XIII.
Indifference
•
Hei-Ran
3 years prior

Hei-Ran woke to soft kisses trailing along her sun drenched skin. The lips started from the crook of her neck, wound over her jawline before connecting with her own. Still tangled up in each other from the night before, the two of them laid kissing and breathing in the same humid air. The bedsheets wound tighter around their legs as they readjusted themselves, Hei-Ran moving to straddle his waist. She leaned over and connected their lips once more, moving against him in the hopes that they could continue where they'd left off.

She smiled against his lips when she felt him go hard between her legs. Maybe she would get what she wanted after all. She slid one hand under the covers to stroke him and wove the other through his soft black hair. But he pulled back with an apologetic smile. "It's time for us to go, lovely." He said quietly. She felt her eyebrows knit together before shaking her head.

Leaving meant that he wouldn't be only hers anymore.

She wanted more. She always wanted more whenever she was with him. He could make love to her every second of every day and it still wouldn't be enough to stave off her want for him. His soft lips, his wandering hands, his strange eyes... every inch of him was perfection. He had become the most exquisite kind of drug and she lived to feel him pumping through her veins.

Hei-Ran couldn't remember her life before San.

She begrudgingly dismounted him and he slid out of bed giving her a peck on the nose. She enjoyed the view as he pulled on the clothes he'd left on the floor. Then she smiled in satisfaction when she took in the red scratches she'd left trailing down his back. They'd heal quickly, as always, but at least she had left something behind to show the others that he had been hers.... that he is hers. San looked over his shoulder at her with a smile. "Come join us downstairs when you're ready." He told her before stepping out of the room.

She sighed and fell back onto the pillows, staring up at the crystal chandelier that hung from the ceiling. The house they had taken this time was the nicest one yet. There were three floors in total with high vaulted ceilings, a dozen rooms, stone floors and every modern amenity imaginable. It was an architectural masterpiece tucked into the hilly countryside and surrounded by a forest of towering fir trees. This meant that anyone living here could do whatever they wanted without being disturbed. Perfect for a bunch of misfits like them.

But of course living here had come at a price and it was one that made Hei-Ran's blood boil. The former owner of the house had a daughter who San had easily seduced and manipulated. This wasn't the first time he had used his powers to get what he wanted, but Hei-Ran hated this particular conquest with every fiber of her being.

Yoon Bora, in Hei-Ran's opinion, was a shallow, vapid, simpering whore. She was a hotel heiress and popular instagram model who spent her days testing out makeup and convincing people to buy gummies that supposedly make your hair grow longer. For the past week Hei-Ran had to watch as this girl practically draped herself over San every chance she got. It was enough to make Hei-Ran want to rip every hair out of her empty head.

So Hei-Ran made a plan.

And today she'd get a chance to put that plan into action. After finally slipping out of bed and getting into some clean clothes Hei-Ran made her way downstairs to the large living area. She could smell breakfast cooking in the kitchen and a few people sat on couches in the living room having hushed conversations. Hei-Ran looked around until he eyes settled on San. He whispered something to Bora, who was sitting on his lap, and she laughed while wiggling her hips on top of him.

Hei-Ran ground her teeth at the sight but bit back a scream. Soon, she thought trying to stay calm. It'll all be over soon...

The rest of the morning passed uneventfully as a group prepared to go to town and buy food and other necessities for the house. Bora's Mercedes G-Class sat idling in the garage as San picked who would go and who would stay behind. Wooyoung stood dutifully at his side with his eyes downcast. Hei-Ran didn't mind him too much. He was submissive to San and never caused any fights within their group. Although, it pained her to know that he was San's favorite playmate.

San found her in the main living area standing in front of a large taxidermied black bear, a trophy from Bora's father's last hunting trip. It stood a couple feet taller than her, large clawed paws hanging at its sides and it's lips curled into a menacing snarl. "I'll leave the house in you hands lovely," San said cupping her face in his hands. She leaned into his touch savoring the skinship. "Keep an eye on everyone while I'm gone."

"Alright," Hei-Ran responded. He gave her a quick kiss and loaded into the SUV along with a small group of others, including Wooyoung. She stood in the driveway and watched as the car pulled away. It disappeared in a cloud of dust and Hei-Ran felt a smile tug at her lips.

It was time.

She made her way upstairs to Bora's bedroom. She stepped inside not surprised to see the girl in question laying on her bed texting away on her phone. Bora turned her head to see who entered and huffed in annoyance. "What do you want Hei-Ran?" She asked not bothering to mask the dislike she had for the other girl. She was more than a little peeved that San had gone to bed with Hei-Ran the night before. The other girl plastered a fake smile on her face and leaned against the door. "I want to tell you a secret, Bora." She said conspiratorially.

Bora didn't look up from her phone and hummed in disinterest. Hei-Ran stepped further into the room and shut the door quietly behind her. "It has to do with your initiation into our family." She offered. The other girl finally dropped her phone to the side and gave her her full attention. She turned her head, silky hair pooled around her head over her pillow. "You mean, I'll finally get my chance to be with San?"

Stupid little cunt.

"Exactly," Hei-Ran said. She looked around the room as if to be sure no one else would hear. She knew Bora didn't fully trust her, their hate was a mutual feeling. But Hei-Ran also knew the thought of being with San made it impossible to think logically. In fact, she was betting on it. She plopped down on Bora's bed next to her, dark eyes shining. "San didn't leave to the city with the others. He's waiting for you," She whispered. "But the others can't know. Not everyone in the group gets the privilege to be loved by San."

Bora nodded her head. "It would make sense that he chose me," She responded. She bit her nail as she looked at Hei-Ran with her doe eyes. "I've waited long enough for my chance."

"He wants you too, Bora," Hei-Ran lied through her teeth. There was a hushed murmur behind her ears urging her forward. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it....

The next words were nearly impossible for her to choke out. "And now San wants you to surrender to him and prove your devotion. Would you like me to take you to him?"

Bora's eyes lit up as she sat up from her bed. "Yes." She responded already making her way to her closet to pull on some heels. She moved to her mirror to fix her makeup and run a brush through her long hair. Hei-Ran felt alive with nerves at the prospect of getting her alone, of ridding herself of the irritating slut once and for all.

Stupid little cunt!

Hei-Ran's head twitched but she gripped her hands in her lap to try and hide their shaking. "I'll meet you out at the tree line. San has prepared a place for the two of you not too far from here... but remember, no one else knows about this okay?" She reiterated. Bora nodded, eyes never leaving the mirror. "Yes, fine whatever I'll be out there in a minute." She responded as she brushed a stray hair behind her ear.

Ten minutes later Hei-Ran was standing at the tree line of their large backyard. She rocked onto the balls of her feet in anticipation as she waited for Bora to join her. Finally the girl emerged from the back door and made her way across the lawn, heels digging holes into the grass. "Why don't we just take a car?" Bora whined as she came to stand next to Hei-Ran. "Don't worry it's not too far from here," She assured her as she stepped into the forest. "Come on, we don't want to keep San waiting."

Bora rolled her eyes but followed nonetheless. The air was chilly as mist wove around their legs. Moss clung in wet clumps to every surface making the ground slippery to walk on. They made their was around trees, Bora reaching out to grab onto their trunks for support. Hei-Ran stayed a few feet in the lead following a path she had marked out days before in preparation. Bora huffed in exasperation as she stumbled through the undergrowth to keep up with her.

"Are you sure you know where you're going?" She snapped nearly tripping over a tree root. "I thought you said it was close!"

"It is," Hei-Ran responded evenly. He heart was beating so fast she thought it was going to explode. It wasn't fear that sent it thumping in her chest but excitement for what was to come. "We're nearly there, Bora. I promise you're going to love this."

"I fucking hope so," She growled in response. Her feet were now caked in mud, ruining her Prada heels. They entered a clearing and Hei-Ran stopped and pointed to something in the center. It was a strange metal building that looked like a drainage pipe peeking up from the ground. Movement could be heard from behind the bars to the inside. "We're here. San is waiting for you inside." Hei-Ran announced.

"Are you serious?" Bora responded while looking disgusted. "San doesn't seriously expect me to fuck in a dirty place like this!" Bora stomped forward while squinting her eyes at the strange building. She crossed her arms and tapped her foot on the ground. "San it's so cold and wet out here! Can't we check into a hotel in the city?" She whined. When she didn't receive a response she turned to complain to Hei-Ran who had disappeared. She scanned the forest for any signs of the other girl but to no avail. She rubbed her arms as a cold settled in beneath her skin. "What the fuck is going on Hei-Ran?!" She shouted into the forest. Her voice echoed around her making her feel even more alone.

"Autumn is coming soon," Hei-Ran's voice came from somewhere above her. Bora whirled around and snapped her head up to the top of the building. The other girl stood there, loosely holding a rope in between her hands. Her dark hair fell into her eyes as she swayed on her feet. "You can feel in the air that the season is beginning to change."

"Ugh, get down from there!" Bora demanded as she finally lost her patience. "You said San would be here you freak now where is he?!" She shouted. Something moved from inside the building and Bora stared into the darkness behind the bars.

"San's not here you dumb bitch," Hei-Ran said flatly, winding the coarse braid of rope in between her hands. "But I brought you here to meet someone. They've been dying to meet you." She hissed as she began to pull on the rope. The metal door creaked as it started to lift off of the ground. Mud dripped from the bottom as it slid up inch by inch. Bora began to panic taking a cautious step backwards. "What the hell is going on?" She asked shrilly keeping her eyes glued to the door.

"A week ago I was walking around the forest trying to brainstorm ways to get rid of you," Hei-Ran grunted, the door was almost halfway open. "And I came across this interesting little cage. Did you know that a full grown bear will eat nearly ninety pounds of meat a day to prepare for hibernation?" She said astounded. "This poor guy's been starving in here for three days so I'm sure he's ravenous—"

"Wait, wait Hei!" Bora shrieked raising her shaking hands in the air. Hei-Ran paused for a moment, curious as to what the other girl had to say. Her tear filled eyes darted between the gaping mouth of the cage and the crazed eyes of the girl opening it. "You want San for yourself right?! You can have him! I promise I won't touch or talk or even look at him anymore! Please I don't want to die!" She begged as tears began to drip down her cheeks and trailed black streaks of mascara.

Hei-Ran tapped her chin as she thought over the other girl's offer. She could hear the animal scuffling from inside the cage, it's snout peeking out from under the door as it sniffed the air. Bora whimpered and took another step back, dead leaves crunching beneath her ruined heels. Hei-Ran shook her head as the whispers started up again angry with her that she was hesitating.

Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it.

Pull it.

"But is it really fair to the bear?" Hei-Ran wondered aloud. She grabbed the rope and yanked on it as hard as she could, arms straining under the weight. The door below opened with a loud squeal of metal against metal and Bora's eyes widened in horror. She spun around on her heel and kicked up mud as she attempted to escape, screaming at the top of her lungs as the bear emerged from the cage.

"Run rabbit, run rabbit, run run run..." Hei-Ran sing-songed as the bear sniffed at the air. It padded over the ground as it went after the other girl who was screaming for help as she ran through the trees. The beast quickly ate up the distance between them and raised its massive paw in the air. It swiped at her, landing a blow to her shoulder and sending her spinning over the ground. She came to an abrupt stop when she smashed into a tree trunk, cutting her off mid scream.

Covered in mud and dead leaves she tried to lift herself off the ground. She shook violently as pain wracked through her entire body. There were a couple deep gouges on her shoulder from the bear's claws and fresh sobs fell from her mouth. The bear trotted over to her and she screamed again as it bore down on into her shoulder sinking its fangs in deep. She balled her hands into small fists as she hit the animal as hard as she could. This only seemed to infuriate the beast further so shook its head from side to side tearing further into Bora's flesh. She wailed as it pulled away, taking a chunk of her with it with a wet snap of a tendon.

Blood dripped from it's maw and stained the front of Bora's designer clothes. She tried to roll over onto her stomach to crawl away but the bear rested a heavy paw on her back pinning her to the forest floor. She coughed and blood bubbled up from between her lips. The bear leaned over her and sniffed at her tangled hair as she tearfully begged Hei-Ran to help her. The other girl stayed where she was on top of the cage as she watched the carnage unfold. She was more than a little entertained by her suffering. "Run rabbit, run rabbit run, run, run..." She continued to sing.

The bear opened it's mouth and bit down on the back of Bora's skull. The girl's head was yanked up from the ground as it adjusted its hold trying to break it open. The sounds of its fangs scraping against bone and Bora's ear splitting screams filled the forest. A nearby flock of crows erupted from the over hang of trees and disappeared into the sky. It abruptly came to an end as the bear pulled her scalp free from her head, her long pretty hair falling onto the ground next to her.

Bora's body convulsed as she went into shock. The pain was so excruciating that her brain had no way to process it all. The bear lapped at the blood that spurted from her head and she moaned pitifully as she clawed at the dirt. She was beginning to sound less like a human and more like a dying animal to Hei-Ran'd ears.

Finally the bear bit down on her neck breaking it with a snap and her body went limp. Hei-Ran watched on in fascination as the bear slowly devoured her. It tore her limb from limb before finally opening her up and eating out her insides. It took a couple hours before it's hunger was satiated and the hulking animal decided to leave. Hei-Ran waited for it to completely disappear from sight before hopping down from the cage.

Not much of Bora remained but some larger bones and the scalp from her head. Hei-Ran stared down at the bloodstained spot as the voices continued to whisper overlapping praises in her name.

"What were you... one hundred and five pounds? One hundred and three?" She muttered under her breath kicking one of Bora's heels away from her. She was surprised at how easy the whole thing had proven to be. She thought she'd feel exhilarated to be rid of her or anxious when questions would be raised about Bora's disappearance. But Hei-Ran felt absolutely nothing. Killing someone had been nothing. Her eyes dilated as the sun began to dip beneath the horizon line flooding the world with darkness.

"What a meager meal you were."

Plot
•
10 hours until dawn

"So what're we doing then?" Geon asked impatiently tapping his fingers over the cool marble of the kitchen counters. Hei-Ran shot him a venomous glare from the other side. "Well maybe if you stopped twitching so much I'd have some time to get my goddamn thoughts together." She snapped as she pulled open another drawer.

It felt as though she'd been searching for far too long. She was starting to get antsy, fingers twitching as she reached for knob after knob slamming drawers shut in irritation. With San so close her body was beginning to react in strange ways, the voices reemerging like the buzzing of trapped bees inside the tangled wires of her mind.

She smiled when she caught sight of what she was looking for and pulled out the shiny blade. She ran a finger down the side and winced as a hairline cut opened up. "Definitely found something sharp enough." She said while giving her accomplice a sinister smile. The hulking man returned it and held out a large hand.

Geon took the weapon that was handed to him and quickly tied it off under his pant leg. Hei-Ran withdrew another smaller blade that fit her hand better and pulled up her dress to strap it to her thigh. The metal felt searingly cold against her pale skin. "Okay I think we should split up and make plans to meet once we have the both of them," She told him. "I'll follow San and wait until he's alone before making my move. You bring Wooyoung."

"But wouldn't it make more sense for me to go after San?" Geon questioned. The small girl shot him a glare from across the counter. "I'm a lot stronger and faster, if he decides to fight then I'll have a better chance of overpowering him—" Hei-Ran cut him off with an abrupt laugh. She moved her hand to cover her mouth and stifle the near hysterical sound. Geon frowned and looked at her with his brows furrowed. "What the hell is so funny Hei?"

"As if you could overpower San," She gasped between fits of laughter. Maybe she should've tried to bring Soo along instead. She might be stupid but probably not as much as the idiot that stood in front of her. "Jesus Geon, you know exactly what he is. No, what this requires isn't muscle it's..." She trailed off looking up at the ceiling before smirking. "... a woman's touch."

Hei-Ran withdrew another blade, a shining nine inch fillet knife and rested the tip on the counter. She spun the weapon on the counter in lazy circles as the steel caught the light. "I've known San for years Geon and you want to know what I've learned in all that time by his side?" She asked as her eyes flitted up to meet his while slowly walking around the side of the counter, blade scraping over the surface.

Geon kept a wary eye between her face and the blade she held. Although physically she was no match for him Hei-Ran was formidable when it came to her skill with a blade. Geon had seen far too many sliced up corpses to refute that particular fact. His companion had a quick temper and won't hesitate to kill anyone who gets on her bad side. She handled the weapon gracefully as if it was an extension of her."W-what was that?" He asked hating how his voice trembled.

"I've learned just how far I'm willing to go to get what I want," She said darkly tilting her head to the side. She lifted the knife lightning fast and pointed the tip at Geon. His eyes widened and he took a shaky step backwards. "So how about you shut your fucking mouth and do what I say?"

•

A/N

Okay so it's been a hot minute since the last update ( I know I suck), and I came back with a pretty disturbing chapter (I know I'm sick) :)

So any thoughts? Hei-Ran has become a pretty complex antagonist and its only going to get more twisted. Her character kinda came out of the blue but I like writing crazy characters. But hey, that's what you signed up for in this book right?

And in case you hadn't heard, I'll put up trigger warnings for BDSM stuff in chapters but as far as violence goes it's going to be spontaneous. I don't want to detract from the shock as you read... But this book is mature for a reason so you've been warned.

Ily