The Symbol Of Darkness

㊴What Are You Talking About?

 
Seokjin swept into the violent crimes unit’s office out of nowhere and scurried to his friends. “Guys, guys!” he whisper-yelled as he made haste to sit on his chair and then rolled it closer to Jungkook. 

The invasion of his personal space startled Jungkook and captured the full attention of his wandering mind. “What is it?”

“Moo Chae Yeon was found dead two days ago in her mansion.”

Four pairs of eyes gaped at him, swollen with shock. “What?” Namjoon asked. “How? Why?”

“It was the goriest sight the police in Gangbuk-gu had ever seen. Around fifty people were found dead besides her. They died from gunshot wounds. But Chae Yeon was tortured. She had countless stab wounds on her body.”

Jungkook still strove to let everything he just heard sink in, but the shock sparking in his eyes didn’t abate in the slightest. “Did anyone survive?”

“Yes,” Seokjin said. “They found two of her men tied up in her office. Lee Man Shik and Seo Chul Soo.” 

“Lee Man Shik?” Hoseok muttered and aimed his gaze at Jungkook. “Wasn’t that the guy who was following Taehyung?”

Jungkook’s mind drifted away from the current situation and drowned in winding thoughts. Chul Soo. That’s the name Taehyung mentioned yesterday. Was he there when Chae Yeon was tortured? Did he... No, Taehyung wouldn’t do that. Taehyung wouldn’t... 

Jungkook pinned his elbows to his desk and grasped his hair. Despair settled heavily on his chest with the realization that he couldn’t be sure about anything anymore. Taehyung found the answers he was looking for, he concluded. That’s how he knows the other guy’s name too. 

“Kook,” Namjoon uttered, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. “Did Taehyung say anything about this to you yesterday and you forgot to tell us?”

Jungkook’s grip on his hair mellowed at the sobering touch on his shoulder. He slowly sank back into his seat. “He only mentioned Chul Soo’s name when he told me what happened the night his parents were murdered.”

“Do you guys think Taehyung was there?” Seokjin asked, lines of gloomy dread blooming on his forehead. “God, what if he killed—”

“Please shut up, hyung,” Jungkook blurted out in a trembling murmur as he squeezed his eyes closed momentarily. “How can he kill someone so brutally and talk to me of all people the next day like nothing happened?”

“Jungkook is right.” Namjoon nodded. “Taehyung even felt guilty about lying and cried so much, as Jungkook told us, when they talked. There’s no way he did this.”

“What did the two guys say?” Seung Ho directed the question at Seokjin. 

“Both said the same thing. A group of masked people attacked the mansion. They wanted to kill Chae Yeon, but she ordered her men to fight back. They said they didn’t kill them because they hid, and when they found them, they surrendered instantly. So they tied them up and left. They also admitted to a bunch of killings, so they’ll go to jail for life.”

“That makes no sense,” Seung Ho scoffed. “Why would they tie them up and leave? They could just kill them like the rest of them.”

The events were just as baffling for all of them and sounded rather implausible. “Did the police push for the truth?” Jungkook asked intensively. 

“They question them every day, but their story stays the same. Someone must have threatened them not to talk.”

The door slid open then, earning everyone’s attention. All stood at the chief’s presence and bowed as he dipped his head in a greeting, walking towards the unit two. “Where are we with Kang Sin Hwa’s murder case?”