couldn’t be.

He tilted his head.

“Um…”

This is Beat Karaoke. Are you trying to make a reservation?

“No, I got a call from here.”

Who are you looking for?

“Uh, Lee Seok… I mean, the Chair…man.”

He almost said Lee Seok-doo but barely managed to correct himself to Chairman.

Excuse me, but what is the name of the person calling?

The tone and voice were so polite that it sounded more like an operator than a karaoke employee.

“My name is Park Dong-Hee.”

Ah. You’re the customer who made a reservation for 10 o’clock. Would you like me to tell you the location?

Thinking it was some kind of code, Park Dong-Hee simply answered, “Yes.”

Then, he glanced at the wall clock.

9:37. Only 23 minutes left until 10 o’clock.

Park Dong-Hee quickly wrote down the address he was given and rushed into the bathroom to wash up. He didn’t have time, so he just soaped up and came out. He didn’t even dry his hair and opened the closet to take out his summer suit. He had gained weight in the meantime, so the jacket was tight, but he put it on anyway. Fortunately, he hadn’t eaten breakfast, so the pants closed easily.

His Mother asked him where he was going, but he didn’t answer.

He didn’t have time to take the bus or subway. He had no choice but to grab a taxi. The morning rush hour traffic had subsided, so it wasn’t too congested, but it was far away.

Of course, he was late for his appointment.

After about 40 minutes, Park Dong-Hee finally arrived at the meeting place and immediately looked around as soon as he got out of the taxi.

The area was full of hostess bars and karaoke rooms. Of course, none of them were open at this hour.

“Where the hell is Beat Karaoke?”

There were so many signs that he couldn’t even see it. There wasn’t a single pedestrian to ask, and even the convenience store was closed.

After wandering around for more than 10 minutes, he finally found a shabby shopping center located deep in an alley. “Beat Karaoke” was in the basement of that shopping center. The alley was eerily quiet. There wasn’t a single person or even an ant passing by.

Park Dong-Hee wiped the sweat from his brow and swallowed hard.

The stairs below were too dark. He hesitated, worried that something terrible might happen to him here.

That’s right. Let’s ask Senior Oh for advice.

He belatedly had that thought and opened his phone to dial the number, but his phone rang. Speak of the devil, it was Senior Oh.

About to press the call button with a happy heart, Park Dong-Hee was startled by the voice that said, “Hey, you punk, if you’re here, come down. What are you doing up there?”

Senior Oh was standing in the karaoke basement. He looked up at Park Dong-Hee and clicked his tongue as if he was pathetic.

“Senior!”

“Hurry up and come down, you punk.”

“Yes!”

He hurried down and almost tumbled down the stairs. He barely made it into the store with a show.

“You’re really something. If you’re going to be late, at least call in advance. What about my reputation?”

He kept nagging.

However, Park Dong-Hee was too busy looking at Senior Oh’s appearance to pay attention. He looked so unfamiliar in his rather expensive-looking gray summer suit.

It was almost the first time he had seen Senior Oh wearing a suit. He always showed up in the same jumper and jeans he usually wore, regardless of whether it was a wedding or a first birthday party. But now, he was even wearing dress shoes.

“Senior, are you going to a wedding or something?”

He asked cautiously.

“What wedding? You have to dress like this to do business. Why? Does it not suit me?”

“No, it suits you perfectly. It looks great on you, Senior. You look radiant.”

He flattered him with insincere compliments and acted cute.

“You little punk. Flattery.”

His tone was gruff, but his expression was bright.

But that was only for a moment before the scolding returned.

“Didn’t I tell you to answer my calls no matter what? What the hell were you doing all day yesterday that you didn’t answer the phone? Huh?”

“I’m sorry, Senior. I left my phone behind yesterday.”

“Didn’t you even check your missed calls?”

“I’m really sorry.”

He scratched his head and apologized repeatedly.

He had come home drunk as a skunk around 4 a.m. and crawled straight into bed. He didn’t have time to check his missed calls.

“Ugh, you reek of alcohol.”

Senior Oh grimaced.

“Does it smell that bad? Should I chew some gum?”

“Never mind, let’s just go. We’re late.”

Senior Oh said this and took the lead.

The store was as quiet as a mouse. They passed ordinary karaoke rooms lined up on the left and right, and when they turned the corner of the hallway, a room appeared that was not visible from the inside.

Senior Oh went to the door, opened it, and gestured for Park Dong-Hee to go inside.

He naturally assumed he would follow, but he didn’t. The door closed behind him.

As he was panicking, he heard a voice saying, “Come in.”

A man was sitting with his back to the door on a sofa that curved around a karaoke machine. It was a face he had never seen before.

As Park Dong-Hee approached, the man abruptly held out a cell phone. Without thinking, he took the phone with both hands and put it to his ear.

This is Lee Seok-doo.

“Yes? Yes. Yes. C-Chairman.”

Let’s do a job.

“Yes? W-What kind of job…”

He was so nervous that the words wouldn’t come out properly.

You’ll hear the details from the Chief, 100 million in cash, and an apartment by the Han River. How does that sound?

His mind went blank at the mention of 100 million.

He’s giving me 100 million in cash? And an apartment on top of that?

“No, well, what, what kind of job is it? I mean. I…”

He stammered, flustered.

Tsk. He heard an unpleasant clicking of the tongue from the other end of the line.

“I’ll do it. Sounds good!”

Park Dong-Hee shouted hastily, afraid of missing the opportunity.

“But, the c-cash, can I have it as a down payment first?”

He didn’t know where he got the courage to say that. After he said it, cold sweat ran down his back.

Fortunately, he heard a hearty laugh from the other end of the line.

I like your spirit. Senior Oh was right to recommend you.

Park Dong-Hee, taking it as a compliment, replied loudly, “Just give me the order!”

He bent over at the waist as if he were a gangster. Just a few weeks ago, he was bowing his head to a man he had cursed as “this bastard” and “that bastard.”

Good.

He expected an order to follow, but there was silence.

“Excuse me, if you’re done with the call.”

The man, who he assumed was the Chief, gestured for Park Dong-Hee to return the cell phone. Only then did he remember the Chairman’s words to hear the details from the Chief.

Park Dong-Hee quickly handed back the phone.

But was that man the Chief?

He tilted his head. He had seen so many pictures of the key figures working at Il-gwang that he had practically memorized their faces. But no matter how he looked at him, the man in front of him was not the Chief that Park Dong-Hee knew.

“Yes. I understand. I’ll withdraw it and give it to you right away.”

With those words, the Chief hung up the phone.

Park Dong-Hee, captivated by the words “withdraw it and give it to you,” quickly dismissed his doubts. After all, Senior Oh would have met him and confirmed his identity before him, and if Lee Seok-doo said so, it must be true. People can change at any time.

The Chief gestured for him to come and sit next to him.

100 million. And an apartment by the Han River. An apartment on the Han River would be worth at least 400 million. That would be 500 million in total.

Park Dong-Hee barely managed to suppress the twitching of his cheekbones as he sat next to the Chief, overjoyed.

An awkward silence fell. He was getting impatient and started shaking his leg. He wondered if the Chief was waiting for him to ask first, so he was about to open his mouth when the Chief called out softly, “Detective Park.”

“All you have to do is stab Jeong Jae-jin.”

The Chief said in a quiet, calm voice.

188 – Chapter Title Without Number