The weight of silence

Chapter 8

It had been eight months since the accident.

Eight months since Aria's world was shattered, since her father had slipped into a coma, leaving her alone in a penthouse, held in an agreement she never asked for, under the constant watch of the man who made it all happen—Cassian Cole.

Life in the penthouse had settled into a strange, numbing routine. Aria spent her days locked away in her room, avoiding the world outside, avoiding the people who occasionally passed through her life. The maids, the guards, even Jaxon—everyone was a shadow, a reminder that her life was no longer hers. The only person who seemed to come and go freely, without notice or warning, was Cassian.

But even his presence didn't bring her comfort, nor any sense of safety. His coldness was a constant reminder that she was bound by a deal she never wanted, an agreement that had stolen everything she thought she had.

Still, there were moments when Cassian's indifference felt like the only constant she could rely on. He never pressured her, never asked for anything from her—except the one thing that had begun to make her skin crawl over time: his silence.

Cassian's silence was deafening. He didn't demand to speak to her, nor did he show any real interest in her beyond the occasional business-related conversation. But there was an underlying presence, a shadow in the hallways that made her feel like a prisoner in a gilded cage.

⸻

One evening, after eight long months, everything changed.

Aria was sitting on the edge of the bed, staring blankly at the wall. Her thoughts drifted in and out of focus, memories of her father, memories of the life she could never have, of everything that had been stolen from her in an instant.

A knock at the door brought her out of her stupor.

"Miss Devereux?" came the voice of one of the maids, muffled through the door.

Aria stood up and opened it slowly, only to find Cassian himself standing there, his eyes as unreadable as ever.

"I need to speak with you," he said flatly.

Aria didn't respond immediately, just nodded and stepped aside, allowing him to enter.

His presence was as imposing as ever. She could feel his eyes on her even when he didn't speak, and yet his silence had never been more suffocating than it was in this moment.

He closed the door behind him with a soft click, and for a long, uncomfortable stretch of time, neither of them moved. Cassian's gaze settled on her with a calmness that was almost unsettling. It was as though he were studying her, evaluating her every breath, her every movement.

Finally, he spoke.

"Eight months," he said, his voice as emotionless as always. "You've had time to grieve, time to heal. And now, you're just existing."

Aria stiffened at his words, her back straightening as she turned to face him more fully.

"I don't need your permission to grieve," she said, her voice quiet but sharp.

Cassian's gaze never wavered. "It's not about permission. It's about moving forward. You're wasting time. Your father's not coming back, and this… isolation you've put yourself in—it's not helping you."

Aria swallowed hard, her throat tightening. She didn't want to argue with him; she didn't want to say anything to him at all. But his words, so cold and final, seemed to cut through the fragile calm she had built for herself.

"What do you want from me?" she asked quietly, her voice betraying the exhaustion that had built up over months of being trapped in this life.

Cassian's eyes flickered briefly, and then he took a step forward, closing the distance between them with a slow, deliberate movement.

"What I want," he said, his voice dropping lower, "is simple. I want you to stop wasting away in this room, to stop pretending that you can't live. It's been eight months. You owe it to yourself to move on."

Aria's chest tightened at his words, and she forced herself not to look away. The intensity of his gaze felt suffocating, like a weight pressing down on her.

"I'm not pretending," she whispered. "I'm just… waiting."

Cassian didn't respond at first. He stood still, as if contemplating her words. Then, finally, he spoke again, his tone now colder, more forceful.

"Waiting for what? For your father to come back? For him to wake up from his coma and save you from this… situation? He's not coming back, Aria. You're not a princess in a fairy tale. Your father's not going to save you. And you're not going to get out of here unless you do something about it."

His words hit her harder than any physical blow ever could. Her stomach twisted in knots, and she could feel her pulse quicken. But she refused to let him see how deeply his words had cut her.

"I'm not your responsibility, Cassian," she said, her voice trembling but firm. "I'm not some problem you can fix."

He looked at her, expression blank. Then, with a quiet sigh, he spoke again, his tone flat, like he was simply stating a fact.

"I'm not trying to fix you. I'm just saying that it's time for you to stop pretending that you're not living in a cage. You can't keep hiding in here forever."

He reached out, his fingers brushing the back of her hand in a motion that felt strange, foreign, and yet oddly familiar. His touch was cold, impersonal, like it meant nothing at all.

Then, he spoke again, his voice harder than before. "And if I want you… for a different reason, I'll take you."

Aria froze. Her breath caught in her throat as she realized what he was saying.

"What…?" she whispered, her voice shaking.

"I'm not going to wait for you to figure out how to move on. You don't have that kind of time," he said, his voice low and commanding. "You'll live here under my terms. And when I decide it's time… you'll be mine. Do you understand?"

Aria's heart raced in her chest as the full weight of his words crashed into her. She wanted to scream, to run, to push him away. But the words stuck in her throat, and all she could do was stand there, frozen.

Cassian's gaze didn't soften, his expression never faltered.

"If you refuse, I'll make sure you never see the outside world again," he said bluntly, as if it were a simple transaction. "You're not going anywhere. Not unless I say so."

The silence between them stretched.

Aria's hands trembled, and her eyes filled with a mixture of fear and anger. But Cassian's demeanor was unchanged. He stood there, waiting, as if the decision had already been made.