Kai’s grip on my shoulders was unrelenting as he pushed me back against the car seat, his creepy eyes glaring daggers at me. I was terrified since I couldn’t escape him even if I tried. His teleportation ability was too powerful—I wouldn’t stand a chance.

The only way out of this was to get on his good side somehow, but his hateful glower was proof this would be anything but easy. If I could at least make him see I wasn’t his enemy, then maybe he would help me just like I planned to help him and the others. It was a naïve thought, but it was worth a shot.

“Y-You’re Kai, right?” I said, my shaky voice becoming more stable the longer I spoke. “I’m Hyorin, but you know that already.”

“My name is Eighty-Eight,” he hissed, his eyes narrowing at me. He let go of me abruptly and sat in the seat next to me, folding his arms. These researchers must have brainwashed him if he didn’t acknowledge his own name anymore—they disgusted me.

“But your real name is Kai,” I tried again, keeping my voice soft. I gauged his reaction carefully, hoping he wouldn’t lash out at me, and fortunately, nothing of the sort happened. He stared straight ahead with vacant eyes as if he was lost in a distant memory. I fell silent, unsure how I should talk to him. He was like a ticking bomb that could blow up at any given moment and it was nerve-wracking to be around him.

The people who took part in the X-EXO experiments were truly dangerous. Since Lay, Xiumin, and D.O. had been free for six months, they weren’t so caught up in their hate, they didn’t show so much anger anymore. And Baekhyun had been calm from the start. Admittedly, it had been a dangerous calm, the kind that happened before a storm, but he seemed to be better at keeping his darker side in control. But Kai was driven solely by madness. I didn’t know if he could still be saved.

Biting my lip, I tried to speak to him again. I had to get him on my side before we reached our destination. “Kai, there is something you should know,” I said. His head turned and his creepy eyes focused on me, scaring me. The bright color of his iris looked artificial. I suppressed a shiver and fought the urge to move away from him. “We are working on freeing all of you. Baekhyun, Xiumin, D.O., and Lay are all on your side.”

“Do you expect me to believe that crap? They left me behind in this madhouse and I will never forgive them,” Kai snarled. “When Park agreed to let me outside if I brought you back, I was ecstatic. He told me you were allied with these traitors, so it was the perfect opportunity to take revenge on them.”

His hate went deep. Too deep. It was likely impossible for me to talk him out of it, but I didn’t want to give up just yet. I had somehow cracked Baekhyun’s shell, so perhaps I could achieve something here too.

“But Kai… if you work for Park, you are doing exactly what he wants. Don’t let him manipulate you. You’re your own person and you shouldn’t be controlled by anyone,” I reasoned, keeping my voice as gentle as I could. “Baekhyun, Lay, Xiumin, and D.O are doing their best to set you and the others free. Have faith in them.”

His eyes narrowed at me as I spoke, scrutinizing me and making my fear of his rise. He looked like he couldn’t comprehend what I was talking about, but then, suddenly, his sinister eyes softened, a bitter smirk appearing on his lips.

“Kai, we are going to find a way out of this, I promise,” I whispered, reaching my hand out to him to touch his shoulder. He studied me silently, reminding me of a predator that wasn’t sure if he should kill his prey or not. Mentioning his true name so often triggered something within him.

“Don’t ing act like you care!” he growled bitterly and crossed his arms, not looking at me anymore.

It was the last time he spoke before we reached a secluded building somewhere in a forest area. From the outside, it appeared like a bunker, with gray walls and a fence surrounding it.

I was dragged out of the car by Kai and before I could blink, he touched my arm and we changed our location, teleporting into an office. I came face to face with my uncle who sat behind a desk and cunningly smirked at me. He had won and basked in his success.

“Hello, Hyorin, nice to see you again,” Minho drawled. He wore an expensive suit, keeping up the appearance of a rich businessman, but it was nothing more than a façade to fool other people.

“I’m afraid I can’t share your enthusiasm,” I glowered at him. Kai remained close to me, looming over me threateningly with his height. I was uneasy and afraid, felt more vulnerable than ever—they were both capable of killing me at any given moment. None of them would be remorseful if I died, none of them cared about me. Desperate tears pricked at my eyes, but I didn’t let them overflow. I couldn’t show weakness in front of them. If only Baekhyun was here—since he had been my bodyguard for over a month, I had learned to depend on him, to trust him whenever I was in danger. Now I was all alone for the first time in so long.

“Eighty-Eight did a great job finding you. I should have used him sooner,” Minho answered, leaning back in his chair as he grinned conceitedly. “I didn’t expect he would be such a great tool. The other lab rats are useless; they’re constantly rebelling. It gets old fast.” Park let out an annoyed sigh, rolling his eyes. His arrogance and disregard for other people’s lives made me sick to my stomach.

“You’re insane! This is wrong, you can’t lock them up and do whatever the hell you want with them! Are you aware of the severity of your crimes?” I yelled, my anger getting the best of me. I took a step towards him, my fists trembling at my sides.

“I don’t need you anymore, Hyorin. You’re only getting in my way and you running to the police isn’t something I want to risk. You are going to die,” he said, not looking at me anymore as if I wasn’t worth his time. “But I want to make things interesting, simply shooting you in the head would be boring, don’t you agree? Eighty-Eight, bring her to Sixty-One. He’ll burn her alive.”

I wanted to open my mouth, to curse and scream at him, but Kai grabbed me before I could. My surroundings turned black, and then I was standing in a white room. The color was blinding. Everything was stark white, from the floor to the walls, ceiling, and furniture. Even the door was white. It reminded me of a freaky hospital.

“I guess this is it,” Kai said, watching me with a remorseful glint in his eyes, but it was gone suddenly, making me wonder if I had only imagined it. “Goodbye, Hyorin.” He vanished into thin air, leaving me standing in the creepy white room.

As I looked around, I spotted a man standing in a corner. He openly stared at me, tilting his head as he walked closer. The iris of his right eye was white, while his other eye was dark blue. It looked strange to me. His light pink hair was tousled, standing up in all directions. Dark red and violet spots marked his skin, showing he had recently been in a fight with someone. As he got closer, the air around me warmed until it became unbearable. Who was he?

“What are you doing here?” he hissed as he glared at me with a burning hatred. His eyes were filled with distrust and it seemed he was only waiting for me to give him a reason to kill me. When I failed to answer him, an orange light flared close to his hand and fire danced over his skin. It looked like his hand was made of flames, conjuring them out of nowhere.

“A-Are you Chanyeol?” I stuttered, moving back without taking my eyes away from the dangerous fire.

“Am I?” he asked mockingly, raising his eyebrows. “Why would you care? Want to know the name of your murderer?”

My breath hitched, fear making my pulse rise. “I don’t want to die,” I whispered, my voice breaking.

“You don’t get to decide that,” he sneered. “I don’t know why Kai brought you here and