Money Loving CEO's Detective Lover

They had been walking through the deep forest for hours without any sign of the copycat nor of Gayoon. Minho checked his watch. It was already half past 6 and it felt as if they had been going in circles.     

"This forest is deeper than I thought," Kanji commented. "It's so weird. Everything feels exactly like it was twenty years ago."     

"That's coz it's a copycat," Minho gritted, pushing past the heavy branches hanging low till the ground. "She's copying the CCK's MO."     

"Yeah but to this extent?" Kanji pointed out. "Don't you think it's a little too much? No one can copy this well."     

"Maybe Dohyun was obsessed with the CCK and figured out Doctor Nam is the serial killer," Minho reasoned. "And somehow found out about his killing style and is copying it."     

"But that still doesn't explain how she knew about our encounter with the CCK. It's almost like she's possessed by the CCK himself!"     

"What rubbish!" Minho claimed. "That's impossible."     

"I don't know Minho," Kanji admitted. "There are so many things in this world we can't explain. This doesn't seem like a mere copycat killer. It feels more like the actual killer has risen from his slumber and is continuing his task as if he never left."     

Minho did not reply to that. He did not want to consider such an absurd possibility but Kanji was not entirely wrong either. No matter how much he tried to find a logic in everything, even he could not figure out why and how the copycat came to know of their encounter with the CCK in the past. That too when she was barely a toddler then.     

Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks.      

"What is it?" Kanji asked. Minho did not reply but pointed ahead. There were tire tracks on the ground.     

"Is that...is that the van's tracks?" Kanji gasped.     

"Let's follow it," Minho said. They began to trail the tire tracks, entering deeper into the woods which were becoming alarmingly darker.     

Even though it was daytime and the sun had probably risen, it was hard to tell amidst the large trees looming above them, gloomily observing the intruders who had walked into their midst. A cool fog had set in, clouding their vision. But it was the familiar fear in their hearts which had them on the edge.     

It was like dejavu. They had somehow transported back in time to the night they had rescued Mina. It was the same setting and they were hunting for the same killer who had changed their lives so drastically. They might be older and wiser but the eerily similar feeling would not go away. Nothing had changed in the twenty years except for their ages.     

"Minho…" Kanji began. "Do you still think that this is a copycat killer?"     

He knew it sounded ridiculous but his heart was screaming that something was amiss and he knew that despite Minho's claims, he, too, was doubting his own logic.      

Minho did not reply for a while before finally admitting, "I don't know what is true anymore."     

...     

"It's your...family home...isn't it?"      

Gayoon flashed the CCK a bloodied grin. The killer only snarled at her apparent smugness. No matter how many times it hit her, she would not give in to her fear. It had severely underestimated her.     

"You are too confident for your own good," it hissed.     

"I merely have confidence in my loved ones," Gayoon shot back. "You see unlike you, I actually have people who love me. They would find you sooner or later."     

"They will never find me!" CCK boasted. "And by the time they do, you'll be dead."     

"Says the guy who was beaten by a teenager twenty years ago in his own turf," Gayoon scoffed. "If a sixteen year old Hwang Minho can beat you, then imagine what the current Hwang Minho would do to you! You think he's gonna let you go after seeing me like this?"     

"Tut tut Detective," CCK said. "Hwang Minho only thinks of my current self as a copycat. He's going to see Doctor Dohyun and shoot her. You really think I'm here to merely kill you?"     

A sadistic smile formed on its face, scaring Gayoon. She had to use every ounce of her willpower to not show her fear.     

"What do you mean?" she gritted.     

"You see my dear," it sneered. "After you die, Hwang Minho would hunt down Doctor Dohyun and kill her. I know he's capable of doing that. After all, I've seen that monster in him."     

Gayoon's eyes widened in shock. This spirit was not only evil but it was beyond redemption.     

"You want to turn him into a killer," she whispered. "This was your plan all along…"     

"That's right," the CCK grinned. "Once you're dead, he will come for Doctor Dohyun and kill her. He will become a killer just like me! I will make him unleash the monster in him and once he does that, I will reveal my true self. I'll taunt him and relish in his pain when he realizes that he had killed an innocent person! I will make him stoop to my level and see him suffer for the rest of his life. He cut my time short with my family and I'll make sure he's never able to face his family again!"     

Its hatred oozed out of it, turning Dohyun's pupils pitch black. It was relishing in its victory. Within a few hours, the death of Jeon Gayoon would mark the beginning of Hwang Minho's fall into madness. Twenty years ago, the CCK had seen the ruthless monster in Minho's eyes which would unleash havoc in the world once unleashed. The darkness was masqueraded by the CEO's iciness but it was there. Only a killer like the CCK could unlock it.     

Gayoon's shock turned into hard determination. She knew that the CCK would truly win if that happened and no matter what, she would stop it. She had no intention to die that day and nor would she let Minho kill Dohyun. Her strength was leaving her as the pain in her body intensified but she bit into her lip hard, trying to keep herself awake.      

"There's no use in trying to fight the drowsiness," CCK taunted her. "Soon, you'll be cut up into pieces anyway. Unlike the others, you're not going to get an easy death my dear. I'll make sure you feel the sharpness of the blade into your soft skin…"     

It licked its lips in anticipation, glad that the detective was finally beginning to show some fear. But to its shock, she began to laugh. Gayoon let out a mirthful laughter at the CCK's irony.     

"Why are you laughing?" it asked in annoyance.     

"Unfortunately, pal," she began. "Even if Minho kills Dohyun, he would still not become the monster you are. He might end up killing a person but even if he kills a thousand people, your one single sin will beat all of his."     

"What do you mean?" it demanded.     

"Do you know the name of your last victim?" she asked.     

"No!" it scoffed. "Who cares about their names as long as they served their purpose towards me!"     

"Oh you would love to know the last one's name," Gayoon smiled. "But I must warn you, if you hear it, then you'll regret it for the rest of your miserable existence."     

The CCK fumed as Gayoon slightly leaned forward to throw her trump card.     

"Her name was Nam Jiyeon," she revealed. "Daughter of Lee Dami and...Nam Daewhi."