Page 54 of Lords of Ruin: Savage

At the way she’s clinging to me like she’s afraid I’ll disappear if she lets go.

A dark expression flashes through his eyes.

“Cast,” Willow breathes, straightening. Her hand twitches like she’s about to reach for him, but at the last second, she stops.

His expression doesn’t change. “You’re awake.”

I smirk, or at least, I try to. “No shit.”

The wry grin he gives me back is cold, humorless. He takes slow, measured steps into the room, his gaze assessing. He looks like aman unraveling a puzzle, picking apart every detail, looking for weak spots.

Looking for answers.

He stops at the foot of my bed, eyes locked on mine. “What do you remember?”

I exhale sharply, dragging a hand down my face. “Not much.” A pause. “Gunshot. Blood. Willow.”

Beside me, she stiffens.

Cast’s gaze flicks to her again. Just for a second.

I shift, ignoring the ache it sends through my side. “Whoever did this—they were aiming forher.”

Silence drops like a hammer.

Willow’s breath hitches. I feel her stare burning into the side of my face, but I don’t look at her.

Damien finally speaks up from his spot by the window. “We know.”

My blood turns to ice.

Cast is still watching me, his face unreadable. “We’re handling it.”

Handling it.

The way he says it makes my skin prickle. Because Cast doesn’thandlethings the way normal people do.

“What aren’t you telling me?” I demand.

Willow shifts uneasily, but it’s Cast who answers.

“Later.”

I grit my teeth. “No.Now.”

Cast tilts his head slightly, his expression never wavering. “You just woke up from a coma. Your body is weak. Your legs aren’t responding the way they should.” A slow, deliberate pause. “You need to focus on yourself right now.”

Focus on myself?

My grip tightens on the blanket. “You think I give a damn about my legs when someone tried tokillWillow?”

Willow flinches.

Cast still doesn’t react. “You should.”

My patience snaps. “Just tell me who it was.”

His lips press into a thin line. “Not yet.”

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