Burn Me Once, Burn With Me novel Chapter 304

The child’s voice was soft and trembling, the edge of a sob in every word making it almost unbearable to listen.

Cassian felt his heart clench, the sensation so sudden and sharp he hardly recognized it. His movements were still a bit awkward as he cradled her, gently rocking the tiny girl in his arms. His handsome face was tight with confusion, unsure what expression to wear.

Every plaintive call seemed to echo inside his chest like the tolling of a bell, each one making his heart tremble.

Holding this delicate, tiny baby, Cassian was struck by a feeling he’d never known before—a bond both strange and powerful.

He couldn’t quite describe the sensation. It was as if something inside him twisted painfully.

Before he could make sense of it, a voice broke through his thoughts.

“Mr. Veyne, we’ve tracked the direction that man left. He’s not a janitor at all—probably a dangerous individual, and it looks like he was targeting Mrs. Veyne!”

Bennett handed Cassian a tablet, the screen paused on a blurry image—just a partial shot of the so-called janitor. In the trash nearby, a wig had been discarded, revealing a face that looked menacing and unfamiliar.

Cassian’s frosty blue eyes narrowed, danger radiating from his gaze.

Both men wore grim expressions, and their conversation didn’t escape Mira’s notice. Listening to Bennett’s report, Mira began to wail, her tiny fists balled with distress.

It was as if the little one understood everything, her cries deepening the chill in the air and adding an edge of anguish to the room.

“Contact the Quinborough Department of Transportation. I want every traffic camera on that route pulled up. Now.” Cassian’s voice was cool as winter steel.

Bennett didn’t hesitate, immediately rushing out to handle it.

Cassian’s thoughts were a tangled mess, fury boiling just beneath the surface.

Someone had dared to kidnap Ruby from Veyne Private Medical Center?

No matter how angry he felt, Cassian still moved with care as he laid Mira gently back in her crib. Only now did he begin to understand why she’d been crying so desperately.

Was it the bond between mother and daughter? Did she somehow sense that something had happened to Ruby?

Cassian studied the little girl, his gaze lingering with uncharacteristic tenderness.

Little one, who is your real father?

He carefully tucked the blanket around Mira and called over the nurse who’d first looked after her. “I’ll inform the hospital—you’re not to attend to any other patients today. Your sole responsibility is to stay by her side every moment.”

He then stationed two bodyguards outside the door to Mira’s room, making sure they’d rotate shifts and never leave her unprotected.

He didn’t know if Mira’s injuries were connected to the person who’d taken Ruby, but Ruby was already in danger. He couldn’t let anything else happen to Mira. If he failed, even if he managed to rescue Ruby, he’d never forgive himself.

Cassian pressed his lips together tightly.

He didn’t even notice how naturally he’d begun to think from Ruby’s perspective—wondering what she would feel, what she would want.

News of Cassian’s abrupt departure from the company soon reached Gennifer.

At that moment, she was sprawled across her apartment sofa, blowing smoke rings with a look of smug satisfaction—gone was the sweet, innocent persona she wore in public.

“Relax about tomorrow’s hearing,” she typed. “Victory is in the bag.”

Her confident message caught Farrar off guard. He was still partying at some crowded bar, and her words made him pause. Then, brash and a little drunk, he called her.

“Gennifer, what are you talking about? There’s no way to turn this around. Why should I believe you?”

The alcohol had loosened his tongue, making his words slightly slurred.

Gennifer pulled the phone away from her ear in disgust at the background noise—shouts, music, laughter. She also noticed that Farrar no longer called her “Miss Gennifer,” and there was a distinct note of disrespect in his tone.

Her eyes flashed with anger, her grip on the phone tightening.

All because of Ruby!

Ever since Ruby’s imprisonment, Gennifer had served as the chief counsel at Veyne & Co.’s Legal Division. Everywhere she went, people bowed and scraped, eager to please. But the moment Ruby returned, Cassian’s attitude changed, and Gennifer felt herself slowly frozen out. Who could have guessed a chance courtroom run-in with Ruby would knock her right off her pedestal?

Even the internet was full of attacks on her competence. She’d had to beg Morgan, swearing their plan was foolproof, just to persuade him to help her suppress the rumors.

Gennifer clenched her jaw so hard her teeth ground audibly, hatred simmering in her eyes.

“Don’t believe me? No one in all of Quinborough can win you that case but me,” she snapped, then hung up without waiting for a reply.

Farrar stared at the beeping phone in confusion.

He glanced at the women around him, then sat up straight, puffing out his chest, and tossed his phone onto the couch in a show of irritation. “Who does Gennifer think she is, anyway? Ruby’s been in jail for a year and still hasn’t gotten anywhere with Cassian Veyne. She really thinks she’s Mrs. Veyne now, like she can run the show?”