Money Loving CEO's Detective Lover

Chapter 263: Scars of the Dead (7)

Gayoon parked the car in front of the police station. It was her first day at work after the extended leave and she braced herself for the workload which was about to hit her like a truck. Thankfully, Junwan had texted her in the night regarding the 'mysterious' body of a child which was dropped off in front of the precinct. They were looking for the person who had dumped it there but Gayoon would have to work her way around that part.

She sent a text to Minho that she had reached her workstation. When she woke up in the morning, he was nowhere to be seen but had left her a note that he was going to privately look into Shinho's case. Without much information, it was hard to find anything useful but they would have to start from somewhere.

Sighing loudly, Gayoon put her bag on the desk. She was about to open her laptop when someone hung a bag of bagels in front of her.

"Fancy a treat?" Taejoon smiled at her. Gayoon smiled back and took the bag from him.

"Thanks!" she laughed. "I am starving."

She took out a bagel and put it in her mouth while Taejoob watched her eat. He was happy to see her back but was also worried about her health.

"Are you alright now?" he asked. "The CCK had beaten you up pretty badly. You should have taken more time off."

"Relax!" she reassured him. "The doctors treated me well. They even managed to get rid of the scars on my face! The treatment was good so I recovered quickly. Minho took good care of me during this time."

Taejoon shifted uncomfortably in his chair upon hearing Minho's name. Even after the CCK was arrested, Gayoon did not move out of that house. She was living there and it made him jealous.

"So, you guys are a thing now?" he asked, trying to sound breezy.

"Taejoon, I told you that I don't like to talk about my private life," Gayoon said firmly. "But I will answer you question out of courtesy. We are dating and living together. In fact, we even have a daughter together."

Taejoon's eyes widened in shock and he sputtered, trying to find words. Daughter? Gayoon had a daughter?

"Hwang Jina is my daughter," Gayoon revealed. "I served as Minho's surrogate when I was 18 and we ended up connecting many years later. Call it fate or whatever but it's true. So, I'd suggest you to stop pursuing me."

She said the last part in a gentle yet firm way. She was aware of the feelings Taejoon had for her and it would be wrong of him to hold on to any hope that something would brew between them. He looked mortified. For a few seconds, he was silent.

"I should go," he said curtly. "I have a lot of work."

Gayoon did not say anything but simply nodded. He stood up and left. Gayoon felt a little guilty for being so straight forward with him but it was the best way to make him realize that somethings are not meant to be. She shook her head, trying to steer clear of any other suitor issues. There were bigger things to worry about.

She picked up her phone and called Jaein who was probably in the forensic lab.

"Please tell me you're back," Jaein begged as soon as she answered the phone. "I can't deal with the other idiots in the precinct anymore."

"I'm back," Gayoon sighed. "What news do you have for me regarding the body which was dumped at our doorstep?"

"A lot of information," Jaein smirked. "Head over to the lab."

Gayoon hung up the phone and made her way to the lab. Jaein was studying something under the microscope when Gayoon entered. Shinho's body was lying on the stretcher, cold and still. Seeing him made Gayoon a little emotional. She pitied the poor boy whose life was unfairly snatched by someone who was supposed to love and protect him.

But the world was a cruel place. There were people who did heinous deeds which made even cannibal killers like CCK seem human. At least the CCK loved his daughter even if he ended up accidentally consuming her. But even Gayoon could tell that he would have loved his own flesh and blood. What Shinho's father did was to some extent worse than CCK's deeds.

"He was dug up," Jaein informed her. "The killer must have buried him but for some reason, he was dug up from his grave and then thrown in front of the station."

She pointed at Shinho's nose and mouth. "There was soil in his nostrils and mouth. I even found soil in his ears."

"Hmm…" Gayoon said. "Probably, someone found him in a shallow grave? A digger or a hunter? After finding the body, they might have gotten scared and dumped the body in front of the police station."

"Probably," Jaein sighed. "The cause of death is intense trauma to his head. The brain had been completely smashed in with something very heavy."

She gently turned Shinho's naked body and to Gayoon's horror, there were large whip marks on his body. Some were purple and badly bruised. There were fresh ones and old ones too. It seemed that he was beaten up almost everyday.

"He also has a dislocated shoulder," Jaein stated. "Even his legs have marks, indicating that he was hit there with something thick. I'm guessing bamboo stick or something similar to that."

"His body is small for his age," Gayoon noted. "How old is he?"

"Judging by his bone density, he'd be around 8 or 9," Jaein said. "But the kid is badly malnourished. In fact, I checked his stomach contents and there's only a piece of cracker in it. Nothing else. He was starving for days probably."josei

Gayoon let out a sharp breath. Her knuckles were clutched into a fist and Jaein was surprised to see Gayoon looking so angry. It was as if she wanted to break something. But Jaein could not blame her. Whoever killed the child, was not merciful. The murderer had tortured the kid for days, months probably before finally snuffing the life out of him.

"Any DNA matches?" Gayoon asked, trying to remain calm.

"None," Jaein replied. "This kid…he isn't on any family registrar."

Gayoon thought for a while. How were they going to find this kid's murderer?

…

Minho was typing away his investment numbers on his laptop when Jongin entered his cabin.

"Sir, here's the CCTV footage you requested for," he informed him. "The video of that day in the mall where you…danced."

The last part always made Jongin cringe in embarrassment. It was one day he would like to erase from his memory. But Minho was not paying attention to that.

He quickly took the CD and inserted it into his laptop. "Jongin, do you have a list of all the people who had visited the mall that day?" he asked.

"We have the sales count but not the footfall," Jongin frowned. "Since anyone can enter the mall, there isn't any way to know the total number of people entering the mall."

Minho thought for a moment before playing the video. He went through the videos, skipping the dance parts until he reached the part where he was taking Gayoon to the VIP corner. He watched himself in the screen, heading for the washroom to change the costume.

He fast forwarded a few minutes and played when he saw Shinho running towards the washroom. As soon as he entered the washroom, a well dressed man in his thirties turned up. Minho recognized him immediately. It was the same man who was looking for Shinho in that washroom.

"Jongin," he began, pausing the video. "Bring me information on this man."

Jongin leaned in to take a closer look. Eh?

"You want information on this man?" Jongin asked incredulously.

"Yes," Minho stated. "Bring it to me by the end of the day-"

Jongin could not tell if his boss was being serious or not. "Er…sir," he began. "I can bring you information about him right now."

Minho frowned as Jongin took out his phone and typed in something. He then gave his phone to Minho. The latter took it and glanced at the screen only to be frozen in shock.

"That man is Kang Danny," Jongin informed him. "The leading pediatrician in the country and the owner of Little Home Hospital! Also, the third richest man in the country."

"Third, eh?" Minho asked, leaning against his chair, crossing his legs. "No wonder I don't remember him. Who the hell remembers a third class pest like him?"

Jongin blinked in confusion. What was the money lover up to now? Was he going to rob hospitals now?

"But since he's the third richest man in the country," Minho continued. "I should extend my hospitality."

Eh? Hospitality? When did the Vesudas became hospitable? Jongin wondered.

"Send him and his family an invitation," Minho instructed. "Let us take a good look at the third place, shall we?"