Chapter 64 - Burning Rage
Minyoon brought Miyoo home where Yoonmin was already waiting for them.
"Grandpa told me everything!" Yoonmin said at once. "Is Miyoo alright?"
"Shh!" Minyoon hissed, pointing at Miyoo who was still sleeping. "Don't wake her up! She keeps on worrying about the poltergeist!"
He gently put Miyoo on the couch and covered her with his jacket. She stirred, sucking on her thumb as she slept. The twins sat on another couch, discussing what happened.
"Why would she attack you?" Yoonmin frowned. "It makes no sense! I thought ghosts only attacked their killers or people they hated."
"The old man said she's a poltergeist," Minyoon replied. "I don't know what that means…"
Just at that moment, Junho came bustling into the house. He was exhausted, having to travel miles outside the city to talk to the parents of the college boy.
"Is she alright?" Junho instantly demanded, pointing at Miyoo. "And what about you? Did that poltergeist attack you again?"
"She's fine," Minyoon assured him. "And no, Rachel didn't attack me again. I think I got her good."
"No you didn't!" Junho said grimly. He sat on an ottoman and faced the twins. "This is serious," he went on. "Rachel is no longer a mere ghost. She's much more dangerous."
"What do you mean?" Minyoon frowned. "You mentioned that she's a poltergeist. What's that?"
"A poltergeist is a manifestation of strong feelings," Junho explained. "Not every soul becomes a poltergeist. There are vengeful souls who retain their humanity. They merely haunt others out of spite but they still have the consciousness of a human. Those souls are just nasty beings and can be easily exorcised if needed."
"But poltergeists are different," he went on. "When a person dies under very violent circumstances, a very strong rage boils in them. They die with that rage and after they return as spirits, they turn into poltergeists. As poltergeists, they don't latch onto a particular place like ghosts do. They latch onto the people they hate or think are responsible for their condition."
"But why would Rachel latch onto me?" Minyoon asked, feeling shocked. "I barely knew her! She was just a fan but nothing more to me!"
"Tell me more about this girl," Junho said.
"She was quite a rude person," Yoonmin recalled. "Snobbish and narcissistic. She threw her weight around a lot and was considered to be the most beautiful girl on campus. Her parents are rich so she used to treat a lot of people very badly. She was stubborn and…"
He furrowed his eyebrows. He just recalled something and turned to Minyoon. "I remember when Rachel proposed to you and you refused her, she went berserk," he slowly said. "Do you remember how she burst into your vanity room at the fan event and destroyed all your posters?"
"Oh yeah!" Minyoon exclaimed. "I had to call the security on her. Ever since then, she never talked to me but used to throw a dirty glare at me whenever we passed each other in the hallway."
"Also, she began to write nasty comments on our fansite," Yoonmin nodded. "I had to delete hundreds of them."
Junho was thinking hard. "That explains it," he said. "Rachel's hatred for you is still strong even in death. If she was as arrogant and spiteful as you claim, then she'll not just attack you. She'll go after everyone whom she thinks has wronged her in her life. People she had tiffs with or she held strong grudges against. There was already a lot of rage in her. And if you add the way she died, she's in full berserk mode!"
Both the twins were staring at him in shock. "Can't you exorcise her?" Minyoon asked, feeling a little worried now. "I mean if she's trying to kill me just coz I rejected her once, who knows what she's gonna do to the others who pissed her off?"
"Poltergeists can't be exorcised," Junho stated. "I encountered a poltergeist many years ago and it wasn't easy to get rid of it."
"What happened that time?" Yoonmin asked.
"There was a pediatrician named Kang Danny who killed his youngest son," Junho recalled. "That kid's ghost came to us seeking help. So we started to investigate Danny and found out that he was also illegally harvesting organs from orphan children and selling them to wealthy buyers. Unfortunately, the souls of those orphans manifested together and their collective rage turned them into a single poltergeist. When Danny was caught, he tried to kill his wife and eldest son but the poltergeist appeared and dragged him away before pushing him into a boiler, letting him burn to death."
There was a long silence at that. Miyoo stirred and mumbled something incoherent but was still asleep.
"What happened then?" Minyoon asked, his voice almost a whisper. "How did you get rid of the poltergeist."
"We couldn't but it went quiet on its own," Junho explained. "After all, it only hated Danny. The source of its rage was dead and it had no one else left to hate. The place where it all took place was a hospital so we had all the patients shifted elsewhere. The fire from the boiler spread everywhere and burnt the whole place down. After the fire died, we purified the place. Since then, it's been quiet. No poltergeist activity. Nothing."
"Are you telling me that until the source of her rage dies, she'll keep haunting us?" Minyoon exclaimed.
"Possibly," Junho said. "But there's no guarantee. We'll have to find the source of her anger. In this case, the killer. Think of anything that might be her source of anger. Anyone who had a grudge against her or wanted to kill her."
"I know almost everyone at school hated her, but anyone wanting to kill her…" Yoonmin trailed off. Then he jerked up straight.
"Sera!" he realized. "Didn't she bully Sera a lot?"
"I don't know," Minyoon frowned. "I haven't seen it."
"But when Soobin was having a fight with that Kelly chick, I overheard Kelly saying that Sera was tormented by Rachel at some point," Yoonmin said.
"You only overheard it coz Soobin got involved," Minyoon muttered but his twin ignored the jab.
"Moreover, remember at the assembly, Sera was crying for help?" Yoonmin further pointed out. "She was all drenched and scared. Why would someone run out of the washroom, exposing their privates? Don't you think it was strange?"
"This Sera," Junho began. "She hated Rachel? And she was running around commando?"
"Yes!" Yoonmin exclaimed.
Now Junho was worried. Rachel was not after one person but multiple people and she would not stop until they died.
"This is more serious than I had imagined," Junho said. "We need to tell this to Jina as soon as possible!"
"I think sis went to a party held by Jung Sera's family," Minyoon said. "She mentioned that she has to go there for some work."
"Probably to investigate Rachel's case," Yoonmin informed them. "She's the lead detective."
"Didn't we all receive an invitation?" Junho asked. The twins nodded. Junho thought for a while before clapping his hands together.
"Minyoon and I will stay behind!" Junho said. "Someone has to watch Miyoo and I can't leave Minyoon all on his own either. That poltergeist might attack him. Yoonmin, you should go and check it out."
He paused before adding, "Wear a pink wig and go. You'll pretend to be Minyoon for the party."
"Are you sure he can pull off my cool charisma?" Minyoon whined. "He can't even talk to Soobin without being all blushy blushy! How do you expect him to handle my fans at the party?"
Yoonmin slapped his twin on the head. "She's not gonna be there!" Yoonmin exclaimed, going red in the face.
"That's what you care about?" Minyoon scowled. Yoonmin glared at him.
"Oh shut it!" Junho snapped. "We all know my future granddaughter-in-law is too good for this worthless kid!"
"W-who the hell are you calling worthless?" Yoonmin stammered, his ears flushing red. "And stop calling her your granddaughter-in-law! We're going off track!"
He took a deep breath and said, "I'll go to the party dressed as Minyoon and get all the details from Sera. Happy?"
"I still think you can't pull it off, but oh well," Minyoon shrugged. "Just don't ruin my rep brother. I worked hard on it. And you better not give out autographs there. They ain't free ya know."
"I'm the one who sells them, idiot!" Yoonmin snapped. "I know!"
"That's settled then," Junho said. "Yoonmin, will go to the party and talk to Sera about what happened to her. Also, get a list of people Rachel might have hated or had grudges against. It'll help us narrow down the suspects and also find the source of her wrath. Take a protection amulet with you so that the poltergeist doesn't end up coming after you. I doubt she will but what if she mistakes you for Minyoon. There's no telling."
"Yes, old man," Yoonmin nodded. "I'll go."
…..
The hotel's ballroom was buzzing with excitement. There were many important guests who had been invited at the first party thrown by the Jung family. A lavish assortment of buffet had been placed out with the menu consisting of continental, Middle Eastern and European delicacies. The servers carried trays of delicious finger food including mini sausages, tarts, cheese and olive along with a variety of beverages for the guests.
An orchestra was playing on a lavish stage decorated with golden tiles and a shimmering backdrop of matching threads. They were now playing a piece from Mozart's discography while a wine fountain was sparkling in the middle of the hall.
The guests ranged from celebrities to politicians, talking and laughing with each other. Mrs. Jung was parading with pride, wearing a pastel pink gown with no sleeves. It was sparkling brighter than the golden decorations, almost blinding others but no one commented on it. She bought it from an online outlet but claimed the dress was designer wear. It hugged her too tightly, and despite her discomfort, she tried to bear it with a smile. Her shoes were also too high and she was trying her best to balance herself on them.
"Mrs. Yeon, I hope you're comfortable!" Jung was saying to a famous actress. "And Mr. Yu, I hope you've drank our finest wine…"
Ugh, these shoes are killing me! She bemoaned.
"Mom…"
She turned around to find her daughter, Sera. Sera was wearing a sparkling brown dress which barely reached till her knees. She was not comfortable with it but her mother made her wear it to look 'fashionable'. Her whole face was full of thick makeup which her mother had put on despite her protests and she was totally overwhelmed.
Next to her was Soobin, who was wearing a simple blue floral dress. Her hair was partially tied into a bun while the rest was let loose. Sera had invited Soobin because she wanted a friend to accompany her but Jung's nostrils instantly flared upon seeing her.
Compared to her own daughter, who was laced with makeup and an expensive dress, Soobin's simplicity stood out more.
"I invited Soobin," Sera told her.
"I hope I'm not intruding, Mrs. Jung," Soobin said politely.
"I have other guests to attend," Jung said, feeling annoyed. She had no time to attend to this riffraff because the heiress to the Hwang empire was coming. Moreover, Jung's secretary just informed her that the idol, Hwang Minyoon was also available and would join his sister at the party.
Soobin's smile faded when Jung ignored her and walked towards the entrance. Jung approached one of the guards at the front.
"Did she arrive yet?" She hissed.
"We just got a call from the valet," the guard replied. "Her limo just arrived. They're here."
Jung smirked and waited anxiously for them. Her husband was running a little late so she was going to receive the honorary guests.
"There they are," the guard whispered to her. Mrs. Jung straightened her back as the silhouette of a couple began to approach her. She kept on smiling but once her eyes fell on the girl, her smile turned into a sneer.
"What the hell are you doing here?" she demanded when Jina and Hobin were at the threshold. "This is an invitation only party! Not for random scums like you!"
"I was invited!" Jina said in a cheery tone. She held up the invitation card which Jongin had given her and also flashed her police badge at Mrs. Jung. Jung felt a chill down her spine when she read the name on the badge and the card.
"H-Hwang…" she stuttered.
"I'm Hwang Jina," Jina revealed. "A detective and also the eldest daughter of Hwang Minho, the most influential man in the country. Since, my father isn't here, I'll be representing him at this party!"
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