Jungkook
Misun and I arrived at Kim Dong-Hyun’s house. We got out of the car and walked towards the gate. ‘Talk about a huge house huh? The more they have, the more they spend,’ I said as Misun rang the bell. She gave me a glare while I just simply smiled. There was something truly fun about teasing her.
‘Shh, don’t pass comments,’ she whispered in warning, as she looked around, almost as if she was searching for a camera or something that would pick up what I was saying.
‘Don’t worry. I know my etiquette princess,’ I said with a wink. Once again, she gave me a glare. She was quite cute when she glared at me like that, making it even more fun to tease her.
‘Maybe you should remember you’re talking to your superior,’ she replied, with one eyebrow raised and a challenging look on her face.
‘Sure thing…princess,’ I said which caused her to roll her eyes just as the intercom crackled.
‘Hello? Who is there?’ A woman asked, her voice quiet. Misun took a deep breath and pressed the button.
‘This is Detective Yang Misun and Detective Jeon Jungkook. We came to talk to you about your husband ma’am,’ Misun said slowly but clearly.
‘What?’ Her surprised voice said. ‘Come in,’ the woman said as a buzzer could be heard. The gate opened automatically and the two of us started walking in.
The pathway was pretty long, just another indicator of how huge the house was. I scoffed and shook my head in disbelief.
‘What now?’ Misun asked quietly as she looked at me. I wasn’t sure if she was curious of my reaction or simply annoyed. I just shrugged, unable to help myself.
‘Doesn’t it bother you how some people are filthy rich and have homes like this but there are some people who don’t have food to eat or a roof over their heads?’ I asked and she sighed.
‘Yes, it does Jungkook. Unfortunately, life is really unfair,’ she said. ‘Those who have a lot continue to take and have more while those who struggle keep falling further down the abyss,’ she replied. ‘Anyways, let’s not think about that and let our opinions cloud our judgement,’ she said.
‘Never. I was just saying but, I know what I’m doing princess,’ I said with a wink.
‘Stop calling me that,’ she snapped as we reached the front door where Mrs. Kim was waiting with an anxious look on her face.
‘Is Dong-Hyun okay? Please tell me he’s okay!’ she said as her breathing hitched a little. Her eyes darted from me to Misun and back to me. Her eyes were full of questions and fear.
‘Ma’am, can we please talk inside?’ Misun asked as Mrs. Kim nodded. She led us inside to the huge living room. Everything was so beautiful and intricate and I wondered who designed this place – Mrs. Kim or her husband.
‘Please, tell me if he’s okay or not? If cops are here it can’t be good news, right? That’s what they always say!’ she said as she paced around.
‘Ma’am, please sit down,’ I said as I led her to the couch. She nodded as she sat down but squeezed her knees together and placed her arms on her knees, all signs of her being nervous.
‘Ma’am, unfortunately, my, um partner and I,’ Misun began, hiccupping the word partner. She took a deep breath before she looked at me and I nodded, trying to encourage her. ‘Unfortunately, we don’t bring you good news. Your husband has passed away,’ Misun said.
‘No…no!! NOO!!’ Mrs. Kim began to say, her voice becoming louder with each sob. Her tears fell rapidly as her body shook.
Her emotions of shock, denial and sadness looked genuine enough. Either she was truly feeling them or she was a really good actress.
‘No, no, it can’t be happening, no,’ she sobbed as she rocked back and forth. ‘Are you…are you sure it’s him? Ma—maybe y—you go—got it wro—ng, please!’ she begged.
‘Ma’am, we’re pretty sure it is him but we would still like you to go down to the morgue to confirm identity at some point,’ I said.
‘How did this happen? What happened to Dong?’ she asked as she breathed heavily.
‘Ma’am you can take some time before we get into the details,’ Misun offered but Mrs. Kim shook her head fervently.
‘How did my husband die? What happened to him?’ she repeated, insisting to know. I would do the same as her so I was not surprised.
‘Unfortunately, he was shot in his hotel room,’ Misun explained. Mrs. Kim’s eyes went wide as her mouth fell open. She shook her head as her hand went to her chest. I half worried she’d get a heart attack or something. I leaned forward just in case she fell or fainted.
This was one of the parts I hated the most about our job. It never got easier telling family members they lost someone special to them, especially to murder. I had my fair of share doing this before, but it never, never got easier.
‘Oh God!’ Mrs. Kim said as her whole body shook. ‘Oh God, I can’t believe it. Why would anyone want to hurt him? I don’t…I don’t understand wh—wait,’ she stopped, as she looked at us.
‘What is it Mrs. Kim?’ I asked, wondering whether she was going to actually end up telling us something important, a clue to this murder.
‘Wh—what about Park Han-Gyeol? Is he…is he okay or…’ she stopped as she bit her lower lip. It was almost as if he could feel it in her bones. Misun and I looked at one another before Misun scooted closer.
‘Unfortunately, he was sharing the room with your husband and was also a victim. He was also found shot in bed, next to your husband,’ Misun said.
‘Oh God! Oh no! No!’ she said, crying even more.
‘Ma’am, how do you know Mr. Park Han-Gyeol?’ I asked. She lifted her head up and looked at me.
‘He’s my husband’s best friend and—’ she stopped as she bit her lower lip even more, almost to the point of drawing blood.
‘Ma’am, it’s important to share any information you have so we can catch whoever did this to them. Did you know about them sharing a room?’ Misun asked and Mrs. Kim nodded.
‘I’m going to be a bit blunt here,’ I said as both women looked at me. Mrs. Kim nodded once again. ‘Were they having an affair Mrs. Kim?’ I asked.
Misun frowned a little, probably not quite happy with how I phrased it but Mrs. Kim just sighed. ‘It was more complicated in a way,’ she replied.
‘What do you mean Mrs. Kim?’ Misun asked. Mrs. Kim stayed silent as she looked between the two of us. ‘You don’t have to be afraid. We’re here to help,’ Misun insisted.
‘Your partner was right, they were having an affair, although I wouldn’t call it that,’ Mrs. Kim said.
‘Then what would you say it was, and I’m guessing you knew about it?’ I asked and she nodded. Well, this certainly got interesting. Could there be a motive there?
‘I’d call it a relationship Detective and yes, I knew about it and I encouraged it and helped them hide it,’ Mrs. Kim declared, surprising both me and Misun. We looked at one another, unsure of this new information. Misun cleared her throat as she looked at Mrs. Kim.
‘Care to explain that Mrs. Kim?’ Misun asked. Mrs. Kim sighed as she touched her necklace before she looked at us.
‘Dong-Hyun and I knew each other since we were toddlers. We went to school together to after school activities. Heck, even our families were friends. We spent summers camping together and going on holidays together. Dong-Hyun is—was my best friend, brother,’ she began.
‘So, is that how the two of you end up getting married?’ I asked.
‘Sort of. You see, Dong-Hyun, he’s gay,’ she said as she looked at the two of us. ‘His father, he’s a nice guy but very conservative. When there were rumours about him being gay, his father threatened to kick him out of the company if he did not marry a girl,’ Mrs. Kim explained.
‘I see. So you married him to help him?’ Misun asked and Mrs. Kim nodded.
‘Like I said, we were best friends. I was one of the few people who knew about his sexuality. Then there was his boyfriend – Han-Gyeol and Han-Gyeol’s sister. The four of us made a pact, to always keep it a secret,’ Mrs. Kim explained.
‘How did you feel about it? Did it bother you that you had to keep this secret and live, well, in a lie?’ I asked.
‘No,’ Mrs. Kim replied with conviction that told me she was telling the truth. ‘I...Dong-Hyun and I went through a lot of things together. He was there for me when my boyfriend cheated on me when we were in high school and I was there for him when he lost his mother. I was ready to do this with him and I never minded. The four of us often went out together,’ Mrs. Kim explained.
‘So basically, you married each other because you were best friends and you were helping him to hide it from his father?’ Misun asked and Mrs. Kim nodded.
‘His father and society. I sometimes wonder how well he would have been accepted as a gay CEO of a huge company you know?’ Mrs. Kim asked.
‘Do you think that if his father found out, he could have done this?’ Misun asked but she shook her head.
‘He was a conservative and I think, it wasn’t about not accepting Dong-Hyun as being gay but he was scared how it would impact the company. I think he would have disowned him or kicked him out of the company, but he would not have hurt him like that, never,’ Mrs. Kim insisted.
‘Do you know anyone who would want to harm your husband?’ I asked and she sighed as she ran her hand through her long hair.
‘Business wise, Dong-Hyun had a lot of rivals, but still, it was kept civil and on business terms. I met a lot of them and they always seemed to respect him as a business man,’ she explained.
‘What about any friends or maybe, lovers?’ I asked.
‘Dong-Hyun and Han-Gyeol have been together for over a decade. He had no other loves except for Han-Gyeol,’ Mrs. Kim said. ‘It’s why I was also so ready to do the whole marriage thing. I could not let him sacrifice his love because those two adored one another,’ Mrs. Kim said.
‘So there is no one that comes to mind?’ Misun asked and Mrs. Kim sighed, suddenly seemingly unsure. ‘You can talk to us,’ she encouraged.
‘Even if it is just doubts or thoughts Mrs. Kim. We understand that you might be scared because you don’t have evidence so you don’t want to accuse anyone, but don’t worry, it’s our job to find that,’ I said and I saw Misun nodding in agreement.
‘Well, there is his brother, but like you said, I have no evidence,’ Mrs. Kim said.
‘Like my partner said, don’t worry about that. Tell us why you think that,’ Misun encouraged.
‘His older brother has half the company. They both run it together but Dong-Hyun’s areas are doing really well, both financially and socially. He was trying to make the company a company that helps those in need. There have been success spikes like never before and his brother was falling behind. A week ago, Dong-Hyun came home crying his heart out because his brother had a huge fight with him. You see, Dong-Hyun is amazing in everything but he’s also very sensitive, especially because he always looked up to his brother,’ Mrs. Kim explained.
‘We will check on him. Thank you so much for your time Mrs. Kim and once again, I’m really sorry for your loss,’ Misun said as she stood up.
‘We will send some officers to pick you up so you can come see him,’ I said as I also stood up.
‘Please catch the * who did this to Dong-Hyun and Han-Gyeol. Please find him and make him pay. Dong-Hyun and Han-Gyeol were good people trying to do good things,’ Mrs. Kim said.
‘We will, don’t worry,’ I said as Misun nodded.
‘Trust in us. We will get whoever did this,’ Misun said. We both made our way out of the house as we began to walk the pathway. ‘What do you think?’ she asked.
‘I believe that she is innocent, but we cannot rule her out completely,’ I said and she nodded.
‘I agree, although the gut feeling says like you, that she is innocent. We should go talk to Park Han-Gyeol’s sister to confirm the story as well as Kim Dong-Hyun’s brother, but I’d like his brother to be brought to the precinct,’ she said.
‘You want to shake him up a bit?’ I asked and she nodded. ‘Then we should press on that fight that happened,’ I said.
‘You read my mind,’ she said with a small smile.
‘See? I’m already starting to know how you work, princess!’ I said, to which she rolled her eyes at me.
‘Pabo,’ she mumbled to herself as we reached the car.