Beautiful Crime || DoTae

Chapter Seven

"Why can't you all see that I'm not going to abandon a child's life? Is it really that hard to fathom? I've done a lot of wicked, horrible things in my life, but I won't let an innocent child come to harm just because you all think there's something wrong with me!" said Taeyong, which made his younger brother frown.

"You're telling me that you think that Lim Kangdae is living inside of your head, but you don't think that you need help?" asked Minhyung through his furrowed brow. "You're making people worry about you. I don't want to be working on this case, wondering whether I'll come home to find out that my brother has died of a drug overdose. We've only just found each other, Taeyong... I don't want to lose you again."

Taeyong let out a sigh. Part of him wanted to tell Minhyung what he'd been keeping from him, to let the floodgates open and reveal what was weighing heavy on his soul, but he refrained. He didn't know how he'd react. He was scared to alienate his brother and lose him. Frankly, they were one in the same. They shared the same fears, and while they were vastly different individuals, their goals weren't so different either. "Please, just forget what I've said to you today."

"Forget? How am I supposed to just forget?" Minhyung yelled. "You can't keep doing this to people. You can't expect us to ignore that you're slowly destroying your life, and taking our concerns with you! We care about you, I care about whether you live a happy life rather than simply surviving as you are now!"

It took Taeyong by surprise. He watched as Minhyung turned and walked toward the door, without even a moment to spare on contemplation. He pulled the office door open and disappeared on the other side, leaving his brother alone. As it waded shut, Taeyong saw a figure on the other side of the door, waiting, as though they had been listening to the whole conversation.

He couldn't bring himself to care.

--

Taeyong didn't have time to mope alone in his office. Soon after Minhyung left, Xiuying contacted him, inviting him to investigate what had happened to Hyejin.

Often in the early afternoon, much of Cheongnam was bustling with traffic—both pedestrian and vehicular—and was at its busiest. Chinatown was no exception, though it featured much more pedestrian traffic than otherwise. Taeyong was used to clinging to the darkest shadow that he could find, it was a skill that came with the trade of killing, and it came all too easily. He stayed hidden behind a ramen stall, out of sight from the local population.

He needed to be useful, and if he was contending with the local thugs, there was no way that he'd be helpful in the search for Hyejin, the missing child. He meant every word when he told Doyoung that he'd find the young girl, even if it killed him.

But Doyoung didn't know that he was in Chinatown. He would have freaked out even if Taeyong ever so slightly passed onto the territory without a member of Noctis by his side. Chinatown wasn't the friendliest place for an outsider, especially a former Namjeong Clan hitman. Taeyong had to lie to Doyoung in order to leave Neo City without the younger man by his side, as the latter had been given a day off by Taeil. He promised that he'd stay away from trouble, even if the notion was impossible while sneaking around Chinatown.

Taeyong was safe, to some extent, in Chinatown. After all, he wasn't going to search alone. He simply had to wait for Xiuying to arrive, and then theoretically speaking, he'd be left alone. However, often the theory and practicality of an event were not accurate—but it was a risk that he was willing to take.