Kai's POV
I walked out of our extra room holding a yellow manila envelope that was completely stuffed with papers. I bit my lip out of anxiousness as I exited the office and made my way to the kitchen where Lucas was sitting at the counter, nervously tapping his finger on the granite counter.
"Are you ready?" Lucas asked, his voice nearly a whisper.
"Yeah," I croaked, fully aware of the things I would have to relive when we got to the police station.
Lucas slid off of his seat and fell into step next to me. He laced our fingers together as we made our way to his car. He didn't let go of my hand the entire car ride there.
We pulled into the small parking lot of the Silveredge Police Department. From the outside it looked like any other building in the area, it was several stories tall with countless windows lining the off-white walls. The station was very modernized which made it feel uncomfortable inside.
The second I opened and stepped through one of the large double doors, everyone stopped what they were doing and popped their heads up, barely sparing a glance before they all resumed their work.
There was a front desk to the left. Just beyond it were several desks all placed next to each other in rows with cops and detectives buried in paperwork or on their computers.
Lucas and I stood in front of the front desk, just feet away from the entrance. We were silent, waiting for the tall man to notice us.
"Hi, how can I help you?" He asked, still working on his large desktop.
"Um," I started, "I'd like to report a crime..." I was unsure of how I was supposed to go about this, it was my first time.
"Sure, sure. What's the nature? Animal abuse, theft, assault?" He continued to list several others.
I gulped, barely able to swallow. My voice slightly cracked, "Murder."
That got his attention. His wide eyes snapped to mine, "Murder? Oh, um, that would bring you to the violent crimes unit. You'll need to go to the third floor. Once you get off of the elevator you'll head straight. The first door on the right will take you there. Just knock on the door before entering..."
I gave him a curt smile as Lucas and I walked away, his questioning eyes following us until we disappeared beyond the automatic metal doors.
We walked through the hallway, the only noise coming from our footsteps. As we approached the brown door we could hear muffled shouting. There was a blurred glass window and we could see several figures running around.
Lucas knocked on the door three times, making sure it was loud enough for them to hear over whatever chaos was happening on the other side.
"Fuck!" There was a loud shout as a man tripped over a stack of papers while opening the door. Right when he was about to faceplant Lucas caught his shoulder, pushing him back up as the guy stumbled. "Thanks," he grunted.
"Sure," Lucas let go once he had both feet firmly planted on the ground.
The guy's height was slightly shorter than Lucas but his build was bulkier and more muscular than either of us. He had deep eye bags on his face and his complexion was pale, almost sickly.
"Can I help you two?" He asked, seemingly unused to people coming by his unit.
"Uh, yea," I started, "the guy at the front desk told us to come here..."
"Are you sure?" He stood in the doorway. "This is the violent crimes unit, so whatever teenage angst you got going on with your friends that led to graffiti, smashed windows, assault, whatever you got, you're gonna want to head to the second floor because we only deal with serious shit here," the man spat as Lucas and I stood awkwardly in front of him.
"I'm pretty sure we're in the right place though," I told him, my nails digging into my palm.
He let out another heavy sight mixed with a grunt as he rubbed his eyes, clearly in a bad mood, "Look," he said sternly, "my team is coming off of a couple all-nighters. I haven't slept in three days. I'm really not up for another made-up story from some bored kids! So, tell me," he had an angry look on his face. "Is your case more important than me getting some well-deserved shut-eye? Huh?" The guy provoked.
This guy hasn't even heard what I have to say and he's already playing down my brother's murder?
"Look, man. I get that you might be having a shitty day, but I bet his tops yours," Lucas seethed.
"Ugh, my head," the guy turned his head to the side, cracking his neck. "I have a killer headache and I can only take so much aspirin in a day. Can you just go home and come back another day?" He yawned and spoke with a bored, unempathetic expression on his face.
I couldn't keep it in, I jabbed my hand out and grabbed him by the collar, yanking his face toward mine. My gaze hardened and he flinched at my cold demeanor.
Everyone in the room paused what they were doing and looked at the commotion in the doorway. A couple of people stood still and others frantically tried to make their way over.
"What the fuck do you think you're doing right now!?" He screamed at me.
"No," I seethed with a calm and irritated tone. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"
"Get off of me!" He shouted as he attempted to pry my hands off of him.
I glared down at the man and the look on my face shut him up. "If you're not gonna do your fucking job then why the hell are you here?"
"I-I'm the captain of the violent crimes unit!" He cried, "You can't do this to me!"
Lucas grabbed my arm, "Kai! You really can't do this. Do you want to be the one that ends up in prison instead of him?"
I ignored Lucas and bore my eyes into the man in front of me, he began to cower under my intense gaze, "I don't want to deal with a fucking pig like you either, but I don't have much of a choice. So here's what's going to happen," the corners of my mouth twitched up into a sinister smile as the captain's eyes widened in fear. "I'm going to report a murder. And you're going to help me arrest the guy before he kills someone else. Do. You. Understand?" I cocked my head to the side. I probably looked like a lunatic, but I wasn't in the mood to deal with this bullshit.
He frantically nodded his head as the rest of the detectives stood frozen.
"Good," I instantly dropped my intimidating aura. I shoved the man backward, letting go of his shirt. He stumbled and nearly tripped on a stack of files. "Why don't we go somewhere a little more private?"
"Do you know what the charges are for assaulting a police officer?" The man fumed as we walked into the messy room.
"Do you know what the consequence of murder is?" I replied back sarcastically. "I'll let you in on a little secret, its death."
He let out a deep breath and stopped in the middle of the room. Everyone was still staring at us.
"Someone join me in the interrogation room!" He boomed.
Everyone lowered their gaze and pretended to be busy except for one guy. A tall yet skinny man with a childlike face raised his hand in the air, "I'll join, cap!" He exclaimed as he made his way over to us.
He had black hair that was short at the sides and slightly longer on top. His pale skin contrasted with his dark eyes. The skinny man held out his hand to shake ours, "My name's Carter. You're Kai Yoon and Lucas Beck, right?"
"Yeah," I shook his hand, much less apprehensive around him.
"You know them, Carter? Did you go to school with them or something?" The captain asked.
"I was a senior at Silveredge High when they were freshmen, but even back then they were both pretty well known. I'm more surprised you don't know who they are. You've heard of Mad Dog, right?" Carter asked the other guy.
"Yeah?" The captain replied.
"Well, cap. I suggest that you don't get on their bad side. They're the guys who won," the black-haired man bragged.
The captain nervously gulped and cleared his throat, "I think we got off on the wrong foot. I'm just extremely sleep deprived so I apologize for my insensitiveness earlier." He held out his hand and gave me a firm handshake, "I'm the captain of the Silveredge violent crimes unit. My name's Jackson Levin."
"Nice to meet you," I spoke out of formality as If I hadn't just threatened him minutes ago.
"I'll take you two to another room," we followed Jackson and Carter into a room down the hall. It had beige walls and a grey table in the middle. The lighting was somewhat bright.
Lucas and I sat on one side while the detectives sat on the other.
"So, tell me about this murder," Jackson started apprehensively.
"Well, there's more than just murder, but a lot of the statute of limitations have run out. Let's see," I began counting on my fingers. "There's murder, attempted murder, child abuse and neglect, and substance abuse."
"Okay, okay," He jotted everything down. "Can you tell me more about the murderer and the person who was killed?"
"The murderer's name is Sangtae Yoon. He's a 48-year-old Korean male. He should already be in your system," I informed him.
Jackson quickly typed something into his computer, "You're right. Sangtae Yoon was wanted for child abuse and evading arrest, but the statute of limitations has already passed on both charges."
"Yes, but there is no statute of limitations on murder and attempted murder. The other crimes can just be used as evidence to help him be convicted of a longer sentence," I explained.
"Sangtae Yoon... Are you related to him?" The captain questioned.
"He's my dad," I stated bluntly.
"And who is it that you say he killed?"
"My older brother, Ace," I clenched my jaw.
Jackson let out a deep sigh, "Okay. Do you think you can explain everything to me? I'll need the whole story to further the investigation."
I chewed on the inside of my cheek, "Right," I mumbled. "When I was seven, my mom died in a car accident. I don't really know how everything started, but my dad was having a hard time so he started drinking. Somewhere along the way, he started taking drugs, I think it was mostly cocaine, but it's hard to remember," I told him as I scratched the back of my head.
"She died when we were out for my birthday so I guess that's why he blamed me. He was always getting drunk or snorting a line, eventually, he'd just shoot up. But he always took his anger out on me."
I choked on my words, "One time he was shoving my head into the bathtub... trying to down me," my voice cracked and my nose twitched as I tried to keep myself from getting too emotional. "And my brother was trying to get him to stop because I was... I was... yeah. And my dad got frustrated that Ace was getting in the way. So he smashed his head into the counter," I furrowed my brows and my eyes became unfocused, staring at the table. "He slammed his head into the counter over and over again until Ace just stopped... moving," I chewed my bottom lip so hard that it began to bleed.
Lucas slipped his hand into mine under the table and gave mine a gentle squeeze, pulling my hand to rest on his thigh.
"After that, things just got worse for me, I mean, it's not like my dad was feeding us or anything, and I didn't really have any clothes either. Everything we ate or wore was stuff we found in dumpsters. And uhm, the last time he tried to kill me was when I got out. Then he went missing..." I finished explaining
"I only came today because I can't wait any longer. I found out that my dad got remarried and now I have a little sister. I have reason to believe that she's in danger and that my dad might hurt her," I confessed to them.
Carter looked concerned and Jackson was rubbing his fingers around his chin, deep in thought.
"We need proof. Evidence. We can't do anything without it," the captain sighed
I pulled out the yellow folder and placed it on the desk, sliding it toward the detectives. "These are all the documents I could get my hands on related to my hospital records. There are also images of my dad purchasing cocaine in there."
"This is good," Jackson hummed, skimming through the papers. "Can I see your ID?"
"Sure," I quickly took it out of my wallet and handed the card to him.
He checked to make sure the name on my ID matched what was in the hospital records. Jackson squinted his eyes, "Oh? Happy birthday..." He trailed off, probably remembering how it's also my mom's death anniversary.
"Thanks," I mumbled back.
"A broken leg, then a broken arm, several cracked ribs, a broken nose, a sprained ankle, another broken leg and arm, numerous gashes and lacerations that needed stitches, and severe nerve damage that resulted in temporary paralysis of the legs? Shit..." Jackson's brows were tightly knit together.
"There are also witnesses who are willing to testify. A couple of old neighbors who could hear... it. And a friend who saw my dad try and kill me one time, the one who got her parents to call the cops," I told him.
"Right, right," it didn't seem like he was paying attention to my words, but Carter was so I continued.
"I also have my dad's current address and family information in there," I gestured toward the remaining papers in the envelope.
Carter took the rest of the things out and the cops meticulously went through the documents in silence.
"We can use most of this stuff... But these medical records won't be valid in court because the treatments were never paid for, they could get you in trouble. And even though you have the same name as the patient, the defense lawyer will argue that it could be any Kai Yoon. Do you have anything else that they wouldn't be able to consider inadmissible?"
I swallowed hard and glanced at Lucas who was already carefully studying me to make sure I was okay.
"I have the scars..." I told them, my voice weak.
"Would you be okay if we brought a doctor in to examine you?" Jackson rubbed his eyes, not helping the already heavy dark circles. "They would be able to testify and act as an expert witness."
"I guess," I spoke faintly, obviously uncomfortable with the idea.
"Carter, can you call Doctor Takahashi? She should be on the fifth floor right now," Jackson instructed.
"Sure," the pale man agreed. He quickly called her, giving the doctor a slight brief on what was going on.
Just minutes later a tall, lanky Japanese woman with long, slicked back, black hair walked through the door, pumping sanitizer into her hands. She wore a long white coat and had almost gothic makeup with deep purple lipstick and eyeshadow. "Hello, Kai. I'm Doctor Takahashi, I'm just here to take a quick look at some of the scars you may have received," she spoke as she hovered around Jackson, analyzing the medical records I had given him.
"I will need you to undress," she moved to the only window and shut the blinds. "Would you like me to ask the others in the room to leave?"
"Uh, I'd prefer if they didn't stay..." I was thankful she asked.
"And your friend?" She questioned as the two detectives made themselves scarce.
"He can stay," the words flew out of my mouth almost too quickly.
"Okay then. It's always good to have someone in the room that you are comfortable with," she gave me a soft smile. "Could you take your clothes off? You can leave your underwear on though."
I hesitantly began to strip down, feeling bare and uncomfortable with her gaze on me.
The expression on her face hardened, "This is much worse than I thought it'd be," her voice was full of sorrow. "I've never seen a case like this.
I didn't know where to look so I averted my gaze and stared at the floor, flinching slightly when her finger brushed a thick scar near my collarbone.
I'd never felt so vulnerable before. Besides back when I was living with my dad of course.
It's not physical touch that bothers me, I don't care about being punched when I fight or light skinship with friends, but I always had my clothes on for those things. This was a different level of being exposed, it was almost humiliating and it made me want to cry.
I felt her gaze wrack down my body, jumping from one scar to the next. Her eyes traveled to my arms, then dropping to my wrist. Her face noticeably hardened when eyes focused on the only scars on my body that were self-inflicted.
My lips began to quiver and my breath hitched in the back of my throat.
"Can you turn around so that I can look at your back?" Doctor Takahashi requested.
My hands were beginning to shake and I didn't trust myself to speak. I faced the wall, her stare was boring into my back and I bit my lip to make sure I didn't let out any muffled cries as I held back the tears that were forming in my eyes.
I suddenly heard Lucas' chair make a screeching noise as he moved it backward, causing the doctor and me to crane our heads to see what he was doing. I almost forgot he was here.
He quickly walked over to us, the doctor sending him a confused glance. He walked around me so that I was looking directly at him but still facing the wall.
The doctor continued with what she was doing. She touched a scar near my neck and trailed her finger down the tissue. She poked and prodded it, then pulled at the skin around it.
I looked into Lucas' eyes as he brought his face close to mine. He moved his hands up to my face and used his thumbs to wipe the water from my eyes, offering me a warm smile.
I couldn't help but sniffle, the scratchy feeling in my throat slowly disappearing as Lucas grabbed one of my hands and held it tightly in his.
Lucas was looking at the doctor, seeing where she was touching and how. She gave us confused glances, but ignored it and continued doing her job.
I flinched again when she started pulling on the skin surrounding the scar that started at my upper shoulder and stretched through the middle of my back and to the opposite hip.
"This is the one that resulted in your leg paralysis, isn't it?" She spoke.
I opened my mouth but nothing came out, I felt violated... I don't like this. But I had a feeling it was going to happen. It was one of the many reasons I avoided coming to the cops.
Lucas noticed my lack of response and answered for me, "Yeah, it was that one."
She sighed, "I think that's enough. I know you must have felt uncomfortable, but thank you for letting me do this. It will only help when your father is arrested and during his trial," she offered me a sad smile. "I'll step out of the room for you to get dressed. We'll be right outside the door when you're done."
The second I heard the door close I let out a small gasp as a tear slid down my face. Lucas engulfed me in a tight hug and I buried my face in the crook of his neck, wrapping my arms around his lower back.
"Good job. I know it wasn't easy, but it's over now," he whispered in my ear.
I nodded my head against him as he slowly rocked us back and forth in a soothing matter.
He rubbed small circles on my back and eventually let go. He went to go grab my clothes off the table, "Arms up," he told me.
So I raised my arms in the air and he slipped my black shirt over my arms and head. I pulled it the rest of the way down, adjusting it slightly. He handed me my pants and belt and I quickly put on the rest of my clothes.
I didn't say anything the whole time. When I was about to turn around to tell the cops that they could come back inside, Lucas grabbed my hand and spun me back toward him and enveloped me in a kiss. It was endearing and sweet, "I'm proud of you," he murmured as his forehead was pressed against mine.
I still didn't say anything, but he knew I was grateful to have him here with me.
He let go of me and I walked to the door and opened it. They followed me back inside and we all sat at the table.
The doctor spoke first, "We can use his physical scars as evidence. If you look closely at the lack of red pigmentation as well as the overall thickness, you can tell that the scars are mostly old, probably from early childhood. There were some newer ones as well as several bruises that I wanted to ask about, I know you needed some space earlier so I was hoping I could ask now."
"He's a professional fighter," Carter smiled as he answered for me.
"Ah. I see," she nodded in response. "A large percentage of his skin is covered in scars, it's not something that could have happened while fighting with no weapons in an organized league, so the defense lawyer won't be able to spin that.
"I'm sorry that you have to think about all of this stuff right now, and on your birthday at that, but we also need evidence for the murder of your brother..." Jackson trailed off.
"His body is buried in the backyard of my old house," I croaked out, my voice hoarse and rough.
"Would you be okay with going to the scene? We'll be able to find the body if you give us the address, but it might take days to find the exact location without you," Jackson reluctantly asked.
"It's okay, I'll go," my eyes were still red from earlier.
"Do you have the address?" Carter questioned.
"Yes. 603 Maine Street in Hames," I replied.
"Hames? That's nearly a three-hour drive from here, are you sure you'll be okay to go?" Doctor Takahashi's voice was laced with concern.
"I came here today because it's important that things are taken care of as quickly as possible," I explained, the urgency audible in my voice.
"I think it's best if we go now, then. If we leave soon then we might be able to find him before it gets dark," Jackson told us.
We all stood up getting ready to go. The four of us, minus the doctor, made our way into the elevator.
"Oh, right," Carter pulled his phone out. "Could I get your contact information?"
"Yeah, sure," Lucas replied, putting both of our personal numbers into his phone.
"Carter," Jackson started, "call the Hames City Police Department and inform them of the situation. They'll aid us in the search."
"Okay, Cap," Carter began the call as we all exited the elevator. We parted ways without another exchange of words.
I climbed into the passenger seat of Lucas' car as he turned on some soothing music and began the long drive to Hames.
I pulled out my phone and tapped on Charlotte's contact. She was still at her home. I let out a sigh of relief, at least she's okay.
The hours pass by rapidly when you're lost in thought. I didn't even realize that Lucas had parked on the opposite side of my old house. He was quiet, waiting for me to be ready.
I looked past Lucas and through the driver's side window. It looked similar to how I remember it. It was a rickety two-story house. The white paint was decaying and peeling off. The bluish-grey trims were now a green woody color. The white picket fence that surrounded the completely dead grass of the front lawn had mostly fallen down with random pickets missing. The upstairs window was still shattered, just like the day I left, and the front door was unhinged from the broken, beat-up wall.
"Home sweet home," I mumbled as I stepped out of the car.
There were already Hames County cops surrounding the house. There were several neighbors that had stepped outside, curious as to why we would be going into the abandoned house. I did see some familiar faces, but I averted my eyes before any of them could recognize me as the boy they ignored despite hearing the screams every day and night.
Soon enough, Jackson and Carter pulled up a couple of houses down, stepping out of their large cop car.
Carter spotted us and then waved. We walked over to them as we met in front of the cracked driveway.
"Kai, if you'll lead the way," Jackson's lips were tightly pressed together.
I made my way to the side gate and reached over the top, lifting up a small lever that we had used as a lock. Numerous cops followed behind me as well as a coroner who would be there to look at and take the body.
I felt like I was going to throw up being back at this place. As the sky began to dim, the air became suffocating.
I walked across the dirt-covered weeds until I was faced with a tiny shed in the corner of the backyard, pressed against two different sides of the fence.
I pointed at the rusty grey structure, "Under there," my voice cracked. "You might be able to get to him from the side, but the bottom of the shed is concrete so it'd be hard to dig directly down," I instructed the men.
I heard several grunts and saw many nod their heads as someone directed them to different areas to start digging.
Lucas and I sat down on the step in front of the glass door that would take us inside the house. I was tempted to have a look around, but my better judgment told me not to as it would only bring back bad memories full of pain and suffering.
I leaned my head against Lucas' shoulder and laced our fingers together. I stared at the large men shoveling away at the ground.
My mind swirled, numerous images popping into my head. I knew what a dead body looked like because of TV shows. But now instead of imagining an actor playing a freshly killed person, I was thinking of bones covered in decomposing and rotting flesh. In reality, dead bodies aren't pretty. Ace, or the little bits left of him, would have been covered in maggots and other insects eating away at him. My once amazing big brother would become a bald, bug-infested pile of bones. His flesh would have begun to liquify just one month after his death. But now, 10 years later, all that would be left of him is the small bones of an 11-year-old boy. Unfortunately... that was the truth and I couldn't ignore my reality.
The thought alone was enough for bile to rise from my throat and into my mouth, but I swallowed it down, not wanting to make a scene.
"We found it!" A burly man with a large beard shouted from the left side of the shack.
I felt my heart drop at his words. I know that we came here to find his body. I know the whole point of this was to find Ace. I know that. I know. I do. I know... But still...
"Over here," a cop said to the coroner.
Carter walked up to us, "You two should go home now. You don't need to see this." Lucas nodded his head, but I couldn't focus. Everything was a daze.
I could only hear voices in the background, but I wasn't listening, "I texted you both so you'll have my number. When we have any updates I'll let you know. Also, feel free to text me if you need anything," Carter had a small smile on his face in an attempt to comfort me.
"C'mon," Lucas hoisted me off the ground, "Let's go home."
With our hands still clasped together, Lucas led me outside. We were just about to make our way past the driveway when we were stopped on the sidewalk.
"Kai? Is that you?" One of my old neighbors questioned. She was now an older woman. Past middle-aged but not quite elderly.
I turned to look at her.
"Oh my! It is you! I always wondered what happened after you left... if you were doing okay..."
If you were so worried then why didn't you do something when it actually mattered?
Lucas glanced at me, but I still didn't respond.
"What are all these cops doing here?" She asked as she crossed her arms, peering her head to the side and looking at the open gate.
"Digging up Ace's body," I muttered coldly.
"W-what!?" She stuttered.
"Let's go," I whispered as I tugged on Lucas' shirt, urging him to walk away.
I could hear my neighbor talking to herself in the background, her voice becoming quieter the further we got, "He died? If I had known he killed his own son maybe I would have- no. I would have done something. Oh dear... how could something like this have happened?"
I stood outside the passenger door, my hand on the handle but my body unmoving.
"Kai, what are you doing?" Lucas asked.
But I didn't respond, I was lost in a sea of thoughts.
Lucas sighed and closed his door. He walked over to me and removed my hand from the door. He wrapped his arms around my waist and placed his head next to mine squeezing me tight.
I couldn't help it, I let the tears fall. All of them. I sobbed into the crook of Lucas' neck, clasping fistfuls of his shirt as I struggled to ground myself to something. Anything.
"Shhh," he hummed, running a hand through my hair. "It's okay. You're okay," Lucas' voice was calming and sweet. "I'm right here."