Always you...

15. What's going on...

"What did you find?", asked Yibo as JiLi seated himself and the man handed him a black binder. "Han Yi has another son. Han Shuo." The words were a surprise and Yibo's brows rose in response. "Han Yi never really acknowledged him as his son but he took care of everything else as his father. Living expenses, Han Shuo's education and his other financial needs were taken care of. Han Yi even got his son a small apartment in the city. All the documents are in the Han name. Although in some cases Han Shuo used his mother's surname Zhuo." "What about the mother?", Yibo questioned holding Han Shuo's picture in his hand. The man in the picture was in his late twenties, good looking and at first glance he even looked innocent. That face could fool many but not those dark eyes. They were so full of darkness...not even the camera could hide it. "She died giving birth to him. She was human. Han Shuo is a half shifter." "Where is he now?", Rong asked and Ji Li's brows furrowed. "Here is the tricky part, five years ago, Han Shuo reportedly died in a fire. No one ever saw his dead body so it wasn't confirmed but my resources told me that he could be alive. There was an old fire exit in the apartment building he lived in and he could have used that to get out. Han Yi had never taken him in as his son so no one really looked into his death and he was written off as missing. I don't have concrete evidence but I know he is alive and he is the one you people are looking for." Saying the words JiLi gave Yibo another paper and Yibo went through the contents finding details of several reported cases of assault on Han Shuo. There were almost a dozen of them and all the victims were alive. "So he has a history of raping women too. He could be our man. I need more details on these cases, Ji li", said Yibo and the man nodded. "They will be on your desk this afternoon. So, if Han Shuo is alive, Han Yi is protecting him. Have you found Han Yi?", JiLi questioned and Rong shook his head in a no. "He is nowhere to be found. Something ticked him off and he ran away", said Wang Rong and Yibo's face changed. The Alpha's jaw went rigid and his hands clenched into fists onto the table. Han Yi had been right under their noses while his son committed these crimes and Yibo had no idea about it. Each time they had overlooked a certain detail, an Omega had died. "I will join the search myself. Han Shuo and Han Yi both need to be killed, they will hurt more people if they are free. Rong, tell Talu and Bai Lu to come along. Chen Xu as well. All of Han Yi's properties need to be combed through."

That evening, Zhan had just come back from work and was getting rid of his clothes when his front was slammed against the wall. A hot mouth latched onto the back of his shoulder and a moan left him when teeth sank into the flesh. He could feel Yibo's hard length digging into his lower back and when he unmasked his scent, the hold on him got stronger. "Fucking love the way you smell", growled Yibo and Zhan let out a laugh which turned into a loud moan when Yibo palmed his length from behind him. His hands made their way to Yibo's neck while Yibo clawed his clothes off, the movements impatient and desperate. "Missed me, Alpha?", he teased as Yibo turned him around planting a hard kiss on his mouth. Zhan loved the way Yibo kissed him. Holding nothing back, that mouth claimed his with so much hunger and need, it made Zhan weak in the knees. Zhan was pushed  onto the bed and he saw the aggressive hunger on his mate's face. "You should be by my side all day. I should tie you to myself", growled Yibo kissing his neck and Zhan smiled. "What if you grow tired of me? Distance makes the heart grow fonder." Zhan threw his head back on a gasp when Yibo sucked on his nipples and ground against him. "Being away from you drives me crazy, firecracker." "That's because I am awweesommme." Zhan chuckled at the face Yibo made. A look between fondness and annoyance and it made Zhan happy that he could get so many emotions from Yibo with no effort. "One day you are going to call me awesome." "I already do, you are awesome." "Not that, you will call me awwesommme one day." The denial was on Yibo's lips but he chose to keep quiet and before his firecracker could call him out on it, Yibo distracted Zhan. He meshed their lips together and pulled his mate closer to him, finally feeling like he could breathe again. He spent his afternoon loving his firecracker thoroughly and kissed Zhan softly on the forehead when they came off the heights of passion.

Yibo was lying with his head on Zhan's chest while his firecracker raked his hand through his hair. The room smelled of sex and his mate's mouthwatering scent and Yibo closed his eyes, finally at peace after his shitty day. This was Yibo's happy place. There was nothing that bothered him in Zhan's arms. Surrounded by Zhan's scent, in his mate's arms...Yibo wanted to spend an eternity just like this. "Have you talked to Xuan lately?", Zhan asked and Yibo shook his head. "I am worried for Jiyang, Yibo. I gave him time to come to me but it didn't work. I will talk to him tomorrow, it's obvious that he is hurting." Zhan sounded unhappy and Yibo kissed his firecracker's neck. "Talk to him. I am sure you will help him get through it." Zhan gave him a small smile and nodded and turned their conversation to another topic. "What if Han Shuo really died in that fire?", asked Zhan breaking their moment and Yibo curled his arms around Zhan's waist as he sighed. "No one found his body. Han Yi still withdraws a significant amount of cash from his account monthly. Han Yi's family knows nothing of this but they weren't shocked when they found out about Han Shuo. His family has been suspecting him for years." "If it's Han Shuo...things make sense now. The fact that he only attacks Omegas could be because they are easy to overpower in comparison to Alphas or betas. Or that being half shifter, he doesn't have a mate. Do you think that's why he is trying to forcefully claim someone? He hates that he doesn't have a mate?" Yibo was silent for a while, his gaze thoughtful before he finally spoke. "He hates himself." The words had Zhan's hands halting their movement over his head and Yibo growled in disapproval. A smile came on Zhan's lips as he began stroking Yibo's head again. "Why do you think that he hates himself?" "Han Yi wanted to take Han Shuo as his own son, he did everything a father does for his son but Han Shuo didn't agree. His mother died giving birth to him, he was born a half shifter, he is neither a wolf nor a man. Half shifters aren't treated well in our world. They are viewed as defected. I read through some of the statements Han Shuo's victims made. Many said that during the attacks he was frustrated with himself, kept muttering that he was weak. A girl wrote that he dug his nails into her chest like claws and tried to rip her apart. He wanted to be an animal but he wasn't. He wanted to be violent, wanted to inflict pain but his human body lacks the strength a full shifter has. He was frustrated because he wasn't one of us. He hated himself for being a half shifter." "Why do you think he turned to hurting Omegas?", asked Zhan and Yibo took his time before answering. "It could be because of what you said. He wants to be a shifter, so he might want a mate as well. Moreover, Omegas are cherished. Any Alpha is weak where his Omega is concerned. Hurting our Omegas could also be him challenging us. Saying that he isn't weak." "The sick bastard", Zhan swore and Yibo felt anger just like his mate. It was true that most shifters were aggressive but all of them weren't necessarily cruel. It was true that they had heightened senses and superior strength but it was to protect their loved ones not to cause pain. Seemed like Han Shuo had wanted to be one of them for all the wrong reasons. He had wanted to be an animal and had become something worse. A monster. A monster who hurt innocent people and killed without mercy. Yibo swore he was going to put the man down and make sure he never hurt another person ever again.

Jiyang came out of his room and halted when he saw Zhan standing in his kitchen looming over a pot of boiling water. "Zhan-Zhan?", he called his friend's name rubbing his eyes and Zhan turned to him with a smile. "Hey, you got up. I made us some coffee." Jiyang stood on the spot considering his options and knew that talking to Zhan eas his best way out. It was clear Zhan had become tired of waiting fir him. Zhan walked to Jiyang with two mugs in hand and smiled at the Omega. "What are you doing here so early?", Jiyang asked knowing all too well what was happening and Zhan arched a brow. "I came to see you." Jiyang stiffened in his chair and Zhan noticed the detail, gesturing his friend to drink his coffee. Zhan placed his own mug on the table and leaned back on the sofa, getting comfortable. "I gave you two weeks, A-Yang. I thought you would talk to me out of your own accord but you didn't. You have been holed up in your place and Xuan has been troubled. It's time you talk to someone about what's going on." Zhan eyed the Omega before him and saw guilt in Jiyang eyes. It was clear that Jiyang was dealing with something big but the Omega still chose to lie. "I am fine, Zhan-Zhan. It's nothing." The words were said softly, laden with guilt and pain and Zhan couldn't let the matter go. It wasn't just Jiyang but also Xuan who was distracted with whatever was going on and it wasn't good for anyone right now. "Answer me, Jiyang. What happened?" The deep, sharp voice caused tear to gather in Jiyang's eyes and on a broken whisper he finally confessed, "I was pregnant five months ago. I aborted my child."