Red Light
Red Light
She felt a little strange because her posh car stood out in that place. There were a few gang members who were sitting along the sidewalk, watching the cars enter their abode. Some of them leered at her as she drove by. Mina felt scared of being there but Kanji was driving deeper into the place. Around her were small one storey buildings which looked like shops but were in fact brothels with large window displays.
Skimpy clothed women stood there like showpieces, sometimes making provocative gestures to entice the customers who were willing to pay for them. One of the women was beginning to do a strip tease while men gathered outside to see her skit as if she was a caged animal. Mina gripped her steering wheel.
What the hell is Kanji doing here? She thought. He still did not notice her car though. After a while, he parked in front of a four storied building which looked like one of the brothels but it had a better decor. Instead of window displays of women, the place was exclusive as there were a few guards outside the door. Mina watched as Kanji got out of the car and headed for the entrance. To Mina's surprise, the guards saluted Kanji as if he was a VIP and let him in.
He put his hands in his pocket. The sleeping pills were in there. Yeonjoo was waiting for him at their usual suite so he told her to order them some wine. He was near the reception when one of the girls bumped into him.
"Hey handsome, up for a wild ride?" she winked but Kanji ignored her and walked away.
Meanwhile, Mina was debating whether to follow him or not. She knew very well why a man would go to a place like that but something was amiss. A man like Jang Kanji, who boasted to have so many girlfriends, could not possibly come here to buy sex, right? Mina was sure he could have simply called one of his girlfriends or even an escort.
But coming all the way to a red light district was too suspicious to her. Letting go of her hesitation, she got out of the car and took a deep breath before heading towards the entrance. The guards blocked her way.
"ID," he demanded. Mina blinked and slowly took out her ID card. The guard checked it and nodded.
"Entry fee is five hundred dollars," he stated. Eh?
"Do you take credit card?" She asked a little hesitantly.
"Yes."
She handed the card to him and he punched it in a card machine before letting her in. Mina was surprised by how easy it was to enter the place. The five hundred dollars was a ripoff for this place but from the looks of it, the place was definitely for the elites. Or at least designed to be.
In fact, it looked like a four star hotel with a spacious lobby and even a cafe at the corner. A well dressed receptionist welcomed her.
"Hell ma'am," she greeted. "Are you a customer or escorting someone?"
Mina was confused. Escort?
She has to think fast. Glancing around, she noticed that Kanji was getting one of the lifts with…
"Yeonhoe?" she gasped. That bitch! She was an escort? No wonder her clothes were tacky!
"I've been summoned for a threesome with one of your regulars here!" Mina claimed, making a stab in the dark. "Jang Kanji and his regular girl, Yeonjoo called me but I can't find them…"
She pretended to look around and pout. The receptionist peered her eyes in suspicion.
"Submit your ID and phone to us," she instructed. "One of our guides will take you to Madam Yeonjoo's floor."
Mina was scared. Her ID and phone? What if she got into trouble? How was she going to get out of it?
"Miss?" the receptionist asked. "The ID and phone."
"Yes!" Mina said and slowly took out the things the receptionist demanded for.
"The bag as well."
Mina hesitated but handed over the bag to the receptionist. A girl in a server uniform came forward and said, "This way."
She followed the girl to the elevator and they headed for the top floor. Mina was trying not to show her fears. The whole place might look like a luxury hotel but the patrons were anything but that. Her eyes fell on the people who were openly kissing or fondling each other on the side couches without a care. There were a few VIP rooms where loud music rang and full on parties were raging in there.
They stepped onto a corridor which smelled like cigars and stale alcohol. There were a series of doors on both sides and some guests were lingering in the corridor, busy with each other. Suddenly, a door burst open and a naked girl came running out. She was bruised and bleeding, her skin full of vicious marks as if animals were tearing her apart.
"What the-"
Mina rushed forward to help the poor girl but her guide pushed the injured girl away.
"Corrinne!" she yelled. "Get back to the orgy you've been assigned to!"
"No!" Corrinne begged. "Please! They're monsters! They'll k-kill m-me!"
"She's injured-" Mina began but a pair of half dressed men came out of the room and dragged the injured girl back into it. Mina turned to her guide, fuming.
"That girl is injured," she said calmly. "She needs treatment!"
"Are you new?" the guide sneered. "This is how the business works. A few pills and she'll be fine by tomorrow."
"But-"
"Stop wasting my time, pretty girl!" the guide snapped. "If you create any trouble, I'll throw you in that room instead!"
Mina was frozen upon hearing those words. Where did she end up? Why did Kanji come here?
She glanced back at the room where she could hear the girl's screams but there was nothing she could do at that moment. Clenching her fists, she had to bite back her anger.
"Come on!" the guide barked and led her to the largest suite in the place. Mina paused when she saw Kanji was outside the room with Yeonjoo, kissing her.
"That's them," the guide said. "Make sure you satisfy them because Madam Yeonjoo is the owner of this place! And Jang Kanji is a special guest. Otherwise, you're dead!"
With that, the guide left Mina alone in that corridor. Kanji did not notice her but pushed Yeonjoo into the room before following her there.
Mina stood there for a while, berating herself for following him. What the hell did I expect? She thought bitterly.
She was trying not to cry but Jang Kanji always had that effect on her. He made her cry even without uttering a word.
"Why am I so stupid?" she sobbed, leaning against the wall. "I just-"
She clutched her hair, unable to take any more heartbreaks. Just then, the door to the orgy room opened and the girl's lifeless body was thrown outside.
"Ugh! Useless hoe!" one of the men yelled. Mina turned around and was shocked to see that the girl had gone completely numb. She was unconscious due to the beatings she took and her body was so badly bruised that it looked like a few bones were broken.
Mina quickly rushed forward to check her pulse. It was very weak.
"Who's this chick?" one of the men asked, eyeing Mina with interest.
"She's pretty."
"Let's take her!"
One of the men grabbed Mina's wrist but she slapped him hard.
"Get your filthy hands off me!" she yelled. "Can't you see this girl is bleeding? I'm taking her to the hospital-"
"YOU BITCH!" The guy screamed and lunged at her but Mina ran towards the suite where Kanji was staying and banged on the door.
"JANG KANJI YOU ASSHOLE COME OUTTA THERE!" she screamed, pounding hard on the door. Inside the room, Kanji had just put Yeonjoo to sleep and was surprised to hear a familiar voice.
"Mina?" he frowned.
"Come here you bitch!" one of the men shrieked and grabbed Mina by her hair. She yelped in pain, still punching and scratching as hard as she could. She managed to break her captor's nose but there were too many. One of them grabbed her hands and the other her legs before dragging her into their room.
"Do you even know who we are?" one of her captors spat at her. "We're from the Jang mafia clan! The most dangerous criminals in this country! You think you can hit us and get away with it?"
"NO-"
She yelled but her cries were drowned by a single gunshot. The grip on her hands loosened and blood splattered all over her dress. Mina watched in shock as one of the men fell to the ground, dead.
As if in a daze, she looked up and saw Kanji standing there. His dark eyes were now red with fury, his handsome face distorted by a bloodlust.
The other guy also let go of her and all the men who were tormenting her, fell to the knees.
"B-b-boss!" they cried in unison.
Boss?
Mina looked from them to Kanji who was now glaring at them with unforgiving eyes. They just called him boss. Did that mean…
"Kanji…" she whispered. "Just who the hell are you?"
He turned to her with his hard gaze, unflinching. "Jang Kanji," he declared. "The heir to the Jang Mafia Clan."