Hi! I am back with the second to last chapter of this fic. We are picking up right where we left off. Another trigger warning for violence and blood. Please read with caution. I hope you enjoy!

"Hoonie?" Seungcheol coughs, blood dripping from his mouth, "Wh-what's going on?" Jihoon flashes an apologetic look at Seungcheol, his eyes watering. He opens his mouth to say something, but is cut off. "He's finally showing his true colors," An unknown voice says as the door to the office slams shut, revealing a man with graying hairs and a missing arm. Seungcheol turns to look at him and growls as he calmly moves to stand beside Jihoon. "Shin," Seungcheol huffs, "So you are the leader..."

"Of course," Mr. Shin states with a smile, "And your lovely boyfriend...is one of my partners..." Jihoon looks down at the floor, a tear dripping from his face and hitting the ground. Seungcheol scoffs and winces as pain shoots through his chest, "Please, that's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard."

"How else would you explain that pretty little thing in your gut?" Mr. Shin questions.

"I'm sure there's a reason for all of this," Seungcheol says, "Jihoon wouldn't do this to me." Mr. Shin tuts and places his hand on Jihoon's shoulder. Seungcheol shoots daggers at the vamp before glancing at Jihoon, who slowly raises his face to meet his gaze. There are tear streaks on his cheeks, but other than that Jihoon appears rather stiff and emotionless. "Jihoon," Seungcheol murmurs, "Please talk to me, love...tell me what's going on..."

"Yes!" Mr. Shin exclaims, "Tell him why you've decided to side with me." He pats his shoulder before nudging him forward. Jihoon stumbles a bit before opening his mouth and saying in an even tone, "I hate you. I have for a while now..."

"No," Seungcheol states, "Don't lie to me..."

"It isn't a lie!" Jihoon shrieks, "I mean it! I've hated you for a while now!"

"Really?" Seungcheol says, "Then, why are you crying? I know you didn't want to do this. If you did, you wouldn't be reacting this way." He gestures to the dagger still shoved into his chest. It hurts. A lot. But, Seungcheol doesn't care. He is just worried about Jihoon. He knows that he would never do such a thing to him. He would never betray him. This isn't Jihoon. It's Shin's fault. Shin is involved without a doubt. "He's gotten used to pretending," Mr. Shin says with a shrug, "He's been doing it for a while too...haven't you?"

Jihoon nods, wiping at the tears, "Since Seokmin died. I've been on Shin's side since then." Seungcheol shakes his head. He knows that Jihoon has said he hated him during that time, but they had made up and they fixed things. That wasn't just an act. And there is absolutely no way that following his brother's death, he found the faction and decided to team up. It's just not possible. The knife in his chest may say otherwise, but he trusts Jihoon. He trusts that the person he fell in love with would never do this unless he had a good reason. "I don't believe you," Seungcheol says.

"You don't have to believe it," Mr. Shin says, "But, it's true. How do you think we got into the palace in the first place? Jihoonie let us right through the doors."

"Don't call him that," Seungcheol growls.

Mr. Shin chuckles and tuts, "I can't believe you're still acting this way when you've been betrayed by him."

"He hasn't betrayed me," Seungcheol says, before turning to look Jihoon right in the eyes, "You know that...right Jihoon? So don't feel bad for what you did...I don't know what happened or what Mr. Shin is holding against you, but I know that you didn't want to stab me. You didn't want any of this to happen. We'll figure this out. Whatever is going on, we'll get through it. It'll be okay..." Jihoon stares back at his boyfriend, his eyes filled with pain and fear. Seungcheol flashes him a small smile and nods his head, doing his best to give his lover confidence. Mr. Shin chuckles, "Your faith is cute...it's too bad it will be the death of you. Go on, Jihoon. You know what you have to do." Jihoon doesn't say anything as he steps closer to Seungcheol and aims a kick right at the blade handle. Seungcheol hisses in pain as the dagger digs deeper into him. "That's for ruining my life," Jihoon states in an emotionless tone, "And this is for my little brother. For Seokminnie." He swings a fist right to Seungcheol's face which makes the leader of the vamps stumble back. He moves his jaw and sighs, looking at Jihoon. His boyfriend may be beating the hell out of him, but he could care less. He's more worried about why he's doing it then the fact that he is. And is it just him or did he say Seokmin's name in an interesting way. Almost like he was pushing the words out of his mouth with a bit more emphasis. "You should fight back," Mr. Shin says with a smile, "Wouldn't want you to die so fast..."

"I won't fight back," Seungcheol says, his gaze still locked on Jihoon. It has to do with the fact that Jihoon isn't actually on Shin's side, but it has even more to do with the fact that Seungcheol could never bring himself to hurt his lover. Even if Jihoon has actually joined the enemy, Seungcheol could still never lay a hand on him. In his mind, Jihoon is his everything and for that reason he will never raise a fist at the man he loves. The small vamp face contorts to that of someone who is upset, almost as if he wanted Seungcheol to fight back, but only for a second. "That's too bad," Mr. Shin says, "Go crazy, Jihoon." With that said, Jihoon charges at Seungcheol again. He double punches the man right in the chest and aims a kick towards his nose. The King staggers back and reaches a hand up to his face. A droplet of blood flows onto his upper lip and Seungcheol quickly wipes it. "He wouldn't be in danger all the time if it weren't for you," Jihoon says, slamming his elbow into Seungcheol's throat. The vampire coughs and grips at his neck a bit, he winces when his movement causes his stomach more pain. Although he is in loads of pain, he finds himself thinking once more about the way Jihoon said that. It happened again. The way he said the word danger was like the way he said Seokmin. Is it possible that Jihoon is trying to tell him something? First he said Seokmin and then he said danger. Seungcheol's eyes widen as it slowly begins to dawn on him. The reason Jihoon is doing this all makes sense now. Seokmin is in danger. Mr. Shin must have Seokmin. But, where? "Come on, Jihoon," Mr. Shin tuts, "Don't hold back. Use these. They'll pack a bigger punch than just your fists." He points to a pair of silver knuckles that lay on the table. Jihoon gaze doesn't move from Seungcheol as he walks over to the table and grabs the knuckles. Seungcheol looks back at his eyes, which he now knows pleads to him to save his baby brother. He grimaces, he needs to know more. He can definitely send out a message for everyone to look for Seokmin, but until the vampire is without a doubt safe, Jihoon won't stop his act. Seungcheol taps the communication device in his ear and mutters under his breath, "Lee Seokmin has been captured...he's being used as blackmail...I don't know his location, but keep an eye out for him. I'll let you know more as soon as I can get more info." He glances at Mr. Shin, who thankfully didn't seem to notice Seungcheol's action. He turns his attention over to Jihoon, who is slowly slipping the silver knuckles onto his hands, almost in an attempt to prolong what is inevitably about to happen. "Let's go!" Mr. Shin says, "We have things to do, Jihoon." The vampire lets out a breath and nods before slowly walking back to Seungcheol. Jihoon mouths sorry before doing a sweep kick, knocking Seungcheol onto his back. He groans as his breath is taken from him. His back aches from the fall and the dagger still stuck in his chest is poking around in his stomach, making it even more painful. Seungcheol tries to push back the pain, knowing he needs to focus on getting Seokmin and Jihoon out of the situation they're in. He slowly tries to get to his feet, but Jihoon pounces on him before he can. He winces at the sudden added weight that now sits inches away from his stomach where blood has tinged his shirt red. "Do you know how hard it was to pretend to like you!?" Jihoon shouts as he aims a fist at Seungcheol's face. The vampire King's face flies to the left from the blow, but he doesn't get much time to recover as Jihoon punches him again. The silver knuckles making each of his punches hurt ten times more than they should. "You were always next to me! I mean a room right across the hall from your own!? Did you think I would find that endearing!?" Jihoon cries as he continues firing punches at his boyfriend's face. His left eye feels numb and he is sure that his lip is cracked, not to mention the amount of bruises that are probably on his face. Even with the barrage of pain and blows, Seungcheol is able to make out the words Jihoon is trying to deliver. "Yank the dagger out," Seungcheol murmurs.

Jihoon stops punching for a second and stares at Seungcheol, "What?"

"Do it," Seungcheol states, "He's watching." Jihoon discreetly turns to look at Mr. Shin, who has a smile on his face and is humming under his breath. His eyes are locked on them, enjoying the fight between the couple. Jihoon lets out a shaky breath and grabs the hilt of the dagger. He purses his lips together and quickly rips the weapon out of Seungcheol's chest. The vampire king let out a deep-throated yell as blood flies onto Jihoon's face and splatters on the floor. Seingcheol breathes heavily and presses his hand to his wound. Jihoon tosses the dagger to the side and whimpers quietly before stating in a fake confident tone, "Do you understand why I'm doing this you good for nothing vampire King!!??"

"Yes," Seungcheol says in a breathy tone before tapping his comm and whispering, "He's in the hall with the private offices...the one across from the green door..."

"I'm heading there now," Soonyoung states over the comms. Seungcheol winces and breathes through clenched teeth. Jihoon looks down at his pained boyfriend with a guilty expression. "They'll find him," Seungcheol mutters before coughing. Blood splatters onto his puffy lips, but he still manages to flash Jihoon a smile. Jihoon lets out a strangled sob at this, not believing that his boyfriend is bleeding to death and still manages to grin at him like it isn't a big deal. Jihoon lowers a shaky hand on top of Seungcheol's own bloodied one which sits on his gushing wound. He grips it and lets out silent sobs, his entire body shaking. "What are you doing!?" Mr Shin exclaims, "Kill him already!"

"I can't..." Jihoon says, his voice cracking, "I've caused him enough pain..." Seungcheol doesn't speak, his entire body feeling too heavy to do anything. He just lies there, staring into Jihoon's watery eyes, wanting nothing more than to wipe his tears away and tell him it'll be okay. "Don't cry," Seungcheol mouths more than he says, barely any sound coming from him.

"Don't you remember what happens if you don't do as I say?" Mr. Shin questions. Jihoon shakes his head as tears fall from his eyes. He knows. He knows, but he just can't anymore. The dread that filled him when Mr. Shin first told him what he had to do only doubled when he actually shoved that dagger into his lover. It got worse with each punch. As blood started to drip from his boyfriend's body, it tore Jihoon's heart apart. It stripped him bare to his very core. cause in the end he was the one that was behind Seungcheol's current state. There's no excuse for it. "It's not your fault," Seungcheol murmurs weakly. Jihoon looks at his boyfriend's battered face. One eye can't even open properly and the other has blood splattered around it. There's nothing but pure affection and love shining through them, something that only makes the guilt within Jihoon grow. Seungcheol should hate him, but he doesn't. Of course, he doesn't. He's Seungcheol. Jihoon lets out a scream before pressing his head into Seungcheol's chest, doing his best not to touch the wound. Seungcheol coos and raises his free hand to rub gently against the back of Jihoon's head. Jihoon sobs at the action, his entire body feeling numb even though Seugncheol is the one bleeding out. "What is this!?" Mr. Shin growls, "I won't ask again Jihoon! Kill him or Seokmin dies!!!" Jihoon lets out a whimper at this and slowly starts to lift his head up again. He reaches for something in his pocket with shaky hands, but Seungcheol stops him for a second by grabbing his hand. The King quickly mouths something that Mr. Shin can't seem to make out, but Jihoon can. Jihoon lets out a shaky breath and sniffles a bit before slowly nodding. He reaches again towards his pocket and takes out a gun. He stares at it as he slowly releases the safety and points it at Seungcheol. "There we go," Mr. Shin states, "Now do it." Jihoon doesn't say a word as he twists his body and points the weapon at Shin's head. He doesn't hesitate and fires as the faction head's eyes widen. The silver bullet lodges itself right in between his eyebrows and Mr. Shin falls to the ground with a thud. Jihoon drops the gun which clatters to the floor, glaring at the fallen vamp for all he put him through. Seungcheol smiles, "That's my Jihoon." His eyes slowly close as the world begins to melt away. He can barely hear the strangled cry of his name before everything turns black.

And one more cliffhanger. We're almost at the end. The second to last chapter. Ack! It's crazy. This is the last time I will say I will see you next week for this book. I am keeping the sappy stuff for the final chapter though. I promised myself that. Thank you for checking out this chapter. I hope that you enjoyed it. If you can, please vote, comment, follow me, add this story to your library and check out my other fics here on Wattpad. Until next time week where we will officially wrap up this fic. Bye!