The VIP sauna room at Hotel Seoin was filled with a dense fog of steam. Not many people visited this place, so it was relatively peaceful and slow.
Eyes closed, a towel covering the face, reclined, Tae-jun was attentively listening to the news streaming on the TV. Since the art industry had stayed out of controversy unlike the movie community and the athletic field, the accusations against Yoo were being excitedly broadcast with deep insight on the crimes of the once renowned artist.
Jin-wook started talking as he brushed off his sweat with a towel. “The impact of the current issue is slated to be greater than expected.”
“That’s no surprise. It’s a wonder how silent everyone has been until now. Rape, assault, painting fraud … he’s done so much to ruin the students’ lives.”
“Still, I didn’t expect you to reach out to your mother first.” Jin-wook remarked.
“What’s so weird about a son calling his mother?” Tae-jun retorted.
“Because it’s never occurred until now.”
As much as Tae-jun blamed his father for ruining the peaceful childhood that he had had, he bore a deep resentment toward his mother too. She had, without batting an eyelid, relinquished him like he were an object in her possession and not her son. And what child could endure his parents’ abandonment?
He had taken a stand right there and then. Gone was the affection he had for his mother, and instead, he treated her as a stranger. He wouldn’t talk to her when they met, which would be mostly in a public setting, behaving like associates. Those who didn’t know better would never be able to connect them as such.
That said, the man had never called his mother, not when he was a twelve-year-old in need of motherly affection nor upon attaining adulthood as filial piety. He had behaved like she didn’t exist in this world, rather his world. So, this sudden change would solely be attributed to Yuri.
“It was necessary. I could’ve handled things my way but that wouldn’t suffice. Let karma slit his own throat. I wish Yoo would lose his entire career, be shunned by his loved ones, and helplessly crawl on the ground like a limbless bug.”
“If the chief director has resigned, then it seems impossible for Yoo to come back to that field for a while.”
“For a while?” Tae-jun scoffed audibly. “Impossible … forever … because he’s going to have his wrist chopped off from a very unfortunate accident. There’s no way he’ll be holding a paintbrush ever again. That’s how I roll. ”
His voice was low enough to instantly cool down the steamed room. Tae-jun asked Jin-wook as he ran his hand through his moist hair, “And about my request?”
“It was a car crash. The victim jumped towards the car intoxicated. The driver was sentenced for a year and a half and is currently out of prison.”
“A year and a half? Why so short?” The man was surprised.
“The driver confessed, and the accident occurred on a very isolated road without any cameras or streetlights in sight. Most essentially, there was a witness who stated that the victim threw himself to the car first. Moreover, the toxicity report showed exceedingly high levels of alcohol in his blood system. The initial sentence was to serve three years but the extenuation of the case shortened it.”
Tae-jun ruminated on what Yuri had said.
He hadn’t believed Hye-seong Jin entirely when he said everything was about ‘money.’ The woman that he had observed was full of pride and far from materialism. She was also extremely conservative when it came to s3x. And the father whom she tried to protect so desperately, going so far as to throw aside her self-respect and sell her body, had jumped toward a car intoxicated. Was this what actually happened?
“What about the black box?”
“It was coincidentally out of order that day so the power was turned off.”
“Logically, none of this makes any sense. There was a witness on a road without any cameras, black boxes, or even streetlights?
“It seems suspicious to me too. But what’s fishier is that the driver who hit the man has worked on In-bae Lee’s election campaign.”
“Hmm, In-bae Lee gets involved once again.”
It was a name that kept coming up during the investigation of Yuri’s case. Why In-bae Lee instead of Myung-je Jin? What sort of contact did Yuri and In-bae Lee ever have?
Jin-wook seemed to be asking the same question. “My instincts are telling me that there’s something more to this accident. But it would do you no good to have beef with In-bae Lee. After All, he is the strongest presidential candidate.”
As long as the Seoin Group kept its major business in the defense industry, it would always be correlated with politicians. Lee’s speech about increasing the military budget made him the most supported individual by the conservatives. It was crucial to stay on the same wavelength with a soon-to-be man of authority. But Tae-jun was without the slightest doubt.
“Doesn’t matter.” He declared flatly.
“I understand, Sir. I’ll take a deeper look into Suwon Han’s accident.”
Everything was hazy at the moment. What was at the end of all of this? Whatever it was, as long as it was related to Yuri he was never going to stop investigating. To be more exact, he wouldn’t be able to stop himself.
Tae-jun spoke as he was reminded of something. “And did you meet the owner of the building?”
“Yes, Sir. He said he’ll sell it for 50 million more.”