Part 3: Chapter 20

“What did you just say?”  Kai asked, his voice a growl deep in his throat. 

Ryehyun flinched.  Between the glowing red eyes and Luhan’s tight grip on his arm, he was seriously doubting his decision to come here.

“He doesn’t want Luhan anymore, he wants the girl.  That’s what he’s got the guys that aren’t sick doing.  They’re trying to find a way to get to her.”

Kai reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone.  “Xiumin, where’s Sohee right now?” He asked even as he pressed speed dial. 

“Chanyeol and Baekhyun were going to walk her home.  All the way home,” Xiumin assured him.  “She agreed to stay there despite the fact that you guys would be back tonight.  She didn’t want you to worry.”

“Kai?” Sohee voice came over the line and relief flooded Kai so strongly he closed his eyes to keep it all in.  “Kai, are you okay?”

“Yeah, we’re all okay, Sohee,” Kai answered.  “Are you okay?  Everything good there?” 

“Yes, Kai,” she said, exasperated.  “I’ve been a good girl.  I let the guys walk me home.”

“Thank you.”

“I get that you’re worried, Kai.  And I know I messed up.  I’ll do my best not to do anything to worry you so that you can do what you need to do.”

Kai ran a hand through his hair, buoyed by her belief in him.  “Thanks, Sohee.”

“Are you with Luhan?  Can I talk to him?”  She asked hesitantly.

Kai looked up to see Luhan watching him.  “Yeah, here he is,” Kai said and held out the phone to Luhan.

Luhan looked at it then at Ryehyun.  He slowly released Ryehyun’s wrist before moving to take the phone.  “She’s safe?” Luhan asked quietly. 

“She’s good.”

“Sohee?” Luhan asked, the phone to his ear.  He moved to the other side of the room to talk to her.

Kai watched him for a moment before turning to Ryehyun.  “Any reason in particular he wants Sohee?  You guys have already caught her and lost her.  No way are we letting you near her again.”

“Yeah, that’s what Jinwook told the guy,” Ryehyun said.  “He didn’t seem to listen.  He just said to get her.  Didn’t explain why.” 

Kai nodded.  He had been planning to teach the black masks a lesson in not messing with Sohee, but it looked like that had been taken care of.  Now this new guy needed the same lesson.  But for the moment, Sohee was safe and he had other things to deal with.

“So you being sick is because of the wolf?”  Kai asked.  “Any suggestions on how to fix this, Kyungsoo?  We’ve worn the Old Man out these past few days.  Going back to him is an option, but not my top choice.”

“We could call Doctor Park,” Kyungsoo suggested quietly. 

“Who?”

“The Doctor that gave you his card to give to me to get my cast removed.” When Kai looked at him blankly, Kyungsoo continued.  “I told you, he’s a wolf-man just like us.  And he’s a doctor.  He might be able to help.” 

“I don’t trust him.”

“It doesn’t hurt to at least call him.”

“Alright, fine.  You still got his number?”

Kai was surprised that the Doc picked up almost right away, but Kyungsoo seemed to be suspecting it.  It made him wonder what the two of them had talked about when Kyungsoo had gone to get his cast taken off. 

Kyungsoo quickly outlined what had happened to Ryehyun, his physical symptoms, and about the faded tattoo.

The Doc’s sigh was almost immediate.  “There’s nothing I can do to help your friend,” he said.  Kai bit back the need to clarify that he and Ryehyun weren’t friends, not anymore. 

“But you know what’s wrong with him,” Kyungsoo said confidently.  “Can you at least explain what’s going on?”

“Sometimes humans that are turned… their bodies don’t handle the change well,” the Doc started.  “Wolf-Men like us are born with two souls and a connection to our wolf.  When the wolf is forced on someone, there isn’t a second soul involved.  The human can physically change into a wolf, but they are either one or the other, there is no sharing of abilities or understanding between the two forms.  That makes it difficult for a firm connection to be established between the wolf form and the human form or the wolf and the Wolf-Men that turned him.  Without that connection to stabilize the relationship, the human body begins to shut down.  It’s known as the moonlight high.  When a human first turns, they get supposedly drunk on the moonlight and suffer hangover like effects because of it