Fair Trade

“Don’t worry. If you’re with me, you can easily escape without dying,” David, who said so, approached the central computer and had his iris and fingerprint scanned. After having his entire body scanned, he entered his voice into the system. The large safe door then opened with a faint mechanical sound.

A vault this large…

Sei was delighted to witness a situation she had only seen in movies unfold before her eyes, but she was also feeling dizzy right at this moment. Her fever seemed to have returned. She could tell the effects of the cold medicine were starting to wear off.

“Wow, as expected.”

David’s safe was loaded with cash. Giulio went inside whistling and proceeded to sniff a wad of bills as if savoring them.

“Now that we know we can’t trust any of the Petrovs’ proposals… I hope that you will make the right decision.”

“Is the price still unchanged?”

“I came here from the start to make a deal without bargaining. I made it pretty clear before.”

David exhaled a long sigh as he gazed at Yuri, who was still standing at the door, and stroked his well-groomed beard.

“300 kg after 24 hours. Texas. Is that even possible?”

“It’s possible right now.”

As soon as the two shook hands, their attendants entered and started stuffing money into the bag.

Sei felt her legs become limp. It was when she tried to move in the opposite direction, away from Yuri’s gaze, that her forehead began to burn.

“Miss Rose,” David called out to her. As Sei turned around, he opened another safe and approached her with a velvet case. Then, he handed what he had in his hand over, staring straight into her black eyes.

“What is this…?”

”I owe you my life. Yuri Rose can’t be your real name… Young lady, why don’t you tell me now what your real name is?”

He was a person to whom she couldn’t lie to. Sei’s lips parted. “… Sei. It’s Sei.”

“Hmm, Sei. That sounds good. You know, I never owe anyone anything in any way or form. I’ll probably never forget today. It was amazing and it was terrible to think that I might have lost all these beautiful things if it weren’t for you.”

Sei opened the velvet case he gave her. Inside was a brooch that looked like an owl. Decorated with diamonds and sapphires, it was no ordinary thing even at first glance. But the value of the brooch was another thing altogether.

While she was enraptured, David, who smirked, continued to talk, tapping his finger on the brooch, “One time. I’ll help you only for one time since I like my life and I like being rich. Show it to whomever whenever and wherever you need to and tell them my name. Tell them that this is from David Meyer. This is a token of my promise, a promise in my name. Is there anyone in this world who doesn’t know what this means?”

She bit her slightly open lip and nodded while smiling.

The tremor that just started from her hand holding the brooch spread throughout her body. For a moment, Sei recalled her father, Jang Young-guk.

He had been refusing her visits so far in case she got involved.

“Thank you, David. I won’t waste your kindness.”

When those who took the advance money came out, the safe door was closed just like when she first laid eyes on it. When the event was about to end, David, feeling better, picked up the champagne nearby and shouted, “Everyone, let’s get the real party started now.”

The crowd cheered when they heard him say that. The whole atmosphere changed in an instant. When people who appeared to be bodyguards took away the jewels, the servers filled the place with alcohol, food, and women.

The place had been turned into a high-class dinner party. The loud music tired her a great deal. It was just when she couldn’t stand it any longer and was about to leave the venue that Giulio approached and asked her while the scent of alcohol faintly wafted off him, “Are you not feeling well?”

Giulio leaned his upper body forward, clutching her arm.

“I’m not feeling well. I’ll go to my room and rest, so enjoy the party.”

“I’ll call a doctor.”

“I’m not that sick. I’m just tired. So, I’ll go ahead and leave first.”

Nodding her head, she shrugged Giulio’s hand off her, left the venue, and stood in front of the elevator. Her palm that had hit the gold bar was swollen.

What the hell happened…?

Sei got on the elevator that arrived, feeling like she was being sucked into a distant place. The moment she was about to close the door, a big white hand dug into the gap.

Yuri got into the elevator and grabbed her wrist as soon as she pressed on the top floor. The look in his eyes as he looked down at her swollen palms was filled with dissatisfaction and his red lips twisted irritably.

Sei decided to say what was on her mind.

“Did I make a mistake? I didn’t know it was from your brother. If only I knew…”

“No, I had no idea either. Camille isn’t the kind of person who would use these kinds of tricks. It’s my job, not his, to use sweet words to pull the wool over people’s eyes whenever the opportunity arises.”

“Then… could it be that it wasn’t something your brother sent?”

“I’m weighing on that possibility. That’s why David chose Giulio’s stuff. Camille doesn’t do business with Bolivia. I guarantee it.”

Yuri looked at Sei with a determined look. His hand, which was rubbing his neck, touched her face and rubbed around her beautiful eyes. Sei felt her mouth go dry. She wondered if Yuri was the reason why her lips keep drying up.

Inside the quiet and dark elevator, the penthouse lights reflected in her exquisitely painted eyes. Sei pushed his chest out of the elevator.

They went straight into the penthouse, passed the gang members stuffing the cash into the safe, and they headed for her narrow room. Preoccupied with the huge amount of cash, they did not seem to notice that the two had come back.

As soon as she opened the door and entered, Yuri’s arm wrapped around her waist. Pressing his lips against the nape of her neck, he closed the door and muttered softly. “Sei, stop looking at me right now.”

The voice was so sorrowful that she was taken aback. She thought she was just having a casual one-night stand. A relationship that didn’t have to be serious, where they liked and enjoyed each other, and then would naturally move away from each other.

Of course, there were more times when she felt his affection, but she believed that there was no sincerity in this man’s words and actions.

However, the emotions in his words just now were too heavy and thick to dismiss them as just sweet nothings for their one-night stands. She felt his face at the back of my neck and ran her hand through his hair. Her heart was beating fast. It seemed that her body was numb somewhere and could not function properly.

“Yuri.”

She turned her head and called his name. She prayed her voice wouldn’t tremble. She hoped she could look at this man with cold eyes.

“Yuri Petrov suits you more than Kais Miller.”

Raising his head obliquely at her words, he pressed his lips against hers and moved his tongue little by little, looking for a gap.

Suddenly, a lump of soft flesh wriggled between her clenched lips and it turned into a passionate kiss.