5 Days-Jina's Request
5 Days-Jina's Request
........
Junho and Shinjin stared at the little girl in surprise. She was looking at them with her large eyes, hopeful that they could help her.
"What did you say?" Junho questioned her.
"Can you save the Lady Cop from the black shadow?" Jina repeated. "Yumi told me about you two! You're here to get rid of that shadow which has been killing people! The CCK!"
"How do you know about the shadow?" Shinjin asked.
"I saw it!" Jina revealed. "It came out of him."
She pointed at Nam's unconscious figure. "Yumi also saw it! Casper too! The shadow was lurking near the Lady Cop as well. It had kidnapped my aunt Mina and now Lady Cop is with it!"
Shinjin grabbed Junho's arm, unable to believe what they were witnessing.
"Junho…" he began. "This girl…"
Junho stooped down and stared directly into her eyes. Jina did not flinch away from the stranger as he bombarded her with questions.
"This Yumi, isn't she one of the victims of CCK?" Junho asked. "And you can see her?"
Jina slowly nodded. Junho heard Shinjin gasp behind him.
"S-she's a Seer!" Shinjin exclaimed. "But how is that possible? I thought only Gayoon's family line could see ghosts! There can't be more of them."
But Junho knew there was one more. The one whom Gayoon had to distance herself from.
"What is your name?" he finally asked. There was a strange adoration in the stranger's voice and he tried to keep a poker face but his eyes were turning a little misty.
"Jina," she replied. "Hwang Jina. The Lady Cop lives with us in our mansion."
Junho's eyes widened in shock. "W-what did you just say?" he gasped. "Gayoon lives with you in your mansion?"
"Yes!" Jina revealed. "And I know that she can sense ghosts too! I overheard her talking to Yumi and Casper. But she doesn't know I can see the ghosts as well. She got kidnapped before I could tell her!"
"And your parents...who are your parents?"
Junho held his breath. Could this little girl be…?
"I don't have a mother," Jina squeaked. She was getting worried by this stranger's questions. Why was he asking about her family? What did he know about her abilities?
"My...my father's name is Hwang Minho," she finally revealed.
Something flashed through Junho's eyes. Jina could not place what it was but the old man suddenly seemed to be having difficulty in handling his emotions. Shinjin watched his friend in alarm, hoping that Junho would not get overwhelmed by his feelings at this moment. Not only was he staring at Gayoon's daughter but the fact that the little girl turned out to be his own granddaughter was making the man weak at this crucial moment.
Jina reached out to wipe a tear off Junho's cheek.
"You can save her!" she assured him, naively misreading his thoughts. "You're her ahjusshi right? She talks a lot about you. She told me that you can always save her no matter what!"
Junho did not even realize that he was crying but the little girl's words strengthened his resolve. He smiled at her and nodded.
"I will save your Lady Cop," he promised. "Thank you."
He hesitated before patting the little girl's head. Jina felt a strange warmth from the old man and gave him a small smile.
Junho got up and turned around to face the monster which slept peacefully on the bed.
"Let's do this," he said, his voice filled with determination. It was not just a question of his goddaughter's life anymore. His granddaughter made a request to him for the first time and he must fulfill his promise to her.
Even if he had to sacrifice his own life in the process.
....
Minho stopped the car right outside the woods near the docks. Kanji was beside him while their men had followed them in their own vehicles. They had informed the CCK team as well and for once, they had not hesitated in heading out for the mission.
Kanji held a digital map in his hand on the whole area. "This place is over seventy acres!" he informed Minho. "It's going to be difficult to find her."
"The van was last spotted entering these woods," Minho stated, checking the CCTV footage his men had gathered.
"But does the copycat have a lab here?" Kanji frowned. "Doctor Dohyun doesn't have the resources to build a lab here all by herself."
"Family money? Friend's place? Who cares about all that?" Minho snapped. "We have to find Gayoon before 11:59 PM!"
He checked his watch. It was nearly 3 AM in the morning and they were wasting time. Turning to his men, she ordered, "Split up into groups! Team A will go south. Team B take north. Team C will go west. Kanji and I will go east. The CCK team will join us in the eastern route in a few minutes. If any of you find the van or any cabin which might have a lab in it, notify us via your mics."
The men yelled, "Yes sir!" and split up to enter the woods. Minho and Kanji wore protective gear and each had a gun in their hands, ready to injure the copycat if they spotted it. They entered the dark woods, unsure of what they were going to face in there.
"Are you afraid, Minho?" Kanji asked. He was not mocking his friend but was rather worried for him. Minho might seem calm but the fear instilled by the CCK into their hearts was so strong that even the copycat scared them. The events of that night never left their minds especially Mina and Minho's. The terror they had faced was not something they were keen to revisit but circumstances were forcing them to face their demons again.
"I am," Minho admitted. "But being afraid is going to cost me a lot this time. And you know me. I hate costs."
Kanji smirked in spite of himself. "Money lover through and through," he commented.
"Only this time, if I fail, I won't be losing money," Minho said as they slowly crept deeper into the darkness which lay ahead of them.
"What will you lose then?"
The memory of Gayoon's smile as she hugged their daughter flashed momentarily in front of his eyes. Her and Jina's laughter echoed in his ears as he braced himself to face the fear he had been trying to overcome for years.
"Everything," he whispered.