Page 13 of Lords of Ruin: Cherished

I want to pull her away, to demand she come with me, that we find a way out of this. But I can’t move. Neither of us can.

“What did you do to her, Vincent?” Cast whispers, as if speaking too loud will break her.

“I didn’t do anything,” I say, my eyes trained on the way her breaths come out in shaky exhales.

“Cast,” she sighs, crossing her legs as she turns her gaze on us.

“Cariña, don’t say my name like that, not after all this time.”

Willow swallows sharply. Her gaze flicks back down to Damien, and for a moment, she looks at him with such tenderness that it nearly breaks me.

“Willow,” Cast’s voice cracks as he steps closer, his expression torn between concern and frustration. His fists clench at his sides as he hovers next to her, like he’s afraid to touch her, afraid of breaking her even more. “What happened to you? This isn’t you. You’re not...”

She swallows hard, the sound barely audible, and then speaks, her voice low and strained. “Cast, please. We don’t have time for this right now. Damien is the top priority. He needs help. We need to focus on him.”

“Bullshit.” The word leaves his mouth like a snap, and I can hear the venom in his tone, the raw anger that’s been building up inside him since the moment he walked in. “You’re tellingme that Damien’s more important than you? That after everything, you’re just going to push yourself aside, like this is just some... side note? Don’t lie to me, Willow. Don’t fuck with me right now.”

Her chest rises and falls in shallow breaths, the effort of holding her composure taking every last ounce of strength she has left. “I’m fine,” she says softly, but the words don’t match her face, the trembling of her voice. “Damien needs me. He’s the one who’s?—”

“Stop!” Cast’s outburst cuts through her words. “You’re telling me you’re fine? You’re fine? Willow, you can’t even look at me.”

“I’m sorry,” she whispers.

I can feel the shift in the air—the way everything’s just changed. I can see the way Cast’s face crumples. His anger growing into a bitter beast inside of him. His chest rises and falls with each heavy breath, and then, with a sharp motion, he steps back, his hands falling to his sides.

Before anyone can stop him, Cast turns to me, his face twisted with disappointment and fury. “And you,” he spits, pointing a finger in my direction, “I thought you were still the man you used to be. But I can’t trust you with anything. You let the girl we love turn to that, and you’ll have to live with that for the rest of your fucking life.”

I open my mouth to say something, but he’s already turning, storming out of the room before I can get a word in. The door slams behind him with a force that makes the walls tremble, and I stand there, frozen, the weight of his words still hanging in the air like a thick fog.

5

WILLOW

Iam on my feet before I can think twice about it. “Cast!”

Vincent’s hand wraps around my bicep, stopping me with a grip that feels almost too tight, but I don’t care. The urge to run after him is too strong, and the anger I feel boils over.

“Willow, let him—” Vincent’s voice is low.

“Let go of me, Vincent.” I snarl, my voice raw with frustration.

I yank my arm out of his hold, feeling the sting of his touch even as my blood burns hotter, and I take a step toward the door. My heart is pounding in my chest, and I don’t even know if I’m doing this because I’m angry or because I’m desperate for Cast not to leave me again. When he saidcariña,staring at me.Fuck, that broke my heart.

Vincent steps forward, blocking my path. “Willow?—”

“No,” I snap, my hands shaking, my voice rising with every word. “I can’t let him leave like this. I won’t. I won’t just stand here and?—”

I take one last look at Vincent, who watches me with a quiet, resigned expression, and then I turn, ignoring the ache in my chest that says I should stop. I can’t. I won’t.

I push through the hallways, my breath coming in shallow gasps, my chest tightening with every step, but I keep moving. I’m running on pure instinct now, my legs moving faster, harder, until I finally see the elevator doors closing at the end of the hall with Cast inside.

Without thinking, I surge forward, my heart hammering erratically, lungs burning as I close the distance between us. The elevator doors are almost shut, but I slide in just as they’re about to close, gasping for air.

I wheeze, my breath coming out in erratic bursts, and I barely have time to process it before I stumble inside, almost collapsing against the wall. My body shakes, a cold sweat breaking out across my skin, but I manage to look up just in time to see Cast standing there, his jaw tight, his fists clenched at his sides.

The doors close behind me with a soft chime, and the silence in the elevator feels like a heavy weight.

"Cast," I croak, trying to steady my breath, my chest still heaving, my legs weak from the effort. "Please."

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