#206

“Oh, I’m sorry. I should have checked before saying anything.”

Detective Jang Il-seop said, looking embarrassed.

Seon-jae was meeting with Detective Jang Il-seop, the former person in charge of the Kim Cheol-soo missing person case. He had heard an intriguing story from Detective Jo Hyang-rae, and the two men met under Jo’s arrangement to confirm it directly. But Detective Jang started by apologizing.

“I’m sorry for making you come all this way for nothing.”

“No, it’s not for nothing. It’s good to hear about the case while I’m here.”

Seon-jae quickly gestured for him to sit down.

“Are Makgeolli and green onion pancake okay with you?”

At Seon-jae’s question, Detective Jang said, “Of course,” and placed the order himself.

The owner couple seemed to be regulars, greeting him warmly and asking after him.

Soon, a Makgeolli kettle, cups, and more than five generous side dishes were placed on the table.

“This acorn jelly is amazing. You should try it.”

“Yes. Please speak comfortably.”

“Oh, no. I’m comfortable like this.”

The old Detective was polite to Seon-jae, who was young enough to be his son.

Detective Jang, who downed a glass of Makgeolli in one go, explained how he had found the document.

He said it was common for detectives to take case files with them when they retired. Especially in the case of unsolved cases, they took all the data without exception. Detective Jang was no exception.

“I found it really by chance. I didn’t even know I had taken this document.”

Detective Jang Il-seop said, handing over a two-page missing person report written in 1983. It was as crisp as if it had been written yesterday, as if no one had paid attention to it for all those years.

Seon-jae felt a chill as soon as he saw the missing person’s name and date of birth.

Lee Sang-hoon, the very identity that Kim Sung-hwan was currently using.

Lee Sang-hoon, who was 29 years old at the time of his disappearance, three years younger than Kim Sung-hwan, was a late-blooming college student. He disappeared while working in the labor movement, and Lee Sang-hoon’s so-called activist ‘comrades’ reported him missing. Lee Sang-hoon’s only blood relative, his grandfather, who lived in Yeongcheon, Gyeongbuk, had cut off contact with his grandson who was involved in the labor movement, so he passed away without even knowing that his grandson was missing.

The missing person report written by Lee Sang-hoon’s comrades stated ‘Galilla Orphanage’ as his last destination.

“As you can see, the orphanage address is the same as Borisu Vocational School.”

The old Detective pointed to the address with his finger.

According to the report written by the reporter:

Lee Sang-hoon, a third-year student in the Department of Sociology at a private university in Seoul, had taken a disguised job at a sock factory in Ansan. There he met the the child from the orphanage. He was worried that the the child’s condition was all very bad, and he barely coaxed a girl to hear about the reality of the orphanage. After that, he lost contact with the news that he was going to the orphanage to save the the child.

“So I told Hyang-rae that this was suspicious. Kim Cheol-soo disappeared in this neighborhood, and it doesn’t seem like one person’s doing, it’s organized.”

Detective Jang paused here and sipped his Makgeolli. Then, he scratched his head as if embarrassed.

The reason was that the missing person was doing very well.

“He’s married and has three the child. When I explained the whole story, he said he didn’t even remember the name of the orphanage. He said he didn’t even know where it was because he had been rummaging around so many places at the time.”

Kim Sung-hwan, who became Lee Sang-hoon, confessed that he had felt disillusioned with the labor movement at the time, but he couldn’t bring himself to tell his comrades.

“There’s an activist atmosphere, you know. His relationship with his grandfather was already strained because of that, and his grandfather’s health was getting worse. Of course, he was worried. He was worried about his family or his comrades, and eventually he ran away secretly. From his comrades. Without knowing that, his comrades were making a fuss about him being missing.”

Detective Jang said this and laughed heartily. The Detective believed Lee Sang-hoon’s words entirely.

Seon-jae would have too, if he hadn’t known that Lee Sang-hoon was Kim Sung-hwan.

“Detective Jang, can I take this document with me?”

“Why?”

Detective Jang gave him a puzzled look.

“It’s useless.”

“I know. But just in case.”

When Seon-jae asked again, Detective Jang reluctantly agreed.

“Take a copy instead of the original. Oh, I’ll tear off the part with personal information.”

Detective Jang put the original in a document envelope and pulled out a copy. Then, he carefully cut off the part containing the personal information of the reporter and the missing person with his hand.

Seon-jae, who had already memorized all the resident registration numbers written on the report, gratefully received the rest. The paper with the missing person’s photo, the circumstances of the disappearance, and the last known whereabouts.

After that, Detective Jang shared Makgeolli and green onion pancake and told him the behind-the-scenes story about the Kim Cheol-soo missing person case.

“At first, I thought it was a simple runaway. Even now, how common is it for an adult man to go missing? If it’s a simple accident like a fall or a traffic accident, we usually find the body within a week, or it’s either he ran away or he’s in debt. It just so happened that Kim Cheol-soo needed some money.”

“Was there a reason why he needed money?”

Detective Jang replied, “Poker.”

“The family didn’t know.”

“Then what made you decide that Kim Cheol-soo was missing?”

“I didn’t decide, the head of the detective division at the time told me to do so. Kim Cheol-soo’s Father’s friend’s younger sibling was the head of the detective division at the time.”

Detective Jang said this and clicked his tongue.

“Everyone used their connections like that back then, so I thought that was the way it was. So I went to investigate a week after the missing person report was filed. Me and a police officer from the police box near the industrial complex, the two of us.”

Detective Jang first visited Kim Cheol-soo’s house.

“Kim Cheol-soo’s wife said that Kim Cheol-soo had been carrying a kitchen knife around for a week before he disappeared. Other than that, he was the same as usual. I said I understood and went to the company.”

Kim Cheol-soo, who worked as a manager at a small manufacturing company, had many problems due to poor attendance for three months before his disappearance. At that time, he heard from a colleague that Kim Cheol-soo was addicted to poker.

“He used to play Go-Stop with the factory manager sometimes. Just for fun. Then, about seven months before he disappeared, he met the factory manager’s poker friends. That’s how Kim Cheol-soo got involved in the poker game.”

Kim Cheol-soo was known as a cheapskate among the poker members. They took turns buying Jajangmyeon every time, but Kim Cheol-soo never bought them a single Bacchus. Nevertheless, the members included Kim Cheol-soo in poker because he was serious about the game. They didn’t like gamblers, so they thought Kim Cheol-soo was just like them, playing games as a hobby.

Kim Cheol-soo had quite a talent for poker. He learned various techniques from the members, who were almost professionals even though they were hobbyists, and his skills quickly improved. Three months after jumping into the poker game, he became one of the members who won money every time.

“Around that time, Kim Cheol-soo started to drop out of the meeting. Kim Cheol-soo said that he was too busy with work to go.”

But that was a lie. Kim Cheol-soo was busy going to illegal poker games. It was also at this point that Kim Cheol-soo’s attendance began to be a problem. There were many days when he didn’t change his clothes for several days, and he often smelled of alcohol. The once-a-week tardiness increased to two or three times, and his work ability also suffered.

“About two weeks before he disappeared, the factory manager and poker members saw Kim Cheol-soo at a bar near the industrial complex.”

The guy who was with Kim Cheol-soo happened to be a notorious loan shark in the area. Detective Jang also met the loan shark directly.

“That bastard’s words were the highlight. He even asked me, a Detective, to find Kim Cheol-soo.”

Detective Jang laughed.

“How much was the loan shark debt?”

“30 million won.”

Whew. Seon-jae whistled. It was the price of an apartment in Gangnam.

“Gambling is no good. It makes people very bad.”

Detective Jang shook his head.

While he was struggling with gambling debts, Kim Cheol-soo got into a fight with Yoon Ki-beom on the street.

“When I found out, he received a settlement of 5 million won. From the vocational school.”

It was already expected, but the amount was larger than Seon-jae had expected. In the end, that money became poison for Kim Cheol-soo.

“No, think about it logically. In this world, which vocational school would offer such a huge amount of money as a settlement to save a student’s life? Isn’t that right?”

Unexpectedly, when he dug that far, the head of the detective division ordered Detective Jang to stop the investigation.

“He told me to investigate, and then suddenly he told me to stop. Am I a Detective who does everything he’s told? I said yes in front of him, and I dug a little more in my spare time.”

Detective Jang said that he had visited Borisu Vocational School himself.

The security at the vocational school was so strict that neither outsiders nor insiders could enter or leave easily. He thought he would die a miserable death if he went alone, so he just returned on his first visit, and on his second visit, he brought two police officers in a patrol car.

“I couldn’t get inside the vocational school. A man named the manager came out to the gate and asked what was going on and which police department I belonged to. I gave him my business card and told him honestly, and he left me outside the gate and went inside. I was waiting, wondering what that bastard was doing, when the police officer in the patrol car called me. He said he had received a radio message.”

Detective Jang still couldn’t believe it, saying, “I’ve never experienced anything like that in my life.”

The radio message was from the police chief. It was an order to return to the station immediately. As soon as he returned to the police station, Detective Jang was scolded by the head of the detective division and even wrote a letter of apology. He was told never to go near the vocational school again.

He said he wouldn’t go because it was dirty and unfair, but that’s not how a Detective is.

“Just in case, I investigated the bus routes that Kim Cheol-soo often took. In the process, I found out that he had been going to the neighborhood where the vocational school was located every evening until the day before he disappeared. It was such a remote neighborhood that the bus driver remembered all the faces of the passengers who went there.”

It was obvious. The vocational school must have looked like money to Kim Cheol-soo, who was struggling with debt. He must have thought it was a golden opportunity to make easy money. So Kim Cheol-soo secretly investigated the vocational school and was caught by someone and disappeared.

What are the chances that that someone is Kim Sung-hwan?

“Did you meet Yoon Ki-beom during the initial investigation?”

“Oh, no. There was no reason to meet him at all. There had to be a connection between the two cases. Frankly, there were tons of the child like Yoon Ki-beom around the industrial complex. If you go to the entertainment establishments around there, they all gather together, drink, and fight. He must have been eighteen or nineteen at the time, and there were so many people of that age that they were stepped on. Frankly, Kim Cheol-soo hit the jackpot. How often does someone get that much money as compensation?”

Detective Jang said that he had never considered Yoon Ki-beom in the missing person investigation.

“But why are you so interested in the Kim Cheol-soo missing person case?”

It was when he emptied one kettle and received a new Makgeolli kettle that Detective Jang asked.

“Didn’t Detective Jo tell you?”

“Yes. He’s more tight-lipped than he looks.”

Seon-jae laughed at those words. Then, he stopped laughing and answered seriously.

“Because a friend who is more precious than my own brother is being framed as the culprit.”

“Yoon Ki-beom?”

“Yes.”

Seon-jae looked straight into Detective Jang’s eyes.

“I’ve only met him once, but he seemed like a rare, upright young man these days. So I was wondering.”

Detective Jang nodded slowly.

“Honestly, teenagers can wander and do bad things. Among the young guys I’ve arrested, only a handful went completely astray. Now, they’re all making a living, raising families, and doing well. I think Yoon Ki-beom was one of those cases.”

Detective Jang added with a gentle face.

“Is there anything more you can tell us about the case? I heard there was an accomplice.”

Detective Jang’s expression hardened at the mention of an accomplice.

“It’s an ongoing investigation, so I can’t say more than that.”

If it were Detective Jo, handing over a money envelope around this point would have made him spill everything he knew, but somehow, Seon-jae was convinced that the detective in front of him wasn’t that type.

Seon-jae decided to appeal to the old detective’s emotions.

“Actually, Ki-beom genuinely respected and admired Detective Oh Dae-Ho. He was like an older brother from his hometown. But he turned him in to the police without a word.”

As soon as the name Oh Dae-ho came out of Seon-jae’s mouth, Detective Jang made a displeased expression.

“Detective Oh wasn’t just an older brother; he was a vested interest in that neighborhood. He was very close to the local power players, and as a police officer, he had a lot of influence.”

Seon-jae added.

Detective Jang, who had been tightly shut-mouthed, frowned and clicked his tongue.

“That guy was ruthless. I believe the most important thing for detectives to avoid is prejudice. Once you’re prejudiced, you look at the person instead of the evidence. That’s absolutely wrong. But Oh Dae-ho was that kind of detective. He decided Yoon Ki-beom was the culprit and went looking for evidence. At first, he didn’t show it at all. Like you said, he approached me saying he was a close younger brother, someone he cherished like his own sibling. But as time went on, he gradually revealed his true colors. I scolded him for it. Then he would act contrite, saying, ‘I’m sorry, Detective.’ He pretended to understand. He was a very sly person.”

Detective Jang said this much and then took out a cigarette pack from his shirt pocket. Seon-jae quickly lit the cigarette with a lighter.

“Detective Oh, who had been sticking to me and digging for information, started digging into vocational schools the year after receiving the tip-off. Then, suddenly, he said he was going to Daejeon. To meet Yoon Ki-beom’s cousin.”

Yoon Hyuk-beom, was it?

Detective Jang muttered to himself as if talking to himself.

“After that, he kept going in and out of the prison. It seemed like he was looking for someone.”

It wouldn’t have been Kim Sung-hwan. Yoon Ki-beom’s cousin, one of the people who stabbed Yoon Ki-beom, would never have ratted out Kim Sung-hwan.

Rocky, the name Na Jin-soo flashed through his mind.

Detective Jang took a long drag from his cigarette and said, “I never want to deal with that Oh Dae-ho again.”

There seemed to be other episodes he hadn’t told Seon-jae, but he didn’t ask for details.

“Did Detective Oh know anything about Lee Sang-hoon?”

Seon-jae pointed to the fragmented missing person report.

“There’s no way. I only found out about it yesterday.”

Detective Jang laughed heartily.

That was a relief. If Oh Dae-ho didn’t know, then Lee Seok-doo didn’t know either. That meant Seon-jae was the only one who knew that the missing Lee Sang-hoon was Kim Sung-hwan.

Seon-jae and Detective Jang finished the remaining Makgeolli and got up. As he was about to pay, Detective Jang stopped him.

“Hyang-rae knows I’m getting money from you. So let me pay for the meal. At least I should be upright so that the distrust of the police disappears. I can’t say that all detectives are good people, but there are really good detectives too.”

The old detective said.

Seon-jae, ashamed of his outstretched hand, quickly withdrew it.

“Thank you for the meal, Detective.”

He bowed politely.

Before parting, Detective Jang threw a word at Seon-jae.

“There seems to be a photo.”

When Seon-jae raised his eyebrows, Detective Jang said it was a group photo.

“It seems the kids tied up Kim Cheol-soo and took a picture together. There’s a girl in it too. That’s all I can tell you. Be careful on your way.”

Detective Jang slowly walked up the mountain.

As soon as he heard the word “girl,” Seon-jae immediately picked up his cell phone. He was in a hurry. He had to tell Attorney Park right away.

Because he was in the mountains, the cell phone didn’t work. He went straight into the restaurant and borrowed a phone.

After a long time, Attorney Park answered the phone and lamented before Seon-jae could even open his mouth.

Yoon Ki-beom has confessed.

I told him not to say anything.

He sighed as if lamenting.

Seon-jae tightly closed his eyes.

207 – Chapter Title Without Number