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Dirty Secret

Page 6

by Rhys Ford


  IT WAS nearly six thirty when I heard a key in the front door. I’d somehow missed Neko in my house hunt earlier that morning, and she’d greeted me when I’d come in, screaming for food and love… an interchangeable pair in her mind. A quick step around her winding body and a dubious-smelling helping of tuna and egg cat food made her happy enough to let me go shower in peace. I was out of the shower when Jae called out to me.

  “Up here!” I’d gone into my walk-in closet and stared at the bank of clothes hanging there. I’d put on a pair of comfortable briefs, then was stymied by the choices I had to make. “What the hell do I wear to this thing?”

  “Something clean,” Jae murmured as he came in behind me. His black denim jeans did wonders for his long legs and ass, especially when he bent over to dig through my shoe boxes for a pair of loafers for me to wear. He handed me my shoes, a pair of socks, and then retrieved a pair of black pants and a matching shirt from hangers, dumping those in my arms too. “Go get dressed.”

  “If the cat tells you she’s not been fed, she’s lying.” I was talking to air. He’d already headed downstairs.

  The loafers squeaked slightly as I came down the stairs, and Jae grinned at me, shaking his head. “You probably need a haircut.” He ran his fingers through my brown hair, tugging at the ends brushing my jaw. “But it’s nice to play with.”

  “I got more than my hair for you to play with,” I teased. “You driving?”

  “My stuff’s in my car.” He shrugged. “But, you can drive.”

  I tried not to let my relief show. I’d been a passenger in Jae’s car a total of three times, and after each trip, I forced myself not to kiss the ground in thanks once I got free of the Explorer. He’d learned to drive in Seoul. Apparently, no one believed in turn signals or lanes in South Korea, because Jae drove like a drunk butterfly heading to its next fermented flower.

  We were three blocks away from the house when I told Jae-Min about Shin-Cho and his encounter with Kwon. The exasperated sigh he gave me back was weighted down with worry.

  “Do not say anything to Sang-Min at the party,” he warned me. “This isn’t just a dinner for the wedding party. A lot of business people will be there. This is a big thing. Don’t mess it up.”

  “Wouldn’t dream of it,” I promised. “Can I glare menacingly at him?”

  “No,” Jae shot back. “For once, pretend you’re really Japanese, and just smile and nod. Practice having a public face. Aish, I don’t know why I bother. It’s like trying to teach a fish to drink milk.”

  “I promised, didn’t I?” Not being totally stupid, I changed the subject. “Have you been up there before?”

  We were heading to the Hills, the GPS chirping out directions as I drove. Traffic along the 101 was surprisingly light. We’d be there way before eight o’clock unless Santa Monica Boulevard was tight. The Explorer rattled a bit as I changed lanes, and I made a mental note to have the front end looked at.

  “A couple of times,” Jae replied. “I shot their son’s college graduation party and their last anniversary dinner. They pay on time.”

  That was high praise from Jae. He hated chasing down money. The topic of money brought me back to our discussion that morning, and I cleared my throat, drawing Jae’s attention away from the window.

  “You know I’ll help you—”

  “No.” I didn’t even get to finish the sentence when he cut me off. No argument. No wavering. Just an unwavering no.

  “Can we at least talk about it being a maybe if something big comes up?” I maneuvered around a semi, still not liking the way the Explorer was handling. Compared to my Rover, it was like steering a boat through sand. “I’m serious. If there’s an emergency, it would make me feel better knowing you’d come to me. At least for a loan.”

  His cinnamon-honey eyes studied me, and I shifted in my seat, unnerved at the intensity I saw there. Grunting, Jae quirked his mouth in partial disgust and returned to staring out the window. After a few moments, he reluctantly said, “Only as a loan. And only if it’s something big.”

  “That’s all I’m asking.” I’d never begged someone to take money from me. Certainly not Rick, or even Ben, who’d been happy for me to cough up cash for lunches. Even Claudia, who was reluctant about overspending, graciously accepted any bonuses I passed her way.

  He responded with one of those tonal noises he and Scarlet spoke in. I didn’t reply. Mostly because I didn’t understand if he was consenting, or blowing me off to make me feel better.

  We rode in silence the rest of the way. Traffic remained light, even when we hit the Hills, where the roads shrunk down to two lanes and were dominated by hulking Hummers and sports cars. I almost missed the driveway leading up to the house, but Jae pointed it out hiding behind a sweeping willow tree.

  The word house could barely be used for the building we drove up to. It looked more like some place that the dog had its own suite, complete with whirlpool spa and maid quarters. The house’s size and creamy stone exterior was a polite nod to a French chateau, complete with a pair of towers and a blue slate sloping roof. A valet waited for us at the top of the circular driveway, poised to whisk the Explorer off to who-knew-where. The grounds were thick with ornamental evergreens shaped like dollops of water, and the greenscapes would make a golf course envious.

  It made me wonder what Kwon really did for a living, because it seemed like there was a lot of money to be made doing it.

  “We can go through the house.” Jae was already out of the car and unloading equipment from the back seat. Hefting a duffel bag over his shoulder, he waited until I untangled myself from the seat belt before heading up the wide front steps to the door. They opened before he could knock, and I grabbed the other bag and tripod, leaving the car for the valet to deal with. The scars on my side pulled at the weight on my shoulder, and I shifted the bag, trying to ease the ache creeping up my ribcage.

  I didn’t get much time to look at the interior. Jae hurried through a few rooms that left me with an impression of white and yellow walls, light furniture, and endless streams of windows. A short flight of stone steps led us down to a cobblestone patio nearly the size of an Olympic pool. An actual pool lay beyond, complete with a natural boulder façade and multiple waterfalls lit up for the evening event.

  Once outside, Jae claimed a small table behind the long buffet being set up, avoiding a pair of caterers lighting Sterno cans under chafing dishes. White paper lanterns were strung up above the cobblestone patio, and a semicircle of tables were arranged opposite the food. A string quartet’s tuning was nearly drowned out by a man behind a wet bar shouting toward the house that he needed limes and simple syrup. From the looks of things, there would be about fifty or so people at the rehearsal dinner.

  “Shit, how many people are coming to the wedding if they’ve got this many coming now?” I whispered into Jae’s ear.

  “I think three hundred, but the reception will be bigger. More people are invited to that.” Jae handed me a small handheld spotlight and a bifold holding memory cards. A white screen was set in front of the bulb to diffuse the light, and I stood still as he attached the spot’s battery pack to my belt. “Don’t turn this on until I tell you to. And don’t take off the screen.”

  “Got it.” I’d already done that once while fooling around with it in my living room. Took me over half an hour before people stopped looking like Jesus, and lost their halos. “No turning on the lasers. Let me know when Scarlet gets here. I need to see if Shin-Cho talked to her yet.”

  “She’s not coming, agi,” Jae said, looking away momentarily. He’d slipped, calling me agi when other people were around. I pretended not to notice. “She’s… this isn’t her place. This is a place for… wives, not lovers. Hyung will be coming by himself.”

  “That sucks,” I muttered, but Jae’d already wandered off, his attention fixed on the quartet.

  People were starting to trickle onto the patio. The crowd was mostly Korean, leaning toward spangled dresses and
tailored suits. The women seemed to have a glitter and spangle fetish. Either that, or there’d been a rhinestone factory that had a going-out-of-business sale. I was half-afraid for Jae’s eyes if he used the spotlight. One wrong move and his retinas would be burnt out from the back flash.

  A thin-faced Korean woman wearing a gold silk sheath hurried over to Jae, touching his arm lightly as she spoke to him in whispers. She was that made-up pretty where I couldn’t tell how old she was: older than her twenties, but hovering somewhere ahead of fifty. Her high heels brought her up to Jae’s shoulder and looked painful, but she glided on them, as if walking on giraffe legs was something she did every day. Scarlet wore those kinds of shoes. I could never be a woman. My feet screamed in agony just looking at them. Jae cocked his head as he listened to her, and nodded, bowing slightly before she gave us both a smile and scurried away to greet people coming down the walkway.

  “Mother of the bride?” I joined him, hazarding a guess at her identity. She was quickly surveying the area, smiling softly at people when she made eye contact.

  “Her name is Choi Eun-hee,” Jae said, steadying himself as he took a few shots of a young couple near one of the tables. The woman was touching the flower arrangement on the table, running her finger over a rose petal and conferring with the man holding her arm. “Yes, mother of the bride. She wanted to remind us to eat. I told her we will once the dancing starts.”

  “Did she remarry?” Jae looked up at me, frowning in confusion. “Her last name is Choi? Not Kwon?”

  “Korean women don’t normally take their husbands’ last names, remember?” He returned to stalking the guests, and I had to stretch my legs to keep up with him. “You can call her Mrs. Kwon, but Dr. Choi would be better.”

  I was going to ask what she was a doctor of, but the irritated gleam in Jae’s eye reminded me he was working. I was going to have to keep track of the players. These people were connected to Dae-Hoon, either through blood, sex, or in a day or so, marriage.

  Shin-Cho spotted me and came over, giving Jae a small polite bow before greeting me. The mark on his cheek was barely visible, but his eyes were as troubled as they’d been when he’d left my house. As Jae messed with some of his equipment, he sidled up to me.

  “My brother will be here later. I’ve told him about you helping with our father,” Shin-Cho said quietly. “He’d like to meet you.”

  “Sure,” I agreed. From where I stood, David seemed like one of the few sane people in the family. Although I could have been prejudiced, because he’d chosen to support his brother rather than turn his back on him.

  “There, at the top of the stairs,” Shin-Cho hissed. “That is Sang-Min.”

  A tall, middle-aged Korean man with a practiced smile descended the stairs and touched Dr. Choi’s shoulder. I turned just enough to study his face. There was only one photo of Dae-Hoon with his then-lover, Kwon Sang-Min, and despite the passage of time, his features were easily recognizable. The good-looking, composed twentysomething young man was now a handsome, polished businessman. He scanned the crowd, waving at people mingling in the center of the patio.

  Kwon spotted Shin-Cho and nodded slowly at him. The nod was arrogant and condescending, a gesture that seemed as natural to him as breathing. A faint smirk lingered at the edge of his mouth, a mocking tease at Shin-Cho’s expense. Then his gaze stopped on Jae, and I saw a flare of intense interest flash across his face before dissolving behind a placid mask.

  Yeah, the man was gay. A man’s eyes didn’t linger on another man’s ass unless he wanted to plow it.

  I wanted to punch Kwon in the mouth. Repeatedly. Until I wiped that plastic smile off his face.

  “Cole-ah, I need a new card soon,” Jae called out to me.

  “I’ll hook up with you later, Shin-Cho. Have to get to work before Jae kills me.” I hurried over to Jae’s side. The people gathered on the patio were beginning to clap, and I turned, frozen in place. Jae took the card from my fingers, ignoring my slack-jawed stare.

  The bride, Helena Kwon, looked more like her father than her mother. She had his elegant features, softened with a full mouth and triangular chin. A blood-red cocktail dress hugged her slender body, and her diamond bracelets caught the light, throwing rainbows back onto the crowd. The young man with her stood a few feet behind, allowing her a moment in the spotlight as the bride. She turned, searching for her groom, and reached out one hand for him, motioning him forward.

  He stepped out of the shadows, his hand closing over his wife-to-be’s, and his smile was warm, much warmer than Kwon’s. He waved to the crowd and gallantly swept his arm toward Helena, bowing gracefully at her sweet laughter. The lights hit his face, and my heart stopped for a beat. I snuck a look at Kwon’s face. It was tight, and his smile was stretched wide, but his eyes were cold, a bitter, somber glaze shadowing them.

  I could understand Kwon’s reaction. He’d probably stared at David numerous times, but it would still be a shock. God knows, I was shocked down to my shoes. It was like Dae-Hoon stepped out of the photos Scarlet sent me, and came to life. David, his daughter’s soon-to-be husband, was the spitting image of his missing father, Dae-Hoon, and judging by the lecherous expression on Kwon’s face, Shin-Cho wasn’t the only Park brother Kwon wanted to fuck.

  Chapter Six

  “FUCK me.” I whistled under my breath. Jae nudged me in the ribs with his shoulder, then gave me a look. “Sorry.”

  David Park’s resemblance to his father was remarkable. There might have been subtle differences, but I didn’t know Dae-Hoon well enough to see them. I’d only had an hour staring at Dae-Hoon’s face, and seeing David gave me chills. Kwon must have freaked out when he saw his ex-lover’s son. I couldn’t imagine what he thought about David marrying his daughter.

  “Come,” Jae said. “I need to get pictures of David and Helena.”

  I followed him closely, flipping on the light when he asked me to. We shadowed the couple, failed stalkers with a spotlight. They smiled and waved at people they knew, the picture of a happy couple in love.

  And the entire time, Kwon circled us like a bloodthirsty shark swimming by a school of minnows.

  It was interesting to watch Jae work. He walked a fine line between unobtrusive and corralling people together to get a shot. We skulked around the guests: Jae, a graceful figure gliding in and out of the crowd while I followed him with a lumbering stomp.

  At one point, the Park brothers stood together with their arms thrown around each other’s shoulders. They both looked like their father, Shin-Cho less so than David, but their smiles were the same. I briefly wondered if Mike and I smiled that way with each other, but I doubted it. Our relationship was more a punch on the arm than a hug.

  We lost Shin-Cho in the crowd a few moments later, but not before he gave me a wavering smile. Despite the crowd around us, it was clear he was being avoided by nearly everyone but a select few. My heart went out to the guy, even more so when I noticed Kwon close by, shaking hands and accepting congratulations on marrying off his daughter, all the while, his eyes on either David or Jae-Min.

  Kwon was studiously ignoring Shin-Cho, his eyes sliding over the man as if he were nothing more than a shadow.

  As much as it pissed me off to watch Kwon surreptitiously ogle Jae in front of his wife, watching the ping-pong match of his gaze drifting between my lover and David was pretty funny. Not funny enough for me to step aside when he finally moved in on Jae.

  “Excuse me,” I said, bumping his shoulder when Kwon drew close. It was a simple, petty game, one played between men interested in the same person. He eyed me up, raking over me from head to toe with a hot glare. Kwon would have set me on fire if he could. I stood still, letting a smirk curl the edge of my mouth.

  From his viewpoint, he had the advantage of wealth, influence, and culture, although I was taller, and was willing to bet I had a better body. A simple word from Kwon, and Jae could lose business. It was a risk to challenge him on his own turf. I was willing to take that r
isk. I’d wallowed in a bitter stew about Rick and Ben before I met Jae, and while I still hadn’t totally broken free of what I’d been soaking in, I wasn’t going to let Kwon edge in. From where I stood, I had more to lose than he did. Much more.

  Kwon said something in Korean, and I smiled, shaking my head at my lack of comprehension. He smiled back, a slithering grin that did nothing to warm me to him. He repeated what he said in English, slowly, as if I wouldn’t understand him. “Have we met?”

  “No, not yet,” I replied softly. Holding my free hand out to him, I smiled. “I’m with Kim Jae-Min, the photographer. We’re Scarlet’s friends. Pity she couldn’t make it today. She’d have loved to see Dae-Hoon’s boy.”

  It was a masterful manipulation of the conversation. I was rather proud of it since it was something I rarely pulled off. My words got a range of effects, first a stiffening of Kwon’s shoulders and face when I mentioned Scarlet, then curiously, what looked like a slight fear creeping into his cold eyes. He got a hold of his emotions quickly, but his limbs betrayed his uneasiness, jerking awkwardly as he turned away.

  I would have liked to enjoy that moment more, and I would have, if the shooting hadn’t started.

  There was a clapping sound, a short reverb, and then screams, loud screams followed by terrified shouting. I caught the smell of blood and panicked, grabbing at Jae to pull him down under me. His camera tilted, falling from his hands and onto the grass. Grabbing at the edge of one of the tables, I yanked it onto its side, hoping the metal top would provide us with some sort of protection.

  Like all shootings, everything happened quickly. There was no time to react with anything more than instinct.

  And human instinct always seems to start off with panic.

  I had the right to panic. I’d found Jae unconscious, and bleeding from a gunshot graze a few feet from his cousin’s dead rent-boy. I already had a bad track record with boyfriends and guns. Panic was fully within my God-given rights, right up there with the pursuit of happiness and extra cheese on my carne asada fries.

 

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