Chapter : 38
Before starting the engine, he suddenly rummaged through his right pocket.
Sensing the abrupt movement, Juhye pulled her gaze away from the car window.
When she turned around, Daehyun pulled something out of his pocket and held it out in front of her eyes.
“You need to get your belongings back.”
The moment she saw what lay in his palm, Juhye’s eyes wavered violently.
It was the wedding ring she had deliberately left behind and run away from.
“You can’t just leave something this important behind.”
“I didn’t leave it behind.”
Juhye met his gaze head-on, without avoiding it, and whispered,
“I threw it away.”
The instant she said she’d thrown it away, Daehyun’s lips twisted harshly.
“Threw it away?”
The lipstick mark vividly stamped near his mouth was a deep red.
Juhye instinctively turned her gaze away in embarrassment, but Daehyun misinterpreted it and reached out.
The force with which he tried to shove the ring onto her forcibly held finger was stubborn and rough.
“Stop it. I told you to stop!”
“You’re the one who needs to stop being so stubborn!”
They both shouted at the same time, then paused their struggle.
Only their low, ragged breathing filled the car.
Juhye looked down at the ring barely hanging onto her fingertip, then lifted her gaze.
Shadows weighed heavily beneath Daehyun’s eyes as he wiped his gaunt face.
“Why did you come back?”
Looking at his exhausted face, Juhye finally voiced the question she’d been holding in all along.
“That deal was important… it was the thing you worked hardest on this year.”
She knew better than anyone how hard he’d worked to secure the investment.
She had watched his daily life at home every single day.
She also knew how tense and on edge he’d been because of it.
“Was it because if you divorced me, everything would go up in smoke anyway?”
“That’s not the reason.”
She couldn’t understand him at all.
There was no justification for his actions, nor any clear purpose.
Did he really believe that trapping her in this house would somehow restore a marriage that was already over?
“Don’t say you did it because you love me. You’ve never said that even once. And…”
Remembering what Woo-hyun had told her, the tears miraculously dried up.
“I know everything now. That you married me for personal revenge… I heard it all from him.”
“Seo Woo-hyun—that crazy bastard said that?”
Daehyun’s vulgar curse sounded unfamiliar.
It wasn’t the time to laugh, but somehow, it felt a little ridiculous.
As she forced a hollow smile, Daehyun’s expression crumbled even further.
“Yes. That’s what he said.”
“……”
“It’s a relief, actually. Thanks to that, I finally woke up.”
What bothered Juhye to the very end was this—
She wished he had just honestly said he never loved her.
So she could at least hate him a little, even now.
Only mysterious footsteps echoed through the pitch-dark space.
Woo-hyun stayed frozen, barely daring to breathe, waiting for the cloth covering his face to be removed.
Once he sensed someone nearby, he gave up struggling altogether.
As long as someone was watching him, even regaining his sight wouldn’t make escape possible.
Especially not with both hands tightly bound.
‘Damn it.’
He had carefully avoided attention while heading to the address Juhye gave him.
But for some reason, she hadn’t answered her calls or messages.
Worried, he approached the villa and knocked—and the moment he did, a powerful hand clamped over his mouth.
At the same time, someone yanked a sack over his head and dragged him away as he struggled.
After being thrown into a car and driven for about two hours, he arrived here.
“Sir.”
That was when—
A voice suddenly pierced the silence.
Woo-hyun pricked up his ears. The man who had spoken immediately shut his mouth.
Then footsteps approached, and a familiar voice struck his ears.
“You’ve done well. You can leave.”
Only then did Woo-hyun relax and curl his lips into a cold smile.
Someone exited the room, the door closed, and footsteps stopped right in front of him.
Rough hands yanked the sack off his head, and blinding light flooded his vision.
“Ugh!”
“Quite a sight.”
Daehyun muttered as he looked down at Woo-hyun’s disheveled state.
Woo-hyun’s eyes darted around rapidly, confusion evident in his gaze.
The space was a sealed warehouse of unknown use, but welding equipment nearby added an ominous atmosphere.
“I distinctly remember warning you—before you went to prison—that we’d never see each other again.”
Daehyun loosened his tie leisurely, dragged over a metal chair, and sat down.
Crossing his legs at an angle, lighting a cigarette—each mundane movement radiated pressure.
Woo-hyun forced himself not to be overwhelmed and smiled as casually as possible.
“How can brothers never see each other? Especially when one betrayed the other.”
“……”
“I can’t give up until I see you kneel.”
Hatred gleamed viciously in Woo-hyun’s eyes.
Daehyun stared at him calmly, as though looking into a mirror.
Once upon a time, Daehyun had worn that same gaze—so full of resentment.
Every day, hating his father and brother had been the only thing keeping him alive enough to dream of a future.
“So, you destroy Father’s company, offer it up to Jinju Group, and get their youngest daughter—are you satisfied?”
“Yes. Very satisfied.”
Daehyun flicked his fingers lightly, and the cigarette butt dropped to the floor.
Some embers scattered near Woo-hyun’s feet, sending up heat.
“But lately, because of you, things have been going pretty damn badly… and my mood’s trash.”
Woo-hyun clenched his teeth, and Daehyun scoffed silently at the feeble resistance.
He hadn’t brought Woo-hyun here to negotiate—only to get an answer.
“What did you say to my wife when you went to see her?”
He needed to know how Woo-hyun had threatened Juhye.
“Why not ask her yourself?”
“Just answer.”
“Do I really owe you an answer? Even if this deal failed, I can just start the next one.”
Failing to strike a deal with Juhye didn’t mean he was out of options.
Jinju Group’s Jin Soo-ha or Jin Soo-kyung would surely listen.
“How long do you think that low-grade blackmail of yours will work?”
Daehyun snapped at his brazen attitude.
He pulled out his phone and showed footage recorded from the apartment CCTV.
Every moment of Woo-hyun tailing Juhye and Eunjae was clearly captured.
Woo-hyun was silent for a moment—then he recognized Eunjae’s face and chuckled.
“Song Eunjae… no, Seo Eunjae.”
“Shut up.”
“Why? Don’t want to admit she’s your blood?”
At that cold rebuke, Woo-hyun burst into loud laughter.
“Of course you wouldn’t have told Jinju Group about Song Eunjae’s existence. She’d be an obstacle to your marriage.”
“……”
“Just rumors of Father having an illegitimate child made Woonam Construction’s stock plummet. No guarantee Jinju Group would be any different.”
Damn it—Woo-hyun was sharp when it came to calculations like this.
Seeing Daehyun’s face harden, Woo-hyun narrowed his eyes.
“So you abandoned the little brother you cherished… the brother who even helped put your older brother in prison—and married that woman instead. You got everything you wanted. Are you satisfied now?”
There was nothing to refute.
Daehyun had deliberately hidden Eunjae’s existence when he married.
Even the fact that he had a half-sister would’ve been a fatal flaw in Chairman Jin’s eyes.
Juhye was a daughter raised too preciously—he was sure they wouldn’t marry her off to a man with stains.
“But you won’t be able to protect it anymore. The moment I get out of here—”
“That’s assuming you can get out.”
“What?”
That was the end of the conversation.
He had never intended to negotiate, and Woo-hyun had never once been of use in Daehyun’s life.
As Daehyun stood and headed for the door, someone suddenly poked their head in.
“Done?”
“Yes. Just put him on a boat and send him anywhere.”
Kang-il, holding recruitment papers under his arm, grinned and nodded.
When Woo-hyun saw the forged documents from afar, his expression finally stiffened.
“You won’t be back anytime soon.”
Daehyun brushed his hands off, then gestured at the papers.
“Seo Daehyun, you bastard—what the hell are you—!”
“That’s the money you wanted so badly, right?”
One of Kang-il’s relatives happened to run a loan shark business.
The plan was to stamp Woo-hyun’s fingerprint on the contract and hand it over.
“I’ll lend it to you right now.”
“Don’t go! Don’t do this, you bastard!”
Realizing what was happening, Woo-hyun thrashed violently.
The chair he was tied to toppled over, and he screamed curses face-down on the floor.
“Let’s see how long it takes you to pay it all back.”
But Daehyun turned his back without a shred of hesitation.
Hoping that this time, he would truly never see Woo-hyun’s face again—for the rest of his life.
