30 The Dahlias (8)

Gayoon and Taejoon were inside Junwan's office, reporting to him their findings.

"This is bad," Junwan commented. "He won't confess at all?"

"He won't," Gayoon said. "I think he knows that the skeleton isn't Kim Joon's, but then whose is it? Jaein is still unsure. She couldn't find any DNA match in the database."

"And the witnesses at the party? Did they reveal anything?"

"We didn't get any such information other than the fact that Kim Joon stole money from a lot of them and never returned it," Taejoon said. "And that Lee Shawn was the one who paid them back."

"So the money Kim Joon stole was never found," Junwan said thoughtfully. "Where could it be?"

"Kim Joon could have taken it," Taejoon suggested. "If he fled the country then the money would be with him, right?"

"But Kim Joon was last seen taking a cab to Lee Shawn's apartment," Gayoon informed them. "The CCTV cameras around the house were broken but the camera on the road outside showed Kim Joon's cab going that way."

"Was Kim Joon a foreign citizen?" Junwan asked.

"No," Taejoon replied. "He served in the 55th squad while he was carrying out his mandatory military duties. He was a Korean citizen."

"Then who does this mysterious corpse belong to?" Junwan demanded. "I want answers and I want them by tomorrow! Both of you will question the witnesses at the party again. Gayoon, you'll go to Hwang Constructions tomorrow and question that friend of yours! Taejoon, you'll go and visit the other witnesses."

Gayoon inwardly groaned. She really did not want to deal with the eccentric CEO again but she had little choice. She must know what sort of deal he was brokering with Lee Shawn.

"Understood sir," she said while Taejoon nodded. They bowed and left the room.

"So...how do you know that guy?" Taejoon asked, trying to sound as casual as possible. "The CEO of Hwang Constructions."

"It's a long story," Gayoon sighed. "I met him at the park a few days back and ran into him again this afternoon and…"

She trailed off, shaking her head. The series of bizarre events seem to occur whenever the weird man was around. What was going on? Was it the heavens' way of telling her that man was dangerous?

"It's a long and complicated story," she finally said. "I'll tell you some other time. For now, I just wanna go and rest. I'll check up on Lee Shawn before leaving."

Taejoon's face fell in disappointment. "Alright," he said. "I'll see you tomorrow."

She waved him goodbye and headed back to the interrogation room where Lee Shawn was held. The man was dozing off in his chair.

"He seems to be fine," she muttered, turning around towards the door. Was the ghostly possession a temporary thing? Maybe the ghost was gone after they discovered the body? But whose spirit was it?

Gayoon was so lost in her thoughts that she did not realize that the temperature in the room was dropping rapidly. A shadow was rising from behind, closing in on her. The silent footsteps approached her as she thought about the questions in her head. Slowly, the figure leaned to her ears.

"Dig further, little pet," the man whispered in her ears. Gayoon screamed loudly in shock and turned around to see the possessed Lee Shawn grinning widely at her.

"Dig further, little pet," the ghost said again, smirking at her. Gayoon's screams attracted the officers nearby who burst in to see that Lee Shawn was standing so close to Gayoon. One of them immediately tackled him to the ground.

"Detective Jeon, you can go," the officer shouted. "We can handle him. Guys, a little help here!"

The other officers helped him to pin the smiling Lee Shawn to the ground. He did not struggle but kept on smiling in a sinister manner at Gayoon, who was frozen by the evil aura he exuded. The spirit was not bothered about his murder but about something else. But what?

Dig further? What did he mean? Is she supposed to find out his identity?

The spirit kept on jeering at her, challenging her to solve the case. Gayoon narrowed her eyes as he was being dragged away by the police. This ghost was up to no good and was clearly using her for a hidden agenda. And she was not going to let it succeed.

….

Minho was in his office the next day with their company lawyer. His lawyer, Lee Taehyun was one of the most distinguished law personnel in the country, handling numerous high profile clients with Minho being his most profitable customer. They have been working together for over a decade. Well into his sixties, Lee Taehyun was the person Minho turned to whenever he needed help.

"Minho, this contract with Lee Shawn's firm is quite complicated," Lee commented. "Lee Shawn has only been detained temporarily for murder but there is no evidence. Just because the corpse was found there, it did not mean he killed the man. Besides, he barely visited his private villa. So it could be any of the servants as well. But terminating your contract with him will be a difficult task."

"How so?" Minho asked, raising an eyebrow.

"It clearly says here that Hwang Constructions is making a deal with HM Traders," Lee pointed out. "With the company, not with Lee Shawn. Lee Shawn was merely the CEO but the company is controlled by a Board of Directors. Lee Shawn being arrested has no effect on this contract unless it's proven that Lee Shawn is a criminal."

"Will he be proven guilty?" Minho demanded. "I don't want Hwang Constructions to spend money on a project which is associated with criminals! Our reputation will take a nosedive! It's impossible that Lee Shawn did not know what Kim Joon was up to. They were in this fraud together!"

"You'll have to prove that," Lee sighed. "And the only way to do that is to find the whereabouts of that money. Lee Shawn had no choice but to pay back the money from his own pockets otherwise he would have been jailed. But if you could find the stolen money and prove that Lee Shawn is a murderer, you may be able to get out of this deal based on the violation of trust clause."

Minho was about to speak when Jongin knocked on the door. "Sir, a detective is here to see you," he informed. "She identified herself as Jeon Gayoon."

His ears perked up in interest. Jeon Gayoon?

"Send her in," he said. "And also, bring me the whole file on Lee Shawn and Kim Joon. Their biography, how they met, their past. Everything. Stat!"

Jongin jumped and immediately went to work.

"Jeon Gayoon?" Lee frowned. Why did that name sound so familiar?

"Mr. Lee, I think you should go and hide in the washroom," Minho said nonchalantly.

"Why?" Lee asked, feeling confused.

"Because," Minho said. "The mother of my daughter is about to come upstairs and I'm pretty sure she'll recognize you immediately."