by Con Template
All nine nodded in understanding.
“Leave the country tonight,” Tae Hyun ordered. “I never want to see any of you again.”
“Boss, please,” Ace pleaded. Rivulets of sweat dripped over his forehead from the pain he was experiencing. Despite the direness of his wound, Ace, along with the rest of the Cobras, displayed nothing but reverence and love for Tae Hyun. “We can still be useful to you.”
“You’re done here, Ace,” Tae Hyun dismissed quietly. “You were kicked out. There's no coming back in . . . especially after what happened here tonight.” His gaze roamed over them. Disappointment cloaked his eyes. “You’ve all disappointed me to no end and now you’re done for good. Leave the country. If I run into any of you again, I won’t be as forgiving.”
“But we can help you find Seo Jin Ae!” the blonde girl cried, clutching her hands over her gunshot wound. “You trained us for this. You know we’re the only ones who can find her.”
Tae Hyun did not budge. “That’s not enough to make up for what you did tonight, Sue.”
When it looked like he was ready to leave, Mina suddenly shouted, “We know the names of the people An Soo Jin brought here!”
Tae Hyun—along with Yoori, Kang Min, and Jae Won—stilled. It felt like the entire world had stopped spinning to listen to the words coming from Mina’s lips.
“Say that again, Mina?” Tae Hyun voiced in astonishment.
Noting the interest searing out of her King’s eyes, and with the approval from her fellow assassins, Mina continued. “Before you kicked us out, you had us investigate what took place here during the ‘Club Massacre.’ We couldn’t find much over the course of those years, but after you kicked us out of the gang, we grew relentless. It took a long time, but we were able to find out the name of the family.”
“Tell me,” Tae Hyun commanded, his interest heightening by the second.
Behind him, Yoori and the brothers listened with undivided attention.
“The Hwang Family,” said Ace, clutching on to his wound. “Hwang Hee Jun’s family.”
Yoori didn’t understand who the family was, but judging by the reactions of Tae Hyun and the brothers, this was an enormous revelation.
“You’re all sure?” Tae Hyun asked slowly, his breath catching in his throat. He seemed . . . astonished.
They nodded as the one with the eye-patch said, “We wouldn’t tell you unless we knew with certainty that it was true.”
“Who is your source?” probed Tae Hyun.
“A lost Scorpion,” said the one with the Mohawk. “He was one of the few in the nightclub with An Soo Jin when the massacre took place.”
“How did you get this information from him?”
“We found him in Tokyo. He had strayed from An Young Jae to start his own gang in Japan. When we found him, we kidnapped him, held him for two weeks and eventually, he cracked.”
“He gave you this information under duress. How do you know it’s true?”
“We used the interrogation techniques that you taught us,” Sue answered carefully. “All he wanted to do was die; he would not have lied to us.”
Yoori wondered about the value and reliability of this information. She was still curious when Tae Hyun walked over to her, tucked his arms behind her legs, picked her up, and began to exit the club. When he bequeathed his next orders, she discovered just how reliable and valuable this information was.
“Find me Jin Ae, and you’ll all be part of the gang again.”
Her eyes expanded.
This revelation was big.
It was so big in fact that it merited an opportunity for redemption for the once exiled members of the Serpents gang.
Settling into the car as Tae Hyun slammed on the gas pedal and rushed her to his private physician, only two questions coursed in Yoori’s mind:
Who were the Hwangs and who was Hwang Hee Jun?
“Are punished without mercy. . .”
06: The Siberian Tigers
“Jae Won, I know you have to go and be with Chae Young. Please feel free to leave. Kang Min, would you stay with her tonight? I’ve already doubled the security on her,” Tae Hyun ordered hours later.
They had arrived at Yoori’s apartment after Tae Hyun took Yoori to his private doctor, got her the treatment she needed, and rushed her back home to rest.
Throughout the duration of this, Yoori barely had any alone time with Tae Hyun. Albeit the curiosity about the Hwang family was killing her, the fact that he was behaving so indifferently toward her was killing her more. The guy wouldn’t even speak to her. After the torrent of concern he displayed at the club, it seemed that Tae Hyun had time to remind himself that he was indeed over her. His nonchalance and silence were eating her up alive.
“You’re not staying?” Yoori finally blurted out, hoping that they would have some time to talk. Granted she hadn’t had much time to herself after meeting with Ji Hoon, Hae Jin, and then being attacked by assassins, she still wanted Tae Hyun’s company. Regardless of what a headache he was, she was eager to talk to him.
Tae Hyun narrowed his eyes onto her. The words that came out of his mouth stung her. “Why should I when I know that you’d probably prefer to have Ji Hoon here instead of me?”
His harsh question nearly caused her to capsize from her bed. Was that why he was ignoring her? Because he was replaying those words she said?
“I—”
“I’m leaving now,” Tae Hyun interrupted, cutting Yoori off. He lifted himself off the bed and was out of the room in a flash. “I’ll see you guys later.”
Even though she knew it was fucked up of her to tell him that she would choose Ji Hoon over him, Yoori still grew angry and defensive. Tae Hyun had no right to treat her like this. Yoori’s immature, feisty personality, which had been bottled up after what transpired three weeks ago, was set loose. Tae Hyun always had the ability, no matter how much he broke her heart, to make her forget about the bigger problems in her life and focus all her attention on him.
“Hey, slow down! I’m injured!” she cried, pushing past the brothers.
She cursed her life as she pathetically limped after him down the stairs. He just saved her life from a bunch of vengeful assassins; he could at least be nice so she could thank him for his kindness. “I’m not done talking to you!”
He wouldn’t slow down.
It got so bad that Tae Hyun was actually yards away from her once she stumbled out of her apartment complex.
“Ow, ow, ow!” she cried after she limped out of her apartment.
Yoori was momentarily paralyzed by the chilliness of the night. She looked past the snow raining down on her, her eyes locked on a very fast moving Tae Hyun. She heaved a bitter breath. It would make sense that her overly dramatic life would end with her and Tae Hyun arguing again. Enraged that he was ignoring her screams for him to stop, Yoori bent down, scooped up a handful of snow, and threw a snowball at Tae Hyun’s retreating head.
“What the fu—!”
The snowball successfully collided with the back of his head, earning a curse of infuriation from the King of Serpents. He wheeled around in anger.
“Jae Won, Kang Min,” Yoori ordered when the brothers ran out. “Leave!”
Alarm entered their massive eyes when they saw that Tae Hyun was glowering at Yoori.
Yoori fumed inwardly. She refused to allow Tae Hyun to keep one of them here to babysit her. She didn’t want to be with the brothers; she wanted to be with him.
“Uh . . .”
When Jae Won and Kang Min hesitated, Yoori imparted them with a death glare that had them scurrying off. They gave a bow of goodbye to Tae Hyun, who was too busy glaring at Yoori to even acknowledge them. The engine of the car started soon after and they were off, disappearing into the snowy night.
“What the fuck was that?” Tae Hyun snarled. His feet pressed deep into the snow when he approached her in fury.
“Don’t you dare give me attitude about Ji Hoon when you were the one who ig
nored me on the street like I didn’t even exist!” Yoori confronted once he reached her.
They had never been the type of couple who walked on eggshells around one another. Yoori would be damned if they did it now, especially when she was so pissed at him.
“You told me to stay out of your life,” he snapped back, his eyes just as enflamed as hers. He was infuriated. “You told me if you could do it all over again, you would choose Ji Hoon over me. Then I see you talking to him on the street like you were getting ready to go have dinner together? What do you expect me to do? Grovel at your feet and beg to be back in your life when it’s clear that you’re ready to move on?”
“I was angry at you!” she barked back, pained by the hurt in his voice. She was also pained by her own frustration. “I didn’t mean what I said about Ji Hoon,” she finally admitted. “I lied so I could get away from you because I was furious with you!”
Tae Hyun’s eyes enlarged at this admission. He appeared simultaneously relieved and pissed that she lied.
Yoori forged on. “It wasn’t on purpose that I ran into Ji Hoon. I just came from the library for God’s sake! I wanted a burger and fries for dinner. I ran into him. I was only talking to him for a second before your ass strutted out like you owned the world and you walked past me like I didn’t even exist.”
Tae Hyun shook his head at her last statement. His expression mirrored the exasperation on her face. “You have no idea how much I wanted to pull you along with me. But I remembered your ‘order’ to stay out of your life. So don’t blame me for shit I can’t control, Yoori. If I had it my way, you would’ve never left in the cab that day. However, you made it clear that you no longer wanted me in your life and I’m trying my best to abide by those wishes.”
“Do you really have any right to be angry, Tae Hyun?” Yoori asked critically.
Although Yoori knew he had every right to be angry at the horrible lie she fed him, it still didn’t come close to the lies that he fed her.
“No, I don’t,” he acknowledged. His eyes were stricken with storms of guilt. “I deserve this punishment after what I did to you.” His jaw clenched. “I may deserve this punishment, but that doesn’t mean I’m immune to it. This may come as a surprise to you, Yoori, but I do have emotions and they’re pretty responsive whenever it involves you.”
He sighed as the snow kissed their skin and the wind billowed around them.
“Why are we here like this, Yoori?” he finally asked in weariness. “I’m trying to stay out of your life, but you decide to chase me down when I try to leave? What are you doing?”
“Do you think this is easy for me, Tae Hyun?” she asked, pointing her white-bandaged fingers over her dust-covered trench coat. “You were my best friend. I trusted and adored you for months. All the shit I said to you may have been said out of anger, but that doesn’t mean I’ll have an easier time getting over you.” The verity of her emotions erupted out of her before she could even think about restraining them. “In case you haven’t noticed, it’s clear that you still mean something to me, especially when I get pissed off that you didn’t even acknowledge me on the fucking street.”
He raked his fingers through his hair in aggravation. “What do you want from me right now, Yoori?”
“I don’t want you to leave me!” she blurted out, shocking both Tae Hyun and herself. She couldn’t stop as the words continued to stampede out of her. “I could forgive you for bringing me into this world because I know that if you hadn’t brought me in, someone else would have and I probably would be dead by now. But I can’t forgive you for lying to me all those months. I’m so angry and disappointed with you!” Her lips trembled uncontrollably. “I wish I didn’t care so much that you followed my request and actually stayed out of my life. I wish I didn’t care about you so I could move on. But it’s obvious that I can’t. I can’t stop thinking about you. I’m miserable without you, you addicting bastard! I want you with me so I can stay mad at you.” Yoori paused for a moment before brokenly adding, “I don’t want you to give up on me.”
“Give up on you?” Tae Hyun was floored. “Do you have any idea the things you do to me? If this was any other situation, then I would’ve said, ‘fuck it’ to your requests and chased you down already. But since it was you who demanded that I stay out of your life, I respected that because you had every right to be angry and punish me.”
He breathed in anguish.
“I don’t know how else to apologize to you, Yoori. I fucked up. I know I did. I wish I wasn’t as corrupted when I first met you. I wish I wasn’t such a manipulative bastard when I brought you into this world.” He bit his lips as wind descended upon them. “I wish the corrupted, heartless, and manipulative bastard in me would’ve been stronger. That way, I wouldn’t have fallen for you and be in the shithole that I’m in right now. I’m not the same guy anymore; if I was, then I couldn’t care less about who wants to kill you, I couldn’t care less about the guys you talk to, and I couldn’t care less when you looked me in the eyes and told me that if you could do it over again, you would’ve chosen Ji Hoon over me. If I was the same guy, then I wouldn’t be in a world of hell right now.”
Yoori fell quiet for a minute, not knowing how to respond to his words.
“Did you really drive away when you saw me talking to Ji Hoon?” Yoori asked instead, her heart already fighting to jump out of her chest as it yearned for Tae Hyun. The emotions he evoked paralyzed her.
“Of course not.”
Relief filled her. “Where the hell did you park?”
“Down the street until he pulled you into a corner and I couldn’t see you anymore. I was going crazy until I saw you driving away and saw that you weren’t leaving with him.”
Yoori smiled to herself.
So, he had been there all along . . .
“I thought you gave up on me,” Yoori faintly whispered.
No matter what happened between them, no matter how upset she was at him, no matter what lies she told him, he wasn’t supposed to give up on her. They had too many obstacles in their way for him to give up on her so easily. Yoori realized that was why she was so depressed when he didn’t acknowledge her on the street. She thought he had given up so easily when there were worse things coming their way.
“Our lives would be easier if we gave up on each other, wouldn’t they?” Tae Hyun asked, his eyes holding hers.
Yoori nodded. It would be much easier if they could walk away from each other and be fine without each other.
Tae Hyun exhaled, placing his hands into his pockets as if to keep himself from reaching out to her and holding her in his arms. “If you want me to stay out of your life, then I’ll do it. If you want me here with you, then I’ll do it. Whatever you want, I’ll give it to you.” He gazed at her. “What do you want, Yoori? What do you need me to do?”
“What do you need me to do?” she parroted stupidly, not knowing what answer to give him. She was conflicted with the need to be angry with him and the need to throw herself in his arms and bask in his warmth.
“I need you by my side,” he told her without hesitation. “Plain and simple.”
When he said those words, a memory of their first encounter sparked in her head, playing out an image of them discussing the specifics of her job duties in the limo. She recalled Tae Hyun telling her that she could fuck up anyway she wanted to. His only requirement was that she had to be by his side whenever he called for her, whenever he needed her. Yoori smiled at the memory. She doubted Tae Hyun remembered the conversation and the bullshit promise she made him. But to her, a promise was a promise. If she made it, then she would follow it through. Especially when it was a promise to Tae Hyun.
Yoori would’ve never forgiven anyone else, but this was Tae Hyun. After three weeks of missing him, she knew she couldn’t go on without having him beside her. Pride aside, she wasn’t sure how much longer she could go on ignoring the aching feeling in her heart. Yoori looked at him with hardened eyes. She refused to be see
n as a doormat though. She wasn’t forgiving him because she was weak; she was forgiving him because this was his second chance.
“We will not be boyfriend and girlfriend anymore,” she stipulated, intent on not making this easy for him. “We will start over. Fresh and on a clean slate.”
The smile he gave her was breathtaking. “I’d like that.”
Yoori touched his face, using all her might to not allow his charms to distract her. “If you use me or do anything like that to me ever again, I’m going to rip your eyeballs out.”
A wider smile took over the curve of his lips.
“Never again,” he promised.
“I’m serious,” she reiterated.
“So am I,” he said without hesitation.
She nodded slowly, and he smiled before saying, “So, are we good? Can I use my charms now?”
Yoori gaped at him strangely. Before she was able to voice her perplexity, Tae Hyun had already filled the space of air between them. He pulled her against him and effortlessly lifted her up. While Yoori instinctively wrapped her legs around his hips, he pressed his lips against hers.
White-hot heat seared through her soul when Yoori kissed him back. The desperation, yearning, passion, and adoration she had for him were all wrapped up in the breathtaking kiss they shared. She could scarcely breathe, but who the hell cared? Hating him aside, Yoori couldn’t deny the blazing sex appeal he continued to emanate while he ran his hand down her hair as they kissed like there was no tomorrow. They had more issues to address and more problems to resolve, but for that night, Yoori was content with enjoying Tae Hyun's company. Everything else in the world could wait.
“Never again, baby,” he promised, melting her insides just by calling her “baby.” “Never again.”
“But,” she whispered in between their kiss, “we’re not boyfriend and girlfriend anymore. You can’t kiss me like this . . .”
Despite her protest, Yoori did not attempt to break the kiss. It felt too good to stop.