by Alana Terry
The Westerner nodded, and a slight look of sympathy passed quickly over his brow. A petite wisp of a Korean girl tiptoed up behind him without a sound and announced, “I can find something for you to eat.”
Jae followed her with his eyes as she glided out of the room but stopped when he caught a glimpse of the Westerner scrutinizing him with a severe frown.
***
Old Joo sat outside the police office, smacking his gums with satisfaction. Everything about the business deal had worked out smoothly so far. He regretted offering fifty percent up front, but if this transaction went over well, maybe he and the big guy could form a little partnership. It looked like Benjamin could use some new clothes, and he obviously shared Old Joo’s predilection for drink. With physical strength like that at his disposal, Old Joo could retire from digging through trash piles for good.
He let his jaw hang open and scratched his stubbly cheek. The restaurant across the street tantalized him with the smell of ginger and roasted garlic. It wouldn’t be much longer. And then he would be rich again. He chuckled to himself and picked his gums with a small stick, a habit vestigial to the days when he still had a full set of teeth and could enjoy the taste of meat every day. His mouth salivated. He’d be having soju tonight. And lots of it. There was no way the scrawny river hopper could outrun Benjamin, and Benjamin wasn’t stupid enough to kill an eight-hundred-yuan investment. Old Joo tapped his fingers against his knees. He’d just wait a little longer. His leg bounced up and down. He wiped his brow and imagined the taste of the first sip of soju he’d enjoy with all the cash their little river-hopping friend would bring in.
He looked over his shoulder, got up from the bench, and walked around. He just needed to stretch. How long could Benjamin take, unless he had to carry the body all the way to the police station? Old Joo should have insisted on going with him. At least that way he’d have something to do besides breathe in the scent of day-old vomit from the drunks on the sidewalk. He sat down once more and drummed his fingers on the back of the street bench, his feet keeping time with the beat. A few minutes later he stood up and walked around again. If that Benjamin didn’t get here with his catch soon, Old Joo was going to dock some of his pay, no matter how strong or intimidating the giant was.
CHAPTER 27
Jae kept his fists clenched as he left the Westerners’ house. He had accepted a new pair of clothes and quick bite to eat but declined the invitation to spend the night. He was only halfway down the street when soft footsteps padded on the pavement behind him. He threw a glance over his shoulder. It was just the housekeeper. She ran up beside him and laid a hand on his bicep. “Please,” she panted. “I ... I have something for you.”
Jae didn’t stop. “There’s nothing you can do to help.”
She crossed her arms and stood with her weight on one leg, her hip jutting out to the side in a stance that contradicted her demure behavior at the Westerners’ home. She showed him what she was holding, her eyebrows forming two defiant peaks. “I’d say this might help. Wouldn’t you?”
Jae balked at the bills. “Where’d that come from?”
The light of the single street lamp illuminated her face as she grinned. “I’m not supposed to say anything else.” He reached for the money, but she evaded his grasp. “Don’t I deserve a thank you?” She pouted her lips, and the evening breeze carried a whiff of the same perfume he had detected on the Western woman.
A wave of revulsion overpowered the baser sense of desire welling up in him. “Thanks,” he grumbled, plucking the bills out of her hand.
“There’s better ways to show your gratitude, you know.” The girl’s voice held something of an invitation, almost a plea. Jae scowled at her angular face, her sharp jaw. He pocketed the money, balled his hands into fists, and turned away without looking back.
An hour later, he still wasn’t any closer to finding Sun. He had already checked out four other hotels, and the one he now entered was significantly cheaper and dirtier than the last.
“You say you’re looking for someone?” The girl crossed her legs on the plush loveseat and fingered the top of her robe. The pointy heel of her shoe made a small dent in the upholstery where she reclined, and she smiled at Jae from behind a wine glass. “You sure I’m not the one you want?”
Jae didn’t sit down. He was wasting his time here. Even more disgusting, he was wasting his money. The inn proprietor refused to let him see the girl before he paid, and now he was stuck waiting. “I thought she might be here, but maybe not.”
“What’s so special about her?” The woman took a drink of wine and lifted a glass to Jae with an upturned eyebrow.
“That’s my business, as I see it.” Jae glared at the closed door. Ten more minutes. Ten more minutes until he could go try another inn.
The woman shrugged. Without a word, she took another swig of wine, this time right from the bottle. He waited most of his time out so he wouldn’t arouse anyone’s suspicions and hurried to the hotel on the corner.
“Is there a new girl here?” Jae clenched the pile of bills in his pocket and willed his heart to beat a little lower in his chest as he strode up to the counter.
The fat proprietor put down his red-bean donut and leaned forward, his jowls jiggling as he talked. “You got money?” Jae took out some of the cash the Westerners’ housekeeper had thrown at him. The corner of the proprietor’s lips curled upward. Fat rolls wrinkled around his face, almost hiding his eyes completely. “Oh, yes. We have a new girl who started only two weeks ago. Very popular with the young men.”
“What does she look like?” Jae clenched his jaw and leaned so close to the proprietor he could smell his sweaty odor.
“Short hair. Bangs like this.” The man motioned with his hands. “Rosy cheeks.”
Jae did what he could to keep his voice down. “How old is she?”
The proprietor frowned. “Old enough for you, I’ll wager. But she’s busy tonight.”
“I’ll wait.” Jae took out a few more bills. “How much?”
The fat man eyed Jae’s wad and named his price. Jae flinched and sniffed the dank, mildewy air. To judge by the surroundings, this brothel was no more upscale than the others he had already visited, but the man was demanding over three times the regular amount.
Jae counted out half the money. “Could I see her for only a few minutes?”
The proprietor grunted and didn’t touch the bills. Jae slammed the rest of the fee on the counter. The fat man beckoned to a door. “Go up those stairs. First on the left.”
Once he got to the right level, it took every ounce of Jae’s willpower to keep from rushing down the hall and barging into the room. A new arrival. Long bangs and rosy cheeks. Two weeks ago ... Who else could it be? Jae held his breath and knocked, and then he let it out in a disappointed, “Oh,” when he saw the woman who opened the door.
Her entire countenance fell. One eye was bruised like a spotted banana left out in the cold. “Is something wrong?” She looked a year or two older than his sister. She hugged her robe around her skeletal frame, and Jae wondered if the workers here were fed any better than his neighbors back in Chongsong. She held the door open, and he entered.
“I was looking for someone.” Jae slunk down on the side of the bed and rested his chin on his hand. “I thought she might be here.”
“The new one?” The girl sat down about an arm’s length from him.
“Yeah. How’d you know?”
She hung her head. “A lot of them come looking for her. Sometimes Mr. Lee sends them to me.”
Jae spun toward the girl. She took a startled jump backward on the bed. “Sun’s here?”
“Never asked her name.”
Jae leaned forward. “What does she look like? Short hair and bangs over to the side? And big cheeks when she smiles?”
The girl shrugged. “I don’t see her smile.”
He clutched her arm. “How can I get to her? Which room is hers?”
“What?”
She shook her head and recoiled slightly. Jae jumped up to leave, but she grabbed his wrist. “You can’t go yet. Please.”
“Look, I came here to find Sun. If you’re telling me she’s here somewhere...”
“There are guards.” She didn’t let go of his arm. Her grip was stronger than Jae anticipated.
“I know how to take care of myself.”
The girl jumped off the bed without letting go of Jae. “Mr. Lee will be angry with me.” The tremor in her voice made him tarry. “Please. You have to stay here with me. At least until your time’s up. I’ll tell you whatever you want to know, I promise. Just don’t tell Mr. Lee I didn’t ... I wasn’t ...”
Jae sat on the bed.
The girl sighed heavily. “Thank you, sir.”
Jae crossed his arms. “Well, I’m listening.”
CHAPTER 28
Mee-Kyong grimaced and yanked off Sun’s bed sheet with one hand. She pressed her other hand into her ribs, where a stabbing pain seared her side with each breath she took. She limped over to Sun’s closet and managed to pile the girl’s clothes in a heap.
Her lungs cried out for more oxygen, but each inhale sent a fiery twinge through her ribcage that radiated all the way to her tailbone. She kept her hand on her side and pressed down as hard as she could. With her free arm, she gathered what they would need. She had to hurry. Mr. Lee’s guards would figure out what happened before long. She and Sun had to be out of the Round Robin and as far away as possible by then.
“Put this on.” Mee-Kyong flung an extra dress to Sun. The girl obeyed without saying a word. Mee-Kyong yanked away the bathrobe the girl had been wearing and put it in the bundle with the rest of their things, and then she stared at the window and gritted her teeth. Get ready, you coward. You can’t wimp out now. The pain of that simple breath made Mee-Kyong want to cry out, but she saved her energy for the impact. She threw her shoulder against the glass, the pain instantly dropping her to her knees.
Harder than that, you lazy sloth, if you want to stay alive another day. She positioned her hand on the window sill to try to raise herself, but the agony in her side barraged her senses until she was sure she would vomit. Mee-Kyong collapsed again on the floor. To die and never have to breathe again ...
Sun’s voice was surprisingly calm. “Watch out.” She had picked up a pottery jar, letting three fake flowers drop to the ground. Mee-Kyong only had time to cover her head before Sun smashed the vase against the window. Shards of glass and broken pottery scattered around them. Tiptoeing gingerly around the debris, Sun lifted Mee-Kyong up by the arm.
Mee-Kyong leaned on the window sill and looked out. Getting down to the pavement in her condition wouldn’t be easy, but she would do it if she wanted to live, and she would bring Sun with her. She steadied herself on the sill, swallowing down her nausea. Hearing a ripping sound, she turned slowly, keeping her hand on her ribcage. Sun was cutting the bed sheet into strips with the stained knife. Understanding her plan, Mee-Kyong staggered to the bedside and tied the strips together, testing each knot with the small amount of strength she had.
“Here.” Sun held out a long piece of cut fabric. She wrapped it several times across Mee-Kyong’s ribs, pulling it in tight before tucking it in at the end.
Mee-Kyong winced once, but her breath came a little easier after she was bound. “Thank you.”
Sun tied one end of their makeshift rope onto the bed stand and whispered, “I should say the same to you.”
***
It didn’t take Jae long to incapacitate the two guards. He tucked his rope into the back of his pants and covered it with his shirt, ready to pull it out again in an instant if he needed to.
According to the girl with the cut bangs, Sun’s door was the last at the end of the long hallway. Jae frowned at the moldy ceiling and stained walls. How could Sun survive in a place like this? She deserved a mansion, a palace in the heart of Pyongyang, where performers entertained every night and rice was served three times a day. He felt no remorse for attacking the guards. Anyone who held his sister captive deserved even worse.
His hands remained steady as he cracked open the door. Even though her back was facing him, he recognized Sun immediately. She was thinner, though he wouldn’t have thought it possible, and he noted several bruises on her arms. He fought the urge to run to her and stood transfixed. What’s happened to you? The question didn’t escape his lips. He shut his eyes once, clenched his fists, and took in the wounds on his sister’s flesh. Until now, he had held on to hope, some kind of irrational possibility that everything was a mistake — the broker, the baby, the brothel. But here she was, with the make-up and nightclothes of a cheap prostitute and the injuries to prove her new position.
It was no less than the wench deserved. In fact, bruises were too good for the likes of her.
Sun turned around and gasped when she saw him. Her face lit up. “Brother Jae!” Sun ran to him, flung her arms around his neck, and kissed him on the cheeks, the familiar embrace scalding his skin, warming his heart. “How did you find me?”
Jae cleared his throat. With both hands on her shoulders, he held her an arm’s length away. She moved as if to embrace him again. “I didn’t hope you’d ever find me. I’m so sorry, Brother. I must have made you and Mother sick with worry.” She put her hands on top of his and gazed into his eyes. She was radiant. Radiant and beautiful. Jae’s blood pressure rose. Sun was charming, deviously charming and clever with her lies. After what she had put her family through, how could she act so relieved? Had she no shame? Jae shook his head, blinking to try to break free of his sister’s spell, trying to fight the instinct to pick her up in his arms like he had that day the river swept her away.
“You found us just in time.” Sun prattled on, clutching Jae’s hands, examining them from every angle. Repulsion threaded its way up his veins. “You probably have it all planned out, right? We don’t even need to keep making this rope anymore, do we?”
Jae narrowed his eyes. “Have what planned out?”
“Our escape. How you’ll help us get back home. We need to take my friend, too. Mee-Kyong’s in trouble.”
Jae looked at the woman in the gaudy red dress, which clung several sizes too small for her body in spite of her emaciated appearance. How could his sister consort with such a creature? He crinkled his face in disgust and swallowed down the lump in his throat. “That’s not why I’m here.”
***
Sun grasped Jae’s hands and wished he would just look at her. “What’s the matter, Brother?” Behind him, Mee-Kyong edged closer, her beady eyes fixed on Jae like a hungry cat’s. Why was he so angry? What could make him act this way, unless ...? She gasped. “Is it Mother? Is something wrong?” A heavy rock sank to the bottom of Sun’s stomach. Had Mother died of grief or anxiety? How could she ever forgive herself?
Jae shook his head and said nothing. She clutched his hands and brought them together in front of her chest. “Please, Brother, I know I should have talked with you before I left. I made a terrible mistake.” His muscles tensed, but Sun continued. If she could only make him understand, everything would be all right. “I was wrong. I should have known better. I should never have trusted that man ...”
Jae raised his fist. “Don’t you dare mention him to me.” Sun stared at the floor while Jae continued, his voice rising. “You brought shame on all of us, sleeping around behind Mother’s back. After she worked so hard for you just to keep you from starving.”
Sun forced herself not to cry. Not here. Not now, when they were so close to freedom. She bit down on her lip. “I didn’t mean to dishonor Mother.”
“Don’t you think you should have thought of that before killing off her grandbaby?”
“What?”
“I know about the child,” Jae snarled.
Sun sank down on the bed, trying pitifully to blink away her tears. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Her sob was
cut short by a slap across the face.
Bringing her hand to her stunned cheek, Sun looked once to Mee-Kyong, whose eyes were locked on Jae, and then back to her brother. He was trembling. He set his jaw and spoke in a shaky voice, pausing after each syllable. “You are a whore.”
Sun had never heard the word before but knew exactly what it meant. She lowered her head as hot tears streamed unchecked down her cheeks. “I’m sorry, Brother. I didn’t mean ...” One glance at Jae’s scowl silenced her protests.
“You have disgraced your family. You have disgraced me.” He spat on her bowed head. She covered her ears. This couldn’t be happening. Not now. Not when she was so close to getting away. All she wanted was to go home. To go home and forget she had ever stepped foot across the border or heard of the Round Robin Inn.
“You are no sister of mine.” His voice was low and controlled, like a wild dog warning off a rival. “You think I came here to bring you back? I would never allow a promiscuous pig like you from the hotel district to take a single step into my mother’s home.”
Sun sank her fingers deep into her hair and tugged at the clumps while silent sobs wracked her entire body. “Please, forgive me!”
Mee-Kyong stepped forward. “I’m not sure you understand.” Sun sniffed once and then froze. Mee-Kyong’s words were logical. Calm. Maybe she could help.
“You stay out of this, wench.” Jae pulled a rope out of the back of his pants with one hand and made a fist with his other.
Mee-Kyong took another step between him and Sun. “Your sister hasn’t done anything wrong.”
“Shut up.” Sun hid her face but heard the crunch of Jae’s fist on her friend’s cheek. Mee-Kyong stumbled into the side of the bed and grasped her bound ribcage.
Sun reached for her brother’s arm. “She’s only trying to help,” she shrieked. They had all been so loud, Sun wondered why the security guards weren’t already there.