3
Their Kingdom Panorama
/\_____/\
Donghae clenched his teeth together and pressed a hand against his growling gut as he walked into a secluded fenced-in area. Settling down on some sheets of newspapers he drew a breath before throwing both arms around himself.
He’d come across the area a few years ago and had learned that it’d been used as a boxing ring until it was torn up by the cops after illegal use. Since the few years that he’d been there Donghae also came to learn that it served as a good shelter for those who didn’t have homes to go back to. During that time he’d made a few fellow friends who came and went but he’d been used to it for so long that he didn’t really mind.
The cement floor was dirty, cold, and full of shoe marks that would often leave stains on clothes. Other than warmth it lacked light. Leaning against the wall with dry graffiti Donghae listened to the rhythm of his stomach feeling a certain despise for the girl he’d met earlier who’d ditched him at the murder site.
“Heesh!” heaving a sigh he lie down on the thin mat of newspapers and curled up into a ball.
He was thankful that it was the end of spring, which meant more warm weather and heat. The thought of sleeping during the cold season didn’t appear very comfortable to him. It made his skin feel thin to the bones.
Closing his eyes he drifted into a light slumber to be awakened by loud chatter in the morning. Unwilling to wake up he pulled the hood of his jacket over his whole face and was able to sleep for another half hour before the fence door opened and slammed shut. Loud footsteps intruded in on his dreams before he sat up.
“Can’t you see that I’m trying to sleep here, punks?!” Donghae screamed in frustration however his frustrated expression disappeared when he noticed his friends were feeding on fried chicken.
“What’s this?” he crawled over to them.
“Yah! What do you think you’re doing rascal?!” one of them scolded him.
Donghae stared at the man’s unshaved beard and was disgusted with the sight of it.
“C’mon,” Donghae nudged him.
“Only a few pieces. Think of it as a brother feeding a brother,” the man replied. “You owe me a favor next time.”
“Ahh…sure,” Donghae reached for a few chicken strips and gobbled them down like a hungry animal.
A rush of wind came by scattering some fresh newspapers all over the place. Donghae turned to watch them try to reach the sky then fall down like a bunch of olden leaves.
“What are you standing around for?” the man poked him with an elbow. “Go clean it up.”
“But…” Donghae pointed to his chicken.
“I fed you!”
Point made. Donghae stalked away from the group and kicked the newspaper then bent down and piled them up. Securing them in the corner he was ready to head back to the group before a picture caught his attention from the corner of his eye. Slowly turning around and picking up the newspaper Donghae smoothed it out.
“Bang So Rae receives certificate of Appreciation.” Donghae skimmed through the rest of the article and glanced at the picture.
Donghae’s eyes wondered toward the bottom of the newspaper and quickly turned to the next page. A picture of the crime scene he was at yesterday had taken up more than quarter of the space. His eyes grew wide.
“Bang In Tak, uncle of Bang So Rae, North’s Investment CEO, has died of a stab wound and a shot to his liver.” he read. “A funeral will be held at the town’s district church….” he looked up feeling shocked. “Uncle?!”
“Yah, Lee Donghae!! We’re eating the rest without you!” a large man with a worn out cap shouted.
Donghae rushed back to the group with the newspaper.
“What are you doing reading that? Other than trying to live you also have the heart to worry about other people’s gossips?” one of them questioned.
“Don’t say that. He’s famous now.”
“Yah…if he were famous than the whole of Korea would know me!”
“His name’s in the paper. I saw it.”
Donghae frowned and held up the newspaper. A few others crowded around him curious to know if it was a truth or lie.
“Oh!” one of them shouted and pointed to the newspaper.
“Lee Donghae, who called the ambulance, verifies that the murderer had taken off after giving the shot…” one of them read.
“Whoa!! You were there?!”
A pat on the back.
Donghae laughed, “Wow! My name’s being acknowledged! 9 out of 10 people who read this will know me!”
“But there’s also 100,000 other Lee Donghae’s out there…” one of them said while rubbing his chin.
Donghae dropped his arms suddenly recalling the mission the girl had given him. Lowering his hand he patted the hidden jewelry box inside his jacket. For sure if any of the others knew of it they’d surely kill him just to get their hands on it. Worry filled him during the moment. Reaching for a piece of chicken he turned around with a run.
“I’ll catch you guys later!” he waved.
“Where are you going?!”
“We were supposed to go um um today!”
“What’s um um?”
“To do this,” the man replied by moving his arm to imitate ocean waves to only receive a slap on the head instead.
Donghae paused by the street lights rubbing the jewelry box inside his pocket. To the church or the investment firm?
“Where would Bang So Rae most likely be?” he asked himself staring at the sign for pedestrians to cross the street.
/\_____/\
Victoria’s instincts told her that if she rolled over once more she’d fall off the tiny bed and land on the hard ground. Even as the message transmitted back and forth through her nerves her half conscious body still rolled over. Instead of falling flat on her face she became suffocated by the pillow sheets her face had landed into. Opening her eyes Victoria awoke to the warm room with the sun streaming through the nearby window. She couldn’t be thankful enough that she was now waking up to the sunlight instead of a barren room with no light.
Turning over she just stared at the ceiling. She wasn’t willing to get up from the comfortable bed that she’d been amiss from for 5 years. How precious it felt to be in the small room. Her grandma must have been so sick that she’d gotten herself a bed while Victoria was serving her sentence.
Heaving a breath she cast her eyes throughout the room curious if anything had changed. Without bothering to shower or look around she’d jumped into bed and fell asleep. Now that it was daylight Victoria saw that everything was still the same from 5 years ago when she was still a growing child. The walls were a mellow white. Its paint was peeling off unveiling its yellow underneath. The small square window by the bed and a small dresser on the ground with the few clothes she’d owned.
When she finally got up she found some cereal and poured it into a bowl but found that the milk was a month overdue. Pinching her nose shut she poured its content down the sink and looked about the ugly kitchen. Three of the stove templates were broken and the refrigerator was so old that it hummed non-stop. 10 year old plates sat in the dish bin washed and well cleaned. There were food stains all over the countertops that could no longer be scrubbed or washed off and the floor tiles were coming loose. The chair she was sitting in was just as rusty as the kitchen itself.
With no choice Victoria resorted to eating dry cereal and took a short shower in the smelly bathroom. Wrapping her wet hair into a towel Victoria stared at herself in the mirror. She’d certainly aged. She was no longer the girl with the scowling face.
Turning around Victoria headed out and self toured the home. The carpet in the living room was dark with stains and the furniture were so worn that if she sat on them she might fall through. If she hadn’t forgotten one of the legs had broken so the couch was uneven. Victoria walked toward the couch and kicked it a little. It wobbled indeed.
“Had you really been so sick that you couldn’t even clean?” Victoria asked aloud with her head moving in one direction circling the walls.
The house needed to be cleaned or more like remodeled. If only she had the money…
After changing into her clothes from 5 years ago Victoria locked the door after her and started down the walk. Other than the sun that rained down on her Victoria also noticed a black Sedan parked by the curb and wondered if her neighbors across the street had a visitor. She turned to stare at the black tilted windows wondering who owned such a nice car and admired it before turning away.
The birds were chirping happy and bright. The green grass glittered and she could hear little children screaming from delight. Oh, the fun games they were enjoying in their youth. Pausing by the stop sign she stuck her hands into the pocket of her navy green jacket and allowed the wind to comb her hair. She glanced to the left to see 3 more cars heading her way and turned to look down her right to see girls jumping rope together. A little smile crawled on her face and slightly disappeared when she recognized the black Sedan from earlier parked somewhat behind her.
Maybe it was just coincidence but instinct told her otherwise. She’d lived that kind of life majority of her youth and Victoria knew that feeling. Her heart had pounded wildly the first time it happened and she could still remember the fear she’d had running all the way to the police station where she’d been accused of lying when her stalker hadn’t showed up. Victoria felt more prepared and calm this time around but there was still something strange. She really hoped it was just coincidence that they were going the same way.
Taking a step forward Victoria started across the street making sure to keep watch on the car from the corner of her eye. She purposely turned at the next intersection and the car followed. Victoria continued for several blocks and found that the car was still following her. Confirmed, whoever in that car was following her. She walked on calmly through the crowd trying to run any thought through her head. Positively sure that she’d wronged no one since walking out of jail Victoria couldn’t find another reason why someone would want to keep an eye on her. Out of curiosity she spun around to see cars driving by at casual speed. The black Sedan was gone.
“I must be paranoid.” she shrugged and continued on.
Feeling better she watched the people who walked toward her and pass her on the walk. Everyone looked like they had jobs or somewhere to go. It made her think. Where was her destination? Trying to come up with an answer Victoria hadn’t realized that she’d spaced out while walking and only appealed back to reality when she bumped into someone.
“Sorry,” she apologized and took a step to the left to walk on, however, the man blocked her way.
Victoria looked up at the bald thin man with buff shoulders clearly visible through his dark suit. Wandering her eyes elsewhere Victoria took a step to the right to be blocked by him again.
“Excuse me,” Victoria tried.
She was met with his hollow gaze.
“Can I help you?” Victoria asked with a raised eyebrow.
“The necklace, where is it?” he questioned.
“Necklace?” Victoria repeated confused then shook her head. “You have the wrong person.”
She stepped toward her left to be blocked by him again.
Feeling almost agitated Victoria bit her lip, “Look here, I have things to do. I would appreciate it if you stop playing around.”
“Where’d you put the necklace?” he grabbed her arm.
His strength surprised her with a warning and Victoria knew then that he was serious.
“I don’t have a necklace.” Victoria stated.
“You took it from the scene yesterday. If you don’t return it to us we’ll have no mercy on you.” his voice was so monotonous that Victoria felt dulled just listening to him, yet she was alarmed.
“Scene?” Victoria frowned then it finally came to her. “You…were watching? Who are you?”
“I said necklace,” he repeated.
His grip tightened on her arm.
“Whoa!” Victoria called out feeling like a small bunny against him. “Watch it.”
For half a moment she wondered why no one around was coming to her aid. Did the two man in dark suits not look suspicious at all?
“Not speaking?” another voice appeared from behind her and Victoria felt something poke her back.
Her eyes widened in shock.
“Where is it?” the man in front of her pressured.
“I can get it for you!” Victoria replied quickly. “I don’t have it at the moment but I can get it for you!”
“What? The necklace isn’t in your possession? What did you do with it? Did you sell it?!” the man in front accused.
“What?! No!” Victoria defended herself.
“What do we do now?” the man in front asked.
“Get rid of her.”
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