Soo Jin's eyes went wide at Ba Reum's sudden confession.
"You think you killed someone?" she asked, putting her arms around his shoulder and holding him close. The smell of the vomit filled the air and was seeping in her pyjama bottoms.
"I'm not sure. He was hurting a little girl and then I lost it. Oh god, what did I do?" Ba Reum moaned in his mother shoulder. He was on the verge of a panic attack, hyperventilating and shaking. He vomited again.
Soo Jin looked at her son.
She saw the blood on his arms and clothes, even some on his face. The mud clung to his him everywhere. The sickness had spattered back on his clothes.
She looked at him and felt the need to protect him.
"Who?" she asked. "Who do you think you killed?" first facts, then they can figure this out.
"Kang Duk Soo," he whispered.
"The child rapist?" she asked, he nodded slightly.
Soo Jin thought about how best to handle this. First things first. Her son was miserable and dirty. Let's fix what we can and then think about the rest.
"Come, let's get you in the shower and clean you up." She helped him stand. He looked at her in surprise.
"Mom," he whispered to her, tears filling his eyes.
"Shhh, it's okay. First we get you cleaned up. Then we get rid of these clothes." She said.
"If I knew that you were going to go on one of your escapades again," she muttered.
Her son stood still and turned to look at her better.
"You knew?" he asked her.
"Of course I did. You always go around getting evidence in dead cases. Don't think I didn't notice it. All the worrying that you brought to me" She said. As if her son could hide that from her. She had noticed that lose floorboard in his room ages ago.
"You, young man, are making all the hairs on my head turn grey." She tried to joke, but Ba Reum just looked at her in shock. She sighed.
"Come on, let's get you cleaned". She made him stand in the shower clothes and all, and turned on the water spray.
"Gonna be sick again." He said and started to dry heave.
"All over?" she asked when he seemed to have clamed down. Ba Reum nodded shakingly. He had fallen to his knees again and decided that it was safer to just sit in the shower.
"You try to get your clothes of and get yourself cleaned. I'll go get you some dry pyjama's." she said, stroking his wet hair and trying to smile comfortingly at him.
She put those clothes ready for him and waited until he emerged from the bathroom.
She guided him to his bedroom.
"Ba Reum, I have some important questions now. I need you to focus and answer them." She had been thinking things over.
"Did anyone see you there?" she asked.
"Only the child and Kang Duk Soo, but I was wearing a face mask and cap. It was also very dark and raining, so they won't recognize me."
"Okay, that's good," she said, "and no one saw you coming and going either?"
"Some random people who were walking the street saw me going, but they were just strangers. I was careful not to be seen when I came back." Ba Reum looked at her again.
"Mum, if Kang Duk Soo dies, what do I do?"
"We don't know that. For now we just wait and see. I won't let you go to jail and ruin your live because you saved someone from a rapist." she said vehemently. Ba Reum could only stare at her in amazement. He was still feeling shaky and weak, but he was happy his mother wasn't afraid of him.
"I did try to kill him. I wanted to kill him." He urged again.
"Honey, we all secretly want to kill people like that. I bet halmoni has been fantasizing about that for 10 years. Even if he died, I think everyone would praise you. But still, we have to be careful."
Ba Reum looked like he wanted to say something more, but he suddenly grew dizzy and nearly fell over.
His mum quickly guided him over to his bed and made him lie down. She put her hand on his forehead.
"Mmh, it seems you are running a fever. Are you still feeling sick?" Ba Reum just nodded.
She quickly fetched a bucket to put next to his bed.
"Try to rest for now. I'll let the clothes soak in bleach and then I'll get rid of them. I'll look on the internet to see if any news about this comes through." She said, softly petting the hair on her son's head.
He still looked pale and shaking, but at least he was warm now. As for the rest, it was playing the waiting game.
She put on the television to see if there was a special report. She collected Ba Reum's dirty clothes and shoes and but them in a bucket with bleach, to destroy every trace of evidence from it. She would get rid of them later.
And now, she was cleaning up the vomit that coats the hall near the entrance. She sighed in relief when she saw that Ba Reum had missed their shoes.
When Moo Chi arrived at the scene there were already two ambulances and some police cars standing there, the lights flashing and illuminating the neighbourhood and the field. He ran toward them.
A crowd was already forming and he pushed his way through them just in time to see a body being lifted unto a stretcher and somewhat further a second body, which was also being loaded on a second stretcher.
He went to one of the police man and showed his badge.
"What's going on?" he asked.
"We had a phone call from someone saying that there was a person who was hurt in the reed field. Seeing that we were just missing a suspect we were called in as well." The police officer reported.
"When we arrived here, we found 2 people, both beaten up. One of them was Kang Duk Soo, the other was an older woman. We still have to establish her identity."
"So Kang Duk Soo was beaten up?" he asked and before the other man could answer he rushed towards the second stretcher.
In the light he couldn't see very well. He saw the bloodied pulp that was left over from the face. He shone his flashlight towards the neck.
"Was he strangled? Is he still alive?" he asked the paramedics.
"We still have a pulse. We're bringing him to the hospital and then we'll see the full damage." The elder of the two answered and the lifted the stretcher toward the ambulance.
He watched them go and returned to the first stretcher. He looked at the older women lying there. Wait he recognized her.
"Halmoni!?" he heard a voice shouting from the crowd.
"Let me through, that's my grandmother." Moo Chi swore when he recognized Bong Yi.
"Let her through." He shouted at the cop who was keeping the people away from the scene.
Bong Yi rushed forwards.
"Is she, is she still alive?" Bong Yi asked the paramedic, looking at her grandmother in fear.
"Yes, she is, but we must rush to the hospital." Bong Yi was allowed to ride the ambulance with them. At least she was close by her grandmother.
The ambulances cleared and the area was sealed. In this dark and with this weather the police was more likely to destroy any evidence then find any.
Moo Chi rubbed his face. What a night. He looked towards were the ambulances had gone of too. What to do about Bong Yi. She shouldn't be alone in this situation.
He went towards the crowd that was gathering there.
"Is there any family of the old woman here?" he asked in general.
"No, her granddaughter Oh Bong Yi, she went with her in the ambulance and she's the only family." An old woman answered.
Moo Chi took note of that. Most people who were standing here were older, in their mid fifties to their eighties. No one near Bong Yi's age was in this crowd.
He knew that she and Ba Reum were on very friendly terms and seeing what happened tonight he decided to call Ba Reum. Perhaps he could help Bong Yi.
"Yes, hello?" a female voice answered the phone. Moo Chi looked in surprise at his screen, but saw that he had selected the correct number.
"Oh sorry, I'm searching for Jung Ba Reum." He said.
"Oh, I'm his mother. Ba Reum is not feeling so well. Can I take a message?" she asked, sounded tired.
"Ah, yes," he said, "you see, I'm a colleague of Ba Reum's and tonight something happened to someone Ba Reum knew. I just wanted to .." he suddenly heard the noise of someone throwing up in the back ground.
"Are you okay honey?" the voice had moved away from the phone a bit. He could hear some indistinct muttering.
"I'm sorry, you were saying."
"It's about Bong Yi," Moo Chi said, "her grandmother was attacked and is now in the hospital. She was unconscious when they found her."
"Oh no, is she going to be okay?"
"We don't know yet. That's why I called Ba Reum. I know he knows Bong Yi. She shouldn't be alone in a time like this."
"I know some friends of the family. I'll make sure that someone is with Bong Yi soon enough." A pause "did they caught the one who did it?"
"Yes, we have the perpetuator, but he's been hurt as well, probably by a third person. He's currently in the hospital as well." Moo Chi said and then he heard another retching sound.
"Oh, what happened?"
"I can't tell you more about the case madame," Moo Chi said.
"I understand. I'll make sure someone is with Bong Yi soon. Thank you for calling and taking care of her. I have to go now."
"Thank you for calling the family. I hope Ba Reum gets better soon." Moo Chi finished awkwardly.
Moo Chi ended the conversation and sighed. It had been a busy night. He looked over the field again and went back to his car. He was driving back to the precinct when something suddenly moved on his back seat.
"Ahjussi?" a voice said. He swore and swerved his car. When he was at a standstill he turned around and looked at the child in his car, his heart hammering in his chest.
"The hell?"