CH 42

Yoonshin stopped fidgeting with his hands. “What? Then, are you still in the basement?”

“Yep. Are you still at the firm? I only see one of your subcompact cars.”

“No, I’m… Wait there for a moment.” Yoonshin had stretched out his long legs leisurely, but now, he stood up from the bench and started walking briskly. He was making his way through the entrance, which was fashioned like a triumphal arch with an attic, when he saw a black sedan turning the corner of the garage exit. The number on the license plate was familiar. He waved cheerfully, and the car stopped.

The car shifted to neutral next to the park, and its back windows rolled down.

“Ikyung!” Yoonshin ended his call and looked at his sister in the backseat. Her dark bucket hat was pressed down on her head as it covered her face, her scarf was wrapped several times around her neck, and she was wearing a black face mask. Yoonshin could barely see a square inch of her skin. “You’re not going to show me your face? Why’re you so hard to see these days?”

Only then, Ikyung finally lifted the brim of her hat slightly to meet her brother’s eyes. Yoonshin couldn’t be sure since it was dark, but she looked very tired. As he thought, she must have been very busy. Her voice was also cracking unlike usual. He had thought her voice was hoarse over the phone, but it sounded even worse when he heard in the flesh. “Yoonshin, thank goodness—I thought I wouldn’t be able to see you before I left. Is work going well for you?”

Yoonshin was quiet but then grabbed onto the edge of the window. “No wonder your voice sounded a bit weird. Did you catch a cold?”

“Yeah. It’s nothing serious, so don’t worry about me.”

“Why did you come over when you’re sick? Roll the window back up—cold air will get in. I’ll get in the car instead.”

“No, stay there and listen. I won’t take long before I leave.” Ikyung stretched her hands out and forced Yoonshin’s hands out of the car. Yoonshin looked shaken after he was suddenly pushed back from his sister’s car.

Ikyung wasn’t being her usual self. She had never pushed him away like this before. But today, she was clearly refusing her brother’s approach. The fact that she averted her eyes after pushing him away seemed to confirm that. To others, it could appear to be just another action with no further meaning, but Yoonshin could feel that this was different because she had never pushed him away like this before.

Frankly, he felt quite disheartened. If she told him to, he was ready to eat foods that weren’t to his tastes and wear uncomfortable clothes. Even though it had been a while since they last met, he found it regrettable that she was uncomfortable with Yoonshin getting closer.

Yoonshin was numb from being hit full force with the uncomfortable air between the two, then he warily asked, “Did something happen between you and my brother-in-law?”

“Nothing happened.”

“Did he tell you not to go outside without permission again? You fought about that last time. Or is it about the kids? If there’s anything I could help…”

“You don’t need to worry about me. In any case, Yoonshin…”

Yoonshin got increasingly upset and shoved his hand in the car window again. Then, he gently grasped his sister’s shoulder, asking her to look at him while talking. He did this several times when they bickered. But for some reason, his sister was reacting very defensively to his physical contact today and slapped away his arm irritably.

A loud slap rang out as their hands collided. Ikyung’s silky scarf caught on Yoonshin’s hand and slithered down onto the floor. His sister hurriedly tried to cover her neck again, which Yoonshin thought was very suspicious. “Ikyung?”

There was one thing Yoonshin learned from meeting with the interested parties in several cases over the years. In cases like now, his gut feeling was correct nine times out of ten. People who were injured or suffered monetary damages always tried their best to hide their suffering from the people they cared for the most. They hated the thought of making their loved ones worry. His sister’s behavior was a good example of this.

Yoonshin got a bad feeling and glanced at his sister’s personal secretary, sitting in the driver’s seat. He steadfastly faced the front despite the small commotion in the back.

The good-natured secretary was a university junior who their father trusted. Ikyung took him with her when she got married 10 years ago. Yoonshin had thought that the secretary was hiding something from him last time, and it seemed like what he was trying to hide had to do with his sister.

Now having conviction, Yoonshin yanked off Ikyung’s mask while she bent over to pick up her scarf and cast it aside.

“Yoonshin Do! What are you doing?!” Ikyung yelled.