Page 122 of Crushed Vow

“Did he touch you?” he asked, voice lowering to a deadly calm. “Tell me the truth, or I swear to God, I’ll gut him before you can finish lying.”

“He didn’t. I swear—”

“I want you to walk away from the car. Now.”

I stood rooted to the ground. “He’s just trying to help me get home.”

“Charlotte,” Cassian snapped, his voice a sharp blade. “Don’t make me lose what’s left of my fucking soul tonight. You get in that car, and I’ll hunt him down like prey. You think I’m bluffing?”

His voice dipped to a terrifying whisper.

“You know me better than that.”

“Why are you like this?” I whispered, my voice breaking.

“Because you’re mine,” he said without hesitation.

“Charlotte, you can keep talking on the phone in the car,” Manuel said, voice calm, coaxing, as he slipped behind the wheel and started the engine. The hum filled the lot like a warning.

I didn’t move.

My feet were nailed to the pavement. My gut screamed ‘don’t.’ The air around me felt charged, like the moment before lightning splits the sky.

Then Cassian’s voice cracked through the speaker—low, guttural, shaking with fury.

“Do you have any idea what I’ve done for you, Charlotte? The wars I’ve fought, the deals I’ve made to keep you safe? I’ve bled for you. Killed for you. Burned alive for you.”

His breath hitched—just for a second—but it sounded like he’d punched a wall.

“And this is how you repay me?” His voice turned hoarse, gutted.

“By going on a date with a man... eating with him... smiling at him like he earned it?” He exhaled hard, shaky.

My heart slammed against my ribs.

“I haven’t done anything wrong. I went on a date, that’s all. Will you come get me or not?”“ I fired back, forcing strength into my voice

A pause. The kind that felt like the breath before a massacre.

“Twenty minutes,” he gritted out. “I’m coming. Don’t fucking move.”

“I’m sorry,” I said coldly. “I can’t wait.”

There was silence on the other end.

Then—so soft it chilled me:

“Oh, you’ll wait, Charlotte. You’ll wait—unless you want me to burn this entire city to the ground. With him in it.”

I flinched. “You’re insane.”

“No. I’m in love,” he hissed. “Which is worse.”

“Watch me,” I snapped, then ended the call before I could change my mind.

My fingers trembled as I reached for the handle. I slid into the car.

The door shut with a heavy, final thud. It felt like locking myself in a cage.