NUNEW'S POV

- Do you have that video with you? - Nat asked him. P'Aof turned on his laptop and showed us the recording...

The video wasn't long, and it featured a pair of teenagers. The boys were having a lively conversation as they rode their bicycles. They were riding closely together, holding hands. They gazed into each other's eyes and shared a tender kiss. Moment later, a car emerged from around the corner, speeding straight towards them. The whole scene unfolded in a whirlwind of action. One of the boys quickly turned his head and, upon seeing the oncoming vehicle, pushed the other with all his might, saving his life in the process. In the blink of an eye, he found himself under the car's wheels... He died.

- Is that Saint, P'? - I asked the burning question. The video wasn't very clear. In reality, only one of the boys had a sharp enough image to make him out.

- How do you know him? - P'Aof couldn't hide his surprise. I nodded at Nat to pull out the stolen photo.

- I don't know Saint personally, but I think you should know the rest. - Natasitt handed him a photo. P'Aof was speechless when he saw it.

- I don't understand anything anymore! - He slumped back in the chair, holding his cheeks with his hands.

- I'm Officer Zee Pruk Panich from Royal Thai Police. By the authority of the law, you are being detained as a suspect in a criminal investigation. You have the right to remain silent. You also have the right to an attorney. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. - To our surprise, the doors of the room unexpectedly flung open with a loud bang. Zee and Max entered the room, causing a commotion.

- And I am Aof, agent from Department of Special Investigation and I'm also work to Office of the Narcotics Control Board. I'm a secret agent, kind of like in "Men in Black". Have you seen that movie? Zee, are you serious?! I never thought we would have to exchange our business cards. - Aof took out his police badge from his wallet and handed it to Zee.

There was a sudden hush, leaving everyone at a loss for words for several seconds. Hia looked uncertainly at the Aof's police badge, while Max stood still, confidently holding the gun aimed at our manager.

- Max, please put down the gun. You're creating a tense atmosphere. Perhaps I'll make some tea. Hot mint works wonders for a frazzled stomach. I have a feeling that a long night full of mysteries lies ahead of us... - P'Aof walked up to the kettle and was just about to switch it on when...

- I think I prefer Scotch than mint - Zee replied, as he slumped onto the nearest couch. Moments later, we sat beside each other, each of us with a glass of whiskey in hand. This time even Nat and I got some alcohol.

***
(two hours later...)

- I still can't believe you accused me of something like that. - Aof furrowed his brow and he poured another shot of amber liquor.

- As I think about it now, it is truly absurd... You, the boss of the gang? You can't even shoot! I remember when we were at the shooting range once and all the time you kept missing the target... You're just a pawn in the game, P'Aof. - Zee laughed friendly, but our manager wasn't in the mood for jokes.

- You know what, Zee... If I were to be the gang's boss, you would be its leader. You have mastered malice to perfection, and darkness seems to ooze from your eyes. - Aof replied, giving him a gentle smile.

- Even though I may not be the boss, I still hold a high position and respect among others here. Listen, guys, it's true that I have connections and collaborate with the mafia, but I... I'm still a protector of the law, and justice is my priority. - Aof added after a moment.

- As far as I know, DC is not currently recruiting. That's a shame because... you sound like one of the superheroes. Aof - Incognito Man. Sounds great, doesn't it? - Max joined the conversation trying to lighten the tense atmosphere.

- N'Max, the world doesn't need superheroes, but people who can see with their hearts. "The most important things are invisible to the eye."

- P'Aof... Going back to the topic, is there any chance that we won't have to do this whole dance in lacy thongs after all? - Nat looked at the manager with hope.

- Boys, we've been talking for a while now and you still haven't told me the most important thing. What do you know about Saint?

- He was my boyfriend, it's in the past now... He died in front of my eyes. - Zee answered sadly.

- Zee, Saint, and I were close with each other. We were friends, all three of us. The investigation was closed long ago, but I continued to fight on my own. I dug up a lot of things that led me to you. When I saw your photo with Nat, I started freaking out. I called Zee, knowing with one hundred percent certainty that he would help me. And that's how it all ended up. We sit together in the go-go club, sipping whiskey. If I only had the name and surname of that bastard, I would have caught him earlier. - Max shrugged, picking up another bottle.

- Wait a minute! Max? Who are you actually talking about? - Aof gazed at Max with eyes wide open, slowly piecing together the facts in his mind.

- Saint's killer. Do you want to see him? I have a recording of the accident. - Max started rummaging through the bag.

- It's impossible! There's only one video left, and I have it. All the others were stolen. - Aof nodded thoughtfully, still analyzing something.

- All of these recordings which you have are useless. Only one video is worthwhile. In one of the cars, someone had a camera on, which precisely recorded the killer's face. Here you go. - Max pressed a pendrive into Aof's hand.

- Max, you asshole! So it was you who snatched those recordings?! Do you realize that if you hadn't done that, Perth would've been behind bars a long time ago?

- P' do you realize that it had been a long time before I actually stole it? During that time, someone should have already secured all the recordings. To my surprise I came across this footage. Ok, the recordings from the nearby monitoring system were secured, but no one was smart enough to check the cars in the parking lot. I'll tell you the truth. I'll tell you exactly what I did. First, I checked the security cameras and wroted down the license plate numbers of the vehicles that were parked in the parking lot on that day. After that, I did something that was illegal. I found those cars, broke in, and stole cameras from them. I had to hack into each of those cameras to recover the data. Several years have passed. The chances of finding anything were slim. Many of the cameras were brand new, I started to lose hope... I was shocked when I succeeded. On the day we lost Saint, I promised myself that I would do everything in my power to find the murderer. Every piece of evidence I discovered led me to Kilen, and ultimately to you. Nevertheless, I still wasn't certain of anything. I needed more information. My logical thinking came to an end the moment I saw a photo that you shared on the internet. I lost my senses upon seeing Natasitt by your side. I made the decision to take action without delay.
Our first priority was to lock up the Bible behind bars. Both Zee and I concluded that you had some personal gain in handing him over to the police. This situation made us realize that you are the one responsible for everything. You're the boss. You're the bad guy. We failed to anticipate just one thing. It never crossed our minds that in reality you might actually be the good one. P'Aof, you should know that, you've really stirred things up in the investigation now. Hey Zee, do we have a plan B? - Max glanced at his friend.

- I won't let NuNew shake his butt in front of those perverts. Well, I... I'll dance for him. - Zee came up to me and gently wrapped his arm around my waist.

- Zee! For goodness' sake! That's not the plan I had in mind! - Max raised his hands to the sky.

- Listen, we don't have much time. We need to deal with this matter quickly. Okay, we already know who this bad guy is. We also know what he looks like, just one question left. Where can we find him? We know that he's a master of camouflage. He's probably sitting in his apartment right now, enjoying kimchi. Probably no one even knows where he lives. Does anyone here have an idea on how to locate him? - We looked at Nat, trying to come up with something.

- Phone! - Zee called out unexpectedly.

- Thanks Zee. NuNew, this is not the right time to browse Facebook, so if you could kindly put away your phone... - P'Aof scolded me, but he wasn't righ. I'll prove to him how wrong he is.

- P'Zee is correct. If we manage to get Yoon's phone, then P'Max will easily track down his cousin, and then a quick operation and Perth Tanapon, the most dangerous of all the dangerous ones, will stop wreaking chaos in the capital. - I replied, being proud of myself.

- Nunu, your plan is clever, but do you truly believe that Yoon will give you the phone if you ask nicely? - P'Aof sat on the couch, resting his head against the headrest.

- No one said that someone has to ask for something. We must obtain this phone by trickery. - Nat added after a moment, and I knew perfectly well that he knew that I knew something.

- Nat! Your idea is also wonderful, but you both seem to live in a fairy tale, talking to me about impossible things. Yoon always has his phone glued to his side. Natasitt, please consider one more time. Do you really believe that if we steal Yoon's phone, he won't notice it?

- Of course, that we don't have access to him, but there is someone who does. P', now it's your turn to think. Who is close enough to Yoon to be able to steal his phone?

- No way! How on earth do you expect anyone to want to take away his property and when it comes to Yoon, he won't be convinced to give his phone to anyone.

- We don't have to convince Yoon. We just need to convince Neo to start cooperating with us-

-Neo?! How am I supposed to convince him? I would like to remind you that Neo is Yoon's whore and he will do anything for him. It's obvious that this kid would sooner betray us than help us. - P'Aof didn't even let me finish the sentence.

- While you were sweetly chatting away, I did some digging in my memory and photo gallery. Look at this... - I turned the phone towards the rest of them, revealing one of the photos.

- NuNew, who is this? - P'Aof asked quietly.

- This is Mark Pakin. Neo's ex-boyfriend and also my good friend. I've never actually met Neo in person. Mark sent me a selfie on Messenger once, wanting to show off his beloved. To be honest, when we walked into Kilen, that young guy struck me as somehow familiar. I just couldn't quite place where I'd seen him before. I know their love story quite well. Mark hasn't mentioned his ex for a long time, but I know he still thinks about him. Their love was stormy and full of passion, and the breakup was more devastating than a tsunami. One day, Mark told me that Neo is cheating on him with someone. Once, by accident, Mark saw a message from someone thanking Neo for a wonderful night and sending several photos and videos... as you can probably figure out, those weren't cute selfies. The videos were hardcore, and Neo looked better in them than many porn actors. Mark got so angry that he didn't even allow him to explain himself and ordered him to fuck off. As far as I remember, Neo apologized to him on his knees. I also remember that Neo said someone forced him to do it and he had no other choice. Mark, of course didn't believe him then and from that moment on, he began to hate him with all his heart... That's what he says at least, but I know my own truth. I know that deep down in his heart, Mark never stopped loving him. I'm sure that if I bring him here and we tell him the truth, he will definitely help us. Mark will do everything to get Neo back, and Neo... if he still loves Mark, he will agree to any arrangement, even if it means risking his life.

- NuNew, is that your final plan? - P'Aof looked at me with anticipation.

- Nhu! This plan is brilliant! - P'Max ran up to me and gave me a friendly hug. I didn't hug him back. I didn't want Nat to feel jealous, because the last thing I need right now is a fight with my best friend. I shyly looked at him, quickly moving away from his boyfriend.

- In that case, Nhu... What are we waiting for? Call N'Mark. - P'Aof gave me the green light, and without wasting any more time, I quickly dialed Pakin's number. He picked up after two rings...

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TO BE CONTINUED ♡