CHAPTER 174: JUST A COINCIDENCE

A French number lit up on Averie’s phone, its ringing cutting through the widow’s stifled cries.

Using it as an excuse, the clever man distanced himself from the women gathered around Julia.

He picked up the call. It was from Yoko Roy.

"Hey, so, I was supposed to board the cruise like an hour ago. What’s going on? What’s taking you guys so long?"

Averie explained to her the intricacies of a large vessel and the workings of a busy port in surprising detail.

"Oh, and there was a murder at the pool. That could add to the delay."

A scream erupted from the other end.

"What?"

"Yeah, so, Julia Kim’s husband is dead. Murdered. Stabbed through the heart, apparently."

The news left Yoko shocked.

"Okay, so there was an announcement. We will be boarding in an hour. See you then."

Averie glanced at the women and beckoned Hyerin, who happened to catch his gaze.

"She will cry herself to dehydration. Take her to her room, would you?"

"Yes, that’s a good idea." She cast the woman a pitiful glance. "What room is she staying in?"

The devilish man steepled his hands and locked his jaw.

"Next door to us."

The response had the expected result of Hyerin’s head swivelling towards him; a frown was carved across her forehead.

He had much to protest, but the words were caught in his throat.

As Hyerin and the ladies left, Celli trailed around.

"By the way," — she drifted towards the actor and looked him in the eye — "I saw you last night. You walked so fast; I couldn’t catch up."

"Oh, did you?"

"I couldn’t sleep and saw you when I came out for fresh air." She observed the movements of his pupils with uncanny interest. "Are your eyes fine now?"

"I’m sorry?"

"I may have seen wrong, but your eyes were extremely red to me. Allergies could be fatal, so I was worried. But that doesn’t seem to be the case."

"You must have seen wrong. My eyes glow in the dark, you see."

The girl gave a sardonic chuckle and left.

An hour later, the cruise ship Osteria docked at Le Havre.

As Yoko landed her feet on the deck, she found Averie waiting for her there.

"Did you come to get me?"

He had sunglasses pulled over his eyes. "The wailings were tiring me out."

"Is that for fans? Do you get recognized here, too?"

Unfortunately for Averie, fans weren’t his worries. Boarding after Yoko was a pair of plain-clothed detectives escorted by uniformed police officers.

’Damn, it’s the French police. The captain must have contacted them.’

He tried to make himself look as inconspicuous as possible.

’Don’t such matters get swept under the rug on cruises?’

Averie’s eyes flew wide in alarm.

One of the officers seemed to recognize him, and the actor wondered where they had met.

Then it clicked.

The man was Alex Lee, the detective who had come to see the actor after the assault on Walter Dean.

Averie’s face crumpled, and so did Alex Lee’s.

’What’s he doing here?’

Neither wanted to have anything to do with the other. But duty was duty.

Ultimately, they were dedicated to their roles.

"Well, if it isn’t Mr. Auclair."

The man approached after taking leave of his colleague.

"My, my, if it isn’t the detective."

Their palms collided, cracking the air, in an attempt at a handshake.

Almost simultaneously, their voices rang.

"How nice to see you again."

"What a wonderful coincidence."

Sparks flew between them.

"What are you doing here?" they asked at the same time.

Averie was the first to answer.

"Well, vacationing, of course. Are you also here for that?" He removed his sunglasses and studied the man’s plain clothes. "How generous of the police department to allow you to spend tax money on frugalities."

He cracked a smile, mocking the detective.

"Of course not."

The edges of the man’s lips curled upwards as a web of veins thumped against his temples.

"I was collaborating with the French Police when I received a call. Curious, isn’t it? A man from Seoul dies on a cruise bound for Rome..."

A glimmer of malice snuck out through the thin eye slits of his eyes.

"And who do I find here? An actor of your reputation. How fortunate I am..."

Averie’s teeth clattered under the pressure of his tightening jaw.

"Oh, where are my manners?" He threw a hand at the vast deck behind him. "Would you like me to show you around? This must be your first time on such a fancy vessel. It’s a bit too large for modest folk, I hear. You must feel lost."

Fingers, stiff as if stricken with rigor mortis, shook on a hand barely holding back from punching the actor.

"Oh, no need to indulge me. But is it fine for a popular actor to risk being recognized by walking in public like this?" He furtively glanced around as a sense of victory snuck up his jaw. "Not a single person seems to bother you here. How nice."

The animosity being telepathized was enough to gather attention on the two. It had Yoko imagining rather vivid sexual scenarios. Where there was hatred, she saw love.

"I should get going."

The detective waved his hand, relaying with his eyes that it wasn’t over and that there was a lot Averie had to answer for.

The good actor did not shy away.

But as the detective moved away, the words he whispered left Averie paralyzed in place.

"Do you hate Weisin Conglomerate that much?"

Averie’s face hardened.

’Weisin? Jonathan Kim? Kim?’

Horror spread over his countenance.

He turned to Yoko, who was busy stretching the boundaries of her fantasy.

"Tell me about Jonathan Kim."

She blinked at him with clear eyes as she was snatched away from an exciting reverie.

"What was that?"

"Who’s Jonathan Kim? His family?"

"I thought you’d know. Isn’t he the nephew of the big boss at Weisin?"

Averie’s arms went limp. "Who?"

"You know the CEO of Loret Entertainment? That’s him."

Color faded from Averie’s face. "Wasn’t he Patricia Kim’s cousin?"

"Yeah, you know her, right? Yep, they are cousins—were, now that they are both dead."

’So, not only was Patricia Kim killed, her cousin—the boss man of Loret—is also dead?’

He was in a very bad situation.

’Both were stabbed.’

He massaged his parched throat.

’And this time, I have no alibi.’

He sauntered with Yoko, showing her around the vast ship.

’Did I really do it?’

He tried to shake off the doubt with hypothesis and logic, but it was difficult to consider anyone other than the literal devil as the killer.

’Let’s assume that it wasn’t Lucifer’s doing, who could it be then?’

Not Yoko, that much he knew.

’She wasn’t even on the cruise.’

There were thousands of people aboard, and murder at sea was a difficult thing to investigate and prosecute.

’They will need to sort out the jurisdiction. Did it happen in English waters or French waters?’

Considering that the French police officers were aboard, at least for now, it was them that Averie had to deal with.

’Motive.’ He tapped his chin, swirling into a whirlpool of thoughts. ’I need a motive.’

He didn’t personally know the man, but there was one suspect whose image clearly sparkled in his head.

’Julia Kim, the widow—she has all the reasons to stab her husband. A bad marriage, loneliness, humiliation from being cheated on...’

He took Yoko to a terrace café, as she had been complaining about having missed breakfast.

’But would she do it? She didn’t look like the sort of person brave enough to do it. She also has a daughter, so there’s little reason to ruin everyone’s life.’

A lump of trepidation clogged his throat as Yoko ordered sandwiches and fries for two.

’Did I cause it?’

He recalled his passionate words to Julia the previous night.

’What did I say again? What could be more pathetic than inaction, or something? Is this the kind of action she took?’

Averie puckered his orifices.

’Did I dig my own grave? No, no, it’s a flawed thought process.Why would she even risk that? Wouldn’t divorce be a more sensible option?’

But he knew that it was often the spouse who was responsible for the murder of their partner. He had learned these things through dramas and movies.

Suddenly, his eyes grew distant.

’It’s been a while since I watched a movie in a theater...’

All the tension from the murder seemed to melt away as the warm breeze brought the scent of crispy foods; it distracted him effortlessly.

’At this rate, I wonder if I’ll be able to act my heart out.’

The thought pulled at the emotional strings of his heart. It teased him and scared him.

’It feels so wrong. I feel so distracted.’

All the offscreen drama, all the people around him, and even Long Live the Quinn felt like fetters.

’They are keeping me away from real acting.’

He recalled how nice it was to act after half a century, to play Asmodeus Binsfeld for the first time. That feeling was precious to him.

’But I want more.’

He didn’t want to share the stage like he did with BSPH.

’I want to be a one-man show.’

In that sense, Lady Ethereal was the perfect project.

His eyes darted towards the girl sitting across from him.

"It may just be a coincidence, but I must ask."

It had been bothering him for a while.

"Why are you here?"