Chapter Thirty-three
As I followed Kim Su-mi into the living room of her apartment I was mystified yet again that such an attractive woman should be satisfied with a neurotic hypochondriac like Yun. With her looks and figure she could have looked much further than the Stock Exchange for her life partner.
In the living room she turned to me with a swift, engaging smile, as though she were welcoming an old friend. 'Make yourself comfortable, Han-sang'.
She had changed into a black dress, plain except for a simple spray of diamonds. Su-mi walked over to the tea tray. On it, with the cups, was a glass teapot, a spirit lamp burning beneath it.
'You don't mind waiting, do you, Han-sang? I've a think about making tea this way'.
I smiled. 'How did the brawl with the auctioneer go?'
'Trust So-ra to handle a situation like that. Of course, there were a lot of fireworks, but eventually he promised to deliver the drum-top table by ten tomorrow'.
'Never a dull moment in the antique business!' I brought out my cigarettecase.
'Certainly not in ours! We had a visit from that detective just after you phoned today'.
'Lee? What's on his mind?'
I lit her cigarette and she exhaled slowly before replying: 'You, Han-sang'.
'You make that sound rather ominous'.
'In a way it is'. She gave a small sigh. 'Why must we always be discussing this wretched Doyle business?' Her eyes softened. 'There are so many other things I want to talk to you about, Han-sang'.
'Hadn't you better disperse this cloud that's hanging over my head first?'
'It's about the appointment we had on the night of the murder. Apparently Lee's not convinced that you didn't turn up'. She smiled remotely. 'It seems that now I'm suspected of loaning the key of my apartment to you'.
I waved that idea away with a deprecating flourish of my hand. 'Why should Lee fling that one at you?'
'He says he's found your fingerprints on my living room door'.
I wasn't ready at that juncture to tell her of Lee's talk with me. 'Why shouldn't he find my fingerprints in your apartment? He saw me here the morning after Doyle was killed'.
'That's what I pointed out to him'. She looked at me with a puzzled expression. 'Although he didn't actually say it, I felt all the time that he was leading up to something else; that you could have been in my apartment the night before'.
'Do you agree with him, Su-mi?' I asked quietly.
'Of course not!' she exclaimed, with an impatient gesture. 'How could you have been? You were still at Daegu when you phoned me long after seven-thirty that night'.
The telephone rang and, excusing herself, she picked up the receiver. She gave her number, then glanced over at me as the caller identified himself. 'Oh, hello, Hyeok . Yes, I'm alone .' She nodded her head wearily while a voice droned at the other end. 'Have you taken your tablets, Hyeok? . Well, you must give time to act, dear'. She listened to a lengthy protest. 'All right then, Hyeok - I'll come round. In about half an hour. See you then, dear'.
With a sigh, she replaced the receiver. 'I suppose it is another of his asthma attacks. But sometimes I wonder if he doesn't play on my sympathy and make them an excuse to have me run round and fuss over him'.
I put on an expression of polite impartiality. 'One can't help feeling sorry for him, I suppose'.
She nodded, not very enthusiastically, then darted back to the table and blew out the flame beneath the teapot. 'Goodness! I almost forgot the tea!'
She sat down and began to pour it.
'Do you take sugar, Han-sang?'
My cigarette had burned down to a stub, scorching my fingers, but I couldn't risk taking my eyes from the tea just then.'Two lumps, please'.
'Oh, dear, I was afraid you might. And I've run out of it. Do you mind having saccharine?'
I heard myself saying I didn't mind, then I let my cigarette stub drop into the ashtray as Su-mi produced a small bottle and dropped two tiny white tablets into my tea. She handed me the cup and leaned back in her chair.
'Hyeok really would have an attack if he knew you were here having tea with me'. She gave me an amused glance. 'So-ra swears he's jealous of you'.
'He's the type who'd be jealous of any man', I said, laughing. 'By the way, was So-ra there when Lee dropped in on you this afternoon?'
She nodded. 'Very much so. I had to listen to her theories on the Doyle case all the way to Wonju and back'.
'Were her theories plausible?'
She bit her lip thoughtfully before answering. 'You know So-ra can't make you out, either. She wanted to know whether you ever made a pass at me in Shanghai. When I said you certainly didn't, she took the attitude that - well, if he's not the sort of man who makes passes at engaged girls why is he running around after you now?' She lowered her voice. 'Why are you, Han-sang?'
Once again I was saved by the bell. This time it was the doorbell. She looked at me without speaking, then got up and went out into the hall. Directly I heard her opening the front door I changed my tea cup for hers.
'So-ra!' I heard Su-mi exclaim. 'Is anything wrong?'
'Don't panic', said Kong's strident voice. 'I left my cigarette case in your car, that's all'.
Su-mi was saying, 'Oh, you could have phoned me', when Kong pushed open the living room door.
Her start of surprise on seeing me was just a shade too obvious. 'You're the last person I expected to find here', she said, then turned back to Su-mi. 'I'm sorry, darling . If I'd known, I wouldn't have barged in'.
'That's all right', Su-mi said with a forced smile. 'Did you leave your cigarette case in my car? I don't remember your using it on the way back'.
'Then I've left it on the bar of that pub in Wonju. That means it'll be stolen!'
'I expect you'll find it's in the pocket of the coat you were wearing', Su-mi said coolly. 'Now you're here you'll stay and have tea .?'
'Darling, are you sure I'm not interrupting something?'
'I'll get another cup', Su-mi said.
Kong gave a tiny shrug and smiled at me. 'Nice to see you', she said, depositing herself in Su-mi's chair. 'Really, I feel it's very naughty of my not to have phoned first'.
'Please don't apologise', I said. 'I was just going, anyway'.Su-mi brought another cup and saucer. 'And I have to go and see Hyeok. He's been ringing .' She clattered the cup and saucer on the table as the phone rang again. 'Wouldn't it be just like Hyeok to want to know why I haven't dashed over right away?'
'Doesn't he ever let you off the leash, Su-mi?' Kong said, raising her eyebrows. She picked up the full tea cup in front of her, stirring it mechanically.
Presently, Su-mi replaced the receiver and came back to the table. 'He wants me to go round immediately. But I suppose I can be allowed time to drink my tea first'. She glanced down at Kong. 'Oh - you seem to have appropriated it, So-ra'.
'Oh, sorry, darling', Kong began. 'I'll pour you another .'
I hastily sipped my own. 'Hello!' I exclaimed, watching Su-mi's face. 'There seems to have been a mix-up with the cups. This one isn't sweetened'.
'Oh, Han-sang, you must have got mine', Su-mi said. 'Never mind, I hadn't started it. Help yourself to more saccharine .'
'No, don't bother', I said quickly. 'I must be going, anyway'.
Kim Su-mi picked up her handbag. 'Yes, well, so must I. Hyeok's so bad tempered'.
As I got up Kong said firmly. 'You're not going to drag Mr Moon off with you, Su- mi; I'm relying on him to give me a lift when I've finished my tea'.
'Oh', said Su-mi, a trifle petulantly. '.Well, you might have asked Han– sang whether he minded'. She smiled at me. 'I'll give you a ring some time tomorrow'.
'See you in the morning, darling', Kong said nonchalantly as she helped herself to a cigarette. 'And you can tell Hyeok from me that he takes you too much for granted!'