ra shoved open the bent car door beside her. "Shut up. You''re not going to die. If you''ve got something to say, say it yourself."


    Ryan was too weak to reply and just passed out.


    The cemetery nearby always had visitors, so it wouldn''t be long before someone showed up. Her priority was to lead these troublemakers away.


    She bolted down the slope, only breathing a sigh of relief when she saw the men chasing after her. She hoped that someone would find Ryan soon and get him to a hospital.


    The wound on his shoulder wasn''t life-threatening, so he should be alright.


    At the bottom of the slope was a forest, and as ra raced down, sharp branches scratched her face, leaving several bloody marks. But there was no time to worry about that. She could only run faster and faster.


    When adrenaline kicked in, people could do amazing things. Her hands were scratched up, but she kept pushing forward.


    She had no idea who sent these guys, but they clearly meant business.


    As soon as she reached a stream, she jumped right in without a second thought. The current carried her downstream. At first, she was conscious, but soon everything became a blur.


    The men chasing her couldn''t find her and assumed she must have been swept away. They searched downstream for two hours without any luck.


    One of them spat on the ground. "Let''s just say she''s dead. We can get the two million and be done with it."


    "Yeah, she has crash injuries. This river flows out of city limits where there aren''t many houses. No way she''ll get rescued if she''s still in the water."


    They quickly agreed and called Quinn.


    Quinn was in disbelief at how smoothly things had gone. Her lips trembled with excitement, her eyes sparkling with triumph. "Alright, I''ll send you the rest of the money right away. Get out of the town immediately."


    The men exchanged satisfied grins, took the payment, and left without bothering to chase ra any further.


    ra felt an intense heat washing over her, so hot it made her want to throw up like she was lying on a bed of coals. She struggled to open her eyes but couldn''t.


    A gentle hand pried her mouth open and fed her something. She frowned and instinctively tried to spit it out, but the hand firmly pinched her tongue, stopping her from doing so.


    The burning sensation kept climbing, and the hand moved to her earlobe, gently squeezing it like it was caressing a delicate doll.


    Her breath quickened with anger, but the hand didn''t relent, yfully poking her cheek as if it was enjoying the game.


    Just as ra was about to curse, a rush of memories about Dn surged into her mind. Caught in this fiery haze, she couldn''t tell if it was reality or a dream.


    The memory was about that business partner mentioning the time she pped Dn.


    Back then, Dn''s leg was fine. When she pped him, he just touched his cheek and didn''t say a word.


    She hadn''t said anything either, her hand retracting slightly from the p.


    The two of them were like statues locked in a silent standoff. Surprisingly, in this memory, she held her own against Dn.


    As the memory was about to end, Dn suddenly asked, "Did your hand hurt?"