You Have Been Defended – Episode 586
Heo Minwoo and the special forces soldier burst from the trees into the forest simultaneously.
The special forces soldier shone his lamp upwards, pinpointing the source of the sound.
In the distance, a small figure was visible near the fence, seemingly starting a motorcycle.
Judging by the engine’s roar, it appeared he had secretly entered the forest behind the flower bed, made his way down to the fence, crossed it, and mounted a pre-prepared motorcycle.
Vroom!
Lim Hyeonil seemed a bit clumsy at first, but he quickly got the hang of it.
He immediately began weaving through the trees, heading downhill.
“Lim Hyeonil! Stop!”
Heo Minwoo shouted.
No matter how fast he ran, he couldn’t possibly catch a motorcycle.
There were no suitable vehicles available, either.
The only vehicles nearby were the riot police bus and the ambulance, neither of which were equipped to navigate the forest.
“Stop right now!”
Heo Minwoo yelled, chasing after the motorcycle as it sped past him.
However, Lim Hyeonil glanced back at Heo Minwoo and accelerated even more.
Fortunately, his inexperience with the motorcycle made his driving erratic.
Perhaps because of this, he didn’t change direction frequently and wasn’t running at maximum speed to avoid hitting the trees.
Strangely, however, Lim Hyeonil was heading south, not north towards Songju Mountain.
─He’s not going into Songju Mountain; he’s heading further down?!
─Did you contact the police to block the nearby roads? But it will take some time!
The detectives, who had been waiting at the nearby side gate and chasing Lim Hyeonil after receiving Cha Juhan’s radio message, reported in.
Heo Minwoo continued to pursue the motorcycle.
He could feel the distance, which had been quite close, gradually increasing.
“Stop the motorcycle and get off!”
Heo Minwoo kept shouting and running.
The blood from his wound hadn’t stopped, and even the jacket he had wrapped around it felt heavy, as if completely soaked through.
But Heo Minwoo didn’t give up.
If he reached the road like this, they would have no choice but to block the road and chase him, as the other detectives had said.
They would try to block it as thoroughly as possible and use public CCTV [closed-circuit television] to track his location, but if they didn’t catch him quickly, it would become a long-term battle.
If he succeeded in entering Songju Mountain, that would be the worst-case scenario.
There were limitations to tracking with CCTV, and there were too many routes to descend from the mountain.
He had to be caught inside here.
Lim Hyeonil was a key figure among the gang trying to carry out organ trafficking.
Moreover, in addition to the wiretapping content, evidence had also emerged when Choi Jaehoon died in a gas explosion, making him the most crucial person to apprehend to escalate the case.
Screech!
At that moment, Lim Hyeonil’s motorcycle swerved, changing direction.
It was now heading north, towards Songju Mountain.
It seemed that if he had immediately headed north as soon as he got on the motorcycle, he would have been intercepted by the police waiting at the two side gates.
He seemed to have come down this far to create some distance on purpose.
Thud!
At that moment, perhaps due to the acceleration gained as the motorcycle descended the slope, it tipped over due to the sudden change in direction.
“Lim Hyeonil!”
He had to close the distance while he had the chance.
Heo Minwoo felt like his breath was caught in his throat and his lungs were tearing, but he ran without stopping.
He saw the back of the special forces soldier running madly towards Lim Hyeonil in front of him.
They had started at the same time, but from some point on, he had pulled ahead of Heo Minwoo.
Perhaps he would arrive before Lim Hyeonil could start the motorcycle again.
Vroom, vroom, vroom!
However, Lim Hyeonil quickly recovered and started moving again.
He, too, seemed determined not to be caught after falling over, so he drove the motorcycle faster than before.
“Get out of the way for a second!”
Heo Minwoo shouted at the soldier running ahead.
Click.
Then, he took out the pistol he was wearing on his waist and loaded it.
He had fired a blank earlier, so now it was live ammunition.
When Heo Minwoo raised his gun, the soldier, who had briefly looked back, recognized his plan and stepped aside.
Heo Minwoo held the pistol with both hands and focused his gaze.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Then, he fired three shots in a row.
Thud, thud!
At the same time, the motorcycle Lim Hyeonil was riding lost its balance and fell to the side.
Three bullets accurately hit the tire.
The special forces soldier and Heo Minwoo didn’t miss this opportunity.
They ran towards Lim Hyeonil, who had fallen into the forest due to the motorcycle overturning.
Around that time, the detectives who had started from the side gate and were chasing Lim Hyeonil were also visible from the opposite side.
“Ugh, ugh!”
Lim Hyeonil, who had stumbled to his feet, started running again, hobbling.
He limped slightly, as if he had hit his leg on a rock or tree root on the ground where he had fallen.
But he ran desperately.
“Ugh!”
However, the special forces soldier, who had quickly closed the distance, rushed at Lim Hyeonil in an instant.
He restrained both arms behind his back and pushed him against a nearby tree trunk, applying pressure.
Lim Hyeonil seemed to resist a little, but soon slumped.
It seemed he had calculated that the body of a small, middle-aged man could not beat a young special forces soldier.
Click.
Heo Minwoo, who arrived soon after, handcuffed Lim Hyeonil’s wrists.
“Mr. Lim Hyeonil. You are… Haa, August 26, 2012… Whew, 11:41 PM… Hereby, I am arresting you on suspicion of kidnapping, luring, and trafficking minors, and violating the Medical Law. You have the right to remain silent, and you have the right to an attorney… Haa, this is really tough.”
Heo Minwoo caught his breath and recited the Miranda rights [rights read to a person being arrested] to the end.
“Lim Hyeonil’s arrest is complete.”
And after sending the radio message, a detective and a special forces soldier who had started from the side gate arrived.
“Heok, heok! Minwoo-ya!”
The detective, too, was out of breath from running through the forest, and leaned on a tree trunk to catch his breath.
He checked Lim Hyeonil’s face once and then stroked his chest.
“We’ll take him. Come slowly.”
Two special forces soldiers grabbed Lim Hyeonil and headed towards the main gate.
Heo Minwoo, watching them go, collapsed to the ground.
“Ah…….”
The pain he had been holding back rushed back in.
The detective, who was looking at Heo Minwoo strangely, widened his eyes and shouted as if he had just discovered his arm injury.
“Hey, what’s wrong with your arm?”
“Ah, this…….”
“There’s a lot of blood? When did you get hurt?”
“I got it going down to the basement earlier. I wonder if the ambulance is still there. I think Soeun was under anesthesia, so they probably took her to the hospital quickly. And the back gate probably went straight to the hospital because of the guy with the gunshot wound…….”
“I’ll contact them.”
The detective sent a radio message to the police guarding the main gate.
He asked if the ambulance was still there and whether he could receive first aid, then looked at Heo Minwoo while waiting for an answer.
“But aren’t you in pain?”
“Ha, I want to say I’m not in pain… But it really hurts.”
“Let’s go to the main gate first. Oh, they said there’s a first aid kit in the greenhouse, so should I ask them to bring it here?”
“Yes.”
Then the radio rang.
─Four people on standby. We found a Japanese woman and a boy who appear to be mother and son, two Japanese men presumed to be bodyguards, and two Korean men. They appear to have been waiting in the secret passage.
It was truly good news.
Just in case there was anyone waiting for the situation to calm down inside the secret passage, he had sent the soldiers down in pairs, and it seemed that was the case.
Still, there were four bodyguards, so if he had sent only one person down, something big could have happened.
─Please check if the soldiers who entered the secret passage are injured.
Cha Juhan, also worried about the same thing, immediately sent a radio message.
─Minor injuries, but not in need of urgent treatment.
After that, the results of the Ribbon Medical Center building search were heard in succession.
After searching every drawer, they found three medical staff, two middle-aged men, and one woman hiding in secret spaces located throughout the ground floor.
He had heard a radio message earlier that the control room had been secured, but the speed seemed to have picked up.
It would have been easier for several people to analyze the saved files while watching the CCTV that Cha Juhan had hacked alone, rather than just one person.
They could have turned on the lights too.
─Internal search complete. We will reorganize briefly and conduct a second search.
Then a radio message came from Lee Jinwoo.
Although a second search remained, it was safe to say that the situation was over to some extent.
They had caught both Onodera’s mother and son and Lim Hyeonil, and they had also arrested the medical staff involved in the surgery.
The middle-aged men and women who were additionally caught seemed to be Wooshin officials who had come to check if the VIP surgery was going well, so wouldn’t this be a huge harvest?
“The ambulance took Soeun to the hospital, but they said they’re coming back? I’ll ask them to bring a first aid kit to the greenhouse for now. We need to stop the bleeding.”
“Yes. But shouldn’t we ask the lawyers to bring the kit?”
“Why?”
“To brag.”
He had to ask Cha Juhan to praise him.
It was fun to watch him make a face that said, ‘What’s wrong with him, that guy,’ every time he said that.
“You can do it later.”
“Ah, I have to do it right away. Let’s go out to the entrance road too. It’ll be easier to find us that way.”
Heo Minwoo said, jumping up.
The detective looked at Heo Minwoo as if he couldn’t understand, but sighed and made a phone call.
“Are you the lawyer? Minwoo is a little hurt. Ah, yes. You know. It’s not too serious, but it’s not okay either. We’re going to put him in the ambulance when it comes, but it would be good to stop the bleeding. Can you bring a first aid kit to the entrance road? Yes, ah. Yes. We’re in the forest now, but we’re going to go out. It’ll be hard for you to find us. Yes. He says you have to come.”
He chuckled throughout the call as if he was dumbfounded.
Cha Juhan’s low voice was faintly heard beyond his phone.
Yes. He said.
Even though it was just a one-syllable answer, he seemed dumbfounded.
“Let’s go, you punk.”
On the way through the forest to the entrance road, Heo Minwoo was newly impressed.
He had started as soon as he received the radio message in front of the ambulance, so Heo Minwoo had been running non-stop to the previous location.
He had walked quite a bit, but he couldn’t believe that he had run this much when the entrance road was not yet visible.
“I guess I’m still in good shape.”
At Heo Minwoo’s words, the detective frowned and said.
“Still? You’re in your prime.”
“My prime.”
“What is this guy saying, he’s still a greenhorn at that level.”
“That was just luck.”
“I think you’re going to get another special promotion.”
“If I really do, I’ll buy you beef. But wouldn’t it be difficult? It’s not that common to get a special promotion from a police lieutenant. And if I get a special promotion, you’ll get one too, right?”
“Of course you have to buy it. If you get a special promotion after the investigation, you’ll be a police captain with 10 years of experience. And there’s no reason why you can’t get a special promotion. There are many cases where they give you a special promotion just for putting on handcuffs, but you investigated and put on handcuffs. I couldn’t put on handcuffs.”
Because there are so many big shots involved, the special prosecutor’s office will only start if they properly achieve results in the investigation and hand it over, so there is no room to be excited about a special promotion that is not yet certain.
From now on, he had to run without stopping and see Cha Juhan appointed as a special prosecutor to finally feel relieved.
“Oh, we’re here.”
As they talked, they arrived at the entrance road.
Cha Juhan and Kang Minjae were already standing there with first aid kits.
“Lawyer! Minjae-ya!”
“No, hyung [term for older brother or close male friend]! How badly are you hurt?”
When Heo Minwoo pushed through the forest and came up to the road, Kang Minjae spotted his arm and ran over.
He immediately sat Heo Minwoo down and opened the kit.
Then he untied the thin jacket that had been tied around the bleeding area.
“It’s a deep cut?”
As Kang Minjae took out a hemostatic agent and alcohol, Heo Minwoo laughed and said.
“Hey, touch it gently. It hurts.”
“I’m sorry. Ah, ugh……. That must hurt.”
“Lawyer.”
Heo Minwoo looked up at Cha Juhan, who was standing next to him.
“I caught Lim Hyeonil. Did you see it on CCTV? I shot the tires.”
“I saw it.”
“Don’t you have anything to say?”
“…….”
“I did another great job.”
Cha Juhan frowned.
Heo Minwoo stared intently at Cha Juhan as if telling him to answer quickly.
Then he sighed deeply and answered sullenly.
“I told you not to get hurt, so it’s plus or minus zero because you got hurt.”
“I didn’t answer that I understood.”
“Geez…….”
Cha Juhan muttered as if he was dumbfounded.
But he soon smiled faintly and said.
“You’ve worked hard. There wouldn’t have been such a great achievement today if it weren’t for you, Lieutenant. I sincerely appreciate it.”