Chapter 82: I'm Not Going Back
President Lee knew that Mina would react negatively to what he was going to tell her, but he did not know how dramatic her reaction was going to be. No one wanted to be forced into staying with a person they hated.
"I'm not going back into that room. Just kill me or take me to a high enough place and I'll jump," Mina said, but Ian did not agree. President Lee took one step forward, he wanted to show Mina that he meant no harm but as soon as he lifted his foot, she sprang past him.
The guest bedroom was huge, but all Mina could see was the door in front of her. It was so close yet so far away. She was about to look back at President Lee when her waist was captured by his strong arms. Mina flailed her body, trying to free herself of him, but he just held her tighter. She opened her mouth to scream but one of his large hands stopped her from doing so. Mina's breaths became rapid, she had no idea what the man was going to do to her now that she tried to escape. She had been working so hard to be calm and to follow direction, but what he told her was too much. She couldn't accept it. Mina could feel President Lee's entire body shaking with anger and tears began to roll down her cheeks. She was terrified of the man holding her. Long gone was the awe he once inspired within her.
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Ian wrapped his arms around Mina's body to stop her from leaving. Had it not been for her kicking and screaming, the position they were in could be mistaken for a hug. His body began to shake as he suppressed the urge to pull her in closer and beg her for forgiveness, but his guilt didn't allow him to speak about those matters. Ian fought back the desire to kiss her cheek and tell her that she would be ok, but he knew that she would not want that. Her body was so tense that he felt as if he were hugging a statue. Lowering his head to her ear, Ian whispered for Mina to hush and in his best attempt at a reassuring voice he spoke slowly.
"I'm not going to hurt you. Calm down and I will let you go." It took Mina a full minute to compose herself. Their proximity was overwhelming her, but she knew that she could not win against his strength. "Are you calm?" he asked, and Mina nodded, although she was still reeling inside.
Slowly, Ian released Mina. He took a few steps back and lifted his hands in front of his body, so she could clearly see that he was not trying to threaten her. Mina turned toward him, but she did not look at the man in front of her. She did not want him to see her tears, he did not deserve to see her cry.
"Mina, I think you are in danger," President Lee said. "Not just you, your family too. It's better for you to stay here until we can figure it out." Mina roughly wiped her face and turned away from him. She was desperately trying not to let her tears fall.
"But… What about my parents?" she asked, and Ian was truthful. He told her that if he sent people to guard them or if he moved them to safety, it would alert the person he was trying to catch. He told her that the safest option for her parents was to leave them where they were.
Logically speaking, Mina knew that President Lee was right and her instinct to protect her family kicked in. She nodded her head in submission. Mina knew that her deal with Luna extended to President Lee by default, but she could not hope for an outside and hostile party to be lenient. If staying in the dark meant that she could protect her loved ones, she would do it.
"President Lee, I… I… will go back to that room." Mina choked out these words as she hugged her own arms. She had developed a fear of darkness due to her stay in the Lee mansion, and although her words said otherwise, she was unwilling to return to that place.
Ian did not realize that she would misinterpret him when he told her she would live here. In retrospect, he probably should have specifically said that she would stay in a guest room and perhaps she wouldn't have reacted so violently. She was so traumatized that she even cried when he held her. He didn't say anything, but he could feel her tears fall on his hands when he was covering her mouth.
Ian knew he had been cruel, but he did not realize that the woman before him had suffered so much. At the time, he was still under the assumption that Mina was some sort of spy, but as it turned out, she was just an unfortunate pawn in someone's scheme. Registering his mistake, Ian clarified.
"You will stay here, in this room." Mina looked confused at first, but realization hit her quickly. Seeing her reaction, Ian knew that he would have to be clear and concise when speaking to Mina in the future.
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Mina was rooted in place. She heard what president Lee said about staying in the guest room, but did he not realize that a prison was a prison, nonetheless?
"For how long?" Mina asked. She did not expect the man behind her to tell the truth.
"I would be lying if I gave you a time frame," he said. Mina's mind was spinning. She did not understand why he had changed his mind about keeping her alive. She was about to ask him about it when an idea struck her. Did she not promise herself that if President Lee did not kill her first, she would kill him? Wasn't this an opportunity? Clearing her thoughts, Mina replied.
"I… I need to go to my apartment to gather my belongings." Unbeknownst to her, President Lee had already made these arrangements.
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Ian did not want to tell Mina that her things were already being packed. He knew that she would consider it an invasion of her privacy, and he did not want to push her any further away.
"Is there anything specific that you need?" he asked, and Mina nodded.
"A lot of my items hold sentimental value to me," she replied, but she did not expect him to understand.
"Mina, with your permission, I will have someone move your things into this room. Is that okay?" President Lee asked. Mina thought for a moment before she agreed.
A sense of relief washed over him, Ian was afraid Mina would insist on moving the items herself and he was not sure he would have been able to refuse anything she asked. That was how badly he wanted her to forgive him. He himself had only just realized the weight of the emotions he was holding back.