Now With U (Living In The Past - Book 2) (WheeByul)

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

Solar looked up from the computer when she heard the knock on her door. "Come in."

The door opened and Bo Mi appeared. "Unnie, there's something that I need to show you," she said right away and closed the door behind her. "It's from the car that hit Jimin."

Solar observed Bo Mi expectantly. "The license plate is fake, expired, right?"

"Yes, but I took a chance and dug deeper into the database, searching for vehicles based on the officers' description. Luckily, that car is quite old and unique. There's not many in South Korea left." Bo Mi showed Solar her tablet. "It's a Volvo V850 sedan. Produced in the 90s for about six years only."

Solar raised her eyebrows. "That should give us a pretty small scope to work with."

"Yes. I've narrowed down the search to those currently registered in the Seoul area and came up with less than fifty. I went further, searching for those that hadn't had their registration renewed within the past 5 years. One very familiar name popped up." Bo Mi tapped the screen on the tablet.

The captain inhaled when she saw the name. "Uhm Tae-woong."

Bo Mi nodded. "He used to own a Volvo V850 sedan but sold it, I think, since the car owner's name changed not long before he supposedly disappeared."

"Who bought it?"

"Someone named Jeong Jun-ha? But that doesn't really matter because that owner reported it stolen."

"When?"

"Just a few months ago. Here's the report." Bo Mi tapped the screen once more, showing Solar the report she was talking about.

Solar took her time, reading about how the classic car went missing from the alley behind the owner's home. It was old and rarely used anyway so there was a note in the report saying that the matter wasn't top priority and even the owner didn't really press about it much.

"So this Jeong Jun-ha has practically given up on the search?" Solar tried to look for more information regarding the stolen car.

"I think so. There were no more records about that car or the complaint he filed. We could try calling him? Ask him directly about it?" suggested Bo Mi.

"Good idea. Can you send Sandeul in here?"

"Sure."

------------------------------------------------------ -

"Star!"

Byul laughed when she heard the loud voice above the buzz of the small playground.

"She likes you too much," mumbled WheeIn as she shook her head at the enthusiastically running girl.

"Jealous?" teased Byul before bending down with arms open to greet Ha-eun. She kissed her cheek then lifted her. "Oomph. Someone's growing up too fast."

"I'm not jealous," said WheeIn, taking the hand Byul offered her.

Byul only smiled. "So how was school today?" she asked the girl in her arms who immediately began telling her about what she had done all day.

Byul nodded and commented, chuckling every now and then when Ha-eun became too excited to even form proper sentences. But her smile quickly faded once she noticed two casually dressed men across the street, recognizing them to be their shadowing officers. Instead of feeling safe, their presence made her anxious and wary. It was a harsh reminder of what was really going on behind the peaceful and happy afternoon.

Even when they had gotten inside the car and driven away calmly, with Ha-eun still chattering away in the backseat, Byul would still regularly glance at the side and rearview mirrors, checking whether they were being followed by anyone other than those officers.

"Star?"

Byul heard WheeIn speak. "Hm?"

"Ha-eun wanted to ask you something."

"Oh?" She wasn't really paying attention. "Sorry. I was too focused on driving. What is it Ha-eun-ah?" She looked at the girl through the rearview mirror.

"Is Grandma still sick?" asked Ha-eun innocently.

Byul took a deep breath then briefly raised her eyebrows at WheeIn, signaling for her to answer.

"Yes, Ha-eun-ah. She still needs to rest," answered WheeIn, looking behind her to the slightly frowning girl.

"For how long?"

"Until she gets better."

"Will I have to go back after she gets better?"

"Um..." WheeIn looked at Byul, not sure how to answer that.

"No, you don't," said Byul. "You'll be staying with us for a long time, Ha-eun-ah. Maybe even forever."

"Forever?"

"Yes. Until you're all grown up."

The girl blinked, unsure what to make of that answer. "When is that?" she finally spoke again.

"Well, you're 4 now. When you've turned 18, you will go to university. After that, you can decide whether you still want to live with us or not."

Ha-eun lifted her fingers and began moving them while mumbling to herself.

"What are you doing?" asked WheeIn.

"If I'm 4 now..." The girl stopped at that, brows furrowed and fingers moving uncertainly.

WheeIn suddenly understood what Ha-eun was doing and had to laugh. "It's still a very long way to go. Eighteen subtracted by four equals fourteen. You still have fourteen years with us."

"Fourteen?" The girl looked up at WheeIn.

"Yes. Fourteen years. That's a very long time, right?"

Ha-eun nodded hesitantly. "With both of you?"

"Yes."

"You won't go to work like Appa or be sick like Grandma?"

Byul and WheeIn's hearts broke again when they heard the innocent question.

"No. We'll never be either," said Byul firmly. "I promise."

"So do I," added WheeIn. She then tried to reach behind her, sticking out her pinky so Ha-eun could hook it with hers. "Promise."

Ha-eun began to smile after the little pinky promise, seemingly satisfied by the answer, forgetting her first question regarding her grandmother. She suddenly resumed chatting, telling the adults about her classmate's new glittery pencil case and large purple bag with a princess on it.

Byul heaved a silent sigh then felt WheeIn's hand resting on her thigh. She took one hand off the wheel and held it, squeezing it gently as a small smile appeared on her face. My own family. Who would have thought?

------------------------------------------------------ -

"Captain."

Solar turned her head to see Sandeul approaching. "Hey. Found anything?"

"Nothing much. That car owner said he had lost hope of retrieving the vehicle. He felt bad because it was a classic but since he hadn't been using it much before it disappeared, he didn't really feel too bad about it. Besides, he said he bought it for a very cheap price. Practically nothing, he said," elaborated the assistant inspector.

"From Uhm Tae-woong?"

Sandeul nodded.

"What's his connection to this Uhm Tae-woong?"

"Nothing. He answered an ad. Plain and simple. He said this owner looked to be in need of money so he was eager to get rid of the car as fast as he could. As proven by the low selling price."

"So whoever stole the car, used it to try to hurt WheeIn and Jimin?"

"Looks that way."

"Everything seems to link back to this Uhm Tae-woong character one way or another. I wonder why-..."

"Captain!"

Tae Hyung's voice interrupted Solar's sentence.

Both Solar and Sandeul turned around to see him half running inside the pantry.

"They found Uhm Tae-woong," said the assistant inspector.

"What?!"

"They intercepted him at the train station. The uniforms are bringing him in."

"Let me guess, he was going to go back to Suncheon?" asked Solar.

"How did you know?" Tae Hyung was taken aback.

"Lucky guess." Solar put her mug down and took out her phone. "I'm calling Byul. She might want to talk to him."

------------------------------------------------------ -

Byul looked up from the tablet in her hands, silently observing the two people sitting across from her.

WheeIn was helping Ha-eun with her homework with her plate of very late lunch lying unfinished to the side. Since they were running late to pick Ha-eun up, they had decided to eat afterwards.

A small smile began to spread on Byul's face without her even realizing it. Regardless of the constant cautiousness lingering on the back of her mind, she took a mental picture of this peaceful scene, imprinting it firmly in her memory.

WheeIn clapped her hands when Ha-eun finally got the answer right, stroked the girl's back then told her to continue working on the rest. She was about to take a bite from her food when she caught Byul's eyes and saw the smile. She raised her eyebrows but Byul merely shook her head before going back to reviewing the case files.

A few more minutes passed peacefully before Byul's ringing phone interrupted them.

"Hey," answered the call.

"Byul-ah, they're bringing in Uhm Tae-woong," said Solar.

"Now?"

"Yes. Found him at the train station. I thought you should know."

Byul looked at WheeIn who was staring at her with knowing eyes. "Be right there." She then hung up. "Do you mind if we make a quick stop at the station?"

"What's going on?"

"They found the man that injured the boys," said Byul, choosing not to mention the man's name or what he had done in front of Ha-eun.

"Oh. Okay. Let's go." WheeIn then helped Ha-eun tidy up her things before they left the café.

----------------------------------------------------- -

Solar turned her head when the door opened and saw Byul walking in. "That's fast. Where are WheeIn and Ha-eun?"

"With Seul," answered Byul as she came to stand next to Solar, looking at the glass, at the man sitting calmly in the room next door.

"Bo Mi has taken the man's shoes for analysis. They have the same size as the print left on Sandeul's shirt and of the same type, the Nike Free trainers, but look clean and new."

"Probably bought himself a new pair."

"Yeah. Well, at least we got his DNA. He can't replace or buy new DNA." Solar handed Byul a folder. "Read this. Bo Mi discovered this when she was searching for the car that was after WheeIn and Jimin but it's not a solid link to him though."

Byul took the folder and read. She frowned when she had finished. "Yet he used to own one like this, right?"

"Yeah but that doesn't mean that it's the car used in the hit and run. There are a few other Volvo V850 sedans left in Seoul."

"Still... to see his name in another attack on our team... isn't this too coincidental?" Byul asked Solar who nodded in agreement.

"I thought so too but we still can't prove anything as of now. Oh well, let's go and just wing it. This man seems interesting."

The two officers went out of the small viewing room, into the interrogation room next to it.

To their surprise, the man stood up politely when they entered and didn't sit down until they told him to.

"Mr. Uhm Tae-woong?" asked Byul as she took her seat in front of him with Solar next to her. She placed the folder on the table and opened it.

"Yes, Ma'am."

"I'm Inspector Moon Byul-Yi and this is Captain Kim Yongsun," said Byul, surprised yet again by the man's politeness considering how hard he had ran the last time she saw him. She didn't show it, of course, but this was the first time she had ever come across one of Ji Soo's or Ji-sub's men that was this well mannered in the interrogation room.

The man nodded in acknowledgment to the higher ranked Solar while clasping his hands coolly on the table.

"Let's just get to the point. We found your DNA at two different crime scenes where attacks against our officers took place. One is indisputable: your spit on the officer's face," continued Byul.

Tae-woong didn't even blink.

"We have enough to put you away for attacking a law enforcement officer."

"I don't think so."

Solar raised her eyebrows. "You were there when he was attacked. You spat on his face."

"But I didn't attack him. I didn't touch him."

"Wha... you let the attack happen right before your eyes!" Byul raised her voice. "You supervised!"

"Can you prove that?"

Byul clenched her jaws. She couldn't. It was Tae Hyung's words against Tae-woong's and they couldn't prove anything besides the man spitting on Tae Hyung. He never did lay a hand on him and they hadn't found the men who did.

"We also found your blood on the pipe used to attack our other officer. And there was a shoe print on his shirt that matches your shoe size and type," said Solar.

"I can assure you that there are at least a thousand other people with the same shoes out there in Seoul alone," replied the man, still without a single trace of worry or pressure. He looked so relaxed that one watching from outside the room could easily thought that he wasn't being interrogated at all. "It could be one of them."

"Your DNA. Your spit. Your blood. You can't tell me that there are at least a thousand other people with the same DNA out there."

"So I spit on a man. I'll pay the necessary fine if he decides to press charges. I'm sure he's not that badly hurt, is he? Because if he is, I don't think we'd be sitting here talking somewhat civilly. You would've thrown me straight in jail."

"Your blood was found on the pipe used to attack another officer," Byul stated a bit louder than she should, finding the man's calmness unnerving, irking her.

The man shrugged. "Where was this pipe when you found it?"

Byul slid a photograph of the old pipe on the crime scene towards him.

He took it, observed it with raised eyebrows for no longer than two seconds and returned it to Byul. "That's trash in what looked like an alley. Anyone could have come in contact with it. I might have touched it accidentally after I cut my hand or something. In any case, I'm pretty sure my DNA's not the only thing on it. You can't use that to accuse me of attacking your officer."

"Then why did you run? Today's not the first time we meet, Mr. Shin," said Byul. "You punched my partner and pushed me when we tried to talk to you."

"Ah. That was you? I'm sorry. There have been people in my neighborhood posing as police officers and ended up extorting money from residents or physically harassing them. So when you told me who you were, I thought you were one of them and I just ran. I did not wish to get involved in such scams," he explained, still in his calm tone. "And when your partner grabbed me, I guess I reacted by reflex. I apologize. Should he also decide to press charges, I won't mind paying the fine or serving the probation time."

Byul and Solar didn't know what to make of this. The calmness this man had was puzzling them.

"Unfortunately, I have had prior brushes with the law back in the old days. I'm not proud of it but I am familiar with the procedure," he spoke again.

Byul frowned then took out another picture, one of the pendant Jimin had ripped off the man's neck. "What is this?"

"Ah. My pendant. Can I have it back?"

"We're holding it as evidence until further notice. What is this?" repeated Byul.

"It's just a souvenir, something I got from one of the monks at Songgwangsa temple."

"What were you doing there? We know that this was given to people who enrolled in their Zen center."

Tae-woong smiled. "Indeed. I spent some time there, self-searching and all that. In fact, I was going back there for a visit when your people intercepted me at the station."

"What were you doing there?"

"Like you said, these were given to those who enrolled in the Jogye teaching center, and I'm one of those people."

"Considering your past, that's quite a surprise, I must say," said Solar as she leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms.

"Which past is that, Captain?" He looked at her.

"Your ties to So Ji Soo and So Ji-sub, Mr. Shin."

"That's a life I have left behind me a very long time ago."

"And yet here we are, discovering your DNA in attack cases."

"I must admit that I lost control when I saw that man being beaten up. I remembered when I was the one being harassed by police officers and I did a very shameful thing. I apologize. Please send him my apology."

"Speaking of this Songgwangsa, we found traces of pine and cherry blossom petals on our attacked officer's shirt, transferred from the shoes. Those plants are growing abundantly around Songgwangsa this time of year, don't they, Mr. Shin?" asked Byul.

"Yes. And around every mountain area in South Korea." There was a small amused smile on the man's face.

Byul couldn't take it anymore when she saw the smile. "Cut the games, Mr. Shin. We know you're linked to these attacks. The car used to hit our other officer was yours." She showed him the picture of the car. "Your car."

He glanced at the photograph then looked Byul in the eyes. "I sold that car years ago. Ask the new owner."

"We did. He claimed that it was stolen."

"Then you can't exactly blame me for it, can you? Why not find whoever stole it and ask him? Besides, I'm sure that's not the only Volvo in this city."

"What are the chances that you stole back this car, Mr. Shin?" asked Byul.

"Why would I want to do that, Inspector Moon?"

"To avoid suspicion when you tried to go after our team?"

"You're really keen on making me the bad guy here, huh?"

"You spat on an officer of the law and watched him get beaten up without so much as shouting for help!"

"So?" He raised his eyebrows, not showing even the tiniest sign of emotions. "I told you, I made the mistake of passively watching and letting my past hate get the best of me. Charge me with ignorance, harassment or even minor assault. But I'm not the one who threw the punches. You can't pin that on me."

Byul was about to say something back but Solar spoke ahead of her.

"Maybe for now but we'll be sure to keep an eye on you, Mr. Shin. We know that there's a reason for your return. We know about Ji Soo too and what he's up to. Make sure you tell him that the next time you see him. In the mean time, we'll be pressing charges for the assault on our officer and I will be motioning for at least a few days in confinement so sit tight. Someone will be right with you."

Solar pushed her chair back and stood up, leaving Byul with no chance but to do the same.

"I still have a lot to say," said Byul once they had closed the door behind them.

"You were about to lose it."

"I was not!"

"You were. And I can't blame you. There's something very irritating about the way he calmly answered our questions."

The sound of another door opening behind them made them turn around.

"Why do I feel like he's playing us?" asked Hwasa as she stepped out of the viewing room.

"See?" Solar gestured towards Hwasa with her head. "You weren't the only one who felt irked, Byul. But since that attack on WheeIn-..."

"Hey! I'm a pro!" Byul cut Solar off.

"I know that. I was just trying to say that since we can't link the attack on WheeIn and Jimin directly to him, we don't have much on him yet," Solar calmly replied. "I wasn't going to say that you were losing it because of what happened to WheeIn."

"Although you kinda went an octave higher a bit too fast there, Byul," teased Hwasa. "Right before the chorus."

"Shut up. I'm a pro! If I could handle the scums that shot Oppa, then I can handle anyone!"

"Easy there, pal. I was just messing with ya." Hwasa ruffled Byul's hair and was about to escape her friend's wrath when she saw two men approaching. Her eyes widened and she stopped in her tracks, causing Byul to bump into her from behind.

"Yah!" Byul was about to scold Hwasa when she turned her head, following her friend's line of sight. "Wha..."

Even Solar didn't know exactly what to say.

"Good evening, Inspectors, Captain," Jin Young greeted the three stunned officers. "An old friend came to see me and asked for you." He gestured to the man beside him who bowed.

"Good evening."

Solar was the first to regain her composure. She stepped forward and tilted her head as she observed the person she recognized as Eun Ji-won. "What is going on, Senior Inspector?" she addressed Jin Young.

"Captain Kim, Inspector Moon, Inspector Ahn, meet Eun Won-jae."

================================================================================

Hope you'll enjoy this chapter as well... 

I'm excited for next year.... 

Don't forget to vote everyone....