Jisoo's POV

"I had no idea my ex employer has greenfingers," Jennie observed when I shambled into the office area. It had originally been a game room but Jennie helped me convert it into a replica of my office back in Seoul, only better furnished with equipment that I needed to carry out my work.

Jennie had turned into my part-time assistant, monitoring things when I was out of the super. Which was often, now that my modelling gig had turned out to be demanding as the number of contracts and brands I endorsed grew.

I plopped myself into the chair opposite her, sinking down and kicking off my heels. My head was still spinning with the revelation that Jin had been ill.

I doubt Jennie knows.

"He didn't talk?" She asked sympathetically. I sighed, massaging my temple.

"Let's just say it's tough to process certain things and make sense of them" I replied, sitting up properly and settling in front of my computer. "So, what's this about Jin being into gardening?"

"First let me just congratulate you--so far nobody has noticed the bugs you put up. And the security haven't noticed us diverting the CCTV feed from his office either."

That was old news--I knew my job. But she had been on edge, just like a rookie cop on their first time in the field. I smiled tiredly. "Yeah and?"

"Well, today I was trawling through the phone calls and he seemed to contact a certain gardening company a couple times, checking that several sacks of peat are to be delivered to an arranged location"

"That's weird. He never showed interest in plants before. We'll add that to the pin board and maybe I'll check on it, leave me the phone transcripts...." I said. Thank goodness I had Jennie--she had proved indispensable to help me carry out my surveillance now that I was out in the field to monitor Jin's movements.

I picked up the dog-eared dossier on my desk, thumbing through it. I knew the reports in it by heart.

Time and again, I kept returning to Lalisa and Chaeyoung's murder reports. The pictures had one particular horrifying detail that made them stand out from past grisly photos of murders I've seen--the skin of their limbs, and particularly Chaeyoung's, was scraped completely off, even her face, as if the murderer had carefully harvested the skin like one skins a rabbit. Lisa had only lost some skin from her arms and legs, and the job was more haphazard, as if the criminal was in a hurry and only salvaged the easier areas.

Otherwise Lalisa was riddled with tiny stab wounds, even her face was not spared--I suspected it was the work of a small blade, such as a scalpel.

But unbidden, Jin's wide smile suddenly appeared and I couldn't see anything else. I smiled back as he grinned at me.

Maybe there was still hope for him...

"Jisoo."

"What?" I surfaced from my thoughts to find Jennie staring at me intently.

"What?" I said again. She bit her lip.

"Jin changed a lot" she said quietly, "don't let him confuse you--he's hiding something for sure. He never told us why he decided to go on that trip, and take all the boys with him. Chaeyoung and Lisa almost had a breakdown when they heard the news but I think they held on for my sake. And I....I...if Joon was still alive he...." her voice cracked.

We turned in unison when Joohyun barged into the room, crowing with glee when she spotted her mother. She ran forward on chubby legs, babbling happily. Jennie reached down and lifted her into her lap, nuzzling her close.

"Joohyun would still have her father here...with me." she finished, her eyes fierce and wet. "I waited for the police to bring him to justice, to give me answers. Chu, you're my last hope but also my last friend. I don't want to mysteriously lose you too...please be careful of him. You hear me?"

"Where did that come from?" I said lightly, "all these years without me has turned you soft."

"Jisoo, I'm serious." She turned her back on me and left the room with her daughter.

I sighed, my gaze resting on the pin board I hung up which I use to keep track of the leads and connections that each clue has.

It has become a confusing mesh of criss-crossing ribbons, newspaper clippings, pictures, suspects,, human traffickers, and any conspiracy theory I dreamt up at 3 in the morning. Jin was somewhere in there, part of the bigger picture. I was frustrated because I had no idea how to consolidate the information I assembled and make sense of it all.

Someone was moving the pawns behind the scenes. It could be an unknown player...or else someone I knew very well.

But I dreaded to think of that...

I stiffened.

What had I just thought?

The very thing I was scared of happening was becoming a reality: my heart is clouding my judgement.

That must be the meaning behind Jennie's warning--she had always been perceptive enough to read my feelings....which is why she hadn't really pushed me to emigrate with them right away. She must have noticed that Jin and I were not really in love when he left for America.

At least, not the kind of love that sustains and fulfils, the love that inspires you to go on together.

Our love was dark, volatile and jealous.

The kind of love where behind the sweet words and passionate kisses, I watched him eyeing me with a cold glint in his eyes when I strutted down the catwalk at our school's annual pageant.

The kind of love where behind his laughter and joking, I noticed his clenched fists when even girls surrounded me to compliment my looks.

The kind of love where he surreptitiously compared our skin tone and applied cream religiously in a bid to have cleaner skin than mine.

He may think I never noticed but I knew: he is in love with himself, not me.

I turned to the computer to check on the phone transcripts Jennie had procured.

The sooner I solve this case, the sooner I can be free from these troublesome emotions. I was confident that within a week, if I really focused, everything would come together. 

It happened before and I'll make it happen again.