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There was a long pause.

“Luke?”

“Hold on.” Luke’s voice was eerily calm. “Let me get this straight. You’re telling me you’re part werewolf, those three impossibly hot guys who’ve been circling you like overprotective guard dogs are actually… guard dogs, and this somehow connects to why my mom is currently setting up her mudang altar and pulling out her ceremonial hanbok?”

“She’s what?”

“EOMMA!” Luke’s voice carried away from the phone. “ARE YOU SERIOUSLY GETTING OUT THE SACRED BELLS? IT’S ALMOST MIDNIGHT!”

I heard the distinct sound of brass bells jingling, followed by the rhythmic beating of a ceremonial drum and… was that silk rustling?

“Luke? What’s happening over there?”

“Oh, you know, just a normal Tuesday night where my mom’s turning our living room into a gut ceremony. She just pulled out her grandmother’s sacred fan and— EOMMA, NO, NOT THE CEREMONIAL DRUM! THE NEIGHBORS ALREADY COMPLAINED ABOUT THE LAST MIDNIGHT RITUAL!”

The rhythmic chanting grew louder, Imo’s voice rising and falling in ancient Korean that made Shadow’s ears perk up and Scout lift his head with interest.

“Is she… is she okay?” I asked, slightly concerned by the increasing volume of both chanting and drumming.

“Okay? OKAY?” Luke’s laugh had a slightly hysterical edge. “My best friend just told me he’s part werewolf, which apparently explains why my mom is breaking out her sacred implements and— EOMMA, YOU CAN’T DO A FULL GUT CEREMONY IN OUR HOUSE!”

I heard Luke’s door slam and his footsteps pacing. “Kai. Listen to me. This isn’t funny. If you’re having some kind of crisis?—”

“I’m serious, Luke.”

“No. No, no, no. You don’t get to drop ‘I’m a werewolf’ on me like it’s totally normal! Is this because of the cottage? The job hunt stress? Have those impossibly hot brothers somehow broken your brain with their… their… whatever they do?”

“Luke—”

“Because I can take time off work. Right now. Pack a bag. Stage an intervention. Clearly, my best friend is having some kind of mental break and needs?—”

The sudden crash of his bedroom door flying open cut him off. I heard Imo’s voice, sharp and clear even through the phone: “LUKE! The signs! They were about Kai! We must go NOW!”

“Eomma? What?—”

“Pack your bag! The spirits have been trying to tell me—” More rapid-fire Korean followed, making all three dogs’ heads snap up in perfect synchronization. Shadow actually sat up, ears forward, while Scout let out a soft whine.

“Wait, what do you mean you KNEW about the wolves?” Luke’s voice went up several octaves. “EOMMA!”

“Your friend needs us.” Min-seo’s voice came closer to the phone. “Kai-ya? Hold on, we’re coming. Don’t let those wolves—” She switched to Korean, something that made Storm actually bark in response.

“Did that… did I just hear a dog bark at my mom’s Korean?” Luke asked faintly.

“The Stone brothers’ dogs are… special,” I managed, watching as Shadow maintained perfect eye contact with my phone.

“We must leave now!” Imo declared firmly. “Luke! Stop standing there and?—”

“Eomma, it’s almost midnight!” Luke’s voice shifted from panic to practicality. “I have work tomorrow. I would need to request time off, and it’s a three-hour drive to Cedar Grove!”

“But the signs?—”

“Will still be there this weekend,” Luke said firmly. “Kai, you’re not in immediate danger, right?”

I glanced at the three supernatural guard dogs surrounding me. “No, I’m… actually pretty well protected.”

“Okay. Then we’ll come this weekend. But this conversation is NOT over. We’re video calling tomorrow, and those brothers of yours better be there. I want to see their faces when they explain exactly what they’ve done to my best friend.”

“They haven’t done anything?—”