Secrets And Dreams
It was shortly before lunchtime when Taeyeon and Haejoon walked inside the interrogation room.
Taeyeon dropped a thick folder onto the table and sat down while Haejoon chose to stand behind her, leaning against the wall with arms crossed and jaws clenched.
"I'm Inspector Kim Taeyeon and I believe you've met Inspector Kim Haejoon?" Taeyeon said while keeping her eyes on the young man in front of her. "Let's cut to the chase, shall we? I don't want to waste my time on you."
The young man watched as Taeyeon opened the folder and began taking pictures out of it, arranging them neatly on the table.
"The delivery truck you were assigned to," Taeyeon pointed at the picture of the vehicle. "See these glowing stains? That's human blood."
"There are at least a dozen trucks owned by that company accessible by at least twenty people," argued the man.
"But only one assigned to you on the night of the murder."
"Still doesn't mean that I used it. It was after hours and my shift was over. You can't prove that I was anywhere near that truck."
Taeyeon pointed at another photograph. "On the contrary. Your employer hid an extra CCTV camera, disguising it as a smoke detector. There had been people misusing the trucks before, you see, so he took precautions. You managed to avoid the visible CCTVs, maybe you had days to figure out blind spots or angles to make sure your face wouldn't appear on the camera, but you didn't know about this one. He rarely checks it unless he senses that something's wrong so you got lucky, got away undetected for a few days." She tapped the picture. "That's you, Mister Park, holding someone at gunpoint, forcing him to get into the back of your truck. You intercepted him and took him to your workplace because it was the nearest empty location you could think of."
The man didn't react.
"We even have footage of you driving away only to come back a short while later to clean the truck."
"So I like to keep my truck clean. So what? You can't prove that I actually shot that guy. I could just be threatening him," said the man.
"No one heard a gunshot, that's true, but how do you explain the human blood in your truck if you hadn't shot the man there? Keep in mind that we have that shirt of yours, soaked with Jo Himchan's blood. You knew him by another name, perhaps. One he used while he was undercover or the new name that he was using when you killed him."
"Someone might have planted that shirt there to set me up."
"Did that someone plant the money too? All ten million of it?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," the young man denied, looking at Taeyeon defiantly.
"We found your prints on the torn money binders and this bank slip confirms that you deposited the money to your sister's account," Taeyeon said, waving the piece of paper. "That's your signature and your name right there."
"Maybe I found the money and gave it to my sister. Is that so wrong?"
Taeyeon leaned forward, not losing her calm even for a little bit. "You think you're so smart, huh? Or maybe you thought that you'd probably serve another five years in prison and that's it? We're just doing you a favor here, giving you a chance to confess and maybe turn your accomplice in. I don't even have to be here, actually. This case is airtight. We have you. All evidence points to you." She pushed another photograph forward. "See this? That's the hand truck you used to move the body from the truck. The tire track matches the one we found at the alley and guess whose fingerprint we found on one of the wheels? Sloppy, Mister Park."
"Everyone who worked at that company could've touched that thing!" he argued.
"Maybe but the fingerprint we found was a bloody print. Human blood, Jo Himchan's blood, mixed with cow's blood," stated Taeyeon. "You didn't clean that thing as thoroughly as you thought. Were you in a hurry, Mister Park? Or were you nervous? Like you were when you grabbed that meat to use as a silencer? Were you suddenly afraid that someone would hear the gunshot? Because I can't believe that you actually planned to use meat as a silencer. I mean, come on... no one's that silly. Not even Hollywood movies."
The young man clenched his jaws but said nothing. His breathing increased and by the shifting of his eyes, Taeyeon knew that she had him. He was now trying to think of another way to deny or challenge the evidence but he was running out of ideas.
"Once we realized which truck you used and what you look like, we sent out officers to the surrounding area to find eyewitnesses. The minimart clerk recognized you because you left quite an impression, refusing to pay when you were already standing at the cash register and ran out without another word. You were rushing to follow Jo Himchan out, weren't you?" She shifted a different image forward, a screen capture from the minimart CCTV. "See? That's you wearing that backpack we found in your house and that's you leaving your things on the counter."
"..."
"You do realize that with your criminal past, the violation of your parole and all these evidence we found against you that you're gonna be sentenced with at least life imprisonment, right? Not just another five years," Haejoon said.
The young man looked at him and he could see the surprise and fear.
"A confession might help, you know. Probably won't reduce your sentence but maybe the judge would be nice enough to send you to a less dangerous prison. Higher survival rate," continued the inspector. He and Taeyeon then waited, giving the man a few seconds to think things through.
When the man couldn't seem to say anything, Taeyeon spoke again, "So you would rather go down for two murders? Alone?"
The man's eyes widened. "Two... I didn't kill two people!"
"But you killed Jo Himchan," said Haejoon.
He gritted his teeth, glaring at the inspector. "He deserved it," he hissed after staring at Haejoon for a moment. "That bastard deserved it." He knew that he could no longer deny what he had done so he decided that he would at least make sure that people knew why he did what he did, what kind of person this Himchan was in his eyes.
Haejoon took a step forward in anger but stopped when Taeyeon lifted her hand, signaling for him to control himself.
"Who paid you to kill him?" asked Taeyeon. "We know you already hated him even before you got the offer to finish him in return for money. You got into a fight with him a few days before you killed him, didn't you? We found similar cuts and bruises on Jo Himchan's body."
The man scoffed. "That bastard thought that he was a savior or something."
"You knew about his plans for your sister and niece?"
"He was going to steal my niece away from my sister!" he raised his voice. "I'm not going to let that happen! After abandoning them all these years, he thought he could just take her? Over my dead body!"
"How did you find out about his plan?" Taeyeon asked.
"Came by my sister's house one day to see him talking to my niece, giving her money to lure her to move to Seoul with him. His face might have changed but I knew that he must be that jerk. So I followed him back to Seoul, found out where he was staying and started stalking him. I knew who he was, okay? He was a traitor. Scum. Couldn't even die from one shot. Had to waste another bullet on his thick skull."
"Ironic," mumbled Haejoon, clutching his fist to keep himself in check. "You might wanna look into the mirror before you define scum."
"So you confronted him a few days before you shot him?" Taeyeon continued her questioning, ignoring Haejoon.
"I warned him but he wouldn't back off so he got what was coming to him," said the man arrogantly.
"Who encouraged you to do it? Who paid you to get rid of him?"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"You used that other guy you killed to lure Jo Himchan to the area, didn't you? He was the last person who called him, just a few hours before he was murdered. We found call logs on both phones that confirmed this. Then you got rid of him after you killed Himchan. Ten million won for two murders. That's not a bad price, actually," said Haejoon.
"I have no idea what bullshit you're talking about," hissed the man.
"This backpack we found at your house." Taeyeon showed him the photograph of the backpack. "Who gave this to you? I know that it's a she. The bag reeked of women's perfume. That woman followed Jo Himchan from Jeonju to Seoul, didn't she? Then she gave you the money and you took care of the rest. We also found cow's blood and traces of GSR on it. You stashed the bag in the truck, probably somewhere near where you were standing when you pulled the trigger."
The man shook his head and shut his mouth.
"You do know that whoever paid you is framing you for two murders, right? We're not lying about the second one." Taeyeon opened another folder and showed some of the photographs to the man. "Recognize him?"
The man leaned forward to see the picture and his eyes widened in shock when he recognized the face. "He's... he's still alive?!"
"So you do know him."
"He was like an uncle to me but he died many years ago."
"He didn't die. He was living under our protection until you killed him."
The man's jaw dropped. "I did not kill him! I didn't even know that he was still alive!" He then realized something. "Wait. He was a traitor too?!"
"Perfect motive for you, right? You killed one traitor, might as well kill another," said Taeyeon.
"I didn't kill him!"
"So you're telling me that you have an alibi on Friday night?" Haejoon asked skeptically.
"I do! It was free game night for new members at that futsal club in Yongsan-gu. I was there! Check my wallet. I still have my receipt from paying the membership fee and I scored a goal so plenty of people will be able to tell you that I was there."
"We'll see about that," Taeyeon said, gathering her pictures. "However, since we don't have any other suspects and the second crime was made to look exactly like yours, we will still charge you with both murders. Especially since you have motive to get rid of both men," she bluffed. "By the way, Jo Himchan changed his mind about trying to fix his mistake but your niece guilt tripped him into taking her along. She said she wanted to have a father. I guess you took that from her, didn't you?"
"He shouldn't have abandoned her!"
"He didn't have a choice. Your father sent your pregnant sister away without even telling him about it. But he never stopped searching," Taeyeon said. "He didn't want to be a savior. Both he and your sister knew that they couldn't rebuild what they had lost. All he wanted to do was to make up for not being there all these years. You took that away from him and from your niece. Good luck explaining that to her and to your sister." She closed the folders. "And get yourself a lawyer. You'll need one."
The young man merely looked away, huffing indignantly.
"Capital punishment is still possible right?" Haejoon asked Taeyeon when the latter stood up from her seat, pretending to lower his voice although it was meant for this Park Hoyoung to hear. "We're talking double murder here where one of the victims was an officer of the law who had helped us bring down one of the largest crime organizations in this country. I'm pretty sure a death sentence is acceptable."
"D-death?!"
Taeyeon and Haejoon pretended not to hear him, continuing their 'hushed' conversation.
"Depends on his lawyer but yeah, since the Commissioner himself will personally see this through, it's plausible."
"W-wait!" The man called out right when Haejoon was about to pull the door open. "I'm not going down for double murder," he said.
"Unfortunately, you are. We don't have any other suspects and the second murder looks just like Jo Himchan's murder to which you've confessed so-..."
"I'll give you her description!" he interrupted Taeyeon. "I don't know her name but I'll tell you what I know about her. Just... no death penalty, please."
Taeyeon returned to the table, gave the man a piece of paper and took out a pen from her blazer pocket. "Write down everything in detail and sign it."
--
"You do know that this country no longer executes people?" remarked Yoona while they were walking away from the interrogation area, smiling to herself.
"But capital punishment is still a valid form of punishment in this country. They're just postponing the execution of death row prisoners until further notice so technically, I didn't lie and neither did Haejoon oppa," replied Taeyeon diplomatically, handing the confession paper to Yoona. "Interesting description he wrote there."
Yoona took the paper and read. She let out a gasp when she finished reading. "This is..."
"I know." Taeyeon then checked her watch. "I have to take Jiyoon to this birthday party thing. Can I meet Haejoon oppa at the train station right after I drop her off?"
"You're volunteering?"
"It's my hometown and Haejoon oppa's turf. So yeah, I think it's best if we both go."
Yoona turned to face Taeyeon. On her face was a knowing smirk. "Look who's playing cupid now," she teased. "Are you going to talk some sense into him?"
"I don't know what you're talking about, Captain. I'm just doing my job," replied Taeyeon in all seriousness.
"Sure you are." They stopped near Taeyeon's desk. "Well, be careful out there. I'm sure Inspector Kim will be able to call on local reinforcement when necessary. In the mean time, I'll tell the others to dig up as much info as they can on her."
Taeyeon nodded. "I'll keep you updated."
--
Tiffany had just finished applying the nail polish on Jiyoon's pinky when the door was knocked and in strolled Taeyeon.
"Wow. Where's the party, Princess?" Taeyeon remarked when she saw Jiyoon all dressed up.
"At the mall, Umma," Jiyoon giggled. "And I'm not a princess."
"You're my princess." Taeyeon took a picture of the girl with her phone and grinned.
"Our princess," corrected Tiffany. She then told Jiyoon to wait until the nail polish had dried before she touched anything.
"If I hadn't known better, I'd say that my twelve year old daughter is going on a date," whispered Taeyeon through tightly clenched teeth as she leaned down to kiss Tiffany's cheek.
Tiffany tried not to laugh at that. "I'll tell you about it later."
Taeyeon raised her eyebrows. "You're kidding, right? She's not going on a..."
"No no no. Not yet. Oh god not yet! She's our baby girl."
"I'm not a baby anymore, Mommy," said Jiyoon flatly from where she was sitting. "And my friends have gone out on dates, you know. Their parents chaperoned but it was still a date."
Taeyeon let out a gasp. "No! No dates! Not until you're in high school, at least."
"And even then, one of us will tag along. Preferably your umma and her gun," added Tiffany.
The girl could only shake her head, muttering something about uncool and old-fashioned parents. She blew on her nails to make sure they were dry then left the room, telling them that she needed to go to the toilet.
"So it has come to this," Taeyeon said with a sigh. "Dating? Our baby girl?"
"Not yet. No dating until she's at least sixteen," said Tiffany firmly.
"Let me guess, you went on your very first date when you were sixteen?"
"Yeah."
"I can do sixteen. Sixteen is good."
Tiffany looked up at Taeyeon. "When was your very first date?"
"When I was fourteen, actually." Taeyeon grinned. "But it was silly. I wouldn't consider it a real date."
"Sixteen. We're sticking to sixteen," stated Tiffany firmly.
Taeyeon laughed. "Sixteen it is. So I take it that you two talked? Her mood seems to have improved a lot since this morning." She went around the desk, sitting down across from Tiffany.
"Yeah. I'll brief you the full story later but the most important thing is that it's not as serious as we thought it was."
"Really? What was it about then?"
"One, it's a boy. Two, father issues."
"It's a boy?" Taeyeon leaned forward. "She's seriously crushing on someone?"
Tiffany nodded.
"Then why so moody about it?"
"She's a teenager. Everything will make her moody," joked Tiffany. "She was confused and scared because she thought that we were expecting her to like girls instead."
"Wha... Now that's a sentence I never thought I'd hear." Taeyeon then laughed out loud. "Why would she think that?"
"I don't know. Maybe she thought that parents expect their children to follow their paths? You'll have to ask her that yourself."
"What about the father issues?"
"She misses her father. She misses having a father."
Taeyeon took a deep breath. "I feel bad for her but there's nothing we can do about that one."
"I know. She told me that she got teased at school too. Because of us."
"I've expected that, to be honest. We both have."
"Still doesn't make it less hurtful to know that it has actually happened."
"I agree. I just hope that she won't keep it to herself and that she knows that we're trying."
"She does, thankfully. She said that she has always ignored the teasing because she knows better."
"Glad to hear that."
Tiffany nodded. "Anyway, Sooyoung's gonna be here any minute and I think you better go now. Don't want Jiyoon to be late. Her crush apparently thinks that you're cool because you have a gun. He wants to meet you."
"I shall show him my gun and what I can do with it. Especially to people who hurts my baby girl."
"Don't scare him. Jiyoon wants to impress him not scare him away."
"Maybe but I should give him a fair warning because I will use this gun if he does something stupid."
"Umma! Let's go!"
They turned their heads to see Jiyoon running back inside the room, taking hold of her small purse and the birthday gift she had prepared.
Taeyeon stood up but remembered the other thing she was going to tell Tiffany. "By the way, you're gonna have to pick her up later. I'm off to Jeonju with Haejoon oppa. We'll be leaving straight after I drop Jiyoon off at the mall."
"Oh? Is this related to the case?"
Taeyeon nodded. "Ask Sooyoung to update you."
"It's not dangerous, is it?"
"Nah. Haejoon oppa is very reliable and so is the local force." Taeyeon saw the worry and decided to comfort Tiffany, walking around the desk to give her a hug. "Part of the job, Fany. You should get used to this by now."
"I will never get used to the possibility of you not coming home to me although it's something that I know I have to prepare myself for every single day."
"Don't worry. It's not a raid or anything dangerous like that. I'll be back by morning."
"You're not coming home tonight?" quipped Jiyoon after overhearing her parents' conversation.
"I have work to do outside of Seoul but I'll be back tomorrow," Taeyeon told the girl. She gave Tiffany a quick peck on the lips then grinned at her before she withdrew her arms and walked away. "See ya."
"Be careful, Taetae."
"I definitely will." Taeyeon took hold of Jiyoon's hand. "Let's go meet this boy and show him my gun. Is he interested in a few shooting demonstrations? I'm a record holder, you know. I specialize in headshots. Bad guys' heads. Or bad school boys who dare date my princess," Taeyeon said with an evil smirk.
"Umma!"
Tiffany couldn't help but chuckle. Be safe, Taetae.