Chapter 20 Elise
TWENTY
ELISE
Gun trusts me enough to leave me in his loft alone. Yet I didn’t tell him a word about the visitor who would be coming by while he’s gone.
He’s gone for a few hours today, which leaves me with time alone and the loft to myself.
He couldn’t avoid Cheongryong business any longer—there was a meeting at syndicate headquarters he had to attend, plus he needed to check in with his crew and maintain the facade that everything was normal.
It’s the perfect window for Uncle Jerald and me to finally meet up now that he’s arrived back in South Korea.
When the knock comes at the door, I let him in quickly, glancing down the hallway to make sure no neighbors are watching.
“This has to be fast,” I say. “I’m not supposed to have visitors. It’s too risky right now. Are you sure nobody was following you?”
“Baby girl, really? You’re going to ask me that like I’m an amateur? I know when I’m being followed. Nobody paid me any mind.”
Uncle Jerald opens his arms for an embrace, pulling me into one of his bone-crushing hugs. He’s wearing a tropical shirt with palm trees on it and a Panama hat that tells me he’s still in vacation mode.
But it feels good to hug him. The only real family I have left.
“You look like you’re getting a little too skinny.” He draws back to assess my appearance with a critical eye. “You need to bulk up if you’re going to be going after them Blue Dragons.”
I look away guiltily, wondering if I should tell him the truth—that Gun and I are working together now. Everything has changed in ways I never would’ve predicted.
But the words don’t come out as I realize I’ve reached another crossroads.
Not only do I feel guilty for not telling Gun my uncle was coming by to visit, I feel guilty for not telling Unc that I’m allied with Gun.
He’d probably react like KD—he’d consider it sleeping with the enemy.
My thoughts are drawn back to the present by Uncle Jerald himself.
He’s wandered into the main living area, giving an impressed nod as he takes his time surveying the accommodations.
“This place is mighty spacious for Seoul,” he says. “How’d you land it, baby girl? Was it KD? That boy is so smitten with you, he’d do anything.”
“I acquired it myself,” I lie without thinking.
His gaze settles on the jackets hanging from the coat rack near the entrance. One belonging to me. The other Gun’s. His expression shifts.
“Seems like the jacket on the left belongs to a man.”
“I like a loose fit.”
He grunts like he’s not entirely convinced, but thankfully pivots to a different topic. “Director Hart gave me an earful about how you’ve turned your back on the agency. She’s not happy with your recent choices.”
“You’ve heard the wrong version of events. It was more like the agency wanted to control me, and I couldn’t get the job done under their guidance anymore. I’m my own person, and I want to pursue my vendetta against the Cheongryong myself.”
“That’s respectable. The agency only cares about money anyway.”
“That’s how it’s begun to feel,” I admit. “KD is still loyal to them, though.”
He scoffs derisively. “Figures. I always warned you that you can’t trust him. You can’t really trust any of them.”
“Yeah,” I mumble.
But it’s not even KD, Director Hart, or the agency that I’m thinking about.
It’s Gun that enters my mind. I’ve begun to trust Gun in ways that terrify me at my core. Doubt creeps in like poison—what if it’s misplaced? What if he’s somehow deceiving me, playing some long game I can’t see? Could history be about to repeat itself?
Rhee Tae-hwan betrayed my father twenty years ago. Maybe now his son is about to betray me.
It sounds insane and paranoid, but hearing Uncle Jerald’s warnings serves as a reminder that nothing’s impossible.
“Your father was so sure he could trust Rhee Tae-hwan,” he says sagely.
His eyes find mine, unyielding and somber.
“But he realized he was wrong, and it was a price he paid with his life. I’m glad you’ve learned from his mistake.
Once we eliminate the Cheongryong, we can finally move on with our lives. ”
I nod, rendered speechless by the weight of what lies ahead. The conflict churns in my chest and makes it hard to breathe.
Everything he’s saying makes sense, aligning with what I’ve believed for years. But now it feels like betrayal to the man who’s shown me tenderness I never thought I deserved.
Uncle Jerald gives the room one last sweeping glance and then comes in close for a final goodbye hug. “Keep me in the loop, baby girl. And whoever your gentleman caller is—don’t let your guard down around him either.”
They’re his partying words as he heads out and I lock the door, releasing a breath I’ve been holding for minutes.
I have to come clean. I have to tell Gun he came by.
I check the time and wait for him to get home.
There’s a sudden bang at the door out of the silence. It sounds like someone’s pounded a fist against it and then took off. I stop pacing and look to the door, hesitating for a second before I approach.
I check the peephole to find nobody’s in the hall outside. But there is a package on the floor in front of our door. Unlocking the deadbolts, I swiftly snatch the small package off the ground.
It’s been haphazardly wrapped in brown paper, like whoever did it couldn’t be bothered to make it look halfway decent.
They scribbled the words, “Your Friend”, where the sender’s address should go. Clearly they didn’t want to identify themselves otherwise.
I tear it open with cautious fingers, peeling back the brown paper wrapping to find a videotape. The label is faded and peeling at the edges with a single date scribbled on it in blue ink.
It’s from the same month Dad passed away…
A chill blows through me as I stare at the tape wondering what the hell could be on it. Who would send it to me?
It seems to be some kind of security footage judging by the label on it.
My burner phone starts buzzing with a call from Gun. I set the tape down on the TV console and go to answer.
“I’m not going to make it home until later tonight,” Gun says in greeting. Wind crackles in the background, hinting at the fact that he must’ve stepped outside to place this call.
“Why?” I ask. My gaze travels to the videotape on the TV console, eyeing it like it’s a ticking time bomb liable to explode any second.
“There’s an important family dinner my father is insisting I attend.
My older brother, Ho-seok, is throwing it so he can propose to his longtime girlfriend.
The whole family is attending. I tried getting out of it, but he was hearing none of it.
” Gun’s sigh is audible through the speaker.
“It’s a big deal because my brother is one of the most renown neurologists in the country.
This officially takes him off the market in some of South Korea’s higher class circles.
Many young Korean women will be disappointed. ”
“You’re still available to be snatched up.”
He laughs, catching the sarcastic quip. “Imagine me throwing a stuffy engagement dinner in front of all the rich and powerful. Does that sound like my style?”
“A dinner? No. But some huge-ass party? Absolutely.”
“See, you know me better than you think. But don’t worry, I promise to bring you some leftover matcha cake.”
I find myself smiling at his thoughtfulness, even in the face of what’s on my mind—Uncle Jerald’s warnings about who I can trust, the mysterious videotape that’s just shown up on our doorstep, and the growing certainty that I’m at the center of something much larger than myself.
That noise is canceled as soon as Gun almost makes me laugh.
“Hello? Goyangi, you better not have hung up on me.”
“I’m still here,” I say, realizing I’d zoned out. “I was just thinking about how we can’t do our movie night now.”
His chuckle is warm and genuine. “We’ll do two movie nights to make up for it. It’s actually a good thing if I attend this event. It’ll get my father off my back. He’ll see I’m not up to something like he seems to think.”
“That makes sense.” I pause, questioning if I should go ahead and do it.
I should tell Gun about the mysterious package that arrived and Uncle Jerald’s visit. I should express to him how I’m questioning who I can really trust.
Even him.
I decide against saying anything, figuring it makes more sense to tell him in person once he gets home.
When the call ends, the apartment feels unnervingly quiet. I’m left alone with my secrets and the growing weight of choices I’m not sure I’m ready to make.
Gun doesn’t have a VCR that I could use to play the tape, and I’m not sure it’s worth me venturing the streets of Pangyo in search of an antiques shop that would still sell one.
Staying here and waiting it out is the best thing to do. It makes the most sense.
At first I try to sit down and watch TV. When that’s not enough to distract me, I log onto Gun’s laptop so I can check my email.
There’s nothing noteworthy in my civilian email. Just a bunch of spammed newsletters from companies I never signed up for.
Then I remember my encrypted Vanguard email. It’s been over a week since I’ve checked it. Mostly because I was pulled off the Cheongryong contract and then decided I was done with the agency altogether.
Curiosity piques inside me as I wonder if I’m even still able to access it or if they’ve already revoked my account.
It takes me a couple quick seconds to log on, scrolling once again through emails that seem run of the mill.
Most of the emails I’ve missed are informational. Nothing important that catches my attention… until I scroll to one marked HOTEL BELLMARE - MISSION APPROVED.
I frown as I click on it and see I’m still part of the distro, though it’s primarily addressed to KD from Director Hart. I gasp reading the email:
Subject: HOTEL BELLMARE – MISSION APPROVED
From: Director Camille Hart
To: Kangdae Han
CC: OPS-Command-12, Tactical Review Division
Sent: [Timestamp—October 11, 2025, 9:36 PM]
Body:
Agent Onyx,