The Exit

Chapter Three

The sun was bright above her head and she have been driving for almost an hour now at her topmost speed. But Sowon hadn't come across any turning. The road went straight ahead without branching.

After another hour of driving she reached The Moore Estate, without noticing anything unusual.

I must be doing something wrong.

Sowon let out a frustrated sigh and ran her hand through her hair while turning her car around and starting again towards the road that she came from.

But Sowon was left disappointed again when even after reaching back at the junction she couldn't find the turning or any sign of Jeongguk's car.

Stopping her car at the junction, she lowered her head on the steering wheel and tried to clear her mind.

Then as if suddenly having an epiphany a memory from eleven years ago played inside her head.

Due to an emergency at home, Sowon's dad was taking her home from her boarding school late at night. She was fifteen then.

Time in hand was short so her dad had decided to take the shortcut. Sowon faintly remembered seeing a gas station but what she clearly remembered now was what her dad had said after crossing them at a speed of 130 km/hr.

While keeping his sharp eyes on the road and never going down under the speed of 100, her dad had told her, "Do you wanna know a fun fact? Did you see that gas station that we crossed a while ago? It only appears after midnight. In the daytime you can never see it."

Sowon remembered her dad's tear laden face with which he had made her promise, "Promise me, you'll never take the shortcut after midnight! And even if you do, you won't stop anywhere in the middle. And no matter what happens, you won't take the road to Devil's Crest!"

Even though she didn't believe him back then, counting it as his way to scare her, she never took the shortcut - until today.

And before the curious-her could ask him about what he said that night, her dad had disappeared from her life without a trace.

"I am sorry dad. I have to break the promise today. I have to find Jeongguk." Sowon whispered as she felt her tears trying to push their way out of her throat.

Shaking off the sadness and the tears from her eyes, a technique that she had learned from Jeongguk and had countlessly teased him about, Sowon looked at the time - it was 2 pm.

She had 10 hours in hand.

Sowon closed her eyes to think. She have to utilise the time properly and so she decided to go back home and come back with a few things that might come in handy.

After reaching home, needless to say that she was bombarded with questions.

Sowon couldn't tell them that she would have explained everything to them if things were that easily explainable. But it wasn't, so she just told them to trust her and that she was going to find him.

The last bit seemed like a reassurance to herself. She was not sure if what she was thinking was right or not. But she ardently hoped it was.

Packing her bag with warm clothes for both her and Jeongguk, a power bank for her phone, a strong fully charged flashlight, several water bottles, a first aid kit, her fully loaded desert eagle gun, and a compass, she started on her journey to find Jeongguk after having dinner.

When Sowon reached the junction, it was already dark and the moon was in the middle of the sky.

The almost full moon was enthralling and she couldn't help but sigh and pray to it to look after Jeongguk and help her find him as quickly as possible.

As night turned into midnight the number of vehicles on the main road decreased exponentially. The coldness started to settle onto the ground more rapidly and the surroundings were gradually getting abandoned by the signs of the city. The only trace of human civilization was the dim light coming from the old lady's grocery store.

It was time to go but just before she was about to start your engine, her stomach growled loudly.

Sowon clicked her tongue disapprovingly and with a short sigh opened her bag to look for some snacks, but was quick to curse herself when she realised that she had forgotten to pack any.

But just then she remembered the cookie that the old lady had given her. Sowon thanked her mentally and opened it. Was it her eyes playing tricks or did the dim light of the grocery store shine brighter for a second before going dim again?

The cookie was big - enough to defeat her hunger for now. The aroma of it was instantly appetising and after she tasted it, she regretted not getting more from her. Sowon didn't know whether it was just her luck or a weird coincidence that the cookie tasted of her favourite flavours — butter, orange, cashew — mixed to perfect ratio. But now there wasn't any time. So she quickly started munching on it.

When she reached the middle of it she found a piece of paper inside and exclaimed, "Ah! So it's a fortune cookie!"

Putting the rest of the cookie in her mouth in one go, she started reading it in the car light.

The writing was written in golden block letters on a black paper and it read —

WHEN ROADS ARE MISLEADING AND FALSE WORDS ARE SPOKEN

IN THE RULING DARKNESS SOMEONE'S TREASURED THING MUST BE BROKEN

"Hmm...?" Sowon was confused. It seemed more like a riddle than a fortune.

She read it a couple times more and then kept it in her cargo trouser pocket with a shrug because she couldn't understand what it could mean.

Before starting her engine you looked at the moon and prayed, "Please dad, look after Jeongguk for me while I get there."