Burn Me Once, Burn With Me novel Chapter 344

The next second, Gennifer mustered her courage and grabbed his hand.

Cassian paused and glanced down at her. Despite the nervous flutter in her chest, Gennifer’s eyes shone brightly. “Cassian, I never thought you’d come to see me.”

Her voice was clear and unexpectedly lively, nothing like the frail tone of someone who’d just been ill.

“You’re still weak. You don’t need to speak so loudly,” Cassian replied, though he didn’t pull his hand away from hers, mindful of her condition.

He let his eyes wander casually toward the other side of the room, his attention skimming past the scene. After all, to him, she was just a stranger who’d donated blood—a detail he had little interest in.

Now that it seemed Gennifer would be all right, he felt relieved. At least, he didn’t need to worry about anyone coming after Ruby for what had happened.

Gennifer’s smile bloomed even brighter, joy and pride dancing in her eyes.

She stayed quiet, obediently settling back onto her hospital bed. Out of the corner of her eye, though, she caught a pair of stunned eyes peering through the crack in the door.

Gennifer’s lips curled into a sly, triumphant smirk, her gaze taunting.

Ruby turned away, her expression unreadable, but inside, the bitterness was overwhelming.

Just yesterday, Cassian had been so drunk he was barely conscious. Now he’d somehow managed to drag himself to the hospital at the crack of dawn. Clearly, Mr. Veyne would move mountains for the woman he loved.

A cold, sarcastic smile flickered across Ruby’s lips.

The harsh fluorescent lights above seemed to blur her vision, everything turning hazy.

She tried to speak, but her mouth was sealed shut with tape.

Ruby blinked hard, forcing herself to stay calm.

No one here—the doctors, the nurses, or even the Hanley family waiting outside—would let her walk away that easily. From snippets of conversation among the staff, it was clear just how valuable she was to Gennifer right now.

There was no escaping this hospital.

A shudder ran through Ruby. The thought of having to give blood for Gennifer was sickening enough. But what terrified her even more was the operating room itself. The moment they’d strapped her onto the bed, panic surged through her, and she’d tried to fight back. But any sign of resistance was immediately noticed by the doctors, who pressed her down and quickly tied her up.

She was forced to lie flat, surrounded by gleaming, sterile instruments—completely immobilized, arms and legs bound tight.

Maybe it was because of what had happened before, back in prison. She hadn’t been there long before she realized she was pregnant. She’d endured unspeakable torment while fiercely protecting the life inside her.

He appeared out of nowhere, like a guardian angel descending from the heavens.

Light from the early morning spilled into the room as the doors were thrown wide, and Ruby blinked, dazed, into the sudden brightness.

He rushed to her side, frantic, checking her over. “Are you okay? What did they do to you?”

Ruby stared up at the familiar, striking face, still bewildered.

“Sylas Cunningham? What are you doing here?”

Sylas had no time for explanations. Once he was sure she was safe, he immediately started unfastening the restraints on her wrists. “Come on—we’re leaving. They have no right to demand your blood!”

His voice thundered with rage.

He took in the sight of the red marks on her wrists and ankles, fury tightening his jaw. “They tied you down? How dare they threaten you!”

Though his entire body trembled with anger, Sylas’s hands were gentle as he freed her, careful not to hurt her already tender skin.

If he hadn’t gone by Southgarde Estate and found her missing—if he hadn’t heard Mira crying and demanded the staff find out what happened—he might never have known. The Graysons had actually tried to force Ruby to give blood for Gennifer. He’d been calling her all morning, but when she didn’t answer and then her phone went dead, he knew something was terribly wrong.