Chapter 12
Yuri also once fell into a frozen river while taking the dogs for a walk before the dog walker came in. The three dogs watching from above, snorting, were like the gatekeepers from hell.
If it hadn’t been frozen, he would have definitely fallen into the river drown. With a sigh, Yuri, his head aching from the memory, gestured to Sarin.
“I’ll take you, so follow me.”
“Thank you.”
“If those dogs let go of the leash and run off, don’t try to find them.”
Yuri warned Sarin again with the look of someone seeing a lost child by the water. He clicked his tongue as he glanced over at Sarin, who had already rolled in the mud a few times, and it was obvious that her legs were bruised without having to pull up his clothes to see.
Yuri still saw Sarin as someone to be wary of and monitor, but this sight aroused his sympathy. He’d been mauled by dogs himself, so he knew what she was going through.
“But they are good dogs, so they shouldn’t be mistreated by strangers.”
Those big dogs don’t usually get mistreated. Instead, people tend to avoid those dogs.
And they made a person look like this and still call them good dogs. That’s a laugh. Yuri looked at Sarin with a disgusted look.
“Other people might be surprised by the three dogs running off leash…”
Sensing Yuri’s strange gaze, she added.
It’s really pointless. Seeing no point in arguing further, Yuri took a couple of steps ahead of her, and Sarin, following meekly behind, spotted a Doberman sitting alone in the middle of the street, away from traffic.
“Hey.”
Where did the other two go?
“Ignore it.”
From the color of the collar, she knew it was the dog she’d been walking, but she didn’t understand Yuri’s instructions to ignore it and look ahead.
Whine, whimper.
When the dog that didn’t bark well started making a whimpering sound, Sarin finally gestured.
“Come here.”
Whine.
The dog whimpered, but didn’t budge. It was Yuri who first stopped walking. Unable to ignore the situation, he let out a long sigh.
“It looks like the owner wants you to come, so you should stop by.”
“Huh?”
Did Owen sent the dog?
How clever, Sarin thought, and admiration flashed through her eyes.
Perhaps this woman harbored a grave misunderstanding about dogs. He couldn’t fathom how a person could respond in such a way to a dog that had caused her considerable trouble without a trace of resentment.
“Ouch!”
Yuri suddenly grabbed Sarin’s arm as she looked at the dog. He grabs her arm and hurries across the road where there are no cars, and the dog follows, tail wagging. Despite her words of pain, Yuri’s steps did not slow down as they crossed the road, dragging her along.
As they crossed the road, they eventually stopped in front of an old building’s clock tower in a dirty alley. Before she could even look up at it, Yuri took her deep inside.
Thud. Thud.
A heavy sound came from inside.
Sarin frowned. Having grown up in the countryside, she knew. It sounded similar to the sound that came from a hunting rifle when it catches or kills a pig. Instinctively aware that it was a dreadful sound, she, trying to shrink away, was pushed inward without a chance to catch her breath.
Woof.
The dog barked shortly.
The other dogs, the one that had been here earlier, trotted toward Sarin as if happy to see a familiar face. The dust of the old building floated in the air. A single ray of light coming through the clock tower’s window speaks a melancholy of the space.
Thud.
Once again, a heavy sound, as if throwing a hunting rifle, was heard.
Sarin’s shoulders trembled reflexively. Long sheets of plastics were hanging from the ceiling. When Yuri reached out and pulled back the plastic, the situation inside was revealed.
When she didn’t respond, the dogs quickly turned to their owner.
“Okay.”
The man sitting on the old sofa looked quite natural. He was leaning forward, his elbows touching his thighs, staring straight ahead.
Owen.
Sarin opened her lips without making a sound and spat out his name. Then she closed her mouth quietly. As if he noticed the shape of her mouth, he turned to look at her directly.
“Have you come?”
There was a satisfied gleam in his eyes, visible through the folds of his lids.She held her breath from the smell of dust, the old smell of wooden buildings, and the pungent smell that brushed her nose. His face, which had briefly met hers, turned back to the side. Sarin’s gaze slowly turned in that direction.
When Owen gestured, his subordinates standing around him appeared. And in between them, the figure of someone sitting tied up also came into view.
The face was not visible as it seemed to be wearing a mask. The large body, with a lot of flesh on the exposed upper body, was not properly recognizable due to being covered in blood.
Someone removed the mask of the man wearing only one pair of underpants. Despite the mess of his body, his face remained untouched, but he couldn’t scream due to the gag in his mouth.
“How could…”
The Russian mafia who claimed to have taken Sarin’s chips at the casino as his own. She can’t figure out why he’s here. His head jerked the other way as if he’d seen something he shouldn’t have, Owen and Sarin’s eyes met.
“There’s nothing in this world that I can’t find.”
The man had already fled to Russia. But there was no problem bringing him here. Sarin’s body trembled at Owen’s calm words. She bit her tongue silently as a warning to herself that if he wanted to, he would find out everything she was hiding. Otherwise, she felt like she might scream and run away from here.
She didn’t want to show her back to this man. He was wearing a black suit that wouldn’t show blood even if it splattered, and his pomade-covered hair remained perfect without a strand out of place.
Two dogs stood on either side of Owen. The most beloved one stood in front of him, guarding him and looking at Sarin.
Even if she didn’t want to know why this man was called a Doberman, she understood.
His shining golden eyes felt like those of a beast, not a human. Being among the animals made his appearance seem more natural.
“Come to think of it, I was distracted with something else and just let the joke go. I want to give a reward to my excellent dog walker.”
There was no need to say out loud what the reward was.
Owen straightened his upper body with slow movements. The sound of springs giving way could be heard from the old sofa.
“Ugh… Ugh…”
The sound of gasping and groaning in pain, and Owen’s own sounds, filled the place.
“I didn’t ask for this.”
Sarin spoke in a clear voice. You’re the only one who asked for it. She told him not to drag her into his bad deeds.
“What do you think I’m going to do?”
That man…
As she reached a terrible thought, she just swallowed it.
“Even if I let him go, I can’t touch him. I’ll just scare the easiest target. Who could that be?”
A weak, insignificant, small Asian woman who could disappear without anyone noticing.
Owen knew this type well. Now that Sarin had seen him here, he would deviate in an interesting direction.
Sarin was furious at him for trying to involve her in his wrongdoing. This was Hayan’s father? She was afraid that Hayan might have to live under this man’s thumb for the rest of her life.
“If you didn’t call me here…”
“Who told you to follow me?”
She didn’t follow him, she just came to find his dogs.
She had never seen someone in such a life-threatening situation before. The moment Sarin realized he wasn’t kidding, Owen motioned for her to come closer.
A shadow falls behind her. It’s Yuri, the one who pushed her this far.
“Ha….”
“You won’t be able to do anything if you die anyway, so don’t be so scared.”
Sarin shook her head. Owen smiled and asked if she found it interesting.
“Don’t you want to live? Don’t you just want to kill this piece of shit? You nearly died if you insisted those chips were yours.”
She thought it was fortunate. If greed had taken over her, and insisted that the chip was rightfully her, it could have ended in a precarious situation. But Sarin didn’t hold onto the past. The reason she was still alive after her mother and sister died was precisely because of that.
If she gives up, that small, helpless child will be left alone.
“You’re really a good person.”
Owen said, smiling pleasantly. The three dogs followed him as he got up from his seat. Standing in front of her, he looked even more imposing.
He slowly scanned her from head to toe. No matter how pretty you dress, when you’re dragged around by dogs, you’ll end up like a rag.
The dogs he raised were generally well-behaved, not biting people. He looked down at the top of her small head and smiled.
“But most of the time good people still get punished.”
Sarin wanted to ask if she was being punished, then.
“I… I don’t want anyone to get hurt.”
She had only come to find Hayan’s father. Looking up at the figure Hayan longed to see, Sarin thought on behalf of the child.
Hayan, your aunt’s life comes and goes here. Your dad is too scary.
