Fifth Vital [EN]: Chapter 311

Fifth Vital- Episode 312 (311/502)

312. We’ve Met Before

-Are you at the hospital now?

“Yes, I’m at the hospital now.”

As Tae-kyung answered, he glanced at his watch.

11 PM. He instinctively knew that if a four-term assemblyman [member of the national assembly] was calling at this hour, it must be something urgent.

-Director, is it alright for you to leave the hospital?

Tae-kyung paused to consider Gam Deok-chan’s words. Of course, the only thing he ever thought about when receiving such a question was the condition of the patients in the hospital.

Whether there were any urgent patients, whether the emergency room was okay, whether his help was needed, and so on.

“Yes, it’s alright.”

Tae-kyung, having carefully considered the situation in the hospital, broke the silence and answered.

“What’s this about?”

-The reason for seeking a doctor can only be one thing, can’t it?

“Ah! That’s right.”

Tae-kyung’s mind cleared at Gam Deok-chan’s words.

The fact that Gam Deok-chan, not just any ordinary person, was calling directly about a patient at this hour.

“Where should I go? What’s the patient’s condition? Are they conscious? Is it an accident?”

-That’s… actually, Director, I’m sorry…

“Yes!?”

Tae-kyung was briefly taken aback by the sudden apology in response to his questions about the patient’s condition, but he understood the reason with Gam Deok-chan’s words that followed.

-I can’t tell you anything about the patient.

“……”

-I know you’re probably taken aback by what I’m saying. But Director, there are circumstances. If you’re available now, would it be alright for our people to pick you up?

“Ah… Yes. I understand.”

-Then, exactly 30 minutes from now, our people will be there to pick you up in front of the hospital. Just get in that car.

“Yes, Assemblyman. Then I’ll see you later.”

Tae-kyung felt strange.

He couldn’t understand why he couldn’t be told the patient’s condition so he could prepare what was needed in advance.

And he didn’t even know if it was okay for only him to go without other medical staff. The facilities at the destination were also a problem. If it was a place where he couldn’t see patients, he wondered how they would proceed next.

“What is all this all of a sudden…”

Doubt led to doubt, but in the end, the more he thought about it, the only answer was that Assemblyman Gam Deok-chan would never act without a reason, so he decided to do as he said.

He had been thinking so deeply that the promised time was already approaching. Tae-kyung quickly left the examination room and headed to the emergency room.

“I have to leave for a bit, so make sure Doctor Lee and Doctor Choi stay in the emergency room and keep a close watch.”

“Is something wrong?”

“Doctor, where are you going at this hour?”

“Well, it’s work, but I don’t even know where I’m going.”

“Yes?”

“What do you mean…”

Lee Chan-hee and Choi Mo-na were bewildered, but seeing Tae-kyung’s expression, which seemed not just serious but even grave, they couldn’t ask any further.

After that, Tae-kyung informed the two of them of the remaining instructions, finished talking with Nurse Im Jeong-suk, and went out the back door to the parking lot where Gam Deok-chan had told him to go.

As soon as he came out the back door, a black luxury SUV entered the parking lot at the exact time, as if waiting, and stopped in front of Tae-kyung.

Tak-

“Hello.”

Two men boasting sturdy physiques got out of the car and bowed politely to Tae-kyung.

They were wearing black shoes, black suits, and even black ties, and one of them was even wearing sunglasses.

The all-black men were reminiscent of characters from foreign movies, but they were definitely not cheerful characters like in the movies.

“Are you Director Kim Tae-kyung?”

“Ah, yes… That’s me. I’m Kim Tae-kyung.”

“I understand you spoke with Assemblyman Gam Deok-chan. Excuse me, but may I briefly check if you are carrying anything that could be used as a weapon?”

“……!”

Tae-kyung, his face full of embarrassment, couldn’t speak for a moment, and then the man spoke again.

“It will be over quickly. We would appreciate your cooperation.”

“Ah, yes… I understand.”

“Check complete. And if you have any communication equipment such as a cell phone, we will keep it for you for a while.”

The two men’s words were short and polite, but clearly a command.

“My cell phone?”

“Yes. That’s right.”

Tae-kyung was embarrassed again, but he had no choice, so he quickly left a message and handed over his cell phone to them.

“Thank you.”

Tae-kyung, overwhelmed by the two men’s force, couldn’t even question them.

It wasn’t that Tae-kyung was strange. Even someone with a strong personality would have acted the same in this situation.

That’s how different even the atmosphere emanating from the two men felt, with a sense of heaviness.

“That’s all. Don’t be nervous and get in.”

“Yes.”

He answered, but it was impossible to endure without being nervous.

He had been frisked by the two men before getting in the car, even in his private areas, and they had taken his cell phone, so it would be stranger if he wasn’t nervous.

Tae-kyung carefully got into the car. But the inside of the car was even stranger.

“……”

The rear doors and the back door were completely blocked so that he couldn’t see outside.

Neither could see each other from the inside or outside. And there was a screen behind the driver’s seat and the passenger seat, making it almost impossible to identify the outside scenery.

There was a small hole in the middle of the screen, just enough to hand over a cell phone. Only a little conversation was possible through that hole.

‘What kind of car is this?’

Tae-kyung had so many questions, but he didn’t think those two men would tell him even if he asked in this atmosphere.

“It’s going to be a long drive. You can feel free to sleep.”

“Can you tell me the destination?”

With continued curiosity, Tae-kyung wanted to know at least where he was going, but as expected, the answer was obvious.

“I’m sorry, Director.”

“I understand.”

Now Tae-kyung took it for granted.

When he was frisked and had his cell phone confiscated, he even had the scary thought that he was being kidnapped. But he soon decided to relax, knowing that the person who had called was Assemblyman Gam Deok-chan.

There was tension from the unfamiliar things he was experiencing for the first time in his life, but since there was no use worrying, he deliberately decided to go to sleep.

And that’s because there was nothing else he could do in the car except sleep.

At the time Tae-kyung’s car left the parking lot, there was someone who witnessed this scene.

“Woah, Director……!”

Chief Choi, who was patrolling the ward as usual to see if there was anything wrong inside the hospital, happened to see it while passing the second floor and looking out the window.

‘What scene is this?’

Chief Choi’s expression, who was sticking his face close to the second-floor window, began to become increasingly serious.

‘Could it be! Is our director being kidnapped? Is that it? Well, it’s strange from the start that he’s suddenly going somewhere at this hour.’

Eventually, Chief Choi thought that Tae-kyung might have been kidnapped and quickly went down to the first floor.

“Nurse Im?”

Then he urgently looked for Nurse Im Jeong-suk.

“Nurse Im, something terrible has happened.”

“What terrible thing?”

“Come this way for a second……”

Chief Choi took Nurse Im Jeong-suk, who was heading to the emergency room, and went into the office behind the reception desk.

“Team Leader, what’s going on?”

“I think the director has been taken.”

“Yes!? What do you mean the director has been taken?”

Nurse Im Jeong-suk asked back, doubting her ears.

“Taken? The director?”

“That’s what I’m saying. I saw it clearly from the second floor while patrolling the ward a little while ago.”

Chief Choi explained exactly what he had seen.

“I’m not lying, it’s all real. It’s strange even if Nurse Im hears it, right?”

“Well, it’s strange, but it probably won’t be a big deal.”

“How does Nurse Im know that?”

“The director told me briefly before he left, so you don’t have to worry too much.”

“What is it?”

“……”

“Anyway, there’s something like that.”

“Nurse Im knows, right?”

Chief Choi grabbed her again as Nurse Im Jeong-suk tried to gloss over it and leave.

“It’s not just anything, he went with huge men in black suits, no, it’s the same as being dragged away. But how can I not worry? The director is the pillar of our hospital, how can I not worry?”

“He went after receiving a call from Assemblyman Gam Deok-chan.”

At Chief Choi’s urging, Nurse Im Jeong-suk told him who had contacted him.

“Assemblyman Gam?”

“Yes. Is that okay now?”

“If it’s Assemblyman Gam, I can rest assured, but where is he going with those people at this hour?”

“I don’t know either. And the director also contacted me to say that he might not be reachable for a while.”

Tae-kyung knew because he had contacted Nurse Im Jeong-suk and Doctor Lee before entrusting his cell phone.

“Team Leader. Don’t tell the other staff yet, just keep it to yourself.”

“Nurse Im knows how tight-lipped I am. Could it be that he’s going to meet someone even more amazing than an oil money patient?”

“I’m telling you, I don’t know the details. I’m going to the emergency room then.”

“There’s something……”

Chief Choi was left alone in the office, continuing to think about where Tae-kyung had gone.

* * *

“Director Kim Tae-kyung?”

Tae-kyung, who had fallen asleep without even knowing when he had fallen asleep, opened his eyes at the sound of someone calling him.

“We have arrived.”

“!?”

The men in the driver’s seat and the passenger seat got out of the car and opened the back door, and Tae-kyung woke up completely and got out of the car.

“……”

As soon as Tae-kyung got out of the car, he instinctively looked around. But he couldn’t tell where this was at all.

The surroundings were quite quiet, and dense trees spread out on both sides where the car had stopped. And when he turned his head again and looked straight ahead, he could only see a few buildings that were so neat that they were desolate.

Although it was dark and not clear, it seemed to be located in the middle of a mountain.

Tae-kyung didn’t have his cell phone, so he couldn’t even tell what time it was.

“Director. Thank you for your hard work coming such a frustrating way.”

“The way you came was probably uncomfortable because we were concerned about security. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.”

“You can go this way.”

Tae-kyung walked with the two men to the building in front.

The two men’s steps stopped in front of the only door in the middle of the cement building, which had no windows on the outside, and Tae-kyung also stopped walking.

Just as he thought the two men would open the door, a man came out from inside.

“Oh, hello.”

The two men who had come with Tae-kyung bowed politely to the man who came out of the building, but his gaze was entirely on Tae-kyung.

The middle-aged man was also well-built like the two men.

“Thank you for your hard work coming from afar.”

“Hello. Nice to meet you. My name is Kim Tae-kyung.”

The man bowed politely to Tae-kyung, greeted him with a smile, and Tae-kyung responded.

But a completely unexpected answer came out.

“Director, this isn’t our first time. We’ve met before……”

“……”