Apollo’s Heart

.Chapter 18 – The Substitute (2)

Arriving at the hotel, Yuri changed into Hye-yeon’s uniform and headed to the front desk. It was something that she had seen growing up and was used to it because it was also something she usually did during her vacation to earn some extra money.

As per usual, the front desk manager, Mr. Kim was attending to his duties when Yuri walked over. She was a known face here and well-liked too, but her presence only spelled tension for it guaranteed the absence of someone. As he looked at her joining Hyun-ah Kim in the reception area, a sigh escaped his lips but he said nothing.

“Did the princess go out again?” Hyun-ah Kim asked in a whisper.

The ‘princess’ was Hye-yeon. Since the moment she was born as the daughter of the President Myung-je Jin, she was often referred to as such.

Front Desk Manager Kim and Hyun-ah Kim were experienced hands who’d been working for Hotel Jinseong for 10 years now. They knew the ins and outs of the Jin family and were no strangers to the antics of the president’s daughter. It was just that she would always land them in a spot and as much as they hated it, they had to suffer in silence.

Yuri nodded and lowered her voice.

“It’ll take a few days for her to return.”

“Well, it’s good for us that you are better at work and English than the princess, but isn’t it hard for you? Taking care of a princess.” A curt Manager Kim sounded.

“It’s nothing like babying her. We are friends.”

His terse words went in through Yuri’s one ear and out the other. Unaffected, she went about her work.

The city of Jinseong was situated along the Jinseong river. It was known for its picturesque settings mingled with reed fields. In particular, the Hotel Jinseong, located in the area where visitors could glimpse the river, was one of the most popular local attractions.

However, the hotel’s front desk during the daytime on weekdays, where there were no group tourists, was rather quiet. It was almost time for guests’ check-in

As she saw a woman in her mid-to-late thirties rush to the front desk, Yuri looked to check the time thinking she must be a check-in.

“I am the one who stayed in room 1002 and called yesterday.” She blurted.

Hyun-ah Kim recognized her and soon addressed the matter.

“Oh, are you Ms. In-sook Jung? I do remember you, ma’am.”

“Can I look in the room one more time? The thing I’ve lost is really important to me.”

“As I said over the phone yesterday, our cleaning staff checked every corner of the room but couldn’t find it.”

“My boy must have lost it while playing with it in bed. Please look for it one more time. It’s my mother’s keepsake.”

“I am afraid I cannot.”

The woman looked desperate and Hyun-ah Kim, troubled.

“What’s going on?” Yuri asked her colleague.

“She’s the guest who stayed in room 1002 two days ago. She said she’s left something in the room. So I checked with the staff, they said they found no such thing when they’re cleaning.”

“Why don’t we look behind the side table or the bed? If the child lost it while playing with it, chances are it would have rolled away.” The woman interjected, clearly not wanting to give up.

“Ma’am, the room is booked for two days from today. Plus, it’s check-in time, the guest will be here any minute now.”

It’s two o’clock when Yuri had checked. She wouldn’t have interfered with this problem because it involved breaching the protocol, but the mention of ‘mother’s keepsake’ had her wavering. It must be something she cherished. Yuri had lost her mother early and was raised by her grandmother. She could understand the woman’s feelings. Thus, she quickly made an abrupt decision.

“I’ll take a look at it.” She declared.

Hyun-ah Kim was taken aback. Here she was explaining, and there she had decided to help! She tried to stop her.

“What are you going to do? It’s check-in time.”

“Not many people check-in at exactly 2 pm on weekdays. Ten minutes should be enough. If the guest checks in, I’ll provide a satisfactory explanation.” After settling it with Hyun-ah Kim, she turned to the woman. “More than that, what does it look like, ma’am?”

The woman eagerly described the necklace. Yuri politely asked her to wait and then picked up the master key.

“I don’t know if the manager’s going to go crazy.”

Yuri simply nodded at Hyun-ah Kim’s remarks.

⸙⸙⸙

Room 1002 was on the top floor and the one with the most splendid view of the reed fields of the Jinseong river. Needless to say, it was one of the most expensive rooms in the hotel and came with a mandate: At no cost should this guest be inconvenienced.

Yuri hurriedly entered the room. She had no time to lose for she knew not when the guest would arrive. She got on all fours and began by looking under the bed and the nightstand. Next, she looked carefully under the dressing table and the cabinet. Since the housekeeping had not been able to find it, it only meant the necklace should be hidden from plain view. Even so, she didn’t find it in those places.

She got up and went to the middle of the room. She looked around as she pondered over. Soon her darting gaze stopped at the bed. Then, suddenly, she went over to it and put her hand behind the bed head.

This was a place all too familiar to her. Little Yuri had often been scolded by her grandmother for losing things under her bed. She was especially scolded for missing her grandmother’s cherished ring. When they looked, they had finally found it in the crevice on the bed head.  As her hand went in, her fingers touched something. It felt like a hook of a necklace. Yuri carefully pulled it out.

Thank God, I found it.

It was the moment when she held the necklace in her hand and was still rejoicing in her fortune, that she heard a voice.

“… what are you doing in my room?”

Her heart almost stopped. Slowly, she turned her head around and found a man standing there. He was a handsome, tall, and scary man with sharp, cold eyes and an aristocratic nose. He seemed to be the guest who’d booked this room from today.

“I’m sorry. I can explain…”

In a trice, a flustered Yuri made an attempt to explain the situation. But the man’s approach was faster.

“Ah!”

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In an instant, her arm was bent and her head pressed against the mattress. And even before Yuri could figure out the situation, the man loosened his tie and bound her wrist. It all happened in the blink of an eye. There was no time to resist or struggle.

Yuri breathed hard. She didn’t know what to say… she panicked.

“Oh, well….”

“Shh, stay still. If you don’t want to get hurt.”

He lightly pressed her head and looked into her face. She gulped hard her saliva. The man’s pressure was overwhelming. Looking into those deep dark eyes, a muddled Yuri could only manage to nod.