Chapter 99…
In front of Morae Apartments, Building 102, Unit 304.
Burly men, their appearance screaming “police,” stood by the door.
“Yoon-sung, looks like it’s the right place, doesn’t it?”
When they spotted me, their eyes sharpened.
“Are you Attorney Cha Do-hyuk?”
“That’s correct.”
One of them flashed a police badge.
“I’m Detective Hong Yoon-sung from Haeun Police Station. We spoke on the phone.”
“And this person next to you?”
“Detective Seong Ji-ho, Busan Metropolitan Police Agency.”
“Forensics Division, Jang Soon-bok. I’ve heard a lot about you from Senior Gwak Se-eun.”
The forensics team’s role in a serious case like murder is to arrive first, secure the crime scene, and extract physical evidence (fingerprints, footprints, bloodstains, etc.).
I only suggested over the phone they could come along, but I didn’t think they actually would.
Normally, if someone suspected as a witness or potential suspect says, “Come,” the police brush it off. There’s no reason to listen, and the forensics unit is overworked already—why waste time?
Of course, once the victims’ identities were confirmed, I figured they’d eventually check the residence. But today? I hadn’t expected that.
Still, unlike the two detectives, Jang Soon-bok seemed somewhat friendly, and I hoped I might be able to get his cooperation.
“Who’s the officer in charge here?”
“That would be me.”
Detective Seong Ji-ho from Busan stepped forward. I handed him my card. Looking around, he muttered, “So you’re from Gangnam, huh?”
“How did Attorney Cha end up with a missing persons case?”
“The relatives of the missing couple hired me.”
“Mr. Park Ki-hyun? Ms. Lee Jung-eun?”
“Before that, why don’t we begin with the initial scene inspection?”
I pulled the door lock card key from my pocket.
“Given the time, it’s best we finish quickly, don’t you agree?”
The detectives glanced around. Neighbors on this floor were peeking out through half-opened doors.
“…Fine. We have to wait out front anyway.”
At that, Jang Soon-bok made a call.
“We’re doing the inspection—come up.”
The team that had been waiting in the parking lot stirred into action.
“For the record, since the couple went missing, the only people to have entered or stayed here are Ms. Kim Ok-ja, Ms. Lee’s mother; Park Ji-yoon, their daughter; and myself.”
I said this for a simple reason.
Once DNA and fingerprints are collected, those of Kim Ok-ja, Park Ji-yoon, and myself must be compared and ruled out.
Of course, I already knew through psychometry that none of us had left evidence behind, but they didn’t know that.
And in a planned murder like this, perpetrators often leave no prints—making usable evidence scarce.
I’ll just have to hope for even the smallest clue. From their perspective, I’m also a suspect, so everything I say will sound suspicious.
Detective Seong laid down forensic stepping mats from the doorway and entered the apartment.
Meanwhile, other forensic officers started inspecting the hallway and windows outside.
I approached the one checking the front entrance.
“…Yes? What is it?”
“When I first visited, I found these paper bullets scattered in front of Unit 304’s door and the hallway.”
“Excuse me?”
“And here—this larger one was inside the door jamb hole.”
I pointed.
“Just for reference.”
“……”
Detective Hong Yoon-sung gave a scoffing laugh.
“You’re not even police, yet—”
“Wouldn’t you say it’s because the initial investigation was lacking?”
They’d come, taken photos, even copied the CCTV footage, yet overlooked this?
“What was that?”
“So, what exactly do you want to know? How I found Mr. Park Ki-hyun?”
“……”
Fair enough—they wanted to interrogate me.
“But who would guess I tracked his location through his daughter’s phone? Using an unfamiliar Smart Tag, at that.”
Immediately, Hong flipped open his notebook.
“What’s this Smart Tag?”
“Detective, where’s your phone?”
“…Why?”
“You’ve registered your account on the Galaxy app, right? Go into the default app Smart-everything.”
“Quickly.”
“Yes, that one. Once inside, you can see all registered devices. One was located in that open suitcase in the living room. The other showed up near Jeolyeong Cliff, by the sea.”
“So you just called 112 immediately?”
“Yes.”
“But couldn’t it just mean someone found it and tossed it away? Or that Park Ki-hyun simply lost it?”
They wanted to test me with that? Ridiculous.
“Detective Hong, if you and your wife traveled abroad, would you pack hundreds of thousands of won worth of luxury goods into a single suitcase, or split them up?”
“…What are you implying?”
“If it were to avoid taxes, you’d split them, wouldn’t you? Yet they only tagged one suitcase? That’d be far stranger, don’t you think?”
He still wasn’t convinced.
“Even so, that’s only one hypothesis. Not definitive proof.”
“Then let’s get scientific.”
“……”
“A Smart Tag, no bigger than your thumb, is only waterproof for so long. According to Galaxy, IP68 means protection against water for 30 minutes at a depth over 1 meter.”
But the couple disappeared three months ago.
“So the location on Smart-everything only shows the final 30 minutes.”
“You mean, before that, someone else…”
“Yes. Which means we can track how the suitcase moved. When Park Ki-hyun was killed and how the culprit moved—those logs remain.”
“……Hah.”
“After the couple returned through Gimhae Airport on August 18, the logs even show the suitcase being opened here, in this apartment, don’t they?”
“You’re saying…”
“That with high probability, Unit 304 is the crime scene.”
Detective Seong, who had been surveying, looked back at us curiously, then ordered the forensics team to begin.
“Attorney Cha, let’s talk more later.”
“I’m counting on your cooperation.”
Jang Soon-bok, now in full gear, entered Unit 304.
Seong nudged Hong with his elbow.
“What’s got you so worked up?”
“I found a lead!”
“…Yeah?”
“Digital forensics will confirm it, but I’m sure!”
If Hong already knew about Smart Tags—or was pretending not to—then…
Why is he suspicious of me?
The forensic team would’ve already checked those logs.
Then Seong glanced at me with clear distrust.
“Yoon-sung, you know better than to take only one side of the story, right?”
“Of course!”
So it wasn’t Hong who suspected me—it was Seong.
I didn’t know why. Aside from being the first to report the case, there was no “intuition” to justify it.
And back on August 20, I had only just taken on the Misam case.
Targeting me without even checking my alibi? Too suspicious.
As the tension grew, feedback from the on-site investigation began.
Soon, the forensic officers filed out one by one.
“Mr. Cha Do-hyuk, can we take your prints?”
“Of course.”
While cooperating, I scanned the living room.
“Any blood traces?”
“……”
The chance of finding any was slim, since the scene had been meticulously cleaned. But I asked deliberately, to stir suspicion.
Somewhere in here…
“We discovered abnormal water usage the month the couple disappeared.”
“…!”
“You all know what that implies.”
“……”
“But here’s the strange part. Park Ki-hyun was carried out in a suitcase. Yet no trace shows that Lee Jung-eun was taken out? And the same month, the apartment management office received an interior renovation request?”
Seong gestured to an officer at the door, who took the elevator down.
“That suggests Lee Jung-eun is still here, in this very unit.”
To this, Hong replied:
“From CCTV, we found one suspicious car with no visible plate. Couldn’t she have been carried out in that?”
“Judging by the water usage, she wasn’t just unconscious and carried away. Plus, moving both a suitcase with Park Ki-hyun and Lee Jung-eun would’ve required at least two strong men. Is that what you’re proposing?”
“……!”
“……”
So Seong already knew.
At that moment, Jang Soon-bok returned, impressed.
“No wonder Senior Gwak Se-eun struggled with you. Detective, you’d better stay sharp.”
Hong chuckled, but Seong’s pride seemed stung—his face turned cold.
“Attorney Cha doesn’t seem to know the difference between a lawyer’s role and a detective’s.”
“On the contrary—I’m just fulfilling my duty as a lawyer.”
Whereas Detective Seong, out of pride, wasn’t willing to accept even a “cat’s paw” to help solve the case.
“Very well then. Jang Soon-bok, bring out a spare forensic uniform.”
“…Excuse me?”
“With this much confidence, shouldn’t we, the people’s police, give him a hand? Quickly!”
Reluctantly, Jang brought a spare kit.
“This really isn’t proper procedure…”
“I’m the officer in charge.”
“……”
“Attorney Cha, go ahead—knock yourself out. Bring back whatever evidence we missed.”
His confidence that I’d fail amused me.
After all, I’m the type who, when told ‘You’ll never overturn this acquittal,’ spent ten years collecting evidence.
I should thank him for rolling out the red carpet.
Wearing the gear, I submitted a pre-written request for on-site verification.
“Thought I’d save you the trouble of upper management scolding.”
“……”
“Oh, and I’ll fill in the date once we finish at Unit 304.”
I pulled out the architectural plans.
Before entering, I smiled at Jang and Hong, who tried to follow me in.
“I’ll just check the walls I couldn’t finish yesterday.”
“Go on. Camera, roll.”
Judging from Seong’s attitude, he was assuming Lee Jung-eun killed Park Ki-hyun. Otherwise, why suspect me?
He must think I helped cover it up somehow.
As I knocked along the walls, the renovation request came to mind.
End of September—Unit 204’s balcony had a severe odor, so plumbing checks and waterproof painting were done.
Not in the walls. Not in the freezer. Not in the bathroom.
Then… the balcony.
“Wait, hey!”
“Attorney Cha! The balcony’s stepping mats have already been cleared away!”
Before they could surround me, I scanned the corners for a color mismatch.
Nothing. No way…
“I said step away!”
I stared intently at the blueprint.
“You’re destroying the scene right now!”
“Officer.”
I pointed to the raised section built for the air conditioner.
“Here. Can we dig here?”
It was marked as empty space on the blueprint.
