Page 20 of Crushed Vow

It wasn’t Elodie.

It was a man—his smile slick with something wrong, his eyes glinting with something predatory.

My heart races, my hands clutch my ears, my breath ragged. “Stay away,” I say, stumbling back, my voice shaking.

He steps closer, his grin widening. “Stay the fuck away!” I scream, my voice piercing, drawing eyes from the court’s crowd.

And then, suddenly—Cassian was there.

He charged forward like a storm breaking loose.

His fist slammed into the man’s face with a brutal crack.

The man staggered backward, stumbled—and hit the ground hard. Blood poured from his nose, painting his mouth and shirt in thick red streaks.

Cassian stood over him, chest heaving, eyes burning with cold fury.

“Which part of ‘stay away’ didn’t you understand?” Cassian’s voice was steel.

The man staggered to his feet, blood trailing from his nose. He raised both hands in surrender, backing away.

“I—I didn’t mean any harm,” he stammered. “I thought she came to play...”

Cassian turned to me. His voice softened, almost pleading. “Charlotte. I’m not who I used to be. Things have changed.”

But I couldn’t see change. All I saw was chains.

“You sent me to the psych ward,” I whispered, trembling.

He stepped closer. “No. That was your father. You said it yourself—Ethan found you.”

More tears spilled. My body trembled. “We need to see a doctor,” he said gently.

I flinched. “Because I’m mad?”

“No,” he said, voice tight with emotion, eyes glassy. “You’re my wife. It’s my duty to help you heal. They pumped you full of drugs for a year—but you’ll get better, I swear.”

He took a step forward.

I backed away, arms lifting instinctively—like a shield. As if I could physically keep him, and everything he made me feel, at bay.

And suddenly I was there again.

Tied down. Collared. Begging.

“You said you were my master,” I whispered. “I remember. You told me to call you that.”

His voice dropped to a whisper. “I’m your husband.”

He didn’t move closer. Didn’t try to force anything.

“And I love you.”

My breath hitched.

“No... You’re lying. If you loved me...” My throat closed. “you wouldn’t have sent me to that psych ward. You wouldn’t have chained me like a dog.”

My voice cracked. “You wouldn’t have kept my mother from me. You wouldn’t have let her die.”