Page 71 of Fired at the Heart

“Don’t.” Raphael slices his hand through the air. “He’s not in his right mind.”

“He’s been loyal to me for years. I owe him a face-to-face.”

Before Raphael can protest further, I step around the doorframe into the main room of the safe house, gun raised. When I see Cassian is unarmed, I lower my weapon to my side but stay ready to raise it at the first sign of trouble.

Cassian stands in the center of the room, his tall frame rigid with tension. He freezes as he takes in my half-dressed appearance, wild hair, and skin peppered with kiss marks and beard burn.

His face transforms, raw pain morphing into fury in an instant. “After everything he did to you, you let him Mark you again.”

I don’t deny it. There’s no point. The evidence is written all over me, from the bite on my nape to the finger-shaped bruises on my hips to the lingering scent of Raphael that saturates my skin.

“Did he force you?” Cassian takes a step closer. “Did he take advantage of your Heat?”

“No,” I say, leaving no room to doubt. “He didn’t force anything.”

Cassian’s face contorts with disbelief. “Then why? Why go through the pain of breaking the bond if you were going to let him claim you again? We had a plan, and it wasn’tthis!”

Before I can answer, Raphael steps into view beside me, and Cassian’s focus shifts to him, Cassian’s expression tightening as his hand twitches at his side.

“Breaking the bond was a final ultimatum,” Raphael corrects, steel beneath each word. “Avery’s way of telling me to get my head straight or lose him forever. It was never an invitation for you to step into my shoes.”

Cassian’s laugh is bitter, almost hysterical. “You already lost him! You lost him the moment you walked away. You don’t get to come back years later and steal him away now that he’s built a life without you.”

His focus turns to me, desperation clouding his expression. “We built this together. You and me. When everyone else thought an Omega couldn’t run the business, I stood by you. I believed in you. I protected you.”

I loved you.The unspoken words hang heavy in the air between us.

“I’m sorry, Cass,” I begin, unsure what else to say but needing to defuse this situation before it explodes.

But it’s too late. In one fluid motion, Cassian reaches behind his back and pulls out a gun, aiming it at Raphael’s head. “You don’t deserve Avery. You never did.”

Cassian’s eyes locked on Raphael, no hesitation in his stance, no uncertainty in his expression. Only cold determination. I recognize that expression. I’ve seen it a hundred times when he’s eliminated threats to our operation or protected me from rivals. I’ve always been grateful for his unwavering loyalty.

And now, that same loyalty might cost me everything I’ve just regained.

“Cass, put the gun down,” I say, far steadier than I feel. “This isn’t the way.”

His focus remains on Raphael. “Step aside, Avery.”

“Not happening.” I tighten my grip on my weapon. “You need to leave. Now. We can talk about this tomorrow once you’ve cooled down.”

“I’ve been cooling down for years,” Cassian says bitterly. “Watching you pine for him. Watching you check your phone every time it chimed, hoping it was him. Watching you turn down every Alpha who showed interest because none of them were him.”

Each word lands like a blow. Have I been that obvious? That transparent all these years?

“And now he waltzes back into your life to reclaim what he threw away?” Cassian’s resolve hardens. “I won’t let him hurt you again.”

Beside me, Raphael tenses. “This is between Avery and me. You don’t get a say in it.”

It’s the wrong thing to say as Cassian’s face contorts with rage. “I don’t get a say?I’ve been here!Every day foryearswhile you were playing family man with the Rockfords. I’ve taken bullets for him. Killed for him. Bled for him.”

“Cassian—”

“Tell me, Avery.” His eyes finally shift to mine, pain evident in their gray depths. “If his family called tomorrow and said they needed him back, would he stay? Or would he leave you broken again?”

The question hits too close to home, echoing my deepest fears. But before I can respond, I see the subtle shift in Cassian’s stance, the tightening of his finger on the trigger.

He’s going to shoot.

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