PHUW 9

“Yes?”
Haeri’s mind went blank again. Was he from an orphanage, among the orphans?

“Grace Orphanage, located in Gyeongbuk, Gyeongjin City. It shut down two years ago after a major child abuse case.”

An orphanage that closed due to child abuse. The grim stories piled one after another in Haeri’s mind.

“Mr. Jeong Mok here reported it himself, so the case was already filed. We’re going to take the victim’s statement, about the day of the incident. Mr. Jeong threw Ahn Haeri a crowbar and it struck you, Mr. Ahn. Do you remember?”

Detective Park asked while tapping on the keyboard.

“A crowbar?”

“Yes, this.”

The detective lifted the crowbar sealed in a plastic bag. Haeri had heard he was hit with a tool in the hospital. But seeing it in person was different. His head throbbed.

“How did I get hit with a crowbar?”

“That’s what you need to tell me.”

The detective turned the monitor toward Haeri with a hint of reproach.

“This is footage from the car’s dashcam. Take a look.”

On the screen, tinted a strong bluish glow, Jeong Mok wore work gloves and faced the car’s headlights with his back. He walked casually toward the stack of boxes beside the building, when something inside shifted.

The blurry, dark image made it feel like the foreboding sign of a ghost’s appearance in a horror movie. On screen, Jeong Mok also seemed to notice something odd and paused.

He glanced toward the blind spot, then suddenly threw the tool. Afterward, he appeared and disappeared repeatedly, unable to hide his bewilderment.

The detective sped up the footage. The car was already driving down a remote country road. Soon, a 119 ambulance appeared from the opposite side, and at that moment the dashcam froze in the middle of the road. A moment later, the screen resumed, following behind the ambulance. The footage ended at the emergency room.

“Mr. Jeong also called 119. There doesn’t seem to be any intent. At most, it will be negligence resulting in injury. Since this is a crime prosecuted only upon complaint, do you know what that means? If you reach a settlement, he won’t be punished. Do you want to settle?”

“I don’t know.”

The loud typing stopped.

“What’s there not to know? Either you do or you don’t.”

It was Jeong Mok who answered the detective’s pressing question.

“His memory hasn’t returned yet. He only learned his name just now because you contacted him, Detective.”

“Is that so. Then it’ll be difficult to proceed.”

At last, Detective Park gave a perfunctory sympathetic look. Between Haeri, sinking in gloom with hope gone, and the detective, troubled by a tangled case, no words were exchanged.

“Memory can return slowly, so… can the statement be written later?”

The perpetrator, Jeong Mok, stepped forward as if acting like a guardian.

“It’s not impossible. Mr. Ahn, do you have a personal contact number? I called the hospital earlier, but they said he had already been discharged together with Mr. Jeong, so I reached out this way first.”

“No, not yet.”

This answer also came from Jeong Mok.

When asked next if he had a place to stay, Haeri stayed silent like a mute with honey in his mouth.

As Haeri stood up with the identity inquiry sheet in hand, the detective handed him a business card. He told him to call immediately if he decided on a settlement or once he had a personal number.

Haeri answered half-heartedly and went down to the first floor. The whole way, weighed down by heavy steps, he couldn’t lift his head.

The moment he saw the five characters, “Grace Orphanage,” his already trembling heart sank to his stomach. His fingertips froze stiff. All he could do, sitting beside the detective’s desk, was to be aware of the man who stood silently behind him.

Jeong Mok had asked him to speak well of him when he met his parents. He clearly had in mind how much the parents of a precious child would rage at the perpetrator who hurt him.

But it turned out Haeri was nothing more than some orphanage kid. Before stepping into the police station, he had been treated with care, like someone important, so much that even speed bumps were crossed gently. Now, he was just a nobody without anyone to be angry for him.

‘But he wouldn’t suddenly change his attitude, would he?’

No matter how well Jeong Mok treated him, they were just strangers tied by ill fate.

A crime prosecuted only upon complaint. If they reached a settlement, there would be no punishment.

‘Idiot. Of course there’s a reason why he’s so attentive.’

Of course the beef wasn’t out of kindness. From the start, Jeong Mok aimed for a settlement, covering hospital bills and lodging. If Haeri were Jeong Mok, he would have done the same. Thinking he was being treated kindly just because he was given beef made him the real fool. There had been a calculation behind it all.

Haeri’s thoughts kept circling back to Jeong Mok. The man who had come down with him in silence muttered something. Absorbed too deeply in his own thoughts, Haeri didn’t catch what was said.

When Haeri felt someone tap his shoulder once, he assumed he had gone to the restroom.

Holding only the thin document and a business card, Haeri stood idly on the steps in front of the police station entrance.

‘Settlement… settlement is done with money, right?’

Until the settlement money was given, he had to make it clear he wouldn’t let it go. But would that look too much like a nuisance? He already was a nuisance, a leech, but doing it openly was another matter. But he had nowhere to go. He had to come up with some excuse to cling to Jeong Mok.

“Oh. You haven’t left yet?”

The voice from behind was Detective Park. In his hand were a cigarette and a lighter.

“And the person who was with you?”

Haeri almost answered “the restroom,” but then wondered if that was really where he had gone. He regretted not listening carefully. Hesitating, he missed the chance to answer. Detective Park clicked his tongue.

“Even so, you can’t leave someone with no memory sitting in the police station alone.”

This time, Haeri was truly taken aback. He stared blankly at the detective with his mouth slightly open.

He left? Jeong Mok left alone? Not the restroom?

Haeri turned toward the restroom. From the corridor near it, a stranger walked out. Just in case, he went all the way in to check. It was completely empty.

He trudged back out to the building entrance. Detective Park was still standing there.

So that was it, he had seen all he needed? But, how could Jeong Mok vanish without even a word of goodbye?

They weren’t connected by choice. Jeong Mok was the perpetrator, and Haeri was the victim. Yet, they had at least exchanged names and shared a meal. Though strictly speaking, it was Jeong Mok who had one-sidedly given to him. Somehow, Haeri’s nose stung. He scrunched his face to shake off the prickling sensation.

Seeing Haeri’s clouded complexion, Detective Park clicked his tongue again.

It was absurd, but in just one day Haeri had leaned heavily on Jeong Mok. No matter how well he had treated him, he was still the perpetrator, a complete stranger. What was he expecting? Foolish.

It was a world where one lived alone. From the beginning, Haeri had been alone, he had always been alone, and even now, he was still alone. It was such a simple truth, yet somehow the ground felt as if it sank beneath him, and his knees trembled. Even fully dressed, he felt as though he had been thrown naked into an empty desert.

Beside him, Detective Park tapped a cigarette pack and spoke.

“You don’t have anywhere to go right now, do you?”

“…Yes.”

“There’s a homeless shelter nearby. Stay there for food and lodging, get yourself together. I’ll take you there, so wait a bit. Before that, let’s have a smoke.”

Detective Park took the lead. Like under a spell, Haeri followed him to the smoking area beside the building. Beneath a warning sign clearly marked “No Smoking,” a peach can overflowing with cigarette butts sat.

“This is strictly off the record. Don’t go telling anyone I said this. It’ll cause big trouble.”

“Yes.”

Whatever he was about to say, Detective Park first gave a stern warning.

“I told you it’s a crime prosecuted only upon complaint, right? If you settle, he won’t be punished. Do you have a lawyer?”

“No.”

Detective Park clicked his tongue again.

“Then ask for as much settlement money as possible. Say… fifty million won? And don’t ever say I told you that. I’m only telling you because you remind me of my nephew. You don’t have an adult to step in for you, and you don’t have a lawyer.”

“Fifty million?”

At the huge sum, his eyes widened. He had been thinking of asking for maybe five million.

“He threw a crowbar, so it counts as aggravated assault. It’s different from simple assault. If you’re unlucky, you could end up serving prison time.”

“Prison?”

Detective Park nodded. In the explanation that followed, he said that the severity of punishment depended heavily on whether a weapon was used.

“So they have to settle no matter what. You can get at least twenty million. To get that, you have to start high. Once a settlement is reached, you can’t file charges again. If you later say the amount was too small, you can’t report it again. Understand? That’s why you have to draw out as much as you can in one go. But again, don’t ever say I told you this. If a detective meddles in settlements, it becomes a real headache.”

Even while passing along settlement tips, Detective Park kept warning him repeatedly.

“He obviously has money, and he’s building something. When construction is going on, they usually agree to settlements. If there’s an accident involving injury, the city hall tends to penalize the building owner heavily. So he’ll hand over around twenty million easily. Medical bills are separate. Until the money is deposited, never sign the settlement form. Once you sign it, that’s the end. Even if they don’t pay, you can’t do anything. Understand?”

As if he truly thought of him as a nephew, Detective Park gave thorough instructions. Haeri listened with both ears wide open, taking in every word without missing a syllable.