Ch.135Chapter 135. Happy Birthday (2)

My wife taking our daughter out.

Could there be any greater happiness for a married man?

I thought I’d finally be able to focus on work without Cuss clinging to me, but…

“Ah shit… I’m dying of boredom.”

After finishing my work in just 30 minutes, I slumped back in my chair.

I concentrated too well.

What am I supposed to do until they return?

Since all I do every day is loaf around, I didn’t even feel like resting more.

I just felt restless.

That bitch Cuss never goes out and just plays at home.

I wondered if Cuss and I had somehow switched places.

In the past, I wouldn’t have hesitated to head to a bar at times like this.

I would’ve had some whiskey, looked around, and gone to a hotel with any woman who caught my eye.

But now I’m taken.

I belong only to Ms. Juliane, so that wasn’t an option anymore.

“Maybe I’ll go for a drive.”

What’s the point of staying cooped up at home?

At most, I’d just drink coffee and laugh at the TV.

I thought about driving around the outskirts of LA.

While I’m out, I could visit Bob too.

Or maybe I should get a haircut from Alejandro since it’s been a while.

Ah, Alejandro probably hasn’t returned from vacation yet.

“Let’s go, my trusty steed.”

I headed to the garage, saying embarrassing lines I could only say when alone.

As I drove onto the road, something felt off.

Was the humming of the car always this loud?

It felt strange without any voices.

I couldn’t remember what life was like before Cuss and Ms. Juliane.

Come to think of it, they just said they were going shopping.

They’re probably preparing for a party but wanted to surprise me.

I wonder what they’re doing now.

Maybe I should call them.

But would that make them panic? Just as I was thinking this…

“Shit. What’s wrong with this?”

The steering wheel locked up.

No matter how much force I applied, it wouldn’t budge.

There were no warning signs, so why now?

Damn, how many years have I driven this car for it to break down already?

I was an idiot for buying a Korean car in America.

I should’ve bought a sturdy American car, even if it guzzles gas like a hippo.

“Huh? What the hell?”

Then the steering wheel started turning by itself.

I thought I was going to crash into a streetlight, but the car smoothly made a right turn.

And when a red light appeared ahead, it braked and stopped…

This wasn’t a hardware issue.

I must have accidentally turned on autonomous driving mode.

“That scared me. Let’s see… where’s the autonomous driving button…”

Having never used autonomous driving before, I had no idea where the button was.

I gave up looking behind the dashboard and searched for autonomous driving on the display panel.

But what’s this?

Why does it say autonomous driving mode is off?

“System shutting down. What? It’s not working?”

No matter how many times I pressed the button, there was no response.

Autonomous driving is off?

Then what the hell is weaving between cars with such precision?

“I’m screwed.”

The brakes should work even during autonomous driving, but stepping on them did nothing.

The gear shift wouldn’t move either.

All the doors were locked and wouldn’t open.

Meanwhile, the car continued to drift aggressively, overtaking other vehicles.

By this point, I reached a conclusion.

This wasn’t some autonomous driving error.

If it were, I’d have crashed into a tree by now.

Someone had hacked my car and was taking me somewhere.

I really hoped this was just my paranoia…

“Damn it.”

Realizing I had no control over anything in the car, I felt my strength drain away.

We were heading toward the outskirts of the city, far from everything.

There’s nothing there except abandoned warehouses.

They’re all rusted from poor maintenance, even the owners have given up on them.

I had an ominous feeling.

I quickly made a call.

“Jinsoo? What’s wrong—”

“Ms. Juliane! Do you know anything about cars?”

“What? Why cars suddenly—”

“The car won’t listen to me! It’s going somewhere strange on its own and the steering wheel doesn’t work— Whoa!”

SCREECH!

Just as I was asking for help, the car suddenly braked, throwing my body forward.

We must have entered an unpaved road because the braking distance was quite long.

I hit my head on the steering wheel and was rubbing my aching forehead when I realized the car had stopped.

“Ugh…”

Did I hit my wrist somewhere?

The call had disconnected on its own.

I was about to call 911 when—

Click…

The doors unlocked.

Looking out the window, I saw the car was surrounded by men wearing masks.

Shit… I’m screwed.

If I try to use my phone, they’ll probably break the window and bash my head in.

I couldn’t let my trusty steed get damaged.

I clicked my tongue, opened the door, and came out with my hands raised, ignoring the ringing phone on my wrist.

“Don’t move! Stay still!”

“What! Why are you doing this?!”

“You’ve got a gun in your pocket! Don’t think about lowering your hands, Asian!”

“That’s not a gun?”

“What…?”

That’s not a gun, you idiot.

After coming closer to check my waistband, they seemed embarrassed and started whispering among themselves.

“Look. I don’t know who sent you, but let’s resolve this with wordsAAAGGHHH!”

At that moment, my body stiffened with a shocking sensation.

It felt like my entire body had become a penis, with blood rushing to cause an erection.

Turning my stiff neck, I saw taser wires extending from behind, stuck in my back.

So this is what Ms. Juliane felt when I shocked her neck with the stun gun.

It’s so damn electrifying…

I thought I might get addicted to this feeling.

“Ugh… argh… this fucking hurts…”

“What the hell! Why isn’t he falling?”

“Should we shoot him again?”

“Seriously, stop messing arouAAAAGGHHH!”

Shit.

I got hit again.

I collapsed to the ground, my body trembling.

Good thing I’d used the bathroom before leaving home.

It would’ve been the worst if I’d wet myself too.

Then I lost consciousness.

***

“Oh no, what should I do! Something must have happened to Jinsoo!”

“Calm down, Juliane. You’re making me dizzy…”

Juliane, not knowing what to do, grabbed Cuss’s shoulders and jumped up and down.

She should have been trained to respond calmly and appropriately in any situation.

But when her husband was in danger, she couldn’t think rationally.

The phone kept ringing, but Jinsoo wasn’t answering.

“First, we need to call 911, Juliane.”

“Ah! Yes! It seems like there was an accident!”

Juliane urgently tapped below her ear to make an emergency call.

It was her implanted phone that had been repaired at the service center a few days ago.

The signal connected in less than two seconds, and a voice came through.

“911, please explain your emergency.”

“I-I was just talking to my husband when the call cut off. I heard a loud braking sound, so I think there was an accident. I’ve been trying to call him back but he’s not answering…”

“Can you tell us the location?”

“Location?”

Juliane was at a loss for words.

Come to think of it, why did Jinsoo go out today?

Not knowing why he left, she had no way of knowing his location.

“Um… I don’t know the location… But from the braking sound, it seemed like a dirt road.”

“A dirt road… Yes, I understand. Is there any other information that might help us locate him?”

“I don’t know…”

“Do you know the license plate number or the car model?”

“License plate?”

She closed her eyes tightly to think, but nothing came to mind.

She only remembered it was a silver sedan, but not the number or model.

There was some strange logo she’d never seen before.

As Juliane’s lips trembled, about to say she didn’t know, Cuss tugged at her sleeve.

“Huh?”

“California 1ARE79S.”

“Uh? What?”

“The license plate. The car model is Hyundai Genesis G6974.”

“…!”

As expected of Cuss’s memory.

Juliane immediately relayed the car model and license plate.

“Confirmed. We’ll begin searching, so please wait—”

“What? You’re starting a search?”

“There are currently no reported traffic accidents. It seems he might have had trouble in a remote area with no witnesses. We’ll send out vehicles to search, so please wait calmly.”

“What about location tracking? Can’t you do that?”

“If the call isn’t connected, we can’t track the mobile phone location. But we’ll keep trying to connect, so could you give me your husband’s phone number?”

“Yes…”

After providing the phone number, the call ended.

Juliane stared at Cuss in disbelief.

Nothing had been resolved.

They had no way to find Jinsoo and were just going to search blindly.

What if he was critically injured and bleeding profusely right now?

What if the ambulance arrived too late and Jinsoo suffered irreparable damage?

“Ah. Could it be?”

At that moment, an ominous thought crossed Juliane’s mind.

Jinsoo had said his car was going to a strange place and the steering wheel wasn’t responding.

Could it be a malfunction in the autonomous driving system?

Or worse, had someone maliciously hacked the car’s software to kidnap Jinsoo…?

“N-no way. It can’t be…”

It shouldn’t be that.

Anything but that.

As Juliane clutched her head in confusion…

“Sniff, sniff.”

“Cuss, what are you doing?”

“Sniff, sniff…”

Cuss was turning her head and sniffing the air.

Juliane wondered if there was some strange smell, but she couldn’t detect anything.

“It’s this direction, Juliane.”

“Huh? What is?”

“Jinsoo is definitely in that direction. I don’t know the distance or exact location, but I’m sure of the direction.”

“How do you know that?”

“I once left my scent inside Jinsoo’s eyeballs. No matter how far away he is, I can smell it.”

“Cuss…!”

“Huh?!”

Overcome with emotion, Juliane grabbed Cuss by the waist and lifted her up.

Cuss was about to get angry and demand to be put down, but seeing Juliane’s tearful face, she lost the will to do so.

Juliane tucked Cuss under one arm and headed for the parking lot.

If they knew the direction, they could find him.

They had to hurry.

Before something terrible happened to Jinsoo.

.

.

.

“Ugh…”

I woke up with an extreme headache.

But as soon as I regained consciousness, an even greater pain crushed me.

My shoulders felt like they were going to tear off.

“What the hell is this?”

My hands were bound with chains and suspended from a ceiling hook.

Actually, looking closer, it wasn’t a hook but a carabiner.

It was like an enlarged version of those rock climbing hooks designed not to detach.

No matter how much I shook my body, it showed no signs of coming loose.

Let’s assess the situation.

I’m shirtless.

And what the hell is this?

Why is there a red circle drawn on my stomach?

Isn’t that where the liver is located?

“This is insane.”

Looking around, I saw the rusty walls of a dark, crumbling warehouse.

Shit. I absolutely hate the idea of having my organs harvested.

I needed to find a way to escape.

Thump… thump…

Then I heard footsteps coming from the door.

The uneven tempo suggested two people.

And there was also a dragging sound on the floor…

I’m so screwed.