Prey (Lee Seohan) - Chapter 170

Jeonghan nodded.

Seeing the seriousness on his face, tension grew in Suhyeon’s eyes.

She still didn’t know how Seol Hee-nam had killed his parents. No matter how ruthless Seol Hee-nam was, it seemed unimaginable for her to kill the children of a chaebol family.

But at the same time, Suhyeon was afraid to hear the truth.

After briefly letting her wavering emotions show, she composed her expression and looked at him.

“If there’s something I don’t know, don’t hide it. You need to tell me now. I have a right to know.”

Suhyeon looked at him firmly.

What she had already heard from Seol Hee-nam had been shocking enough, but if there was something she didn’t know yet, she needed to find out.

Knowing and facing the truth was better than being left in the dark. Especially when she thought about how angry she had been at Jeonghan for not telling her before.

With that resolve, Suhyeon looked at Jeonghan.

“……”

Jeonghan silently took her hand.

After gazing at their clasped hands for a moment, he lifted his eyes and met hers once more.

Seeing the unresolved conflict in his eyes, Suhyeon felt a sudden surge of anxiety.

What kind of words would make him hesitate like this?

…Still, I need to hear it.

I have to know so we can face it together.

Suhyeon steadied herself once more and looked directly at Jeonghan. Meeting her gaze, he finally opened his mouth.

“…Oh kyung-hee, your mother.”

Suhyeon instinctively gasped.

Mom…?

Even though she had braced herself, the mention of her mother’s name elicited an immediate reaction.

As she struggled to calm her pounding heart, Jeonghan, with a somber gaze, continued.

“She didn’t fall into a coma because of a suicide attempt.”
Suhyeon’s eyes widened.

“If that wasn’t the reason… then what?”

Her heart creaked with a fearful rhythm.

“It was because of Seol Hee-nam.”

“!”

Suhyeon’s face froze in shock.

“What… did you just say…?”

Jeonghan gripped Suhyeon’s hand tightly and met her wavering dark eyes head-on.

“Seol Hee-nam lured Oh kyung-hee to the mountain and pushed her. The one who did that to Oh kyung-hee… is Seol Hee-nam.”

That can’t be…

Suhyeon’s lips parted slightly. Her eyes darted around, trembling in disbelief, while Jeonghan kept his steady gaze on her.

Barely moving her lips, Suhyeon managed to whisper, “For what reason… why would she do that?”

Jeonghan’s expression darkened.

“For the insurance money.”

“What…?”

“Her business ran out of cash, so it seems she planned to claim Oh kyung-hee’s life insurance payout. The insurance policy on Oh kyung-hee was for a considerable amount.”

For insurance money?

So she tried to kill my mother for that?

The words were so hard to believe that Suhyeon felt as though her chest was being crushed. Her heart creaked uneasily as though it might break.

“H-how do you know that…?”

Suhyeon’s lips quivered uncontrollably.

Jeonghan replied with a heavy expression.

“At the time, I had someone keeping an eye on Seol Hee-nam. I received a report that they witnessed her pushing Oh kyung-hee off the cliff. Although we managed to retrieve Oh kyung-hee, who was severely injured, and take her to the hospital, she fell into a coma.”

“……!”

Suhyeon tightly shut her eyes.

Her chest constricted so painfully that she couldn’t breathe, and tears began to well up.

“Suhyeon.”

Jeonghan held her trembling eyelashes in his gaze and gripped her hand firmly.

“Are you okay?”

His eyes, looking directly at her, were earnest.

“How… how could she do that to my mother…?”

Tears streamed down Suhyeon’s face.

How could someone do that to a person who had endured so much pain? For nothing more than insurance money?

To push her mother off that high mountain for such a reason?

“Huuhhh…”

“Suhyeon.”

Suhyeon’s body crumpled as she covered her eyes with her hands and broke into sobs. Unbearable tears poured down her face, soaking her cheeks.

Jeonghan gazed at Suhyeon, who collapsed onto the bed as if folding in on herself, with a sorrowful expression. His jaw was tightly set.

Even though he knew it would cause her pain, telling her the truth was just as agonizing for him. If he could, he would have kept it hidden forever, but that would neither be fair to Suhyeon nor to Oh kyung-hee.

In the end, Suhyeon had to know.

Even for the sake of avenging Oh kyung-hee.

But despite that understanding, watching Suhyeon crumble and sob uncontrollably tore at him. Jeonghan drew a deep breath to steady himself.

At that moment, Suhyeon began to wheeze.

Jeonghan froze in place.

“!”

Seeing Suhyeon clutch her throat and wheeze as if she had forgotten how to breathe, his expression changed drastically.