Double Junk - 98

Around that time, the food started to come out. The table was filled with thinly sliced steak and various dishes whose names were unknown. Doo-hyuk chewed on his clenched lips. Disdain flashed in his eyes. It was when he was about to say something.

Seokju moved a piece of meat onto Doo-hyuk’s plate and said, “If you want revenge on the Sular faction, I want to help.”

“Insane… Did you think I would agree to meet because I liked that idea? I’m also from the Jung-ho faction. We don’t stab our own people in the back, nor do we do favors for our enemies. I don’t know how much of a fool you think I am, but I have some pride,” Doo-hyuk said.

“But didn’t the Sular faction stab your people in the back? Even your brother?”

“…Or maybe the neck.”

Seokju furrowed his eyebrows as if wondering how such a thing could happen in the world and pulled his jaw inward. He even lightly tapped the table.

“…,”

Doo-hyuk’s head trembled. Every time he bit down hard, his scalp twitched. He seemed very angry.

But Seokju didn’t blink once. It wasn’t difficult to transfer the anger directed at him. After all, fires spread easily here and there. Even if he was the one who ignited that fire.

“The Sular faction went to Pak Ki-heon.”

“…What?”

“They said since they defeated the Yongma faction, they should take over your business. Oh, those bastards.”

“…And they also said they would take in the remaining Yongma faction members as if they were doing them a favor. What do you think Pak Ki-heon said to that?”

“What did he say?”

“Well, Pak Ki-heon was probably embarrassed. Even though the Yongma faction, which was already losing its leader and members, was pitiful. Fighting among family members and showing it to the outside world was shameful.”

“…”

“But if the Sular faction is willing to take care of them and handle it, well, it’s not bad. It’s annoying if you come to us and whine about it.”

“Annoying? What-”

“Did you go to Pak Ki-heon and ask for revenge, ask the Sular faction for punishment, ask them to accept us? Wasn’t that the only way?”

“…”

“But would Pak Ki-heon accept that? Anyway, what the Yongma faction had wasn’t much profitable, and even if they were given scraps, they wouldn’t fit in with their families. It’s better to just let it go.”

“…”

“And. They said Pak Ki-heon and the Sular faction have been together for a long time? You haven’t even been in the Jung-ho faction for five years. Is that such a long time?”

“…”

“It probably isn’t. So Pak Ki-heon wouldn’t easily abandon the Yongma faction.”

Doo-hyuk clenched his fist tightly. Then he gulped down his drink. Seokju refilled his glass. He pushed the food closer to him, saying, “Eat, eat,” in a friendly manner.

“If you want revenge, our Tae-hoe faction wants to help.”

Doo-hyuk stabbed a piece of meat with his fork and chewed it vigorously. The tender meat tore apart and slid into Doo-hyuk’s mouth. He wiped the juice from his lips with the back of his hand.

“…Are you telling me to attack Ki-heon?”

“No. I don’t expect that. It’s the Sular faction. They’ll kill the Sular faction leader and a few of the lower guys. They’ll kill everyone who laid a hand on your brother, too.”

“…”

“We’ll send some of our capable guys too. Of course, we’ll provide guns,” Seokju said.

“But if we lose—”

“Losing is impossible.”

Seokju firmly shook his head as if to assert that such a thing was out of the question. The Sular faction had already suffered significant losses. Rumor had it that a third of them were dead, another third were either dying in hospitals or on the brink of death, and the rest were struggling to manage their businesses with few people left.

The Taehoe faction wasn’t going to stand for it.

Doo-hyuk swallowed the meat with a gulp. Then he rinsed his mouth with alcohol. Standing tall, he stared intently at Seokju.

“Then all of us will be dead to Ki-heon. It’s not a joke when family members fight among themselves.”

“…”

“Well, it might feel refreshing if I die avenging my brother, but not for our guys. We have young ones and newborns… it’s pitiful to let them die.”

“Then we should leave the Jung-ho faction.”

“…Are you telling me to join the Taehoe faction?”

Seokju chuckled at that remark. He slowly pulled out a cigarette.

“No. We don’t take in new members.”

“…Then?”

“After this is over, we’ll help you set up separate businesses in Pyongyang or the Duman River area. Businesses solely for the Yongma faction, free from interference from the Jung-ho or Taehoe factions. I’ll make sure you can sign a contract with our map. Especially the Duman River area, being close to China, should be lucrative. How about it?”

“…”

“Seems like we’ve always been under someone else’s thumb. Isn’t it time we become the ones in control?”

Doo-hyuk’s eyebrows raised slightly at the unexpected proposal. He lightly traced the rim of his glass with his thumb. His face was a mess of hesitation, anxiety, and subtle anticipation.

Seokju lit his cigarette with a lighter, exhaling a cloud of smoke. Doo-hyuk leaned forward. It was also an unexpected request. He had expected some demand in return for the help, but he hadn’t expected it to be a drug dealer.

“…Why come to us for a drug dealer when they’re everywhere after a business is over?”

“Because you probably know where the drug dealer can go.”

“…”

“And I’ll consider it as if you sent the drug dealer.”

“…And that Ki-heon won’t know that the Taehoe faction is involved in it?”

“It’s fine. It’s okay if it becomes known that the Taehoe faction is behind it. As long as we didn’t directly attack the Jung-ho faction. I have no intention of attacking the Jung-ho faction as Pak Ki-heon wants.”

“…”

Doo-hyuk’s legs trembled more and more under the table. His fingernails pinched the tablecloth, repeating the action of letting go. Nonsense. Unbelievable. How could he believe the words of someone he had only seen once, and that too, the words of an enemy?

Yet he wanted to believe. He found it strangely easy to trust Seokju. There was no hint of deceit on his clear and handsome face. He didn’t seem like the type to play with people.

Whether it was my desperation leading me to see false hope or Seokju really had such a strange ability, I couldn’t tell.

“I need to, I need to think about it…”

As Doo-hyuk’s legs shook more violently, Seokju rested his elbows on the table. Leaning slightly towards Doo-hyuk, he exhaled a dense cloud of cigarette smoke.

“The Jung-ho faction is a sinking ship. It’s too big and old, sinking too fast.”

“…”

“We need to get off quickly to avoid dying.”

After finishing his meeting with Doo-hyuk, Seokju stopped by the company briefly, then went to the factory, and visited the hospital to see Myung-jin before finally returning home. It was late at night, long after dinner time.

As Seokju crossed the yard, receiving greetings from family members and servants, he took off his shoes. Deokjae followed a step behind, also taking off his shoes. A member of the organization who followed them neatly picked up their shoes and placed them in the shoe rack.

Dragging his tie, Seokju said to Deokjae, “There will be something in three days. Before that, move Myung-jin and Geum-tae to another hospital room.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Also, thoroughly inspect the drug factory. Check the delivery guys, the materials they bring in, and the ones they take out.”

“Yes. Do you have any more instructions?”

“No. Go rest. You did well today.”

Seokju tapped Deokjae’s shoulder lightly. Then he parted ways with them and headed to the corridor. Deokjae and the other organization members bowed deeply behind Seokju.

“Rest well, sir!”

Seokju walked briskly down the corridor. As he approached the door, he slowed down. Suddenly, he remembered the moment from a few hours ago when he was with Doo-hyuk, preparing to leave after finishing all the conversations.

“And…”

“And?”

Doo-hyuk turned around quickly and asked. His expression was quite friendly. It was a face that said if there was anything else to ask or request, he would answer.

But Seokju…

“…No, never mind.”

He swallowed the question that scratched the roof of his mouth. He was afraid.

He wanted to ask about Ah-jin. Not him directly. When did he find out? What were his actions? Was he going to come looking for him, or was he going to abandon him? There were many things he was curious about, but he didn’t have the courage to delve into the truth.

And what if it turns out they’re responsible for Ah-jin? What if they have to kill Ah-jin? And if the Jung-ho faction abandoned him, if they say they have no intention of finding him, would they just accept it and hold on to him for the rest of their lives?

Seokju couldn’t come to a firm conclusion about Ah-jin. So, in this way, without gaining or losing anything, he reluctantly kept Ah-jin detained.

With an expressionless face, Seokju unlocked the door with the key. Then, click, he opened the door.

A spacious room. Even the sofa was gone, making the room look even more vast and desolate. In the middle, Ah-jin lay with a thin blanket draped over him. His back was visible, and with each breath, it seemed like it was struggling to rise and fall. His arms and legs were sprawled out, covered in various red marks.

Around his ankles, thick and heavy shackles were tangled. The chains stretched across the room, connected to a sturdy iron stake embedded in the corner of the bathroom.

“…,”

Seokju entered the room slowly. Then he closed the door gently.