BULLET | vmin [on hold]

▎chapter seventeen

The deadened eyes of the late Kim Yeonjun stared right at the camera as he lay with his limbs twisted, almost as though he was posing for the picture. The bloodied V carved deep in his flesh was unmistakable. Even the shape of the letter was identical to the others.

Taehyung felt bile rise in this throat and his mouth go dry as he stared right at the photo, unmoving.

Reality hit harder than an armoured truck. Someone had killed this man for no reason that he knew of, and using the letter, blamed it on him. He had been framed, except he was no famous museum painting.

A thin film of sweat formed on Taehyung's neck even though his body was ice-cold. Refreshing the site, he reentered the private message once again, praying that it was a bug or a glitch or something, but it wasn't.

He had originally started using the V letter as a way for people to know their order had been successfully carried out, not thinking much of it. But it turned out it had come to stab a knife in his back.

Grimly Taehyung leaned back in his chair, all appetite for the macaroni dinner lost. His fingers moving like a zombie's, he moved the cursor to exit the website.

That picture would come to haunt him in his dreams tonight.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Jimin kept his gaze firmly fixed on the polished tabletop in front of him, refusing to look his parents in the eye. Opposite him, Miyoung and his father shared worried looks as his father sipped at a cup of coffee.

"We're worried about you, Jimin," Miyoung said, breaking the heavy silence. Her words sliced right through the tension in the room. "Being involved in such a well-known case is really bad, especially for a young man like you—"

"I can take good care of myself," Jimin interrupted, "so you don't have to—"

"Listen, son, this isn't about a matter of pride and face. You've been avoiding the two of us for so many years now, always refusing our help, and Miyoung and I get that," his father gritted out, cutting him short. "But this is a bloody murder case! It could ruin your entire record and reputation, in case you didn't realise."

"I don't care," Jimin stubbornly shot back, his temper flaring. "Don't talk to me like that, you lost that right long ago."

Dead silence filled the dining room as father and son stared each other down, fury evident in both's eyes. Miyoung rubbed her temples, stressed.

"Both of you, stop," she attempted, "calm down for a second and talk properly. This isn't personal, it's just a matter of us wanting to protect you Jimin! We're your parents. What's wrong with that?"