The Decision
Jeju's salty wind whipped through my hair as I stared at the ransom photo. Minjae's left eye was swollen shut, his wrists bound with zip-ties. The timestamp glowed: Received 2 minutes ago.
Haewon's fingers dug into my arm. "We're going back."
"That's what Joonho wants," I said, tracing the GPS coordinates embedded in the image. "He'll have snipers. Traps. Maybe—"
"I don't care." She slammed her fist against the dock railing. "He's our friend."
The unspoken truth hung between us: This is my fault. If I hadn't dragged Minjae into this...
I pulled up a map on the burner phone. "Then we do it smart. Here's how."
---
The Setup
The abandoned fish market reeked of rotting squid and bad decisions. Haewon wired me up with a microphone stolen from a karaoke bar, her fingers brushing my collarbones.
"Joonho will monologue first," she muttered, taping the device to my chest. "Give me five minutes after you enter before—"
"Before you storm in guns blazing?" I forced a grin.
Her smile was razorblades. "I was thinking flamethrower."
A quick, fierce hug—then she vanished into the predawn fog.
---
The Exchange
Joonho's "meet location" was a yacht club with too many blind spots. His bodyguards patted me down at the gate, missing:
1) The mic taped to my ribs
2) The ceramic knife in my sock
3) The sheer depth of my regret
Minjae slumped in a deck chair, his glasses cracked. "You idiot," he croaked.
Joonho twirled a pistol. "Touching. Now where's—"
BOOM.
Haewon blew the dock gates open with a stolen speedboat.
---
The Escape
Chaos. Gunfire. Minjae headbutting a bodyguard.
We escaped through a sewer pipe, emerging covered in things I refuse to name. The sunrise found us on a cargo ship to China, eating stolen protein bars.
Haewon leaned against my shoulder, exhausted. "Next time, I pick the rendezvous point."
Minjae groaned. "Next time?!"
I kissed her then—salt, blood, and all.
---
Next Chapter Teaser:
- Underworld Connections ("Turns out my mom knows a guy...")
- New Identities (Facial reconstruction montage)
- Joonho's True Motive (That photo in his wallet...)