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Heiran threw herself wholly into her work, avoiding the eyes of her partner for the next few days. Jungkook decided it was probably because she was ashamed. He let her have her space; it felt like the right thing to do.  But sometimes it felt suffocating to watch her flip through pages without a word for hours on end. From the occasional glances he often stole at her, he saw her looking through the witness accounts of the lay witness who had found the body of Mr. and Mrs. Chae. Personally, Jungkook didn't find anything too interesting about Kim Namjoon but it seemed as if Heiran had a different opinion about that. He badly wished that she would take her eyes off the case files and offer an explanation, or say something, anything. But Heiran was determined to keep to her work. Was that how partners worked?

He mentally tried to gouge out her thoughts, his gaze trailing over the way a constant furrow settled on her forehead, the way her lips turned down in a frown, how her finger kept tapping against the diamond on her nose, how her eyes kept darting through the pages of the case files—

"Ahem!"
Prosecutor Jungkook snapped back to reality, wrenching his vision away from Heiran to the Legal Assistant who stood before him holding out some papers, feline eyes narrowed in suspicion. Jungkook quickly received the papers clearing his throat as he adjusted his glasses. Asst. Min Yoongi's eyes drifted off to Heiran then back to him as he derived his conclusions before he shot him a very nasty look that somewhat translated into something like 'stay away from my best friend, you creep!' Snatching the signed papers back from him, Asst. Min walked out of the office but not before shooting him a warning glare.

Jungkook scratched the back of his head, sheepishly when the harsh ringing of the telephone cut through the silence of the office shrouded in darkness. Heiran rose briefly from her papers as he answered the phone but stayed watching as his eyes gradually widened and his stance tensed. Jungkook conveyed his thanks to the caller before he put the receiver down on the phone and looked at her.

"Ms. Ahn."

* * *

Heiran covered her mouth with a towel, unable to watch any longer of the boy on the cold metal stretcher, the image of him and his mother lying on the muddy stretch near the Yeongsan River, in a final embrace, heads turned to the sky imprinted on her mind.

The mark of a hacksaw ran deep across the mother's jugular and the little boy's eyes were still frozen in wild terror when they found them, indicating that his hadn't been a quick death. He was only a child. The killer was sick.

Heiran expected her partner to have an even worse reaction to the scene but it seemed as if she was mistaken. He was notably calm, though evidently disturbed, he still seemed saner than he had been at the murders of Yihyun and Saebom. Well, good to know at least one of us can keep our heads straight.

The signs were all there, just like the murder of the high school students: the torture marks from a hacksaw, the same cause of death, the same way they disposed of the body near the Yeongsan River, the same taunting way they left a message.

Let's make this spicier.
                   - Y

That's exactly what they did. Heiran had believed the targeted victims were all couples and had even issued a public caution to keep them safe but the belief was proven wrong. The targets weren't just couples. They were even single mothers who lived with their young five-year-olds now.

The familiar headache made itself known as she arrived in her office and before her partner could even take a step inside, she threw her bag on the plush chair and exploded.

"There goes another lead! Exactly what is their deal?! 'Let's make this spicier'? Hah! F*cking as$hole! Who do they think they are?!"

Jungkook calmly strode inside and took his seat on the swivel chair, keen eyes watching her pull her hair out of her scalp. "F*ck that scummy piece of disgusting sh*t! F*ck that goddamn—"

"Calm down, partner. Don't let them provoke you. Remember, that's exactly what they want." Jungkook tried to pacify.

"Calm down? How am I supposed to calm down Jeon f*cking Jungkook?! Do you think this is a joke anymore? The media is blowing up! People are blaming us! Just like Chief Moon predicted and I'm going crazy out here!"

Jungkook's eyebrows raised way past his forehead as he leaned back into the chair. Jeon f*cking Jungkook? Ah, good old Heiran and her hot temper.

Perhaps he should have been insulted by her rather brash reaction but at that time, all Jungkook could do was suppress a blooming smirk and clear his throat, assuming a more stern voice.

"If it will make you feel any better, I might have a clue on what the pattern might be."

Heiran suddenly paused, ears perked up as her eyes slammed into Jungkook's serene gaze.

"What do you mean?"

"I have a guess. Not a conclusion but a very educated guess." He offered.

Heiran grimaced, her patience running out. "Okay. What is your 'very educated' guess?"

"We never found a motif, did we? But now I have reasonable cause to believe that it is...love."

"Huh?" Confusion defined Heiran's features as she slowly took a seat near him. "Love?"

"Mhm," Jungkook dipped his head in a single nod, "These past few weeks, I have been going through the victims' social life before their death and even did a little investigating with their bereaved families to get a better grasp on their characters. And today, I happened to meet an aggrieved neighbor of the recently deceased mother and child who gave me quite the insight about their life and you won't believe what stood out among all of them, partner." Jungkook got up from his chair.

 "It was the word love. 'Oh, he was so in love with her', 'Ah, they were such lovebirds', 'Such a pity. Bora loved her son so dearly.' Do you see the pattern here, Ms. Ahn?"

Heiran didn't reply, considering the absurd notion. When did he do all this? Although she hated to admit it, that was impressive.

"So unless I'm very much mistaken and they are all interrelated in a way we don't know yet, the motive is love. The culprit has some great animosity towards affection." Jungkook concluded, writing down his observations on the whiteboard before he slumped back right into his seat.

"Affection..." Heiran breathed lost in thought as she traced her finger above his handwritten note on the whiteboard. It was ridiculous really. The motive for the crimes was a word so vague that could mean so many possibilities. Her fingers massaged her temples trying to ease the thumping pain on her forehead as she let out a huge breath.

"Okay..." She said quietly nodding, "It's ridiculous but it makes sense, I guess."

Jungkook nodded his head at her acknowledgment, letting out a contented sigh. He revolved around the chair, watching the ceiling spin in his vision as a pen twirled and danced between his fingers, his gaze swimming in deep thoughts. His thoughts quietly tumbled out of his lips in soft whispers that hung eerily in the room.

"The culprit must be getting quite confident if they are moving so fast. Who knows, they might even be right beside us, among us, around us, near enough but too far out of reach..."

Jungkook slowly came to a stop as his eyes drifted down to land on the man who stood by the door ready to knock on it. Min Yoongi's slender fingers rapped on the wood.

"Paperwork."

A/n: In case anyone is confused about who Kim Namjoon is, he is the one who found the bodies of Chae Hyunsik and Chae Manwol in the prologue

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A/n: In case anyone is confused about who Kim Namjoon is, he is the one who found the bodies of Chae Hyunsik and Chae Manwol in the prologue. It was mentioned in chapter 3. But anyhow, what do you think Prosecutor Jeon meant? Do you suspect anyone?

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