In The Dark (SNOWDROP)

"he's no one to me"

❄︎ — chapter 9 — ❄︎

Jang Hanna and Joo Gyeokchan arrived back at the ANSP office. As they got out of the car, Hanna spotted a familiar figure entering the factory. She cursed and ducked behind the car door, praying she hadn't been seen. 

"What?" Gyeokchan asked.

"Kang Cheongya," Hanna said.

Gyeokchan stiffened as well. Cheongya was the only other female ANSP agent besides Hanna, and the two absolutely despised each other.

Cheongya was more experienced than Hanna. The only people who outranked her in the Seoul chapter were Lee Kangmu and Chief Ahn. She'd even tried to wrest the position of deputy chief from the Black Tiger, going so far as to dive deep into his family history and dig up dirt about relatives and friends of relatives as much as five generations back to try and discredit him.

Needless to say, it hadn't worked, and Cheongya's reputation was the one that eventually took a hit. That had been a long time ago, back before Hanna had even joined the agency, but she'd heard about what happened through Kangmu, who obviously didn't have the greatest regard for Cheongya, although he still tried to be cordial towards her.

Somehow, Cheongya knew about Hanna and Kangmu's history, and Hanna was sure she'd try to expose it the first chance she got. When she started working for the agency, she'd encountered Cheongya once or twice, but then she'd been reassigned to Pyongyang, and Hanna to America.

It seemed that both were now back in Seoul.

As for Joo Gyeokchan, Cheongya had always seemed like a brat way out of her lane. She pretended to be of as high standing as Kangmu in the ANSP, but he'd seen the side of her that would be unacceptable in a leader, and his respect for her plummeted. She was cold and calculating, and always believed herself to be in the right. It was hard for her to accept anything else but what she believed. She was an excellent agent, but sometimes a little too ambitious.

Hanna checked that her favorite revolver was still securely in the inside pocket of her light jacket.

"Come on," she told Gyeokchan. "Let's go try to avoid Moran Hill at all costs."

❄︎ — ❄︎ — ❄︎ — ❄︎ — ❄︎

"You want to what now?" Chief Ahn Gyeonghui asked incredulously.

Hanna took a deep breath. She'd been expecting this kind of reaction.

"I want to reinvestigate Haegeumseong 1's case."

"He died almost a year ago," Chief Ahn said. "Why do you want to look into him?"

"We never got a confirmation that the man on the ship was Haegeumseong 1," Hanna pointed out. "He could still be out there."

Chief Ahn sighed and turned away. Normally, he'd turn down something like this, but he'd long since learned to trust Hanna's instincts.

"Bring me proof that Haegeumseong 1 is still alive and working for the North. Then you can reopen his case."

"Reopen a case?"

The door to the Chief's office opened, and none other than Kang Cheongya stepped inside. She was dressed in loose khaki pants and a white button-up shirt. Hanna startled a bit. Cheongya hadn't even knocked before entering the room.