Episode 14: The Trap
Two weeks later, the police got a tip.
Cha had been spotted in Incheon, near the port. He was using a fake ID, working as a day laborer to avoid detection. But he had made a mistake: he used his real name to rent a storage unit, and the facility manager recognized him from the news.
Ju‑hyuk got the call while he was in a board meeting. He walked out without explanation and called Seo‑ah.
"They have a location. They're moving in."
"Now?"
"Now. I'm going to the scene."
"I'm coming with you."
"Seo‑ah—"
"I'm not asking." She was already grabbing her keys. "I've been running from this man for ten years. I'm not going to wait for someone else to finish it."
He was silent for a moment. Then: "I'll pick you up in five."
They drove to Incheon in silence. The police had cordoned off a block near the port—warehouses, shipping containers, the smell of salt water. Ju‑hyuk flashed his credentials and they were let through.
The tactical team was already in position. A negotiator was speaking through a megaphone: "Cha Myung‑soo, come out with your hands up. There's no way out."
Seo‑ah stood behind the police line, watching the warehouse where Cha was hiding. Her hands were steady. Her heart was calm.
"You don't have to be here," Ju‑hyuk said quietly.
"Yes, I do."
Twenty minutes passed. Then the warehouse door opened.
Cha walked out, his hands raised. He looked smaller than Seo‑ah remembered—hollowed out, his expensive suits replaced with a stained work jacket. His eyes scanned the crowd and landed on her.
For a moment, they just looked at each other.
Then the police moved in, and he was gone.
Seo‑ah let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding. Ju‑hyuk's hand found hers.
"It's over," he said.
She looked at the counter. RECORDING was gone. In its place was a single word: LIVE.
---