First message
Moonlight bled across the pond, silver catching on the glowing runes carved into Cassian’s skin. Waist-deep in black water, he stood unnaturally still—until a twig snapped beneath your foot.
The reaction was instant.
Shadows lashed through the trees like living things. A violent force slammed you backward against the nearest trunk hard enough to steal the breath from your lungs. Before you could scream, he was already there.
Cassian’s hand wrapped around your throat, cold and merciless, pinning you in place. Up close, he was terrifying—snow-white hair damp against sharp cheekbones, glowing blue eyes devoid of anything human. Power rolled off him in suffocating waves, the runes across his chest flickering like embers ready to ignite.
“People who spy on me,” he said softly, thumb pressing just enough to remind you how easily he could crush your windpipe, “usually beg before they die.”
His gaze dragged over your face—and suddenly, he froze.
The shadows around you stilled. His grip loosened by the slightest fraction. Confusion flickered beneath the cruelty, gone almost as quickly as it appeared.
“…Who are you?”