The dinner session with the Lee family was fun and delightful. Both the father and son, Lee Jae Sang and Lee Kwang Soo are friendly yet easy going people that they welcomed both Jong-Kook and Ji-Hyo with open hand. Ji-Hyo first thought that they are going to serve western food but she was wrong.

The dining table was filled by bibimbap, braised tofu stew, bulgogi, kimchi along with various banchan. Despite their location, the food tasted authentic enough.

“Ji-Hyo-Ssi?”

A man’s baritone voice was heard which caused Ji-Hyo to turn around to look for the owner. Her lips curled up into a genuine smile when she saw Lee Jae Sang was walking towards her direction.

“I hope you don’t mind me for looking around.” Said Ji-Hyo because there were various of antique ornaments and collection around the big house that she couldn’t hold herself not to wander around.

Jae-Sang heaved a light chuckle, “Of course. Feel free to look around, Ji-Hyo-Ssi. Perhaps, did you enjoy touring around the vineyard and winery?”

“Ne. It was fun and I don’t know if there’s a horse ranch too.” Ji-Hyo replied and flashed back to the intimate horse-riding with Jong-Kook earlier.

“I hope you have a pleasant stay.” Jae-Sang added and he noticed that Ji-Hyo’s eyes stopped at a machine which is looked like an unusual typewriter machine. Noticing her narrowed brows, Jae-Sang asked her, “Do you what it is?”

Ji-Hyo’s gaze moved from the machine to Jae-Sang and shook her head, “It looks like a typewriter machine but a little bit more peculiar.” Out of all antique stuffs, this machine caught her attention the most.

“It’s the enigma machine.” Jae-Sang continued as his eyes focused on the electromechanical cipher machine.

That name felt foreign for her as she doesn’t have any idea about what it is that she asked, “What is an enigma machine?”

Jae-Sang opened the cover of the plug boards where various of buttons with alphabets are and rotors on the back before explaining, “Enigma machine was first introduced as a commercial cipher machine. In mid-twenties century, the German military used this machine to communicate securely which brought them huge advantage during the world war II.”

“How could this device sent messages?” She still couldn’t get it.

Pressing the key on the keyboard on the front, Jae-Sang added, “Pressing this key will encrypt this letter as another letter at the light board. Electrical signal was sent from the key through the plug board on the front through the three sometimes four rotors on the back and lit up a letter on the light board here. It means that a letter had a number of different paths through the machine and could light up as a number of different letters.” He moved his gaze to Ji-Hyo, “Complicated isn’t it?”

Ji-Hyo nodded because she really couldn’t get what was Jae-Sang talking about. However, before she spoke again, Jae-Sang continued, “However, in 1943, Alan Turing succeeded in breaking the enigma code which shortened the war by two years and saved two million lives.”

“It’s complicated and not understandable.” Ji-Hyo muttered as her eyes are glued at the cipher machine which looked like a hundred years old.

“Perhaps, do you know that the word enigma has a meaning?” Jae-Sang added.

Ji-Hyo raised one of her brows while answering, “Complicated?”

“Puzzling, Ji-Hyo-Ssi.” Jae-Sang exhaled softly before continuing, “Enigma could mean a person or thing which is mysterious, puzzling, difficult or impossible to understand. It baffles you till no end.”

Mysterious, puzzling, impossible to understand. Song Ji Hyo has someone in mind who fits this description.

The vintage clock on the wall shows eleven at night and Ji-Hyo has tucked herself between the comfortable bed sheets. She closed her eyes and is ready enough to head off to sleep. However, it seems like heaven does not like her peacefulness that her phone rings in the next second.

Incoming call

Cha Seung Won

Her hands trembled upon reading the name that’s showing on the screen and it starts to give her goosebumps when her phone keep on vibrating. Her fingers are shaking when she dared herself to press the green button.

“Yeo.. yeoboseyo.” As soon as she picked up the call, she could immediately feel the desperation on the other side of the phone.

“Where are you, Ji-Hyo ya? How dare you ran away from my sight?”

Seung-Won’s frustration was undeniably visible and she could feel that he’s extremely furious. “I am not running away.” She replied but still trying her best to sound calm.

“Do you know that saving Kim Jong Kook is just the same thing as demanding me to kill both of your parents? Seriously, I am getting sick for keeping your parents with me, Song Ji Hyo. Let me remind you, if you really wish to save Kim Jong Kook, I can just pull the trigger of my gun on your parents’ head. Things are going to be easier that way.”

Ji-Hyo bit her lips hardly to stop any sobs to leak from her lips. She tried to defend herself, “I didn’t mean to save him.”

“Tell me where are you now.”

Ji-Hyo stayed silent for a few seconds which angered Seung-Won even more.

“Why can’t you answer, Ji-Hyo ya? Does Kim Jong Kook worth more than your parents?”

Seung-Won’s voice is getting higher and he began shouting that Ji-Hyo had no choice but to answer, “France.”

“Which part in France? You better give me an exact address.”

Ji-Hyo could literally feel that Seung-Won is speaking through his gritted teeth. “I thought your people are always smart enough to know his whereabouts.”

“Not when he flew away with one of his jets in sudden without any trace. Don’t think of buying more time, Song Ji Hyo. Tell me now where is he?!”

She continued in biting her lips as she started a battle inside her heart. There was a brief silence which caused Seung-Won to shrieked in frustration.

“I asked where are both of you now, Song Ji Hyo?!”

She understands his frustration but how on earth could she betray Kim Jong Kook? When she’s still battling with her own feelings, a message popped up on her phone that she opened it in no time. The message contains nothing but pictures of both her parents who are kneeling with their hands up and a gun right on their head.

“You like my message, sweetheart? I think your parents would be delightful if I play some games with them. Russian roulette, perhaps? Do you know how to count the probabilities? The gun I am holding got six holes on the revolver cylinder.”

“I don’t know, Cha Seung Won-Ssi. I don’t know.” She shrieked back in frustration and she started to feel the pressure.

“You like to take risk then.”

Ji-Hyo’s tears began streaming down her eyes that she hates herself to be in such situation, “I beg you Cha Seung Won-Ssi. I really don’t know. We touched down Paris as soon as we left Madrid. I will tell you everything I see here. There are big houses which looked like castles, vineyards, winery and horse ranch.”

“What non-sense are you telling me?! Be more specific, Song Ji Hyo. There are more than ten wine regions in France. Each wine region has about six thousand wineries and vineyards. Do you think you can fool me?”

“Bordeaux. It’s Bordeaux.” She blurted out at last as she couldn’t hold it anymore. Her heart might burst out soon.

“You better don’t tell me lies or I will make your parents to bear the consequence.”

That was his last sentence before hanging up the phone. Ji-Hyo stood up from her bed and started to pull her hair out of frustration. Her fingers were balled into a tight fist and she felt like her heart is going to burst out anytime soon. It hurts and she’s tired from living in such circumstances.

The emotional feeling overwhelmed her that she smashed her phone to the wall, trying to release her frustration. Her phone screen shattered and she didn’t realize that her phone accidentally hit the standing lamp, causing a loud cracking sound.

There’s a saying sounded like, let the rain wash away all the pain yesterday. The pain you feel today is the strength you will feel tomorrow. For every challenge encountered, there is opportunity for growth. Not everything that’s broken should remain broken and that one sentence has been echoing inside his head repeatedly.

Jong-Kook has always told himself to not let feelings involved in his life. Everything he did is always based on rational and logic side. He doesn’t even know how does it feel like to fall in love, let alone marriage. He’s not interested in getting such sacred ties. Let people talk about his first love curse. All he cares is just how could make people to spend their money on his airlines.

Until one day, Song Ji Hyo came into his life. She has been part of his life once and he’s not sure if he wants her to be part of his life for the second time. One Choi Soo Young is enough. He doesn’t want another Choi Soo Young. However, little did he realized, Song Ji Hyo has already involved in this pre-planned game.

Standing by the balcony, Jong-Kook could feel the cold breeze brushing through his face bu