Small and Fragile Things - Chapter 27

“Are you insane?!”

“What kind of ridiculous accusation is that?!”

When someone tried to pin the lowest, trashiest kind of thug behavior on Muk-hyun, the whole room erupted in outrage.

“Hey, hey, quiet down! We got a tip that Choi Hyun’s been kidnapping underage girls and selling them off to big Chinese buyers. I received that report, so I’m obligated to investigate it.”

“Detective, this is seriously crossing the line. Say what you want about everything else, but we’d never, ever do something like that. Not even if we were starving to death.”

“Really?”

“Yes, sir! Hell, go ahead—search every corner of the place if you want!”

Gi-seon and Jung-pal avoided each other’s eyes. The tip wasn’t exactly true, but… there was something nagging at their conscience.

If Detective Oh caught even a whiff of that, things could spiral quickly. So they were desperate. Fortunately, he didn’t seem to notice the awkward energy between the two.

“You think I’m buying that?”

“Oh, come on—what kind of cop just barges in and throws false accusations around like this?!”

“The hell did you just say? You little punk—”

Detective Oh, who had been smirking all along, suddenly snapped, his face hardening as he slapped Gi-seon clean across the cheek.

Jung-pal instinctively tensed up, his muscles twitching, but with all eyes on him, he barely managed to suppress his anger. The last thing he could do was hand himself over to these vultures by snapping. So he let out a long, frustrated breath instead.

Detective Oh raised an eyebrow at Jung-pal, clearly surprised by the restraint, but quickly shifted his tone again.

“Tell Choi Muk-hyun this—he’d better not even think about running while I gather the evidence. I’ve seen all your faces now, so watch yourselves. Got it?”

Maybe he’d just shown up to issue a warning—because after that, he stood up.

“Damn. I didn’t even get offered a cup of coffee. Not a good look for a detective, huh?”

No one cared about coffee. All they wanted was for him to get the hell out.

But right then—just when the timing couldn’t be any worse—the door burst open, and Irang came running in, like she’d just escaped from somewhere.

“Oh…”

The moment he saw her, Detective Oh grinned like the cat that caught the canary.

“Would you look at that. The evidence walked right in.”

Everyone else’s face went ashen.

***

Irang didn’t understand what was happening—but seeing Gi-seon and Jung-pal looking unharmed brought a bit of relief.

But she quickly realized something was wrong. Both of them kept nervously glancing at one man in particular.

“And who’s this young lady?”

The man wore a gray hoodie under a black jacket, and reeked of some harsh cologne. It was so strong, she thought cigarette smoke would’ve been preferable.

As she subtly raised her hand to cover her nose and mouth, Jung-pal cut in.

“Oh, her? She’s our new office assistant. We hired her just a few days ago. Kid’s got no sense of direction—guess she got lost again. Hey, what happened to the stuff I sent you out for, huh? Came back empty-handed?”

Irang didn’t even know what an office assistant was. But she could tell Jung-pal was trying hard to cover something up.

What is he hiding? She tried to piece it together, like filling in blanks with random guesses—but the man in the jacket stepped closer, grinning.

“Really? She works here?” he said, pulling out a badge with a blue lanyard. “I’m with the police.”

A horrible memory surged forward. She’d seen a man with a badge like that before. The man who had violated her.

“Hi there. I’m here to protect you. To keep you safe.”

Her expression stiffened involuntarily. The officer smirked.

“You’re not really an employee here, are you? Don’t worry about them. Just tell me the truth. I’m here to help you.”

But all she could see was that man’s face, overlapping with this one’s smile.

The type who acted like they cared, like they were kind—but only until they got what they wanted. One false move and they’d grab your throat, slap your face, bark orders like you were nothing.

Terrified, Irang turned her head away to avoid his gaze. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Gi-seon and Jung-pal watching her nervously. Their faces practically pleaded with her to hold it together.

Was running here a mistake?

But where else could she go? When she shoved Park Eun-young aside and bolted, these two were the only ones who came to mind.

Well—these two, and one more person. Someone who wasn’t here right now, but she desperately wished was.

“He told me to stay put.”

A surge of fear ran through her. What if he got into trouble because of this?

“Detective, she’s just a kid. She gets scared easily, that’s all. Please—”

“You shut the hell up, punk. Who said you could open your mouth?”

She’d always known what police were supposed to be.

In picture books, they were kind people who helped others. She’d even seen uniformed officers at the hospital. But the people who imprisoned her also invoked the police constantly during brainwashing sessions.

“Where would you even run? The police? You think you can tell them who you are? Best-case scenario, they’ll think you’re nuts. Worst-case? They’ll throw you in jail.”

The police weren’t people she could ask for help. That single, sharp sentence flashed through her mind—and the man cursing out Jung-pal in front of her only reinforced it.

“Tell me—did these men kidnap you? Threaten you? Are there others like you here?”

Irang clutched the hem of her shirt and swallowed hard. She didn’t know the full story, but it was clear the officer suspected them.

Kidnapping. Threats.

Was he talking about the people Park Eun-young brought?

Were there other girls like her?

Who else was involved?

She couldn’t make sense of any of it. But one thing was clear. She had to answer very carefully.

“…That’s not… what happened.”

“Come on, you can tell me. You really work here? How old are you? What’s your name?”

She thought denying it would be enough—but it wasn’t. The officer kept eyeing her suspiciously, stepping closer and closer. She wanted to run.

“This isn’t even a real company. An office assistant? Please. You expect me to believe that?”

He was close enough to touch now, eyes sharp like his cologne, sarcasm dripping from every word.

“And what kind of assistant dresses like that, huh? Just a T-shirt? That how you serve coffee to clients? Looks like someone dressed you to be easy to undress, huh?”

Irang clenched her jaw, unable to come up with a response. Then he said something that made her wonder if she’d heard wrong.

“Oh… wait. Are you Choi Hyun’s little plaything? That bastard—gets bored of you after he’s had his fun and sells you off, is that it?”

That bastard?

“Tell me now, girl. Unless you want to be charged as an accomplice.”

Her eyes started to burn.

***

By the time Muk-hyun reached the office, the sky was already black.

Things had been a mess at the site out of town, and it took a while for the message to even reach him. Then rush hour traffic on the way back to Seoul made it worse.

He’d gotten a rough overview of the situation in the car, and now he stood at the door, hand on his hip, staring at Irang with a dumbfounded expression.

“…What is this?”

Pressing a hand to his throbbing temple, he glanced over—and saw Jung-pal, for the first time in a while, standing with both hands respectfully clasped in front of him. He gave a small nod.

Yes, he saw it right.

“She’s really sleeping?”

“…Yes, sir.”

Completely sprawled out on the big couch, Irang was fast asleep, breathing peacefully. Judging by the sauce all over her mouth, she’d gone to bed in a very good mood.

“She ate, played, and passed out maybe an hour ago,” Jung-pal added sheepishly.

Muk-hyun bit his lip, exhaled slowly, and took off his suit jacket.

“She like jjajangmyeon or something?”

“Goes nuts for it.”

He casually tossed the jacket over Irang like a blanket, chuckling.

“Then what’s with the two of you standing there like you’re about to be executed?”

“A-ah. Well… That is…” Jung-pal bowed with difficulty, folding his thick body at the waist.

“I really screwed up this time, boss. I acted on impulse when I should’ve thought it through. I had no intention of dragging the kid here… Gi-seon tried to stop me, but I just went ahead. I’m sorry!”

Even as he smacked his own head in shame, it was obvious he meant every word. Gi-seon couldn’t watch any longer and chimed in.

“No, it’s my fault too. He told me to wait in the car with her, but I got scared and left her alone. I had no idea it would blow up like this. I’m so sorry.”

Muk-hyun stared silently at the two of them, heads bowed like twins.

His face was unreadable—calm and quiet, giving away nothing. No one had any idea what he was thinking. As the silence stretched, even Jung Yoon looked uneasy.

To be fair, Muk-hyun had looked pissed the entire way back. No one could predict how he’d handle this now—he could explode at them for failing to protect Irang, or brush it off and say it all worked out.

Lately, Muk-hyun had become impossible to read. Seconds ticked by, suffocating everyone in the room, until he finally opened his mouth.

“…Forget it. We got any fried dumplings left? I’m starving.”