Leander’s lips pressed into a thin, bloodless line.

    b49 /b

    +10 Free Coins

    Julius‘ ultimatum echoed in his mind. If the Fane family hoped ito /ienter the Azanian market, they had to abandon Serena.

    In the past, her fate would have meant nothing to him.

    Now he needed her alive. Without Serena, Lena would die.

    “Quinn,” Leander said, turning to her with strainedposure, “Serena only spoke ia /ifew careless words. She does not deserve such harsh punishment. If you would plead with Mr. Whitethorn on her behalf, the Fane family will…”

    “If you don’t want me hitting you again, stop talking,” Quinn cut him off. “You will regret these words once your memory returns, because—”

    Her gaze locked on his. “You would sooner die than tolerate anyone who dishonors your parents.”

    For an instant, Leander felt his blood freeze.

    A fierce curiosity red. He suddenly wanted to know what kind of man he had been.

    Minutester, the officers arrived, and Quinn, Leander, and Serena were taken to the police station ito /igive their statements.

    While Quinn was answering questions, Weston swept into the station, his immactely tailored suit cutting through the fluorescent gloom. “I represent Ms. Quinn Bridger,” he told the duty officer.

    Quinn stared at him in surprise. “Why are you here?” Weston’s fees were legendary, well beyond anything she could casually afford.

    “Laura called. She said you were in trouble and asked me to help,” Weston replied.

    “You didn’t have toe yourself. Any attorney from your firm would have

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    Chapter 377 The Consequences

    sufficed,” Quinn said.

    :

    “She asked specifically for me, so I came,” Weston answered.

    Quinn arched a brow. “I can’t afford your rates.”

    “No fee. You’re her friend,” he said.

    b49 /b

    +10 Free Coins

    Quinn studied him, brow furrowed. “You and Laura are bound only by a contract. Do you really need to go this far for her friends?”

    Weston’s brows drew together. “She told you?”

    “She did. Whatever lies between you two, don’t hurt her. If a year from now she wants to leave, I expect you to let her go, Mr. Windore.”

    Weston let out a dry, brittleugh. “Quinn, what makes you so sure I’m the one who’ll hurt her? Perhaps she’ll be the one who hurts me.”

    iLetting /igo? The idea never even grazed his mind. Instead, his grip–on fate, on her, on the entire, tangled mess–only tightened.

    Quinn froze, breath catching in her throat. At that same moment, Serena and Leander finished giving their statements to the weary desk sergeant.

    Serena spotted Quinn across the lobby; fury red, and she lurched forward. Leander caught her wrist. “Do you want to spend the night in a cell? The man standing beside her is Jexburgh’s most famouswyer, Weston Windore.”

    “What?” Serena’s voice cracked; for a heartbeat she stood frozen, jealousy slicing through the stupor.

    iWhat /idoes iQuinn /iihave /ithat iI /iidon’t/i? iFirst /iiJulius /iiWhitethorn /icasts me out because iof /iher, and now iJexburgh’s /itop iattorney /iishields /iiher/ii? /iiThis /iiis /iiimpossible/i.

    Leander stepped up to Quinn, shoulders squared. “I’m sorry for today.”

    “You owe that apology to our parents, not to me,” Quinn answered, her voice low but steady.

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    Chapter 377 The Consequences

    The words darkened Leander’s face. He said nothing more and guided the seething Serena toward the exit.

    Weston angled his head. “He’s your brother?”

    b49 /b

    +10 Free Coins

    He remembered Han mentioning that Quinn had tracked down her brother Rowan while in Doria.

    “Yes,” Quinn said, a bitter smile flickering. “He simply refuses to acknowledge it.”

    Yet whether Rowan epted that truth or not, she would still bring him to their parents‘ graves.

    Outside the station, Leander slipped into the driver’s seat. His phone rang the instant he turned the key. It was Everett Fane. “Is Serena with you?”

    “Yes.”

    “Bring her to see me.”

    Leander hesitated, heartbeat thudding, then replied, “All right.”

    When the call ended, Serena’s hands trembled. “Mr. Everett wants to see me? Does he know what happened today?”

    Leander started the engine. “Whether he knows or not, we’ll find out soon.”

    Serena clenched her skirt so hard her knuckles nchedi. /iiI /iwill inot /ibe banished from ithe /iiFane /iifamily/i, iNever/i.

    They stepped into Everett’s study, thick with cedar and quiet authority. The patriarch sat upon a low leather couch, eyes sealed, prayer beads sliding rhythmically through his fingers.

    Leander’s gaze fell on the beads. Legend said he had sought those beads at a church decades ago while searching for his missing sister, and he had worn them

    ever since.

    Minutes crawled by before Everett finally opened his eyes–sharp, unforgiving—

    …

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    Chapter 377 The Consequences

    and fixed them on Serena.

    +10 Free Coins

    “Call a press conference in Celosia,” he said. “Erase Serena Fane from our lineage records. From this day forward, her actions are no concern of the Fane family.””