Chapter 144 - The Motel

Mikhael had just finished eating a burrito which he ordered from a cafe across the motel. He did not eat anything all night after escaping his office and was starving. The television was flashing news reports of how the slave trade was caught and even though the police still was not publicly looking for him, the embassy was being bombarded by the public. By morning, it was going to be pandemonium.

I have to lay low until SD gets the information, he decided. The Company was looking for him and if they found him, they would kill him on the spot. Especially Choi Taek who was going to lose millions of dollars in this bust.

"Fuck!" he cursed. Just as he was about to enter the Company as a full fledged member, this happened! Who the hell leaked that email?

"I'll not spare that person!" he growled, spitting pieces of burrito on the ground. He swallowed it all down and put the wrapper away.

The clock on the wall read 5 AM. SD still did not arrive to take his money. 

"Where is that guy?" he snarled. "This is a matter of life and death!"

There was a knock on the door. Mikhael got up and peered through the peephole. It was a motel staff.

"What is it?" he asked in a gruff tone.

"Sir, someone is downstairs to meet you," the staff told him. "A person named SD. Your phone was not working so I had to come upstairs."

SD? Mikhael immediately opened the door.

"Where is he-" he began to ask but his words were cut off but a sharp blow on the head. He staggered backwards. Blood was gushing out of his skull and he spun around to see a black hooded man holding a heavy bat. Mikhael was about to run but another man appeared in front of him and hit him in the stomach with another bat. The staff had run away, scared of the men who were attacking Mikhael.

"We've been looking all over for you, Ambassador," one of the men wheezed.

"The Company sends its greetings," the other man said in a menacing tone.

Mikhael was half conscious as they dragged him back into his room, locking it behind them. The men were carrying two tool boxes with them. Taking out a rope, they stripped Mikhael's clothes until he was completely naked. Then, the men tied his hands and feet with the rope.

The old man was frozen by fear and concussion. He watched in horror as they took out surgical tools from the boxes.

"We'll make sure that you feel every bit of pain, Ambassador," one of the men whispered in his ears.

"No…" Mikhael begged. "Spare me...please…"

But the men turned him on his back. One of them put his foot on Mikhael's mouth while the other picked up a surgical knife and positioned it on the ambassador's stomach.

"This will hurt a lot," the man with the knife said. "Scream if you can."

Before Mikhael could even whimper, the sharp knife pierced through his skin. Pain coursed through his body and he screamed in agony but the second man's boot blocked his cries. 

"We have only started, Ambassador!" the man chortled. "This will be a long and painful death!"

He stepped harder on Mikhael's mouth, almost breaking his front teeth. Mikhael could taste the dirt and mud on the man's shoe while the other man was attacking his stomach again, cutting deeper into it.

Mikhael's cries were trampled by the men as they tortured him in that dingy motel room. The staff below heard the muffled cries but were helpless because they were being held hostage by an old man who had entered with his mob.

"Will you tell anyone what happened here?" Choi Taek asked.

"N-n-no!" the motel's owner claimed. "We don't know what happened here! We won't tell anyone. None of us will!"

Taek observed them for a while. "Well dead dogs don't bark anyway," he murmured. 

Before any of the staff could protest, Taek pointed his gun at them and one by one, shot down the five people. There were no other guests in that motel that night so Taek eliminated all the witnesses.

"Make sure he dies a painful death," he ordered his men. "Once he's dead, throw some of his remains in the ocean and feed the rest to the stray dogs outside."

"What about these corpses?" his secretary asked.

"Bury them in the forest nearby," Taek shrugged. "I don't care. Also…"

He looked at his secretary. "Did you find the whereabouts of that girl yet?" he demanded. "She's in charge of Mikhael's case, isn't she?"

"Yes sir but we still couldn't find her new location," his secretary said, lowering his head. "It seems that she has someone very powerful protecting her."

"Find her and kill her as soon as you can!" Taek demanded. "She's becoming a major threat in our way. Not only did she nearly kill my grandson but also nabbed my most profitable business. Soon, she'll arrest the buyers and we can't do anything! Find her!"

"Yes sir," the secretary nodded. "We'll find her soon."

With that, Taek strutted away, ignoring Mikhael's cries of agony. The cries were heard for hours until finally, they stopped and the motel became completely silent.

….

Sunye staggered into the house at 6 AM. She yawned loudly, feeling exhausted by the night's events. There was a note on the refrigerator.

"Off to camp! Will be away for three days and two nights. SD is coming today so you'll be safe. Orea :)"

Sunye read the note and put it away. She did not see SD's shoes at the entrance nor did she see his luggage so he was not home yet.

When is he coming back? She wondered but was too tired to think much. Forcing herself to climb the stairs, she headed straight into SD's room. Washing off her face and changing into one of his shirts, she jumped on his bed and soon fell asleep.

Sunye did not know for how long she slept but by the time she woke up, it was already 4 PM in the afternoon. Slowly opening her eyes, it took several minutes for her vision to become clear again. As soon as her eyes were focused, she noticed several bags on the floor.

"Hi!"

"AH!" Sunye yelped and turned around to find SD sitting on a couch next to the fireplace, reading a book. He was wearing a black and white striped shirt and baggy pants. Sunye was rubbing her eyes to make sure that it was him.

"I see you missed me so much that you're wearing my shirt," he smirked in a sexy way.

Sunye let out a sharp breath. She was not sure whether she should be angry at him for not calling her even once or should she jump to hug him. Instead, she was frozen to her spot.

"When did you get here?" she asked.

"Around noon," he replied, closing his book. "You should rest more. You've had a long night."

"I'm fine," she quickly said. "I'll go and freshen up."

Without another word, Sunye dashed to the bathroom and locked the door behind her. She had been longing to see SD for the past week but now that he was in front of her, she was completely tongue tied. 

What's wrong with me? She wondered. Her heart was beating erratically and her cheeks were as red as a tomato. She longed to tell him how much she missed him and yet, she was too embarrassed to admit it directly. Knowing that he was safe and fine was a huge relief for her but the past few days were pure torture for her.

Sunye sighed and washed up. Opening the door a little, she peeked outside. SD was still sitting on the couch, reading the book.

Taking a deep breath, she came out of the bathroom and sat next to him.

"How was your trip?" she asked in an attempt to make small conversation.

"Exactly how I planned," he said, turning a page. Sunye fidgeted a little, unsure of what else to say. SD sighed and closed the book. He looked directly at her.

"Han Sunye, what is it that you wanna say?" he asked. "Spill it out."

"I was worried about you!" she blabbed. "Why didn't you at least call? I know you were out of reach but no text, no calls! I was so relieved when you finally texted but it was just the details about the ship! You didn't even text after that! I was worried that what if you were hurt or worse? I know I shouldn't think about all that but I can't help it! And on top of that, you were probably spying on the ship, surrounded by enemies and-"

The rest of her sentence was cut off by his kiss. Unlike his other fiery kisses, this was a short, chaste one but she could feel his complicated emotions mixed in it.

"If I had called, you guys would have been in danger," he whispered against her lips. "I was in another country. It's impossible to get the same amount of protection that I get here. The text I sent was only possible with the help of an accomplice but I could send only one. Not more."

"Oh," Sunye said, feeling a little ashamed. SD chuckled to see her so embarrassed but was also thankful that she was worried for him.

"So!" he exclaimed, clapping his hands. "What do you want to do for dinner? Do you want steak? French cuisine? Or Italian? Perhaps Mexican?"

She thought for a while and said, "How about a movie night?"