5/29/2015

Chapter 3:  Leaving Behind Yesterday

The bank manager looked at the photo ID and passport, then up at the irritated looking young woman sitting in front of him.

“Is there a problem, Mr. Kim?” Sandara asked, pointedly looking at the manager’s name tag before meeting his eyes. She had been dealing with a regular teller, but that was before she explained she wanted to close her account and the young man saw the amount she wanted to withdraw – in cash. He promptly apologized and asked her to wait. Then the bank manager had come over and asked to assist her at his desk.

“Well, no, there isn’t a problem. It’s just that this is a rather large amount for you to be withdrawing. Is there a reason why you’re closing your account? Are you displeased with the service you’ve received from us?”

“I wasn’t aware that I needed a reason to withdraw my money that I’ve been depositing into this account for the past several years,” Sandara said dryly. “As for service, I’ve been very happy with the service here prior to today.”

She was tempted to swear at the man and order him to just hand over her damn friggin money. But Sandara knew that to do that might cause an issue, which was what she didn’t need to happen. She bit back the rash of retorts she wanted to say and calmed her expression and voice. Plus, this might work out in her favor.

“I’m moving to the U.S. actually,” she said, sitting back and crossing her jean clad legs. “I’m just tying up loose ends here.”

The bank manager nodded his head at her explanation. “I see. We can issue you a cashier’s check but carrying cash of this amount is not recommended.”

“Mr. Kim, I’m sure you’re aware of who I am and who my father is,” Sandara stated with a bored sigh. “Forty-three thousand is like a drop in the bucket for me. I've spent more in one afternoon of shopping. Quite frankly I didn’t expect to have such difficulty in withdrawing my money from here and I’m tempted to give my father a call and let him know the difficulty your bank is giving me.”

“No, that’s not it at all,” Mr. Kim quickly smoothed. He did indeed know who Sandara Park was and her connection to Sanjin Park and the Park Group. He couldn’t afford to get her family angered. “I only meant to say that it would be better to issue you a cashier’s check. But if you prefer cash…”

“I do. Thank you so much,” Sandara stated, ending the conversation. Five minutes later she left the bank with the money – all in large bills, safely tucked in her backpack. Once she was out of the bank she donned a pair of dark shades and disappeared into the crowd of people walking on the sidewalk.

She was staying at a hotel on the other side of the city. Sandara walked two blocks over from the bank and then caught a bus that would take her to her next destination.

Her father likely didn’t know yet that she had left the house. Once he did he would send his security team after her. All so that he could keep the tumultuous relationship between the two of them hidden from the media, the shareholders and his business associates. But Sandara was way ahead of him. She didn’t plan to be caught, neither did she plan to do anything to reveal who she was to the outside world. As far as she was concerned the withdrawal of her savings money from that bank was her last tie to Sandara Park, the heiress of the Park Group. She was now free to carve out a new identity for herself and break all ties with her father, her past, and even that hateful Kwon Jiyong.

Behind her sunglasses her eyes blurred momentarily and a lone tear escaped each of her eyes as she thought of her father. But Sandara quickly blinked the tears away and roughly wiped at her cheeks. There was no time to be crying over what could never be. Her father would be happier without her there any more to continue to create all sorts of trouble and embarrasments for him. Why would he need a daughter like her when he had the likes of Kwon Jiyong in his life. She even knew that there was talk of him grooming Jiyong to take over the business from him. He was always so happy to point out to Sandara what an outstanding young man Jiyong was and how she should try to get to know him better.

Sandara felt a pain in her chest as she recalled again how her father had slapped her yesterday and demanded that she apologize to Jiyong. How could he take Jiyong's side without even asking her what was wrong? But then he never asked her what was wrong, preferring instead to assume the worst about her. Was it so difficult for him to love her? He had once before when she was a little girl. Why had he stopped caring for her? Maybe it would have been better if she had died instead of her mother because it seemed to her that once her mom died, so did her father's love for her.

Taking a deep breath Dara pushed the pain away with renewed resolve. Don't think about the past. You're no longer Sandara Park. You have no father, no mother, no family.  No one would know her connection to Sandara Park except for her friend, Lee Soo Hyuk, whom she had called on to help her with forging new IDs.

She first met Soo Hyuk  through some of her partying friends several years back. Like Sandara, Soo Hyuk  was an only child of wealthy parents who preferred to give him money and expense accounts rather than have to deal with him.  His mother came from a family of loan sharks and spent her time trying to fit in with other ladies of the upper class. His father was a successful corporate lawyer whose clients were all suspected clans from the mafia.

Soo Hyuk and Sandara gravitated toward each other whenever they met up, which was usually once a month at some party or club they were attending. He was the one that Sandara had called after she left home and asked for a favor. She was on her way now to meet him to discuss the ID cards that he was having made for her. He normally didn’t do things like this, but for Sandara he was willing to use his father's connections because he understood where she was coming from. When he looked at Sandara he didn't see the rebellious juvenile everyone made her out to be but rather instead a lonely little girl who just wanted her father's attention. So when she called him that morning and told him her situation, he had agreed to help.

Sandara met Soo Hyuk at a small non-descript restaurant that he had given her the address to. After a mostly silent lunch she followed him to a shop nearby and had her take passport photos. “How much do I owe you?” she asked, referring to the cost of the new ID and documents seh was requesting.

“Nothing.”

He stared at her photos, noting how young she looked now that she had no makeup on. “Save your cash. You’ll need it.” With that he tucked the photos in the inside pocket of his coat and retrieved a new disposable phone which he handed her. “It’ll be ready day after tomorrow. I’ll call you on this.”

Sandara thanked him and stood with him a moment outside, both of them staring out at the street. He admired that she was doing something about her situation, but he also wished that it hadn’t come to this. “Be safe,” he murmured, then slipped on a pair of dark shades and walked toward the lot where he had left his car. He didn’t ask her where she was staying or where she was planning to go. The less he knew about her future plans the better it would be for her in case someone discovered their connection and came to him looking for her. He doubted that would happen, but you could never underestimate the power of money, and Sanjin Park had a lot of it.