A Rumor's Shadow
It was one thing for Seo-ah to adore Se-yeon like an older sister. This was something else entirely—talk that might involve her father, or Dong-ha. And it was far too enormous a story to be dismissed as mere gossip.
Yet even faced with such a plausible tale, Seo-ah fought to keep her composure.
"Unnie... how do you even know about this rumor? Is the company you work for connected to Taeyu Group or something?"
At the look of grave concern that furrowed Seo-ah's brow, the corner of Se-yeon's mouth curled ever so slightly upward.
But Seo-ah never noticed—couldn't tell whether it was a smile or something else entirely.
"I told you, I work at a small company. It's just... I know someone fairly high up at Taeyu Motors."
"High up? If it came from someone like that, doesn't that mean the rumor is at least partly true?"
"I only overheard it, so I'll need to verify the details—but Kang Tae-kyung, who'd been exiled to the provinces, suddenly got appointed head of the Future Strategy Division at headquarters. Look at that alone and something's clearly off."
As the story unfolded, Seo-ah—despite her momentary skepticism—found her heart tilting little by little toward the possibility that the rumor might be true.
If the truth Dong-ha had tried to tell her really was the same thing Se-yeon was describing now...
Then which one was Kang Tae-kyung tied to—Dong-ha, or her father?
Her father she couldn't speak for, but Dong-ha was never a man to spout idle nonsense.
No. No, he wasn't. In that instant, Seo-ah remembered how she'd staked her entire life on him—and been deceived.
A gay husband with a lover on the side.
A hollow laugh bubbled up unbidden. She squeezed her eyes shut and let out a sigh laced with bitter self-mockery.
Seeing Seo-ah's bloodless, pallid face and the red rimming her eyes, Se-yeon dragged her chair over and sat down beside her.
"Calm down. It's still just a rumor."
But it was also true that the rumor had found the rawest, most tender spot in Seo-ah's heart and torn it open.
Seo-ah collapsed against Se-yeon's shoulder in a flood of tears.
"I'm sorry. I thought it couldn't possibly be true, so when I heard it, I just let it go. I was afraid if I told you, it would only make you worry—when you were already drowning in guilt as it was."
At the warmth and tenderness in Se-yeon's voice, Seo-ah finally broke down and wept.
How could she have been so blind—truly, impossibly blind?
Dongha Motors was a competitor, yes, but they were practically family by marriage. How could she have failed to notice anything at all while her father's core technology was stolen and his company systematically plundered into ruin?
She despised herself—her younger self, so obsessed with becoming a singer she never had the talent to be, so recklessly stubborn about studying music that she'd run off abroad without a thought in her head.
And on top of all that, she'd fallen for what might have been a trap and snatched up a marriage in the name of saving her father. No matter how she turned it over, Seo-ah could not forgive herself.
Se-yeon clasped her trembling, fury-shaking hand tightly in both of hers.
"I'll look into it a little more. I'm so sorry... Seo-ah."
Feeling Se-yeon's hands tremble, Seo-ah shook her head without a word. Her throat was closed tight; no voice would come.
She wanted to say—how was any of this your fault, unnie? Thank you for telling me, even like this. She prayed Se-yeon would understand.
But Seo-ah truly knew nothing at all.
She had no way of knowing how flawless Se-yeon's performance was.
The tremor in her voice, the subtle shifts in her expression, and a fistful of truth mixed into a mountain of lies—all of it swirled around the unsuspecting Seo-ah, becoming an unstoppable storm.
Several weeks had already passed since Tae-kyung returned to India after attending the funeral.
"Jung Hee-joon."
"......."
On the drive home from work, just like any other day, Hee-joon sat behind the wheel in pointed silence, clearly brooding over something.
By all appearances, he'd been chewed out by Tae-kyung earlier in the day for going on and on about the "Division Director" all afternoon.
"Assistant Manager Jung."
Only at his superior's flat, businesslike tone did Hee-joon finally answer, grudging and curt.
"Yes. What is it."
Tae-kyung let out a dry laugh at the sulky retort, then got to the point.
"That woman. Jin Seo-ah."
"Jin Seo-ah, sir?"
"What—how'd you know?"
Hee-joon sighed in exasperation.
"How could I not? From that day to this, you've done nothing but dig through Won Electronics files."
Tae-kyung didn't deny it.
He hadn't even bothered to be discreet—he'd flat-out requested records on both Won Electronics and Dongha Motors from the procurement department.
Granted, he'd been rebuffed quite spectacularly.
Second son of the Taeyu Group or not, those simply weren't documents a mere Team Leader was cleared to see.
Which meant that, for now, he had no choice but to lean on Hee-joon—someone from the same region as both companies, and someone who seemed to know more than he let on.
"What now? What are you curious about this time?"
"The marriage. Why... did they marry?"
"I'm sorry, what?"
Tae-kyung paid Hee-joon's theatrics no mind.
"Doesn't it strike you as strange? Two rivals who'd been at each other's throats suddenly get investment, then suddenly a marriage, then suddenly launch the same product? I can't see this as anything but deliberate on Dongha Motors' part."
He'd already heard the full account of the Won Electronics affair from Hee-joon.
But that didn't mean he'd fully grasped what Hee-joon's story implied.
Really—short of technology theft, how else could you explain a marriage like that?
Perfectly replicating Won Electronics' unrivaled, industry-leading product in a matter of months was, for all practical purposes, impossible.
Besides, the ties between Taeyu and Won Electronics went back long before Han-kyung had taken office as head of procurement.
What he couldn't understand most of all was how they'd terminated that long-trusted relationship on nothing more than circumstantial evidence—evidence that wasn't even conclusive.
Hee-joon glanced up, eyeing Tae-kyung in the rearview mirror. He'd never once seen the man fret this much over anything.
"I told you not to get involved, so why do you keep asking?"
"Why? What's the worry."
"You're asking because you don't know? Don't entangle yourself needlessly. The second son of Taeyu Group and a widow—how would that even look?"
Who said anything about marriage?
Hee-joon whipped his head around, apparently having caught the muttered grumble. Tae-kyung immediately flicked the back of his hand upward from below, in the universal gesture for eyes on the road.
Good grief, Hee-joon muttered, shaking his head.
"I don't know why they married. My father worked at Won Electronics for years, so all I've got is what I've picked up here and there. Other than that, nothing really—oh!"
Something seemed to surface in his mind, and Hee-joon faltered mid-sentence.
"What."
Watching Tae-kyung's reaction carefully, Hee-joon ventured cautiously.
"Well—it's CEO Jin, of Won Electronics. He passed away."
"Passed away?"
"Yes. After the contract termination... by his own hand."
Tae-kyung's eyes darkened.
How many misfortunes could a single person be made to bear?
"And while I was there, I heard the mourners talking. Apparently the family never even told Jin Seo-ah that her husband had died. What a household, honestly."
"Hmm..."
Tae-kyung sighed, without quite realizing he was doing it.
The more he thought about it, the crueler her life sounded.
'One cursed with a hard fate, that woman.'
Her mother-in-law's venomous words kept circling in his head. Nothing—not a single thing—about Jin Seo-ah's circumstances sat well with him.
Tsk. Tae-kyung clicked his tongue and clenched his jaw, then leaned his head back against the rear seat rest and let his gaze drift blankly out the window.
The road was dominated by Taeyu's compact cars—the beloved national car of India.
And in that moment, a face flickered through his mind.
"It's been what, two years since hyung came to Taeyu Motors?"
"About that, probably."
Tae-kyung gave a small nod, stroking his chin.
"Why?"
"Just wondering."
At that short, unexplained answer, Hee-joon's expression suddenly lit up.
"Could it be... is it that?"
"What."
"You accepted the transfer to headquarters without telling me, didn't you?"
Hee-joon floated the question, giddy with hope. But Tae-kyung's response was even more unexpected.
"You think I'd do well?"
"Yes... yes?!"
"I won't ask twice."
"Sir—what?!"
Startled, Hee-joon turned his head—and the car lurched.
"Jung Hee-joon! Were you even watching the road?!"
"Ah—yes! Sorry!"
In all his years, Tae-kyung had never once asked him anything like this—and so Hee-joon barreled on, brimming with conviction.
"I knew something was up! They just started publicizing your performance at headquarters—the team leader's results. That was it, wasn't it? That's what this is about!"
"Good grief. Is there anything you don't know?"
"You should be thanking your stars. Do you know how rare it is to have a well-connected executive secretary like me?"
Unable to suppress the grin leaking across his face, Hee-joon even started humming a little tune.
"And anyway, why even ask the obvious? Of course you'll do well."
Watching him, Tae-kyung closed his eyes without a word.
He'd thought everything had gone hopelessly off the rails the day he attended the funeral in Han-kyung's stead—until fate threw him into Jin Seo-ah's path.
Jin Seo-ah, now the final piece of Kang Tae-kyung's puzzle.
Would she become the key that brought Han-kyung crashing down—or the poison that destroyed him?