"He is in debt," Cassian said calmly, as though he were discussing the weather instead of her life. "He owes me a tremendous amount of money, and you became the collateral attached to that debt."
Cixi stared at him.
"I am the collateral?" The words came out quieter than before because the explanation genuinely hurt in a way she had not expected.
And Cassian noticed immediately how the colour faded from her face.
"In monetary terms, yes." He leaned back lazily in the chair as though none of this bothered him in the slightest. "In my opinion, your parents loved you so much that they never came searching for you after your kidnapping." His eyes remained on her while he continued mercilessly, "Perhaps they thought losing you was easier than paying what they owed me."
The nurse quietly excused herself from the room. So did the doctor shortly after. Now, only Cassian and Cixi remained inside the hospital room.
