Untouched [minsung]

Chapter 34

Felix POV:

Something wasn't right. Lee Know had told me that he'd text me once he had Han to let me know where he was headed and how Han was doing. That was supposed to have been sent to me hours ago.

I had already said my goodbyes to Changbin for the night and headed to my house to see if Lee Know had taken him there. I opted to take an Uber instead of the train, so I could get there quicker. I'd sold my car a while back to use the money for Lily.

When I arrived, my house was empty. There were no signs that he or Han had come back here at all. I then left to check Seungmin and Lee Know's house. I wanted to just send a text but Lee Know had told me to let him reach out first. If something went wrong, it wouldn't look good for me to be texting him for status updates for the Hwangs to find.

I ran over as quickly as I could. When I arrived at Lee Know's, I saw Seungmin alone on the couch. Hyunjin must have been somewhere else in the house and Jeongin must not have arrived yet. The plan was for Seungmin and Hyunjin to subdue Jeongin immediately when he got there. They were supposed to tie him up and take his phone and weapons and drive far out of town to lead security away from the area.

If Seungmin was still here, it meant Jeongin hadn't shown up yet.

I was about to knock on the door when I saw headlights rounding the entrance to their driveway. I jumped out of view, and the car rolled to a stop. The driver-side door opened and Jeongin stepped out.

He had arrived with a bag in hand. I checked my phone... 2:13 am...he was hours late. But if he was here, it meant we could proceed as expected, just late. I waited as quietly as I could as Jeongin walked towards the door. He knocked and I watched Seungmin get up.

He opened the door and greeted Jeongin warmly. It felt off. Where was Hyunjin? Why wasn't he following the plan?

The two headed to the living room and sat on the couch, opening the bag Jeongin had brought. It was coffee and cake? I pulled out my phone to take a picture. I forgot to remove the stupid dog filter first that I'd been using to send to Changbin because he found it funny.

I saved the photo to show Lee Know later. I put my ear against the window and tried to listen in without being spotted.

"How'd it go?" Seungmin asked.

"My father was very grateful. Hyunjin and Lee Know are both in holding. And this," he said pulling something out of his pocket, "is for you."

I watched as Jeongin handed Seungmin an envelope. He opened it, and I saw what must have been thousands of dollars.

"And this is for you," Seungmin said as he leaned into Jeongin. Jeongin immediately reciprocated and wrapped his hands around Seungmin's neck as the two kissed.

My blood was boiling. All of the work we'd done, all of our efforts were wasted. Something had gone wrong, and it was obvious Seungmin had double-crossed us. What was "holding"? Where were Hyunjin and Lee Know?

I ran out of the driveway and up and down the street searching for a payphone. I finally found one a few blocks away. At least this wouldn't be traceable. I dialed Lee Know's number and waited anxiously as it continued to ring before sending me to voicemail. I wanted to be surprised, but I wasn't.

I clenched my hands at my side and hit the glass of the booth, knocking out one of the panels.

I sprinted away and back towards the house before somebody spotted me. I needed more information, so I could figure out what to do from here.

"Felix knows," Seungmin had said, nonchalantly taking a sip of his coffee as if he hadn't just fucked us all over. And here he was, trying to get me in worse trouble than I already was in.

"Felix will believe you when you tell him Hyunjin double-crossed you. The work he's doing with Changbin is too important to sacrifice," Jeongin said.

And I was grateful that Changbin was so important to the Hwangs. My ability to maintain that relationship was keeping me safe. I was more grateful that Changbin was a good person who'd never offered me to the wolves the way Seungmin just tried to.

"What will you do with them?" Seungmin asked.

"I'll get as much information as I can, and then eliminate the threats. Lee Know likely first. I'm sure it will be difficult to convince my mother to let me take out Hyunjin, but since he'd turned his back on the family, my father had already disowned him. Han, of course, will be spared. My plan is to make it known that we have him and trade him with Mrs. Seo for most of their supply."

He was evil, just like Hyunjin had said.

I tried to think of something I could do to save Lee Know and Hyunjin without endangering Changbin. He needed to be kept out of it in order for me to be kept alive and to keep Hwangs from becoming suspicious...and because I didn't want him to get hurt.

There was nobody left for me to trust. The entire group had been taken. I'd also need to pretend that I believed Seungmin when he told me his made-up version.

A neon sign flashed in my brain providing an obvious solution, but I didn't know if I would be able to go through with it without falling apart or endangering the operation.

I tried to think of something else...anything else.

Maybe I could infiltrate them alone...but that was a stupid idea because Lee Know is better trained than me, and he still got caught.

I could tell Changbin...but if the Hwangs found out I told him, I'd be tortured or eliminated, too.

Maybe I could just pretend like nothing happened and move on with my life...but I knew I'd never be able to live with myself.

Maybe I could join Seungmin's side...but torturing my friends and backstabbing them was also not part of my moral code.

Every option but one was horrible. And the one that I knew I'd have to do would rip me apart inside.

But I needed to do it if they were going to have any hope of getting out of there alive.

I needed to visit Mrs. Seo.