She was, from her appearance alone, a high-class lady.
“You must be Seol.” Her eyes lifted from the branding on my cheek. “Quick. Come in.”
I left behind the reddish-faced woman and followed the stranger inside. The emptiness of the courtyard pressed in around me. The pavilions were swamped in shadows and silence. Only two servants passed us by, unlike my previous visit, when I had seen lines of servants flowing in and out and around Lady Kang’s mansion.
“Are you here to speak with my eomeoni?” the young lady asked.
I tried to hide my swollen eyes. “Eomeoni?”
“I am her daughter. Hong Sunh?i.”
It took me a moment to remember that Lady Kang was a divorced woman, so Hong was likely the surname of the girl’s father. Hong Sunh?i certainly did not look like her mother, with her broad forehead and pointed chin, and her ears that stuck out. Not at all similar to Lady Kang’s long and angular face.
“A pleasure to meet you, agasshi,” I whispered.
“This way.”
We stepped through the inner gate into a separate quarter. It was the women’s quarter; the space that was closed off to the world by a gate, bolted at night. I had snuck into this courtyard on my first visit and had witnessed Woorim secretly peering in at a mysterious male guest in the middle pavilion, which Sunh?i and I now approached.
“My mother is inside,” Sunh?i said.
Taking off my sandals, I followed Sunh?i into the chamber of hanji screens. There was no one else present but Lady Kang, who lounged on a silk mat, a book open before her. She set it aside upon seeing me, then unfolded both hands, palms out. “Come closer.”
Lowering my head, I crawled into her shadow.
“What brings you here, child?” she asked.
“Woorim,” I whispered. “I have come because of her, mistress.”
A shadow passed over her face. “She might have gone to visit home, as she sometimes does.”
“But she would have told us, eomeoni,” Sunh?i interjected.
“She was kidnapped,” my voice rasped.
“Kidnapped?” A note of disbelief rang in Lady Kang’s voice. “How did you learn of this?”
“I … I saw it happen myself. And I think…” I wrung my hands. “I think she was taken by the same man who killed Lady O and Scholar Ahn.”
As the two ladies blanched, I was drawn to a question I’d had no space in my heart to ponder before. I had spent most of the day crouched in the alley, reading Inspector Han’s letter over and over, sobbing until my uniform was wet with my tears. But now I wondered … What was the killer’s incentive for taking Woorim?
Lady Kang’s voice was deadly calm as she asked, “How did this happen?”
“I wished to see Inspector Han’s former residence, the haunted mansion,” I replied, my ears burning with shame. “Woorim offered to accompany me.”
“What time did she disappear?”
“Yesterday morning. I’ve searched for her everywhere,” I added, as though this would absolve me of my guilt.
“You ought to have come to me right away,” Lady Kang snapped. “I was wondering all day where she had gone. I could have helped you.”
I remained still with my head lowered and fingers intertwined, accepting her scorn. It was all my fault, indeed; I deserved this. But then something stirred beneath my silence. First a molten bubbling, then an erupting sense of unfairness. I looked up at Lady Kang, remembering the red scratch I’d left on the inspector’s face. “I could not come right away, mistress. How could I?” I asked, my voice trembling. “I visited your residence only to be caught and dragged away by the police. I came again only to be told you were away. I tried!”
“Hmm…” was her only response, deep and solemn, absorbing my words. At length, she asked, “Why did the police take you?”
“Inspector Han—” The memory of his gentle letter rose up, burning at the hilt of my throat. I swallowed hard, yet my voice still trembled. “He is behind it all. He sent the man to steal Woorim, so I went up to Inspector Han and I demanded that he return Woorim.”
All fell still, as though time itself had stopped.
At length, Sunh?i whispered, “You confronted a military official.”
Lady Kang’s frown remained. “What do you mean, the inspector has taken Woorim?”
I felt that I must tell Lady Kang everything, and so I told her all I knew about the night of Lady O’s murder.
“Lady O had knowledge of the priest’s whereabouts. Scholar Ahn did, too.” My voice was weak, my soul too drained. “So the inspector