CHAPTER 27
1140 Words
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?”
“Which room is Sun’s? Can you tell me?”
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.”
- Writer
