Miho the Killer
Chapter 61: Out Of Nowhere

Chapter 61: Out Of Nowhere

Miho started to show encouraging signs of recovery ever since the night we sneaked out from her room. At my insistence and also thanks to Miho starting to speak coherently to the nurses and doctors, she was freed from the restraints and was allowed to leave her room as long as she was accompanied, and that was a job that I gladly took upon myself any time she wanted.

Although things were different from when she used to stay at my place, I felt a different kind of bond with her that I hadn’t felt before. Perhaps she was not the cool killer that she once was, and it was better that way - for her. I whole-heartedly embraced her changes, but at the same time, I feared this was just a fleeting moment of peace we were allowed to have.

In some ways I wished that she would recover slower, or maybe not recover fully at all. This Miho, although deeply broken and hurt inside, was who she was before she went down the path of darkness. I was marked by the devil and while that mark remained, the devil had now turned into an angel that was as gentle and sweet as an innocent child.

The more I saw of her, and the more I learned - although I did not probe into her past and she did not talk about them anymore since that night -, the more I realized that at the core, she was a kind-hearted person who wished no harm to others. I was in the present with her but she was living her past self, and seeing this past Miho in the light of the present I knew pained me. And the future... was not something that I wish never came.

But it was inevitable.

"Hey, you seem to be feeling better now."

Shin turned up after a few days of absence, Friday evening, not so long after I arrived at the hospital. I was annoyed at this disturbance, but more than that, I feared that Shin was bringing the future that I dreaded - the future that was promised to be delivered in two months, the end of that was marked on the lives of people whom Shin called the ’targets’.

"Hey, old man! Long time no see!" Miho responded cheerfully, not knowing the destiny that awaited her.

"Good to see you doing well, Miho. How’s things been?"

"Great! Sohee has been so good to me! I even get to go out of this room now."

"I see. How do you feel physically? Do you still feel weak?"

I didn’t like this line of questioning.

"Miho’s still very frail. She is still recovering."

"Aw, Sohee. I’m completely fine now. I feel like I can wrestle a tiger - and win! Hehe."

She probably could, if and when she gets back to how she was before.

"Good. That’s exactly what we need."

I felt that the old man was heartless.

"Can we talk for a minute?"

I got up from where I sat - the edge of Miho’s bed - and started to head out of the door, not waiting for Shin’s confirmation.

"We can talk here, Ms. Han. We have nothing to hide from Miho, do we?"

Sly old man. I gritted my teeth.

"What do you want?" I challenged him.

"What do YOU want? You are the one who wanted to talk." A cheeky smile.

"Miho’s not feeling well. You shouldn’t stress her out."

"Oh, I’m fine, Sohee. I’m happy to see Uncle." The clueless girl butted in, defending someone she shouldn’t. At least not now.

"You see, Ms. Han? Miho’s happy to see Uncle Shin. So what is your problem?" The old man teased again.

"Cut it out. Why did you come here? What’s your business today?"

"Business? Business. Hm. Let’s see - yes, we have a business."

Shin theatrically stroked his chin, looking somewhere distant.

"Heh, Uncle Shin is a good businessman. He’s always working hard, and takes good care of me."

Something clicked in my head as Miho said this.

"Do you know what Mr. Shin here does?" I asked her.

"I don’t know. But he’s always nice to me." Miho shrugged.

I looked over at Shin, who was grinning now.

"Miho and I need to talk. Girl talk. Please leave the room for a bit." I demanded the cheeky old man.

"As you wish. As you wish. I will wait for you in the break room, Ms. Han."

With that, he left the room whistling.

I slammed the door shut as soon as he left and went to Miho’s bed and sat next to her, holding her hands.

"Miho-, how did you meet Shin?"

"Well..."

"Please, this may be important."

"It’s kinda... difficult... you know..."

"Then tell me at least when you first met him."

"Sigh... you know what I told you on... that night."

I felt bad that I made Miho recall the telling of her sister’s death to me.

"I’m sorry. You don’t need to tell me. I won’t ask again."

"It’s alright. It still hurts, thinking about it. But-, I want you to understand."

I decided to listen as Miho braved it.

"Uncle Shin is important to me. When I was alone... he was the only one who came and cared."

"Is it OK if I ask you what you mean by that?"

"I told you that my parents never came back... not even to my sister’s..."

I put my arm around her shoulder to console her.

"Sh... it’s OK. Say no more."

"He was the only one who stayed for the whole three days at the funeral. From the start till the end. He looked after the whole proceedings, and even paid for everything. He was the only one... who cared."

Although I should have appreciated Shin’s taking care of Miho at the most difficult time of her life, I couldn’t shake off the feeling that something felt off.

"Had you ever seen him before that?"

"No."

"He just turned up at the... and stayed and looked after the whole thing?"

"Yeah. Isn’t that kind?"

"And you are sure you had never seen him before that."

"I’m sure. Definitely. Because I remember thinking - who is this man?"

"Have you ever asked him why he did all that for you?"

"I did. He just said he was my Dad’s friend."

"That’s it?"

"Yeah."

"Right, Miho. Thank you for telling me. Now I’ve really got to go and talk to - Uncle Shin."

"OK. Don’t be away for too long!"

I gave a quick hug and left the room in a hurry.

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