Chapter Forty-five
At ten minutes to ten next morning I rang the bell outside Kim Su-mi's flat. She opened the door, wearing a fur coat over the shoulders of a dark suit.
'That's what you were wearing the first day I met you, Su-mi', I said.
'Remember, on the plane to Shanghai?'
She nodded, her eyes shining. 'Did you imagine I'd forget?' she kissed me lightly on the cheek and gestured at the suitcase in the hall. 'I've been up since seven . packing'.
She waited for me to come in and close the door, then went on: 'Am I glad to see you! I tired to telephone you to make sure you'd be here, but you were out'.
'I told you I'd come', I said quietly.
'Yes, I know'. She sighed. 'But I've been involved in so many panics lately. And, of course, So-ra is simply running round in circles. It'll be wonderful to get away from it all'. She smiled and held out her hand to me, then moved one of her cases out of the way. 'Han-sang, where's your luggage?' she queried suddenly.
'It's outside . in my car . ' I stalled.
She glanced at her wristwatch. 'There's just time for a drink, if you'd like one?' I shook my head and she seemed to sense the tension in my manner.
'Is anything the matter?' she asked.
I indicated the door of the living room. 'Can we go inside for a few minutes?'
She stood with her back to the fireplace, facing me. I was momentarily at a loss, but finally managed to say: 'I'm not going away with you Su-mi'.She caught her breath sharply and put out a hand to clutch the back of a chair.
'Then why did you come?' she demanded, as I moved a couple of paces towards her.
'To meet Bae', I replied quietly.
She stared at me for some seconds without speaking. There was no sound in the room except the muffled throb of a pneumatic drill some distance down the street.
'You expect to meet Bae here?' she said in an incredulous tone.
I nodded. 'Yun Hyeok's made a full statement to the police. They know about the diamonds, and why Doyle came here to see you. They know how Yun murdered him, then pushed the key under the door so that I could let myself in and leave my fingerprints'.
'It isn't true!' she protested, but I went on unheeding.
'You both left by the balcony then you came back alone through the front door and put on a very convincing performance. Was that why you invited me – to provide an audience?'
'No, Han-sang', she said simply. 'It was an accident - you've got to believe that'.
'Then why did you ask me round to your apartment that night?'
'I asked you so that Yun could take a look at you. I knew you'd been following me in Shanghai. I thought perhaps if you were in the diamond business Yun might recognise you'.
'So there was no intention of murdering Doyle in the first place?'
'No. No, he just turned up out of the blue - and then when he started his blackmailing threats I'm afraid Yun lost all control . However, it turned out rather well, except for the diamonds'. She fidgeted with the strip of braid on the back of the upholstered chair. 'What made you think of looking for them in the cigar-holder?'
'It's my job to think of things like that', I replied evasively. The cards were on the table now, and I was watching her closely for the first sign of any suspicious move. 'I can't understand you, Su-mi', I said helplessly. 'You killed Chang Chu-chu because you thought his brother Yun was double-crossing you and that Chang was making off with the diamonds; you were responsible for the suicide of Joong-ki; you involved your best friend in diamond smuggling, and your fiance in murder . Why did you do it?'
She regarded me distantly for a long moment, then said quite calmly: 'Because I happen to be Bae Yeon-seok'.