The boats anchored . . .
The boats anchored at Daepo Port were as silent as birds returning to the nest after a hard day’s work. The evening was still young, but one of the boats already had its lights on and was rocking anxiously in the harbor. Nervous, Chanmin checked his watch. It was past the agreed-upon time. He looked up toward Jusangjeolli Cliff, but there wasn’t a trace of anyone near the dark rocks.
The men in black suits were whispering among themselves. Even in their conference attire, who would believe they were beekeepers, as brawny as they were? Chanmin tsked. Even back at the conference hall, the men had gone around as a pack, drawing attention. He had told the boss there was no need to come in person and certainly hadn’t expected him to come this far and with this large an entourage. Now, it was getting late, and the boss wore a look of displeasure that seemed doubly upset on a face twice as wide as the average person’s.
An assistant with a deadpan expression and the build of a physical trainer approached Chanmin.
“Dr. Yang, what’s going on? What time did you say the handoff was happening?”
“Soon.”
“Did you call?”
He had, but the call hadn’t gone through. That was the first sign that something was wrong. He tried not to let it show. “I did call, and that’s what I was told,” he said.
The assistant gave him a doubtful look and returned to his boss to whisper something in his ear. The boss made his way over to Chanmin, tottering as the boat swayed. His assistant hurried after him.
The boss stood before Chanmin with his chest puffed out, wagging a finger in his face and saying something while pointing toward Jusangjeolli Cliff. The assistant quickly interpreted.
“He said you should go over there yourself and get us the product.”
“Me? Even if I went, I wouldn’t know where—”
The assistant cut him off. “We can’t wait forever. We have a boat to transfer to at the Port of Jeju.”
Chanmin sighed. There was nothing more he could do. He’d already received the deposit. The money was no longer even in his account. Seeing no other option, he headed toward the makeshift bridge connecting the boat to the dock. With a gesture from the boss, one of the men in suits rushed after him.
“What now?”
“The boss asked me to guard you,” the assistant replied flatly. “It might be hard for you to get this done on your own.”
It seemed more like this guy would be surveilling him, not guarding him. Chanmin raised his eyebrows but kept his mouth shut. He wasn’t the type to get into unnecessary emotional disputes. He still believed that about himself, though it had been a long time since that cool, calm image of his was shattered. He stepped onto the dock and headed toward the parking lot, knowing that the man in the black suit was hiding something that bulged in the front pocket of his jacket, but he didn’t have the energy to point it out. It was fine. Everything would be fine. If it wasn’t, Chanmin was in for a world of hurt.