He kept his head down, too scared to look at anyone. He dropped to his knees and shuffled backward until his back hit the cold stone wall. His voice trembled as he yelled, "If you want to kill someone, kill her! Don''t kill me! I swear, I wasn''t the one who pped you!"


    Before the words were even out of his mouth, a surprisingly gentle voice spoke up. It was the man. "Why did you hit me, all of a sudden?"


    He sounded honestly confused, not the tiniest bit angry about being pped-just like he genuinely wanted to know. It was almost as if, if ra could give him a reason, he''d let her p him a few more times, no questions asked.


    Grayson wondered if he was hearing things. Seriously? The Grim Reaper gets smacked and just... takes it?


    ra, eyes closed, didn''t bother answering. She turned away, trying to pull her hand out of his grip.


    Dn held on, his fingers tight around hers. "Are you mad?" he asked quietly.


    He hadn''t said much these past few days, mostly just sitting silently beside her, only speaking when she needed him to do something.


    ra worried he was getting more and more closed off, but she hadn''t managed to hold back just now.


    "Dn, we''re going to be stuck here for a few more days. Why don''t you take some time to think things through? If you want, you can tell me what''s going on with you. There''s no rush."


    He pressed his lips together, then finally let go of her hand.


    Grayson was still kneeling in the corner, ncing back and forth between them. Suddenly, everything made sense these two were a couple.<fn7277> Th?s chapter is updated by fin?novel</fn7277>


    Holy crap, even the Grim Reaper has someone he likes.


    Wait... Wasn''t he almost killed by the Grim Reaper once for standing too close to ra?


    So that''s when it started. The Grim Reaper has liked ra ever since that day!


    He took a shaky breath and scooted even closer to the wall. If it weren''t pitch- ck outside and basically suicide to go out there alone, he''d have bolted already.


    As soon as the sun came up, he was out of here. No question.


    Dn just sat there, staring into the fire, silent and lost in thought.


    ra stood up, ready to step outside for some air.


    Dn looked panicked and grabbed her wrist. "ra..."


    She took a breath and shook him off. "I''m just going out for a minute."


    Before she could finish, Grayson blurted out, "No, no, I''ll go! I''ll give you guys some space, please-I''m begging you-don''t leave me alone in here with him!"


    ra''s eyes narrowed. She shook off Dn''s hand and marched over to Grayson.


    "Then tell me," she demanded, "what did you mean by ''he''s killed a lot of people''? Why are you so scared of him? Did you actually see him kill someone?"


    Grayson shrank down, peeking sideways at Dn.


    ra had her back to Dn, so she couldn''t see his face, but from Grayson''s angle, Dn''s expression was terrifying. Grayson couldn''t even look at him.


    Forget it. He didn''t dare say a word. At this point, getting knocked out by ra would be better than getting tortured by the Grim Reaper.


    He squeezed his eyes shut, bracing himself for the hit. But instead, ra just kicked him over, sending him sprawling on the ground. "So you''re afraid of him torturing you, but not me?"


    "ra, I''m the young master of the Bolton family! You''d better make it quick, because when my brother gets here! You... you..."


    He couldn''t finish the threat, not with Dn right there.


    His face turned ghostly pale, lips pressed tight, and he turned his head away, trying to act tough.


    ra crouched down next to him, a little smile tugging at her lips. "Funny you should mention your brother. I know him, too. I''m stronger than he is. So no, I''m not scared."


    Grayson''s face turned bright red. He finally blurted out, "No way!"


    To him, Charles was the strongest man on earth.


    Sure, people in their circle didn''t appreciate Charles, but Grayson owed him his life. Even if Charles only saved him because Griffin told him to, Grayson would never forget how heroic his brother looked that day. Charles was the best, no question.


    Smack! Smack! Smack!


    ra pped him three times in a row, letting out all the anger she''d been holding in.


    Grayson''s cheek puffed up fast. He was usually the quick-talking type-even the kidnappers would never treat him like this. But ra had just smacked him down, literally.


    Normally, he''d curse her out for hours to get even, but one look at Dn''s expression shut him right up.


    Dn stared at the fire for a long moment before asking, "Why?"


    ra blinked. "What?"


    Why what?


    He looked up, frowning. "You only pped me once. You hit him three times."


    ra froze. Grayson was stunned, too.


    Finally, Grayson couldn''t help himself. "Are you serious? You''re keeping score? If you like getting pped that much, just ask her to do it again!"