Chaerin stepped over the fallen body. Seungri hovered near the back sending his army into the front lines. She suspected he wasn't surprised that she’d take out the one so quickly. She even doubted he cared whether they lived or died. They were just distractions for him to get to her.

"I told you," he said eyes amused and sharp. Seungri was watching Chaerin’s every move. They were mirroring each other as they waited for an opening to attack. "I told you I'd find you."

"Yeah," Chaerin said. "I got the memos."

A ghost smile curled up Seungri's lips showing the fangs that somehow triggered a mix of both ache and longing in her. Instantly she shoved those feelings aside. She'd nearly died because of it.

She refused to let it happen again and the adrenaline pumping through her body served as a good reminder that this was a do-or-die situation.

Seungri made the first move but she dodged it--almost having sensed it coming. That was the problem with us. We knew each other too well—knew each other's moves too well.

Of course that hardly meant we were even match. He is more experience and his vampire abilities tipped the scale.

"Yet you’re here," he said still smiling. "So fool stepping outside when you should stay in your safety compound. I can’t believe it when my spies told me."

Chaerin said nothing instead attempting to make a swipe. He saw that coming too and sidestepped the attack. His having spies didn't surprise her even in the daytime. He controlled a network of vampires and humans and she know he had eyes and ears observing everywhere.

The question is: How the hell he had got here in the middle of the day? Seungri and his “friends” should have had to wait until night to get here.

No, not necessarily she realized a moment later. They occasionally had work-around. Trucks and vans with dark completely sealed cabins.

Underground entrances. Seungri would have known about all this too. If he had been waiting for her to come outside he would have done whatever it took to get to her. She knew better than anyone else how resourceful he was.

Chaerin also knew he was trying to distract her with talking.

"And the strangest is," he continued, "you not alone. You brought an “excess luggage”. You always take risks with your own life but I didn't expect you to be so hasty."

Something occurred to her then. Aside from the faint hum on the other end of the hallway and the sounds of our fight everything else was silent. We were missing an important noise. Say, like, the alarm from a fire door.

"Dara!" Chaerin yelled. "Get the hell out of here! Get them all out of here."

That door led to upper floor and out. The sun was still out. It didn't matter if the alarm brought security down to where we are. Hell that might scare the vampire off. What mattered was that we fled safety.

A quick check of my bond told me a problem. Dara was frozen. Stunned. Dara suddenly seen who I’m fighting and the shock is too much.

Knowing Seungri was a vampire was one thing. Seeing it--really, really seeing it--well, that was different. Chaerin know from personal experience. Even after being prepared his appearance still unnerved her.

Dara was blindsided unable to think or move. It only took a heartbeat to assess Dara feelings but in a fight with a vampire a single second could be the difference between life and death.

Seungri's talk has worked and although Chaerin watched him and thought she had her guard up he got through and shoved her against the wall hands pinning her arms so painfully that she lost her grip on her sword.

Seungri put his face right up to her so close that their foreheads touched. "Rhee . . ." he murmured. His breath was warm and sweet against her skin. "Why? Why did you have to be so difficult? We could have spent eternity together . . ."

Chaerin’s heart thundered in her chest. She was terrified. And at the same time she was filled with sorrow over having lost him. Seeing the features of his face, hearing that same voice. . . her heart felt breaking all over again. Why? Why this happened to us? Why our faith was so cruel?

She managed to flip the thought again shutting out the fact that this was not Seungri. They were predator and prey--and she was in danger of being eaten.

"Sorry," she said through gritted teeth shoving hard, failing to break his grip. "My eternity doesn't involve being part of the undead mafia."

"I know," he said. Chaerin swear there was sadness in his face but convinced herself that she must have imagined it. "Eternity will be lonely without you."

A piercing sound rang in Chaerin’s ears. Both of them winced. Finally those idiots--and yes she had no doubts about calling her friends idiots when they were acting that way--had left the building. She felt sunlight through the bond and took comfort in that as Seungri's fangs neared the artery that would spill the life's blood from her neck.

She hoped the alarm would distract him but damn he was too good. She struggled once more hoping she could use surprise on him but it was to no avail. What did surprise him was Taeyang's sudden attack to the side of his stomach.

Seungri snarled in pain and let go of her turning on Taeyang. Taeyang's face was hard, unblinking and if seeing Seungri fazed him he surely didn't show it. For all she knew he wasn't even registering him as Seungri.

Seungri’s attention was off her for the moment. He wanted to draw out her death. Taeyang was simply an annoyance he needed to rid of so that he could continue the game.

Taeyang and Seungri engaged in a fight except that Taeyang didn't know Seungri's moves like she did. So he wasn't able to completely avoid Seungri grabbing him by the shoulder and shoving him to the wall.

The maneuver had been intended to crush Taeyang's skull but he managed to shift enough so that it was his body that took the impact. It still hurt but he was alive.

All of this took milliseconds and in those fleeting moments Chaerin perspective shifted. When Seungri had been looming over her about to bite her she managed to think him as Seungri, the person she'd once known and...... loved.

Now watching someone else fight him ..... suddenly she lost all that cool objective. She remembered why she'd come here. She had sworn that if she reached a moment where Seungri was about to kill her and she hadn't learned more about saving him, she would do it. She would kill him.

And this was her chance. Between Taeyang and her, we could take Seungri down. We could end this evil state just as he once wanted.

She couldn't do it. Seungri couldn't die. Not yet.

Chaerin pulled out her sword, a hard strike raked the silver point against the back of Seungri's head. He let out a rage growl and managed to turn and push her off while still fending Taeyang away.

Seungri was very good. But Taeyang's gun was getting closer to Seungri's heart and my friend's gaze was unwavering intent on his kill.

Seungri's attention flit between two of us and in one small lapse---Taeyang get his gun in the zone ready to take a shot at Seungri's heart. A shot that looked like it might succeed.

Chaerin struck out her sword knock it across Seungri's face and knocking Taeyang's arm aside as she did. She hated to do it but she knew Seungri would heal.

As she made that attack she pushed past him shoving into Taeyang so that both of them stumbled toward the fire door. Taeyang's stony face surprise and for a moment we were deadlocked: she pushing him to the door and him pushing back toward Seungri.

Seungri’s hand reached out and grabbed her shoulder trying to jerk here back. Taeyang caught hold of her arm and pulled forward. She cried out in surprise and pain. It felt like they were going to rip her in two.

Seungri was by far strongest but she lent her force to Taeyang by letting her weight play the role which helped them gain some ground. Still it was slow. For each step she managed forward Seungri dragged her back.

Taeyang and Chaerin were making slow--and very very painful—progress toward the door. A few moments later she heard footsteps and voices. "Security," Taeyang’s grunts.

"," Chaerin said.

"You can't win," Seungri hissed. He managed to get both hands on her shoulders and overpowering them.

"Oh yeah? The securities are coming."

"We're about to have a “party” here.” he said dismissively.

The security must have laid their hands on Seungri. He was still gripping her but his hold slackened enough that one huge pull from Taeyang broke her free. We both didn't even look back though the security guards were now shouting at us too.

Just before she pushed open the door she heard Seungri’s voice shouting at her. There was laughter in his voice. "It's not over, Rhee. Do you really think there's anywhere you can go in this world where I can't find you?"

The same warning, always the same warning. She did her best to ignore the fear of those words triggered.

The run had been hard even for us and it took us a moment to catch our breath. She knew things were serious when Taeyang finally her and anger lit his features. He was always calm and control but he mad at her now.

"What the hell was that?" exclaimed Taeyang. "You let him go!"

Chaerin put on her best tough face but he seemed to be outdoing her today.

"What?! did you miss the part where I was slashing him with my sword?"

"I had his heart! I had a shot and you stopped me!"

"The security was coming. We didn't have time. We had to get out of there and we couldn't let them see us."

"I don't think anybody is left to report seeing anything," Taeyang replied evenly. He seemed to be trying to regain his composure. "Seungri left a pile of corpses there. You know it. People died because you didn’t let me finish him."

Her silence caused Taeyang to speak. "How could you forget the lesson? I know he used to be our friend- used to be. But he's not the same. They drilled that into us over and over. Don't hesitate. Don't think of him as a real person."

"I love him," she blurted out. Taeyang doesn’t know.

"What?" Taeyang exclaimed with a gasp. His outrage had transformed to shock.

"Seungri . . . he's more than friend . . ."

Taeyang continued staring at her for several seconds. "Was," he said at last.

"Huh?"

Taeyang was back to hard guardian now, no sympathy. "I'm sorry, but it's in the past whatever was between you. You have to know that. The person you loved is gone. The guy we just saw? Not the same."

Chaerin slowly shook her head. "I . . . I know. I know it's not him. I know he's a monster, but we can save him . . . . ."

Taeyang's eyes widened and for a moment he was dumbstruck. "That's what this is about? Chae, that's ridiculous! You can't believe that. Vampires are dead. They're gone to us. Whoever told you they can be cure they were feeding you a bunch of crap."

Now she grew surprised. "Then why are you even here? Why have you stuck with us?"

"Because you're my friend. I stayed with you through all of this . . .. . because I knew you needed me. You all did, to help keep you safe. I thought you had a real reason. You've always had good reasons for what you do." He sighed. "But this . . . this is crossing a line. Letting vampire go in order to chase some idea-- some idea that couldn't possibly work--is hundred times worse. Every day Seungri walks the world is another day that people are going to die."

Chaerin collapsed against the wall and closed her eyes, feeling sick to her stomach. Taeyang was right. She had screwed up.

words play ; Tur-byuh-luhns (turbulence)