4
It started raining.
I wandered aimlessly.
Memories of Jake flooded back.
How he’d remind my parents to celebrate my
birthday.
How he’d encourage me when I failed a test.
How he’d ruffle my hair and say, “Don’t worry
about anything. I’m here.”
く
But that great brother of mine.
I got him killed.
My tears mixed with the rain and blood,
spreading across my face.
I stared blankly at the road ahead.
Under the red stop light, the crosswalk was
full of cars.
I stepped off the sidewalk… I could end my guilty life.
Was it really so hard to die?
Dying was liberation.
Г
Without love, what’s the point of living?
I saw a familiar figure.
He was sitting in a black van.
Face covered in stubble.
A cigarette between his fingers.
His cheeks would sink in when he puffed.
His eyes were sharp, searching the area.
That’s how he appeared at my graduation.
Quickly getting in the van after killing Jake.
After Jake died, I identified him for the police.
<
Jake’s boss told me he was the biggest drug
lord in the Pacific Rim.
“Jake had been undercover for three years,
trying to catch him. We were so close, but
somehow… the operation was exposed, and it
fell apart.”
Jake’s boss told me a lot of things.
“Your brother died fighting drugs. It wasn’t
your fault. When he chose this path, he was
ready to sacrifice everything.”
“Your brother was a hero. The drug dealers
are the ones who killed him! It had nothing to
do with you!”
Chapter 2
“You’re always gonna be Jake’s little sister!
You gotta believe in him!”
Yeah, I believe in him.
Just like he’d never believe his baby sister
was some suicidal coward.
I dug out my phone and called Jake’s old
boss, Detective Reynolds. “Hey, it’s Song. I
just saw the drug lord who killed Jake! I’m
near the old Red Rooster Bar on Main Street.
Please, send someone, quick.”
Reynolds sounded surprised, then his voice
went all tight and urgent.
“Song, stay put. We’re sending a unit right
<
now. Let us handle the drug lord, alright?
Don’t you do anything stupid…”
11
I hung up and threw the phone on the ground.
I grabbed a shovel from a construction
worker.
I stared as the traffic light started counting
down to green.
Ten, nine, eight, seven…
I booked it toward that black van.
I squatted down, shoving the shovel right into
the tires.
That got their attention fast.
く
Two guys jumped out of the back, and the
drug lord himself rolled down the window in
the passenger seat…
His face was right there in front of me.
The guy who killed my brother.
Right there.
I grabbed his shirt, choking him.
I felt a bunch of pipes slamming into my
back.
Someone sliced my legs with a knife.
I hauled myself into the van, using every
ounce of strength I had left.
く
I bit the guy’s ear, his nose…
Screaming, shouting!
Cursing, going crazy!
Then I heard the sirens.
Reynolds was yelling, “Ambulance, now!”
“She’s losing too much blood! Take mine!”
“You gotta save her! She’s a hero, just like
her brother!”
