The Cold Barrel

Hae Su gulped down the water.

She bit her wet lips momentarily before releasing them.

“Thank you.”

Do Guk twitched an eyebrow and set the bottle down on the nightstand.

He ran a hand through his short hair, his gaze shifting toward the large window.

Her eyes followed his.

The window, reflecting the pitch-black sky, acted like a mirror for the room.

She saw her own reflection, sitting half-upright in bed without a single thread of clothing on her body.

Hae Su extended a slender arm and spoke softly.

“Um… could you bring me my robe?”

His gaze fell upon her.

The robe was hanging in a spot far from Hae Su, but well within his reach.

He let out a dry, mocking chuckle.

“You’re really getting bold, aren’t you? Trying to order me around.”

“……My legs have no strength.”

“Then just stay as you are.”

“It is cold.”

Hae Su murmured as if talking to herself.

The room was so silent that her voice reached him clearly.

He stood there with a look of disapproval for a moment, but soon grabbed the robe and tossed it toward her.

He was a man who acted annoyed but ultimately gave in to her requests.

Hae Su unfolded the light fabric and slipped her arms through, noting the mess of marks left across her skin.

Sensitive peaks that had been bitten and dark red bruises scattered over her flesh.

She bit her inner lip hard and hurried to tie the sash tightly.

She did not want to see them, nor did she want him to see them.

Looking at the traces on her body made her feel like a dmn whre, and she hated it.

But at that moment.

Hae Su frowned at a sudden, piercing headache.

As she pressed her hand against her throbbing temple, the world began to spin.

Something was wrong.

She looked up at the man watching her.

In an instant, her vision blurred so severely she could not tell if his gaze was tender or freezing cold.

“Why……”

She parted her lips, but the words failed her as her body tilted.

Collapsing onto the plush bed, Hae Su narrowed her eyes, struggling to focus.

The moment she realized something had happened to her body, she lost consciousness completely.

“Ugh……”

The moment she regained her senses, a surge of pain made her groan.

Her head felt like it was splitting apart.

She opened her eyes, but everything was dark.

Frantically moving her pupils was a useless effort.

Hae Su realized belatedly that something was covering her vision.

Furthermore, her hands and feet were bound, making it impossible to move.

With every twitch of her arms, the sensation of the restraints tightening confirmed her situation.

Clack.

Hae Su lifted her head at the sharp sound.

It did not take long for her to realize exactly who had done this to her.

“……President?”

Lee Do Guk.

It was him.

As her senses, dulled by confusion, woke up, a familiar scent reached her nose.

A body scent mixed with the smell of cologne. It was unmistakably Lee Do Guk’s.

She had been in his arms not long ago; there was no way she wouldn’t know.

But why on earth.

Hae Su bit the soft flesh inside her lip.

Tracing back her memory, she had been sprawled on the bed right after their fierce lovemaking.

She had been lying there, unable to lift a finger, and then drank the water he gave her.

“……”

Ah.

The water.

She now knew exactly how and when she had lost consciousness.

‘What, you do not even have the strength to drink water?’

Yes, he had made her drink the water, but he had not touched a drop himself.

This situation was a calculated move on his part.

If he personally orchestrated this, there was only one reason.

He suspected her identity.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t treat a woman he had just been crushing under his body and thrusting into so mercilessly like this.

However, even if he did this, she could not confess the truth.

The moment she leaked the secret, everything would end.

Hae Su swallowed hard and released her bitten lip.

She acted as if she had no idea why this was happening.

“Pre… President…… Pl… please stop joking. I… I am sc… scared.”

She called out for him with a voice trembling with terror.

Because she was blindfolded, she could not tell where he was.

But soon, her ears twitched at the sound of a soft laugh.

Once she realized he was behind her, all of Hae Su’s senses focused there.

She held her breath at the sound of approaching footsteps.

The moment she felt his presence directly behind her, the blindfold was untied.

The fabric brushed her face as it fell to the floor.

As the light rushed back in, Hae Su’s eyelids fluttered.

In the brief second her blurry vision snapped into focus.

“……!”

She felt something cold and heavy press against the back of her head.

Her pupils, flooded with light, shook violently.

In her reflection on the window, she saw the man’s figure.

She finally understood what was pressing against her skull.

It was a gun.

Confirming that her intuition was right, Hae Su blinked her eyes rapidly.

“Wh… why are you suddenly doing this to me……”

He tilted his head and laughed once more.

In that faint smile, she felt a sudden surge of murderous intent.

Her pulse raced so fast it felt like the thumping would burst her eardrums.

Hae Su held her breath and fidgeted with her freezing fingertips.

Trembling as if shivering from fear, she spoke with a tearful voice.

“Wh… what did I… do wrong? If… if you are angry at me… just tell me……”

The man’s laughter cut through her stuttering words.

Then, something fell and hit the floor with a clatter.

Her eyes darted downward and shook.

‘It is a modest gift, but please accept it as my early congratulations.’

‘I will accept the gift with thanks. Give my regards to President Lee.’

The tie pin she had given to Representative Park had lost its original shape, and the wiretap she had hidden inside was rolling on the floor.

‘……You could be in danger, will you be okay?’

‘It is already dangerous enough as it is.’

Hae Su squeezed her eyes shut.

As she clenched her fists, the blue veins on the back of her hands stood out.

At that moment.

“Jo Hae Su.”

His freezing voice, calling her full name, pierced her ears.

The area around her eyes turned red at his call.

After a moment’s hesitation, Hae Su looked at his reflection in the window.

The pressure at the back of her head vanished.

Then.

Click—the sound of a gun being cocked broke the silence.

“……!”

He aimed the muzzle at her head again and asked in a merciless voice.

“Who the f*ck are you?”

Her face turned deathly pale at his question.

But she could not reveal her identity.

The moment she uttered those words, she would die.

Hae Su could not say a word, pressing her lips together so hard the color drained from them.

Then.

“Answer me.”

Lee Do Guk asked again, looking as if he would pull the trigger and put a bullet in her brain right then and there.

“Who are you?”

One month ago.

Driven by urgency and anxiety, she bit her innocent lips repeatedly.

Griping the steering wheel tightly, Hae Su kept her eyes fixed on the traffic light that refused to change.

The moment her round eyes narrowed, the red light vanished.

She stepped harder on the accelerator with her pointed shoes, and the stationary car surged forward.

[Yeocheon Police Agency]

A conscripted policeman stepped out in front of the car as she tried to enter the gate.

Standing by her lowered window, his eyes scanned her from bottom to top.

“What is your business here?”

At his attitude toward an outsider, Hae Su’s expression momentarily hardened.

Ah, right.

Only then did she realize what state she was in.

Because she had rushed here, she hadn’t changed her clothes, nor had she reattached the sticker proving the vehicle was authorized to enter the premises.

Sighing, Hae Su opened the console box with her right hand and pulled out her hidden ID.

[JO HAE SU | POLICE AGENCY]

The policeman lifted his cap slightly and looked back and forth between the ID and her face with wide eyes.

His gaze clearly showed he hadn’t let go of his suspicion.

In a world where forgeries were rampant, being cautious was natural, but she was in too much of a hurry to be polite.

“Why, should I clarify my department too?”

“Pardon?”

“Violent Crimes Investigation Unit 3, Team 1. If you need more verification, call and check.”

“Ah……”

“What are you doing? Get out of the way, I am busy.”

“Ah…! Yes. I, I understand!”

Frightened by her sharp voice, the policeman hurriedly saluted and stepped back.

Hae Su looked ahead and drove the car into the agency lot.

Click.

The moment she stepped out of the car, the sound of a siren pierced her ears.

However, it was just white noise that rang out constantly in this place, so she did not pay it any mind.

Hae Su did not even look toward the sound as she hung her ID around her neck.

Meanwhile, she saw the car of her senior, Han Jae Woong, entering the lot behind her.

Hae Su stopped walking and waited for him.

Jae Woong shook his head the moment he stepped out of his parked car.

“Hey, Hae Su. Why does a girl drive so roughly? I almost got into an accident trying to keep up.”

At the mention of her gender, Hae Su momentarily emitted a cold aura.

Noticing the change, Jae Woong realized his mistake and awkwardly pulled the corners of his mouth up to change the subject.

“Well, we arrived early, so you have time to change your clothes. Right?”

Looking at his grinning face, Hae Su let out a short sigh and ran her hand through her hair.