Sensing something was terribly wrong, Dorian had tried calling Finnian, but his calls went unanswered. So he''de to the apartment, the reek of alcohol hitting him the moment he opened the door. The scene before him made his blood boil.


    "She told me to marry Liliana," Finnian mumbled from the floor, one leg bent, the other stretched out, his eyes zed over. "She said if I don''t, she''ll find a way to kill Amara."


    He paused, his voice t and devoid of emotion. "Of course, I could stop her. All I have to do is lock her up... or kill her. Then she wouldn''t be able to hurt Amara."


    Dorian''s brow furrowed deeply. He took off his coat, tossed it on the sofa, and sat down on the floor next to Finnian. "She actually said that to you? She threatened you?"


    Finnian nodded. Dorian couldn''t hold back. "That crazy woman! She spends a few years abroad andes back even more unhinged than before." Even though she was Finnian''s mother, he couldn''t stop himself from cursing her.


    While Emma had never been a responsible mother, neglecting Finnian for most of his childhood, she had never done anything truly unforgivable to him. She had been absent, yes, and had caused him a great deal of emotional pain, but this was a new level of cruelty. How could Finnian possibly kill or imprison the woman who had given birth to him? No matter how much he resented her, unless she hadmitted some truly heinous act against him, he could never bring himself to do that. Emma had to be insane to think he would.


    "So what are you going to do now?" Dorian asked, pping a hand on his shoulder. "Are you really going to marry Liliana?"


    Finnian didn''t answer. His mind was filled with Amara-her every move, every smile, reying in an endless loop. All he wanted was to hold her in his arms and never let go.


    *Knock. Knock. Knock.*


    The sound of someone at the door cut through the silence. Dorian got up to


    answer it and found Liliana standing there. His face immediately hardened. "What do you want?"


    It was all because of this woman


    and her incessant demands for


    repayment if it weren''t for her, Finn


    gotten


    and Amara would have gotten


    together long ago, before Emma


    even returned, and none of this would be happening.


    Liliana was oblivious to Dorian''s thoughts. She was used to his hostile res. She was still dressed in the cocktail dress from the banquet, a wool coat thrown over her shoulders, her nose red from the cold.


    "Mr. Hawke, I need to speak with Finn. Could you give us some privacy?" she asked.


    Dorian''s first instinct was to refuse, but he knew this was a conversation Finnian and Liliana needed to have "You have half an hour! he sate curtly be back. He shot her onest withering look, grabbed his coat, and left, not trusting to leave a drunk Finnian alone with her fortoo long.


    Liliana took off her coat and sat down next to Finnian. She wanted to reach out and touch his arm but the look in his eyes dark, empty, and utterly devoid of warmth-stopped her. She kept her hands to herself.


    "Finn, just marry me," she said softly. "Mrs. Everly said that if you don''t, she''ll do whatever it takes to get rid of Ms. Sullivan. She won''t stop until she seeds."