5 Days-Day 4
5 Days-Day 4
.....
Mina was rushed into the hospital's emergency room. An oxygen mask was put on her while the doctors monitored her heart rate.
"Her BP is very low!" one of the doctors yelled. "How's the heart rate?"
"Weak but it's increasing!" the nurse replied.
"Her body temperature is too low," the doctor stated. "Bring out the hemodialysis machine!"
The nurse quickly pulled in a large dialysis machine which was used to filter and rewarm the blood. The doctor checked Mina's pulse and decided that the blood near the heart was too cold due to the prolonged hypothermia she had gone through. He quickly connected the machine to her chest and the machine began to filter out the cold blood by sucking it out of her veins and processed it to the normal temperature before replacing it back via the other tube connected to her heart.
Minho was outside, stone faced as Taejoon talked with Kanji.
"We found her inside the rundown ship," he was saying. "She was freezing and looked sickly."
"Where is CCK?" Kanji demanded. "She was there so the CCK must have been there as well. Surely you have caught him?"
Taejoon hesitated before replying, "No. We haven't caught him…"
Officer Jiang, who was also at the site with the rest of the team, decided to tell them the truth. He glanced at the others who nodded at him. They were very much disheartened by the fact their supervisors had replaced Gayoon as their team leader when she was clearly more level headed and competent in finding the clues. Her kidnapping came as a shock to all of them.
"The CCK's real target was Detective Jeon," he revealed. Hearing his words, Minho looked up from his nearly catatonic state.
"What did you say?" he asked in a low tone.
Taejoon threw Jiang a dirty look but the rookie officer ignored him.
"The CCK had laid out the trap to kidnap Detective Jeon," he went on. He glanced at Taejoon and added, "I'm sorry sir, but I believe that if our team had not delayed while you argued with Mr. Hwang, we would have arrived there earlier and possibly could have saved Detective Jeon."
"You don't know that!" Taejoon snapped. "We could not let civilians risk their lives! You know the protocols-"
"With all due respect, sir," Hobin stepped up. "You were the one who did not want to work with Hwang Minho. If we had hurried up and followed his team to the bunkers, this might not have happened."
Taejoon glared at them. Did the rookies not understand the fact that it was impossible to go against some protocols?
Minho did not reply but simply stood up and walked towards Taejoon. They were of the same height but Minho's aura easily overpowered him.
"We will do this our way now," he stated in his deadpan voice. "My men will search for Gayoon and if needed, become vigilante to save her. Your team is welcome to help us but we won't stop looking for her simply because of some laws."
"You don't know what you're getting into-" Taejoon began but Minho had enough.
In an uncharacteristically cool tone, he simply added, "If you or any of your superiors dare to intervene, I will make sure that all of you are suspended and driven to the point that no one will ever employ you. You won't get help from banks or government bodies. Any firm hiring you will fail and any business you start will go bankrupt. I will make you pay the price not just with money but with your blood."
His calm threat was like a chaotic tornado which blew all of them away. Taejoon tried to be intimidating but a single drop of sweat was running down his forehead while the other officers were also frightened by Minho's words. They had heard of this man's ruthlessness and how he had bankrupted nearly all his rivals to reach the top. He can destroy anyone with the snap of his fingers. The man would not kill them but destroy their spirit in such a way that they would not be able to stand again.
Kanji also felt a shiver down his spine. He had seen Minho's petty anger and temper bursts many times. But those were merely a facade which hid the calm and calculative Minho who would not hesitate to strike down anyone trying to harm his loved ones.
Minho did not care about the fear he had instilled in everyone's hearts but simply walked away with a new glint in his eyes. He refused to be scared of the CCK anymore. It was time to finish what they had started all those years ago.
And if it ended in a bloody battle then he would not think twice before spilling it.
...
Gayoon slowly opened her eyes. Her head felt heavy and she was still muddled with sleep but surprisingly, she could still move her muscles. She was seated on a chair with her hands and legs tied with metal chains. Glancing around her, she realized that she was in some kind of cold storage. Her body was shivering violently while her hands and bare feet were icy cold. It was difficult to breathe in the storage as her lungs felt constricted.
He didn't paralyze me, she realized. Why?
"You must be wondering why I didn't paralyze you?"
She slowly turned her head to her right where the CCK sat. It smiled at her through Dohyun's lips, watching her like a hungry predator.
"You see, you are a special one," it went on. "The money lover who never had a lover before, suddenly ended up dating a girl who was not even rich."
Gayoon kept a poker face but was frowning inside. Minho never had a lover? Then how was Jina born?
The way CCK spoke, it was as if it still did not know of Jina's existence which was a relief to Gayoon. She kept her cool as the serial killer rambled on.
"My mother always taught me that we have to eat together as a family," CCK sighed. "I wish my family was with me. I'm sure my child would have been thrilled to share a meal with her dad…"
It looked at Gayoon, expecting her to be scared or disgusted. To its surprise, she only listened with a bored expression.
"Now that I have you here," it went on. "I'm going to have a...hearty meal."
It giggled loudly at its own joke. "So far, I've had only frozen food so I wonder how the fresh one would taste like. You see, I'm going to-"
"Yeah yeah!" Gayoon scoffed. "You are gonna kill me within a few hours coz you always eat at 11:59 PM. I've heard that story so many times that I've memorized it by heart. Stop beating around the bush and just say out loud that you're a bloody cannibal! It's annoying to hear the same story over and over again."
The CCK blinked at her boldness. Huh?
Gayoon smirked at him. "I mean, I get it that you had parental issues. Was it the mom who taught you table manners? Or was it the dad who probably made you eat a whole person in one go?"
The mention of the dad made CCK fidget.
"So it is the dad," Gayoon concluded. Time to turn the tables, she decided.