Seeing the tattoo in the form of a cobra on SinJu’s left lower arm, SolHi frowned. Something bothered her at that tattoo and at the man that was preparing a cocktail at that moment. That’s why she kept staring at it until SinJu asked her, „Do you like tattoos, Detective?”

„You can say so. Yet, more than the tattoos, I like those that are wearing them. And… Do you know why, Mister Min?” Asked SolHi, looking straight into the eyes of the man in front of her, eyes which had the color of soft grass.

Her words made SinJu frown. „She knows,” eventually crossed his mind. Yet, instead of avoiding her glance, he leaned over the counter and, sticking his chest to the counter too, cynically grinned. After that, still sketching that cynical smile on his face, he said, „You’re pretty!”

SolHi smiled too. „Good trick, idiot, but it won’t work with me,” she told herself. After that, gently smiling, as though she played with him, SolHi told him, „More than pretty, I’m good at biting. Even more venomous than a cobra, actually!”

„One shot, one kill!” Whispered SinJu, winking. After that, standing up, he continued preparing that cocktail. Not in silence because he told her, „Actually, looking at you, Detective, something tells me that you’ll accept to have a drink with me! Am I right?”

His question made SolHi loudly laugh. A reaction that neither SinJu nor the other clients who heard them expected. Moreover, what she said next amazed them the most, „Of course, I can accept to have a drink with you, mister Min! If I want to fulfill my biggest dream… to be someone’s present, in a big box and with a big red bow on it.” After that, seriously, SolHi looked into the man’s eyes. Yet, seeing that he didn’t even blink when she said what she said, SolHi frowned, thinking, „This motherfucker is tough. Yet, baby, it won’t work with me… your game because you chose not the right person to play with.”

SinJu, however, at all bothered by her insistent glance, told her while pouring the cocktail in the glass, „Am I a suspect now, Detective? As far as I’ve been informed, you are here to ask me things, not to accuse me of something. Yet, what I hear are accusations and not a simple conversation as I thought. More than that, the earlier show outside… what a shame, honestly!”

Yu grinned, „We tried… not to put up a scandal I mean, but… your „dogs” didn’t let us pass and just have a conversation.” A remark that made the rockers lose their temper and be about to pounce on the Inspector. Yet, they stood quiet when Yu showed them the gun, a hint to stay calm or that threat, with the bullet between eyebrows, could have become reality. A new threat that worked for the inspector because SinJu’s „puppies” right away turned to their places.

SinJu, even if the inspector’s daring irritated him, smiled. A reaction that amazed SolHi to some extent. That’s why she squinted at him, trying to understand what kind of things were crossing his mind. A thought she left for later when she heard SinJu saying, „Inspector, are you accusing us right now of attacking a man of law?”

Seeing SinJu acting so openly when there was more than sure that they’d been attacked, Yu decided that it wasn’t a bad idea to make SinJu’s game. That’s why, extremely calm and not losing his temper, he said, „Of course, not, Mister Min! I’m not accusing you of anything. I'm just saying what happened… the truth! Or… do you disagree now? If yes, you can complain to my boss, but… I’m not that sure it’ll be accepted… the complaint I mean.”

SolHi burst into laughter. „Don’t be that sure, Inspector,” she said eventually. „Why? Because our „friend” here has a lot of allies in each sphere, „friends” that are more than ready to poison others just to save his ass.”

„Watch your tongue, Detective Ian!” SinJu hissed through his teeth. Even his eyes madly sparkled when he said such words.

His reaction didn’t bother SolHi but made her feel triumphant. She even said in her head shortly after this, „I got you, dog!” After that, leaning over the counter, she took a photo of Ha Ni out of her pocket, which she put in front of SinJu eventually, telling him, „Now, that we are willing to talk with the truth, Mister Min, what about telling us about her, huh?”

Not really anxious to play her game, SinJu decided to do that, aware that if he didn’t do that, SolHi and Yu wouldn’t have ever left his club, something that could have bothered his clients. Yet, he wasn’t also eager to tell them the truth. That’s why he eventually said, „Who is she?”

„I don’t know. You tell me!” She said in a slightly mockery tone. She did that trying to provoke SinJu and make him talk. She even tapped with her finger on the counter, hurrying him with the answer.

Eventually, when she heard SinJu’s response, „It’s the first time I saw her,” SolHi raised an eyebrow.

„Really?” She asked right away. „Then, why do I have the feeling that you’re lying to me?”

„What I feel, Detective, is that you beat around the bush,” SinJu said, bothered by her answer. „So, if you have something to tell me, say it to my face! Don't beat around the bush, detective! As you see, I’m a busy man and…”

SolHi didn’t allow him to finish his thought, but said, „Of course… You are a very busy man. Especially, related to women. So, don’t tell me that it’s the first time you see her when it’s a fucking lie.” Then, taking another photo out of the chest pocket of the leather jacket she was wearing, SolHi threw it in front of SinJu. It was a photo of Ha Ni and him kissing each other. „First time you see her, huh? When? Before or after we found her dead? In a gift box, sent to someone, with a big red bow above it.”

SinJu’s fake amazement, seen on his face after he heard her words, made SolHi feel irritated. Yet, she preferred not to let him know that she was aware of his game. SolHi only cooked her nose when he asked, „What? Lee Ha Ni is dead?”

To his great surprise, SolHi burst into laughter, clapping. „Wow, impressive!” She shouted. „Absolutely impressive, Mister Min! You’re awesome if you remember… things so fast. Names, sorry, not things! Yet… I suggest you emphasize your emotions more and stop being such a stone statue while talking about someone because it’s fucking impolite this way. More than that, acting like this, you’re pathetic because… saying that you don’t remember someone when isn’t true… is a crime. So, when did you see her last time?” While saying this, SolHi looked like a mad bull throwing flames through her nostrils while staring at SinJu, ready to break him into pieces.

Her commentary drove SinJu crazy eventually, making him hiss through his teeth, „Damn, Detective… did someone ever tell you that you’re…?”

„…a hunting dog? Yeah, every day. That’s why, before stubbing my fangs into your throat, answer the question, Min SinJu! When did you last see her?”

„Two days ago. She came to ask for money. As usual…”

„Convenient,” mumbled Yu ironically. „For the dead one, I mean. As she can’t say anything to defend herself now, you can say whatever you want.”

„I don’t like your tone, Inspector!”

„And I don’t like yours, Min SinJu,” SolHi scolded him. „So, stop arguing with my partner and answer the question! Especially this one: why did you deny knowing her when you are lovers?”

„Former lovers, ok?! And I didn’t deny anything. I just… preferred not to mention this. Why? Because… what was between me and Ha Ni was… mostly like… remembering old times?! You know, Detective… body heat in cold times?! I’m sure you know what I’m talking about because I think that not only once you…”

„Of course, I don’t understand because… body heat with ex-lovers… isn’t something to my taste. Why? Because… if something is dead, for me it is well gone… dead and buried since long ago. I’m mostly for new things, ok?!”

SinJu smiled. Then, slowly pushing the glass with the cocktail toward her, he told her in a soft tone, „Too bad then. Why? Thus… you won’t ever know what adrenaline means. And… you should try this at least once… sleeping with old lovers. I’m sure you’ll like it because…” SinJu kept silent eventually when he spotted Mire, a waitress, who stopped not that far from them and looked at them with the eyes of an eagle.

Spotting the waitress, SolHi smiled. „Don’t touch what’s mine or you die,” she told SinJu eventually, forcing him to look at her, confused. „I mean her… thoughts. The meaning of them because… I’m also sure that she doesn’t like the idea of spending time with old lovers too. Or… is she faking?”

„This isn’t your business already, Detective!”

„Do you think so?! Well… maybe should we talk to her, huh?! To ask her what she thinks about her lover’s old affairs, I mean. What do you think, Inspector Yu: should we try this variant too?”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

„Absolutely. A genius idea in fact, because…”

„Bring a fucking judicial order then,” SinJu suddenly raised his voice, staring at Yu. „Without it, you won’t talk to anyone here. And… I think you’re done here, Detective! Just as nobody will say one more word, even… unofficially! So… get out of here! Now… both of you!”

„A judicial order then! Well, if you insist so much, we’ll bring one, Min SinJu! Yet, I’m not sure you’ll like that one because it’ll be the order of your arrest. And I’ll bring it personally, I promise!” SolHi told him confidently, staring into his eyes. After that, with one sip, she finished the cocktail, chewing the olive between her teeth while still staring at Min SinJu, whom she told eventually, „Meanwhile, I will give you a taste of what’s coming… the cherry on top, motherfucker!” She said this and threw a photo of Ha Ni’s dead body right in front of SinJu, on the counter. Then, while SinJu stared at the photo, frowning, SolHi smiled and told Yu, „Let’s go, Inspector! We’re done for today!” After that, she simply turned her back to SinJu, heading toward the exit door along with Yu.

SinJu, unpleasantly surprised by that turnabout, crumpled Ha Ni’s photo after glancing at it for a while. After that, throwing the paper ball into the trash can, he hissed through his teeth, „You’ll pay me for this, Detective Ian SolHi! If not… I’m not Min SinJu for sure!”

***

Walking out of the club, SolHi gave her gun to Yu. „Keep it warm for me, Inspector,” she said, boiling inside because of anger. „Otherwise, I’m sure we’ll find another dead body today. Of this rat, killed by me.”

„Why did you provoke him then?”

„Because he knows more than he says?! Let’s say I had to do this. A woman’s point of honor! Something that will work for sure because… they’ll start to move soon… like the rats leaving the boat before drowning. That’s why… let’s not lose sight of them! I take the backyard.” After that, even if it was still red at the traffic light, she crossed the street in a hurry.

Looking behind her, Yu reproachfully shook his head. „She’s definitely out of her mind,” he said. „Yet… a mindless person that knows what she’s doing.”

***

„Mopsic?!” DooSan suddenly heard behind him. Turning his head and looking over there, he saw a motorcyclist with his helmet still on, stopped not that far from him. Seeing the young man not that far from him, DooSan frowned because he definitely didn’t hear him approaching him, too focused on what was going on in front of the club.

Yet, hearing that „Mopsic?!” ringing in his ears again, even if the young man said nothing, DooSan widened his eyes, asking right away, „What did you say? Mopsic?”

„Yeah,” the motorcyclist answered right away, taking the helmet off. „Detective Ian told me to leave the moto with the Mopsic face that’s waiting at the corner of the street. So, friend, keep an eye on it and… your fangs away from the tires, ok?” After that, winking at DooSan, who was shaking already because of anger, the young man left the helmet on the moto and went away. Before that, he didn’t forget to throw the keys to DooSan, forcing him to catch them on the fly.

Only when the young man was already away from him, DooSan reacted, shouting, „Whaaa, this woman is fearsome, no other! Something impressive for sure! Something I’ve never seen before because… turkey, hunting dog, idiot, and now… mopsic?! I honestly feel like I'm at Zoo. Only the nickname Giraffe is still missing. If I hear this too, then… I’m an entire herd of beasts.”

„If you prefer it, then… I will call you „Giraffe” next time. So, Giraffe, what’s new around?! It’ll be funny to watch the show with you as the main male for sure,” he suddenly heard SolHi’s voice behind him. A voice that made him right away turn toward her, heated for a fight already. A killing glance that didn’t scare SolHi at all because she, calm, took the key from his hand and climbed on the moto, putting the helmet on. Not in silence, of course, because it was funnier to tease him by saying, „Honestly, I don’t understand why some people hire professional killers to get rid of their enemies. They should send a petition to the Prosecution right from the beginning because… there are Prosecutors ready to kill. Thus… they save money and the other prosecutors’time… aware of who killed that one.” After that, before DooSan had time to pounce on her, SolHi pressed the gas pedal to the brim, leaving the place.

„Damn psycho!” DooSan suddenly shouted, seeing her going away. „I swear I will kill her one day! Whaaat? Mopsic? Assassin? Do I have a mopsic or killer face?” Then, with pleading eyes, he turned and looked at Yu, begging the inspector to tell him that he wasn’t right. Instead of this, he saw Yu smiling, because that show, which he watched for free, was something that he wouldn’t have enjoyed so much, even if he had paid a fortune for it.

Yet, seeing DooSan about to explode, Yu told him, still smiling, „I don’t know why you’re so upset, prosecutor Han! Mopsic are cute animals. And, if you’d smile more often, you’d be really handsome! Now… let’s go because we have better things to bite. Pardon, to investigate, I mean!” After that, seeing DooSan spitting fire all around, the inspector passed by him, heading toward their car, in the opposite direction to the one SolHi left.

„Whaa, these two are allies recently. I can’t believe this! I have to change my partner for sure. If not… I’m dead, traitors!” After that, still mumbling like a broken record, DooSan entered the car, slamming the door behind him.

***

On the bike and with the helmet on, SolHi was stopped in a kind of hide-out not that far from the rear exit door of SinJu’s club. From there, she could see Mire walking out of the club and hurrying toward the main road, which was not that far from the door, where a cab was stopped, waiting for her.

Seeing her leaving, SolHi frowned. „The first canary flew away,” she said eventually. Yet, she didn’t follow Mire right away but waited until this one entered the cab, which right away left the place. Only after that SolHi said in the headphones again, „I’m after her. Don’t lose the other canary!” Then, pressing the gas pedal to the brim, she followed the cab at full speed.

***

„Canary? What canary?” DooSan asked, confused, staring at Yu, who was behind the wheel. Then, understanding what was the deal with the „Canary,” DooSan right away shouted, „Don’t tell me that Min SinJu ran through the back door.”

„Nop. His mistress ran, it seems to me. One of the waitresses. SolHi „smelled” her while interrogating Min SinJu. And this girl… uh, she definitely smells it if something stinks. Not talking about her eagle eyes because she right away understood that something happened between that rat and the waitress. And… there he is, running too!” After that, turning the engine on, he prepared to follow the other car. Yet, they had to wait for a little, hearing through the half-open window how Min SinJu yelled something at his driver, a man about 35-40 years old, who right after closing the door behind SinJu, ran to get behind the wheel too. Only then, listening to the deafening sound of the engine on, Yu frowned, and shouted, „Hei, hei, hei, what’s up, man? Where are you going that fast? Is there a fire or something to extinguish or what?”

„Of course, there is one!” DooSan growled, furious! „Their shits are burning! Now, don’t lose them!” After that, while Yu pressed the gas pedal to the brim, DooSan struggled with the belt to put it on because it was necessary to protect himself in that mad run at least somehow.

***

„What’s wrong with me?” SolHi wondered, feeling dizzy. More than that, she felt that she was sweating much more than normal and, because of this, the visor was steamed, forcing her to clean it with her hand repeatedly. Only in the end, understanding that this happened to her because of that cocktail she drank in SinJu’s club, SolHi hissed through her teeth, „Damn idiot, he drugged me!”

Suddenly, when she saw black in front of her eyes, she’d been about to lose her balance. Something she'd been able to avoid eventually, to fall off the moto, in the last possible moment. Then, she heard a lot of horns around her, especially an irritating one in the distance, but still not that far from her. Yet, even if it seemed as though someone tried to make her pay attention to him by honking the horn repeatedly, SolHi didn’t look back. She was too dizzy to do sudden movements. Only in the end, she could look toward that car whose horn was honking insistently, inside of which she saw DooSan, half out through the window, making desperate signs to her to pull over.

He shouted something too, but SolHi didn’t hear what. At least she didn’t hear it at first, because, soon after this, like an echo, too far away from her, she heard, „Pull over! Now! Ian SolHi, pull over!”

Yet, even if she heard this, SolHi didn’t understand the big deal. All that mattered to her at that moment was to find a safe place to pull over. Something she’d been forced to do eventually when a speedster, another motorcyclist, passed by her, forcing her to pull the wheel right, losing her balance eventually, and rolling a few meters on the asphalt after she fell off the moto, without hitting anything in her way. Neither the moto destroyed anything. This happened because when she felt dizzy, SolHi decreased the speed of the moto a lot.

Seeing her rolling on the asphalt, when he’d been able to do this, Yu suddenly pulled over too, forcing the cars behind him to stop too, with a deafening tire noise heard all around. However, Yu didn’t stop the car only because he saw SolHi on the asphalt, but stopped it vertically, trying to protect her from being crushed by the other cars. Then, both running out of the car, they approached SolHi, who was swinging her head back and forth, trying to take the helmet off, but still, something she couldn’t do because of the dizziness. Only in the end, when Yu took the helmet off her head, SolHi could hear him asking her, „Are you ok? Detective Ian, do you hear me?”

SolHi didn’t respond to that question. She kept looking around, where everything was spinning around her. Yet, she felt so clearly Yu’s fingers checking her pulse, just as she heard DooSan’s voice in the end, who told Yu, „She’ll be fine! The speed was too low to break something if falling. Yet, I don’t understand what’s wrong with her. Is she drunk?”

„No, she drank only a cocktail. A fake one, I see now.”

„A cocktail?” Hissed DooSan through his teeth, extremely nervous. „How the hell could she drink something there?”

„I wanted to try him,” murmured SolHi. „And that bastard fell in the trap. So, don’t lose him, prosecutor Han! He’s the assassin!” Managed to whisper SolHi before losing consciousness.

„Damn you all!” DooSan growled eventually, staring at Yu. „You’ll pay me tomorrow for this. Now, take care of her, Inspector! I’ll take care of that rat!” After that, standing up and grabbing the helmet that was next to SolHi, he ran and lifted the moto. Then, putting the helmet on, as fast as he could, he climbed on the moto, leaving the place at full speed, because Mire’s cab and SinJu’s car were far away already. He didn’t want to lose them even if he was still interested to see what would happen at the place of the accident eventually where a lot of onlookers were gathered around SolHi and Yu, looking at them as if they were exotic specimens at Zoo.