Mental Asylum || PURINZ

023

FBI agent Nakamura Kazuha," the tall and captivating woman introduced herself. "I would like to start the interrogation now. I prefer to interrogate you alone, Miss Kim, without your colleagues in the same room. If you can ask Dr. Pham to wait outside, that would be perfect."

"Hanni..."

"I can hear you well, Agent Nakamura. I'll be in the other room," she approached me. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to call me."

I nodded.

The door to the room was closed.

Agent Nakamura was raven-haired, with brown eyes. Though not a movie star, she had a compelling presence that could make anyone kneel, probably due to the way she carried herself and her radiant authority.

The room was also occupied by two men: an equally attractive Japanese and a Chinese, Detectives Nishimura and Tuan, respectively.

They watched me attentively, like hawks.

Agent Nishimura was prepared with an iPad, typing.

"What would you like to drink? A little water, tea, or coffee?" Nakamura asked me.

"Thank you, but I'm fine," I said.

I knew their tactics—offer drinks, deny the restroom until the truth spills. I wasn't going to let them use "a bathroom" as bait. Besides, I had nothing to hide.

"Ms. Kim, what is your relationship with Huh Yunjin?"

"She was my patient, and I was her assigned nurse," I replied.

"Nothing more than that?" she asked.

"Nothing," I said.

Jen had told me she loved me—an attraction consuming both sides. Still, I couldn't be sure of Yunjin's intentions, given her manipulative nature. She knew I'd be surrounded by police once I left that cabin.

Agent Nishimura continued to write frantically on the device.

"After you were kidnapped, Miss Kim, where did she take you?"

"I can't be sure of the location because I wasn't aware. When I woke up, I noticed that I was in a cabin, a very modest one, surrounded by mountains and forest."

She nodded slowly. "Did she hurt you?"

"She didn't. Jen took care of her affairs during the day and returned to the cabin at night."

The agents looked at me skeptically, but I bet they weren't believing a word I said.

Without breaking eye contact, I maintained my stance. If they thought they could intimidate me into confessing things that didn't happen, they were wrong.

"Did she mention where she was going? Or what kind of matters did she attend to?"

"She never said a word about what she was doing; she never told me anything."

"Are you telling us the truth?"

"Yes," I said.

"Where was Huh when nurse Dayeon was murdered?"

"In the cabin," I told her.

Agent Nakamura raised her eyebrows. "Are you sure? Think about it very carefully. Every little detail helps us, Miss Kim."

"She was out in the afternoon and returned to the cabin at night," I said.

"The body was found that same morning, but post-mortem reports tell us that she died the same day she kidnapped you. It's almost too convenient."