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Cora had heard enough. Any moment now Liam or the police could arrive. They had to. But doubt crept in on her. What if her message didn’t get through? Not caring anymore if Magnus saw, she reached for her phone in her back pocket.
It wasgone.
“Looking for this?” Magnus asked. Her phone dangled from his fingertips. He must’ve slid it from her pocket when he gave her that awkward hug. He hauled back and sent it sailing into the lake.
Cora watched it hit the water and disappear beneath the surface. Now she was well and truly screwed. She had to find another way to call for help. The nearest house looked at least a quarter of a mile away on the other side of the lake. It would be an easy run on any other day, but the woods were sure to slow her down, and she was wearing flimsy sandals. If she could get to the small rowboat, she might have a chance, but she’d have to divert his attention first.
“I’m sorry, Cora. I can’t have you calling anyone until we discuss what happens next,” Magnus said with an unhappy sigh.
“And what would that be?”
“To be honest, I have no idea. I never thought we’d be in this position.” He shook his head, grimacing. “If you could just see reason, then we could put this behind us and enjoy our evening.”
“And byreason, you mean I should throw away my integrity, my better judgment and all my years of training to become your partner in crime? No, thanks. I’d rather see you behind bars where you belong.”
“Why must you be so stubborn?” He was getting angry now. Bright spots of color bloomed across his cheekbones. He ran his hands through his hair and glared at her. “If I’d known you were going to be this tiresome, I wouldn’t have bothered with you. This moral rigidity of yours holds no interest for me.”
“I’m crying buckets on the inside about that,” Cora assured him.
Magnus’s lip curled into a sneer. “At least this saves me from discovering what a disappointment you’d have been in the bedroom. Let’s not waste any more of each other’s time, shall we?”
“Finally, something we can agree on. What do you propose?”
He took another step closer, nodding to himself as if he’d just come to a decision. “I can’t let you leave.” The words hung in the air like the blade of a guillotine. She had no idea what he meant, but she knew she wouldn’t like it.
“So what’s your plan? Kill me and leave me for dead in the woods like Lindsey?” Cora calculated the distance between them, bracing her feet. She’d have to make her move quickly. If she could incapacitate him for a few moments, it would buy her time to get to the boat at the end of the dock.
“I told you, I’m not a killer,” Magnus said furiously, then muttered, “though you do tempt a man.” He closed the distance between them so fast, Cora sprang into action.
When he was just an arm’s length away, she tightened her fingers into a rigid spear hand, retracted her arm and made a lightning-quick jab to his throat.
Magnus jerked in shock, then fell to his knees. He reached for his throat, gagging.
With no time to spare, Cora bolted toward the dock.
24
Liam slung an arm over the back of the booth at Danté’s, waiting for Finn to hurry up with the beer. He still couldn’t believe he’d called the man and asked him to go for drinks. Of all the otherworldly, unbelievable things that had happened to him since he’d cannonballed through the mist and dropped into Cora’s life, this moment was the strangest.
Finley Walsh had always been a nemesis, as far as Liam was concerned. In his previous life the dullard had been engaged to Cora, and he’d been the biggest hurdle standing in Liam’s way. In this life Finn and Cora were mere acquaintances, and while Liam enjoyed watching Finn bumble about in Cora’s presence, he knew it was time to make changes.
Magnus Blackwell was the anvil to the skull Liam needed to finally realize this. The man was a conniving weasel, and he’d somehow managed to turn Cora’s head. Every time Liam thought about Magnus and Cora together, he wanted to kick something. If he was being completely honest with himself, and he needed to be, the reason he was so against Magnus was because Magnus was just like him. He was capable of manipulating situations to get what he wanted, and Liam hated that Cora could fall prey to that. For the first time in his wretched existence, he was beginning to understand what Finn must’ve felt when Liam had stolen Cora from him a hundred and seventy-six years ago. It was not a comfortable feeling. In fact, he rather hated it.
The angels had been so cryptic about why Finn and Cora were destined to be together. Liam couldn’t understand it, but what if there was a reason that far surpassed his own personal desires? What if the necessity of their union was for a cause greater than himself? Liam tilted his face to the ceiling and groaned in frustration. He used to be so sure of what he wanted, but now he was starting to question everything.
Finn set two glasses of beer on the table and slid into the booth. He’d just come from a long day at the office, so he looked like a stuffed shirt, as always. Pressed, collared shirt. Charcoal suit. Blasted necktie. It irked Liam to see Finn looking so staid and proper. If the man was going to be worthy of Cora, he needed to climb out of his shell once in a while.
“How can you wear those bloody ties around your neck every day?” Liam asked irritably, taking a drink of beer. “Cora tried to get me to wear one once, and I almost suffocated just thinking about it.”
Smiling, Finn set his car keys and wallet on the table. Then he loosened the blue tie around his neck. “You get used to it, after a while.”
“I wouldn’t,” Liam said with a snort. “The only time you’ll ever catch me in one of those is when I’m laid out in a coffin, because I’d have to be dead first. They’re the devil’s own creation, neckties. Hands down, the worst article of clothing ever to grace the face of the earth. I’d rather eat glass than wear one.”
“But tell me how you really feel,” Finn said with a chuckle. “Maybe that’s why so many attorneys wear them. It’s part of our demonic uniform.” So he did have a sense of humor. Except Liam hadn’t been joking. Just the thought of having something cinched around his neck gave him chills. He rubbed his throat reflexively.
Finn took a drink of beer, his gaze traveling around the bar. It was Tuesday night, so Danté’s wasn’t as packed as usual. “Is Cora coming?”
And there it was. The reason Finn agreed to meet for drinks. Liam’s first inclination was to make the man squirm a bit, but then he remembered he was trying to change for the better, damn it all. “Unfortunately, she’s not. She’s chosen to waste her time on a deceitful, skirt-chasing jackass. A friend of yours, I believe.” Okay, that was a dig, but a small one. Rome wasn’t built in a day.
