By Zephyria 
Only after hearing that the child who had been urgently taken to the hospital was safe did Dane finally let out a deep sigh of relief. Everyone was rejoicing, sharing their elated feelings with a word or two, when Wilkins suddenly shouted.
“That’s right, Miller!”
At those words, everyone remembered what they had forgotten: why they had come here in the first place.
“Everyone was looking for Miller! Did you find out anything? Did you get any tips?”
The sun was already setting. No one could answer Wilkins’s urgent question. Of course. No one knew Grayson’s whereabouts, except for one person.
This damn bastard is bothering me to the very end.
Dane swallowed the curse in his mouth and hurriedly ran back to the house from earlier.
Desire Me if you can
The sound of rather large raindrops falling was deafening. Grayson was sitting on the basement floor, humming a meaningless tune, just like when he was a child.
Spending time like this was familiar to him. If he fantasized, sang, or even slept, the locked door would open and the time of liberation would come. It would be the same this time.
He was humming a tuneless song and leaning against the wall when he heard the sound of a key turning with a clatter, mixed with the sound of rain. Someone had entered the house.
Is it Santiano’s dad?
Grayson thought, remaining in his place. He would open the door soon. And his prediction was not far off. He heard the sound of footsteps going back and forth between the kitchen and the entrance, sometimes closer, sometimes farther away, repeated several times.
When will he open the door?
Time feels infinitely long to those who wait. Grayson knew this fact well. He thought so when he was left alone in the basement like this, and when all his brothers had found their destinies, but he was left alone. Waiting always feels several times longer than it actually is, which is why it is so frustrating. Not much time has passed in reality. So I can wait as long as it takes, he thought.
See, even now.
The man’s footsteps came closer again. Finally, he stood in front of the basement door, and as Grayson heard the sound of him inserting and turning the key, he raised the corners of his mouth as if he knew it would happen.
The number of times that man went back and forth wasn’t even 100.
The metallic sound of the old hinges echoed. And finally, the door to the basement connected to the living room opened.
“…What is this?”
The man, who had expected to see his son’s face, distorted his face in embarrassment. His shaking eyes wandered around the dark basement, but nothing changed. When he realized that his son was not there, he hurriedly fixed his eyes on the unfamiliar man again.
“Y-you, who are you? Where is my son?”
His trembling voice sounded strangely high, as if he was nervous. Grayson slowly rose to his feet. The man, seeing his tall height that seemed to reach the ceiling, gasped and stepped back.
“W-wait, stay there! Don’t come any closer!”
“I am Grayson Miller.”
Grayson politely introduced himself and smiled. The smiling face when greeting someone was predetermined. It was the result of a lifetime of learning, so it couldn’t be wrong.
It was a smile that gave friendliness to anyone and made him look attractive, but it didn’t work this time. The man turned even more pale and stepped back as if he was jumping.
“You bastard, stop! Don’t come any closer!”
The man was screaming hysterically, but Grayson continued his explanation without paying attention.
“Santiano had to be punished, but there was an obstruction…”
The man was upset because his son had disappeared without being properly punished. If he spoke calmly, he would calm down. Grayson thought so. The man was at best up to his chest. He was confident that he could subdue him at any time, so he could persuade him physically. Of course, that was until the man took a sudden action.
“Stop, don’t come any closer! If you move, I’ll shoot you!”
The man shouted in a harsh voice and pulled out the pistol he had stuck in his back pocket and aimed it. The smile disappeared from Grayson’s face. His red, bloodshot eyes and the trembling gun barrel seemed to indicate that the man was serious.
Oops, I didn’t expect this.
Grayson slowly folded his arms and made a sign of surrender. A tense atmosphere settled between them.
Desire Me if you can
In front of the house, there was an old truck that he hadn’t seen before. It seemed that the man who was Santiano’s dad had returned. In a short time, countless thoughts flashed through Dane’s mind. Has Miller already left? Maybe there’s no one there anymore. Should I just go back? What if he’s still there? You useless bastard, causing so much trouble. If I catch you, I’m going to beat you to death.
The front door was not locked. He held his breath and went inside, and felt a chilling tension. He couldn’t hear anything, but the hair on his body stood on end as if he was instinctively sensing the murderous intent.
“I thought guns were usually left at home, but you carry them around, you’re a dangerous man.”
Dane stopped at the sudden voice. The familiar voice was definitely that of the man he had come to find.
No way, it can’t be.
Dane denied reality. In fact, he wanted to pretend he didn’t know and back away, but unfortunately, he unintentionally found the source of the murderous intent. The moment he turned around to sneak out, he saw the back of a man aiming a gun at the inside of the basement, a few steps away from the entrance.
Ah, damn it.
Dane rubbed his forehead at the truly frustrating situation. Soon after, he heard the man’s rough voice, his shoulders shaking. Across from him stood another man who shouldn’t be there. The worst of his imaginations was unfolding before his eyes.
four
Shooting Grayson Miller with a gun was something that only existed in his imagination, but when it actually happened before his eyes, he felt complicated. The reason he hadn’t done it in reality was because it was a hassle to clean up, but it was ridiculous that he had to go through so much trouble because of something someone else had done.
He had to end this situation before things got too ugly. Just as he was about to make an unavoidable choice and move, the man shouted.
“Shut up, you son of a bitch! Where’s my son, give me back my Santiano!”
“That’s what I’m trying to tell you.”
In contrast to the man’s tearful shouts, Grayson’s voice was calm. He continued in his unique, smirking voice.
“Your son did something wrong, so I put him in the basement. But something happened, so he’s not here now. I’m the only one here. Wait a minute, don’t get angry that the child left in the middle, because I stayed here instead. So, is the punishment all done now? Anyone can fill the headcount, right, isn’t that right?”
It was nonsense. Of course, Dane wasn’t the only one who thought so.
“What the fuck are you talking about, you son of a bitch…”