Chapter 3 Mira Gets Drugged

• The bar hummed with its usual chaos that night—a blur of neon lights, heavy bass, and the clinking of cheap glass. Mira moved between tables like a ghost trapped in a loop: order, deliver, smile, pretend. She hated the place. The sour stench of spilled beer and synthetic perfume soaked into her clothes, and the laughter around her never felt genuine.
• She hadn't seen the tall stranger again—the one with eyes that haunted her dreams. The one who saved her once, then disappeared like smoke. Since that night, her thoughts had been restless, wandering to places they shouldn’t. That face. That voice. The sensation of being watched.
• Tonight, something felt different.
• She balanced a tray of shots as she weaved between bouncers and half-drunk patrons. Her fingers trembled slightly, unnoticed by most, but she knew. There was an energy in the air, a hum beneath her skin. Her nerves had been on edge all day. She caught glimpses of shadows in the corners, figures that vanished when she turned to look.
• As she neared a booth near the back, she noticed a group of unfamiliar men watching her with far too much interest. One of them reached out when she passed, fingers grazing her thigh under the hem of her skirt. She jerked back, almost spilling the drinks.
• "Hands off," she snapped, voice sharp. But they only laughed.
• The manager, Dale, saw none of it. He never did. Or maybe he just didn’t care.
• Mira returned to the bar counter, heart thudding.
• "Take five," the bartender, Rosa, whispered. "You're pale. Go grab a water."
• Mira nodded gratefully and ducked behind the swinging door leading to the staff breakroom. The moment she sank into the old couch, she let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. Her hands still shook.
• Her water bottle sat on the side table. She reached for it, took a long gulp.
• And then—
• The world tilted.
• A sudden wave of dizziness crashed over her, like her equilibrium had been ripped out. The couch rippled beneath her, or maybe her vision did. She blinked rapidly, clutching her temple.
• "What the hell..."
• Voices blurred outside the door. Her limbs turned heavy. She tried to stand, but her knees buckled. The room dimmed, twisted, until she collapsed to the floor with a muffled thud.
• The last thing she heard was her name.
• Not spoken, but whispered—inside her mind.
• Mira.
• Cassian Virell had felt the shift from blocks away.
• One moment, he stood atop a nearby rooftop, eyes trained on the bar below, a sentry cloaked in shadow. The next, the bond flared through his chest like lightning. Something was wrong. Danger. Poison. Her name pulsed inside him like a heartbeat.
• He vanished from the rooftop, reappearing in the alley behind the bar.
• The air stank of sweat, alcohol, and something darker.
• His eyes narrowed. He caught the scent immediately.
• Bitterroot. A paralytic. Slipped in her drink.
• His jaw clenched.
• A door slammed nearby. Two men walked out, laughing, dragging someone between them.
• Her.
• Mira.
• She was limp in their arms, head lolling forward, a trail of blood on her lip where she'd bitten it. Rage bloomed in Cassian's chest. Cold, pure, ancient.
• "She's heavier than she looks," one of them muttered, chuckling.
• Cassian moved.
• They didn’t even see him coming. One blink, and he was there.
• The first man went flying, spine cracking against the brick wall. The second barely managed to scream before Cassian's fist silenced him permanently. They crumpled into unconsciousness.
• Cassian caught Mira in his arms before she hit the ground.
• Her pulse was thready.
• "Mira..."
• She stirred faintly at his voice, brow furrowing, lips parting.
• The bond... it hears me...
• Cradling her close, he vanished into the night.
• She awoke in silk.
• Warmth cocooned her. Soft sheets cradled her limbs. A gentle breeze drifted through unseen windows, carrying the scent of roses and firewood. For a moment, she thought she was still dreaming.
• Then she sat up—and groaned. Her head throbbed. Her vision swam.
• Where the hell was she?
• The room was dim, lit by antique sconces. Everything was... elegant. Marble floors. Velvet curtains. A fireplace with glowing embers.
• She blinked, and a shadow detached from the far wall.
• Cassian.
• The man from her dreams. Real. Right there.
• Tall. Pale. Devastatingly beautiful. Dressed in a black shirt unbuttoned just enough to show the sculpted plane of his chest.
• His eyes—those cold, silver-gray eyes—were fixed on her.
• "You're awake," he said softly.
• Her heart stuttered.
• "Where... what happened?"
• "You were drugged," he replied. "I found you before they could take you."
• Memories flooded back. The couch. The dizziness. The men.
• She shuddered.
• "They were going to..."
• "I stopped them."
• His voice was so calm. Too calm. But there was something behind it—a fury, barely restrained.
• "Who are you?" she whispered.
• He approached slowly, each step graceful, predatory.
• "Someone who shouldn't care. But does."
• Her breath caught.
• "Why?"
• He stopped before the bed, eyes boring into hers.
• "Because something in me is bound to you. I don't understand it yet. But when you were in danger, I felt it. I felt you."
• Her lips parted.
• He sat on the edge of the bed, inches away. His hand reached out, brushed a strand of hair from her cheek.
• "Your skin... it was cold," he murmured. "But now it's warm."
• She trembled beneath his touch.
• "Cassian," she whispered, as if saying his name anchored her.
• He smiled faintly.
• "You remember."
• "From my dreams."
• Their eyes locked. The air thickened. Electricity buzzed between them, charged and unspoken.
• His fingers lingered on her cheek.
• "You're safe now, Mira. I swear it."
• Tears burned behind her eyes. She'd never been safe. Not once. Until now.
• But what was he?
• He leaned in, and for a moment, she thought he might kiss her. Her heart pounded wildly.
• But he stopped, lips a breath away.
• "Rest," he whispered. "You're still healing."
• And then he was gone, vanished into the shadows again.
• Mira lay back, heart racing, head spinning.
• Not from the drug.
• But from him.
• And the terrifying, exhilarating truth that something inside her has changed forever.