Bones Learn To Listen When Silence Speaks by Ryn Miles 69

Chapter 69 

Chapter 69 

Aurelia really enjoyed herself tonight, letting go and savoring every sip. 

She didn’t drink much–just enough to catch a pleasant buzz and let her spirits soar. 

This was the most relaxed she’d felt in almost three months. 

But when she caught sight of Cassian, the mood shattered instantly. 

Time had a way of washing things away and changing everything. 

Back in the past, if Cassian had come looking for her, she would’ve been absolutely ecstatic. 

But now, all she felt was disgust. 

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Before Aurelia could even get a word out, Cassian cut straight to the chase, grilling her, “Why didn’t you answer the phone?” 

Aurelia slowly rummaged through her bag for her keys and casually replied, “I didn’t see it.” 

Cassian shot back, voice cold, “You really think I’d believe that?” 

His eyes darkened, thunder rolling in his gaze, like a storm about to break loose. 

Aurelia couldn’t care less whether he believed her or not. Just giving him any answer at all was already being 

generous. 

“I don’t care if you believe it or not,” Aurelia found her keys and said to the obstacle standing at her door, “Mr. Locke, please move aside–you’re blocking my front door.” 

Cassian shifted to the side, his face unreadable. 

Aurelia swung the door open and slipped inside, shutting it firmly before he even had the chance to follow. 

Her move was fast, ruthless, and spot–on. 

It was obvious she couldn’t stand being around him for even a second longer. 

But even though Aurelia was quick, Cassian was even faster–his arm shot out, blocking the door right as she tried to slam it shut. 

He probably figured she’d back off at the last second. 

But Aurelia didn’t hesitate–the door came crashing down, trapping his hand hard. 

Cassian let out a heavy, muffled grunt of pain. 

Even so, he didn’t pull back. He clung to the doorframe like his life depended on it, refusing to let Aurelia shut him out. 

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“Cassian, have you lost it?” Aurelia shot back, her temper flaring. “I thought we made things clear. Whatever passed between us is over! From now on, you walk your lonely road, I’ll take mine. We won’t even be in the same world, let alone cross paths. From here on, we’re strangers, not even a drop of water will mix between 

us.” 

“In short, any ties between you and me are completely severed!” 

“So please, stop interfering in my life! You understand?” 

Her tone was sharp, every word spit out like a challenge. 

It seemed he had become her enemy. 

Surprised by her outburst, a flash of shock unexpectedly appeared on Cassian’s face. 

Normally, Cassian never showed what he was feeling. 

But this time, that look of surprise stayed on his face for several long seconds. 

His expression darkened, eyes filling with brooding gloom. 

The tension in the room turned suffocating, squeezing the air right out of the place. 

His hand shook from the pain, fingers twitching uncontrollably. 

But he just stood there, frozen, refusing to budge. 

He didn’t say a single word. 

Aurelia had already put it all out there–she was done, not letting herself get pulled into this mess any longer. 

Without another glance, she slammed the door shut in Cassian’s face. 

This time, he didn’t reach out to stop her, just stood there and let the door shut in his face. 

From this moment on, there was a wall between them–a complete separation. 

Never before had she been this unwavering. 

She really didn’t care anymore; he meant absolutely nothing to her now. 

Even seeing with her own eyes that his hand was hurt, her heart didn’t soften for him at all. 

Half an hour later, Wesley pulled up to pick up Cassian. 

Cassian was standing out in the chilly night air, smoking a cigarette with his good hand. 

The tendrils of gray smoke spiraled upward, blurring half his face and leaving his expression hidden. 

Wesley quickly hopped out and hurried over. “Mr. Locke, it’s freezing out. Come and get in the car.” 

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Cassian took his last drag and stubbed out the cigarette in the trash can ashtray, which already held seven or eight cigarette butts. 

Wesley guessed that Cassian had probably been waiting at this stop for a while. 

When Cassian finally got in, Wesley asked, “Back to the hotel?” 

“Hospital.” 

Wesley figured Cassian wanted to visit Benjamin, so he started to set the GPS for Benjamin’s hospital. 

But Cassian cut in, telling him to head to a different hospital instead. 

Only then did Wesley realize what was happening. “Mr. Locke, are you hurt? Is it serious?” 

“Not dying,” Cassian’s reply from the back seat was muffled, heavy with exhaustion. 

Wesley couldn’t help sneaking worried glances at Cassian’s face through the rearview mirror, trying his best not to let it show. 

Yeah, Cassian was definitely not looking good. 

He didn’t actually see Cassian’s injury up close until they finally made it to the hospital. 

It was pretty bad – his hand was swollen and red from the back to the palm, clearly the kind of injury someone’d get from being caught in a door. 

The doctor took one look and his tone dropped, heavy. “If that door had slammed any harder, you’d be looking at a broken bone right now.” 

Wesley felt a cold sweat sliding down his back. 

Once Cassian’s hand was taken care of, he had Wesley drive him over to Benjamin’s hospital. 

Benjamin was still awake, lying in bed and flipping through the latest issue of a finance magazine. 

And there on the cover was Cassian, staring right back at him. 

That magazine had been shot three months ago, when Aurelia was still working at Honoria Capital. 

The whole look was actually put together by Aurelia herself—she coordinated directly with the magazine staff to finalize every detail. 

It honestly fit Cassian perfectly. 

When Cassian walked in, Benjamin shut the magazine and tossed it aside without a second thought. 

He seemed to disdain to even look at it. 

Cassian picked up the magazine and gave it a quick look. “Not bad.” 

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Benjamin shot back with a sneer. “All show, no substance. 

Cassian was used to his dad’s sharp tongue by now, so he just tossed out a casual jab, “Well, whose genes do you think I got that from?” 

Abigail walked in just as the two were going at it, and quickly jumped in to break it up. “Alright, alright, that’s enough from both of you.” 

Then she spotted Cassian’s hand wrapped up in bandages, and her face changed in an instant. “Cassian, what happened to your hand? How did you get hurt? Is it bad?” 

Cassian just shrugged it off, his voice flat. “Just slipped and fell. It’s nothing serious. 

Wesley couldn’t help sneaking a couple more glances at Cassian. 

But when Cassian shot him a warning look, Wesley quickly turned his gaze away, acting like he hadn’t seen a thing and playing dumb. 

“How could you just fall and hurt yourself out of nowhere?” Abigail asked, her voice full of doubt. 

But Cassian insisted it was just a slip, so she just had to accept it—whether she believed it or not. 

Cassian asked about Benjamin’s condition. 

Abigail said Benjamin hadn’t had much of an appetite–he barely touched his food all afternoon, and staying like this just wasn’t good for his recovery. 

Cassian’s brows knitted tighter. “If even you can’t cook something he likes, then I doubt there’s anyone who could make him eat.” 

“That’s not entirely true,” Abigail sighed. “Aurelia made this soup once, and he absolutely loved it. But I just can’t manage to get that flavor right, no matter how many times I try.” 

At the sound of Aurelia’s name, Cassian’s frown grew even deeper. 

He paused for a few seconds, then said coolly, “I’ll ask her.” 

Once he stepped out of the hospital, Cassian immediately sent Aurelia a message. 

But every message he sent disappeared without a trace–no reply, not even a read receipt. 

For a moment, he wondered if Aurelia had blocked him outright. 

But no notification popped up to let him know he was on her blocklist. 

It meant she was seeing every single message–she just didn’t care enough to answer. 

Cassian couldn’t help but give a wry little laugh, muttering under his breath, “Such a cold–blooded brat.” 

** 

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Aurelia didn’t let Cassian’s appearance throw her off even for a second. Her life kept right on rolling, like he never showed up. 

She noticed his messages come in, but didn’t even feel like tapping them open. 

She felt absolutely no urge to read them and just left them hanging–totally ignored. 

The internal testing results for InquireMind’s lightweight model totally blew everyone away. Nobody saw numbers like that coming, and the team’s confidence skyrocketed overnight. 

Now, everyone was hoping InquireMind would steal the spotlight at the AI summit. 

The day before her trip, Aurelia took Ella to the hospital for a follow–up after her surgery. 

While they were waiting for the results, they bumped into Abigail. 

“Aurelia?” Abigail’s eyes widened with pleasant surprise. “You finally came to visit Benjamin. Cassian keeps telling me you’re busy, so he said not to bother you.” 

Aurelia paused, then asked, “Is Mr. Locke sick?”