A Forgiving Heart - 13. Chapter 13

Their destination was no spectacular location, like the Black Orchid in Belize.

It was far from that, Hyun thought. He sat on the edge of his seat, elbows resting on the front seats, taking in the property they were approaching. Himura drove up a long dirt road, with open grassy land on each side. Hyun could see a wall built with stone at the end of the long drive. It had an old wooden gate marking the entrance into the property. Himura, who drove too fast, slowed the jeep and came to a stop in front of the wooden gate. The man in the front passenger seat got out first to check the gate.

“Are you going to tell me his name?” Hyun asked.

“No.” Raphael and Himura answered him at the same time.

“What should I call him?” Hyun asked, looking at Raphael who had tied his hair back into a severe ponytail.

“No need to talk to him,” Raphael stated, then opened his door and got out.

Hyun sighed and followed him, eager to stretch out. He threw his arms up with abandon, moving to the back of the jeep as he took in the fresh air. The grassy lands on each side of the long drive looked tempting. The long grass though made Hyun unwilling to venture there. He imagined snakes crawling through the long grass unnoticed. The thought had him dropping his arms with a shudder.

He turned to find Raphael talking to Himura in soft murmurs.

Hyun didn’t care much for their conversation, instead taking in Raphael’s handsome profile. Raphael was handsome in a white tailored shirt, light to match the warm weather. His dark pants disappeared into black hiking boots.

Hyun looked down at his own matching pair and smiled. Raphael had made sure Hyun got hiking shoes too. He wondered if they were going to be climbing the cliffs. He bent down to make sure his laces were secure.

“Hyun,” Raphael said, and Hyun straightened up, heart beat fluttering at the way Raphael said his name.

How silly of his heart. Hyun stared at Raphael hoping to control his emotions, with no success.

“Ready?” Raphael asked, studying him with a lifted brow.

Hyun forced his gaze away from Raphael and nodded, clearing his throat to ask.

“Who lives here?” Hyun asked.

“My family owns the property,” Raphael said, holding his hand out to Hyun. “I’ve never been here though.”

Hyun held Raphael’s hand with his right, unable to control the blissful shiver at the contact.

“Seems like a waste,” Hyun managed to say. “The place looks abandoned.”

Raphael shrugged, not saying more on the matter.

“We’re going in,” Raphael said. “You follow me, and do what I tell you. You remember the rules, right?”

“Yes.” Hyun squeezed Raphael’s hand giving him a small smile.

“Okay.” Raphael nodded, studying him a minute. “You’re not scared, are you?”

“How could I be?” Hyun grinned. “You’re here.”

Raphael paused, narrowing his gaze at him before he led the way to the now open wooden gate.

Himura followed behind Hyun, the man with no named led the way at the front. The stone path they followed was almost lost to weeds and grass patches. Flowerpots lining the path on each sided stood filled with weeds, and flowers that had long overgrown the size of the pots. Some pots cracked with age, others broken by roots seeking water. Hyun wished he could have seen the property during its peak years. The design work in the gardens would have been lovely to look at. Now, it just seemed unkempt.

The stone path forked into two smaller ones: one leading to the front door of the long cottage with glass walls, the other to the backyard.

Hyun fell in love with the cottage at first sight. It had to be all the glass and the old flower baskets hanging on the front porch. The flowerpots by the front door had broken, and anise plants overgrown, stretching across the steps, searching…

Hyun wondered if the door would even open. He wanted to know so he started to the front door, only to have Raphael tighten his hold on his hand. They weren’t heading into the house. Hyun sighed as Raphael led him down the path heading to the backyard.

Hyun wished he could see inside the house. The glass was dirty now. He imagined the original owner had kept the glass walls shining to let in the light. They navigated around overgrown bushes that hid the house, and finally reached the backyard.

Hyun stopped in awe of the view. The house stood high on a cliff with the finest view of the sea Hyun had ever seen. There was nothing to obstruct the view, no trees in the way, just a fantastic horizon. Sunsets had to be like religion in this place. He would be devout about it too.

The previous owner had definitely appreciated the view. Had worked to make it fun and accessible, creating sitting areas around the backyard. There was a bench near the steel cliff barrier. Benches around a moss-filled stone picnic table. Pairs of chairs set around little flower gardens in one corner. In the farthest corner of the backyard, there was even what might have been a vegetable garden. Near that garden, there was a persimmon tree, with a pair of chairs set under that tree facing the sea.

Hyun smiled at the sight.

Hyun could imagine living here and wanting for nothing more. Hell, he would code videogames, worry about Mina’s love life, and…maybe…

“Hyun,” Raphael prompted him.

Hyun dragged his gaze away from those two chairs to meet Raphael’s amused green gaze.

“Hmm,” Hyun murmured, hopeless.

“Do you like it that much?” Raphael asked. He looked around the backyard, at the old furniture, the weeds in the gardens, the overgrown grass and neglected paths.

“I love what it would be like,” Hyun said, with a quick grin. “What it must have been like.”

“Quite a while back,” Raphael said without any sense of emotion.

It made Hyun wonder who in Raphael’s family lived here. Why they had given up this paradise and not shown it to Raphael, made him love it, as it deserved.

As he would like to love it, Hyun thought.

“Sir, we’re ready,” the man with no name said.

Hyun wrinkled his nose.

“This is ridiculous. I’m going to call him John if you don’t tell me his name.”

“John sounds good,” Raphael said, leading him after ‘John’.

Hyun sighed and shook his head.

They were heading to the cliff with purpose. Hyun frowned when John walked through a space in the cliff barrier and disappeared. Hyun tightened his hold on Raphael’s hand.

“I hope we’re not mass-jumping-off-a-cliff.”

“Do I look like the type?” Raphael asked when they reached the gap in the barrier.

No, Hyun thought.

Raphael took Hyun’s hand and placed it on his waist.

“Hold on, Little Rabbit.”

Hyun followed Raphael and grinned when he discovered the staircase curved from natural rock. It led the way to the beach below in a dizzying curve. Hyun tightened his hold on Raphael’s white shirt, moving closer, finally understanding the hiking boots.

“Take every step with care,” Raphael said, making sure Hyun was on the side of the cliff wall. The wooden guardrail on Raphael’s left side was worn, the wood rotten in places. Hyun worried they would fall over with the wrong touch.

“We just need to make it down,” Raphael said, to distract him.

“With the right renovation, this place would make a nice vacation spot,” Hyun said. “You could take on the project.”

“I could,” Raphael said, steadying Hyun when he took a step down and landed wrong. “I could turn it into a bed and breakfast. Jeju Island is popular with tourists.”

“It would be a nice house for you too,” Hyun said, thinking Raphael needed a break from all the danger when it was over.

“You think I should take a vacation?” Raphael asked, amused.

“Definitely,” Hyun said. “You’ve barely recovered from being shot. Now we’re hiking down a cliff that freaks me out. When do you rest?”

Raphael chuckled.

“I like being on the move,” Raphael said.

Hyun bit his bottom lip hard to keep from probing deeper. Still, his over-acting imagination filled in the blanks. Raphael was probably overworking to occupy his time, his thoughts.

Raphael pushed Hyun against the cliff wall on their next descent and Hyun forced his attention on the now. A portion of the handrail on Raphael’s left side had dropped off, falling to the jagged rocks below.

“We need a steel rail installed here,” Raphael noted.

Hyun clutched Raphael’s shirt tighter and they continued their slow descent to the beach below. Hyun breathed a relieved sigh when they reached the bottom and his feet were on solid sandy ground.

The sea stretched before them, waves crashing on the beach. Hyun took out the phone Raphael gave him and took a photo.

“I want a photo with you,” Hyun said, holding Raphael’s right arm when he started to head to the cliff walls behind them.

“What for?” Raphael asked his tone full of surprise.

“For me,” Hyun insisted, needing something to hold on to when it was over.

Raphael studied him for a minute, and then stepped closer to Hyun. He was taller, so Hyun gave him the phone. Hyun smiled as Raphael set up the shot, his eyes widening when Raphael pressed a kiss on his left temple.

Raphael handed him the phone back and Hyun brought up the picture. He frowned when he found Raphael had captured a picture of Hyun smiling into the camera, while Raphael kissed his temple.

“You didn’t look at the camera,” Hyun complained.

He decided that as much as he couldn’t see Raphael’s face, the photo was still better than having nothing. It would help him remember this place, and the feel of Raphael’s lips on him.

“Don’t post that photo anywhere, it will only get deleted,” Raphael reminded him.

“Do I seem like the type?” Hyun asked, following Raphael.

“You could be. Maybe you have a secret Instagram account with millions of followers.”

“Ha,” Hyun grinned. “Do I look like I have the time?”

Raphael turned and blew him a kiss, making Hyun fall in love with him a bit more. Hyun was enjoying this playful, teasing side of Raphael.

They walked to the cliff walls, and Hyun put his phone away when he saw the large cave opening in the solid rock. A secret hideaway under the property above, one would never know it existed.

They entered the cave. The walls of the cave seemed naturally made, but then at some point, someone had worked at defining the shape of the cave.

Sunlight lit the front of the cave, but the deeper they went, the darker it got. ‘John’ walked ahead of them, and for a moment, disappeared into the darkness of the cave. He appeared on back wall of the cave when artificial light came on. Hyun blinked in the sudden brightness, and then gaped at the strong steel door mounted on the back cave wall.

“That was definitely installed on purpose,” Hyun said, thinking they had found the door for their key.

“It was,” Raphael said, walking up to the steel door with confidence.

Hyun frowned, a bit disappointed when he saw a key pad, instead of the key hole to match their key.

“What now?” Hyun asked, touching the keypad.

He hadn’t brought any of his equipment, but he could still find a workaround. The keypad came to life when he swiped the screen. A white scanner light rolled from top to bottom. Before Hyun could study it further, Raphael placed his right thumb on the screen. A second later, the steel door mechanics came to life and the door opened on well-oiled hinges.

Hyun stepped back, staring at Raphael.

“I thought you didn’t come here?” Hyun asked.

“It’s in the family,” Raphael said, watching Himura and ‘John’ enter the unlocked room. “Locks on all our properties have my bio-metrics.”

“So, if your family is responsible for the door here, why would Nicolae keep a key to a door found in your property?” Hyun asked, following Raphael when Himura allowed it. The new room looked like storage. There were shipping crates on stands arranged by numbers, rows of aisles to the farthest part of the huge room.

“This looks like a warehouse,” Hyun said, stopping at an unsealed crate filled with antique Chinese vases. “These look valuable.”

“They are,” Raphael said, getting the key and walking down the main aisle heading to the back of the huge room. “This is a holding location. Yun Shipping provides the service to close business friends. They have the code to the door, and access by sea. We log all these items by aisle and floor space number. The owner pays for storage depending on the time of hold. Access to it would be by boat, no one bothers with the top.”

“Do you care what is brought in?” Hyun asked, fascinated by Raphael’s business model.

“No questions asked, as long as you pay your rates on time,” Raphael said. “It’s best this way. Too many questions would get us all in trouble fast.”

“So, you’re saying that Nicolae decided to store something here,” Hyun said.

“Not store,” Raphael said, his tone turning cold as they reached the farthest wall of the warehouse.

Hyun looked behind them to see ‘John’ leave the warehouse, going out. Himura remained standing at the entrance.

“They’re making sure we are alone,” Raphael said, when he noted Hyun watching Himura. “I’m very sure that Lucian won’t leave us be.”

Hyun shuddered at the thought of meeting Lucian again. There was a man he hoped to avoid at all costs. He turned back to Raphael to find that he had stopped at a door, hidden at the corner by a stack of crates.

Raphael fitted the key into the lock on the door, and Hyun hurried to his side in time to see the key turn with perfect ease. Raphael opened the door fast, eager to see what Nicolae would hide on Yun territory.

***

Anxiety filled him when he stepped into the room with Nicolae’s key. It wasn’t easy for him to feel anxious, unless it had to do with Talin, his twin or his mother. They made him worry, so they managed to push him into an emotion as weakening as anxiety.

Now, there was this unknown factor. Raphael found the light switch, hitting the button on the wall of the cave. White light flooded the small room and he moved in deeper to take it in. Unlike the warehouse, this room had shelves; someone had taken the time to build them into the wall. It felt personal.

“Wow,” Hyun murmured beside him. “The woodwork is enough to make me envious. Does your dad like antiques or something?”

“Not my dad,” Raphael said, narrowing his gaze on the items on the intricate shelves. “Nicolae Petrov is a carpenter.”

“Hm,” Hyun moved to touch the closest shelf, his fingers tracing over the wood. He then picked up the wooden jewelry box on the shelf and opened it.

“Postcards, and a pearl necklace,” Hyun said, lifting the long pearl necklace. “It feels like it’s from those old movies.”

Hyun returned the necklace and pulled out one postcard.

“’Dragon, I know you love the view here. I planted a tree so that you would have shade in the summer to sit to outside to your hearts content. Love, Tatianna.’ They’re love notes,” Hyun said with a happy smile. “Look, there are almost a hundred of them.”

Raphael smiled at Hyun’s enthusiasm, and moved to the opposite shelf. This one was wider, to accommodate the items covered with a white cotton cloth. Raphael pulled the cloth off and had to bite his lip hard to keep from gasping. Staring back at him was a picture, a bizarre family portrait. Bizarre because there was his father and a woman who was definitely not the mother he knew. They both held small bundles: him and Gabriel. Their smiles were wide with happiness as they looked into the camera.

This picture…Raphael felt a clamp lock on his heart. His father’s comment filled his head.

‘That key opens a door I hoped you would never have to open. We’ll talk when you get back from there. Come straight home.’

Raphael sucked in air.

“What did you find?” Hyun asked, behind him making Raphael cover the photo with a quick motion. “Have you noticed that the items on the shelves seem to belong to someone? Like a carefully curated museum of sorts. More jewelry, books, bottles that could have been used for perfume or lotion. Oh, look, a stack of journals—”

Raphael moved fast to where Hyun stood and grabbed the journals out of his hands before he read them. Hyun looked at him with an inquiring gaze, stepping back, still holding the box with the notes.

“Hyun,” Raphael said, taking the box from Hyun. “Don’t try to discover what is written on this. This is something you can’t know. Do you understand?”

Hyun frowned, and Raphael ignored it, walking around him to the covered photograph. He used the cloth to tie the photo, the journals and the box of notes.

“You’re shutting me out,” Hyun said into the silence. “After all we’ve been through getting here; you want to shut me out.”

“I told you,” Raphael said, his gaze sweeping over the shelves once last time. When he saw nothing of note, he gripped the white cloth tight and took Hyun’s hand, leading him out of the room. “Remember the rules I gave you, Hyun. They are to protect you.”

Raphael closed and locked the room, slipping the key into his pocket.

“I don’t want you to protect me,” Hyun snapped.

“I’m sure you don’t mean that,” Raphael said, reaching for his hand again. They needed to get out of here quickly. He was afraid the items he held could bring down the Yun Family too, and not Nicolae.

“Rafa, I know you don’t see me as someone you can rely on, but someone that you have to protect.” Hyun moved his hand out of Raphael’s reach. “I hoped that maybe—”

“Maybe, what?” Raphael asked, his gaze narrowing on Hyun. “What, Hyun?”

Hyun bit his bottom lip and shook his head.

“Raphael,” Himura called from the door. “We need to go. There is a boat coming in.”

Raphael gripped Hyun’s right hand with his left and started out of the warehouse. They rushed out into cave entrance, leaving Himura to close the main door. John held his gun, at the ready.

“Sir, I’ll have you go up the stairs first,” John said to Raphael, already guiding them to the steps leading to the property above. “We’ll occupy them down here, give you time to get away.”

“Call it in to the others,” Raphael said, already pushing Hyun up the steps. “Don’t let them into the warehouse. I’m not keen on paying back our clients for the damage.”

“Understood,” John said.

Raphael concentrated on getting Hyun up the stairs, moving as fast as Hyun could go. He was aware that Hyun was upset with him. He was glad that despite the upset, Hyun kept up with him. When they reached the backyard, Raphael heard gunfire open at the beach: Himura and John shooting at the newcomers.

Raphael pulled Hyun to the path that would lead them back to the gate. Adrenaline racing through his veins, he caught the sound of car doors closing and pushed Hyun behind an overgrown bush near the house.

Pressing the white cloth with his loot into Hyun’s hands, he got the gun he had hidden in the small of his back. Hyun’s eyes widened and Raphael pressed his palm over Hyun’s mouth. He leaned in close and whispered into his ear.

“Don’t move. Don’t make a noise, Hyun. Trust me.”

He met frightened gaze and waited. Hyun took in a quiet breath and nodded, his hands holding tight to the white bundle. Raphael gave him a small assuring smile and focused on dealing with the men walking into the property.

“The house looks empty,” he heard one of the men say.

“It would be,” Lucian Pajari said. “The action is at the back. Let’s go. Four men stay here in case they manage to get away. Take whatever Raphael’s holding, or Hyun Lee if you see him. The rest of you, let’s go down to the beach.”

Raphael crouched lower under the bush, and stilled when he felt Hyun hold on to his shirt, fingers clamping tight on the fabric. Six men walked by followed by Lucian. They all held guns, Raphael could only hope that Himura and John had managed to subdue the incoming boat. It was their only escape now.

When the men reached the cliff, Raphael moved away glad when Hyun let go of his shirt without fuss. He hurried to the front of the property to tackle the four left by Lucian.

***

Hyun clamped his palm over his mouth to keep from calling out when Raphael got up abruptly. His heart thundering in his chest, he made himself smaller behind the bush, wondering at how useless he was at this. He counted minutes, wondering what he to do if something happened to Raphael. His legs went numb from his crouch. Just as he was starting to worry, Raphael appeared, holding out his hand.

Hyun took it and bit his lip hard when Raphael pulled him up, dragging him out too fast. Hyun held on to the white bundle he still held as they raced to the front of the house. It was a mark of experience that he didn’t scream when he saw the two men on the ground by the gate. There was blood, but he couldn’t be sure if Raphael had shot them dead. Raphael pushed him out the gate where Hyun discovered two more men. One slumped against the wooden gate, his hand clamped over his stomach, blood seeping between his fingers. The other was in the bushes next to the gate, still.

Raphael didn’t give Hyun time to think, instead pushing inside the black jeep they used to get here. He had to jump over the console to get to the passenger seat. Raphael was already driving when Hyun settled in the passenger seat.

“What about Himura and John?” Hyun asked, looking back to the wooden gates as Raphael sped away from the property.

“They’ll find their own way out,” Raphael said.

“How?” Hyun asked, not seeing how Himura and John would fight off the dozen men Lucian seemed to have brought with him.

“They’ll manage,” Raphael said, getting on the main road at top speed.

“Is this your life?” Hyun asked, after they had driven for a while in silence. “Do you ever have quiet days? Since I met you, we’ve driven out of places at top speed. People are always shooting at us, or wanting to capture us. Are you okay with this?”

“I had very quiet days before I met you, Hyun.”

“Are you saying it’s my fault?” Hyun asked, remembering that he was in fact working off a debt with this man. “Shit, I’m sorry. You’re right. This is my fault. I brought you into a fight with Lucian. I take it back. I’m sorry I’m making your life so hard.”

“You’re not making my life hard,” Raphael said, coming to a stop at an intersection. “Hyun, I’ve lied to you.”

“How could you have lied to me?” Hyun asked, thinking Raphael was trying to absolve him.

“You don’t owe me or the Yun Family a debt,” Raphael said, his fingers gripping the steering wheel tight.

Hyun’s brow rose up when Raphael looked at him with a hard gaze.

“My father was looking for you before you showed up. He asked me to find you, but then you walked into the moving party first. Sure, you came in with a problem to solve, but I capitalized on it to keep you around until I knew what was going on. I made you stay with me by making you think you owed me a debt. I lied to you, Hyun. By rights, you had every reason to leave after you got Mina back.”

“I don’t understand,” Hyun said, staring at Raphael, afraid of his next words.

He hadn’t realized how important the stupid deal he had with Raphael had become. He was holding on to it hoping to keep Raphael longer. Without it…

“I’m telling you that you’re free to leave,” Raphael said, shattering all Hyun’s hopes. “You don’t owe me anything. You can leave at any time.”

Hyun opened the passenger side door and stepped out onto the empty road, the hurt in his chest almost crippling. He had not expected the request to leave to come so blatantly. No warning just a direct request that left him crippled with fear.

He was well aware that if he left Raphael now, there was no guarantee they would see each other again. They were in Jeju Island for goodness sake. Who knows where Raphael would be in the next few hours, across the continent, probably. How would Hyun find him again? There would be no way—

“Hyun!”

Raphael grabbed his right arm and stopped him from walking.

“What the hell are you doing? You can’t just come out of the car like that. We’re in the middle of the road. How could you—?”

He broke off when Hyun turned to look at him.

“You’re crying.” Raphael’s voice was in a whisper. “Why? What’s wrong?”

“Is it so easy for you?” Hyun asked, trying to break away from Raphael who only tightened his hold on Hyun’s arm. “I must be very unremarkable. I’m only enough to use and send away like a-a—”

Hyun broke off shocked that he couldn’t even find a comparison.

“Hyun, it’s not like that.”

“Oh?” Hyun shook his head. “Then tell me what it’s like. What am I to you? Who am I to you, Rafa?”

Raphael stared at him, shock clear in his eyes, as though he had not even thought about that. Hyun decided to take it as a good sign.

“Hyun.”

“Talin is taken,” Hyun heard himself say bringing his free hand up to wipe away the tears blurring his sight.

He felt desperate enough to bring up Talin. His dormant heart had finally found someone to care for without reservation. He wanted a chance to see where it would take them.

“I’m not taken. I also don’t care what you’re into, Rafa. I just want you. I care about you. Why doesn’t that count?”

“Why are you talking about Talin?” Raphael asked, with a frown.

“I know you’re in love with him, but he’s with Dimitri now,” Hyun said, deciding to give it his all. He was not going to go away without a fight. He wanted the right to keep Raphael Yun, whatever the cost.

Raphael gaped.

“I saw the painting in the empty room at your house in New York,” Hyun continued, wiping his tears away, finding determination. “The one of you looking at Talin like he hung the moon, I didn’t even understand that phrase until I saw that painting. Whatever. Do you think this is easy for me? You’ve been inside me for fuck’s sake. I should get a say in what happens with us. Who said you’re the one to make all the decisions? Don’t send me away without a proper chance.”

“Hyun,” Raphael started.

“No.” Hyun managed to get his arm free to walk back to the car. “We should get going now. Lucian’s men might catch up. Just know, I don’t care what you did, or why, just don’t send me away. I’m not going away. Deal with it.”

Hyun got into the passenger side and slammed the door closed. Raphael remained standing in the middle of the road, so Hyun reached for the white package at his feet and untied it. He got the picture frame he had seen Raphael cover and took a good look.

The Korean man in the picture looked a bit like Raphael, but the green eyes on the blonde woman in the picture were insanely Raphael. These had to be Raphael’s parents. Hyun touched the woman’s smile, the curve of it exactly like Raphael. Raphael had taken after her, even though his hair was his father.

Hyun glanced out the window to see Raphael still standing there with his hands on his hips. Hyun returned to studying the picture and frowned at the bundles the couple held in the photo. Two babies. They looked the same age, so…twins.

Raphael had a twin.

Two of Raphael, Hyun looked up to find Raphael walking back to the car.

What was that like?

***

Hyun gets proactive on project 'keeping-Rafa',
Sui.