章節 17: Apartment Number 20

"This has got to be a record!" Jiwoon exclaimed. They were back at the precinct after the daylong operation to catch the killers. It had taken them less than ten hours to catch the suspect and hence, the team was highly motivated.

"We caught the culprit in such a short time!" Chanmi agreed. "The Chief should promote us!"

"As if he's that generous!" Jina scoffed. The other groaned. It was well known that the Chief only tolerated Jina because she was a good detective. Otherwise, he would not have given her any due credit. There was a rumor in the precinct that the Chief was rejected by Jina's mother, former Detective Jeon Gayoon, and ever since Jina joined the force, he tried to make life difficult for her.

Unfortunately for him, Jina was smart and resourceful when it came to solving cases so he had no other choice but to acknowledge her.

"Let's go out to celebrate, boss!" Jaebum insisted. "We need a drink!"

"Oi, we've all been working for three nights straight!" Dahoon snapped. "We're tired."

"Dahoon is right," Woohee agreed. "We can celebrate some other day. All of us got the night off. We need sleep."

"True," Jina said. "I'm ready to go home and take a long hot shower."

"But today was such a weird day," Jiwoon commented. "The guy who appeared...Hobin, right?"

She typed his name on the computer. "Look at this," she said, pointing at the screen.

The others huddled around her to read the article she dug up.

"According to his profile, the guy is a genius," Jiwoon commented. "He passed his university exams by the time he was a teenager and completed medical exams before he hit twenty. It sounds insane, but Doctor Ohm Hobin is considered one of the top criminal profilers in the world. He's been aiding the police in the USA and also worked with Scotland Yard! Our Commissioner worked with him while they were hunting a serial killer in England. That killer was from our country and turns out, he was an exchange student. The police had been chasing him for months but it took Doctor Ohm only one day to create a profile and they caught him within the next two days. It was sensational news!"

"But he openly criticized the police for their incompetence," she went on. "There were many clashes between him and the local authorities. They called him Doctor Demon for his arrogance and also for his uncanny ability to catch criminals in such a short time."

"What is this international celebrity doing here?" Jina wondered.

"Who knows," Jiwoon sighed. "But he's a genius and well respected. I've heard he's going to start working at the hospital as a psychiatrist."

"Graduated college by the time he was in his teens," Jaebum gasped. "That's some insane level genius there."

"Or just insane," Jina sighed. "He seemed whacked in the head. Let me guess. His parents are loaded and sent him to the best schools."

"His mother is a well known model and philanthropist," Jiwoon read. "Her name is-"

Just then they heard a pair of heavy footsteps approaching their way. Looking up, they saw a tall, thin man in his early fifties standing in front of them. His hair was greying and his once handsome features had been hardened with time. Everyone stood up straight and saluted him.

"Chief Taejoon!" Jina greeted him.

"I've heard that all of you caught the culprit in less than half a day," he grumbled.

"Yes sir," Jiwoon replied. "The reports will be sent to you tomorrow morning."

"Who was the other guy?" Taejoon asked. "Some doctor…"

"He was sent by the Commissioner since the case was a special one," Jina informed him. "He's probably gone elsewhere by now."

"The Commissioner is trying to interfere in this precinct," Taejoon stated. "He thinks we are lagging behind in solving cases and thinks that this will hurt his chances of being re-elected to his post. Bullshit! Don't let this guy investigate any more of our cases. Got it?"

"Yes sir!"

He shot a reproachful gaze at Jina. "I better see the reports on this case by Thursday morning, Hwang," he warned. "I'm going to hand it over to the Commissioner myself."

Jina bowed as he walked away. "Fucking git is gonna take our credit!" Jaebum hissed.

"Unfortunately, the fucking git is our Chief," Jina sighed. "But it doesn't matter. All of us know he's gonna falter in the presentation. The forensic reports aren't out and a ton of other evidence is left to be analyzed. He'll be running out of the Commissioner's office with his tail between his legs."

The others snickered and got back to work. They completed the required reports, working for hours before finally calling it a day. Jina stretched her limbs and picked up her bag. Bidding goodbye to everyone, she headed straight towards her car.

Finally! She sighed in relief.

"Home sweet home!" she exclaimed.

Revving up the engine, she sped off. She lived on her own at a small apartment only a few blocks away from the precinct. Even though her parents owned a mansion in the city and her aunt and uncle also lived nearby, Jina enjoyed living on her own. As soon as she saved up enough, she moved to her own apartment.

The four storeyed building she lived in consisted of moderately sized studio apartments. The rent was cheap and the landlady was kind. But what attracted Jina to that place was the fact it was very homely. The place was always well maintained and the building was secured with CCTV cameras which the inhabitants paid with their own pockets. Despite occasional lighting problems, the place was spacious and warm.

The habitants of the building were also a tight knit group. Some of them were eccentric but they meant well. When she first moved in, the neighbors were very kind and welcoming. It was rare to see such friendliness and when they heard she was studying to become a cop, a lot of her neighbors checked up on her from time to time, bringing her food as well. Soon, they became part of her small world.

Jian hummed as she pulled up in front of her building. She passed by the caretaker's office when she heard someone calling out her name.

"Jina!"

She turned around to see a middle aged woman with short curly hair walking towards her. The woman was the caretaker and landlord of the building, Ahn Doksun. She was carrying a container.

"Auntie Ahn!" Jina greeted and bowed with a warm smile. "How are you feeling today?"

"I'm great, my dear," Ahn replied. "But my feet are still hurting. Which is why I wanted to ask you a favor."

"Anything!" Jina offered.

"You know that the Kim's who used to live next to your house have left, right?" she asked.

"Yes, they moved to another city," Jina recalled.

"Well, another young man just moved in today," Ahn explained. "And I wanted to welcome him to our building so I want to give him some fresh crabs. He's new to the country and barely knows anyone here. I hope this will help him feel welcome. Since he's living next door to you, can you give it to him?"

"Of course!" Jina smiled. "I'll hand it over to him."

"I just hope he fixes that lock," Ahn went on. "The Kim's never bothered to fix it since they were moving away. I'd have done it but cash has been tight…"

She let out a loud sigh. Jina smiled and took the containers. Ahn thanked her and walked away. Jina carried the container in her hands, climbing till the fourth floor where she lived. Her apartment number was 19 and the new guy had moved into number 20.

Standing in front of apartment 20, she knocked on the door.

"Hello?" she called out. "Anybody inside?"

There was a shuffling of footsteps. Jina glanced around her feet. The new guy still had a few boxes placed outside. The top box was half unopened and a picture was peeking out from it. She frowned and stooped down to take a look at it.

The picture was of two men. One was in his thirties with dark eyes and hair. There was something familiar about him but Jina only dwelled on him for a second because her attention was caught by the auburn haired guy next to him.

"No way!" she yelped.

"I had hoped that the cops in this country would be less intrusive but I guess I was wrong."

The familiar voice mocked her. Jina froze in her spot upon hearing the deep baritone and slowly looked up.

"Oh fuck…" she cursed under her breath, her chocolate eyes meeting his dark ones.

Her new neighbor was none other than the Doctor Demon, Ohm Hobin.