The War of Gods (A Welcome to the Underworld Novel, Book 3) (46 page)

Boom!

A gunshot was fired, and Yoori thought her brother had shot at another part of her body. Her eyes enlarged even further when she heard a scream and saw her older brother clutching on to his right arm. It was now bleeding from a gunshot wound.

Someone sped past her, jumped towar
d Young Jae, and performed a roundhouse kick that left Young Jae spurting blood from his mouth. The assault didn’t end there. He followed that move by delivering a spinning air kick that left Young Jae to fly across the room like a speeding bullet.

Kwon Tae Hyun.

Just like all the previous moments of her life, her dark knight had arrived for her and he looked livid. Her heart raced when she gauged how furious he looked. She knew what Tae Hyun was planning to do to her brother.

“Tae Hyun,
don’t!” Yoori cried when Tae Hyun sped over to her brother with his silver gun in hand. Despite all that he had done to her, Yoori still loved her brother. She would be damned if she allowed her own boyfriend to kill him off. “Please don’t. He’s my brother!”

At the plea in her frantic voice, an
enraged Tae Hyun stopped midway. The posture of his body told her that he was itching to beat the hell out of Young Jae before killing him. He was only holding back for her.

Tae Hyun
stood with unforgiving rage, his silver gun pointed in the direction of Young Jae. Her brother was still groaning on the floor. His hand was clutching on to the bullet wound on his opposite arm. Young Jae struggled to stand after the assault Tae Hyun bequeathed unto him.

“How could you do this to your own sister?” Tae Hyun asked in disgust
.

Young Jae laughed bitterly, staggering to stand up
. There was no fear in his eyes. There was just hostility and the thirst for blood.

“Stay out of this, Tae Hyun. My fight has ne
ver been with you.”

“Anythin
g that involves her involves me,” Tae Hyun replied without hesitation. Anger was prominent in his dark voice.

More l
aughter erupted from Young Jae. He continued to clutch on to his wounded arm, looking at Tae Hyun with the utmost pity.

“Oh
, the irony,” he drawled out in a patronizing tone. “The chosen King
. . .
the very pride of the Underworld
. . .
falling victim to the very thing that’s known to be the downfall of all great Kings in this world.” Young Jae smirked, the irony being too much for him to handle. His eyes slid from Yoori and then back to Tae Hyun. “And of all people, it just had to be you two who fell for each other.”

His dark eyes pierced into Tae Hyun.
“You have no idea what you’re getting yourself involved in, Tae Hyun. An Soo Jin is a ruthless bitch in every sense of the word. She was willing to betray me—her own flesh and blood—for a shot at power. What do you think she’ll do to you once she regains her memories? The one person who’s the leader of the gang she despises the most? Do you think you’ll have a happily ever after with your Yoori? Think again. Soo Jin will take over and your precious girlfriend will cease to exist in this world.” Determination marked his voice. “Help me now, Tae Hyun. Choi Yoori is a useless cause. Save your throne, and I won’t bring forth a war that will be your downfall.”

“I don’t fear you, Young Jae,” Tae Hyun said darkly. “Your bullsh
it threats mean nothing to me.”

“Bull
shit?” Young Jae asked disbelievingly. Another derisive chuckle issued from his lips. “For the past three years, I’ve spent my time under the wings of Japan’s most notorious crime lords. I’ve been rising through the ranks as a shadow King and have formed a powerful gang that no one had anticipated. All it takes is the snap of my fingers and my loyal Scorpions throughout Korea will resurrect. All it takes is a simple phone call and my soldiers from Japan will come running. Is this the war you want, King of Serpents? All for the Queen of the Underworld who will not hesitate to battle you for your throne once she regains her memory?”

A suspended moment of silence
spread over the room while Tae Hyun absorbed Young Jae’s words.

Yoori, who was now
frozen with apprehension, was quiet as well because she knew what Young Jae said was true. Yoori was on the brink and everyone knew it. It was only a matter of time before she regained her memories; it was only a matter of time before Soo Jin reclaimed the life that was stolen from her. More importantly, it was only a matter of time before Yoori ceased to exist. Thoughts like this had invaded her mind in the past, but its effects had never been this strong for Yoori, who was now so broken that she couldn’t help but wonder what was happening in Tae Hyun’s mind.

T
ae Hyun, whose voice teemed with resolution and determination, breached the silence. “I’ve told you once before that I can’t control time, Young Jae. I can’t control the fact that she used to be Soo Jin and that she would’ve been my enemy if we’d met under different circumstances. I can’t control the fact that Ji Hoon was there for her first, that he came before me. But it’s my time now. As far as I’m concerned, you will not touch a hair on her head if I’m around. If you want to get to her, you’ll have to do it over my dead body.”

Relief
entered Yoori’s body at the heartfelt words expressed by Tae Hyun. She had always known that he would protect her. To hear him proclaim it under such circumstances touched her heart even more. Her heart’s moment of reprieve was fleeting before her brother broke it further.

Yo
ung Jae scoffed mockingly. “Then you’re a better man for her than Ji Hoon could ever hope to be.”

Before giving them time to truly soak up his words, Young Jae’s severe eyes zeroed in onto Yoori.

He wasn’t staring at her like she was his sister; he was staring at her like she was his most hated enemy.

“Soo Jin,
” he began. “From this moment forth, there will be no more hesitation or mercy on my part. For the next days to follow, I’ll give you the time to enjoy what’s left of your life. It will be my final gift to you. But rest assured that after today, I’m severing all ties with you. The next time I see you, I
will
bring war upon you.” He glanced at Tae Hyun. “And anyone who stands in my way.” He returned his focus to her, a dark shadow crossing his face. “I came back to Seoul for your head and I won’t leave until I show you hell.” He smiled cruelly, his eyes running from Tae Hyun and then to her once more. “Good luck with the King of Serpents before he sees you for who you really are.”

Horror laced Yoori’s pale face at the last of her brother’s words. She knew he was
referring to the issue pertaining to Tae Hyun’s mother and how she died. She had hoped that it was a bullshit thing Young Jae concocted to break her from Tae Hyun. Yet, deep in her heart, she knew she couldn’t escape the truth.

It was unmistakable.

Soo Jin had something to do with the death of Tae Hyun’s mother.

With that
, Young Jae disappeared out of the nearest exit, leaving Yoori and Tae Hyun alone. Behind Tae Hyun, Mina and Ace stood at the doorway, gazing at their boss for further instructions. Tae Hyun clutched on to his gun, his body more than ready to chase after Young Jae.

It was
Yoori’s voice that caused Tae Hyun to finally turn around, his regretful eyes boring into her.

“Just let him go
. . .
please
,” she begged.

Blood dripped all around her while
tears clouded her doe-like eyes. She owed her brother that much. She owed the one who took care of her, the one who once loved her, and the one she betrayed that much.

“
We’re going to regret letting him go,” Tae Hyun told her softly, throwing his gun to the floor before finally running to her.

He wrapped her closer to him
after Yoori jumped into his embrace, shaking while holding him and finally crying into his arms. She wasn’t sure if she replied with anything. All that she could feel was her soul shattering as she sobbed into his arms. All that she could remember was crying over the loss of her only family member. All that she could remember was crying because she knew that Tae Hyun was right.

One day,
they would both regret letting Young Jae go.

“When you become human. . .
”

19: Before Hell Takes Over

Yoori wasn’t sure how long she sat in the bathtub, shaking with self-loathing. She was aware she looked pathetic, but she no longer cared. What was there to care about when her world had fallen apart? Along with the world, her identity and her sense of purpose crumbled.

After the revelation that shook her to her core, Yoori excused herself from Tae Hyun’s hold when they returned to the apartment. She proceeded to barricade herself in the bathroom, not even bothering to turn on the lights before she crawled into the empty bathtub. She did not want to feel the presence of light; she merely sat there in total darkness and allowed the misery to consume her.

I’m a monster
. . .
I caused all of this
. . .
this is all my fault
, she told herself, rocking in the darkness.

Yoori could feel her memories thrash against the wall she meticulously built. There was a monster inhabiting her body, breathing in silence as it awaited freedom. The monster plagued her with its existence and there was nothing Yoori could do but try to fend it off. It was fast becoming a futile battle because she was losing horribly. The end was near
, and she was close to snapping. All she could do was cry to herself, wallow in her own despair, and abhor herself for breathing.

I should’ve died three years ago
. . .

Yoori recalled the hatred her brother and his wife had for her, the hatred the Cobras had for her, and the hatred she had for herself. How could she blame them? Even
she
detested her own existence. She wanted to save herself from death before, but now, Yoori wasn’t so sure how much she wanted to live. She could no longer catalog her thoughts and sense of purpose in her life. She wanted to die one moment and live the other. Now, she wanted to die because she was a mess. Was she losing her mind? Was this what it was like to lose one’s sanity?

She was so consumed in her thoughts that she hadn't realized the door had cracked open until a single beam of light from a lighter penetrated the darkness.

Yoori gazed up with lifeless eyes. In her periphery, she saw that Tae Hyun was walking through the door. He had changed out of his clothes and was now shirtless and wearing a white, lounge drawstring pant. With a lighter in hand, he reached over the marble sink and lit a single white candle before diffusing the lighter. He tossed the lighter onto the counter, closed the door, and approached her in the candle-lit darkness.

“You’ve been in here for a while, Brat,” he noted gently.

He casually stepped into the dry bathtub and sat across from her. His face glowed gorgeously under the kiss of the single candle illuminating the bathroom.

“Why are you here?” Yoori asked bluntly.

She hugged her knees to her chest. Looking down, Yoori noticed she was still wearing the clothes she wore earlier. There were splotches of dried blood staining her once pure clothes. The dried blood reminded her of the Scorpions her brother ordered to attack her. The sudden horrid flashes of Anna kicking her, the Scorpions abusing her, and her brother pointing a gun at her, ready to kill her, haunted Yoori. She made sure to keep her tears to herself when she gazed at Tae Hyun. Though she broke down when she saw him at the restaurant, she was determined to keep composure now. She was sick of crying in front of him.

“Why wouldn’t I be here?” he asked. His tone was marginally offended that she would ask him such a question.

“You’ve been avoiding me for the past couple of days.” She didn’t attempt to hide the resentment in her voice. “I don’t see why it’s important that you come see me now.”

When Yoori and Tae Hyun went to Dr. Han to tend to their wounds and give Yoori the stitches she needed, Tae Hyun confessed that he had been busy for the last couple of days because he was digging up information on her brother. Yoori should have been relieved when she learned this. On the contrary, relief was the last thing she felt. She understood that everything Tae Hyun did, he did to protect her. Nevertheless, she resented that he kept something that important, especially regarding her brother, away from her.

“I didn’t feel it was necessary to share that I was busy digging up information on your brother, especially with the state you were in,” he explained.

His hands reached out to hold hers, but Yoori quickly withdrew her hands from his reach. She wasn’t ready for him to touch her, to care for her. If he touched her, then her control would disintegrate. She would simply crumble apart and cry into his embrace again. And God help her, Yoori wanted to maintain some dignity, some strength in her life
—at least for a little while before she broke down again.