"Are you kidding me right now?!" Minjae nearly choked on his tteokbokki, his outburst earning curious stares from nearby diners. Rihan only rolled his eyes, setting his phone down calmly.
"Is it really that shocking that our little artist is texting me?" Rihan asked, resisting the urge to light a cigarette. Instead, he shoved more salad into his mouth and immediately regretted the choice. This breakfast was Minjae's idea.
"Don't call him that," Minjae hissed, still staring like Rihan had sprouted horns from his head. "And I think you should report this to the chief. It might..."
"This is my investigation now, Minjae. And you're my partner. You know me." Rihan's voice was low and commanding enough to make Minjae's shoulders stiffen instinctively. "You should understand I want this case."
Minjae swallowed, uneasy. "It's just… none of the other detectives who handled the previous murders ever got a message from the killer."
Rihan smirked. "Which makes this one personal."
Minjae fidgeted, then sighed. "Shall we head back to the crime scene?"
"Yeah," Rihan drawled, stabbing his chopsticks into the fish cake, dragging it lazily. "As soon as I finish my breakfast."
Minjae's face paled. He cleared his throat and straightened in his seat. "…Yes, sir."
****
Arriving at the apartment marked off with yellow tape, Rihan paused at the doorway, a cigarette dangling from the corner of his mouth, smoke curling around lazily.
Minjae was down the hall questioning the neighbors. Most had already been interviewed by the officers last night, but they answered him again because Minjae had the kind of face people could trust.
Rihan stepped inside. The unit was a cramped single room. No overturned furniture, no broken glass, no sign of a struggle. Just three neat bullet holes in the wall above where the body had been found.
He had already seen the photos, but standing here was different. The victim's neck had been snapped before his throat was cut. There were no bullet wounds.
Rihan tilted his head, lips curving into something between a smile and a sneer.
"Is our artist—" he caught himself, though no one was there to hear, "—is this killer stupid?"
Masking was never his strong suit. Or maybe he simply didn't care to act normal. Normal was overrated.
And Rihan was anything but normal.
The world saw him as an Alpha. A tall, commanding presence with a sculpted frame, cheekbones sharp as blades, lips flushed pink, and eyes the color of hazel fire. Beautiful in a way that could rival any Omega, yet intimidating as any Alpha. He looked carved from marble, a Greek statue that had stepped into the modern world.
But he was neither. Not what they thought. Not what he seemed.
"Rihan!" Minjae burst into the room, breathless, eyes wide. He clutched a folded paper in one hand.
Rihan arched his brow, his cigarette ember glowing faintly in the dim light. His brow rose higher still when he caught the look of shock on Minjae's face.
"What is that?"
Minjae handed him the paper. It was a rough sketch, loose lines forming the profile of a man.
"The neighbor's kid. Eight years old. Looks like he saw the killer and drew this," Minjae reported quickly.
Rihan's eyes narrowed. "Let me see him."
Minjae led him across the hall to the apartment opposite the victim's. A middle-aged couple, a gentle Omega and a stern-looking Alpha welcomed them inside.
"We apologize for the mess," the Omega said softly, guiding them to the couch. His hands trembled as he set down cups of coffee. "We couldn't sleep after what happened last night."
Minjae bowed politely, flashing the easy, reassuring smile. Rihan, on the other hand, remained stone-faced, his presence heavy and intimidating.
"Where's your child? The one who drew this?" he asked bluntly, holding up the sketch. "And why didn't you show this to the officers yesterday?"
The couple exchanged a nervous glance. The tension in the room thickened, making Minjae clutch his mug tighter.
"This case has been going on for two months now," he said gently, his tone smoothing the tension Rihan had placed in the air. "We really need your help to stop this killer before anyone else dies."
Rihan sat back, unfazed. Minjae's job had always been to soften his edges, to keep witnesses from running out of the room under his stare. They'd been partners for five years, and though Rihan was only two years older, he'd insisted on dropping all honorifics. He didn't want the false comfort of closeness.
Emotional connections were unnecessary. And if there was one thing Rihan had never learned, it was how to hold an emotional connection at all.
"Minho! Come here," the Omega called softly. A tiny eight-year-old ran into the room, clutching a brown teddy bear to his chest. He hurried to his Omega dad, who lifted him and settled him on his lap.
The boy glanced shyly at the detectives, then buried his face against his father's chest.
The Omega gave a gentle smile. "I apologize, Minho is very shy with strangers."
"As he should be," Rihan muttered. His eyes narrowed. "Anyways, why didn't you show this to the officers?"
"Because Minho drew it after they left," the Alpha explained, his hard expression cracked with concern. "He kept rambling about the handsome man who gave him a lollipop and said he wanted to give him a gift in return." He looked at his son and reached out, ruffling the boy's hair. Minho giggled softly at the touch.
Rihan raised a brow. "What was your son doing outside? The estimated time of death for your neighbor was 10:14 p.m. Is an eight-year-old supposed to be wandering outside, taking candy from a stranger?"
"Dada and Papa were fighting," the boy suddenly blurted out, playing with his Omega dad's hair. "So I went outside 'cause they were too loud."
The room grew heavy with tension as the couple exchanged a guilty glance.
Rihan snorted. "Which means you didn't even realize your son was outside that late because you were too busy screaming at each other." He shifted his attention back to the child. "Anyways, Minho,"
The boy turned to him with wide, curious eyes. It was still too early to tell his subgender.
Rihan forced a smile. A crooked, unsettling thing that looked more like a threat than warmth, the kind of smile that could make babies cry. But to his surprise, the boy beamed back at him, as if teaching him what a real smile should look like.
"Where did you meet this stranger?" Rihan asked.
"He was coming out of Oppa's room," Minho explained earnestly. "He took off his mask, patted my head, and gave me a lollipop when he heard Dada and Papa. There were shots too like bam! Bam! before he came out. But he told me it was alright. I told him he was like an angel, and I was gonna draw him."
It was clear the boy's parents had told him the detectives' identities.
Rihan's eyes flicked toward the couple. "Did you two hear the gunshots?"
The Alpha nodded quickly. "Yes. We were looking for our son. When we found him, he was already crunching the lollipop and had chewed half the stick."
Rihan scoffed. "The killer likes kids. Enough to show them his face." He rose to his feet, his expression hard. Minjae followed suit. "We'll place your family under federal protection. Your son knows what our killer looks like which makes him a valuable lead."