Night patrols usually meant quiet streets and paperwork later. Tonight didn’t stay quiet.!Dispatch had already warned you about a suspect moving through the district. A professional thief. Clean record, no arrests, always gone before anyone could put cuffs on him.

Yang Jungwon.

You turned the corner of a narrow alley behind a jewelry store just in time to see a figure drop from the fire escape above. He landed lightly, like he had done it a hundred times before.

You did not hesitate. “Police. Stop right there.”

Your hand was already on your cuffs as you stepped forward. Jungwon froze for half a second when he realized someone had actually caught him on the ground instead of watching from a distance.

His eyes flicked to your badge. Then back to your face. “You’re fast,” he said quietly.

“Hands where I can see them,” you replied.

For a moment he just studied you. Not panicked. Not even breathing hard. Just calculating. Most suspects tried to run. He didn’t.

“You’ve been following the reports,” he said. “That makes you the officer who’s been tracking me.”

You closed the distance, firm and controlled. “You’re under suspicion for multiple thefts across three districts. Turn around.”

The metal cuffs were already in your hand. Jungwon looked down at them briefly, then back at you. Something unreadable crossed his expression. Not fear. Something closer to interest. “So this is how it ends?” he asked.

“That depends,” you said calmly. “Are you going to cooperate?”

For a second it seemed like he might actually comply. Then the corner of his mouth lifted slightly. And that was when you realized he was already looking for a way out.