A few minutes later, Cassian emerged from the bureau with Nova cradled in one arm and two bright red marriage certificates gripped in his free hand. He cast a cold glance at Raymond, who was still trapped at gunpoint by the men in black.
Cassian raised his hand in a silent command. Instantly, the guards lowered their weapons, standing at attention as they patiently awaited their next order.
"Put me down," Nova instructed firmly.
"What? You want to go back to him?" Cassian scoffed. He fixed a piercing glare on the teary-eyed Raymond. "Let me make things perfectly clear. Even though the two of you are registered, it will only ever be a marriage in name." He sneered, his voice dripping with mockery. "You are welcome to come to me for a divorce at any time."
Nova stared at Cassian, a dark, calculating smile playing on her lips. "I mentioned earlier that I am not divorcing anyone," she reminded him.
Cassian put the two certificates in his hand inside his pocket and stroked her hair. He smiled, a warning laced within the gesture, barely concealing the terrifying, uncontrollable obsession swirling in his dark eyes.
"Let’s go home first. We will talk things out there, okay?" he coaxed, walking past Raymond and shooting him a lethal glare.
A bodyguard pulled the rear door of the SUV open. Just as Cassian was about to step inside with her, Raymond’s urgent voice echoed across the pavement.
"Wifey! The man... Abigail’s boyfriend should be awake by now," Raymond called out desperately. "You instructed me to take you to him when he regained consciousness. Let’s go now, okay?"
Nova’s brows knitted together for a split second before her lips curved into a sudden, wicked smile.
"Put me down, Cassian. I have work to do," she demanded, her tone shifting to absolute authority.
Cassian reluctantly set her on her feet, his eyes darkening. "Then I’ll just follow you," he offered stubbornly.
Nova shook her head. "So stubborn," she thought. Staring directly into his eyes, she promised, "I will surely come back to you once I am done."
Cassian snatched her wrist, his grip iron-clad. "Listen to me," he warned, his voice turning frigid. "Even if you want to escape, it is pointless. I will always drag you back to my side, no matter where you run."
Nova chuckled darkly. "That line should be mine," she countered without missing a beat.
The tension broke, and a genuine smile softened Cassian’s harsh features, dissolving his anger. "I will trust you this once," he murmured, slowly releasing his grip on her wrist. "But if you dare not return... trust me, you will never be able to leave my sight again," he vowed, his tone thick with undeniable authority.
Nova flashed a light smile. Stepping onto her toes, she pressed a brief, gentle kiss to Cassian’s lips. Without another word, she turned, intertwined her fingers with Raymond’s, and walked away with the officer.
Cassian stood completely frozen, his fingers rising to graze his own lips. A ridiculously boyish smile spread across his face as he watched Nova’s retreating figure. "She actually kissed me," he murmured, his eyes swimming with a sudden, unexplainable adoration.
"Boss, she has been gone for a while," Venom’s flat voice interrupted from beside him.
Cassian snapped back to his senses, shooting his subordinate a narrowed, annoyed glare. "You do not need to remind me of that," he grumbled.
Venom maintained a stoic expression. "I thought you intended to bring her back to the mansion. She is gone now. Should I send someone to tail them?" he inquired.
Cassian shook his head dismissively. "Allow my little lamb to enjoy her fleeting freedom. Whether she returns home tonight or tomorrow is an entirely different matter," he reasoned. "But tomorrow is the only deadline" he thought.
Venom nodded, handing a sleek tablet over to Cassian. "Take a look at this footage. This is the surveillance of her visiting her family yesterday. She appears deeply injured and traumatized in this video. But seeing her today... it is obvious the footage is a complete fabrication. The strange part is, our tech team confirmed the video file itself is one hundred percent real and untampered with," he reported grimly.
Cassian’s brows furrowed as he watched the bizarre scene play out on the screen. "And what about this crazy girl?" he questioned, pointing to the pixelated image of Abigail abusing herself.
"She is currently in the hospital. She is conscious, but essentially a vegetable," Venom explained. "Almost every bone in her body was shattered, yet there is not a single tear or bruise on her flesh. It is completely weird. She can neither speak nor move. Even her eyes are permanently ruined...um....her eyes sockets are empty."
Cassian stared at the screen, his frown deepening. "That is quite brutal. For her to injure herself like this... it looks more like she was under a demonic spell," he mused silently, though his pragmatic mind doubted the supernatural. "What about the parents?" he asked aloud.
"They were immediately sentenced to five years in prison for filing false accusations and aiding in Abigail’s previous crimes," Venom reported. His brow twitched slightly. "Donna Nova seems completely unbothered by them. I do not think she is even aware her parents are in prison, or that her sister is trapped in a state between life and death."
Cassian chuckled, a dark, menacing sound. "She was betrayed by her so-called sister and mocked by those pathetic parents. Did you expect her to care about them? Even if she did, I would personally scrub them from her mind," he retorted, shoving the tablet back into Venom’s chest.
"Seize all their assets," Cassian ordered, his eyes turning pitch black. "Inform the judge to add seven more years to their sentence. While they are in prison, arrange for the inmates to take special bad care of them. As for the sister... she is already useless, but have someone infiltrate the hospital to torment her further. As for my little lamb, give her a clean background that has nothing to do with those bastards."
"Understood," Venom replied without hesitation, bowing slightly. "On another note, there has been no movement from Don Sebastian’s side. It is highly suspicious," he added.
Cassian’s eyes narrowed dangerously. "It seems there is another rat in the house," he murmured, his voice dropping to a lethal chill. "Let’s head back to the mansion."
He climbed into the SUV, followed closely by Venom. The driver instantly sped away from the curb. The remaining men filed into their respective vehicles, tailing their boss into the city.
Raymond’s Private Villa
The moment the front door of the private villa clicked shut, Raymond spun around and forcefully pinned Nova against the wall. Without a word of warning, he captured her lips in a desperate, searing kiss. One of his strong hands locked firmly around her waist, while the other cradled the back of her head to cushion her against the wall. The kiss was hot, deep, and passionate, growing hungrier with each passing second.
Nova didn’t struggle. Instead, she welcomed his intensity wholeheartedly, wrapping her arms loosely around his neck. It was her very first time experiencing such an intense kiss, and a thrill of genuine excitement rushed through her veins.
Just as the embrace reached a fever pitch, Raymond suddenly pulled back. He hovered over her, chest heaving as he gasped for air. When Nova looked up, she saw tears shimmering in his bright green eyes. Stripped of his usual confidence, he looked irresistibly cute and pitiful—like a deeply wronged child.
"I am so sorry, Wifey. I didn’t mean to kiss you without permission," he whispered, his voice cracking with emotional pain. "It is just... thinking about him almost snatching you away from me back there... it makes my mind spin. Look, it hurts so much right here."
He took her small hand and pressed it flat against his chest, right over his wildly hammering heart. Two stray tears spilled over his lashes, tracking down his cheeks as he stared agonizingly into Nova’s beautiful blue eyes.