10

belong

‘Good evening, Miss Koo,’

A man – probably around the same age as the woman in the hospital bed, if not older – greeted; his form lingering in one of the many booths in the clinical white general ward.

‘So sorry for disturbing,’ he continued, studying his shoes awkwardly. ‘I know this may not be the best of times, but… there are some things we feel your cooperation will help greatly with.’

The young woman – blonde hair, fair skin, dark eyes, just as the description in his notepad offered – had been propped up in bed. Despite the otherwise alarming strips of gauze wrapped around her head and arms, she was clearly conscious and alert by the startled expression she sported at the words.

‘I’m sorry?’

‘Officer Kim Minseok,’ the stranger introduced himself as, pulling out a gold badge from the inside of his sport coat. ‘Again, I’m sorry for all this. It must be a lot to take in, but I’d like to ask you some questions, if that’s alright?’

He watched the woman study him carefully; her eyes trained on the badge, moving to his attire and his face. There was no doubt she was guarded. And he had no right to blame her for being so. He’d questioned all kinds of people in his career, so it was safe to say Officer Kim was confident in his assessments of even strangers. And as all of them, there was definitely a story to this one.

‘Officer Kim…,’ the woman murmured; her voice a smooth contrast to the otherwise messy state she appeared to be in. ‘If you can let me see my daughter, I’d gladly answer anything.’

‘I don’t know if I can take your word for it.’

‘You know, you don’t look like a police officer.’

‘Well, if not for the case of a young woman like yourself seemingly involved in some sort of physical assault in her own home, I wouldn’t be let in here unless I was one, would I?’

Hayoung’s face immediately hardened. Every ounce of amusement flitting about in her dark eyes faded away, and perhaps on closer inspection, Mister Blue – standing near the other edge of the bed, watching the scene intently – was positive the colour from her face drained similarly.

‘I want to see Mijin.’

‘Rest assured, Miss Koo. She’s with your grandmother,’ Officer Kim coolly stated, pulling the only vacant chair closest to the booth a foot away from the bed.

‘And the moment you help me answer a few simple questions, I promise I’ll arrange for you to see her.’

Hayoung stared at him. Searched his face for any sign of distrust or amusement, however, her intense scrutiny discovered nothing but sincerity. She turned away, bunched the pale blue blanket over her bottom half in her fists lightly, ran her teeth over her lips, and with a quiet voice said, ‘what do you want?’

‘Right,’ said the officer, glancing at his chronograph before pulling out the yellow notepad from his coat.

‘At 5.15 on the eve of today, where were you?’

‘At home.’

‘Before the supposed ‘attack’, what were you doing in the home?’

‘The usual things: sorting laundry, reading magazines, wondering what to make for dinner…’

‘Did any sort of banter take place thereafter, Miss Koo? Perhaps an unforeseen escalation of events that could have led to the injury of either party?’

The puzzlement on Hayoung’s face was more than apparent in her sharp reaction to the question. Her eyebrows furrowed, eyes turned questionable, and her shoulders stiffened. Mister Blue reacted similarly; his eyes darting to the police officer who – despite the surprise his question elicited – remained eerily composed, seemingly studying the woman in bed carefully.

‘I don’t understand… why would he be…’

Minseok cocked an eyebrow. ‘I take it you’re unaware of what Mister Park’s status was when we arrived at the scene?’

A nameless dread settled in the pit of Hayoung’s stomach. She felt the jelly that one of the nurses was kind enough to give her an hour ago stir around sickly in there, and suddenly felt the urge to throw it up.

‘Miss Koo, you were unconscious and – let’s see – suffered a mild concussion and bruises on the arms, knees, and hipbone. And so was Mister Park, who had been dealt blunt force trauma to the head, and was found with a dislocated elbow. Do you not remember anything before losing consciousness?’

Officer Kim watched the woman’s mouth hang open slightly; her lips twitching in the slightest as if she struggled to muster anything coherent. He scribbled his ob