To Find Something True

※ forty-four

Amber stiffened. Her raspy voice raised, "What?"

The detective gave her a tight smile. "Luckily, one of the victims told us that Soohyuk dealt with them most of the time. She recognized him. We're still having a hard time making Soohyuk talk. His information is vague."

"How about the others?"

"That's the problem. Many of them were abused, and right now, recovery isn't the only thing they need. They have to undergo some procedures afterward."

Understanding what procedures meant, Amber said nothing. Soohyuk hadn't mentioned anything about In-Kang and Company. She wanted to help, but she thought of the risk Bejiwoo would face. But what if this could save them from the company's ties? It might be possible to save Jiwoo too. Scared, yet encouraged, she whispered in Korean, "Try... try to look up In-Kang and Company."

"In-Kang and Company?" Detective Nam asked in Korean, eyebrows scrunched up.

"Yeah..." she muttered. "He's the adopted son of the CEO. You'll find some links."

His lips flattened into a tight smile. "I'll keep that in mind."

Her heart thumped loudly against her chest. She was scared, thinking her best friend had run away with Soohyuk to join him in illegal activities. Besides, she was blindly in love with Soohyuk. If it was true, it was possible she did it for the sake of Bejiwoo. But it was too fast for her to jump to conclusions. Swallowing her saliva, she continued to ask, "What about my friend, Jiwoo?"

"Jung Jiwoo?" Amber studied her cousin's face. His joker nature had faded, leaving only seriousness on Detective Nam's face. And what Detective Nam confessed next had her stiffened. "Jung Jiwoo was one of the victims."

"Hold on," she said, raising up a hand. "Was?" Her eyebrows scrunched up.

"Yes," Detective Nam breathed after inhaling a deep breath. "She managed to escape with a victim. And," he paused with an expression that Amber couldn't read. "If you want to meet her now, I can bring you there. But be mentally prepared. She isn't in a state that, I know, you don't wish to see."

*********

As Seokjin took a day off the next day, the 'attention game' finally stopped. There hadn't been any tasks that required Jiah's help outside the office, so she stayed with Hoseok the whole time. Killing time, he heard her watching some random cooking video, though he didn't know what recipe she was watching.

Settling comfortably at her table, Hoseok was glad to see his assistant getting some rest. Even though her only task was taking care of him, Jiah used to say that it was boring to stay in the office. So, he allowed her to help the staff outside.

However, something struck him. Jiah hadn't been teasing him, and the fact that she had been staying in the office made him wonder if something was wrong. He didn't think she had a fight with anyone since she greeted them just fine that morning.

"Lee Jiah?" He called, making her look up and respond with a long, soft 'hmm?' "Be honest with me, will you?"

"Yeah, sure. What is it?"

"Are you okay?"

"Hmm..." Jiah weakly buzzed before drawling, "no."

"You look tired."

"Yeah. I don't know why I feel so tired today. Since yesterday, to be honest."