By Zephyria “What… is this?”
Lee-eum frowned as he looked at the paper Jeong Nam-su had brought him. They’d tried to check the fingerprints of the man who’d lost his memory, but the search came back as impossible. Usually, fingerprints couldn’t be checked because they’d been artificially damaged, or the person was an illegal alien, or they were a minor…
“He’s not a minor, is he?”
“Does he look like one?”
“Right? He doesn’t to me either. Or is he a foreigner?”
“Well, his features are quite distinct for an Asian. It’s possible.”
“What about the DNA?”
“Not yet.”
Lee-eum put down the results and left a message for his Noona. The man had been discharged from the hospital, and since he had nowhere to go, he was temporarily staying at Lee-eum’s Noona’s house. After contacting her to say he’d pick him up in the evening, he sighed, feeling uneasy. Team Leader Oh, who had finished his call, clapped his hands to get the team members’ attention.
“Alright, alright, Mansik’s location is out, so let’s get ready.”
Everyone moved with perfect coordination, as if they’d rehearsed it.
“Detective Park and Detective Lee, you’re with me. Detective Kim and Detective Jeong, come separately. Let’s block both sides. You know the back door there, right?”
“Yes.”
“That bastard uses a knife, so be careful.”
The five of them rushed outside, and as soon as they split up and got into the cars, Lee-eum started the engine. Mansik was a member of a crime syndicate who was wanted for stabbing several members of rival gangs recently. Going to the countryside a few days ago was to track down that bastard’s whereabouts.
He headed to the destination with the determination to catch him today, and the Team leader’s car, which had left ahead of them, stopped in front of a hostess bar. Several burly men were guarding the entrance like a screen.
“Ah, those gangster bastards. Did they catch on? Why are they all out here?”
While the Team leader and the others entered, Lee-eum drove past the bar and moved to the alley in the back. He was watching the back door when he heard a transmission.
【Detective Kim! Mansik isn’t here. Didn’t he go out that way?】
“No, he’s not here,”
Before he could finish, the back door burst open and a short, hat-wearing man darted out. Lee-eum informed the Team leader via radio that Mansik had come out the back door and immediately got out of the car. Mansik, upon spotting the detectives, threw a bottle he found nearby, cursed, and ran up the alley as quickly as a rat.
He was such a nimble and fast bastard that they’d been tricked several times trying to catch him. Thinking that he absolutely couldn’t let him get away today, he chased after him, but the bastard quickly jumped over a shoulder-height wall. Lee-eum also jumped over the wall without much difficulty.
Mansik looked back and increased his speed. The alleyways continued endlessly, and as stairs appeared one after another, Nam-soo gradually fell behind.
“Wow, goddamn that bastard. Hey, stop there! You son of a bitch!”
Soon after, he could hear the sound of the others running up from behind. Lee-eum endured the pain of his lungs tearing and tried to close the distance somehow. It would have been easier if he’d run downhill to the road. The bastard, who knew the neighborhood well, knew perfectly well that this place was advantageous to him.
The bastard, who had been running non-stop through the maze-like alleys, suddenly stopped. Wondering why, he saw a large refrigerator blocking the way. Someone must have blocked the spot where there used to be a path. He grabbed the bastard’s leg as he tried to climb over the wall and threw him down, and the bastard instantly pulled a blue-tinged sashimi knife from his waist.
Lee-eum gestured, gasping for breath.
“Hoo, put the knife down while I’m asking nicely.”
“I’ll make a breathing hole in your gut, come on!”
The bastard rushed in and swung the knife. He dodged the knife flying this way and that, but it was so fast that he couldn’t focus. He knocked away the knife flying past his face, and his palm was slightly cut. Lee-eum stepped back, checked the wound, and gasped for breath.
“How is it, you tasted it, right? Isn’t it thrilling? I’ll stick it in properly this time.”
The knife came flying, and Lee-eum took off his shirt, wrapped it around both hands, and charged straight at the bastard, grabbing his wrist. He twisted it backward, and with a cracking sound, the knife fell to the ground, and Mansik screamed like a pig being slaughtered. Nam-soo, who had been chasing after the struggling bastard, subdued him and put handcuffs on him.
“You have the right to remain silent from now on, and stay still, you bastard. You have the right to hire a lawyer, and…”
As he was putting on the handcuffs and lifting him up, the other members of the team appeared one by one on the stairs. They were all a mess, probably because they had a hard time running up the steep stairs. The last one was Team Leader Oh, who grabbed his knee joint and plopped down. His cartilage was already worn out at such an early age.
“Hoo, did you catch him?”
“Yes, we’ve apprehended him.”
“Everyone worked hard. Aish, this son of a bitch, if you were going to run, you should have run downhill. Coming all the way up here and making people suffer like dogs, Detective Lee. My sugar’s dropping. Candy, candy, quickly.”
Detective Lee quickly went and handed him a piece of candy, which the Team leader put in his mouth and chewed. The other team members were clearly exhausted as well. Then, Detective Lee noticed the blood on Lee-eum’s palm and his eyes widened.
“Detective Kim, is your hand okay?”
“It’s nothing. Just a scratch.”
The Team leader, feeling better, went to Mansik and smacked him on the back of the head.
“You son of a bitch, not only did you stab people, but you even wielded a knife at a detective. Rot in jail this time, you bastard.”
As he hit his head, Mansik cursed and glared at him. The Team leader got even more excited and rampaged, and the other detectives had a hard time calming him down. After walking down for a long time to transport the criminal, they saw gangsters standing guard in front of the bar.
“What are you looking at, you bastards? Want us to take you all in too?”
Then they cautiously glanced around and disappeared into the store.
“Seriously, those cockroach-like bastards.”
After putting the criminal in the car, the Team leader turned to look at Lee-eum.
“Detective Kim, go to the hospital.”
“It’s okay. Why bother with this.”
“What do you mean, ‘this’? If you leave it, you’ll only suffer if it festers. Take care of yourself. Huh? Please. I don’t want to get scolded by your Noona.”
Lee-eum smiled at the Team leader’s worried nagging and got into the car as if running away. Nam-soo, who belatedly got into the passenger seat, brought a bag containing medicine and bandages, which he must have gotten from somewhere. Nam-soo was a very meticulous guy.
“Let me see your hand.”
“It’s okay, you. Don’t be so embarrassing.”
“Let me see.”
“I said it’s okay.”
When he refused, Nam-soo stubbornly pushed the bag at him.
“Take it and apply it, please. Scars can get worse. How heartbroken would I be if a scar appeared on Sunbae’s beautiful hand?”
Lee-eum made a disgusted expression at the exaggerated gestures and flattery. After that, he headed to his older Noona’s house first, instead of the police station. He rang the doorbell and entered, and the entrance was more boisterous than usual.
Lee-eum was speechless at the sight that unfolded in the living room. His twin nephews, who were kindergarteners, were clinging to the man with amnesia and playing with him. “Khaaaang.” As he imitated a dinosaur, the children giggled and ran away. The man, who had been playing with the children, discovered Lee-eum, his mouth widened, and he ran over.
“Mister!”
The twins also ran over, shouting, “Uncle!” and hugged Lee-eum. It was one thing for the children, but it was quite uncomfortable to have a grown man the size of a door hugging him. After pulling them off one by one, his Noona came out of the room with a large dumbbell in her hand.
“You’re already here?”
Her biceps bulged every time she bent and extended her arm. Lee-eum’s Noona had been in the criminal affairs division for a long time before moving to the intelligence division, and even when she was active, she was strong enough to beat up most guys with her bare hands. That’s why Lee-eum, unlike others, didn’t have a rebellious phase. Moreover, his father was strict, so he didn’t even have the courage to try any kind of rebellion.
“Have you eaten?”
“I’ll eat when I get there.”
“Talk to me for a second.”
His Noona took Lee-eum into the room, closed the door, and lowered her voice.
“What are you going to do with that person?”
“I’ve asked the local station to take care of it for now. I’ll have to keep him for the time being.”
“Are you sure you’re okay? Or should I keep him here? I’m on vacation and have nothing to do.”
Lee-eum shook his head. It was urgent on the first day, so he left him there, but his brother-in-law was away on a business trip, and he didn’t know what kind of person the man was, so he couldn’t keep him here. He might seem like a child now that he’s lost his memory, but he might be different in reality. When he said he would take him, his Noona looked a little disappointed.
“What a waste. The kids liked him.”
“I think Noona likes him more?”
“Is it obvious?”
Lee-eum narrowed his eyes.
“I’m telling Brother-in-law.”
“Live for over 10 years, and you’ll end up like this. Don’t get married. Got it?”
Even though she said that, the two were very close. However, apart from happiness, his Noona loved her job too much, and she also thought that marriage would be a hindrance to her work. That’s why she emphasized not getting married every time she saw Lee-eum, which would be shocking news to their father in the countryside.
After finishing his conversation with his Noona, he came out and saw the man standing in front of the door.
“Mister… are you leaving me here?”
Seeing him lower his head made him feel sorry.
“No. Let’s go home.”
The man smiled brightly, and the twins fussed, telling him to stay over. When he refused with a smile, they said he was a mean uncle, so he scratched his head in frustration. His Noona laughed, finding it amusing, and Lee-eum sighed, shook his head, and took the man outside.
When he put him in the car, the man sat demurely and stared straight ahead.
“Fasten your seatbelt.”
He took out the seatbelt and poked it here and there, so he turned his body to the side and pulled the seatbelt. The man turned his head to the left, and their faces were quite close. The man’s gaze as he stared at him didn’t make him think of him as a child at all. As he slowly tried to increase the distance, the man grabbed Lee-eum’s hand and shouted.
“Mister’s hurt!”
Lee-eum was flustered and tried to pull his hand away.
“No. It’s okay. It’s just a scratch.”
The man was still restless.
“What should I do? You’re bleeding. Does it hurt a lot?”
When he smiled, saying it was okay, he took his hand and gently blew on it. Lee-eum was disgusted by the unexpected situation and pulled his hand away. An awkward silence fell, and the man pouted, looking upset. Lee-eum ended up pretending not to see it.