Neon Street: Red Herring

🎭27: Tell and Tell

"Mr. Detective!" Mirae ran towards him with the information she got from the night before. "Kit and I got something! Last night--"

Lloyd quickly shushes her and shows them to the indoor garden. "I would appreciate it if you call me 'Lloyd' from now on. The others can't know that I was the detective in charge of Kane Son's case." He looked at Kit behind Mirae and furrowed his brows. "You two know each other?"

"N-Not that much. Kit's only helping me with stuff," Mirae answered and cleared her throat. "Anyway, last night, we saw someone trying to break into Kane's room. We thought you might know what to do about this."

Lloyd quickly pulled out a chair and gestured for them to sit too. "Tell me how it happened. Start from the first moment you saw that person."

Kit and Mirae sat beside him with racing hearts. It was a suspicious encounter, and three of them need answers. "I was looking for Winnie at the party yesterday. I was heading to the main building when this person in black clothes suddenly jumped from the second floor of the annex building where the party was held." She looked at Kit and sighed. "Kit followed me and got himself dragged into this."

"You're saying that person was one of the people at the party? Was it a guest? An employee?" Lloyd asked.

"That person was covered. We're not even sure of the gender. One thing's clear, though. That person's experienced and skilled enough to try and break into one of the rooms and jump from buildings. And that person knew the entrance to the main building will not get closed during a blackout," Mirae said.

"Hold on." Lloyd's brows furrowed. "If the entrance never got sealed, anyone would have entered the main building during the blackout the night Kane got murdered. Why didn't the manager or receptionist mention this to me? How could they confirm that no outsider had entered the building that night?"

"It's why we're confused too." Kit added. "The receptionist wasn't also there when we got into the main building. It might be the same for Kane's case."

"That makes it more complicated," Lloyd mutters to himself. "During the blackout, last night, did the person leave through the main entrance?"

"That's what I'm telling you! The person got away because there weren't bars outside. We would've caught whoever that was already."

"But, you said it might be one of the guests," Kit suddenly said. "It would've been possible to hide in their room during the blackout, but the person still risked leaving the building."

Lloyd clicked his tongue. "The person knew that staying in the main building would disclose their identity. Mirae said the person jumped from the second floor of the annex building. If the person stayed in the main building and never returned, we could check the CCTV and see who went to the party but was never seen leaving."

"Shit." Mirae tiredly leans on the chair. "I wasn't wrong when I said the person was a pro. What if it was the same person who threatened Winnie?"

"Possible. But we can't tell anyone what you saw. Once that person finds out that both of you saw what happened, who knows what they'll do to you. I understand that you want to help, but leave the work to me. Whoever we're dealing with here is dangerous."

Kit and Mirae left the indoor garden and returned to the halls. "What do we do now?" Kit asks. "We can't stop now that we saw someone doing the act."

"I agree. We're in trouble, but that doesn't matter. If we didn't follow that person in the first place, Lloyd wouldn't get all this information. We're that useful."

That afternoon, Mirae went to check on Winnie in her room. She heard about what happened in the elevator--which was technically her fault. She felt guilty and didn't have the guts to see Winnie. But, Winnie called her and apologized for not returning to the party after the blackout. Mirae found this apology unnecessary and decided to talk to her. Though, she can't tell Winnie that she was behind the power outage. She would have to explain everything, which breaks her agreement with Lloyd.

"It's nothing to be sorry about. You got stuck in the elevator with France Park. If I were in your shoes, I would've passed out and forgotten to move. I'm just glad you're not hurt," Mirae told her.

"France...doesn't remember what he did. He kept bothering me about it, but I couldn't bring myself to tell him. I'm afraid he'll act the same and make fun of me in front of everyone." Winnie looked at her feet, terrified. "He said he'll stop asking. But knowing him, I know he'll find other ways to find out."

"Do you want me to talk to him? You have no idea how much I want to confront that guy. I just held my tongue because you asked me to," Mirae said.

"Don't bother. France was never the obedient type. He was like that back then. He's still like that until now." Winnie smiled bitterly, crossing her legs on the couch.

"I've always wanted to ask you about this, Winnie. Do you still have feelings for him? After what he has done... Is it still there?" Mirae would sometimes notice Winnie looking at France with hope in her eyes. She knows his behavior and remembers his good traits from before. It left her worried that Winnie might still be into that type of guy.

"I don't. At times, I just think about what could've happened if he was a better person. That doesn't necessarily mean that I want him to end up with me."

--

"It's gone!" Triche shouts in panic. "Fucking hell! These pockets have holes?!" She screamed and threw the pair of pants across the room. "I'll be dead if one of them sees that picture..."

"Why were you carrying it with you anyway?" Colin asked, his voice echoing from the washroom. "It's better to leave it in here."

"At least I know the photo is safe wherever I go. Now I don't have anything against Geo Jung. I don't even know his relationship with Kane."

"Didn't I tell you about that already?" Colin comes out of the room with a toothbrush in his mouth. "He's a nice guy. We shouldn't be suspecting him."

"Well, who do you have in mind? I still think Ace Min is shady. I just have to find other ways to dig on him--" Triche suddenly stopped. "Wait. How come I didn't think of this before?" She stood up after crying about the photo she had lost. "Are you free today?" She asks Colin.

Colin pulled out the toothbrush from his mouth and faced her with furrowed brows. "What are you up to?" 

"Finding out how it started. How did Ace know Kane? If we're lucky... We might find out who she was secretly dating through this. The detective said there were nine suspects, including you and me." She looked at him with eyes filled with determination. "Let's dig on them--all of them."

Colin sighed and returned to the washroom. "Triche, I told you--" 

"It's okay! I'll search them even if you're against this. I just thought you changed your mind." Triche grabbed her cap and headed to the door. "Thanks for letting me crash in. I'll tell you everything I know."

"Don't even think about it!" Colin quickly ran to the living room, but Triche had already left. "How am I supposed to tell her that doing that is pointless?" 

--

Ace's past with Kane is coming up next🙈 I don't know what you guys are gonna feel about this, but lemme give you a heads-up. It could be another sensitive topic😅

I hope the chapter was okay! Thanks for coming by again🥰💖