Back at the château, Amelia and I separate to pack our bags, planning to meet up downstairs. We’re trying sneak out without anyone noticing.

As soon as I slide the key into the door, I feel the change in the air. There’s someone inside my room. The lights should stay off.

It’s not Davey. I left him back at the wedding site, still partying with the last of the stragglers.

I could slowly back out the door, retreat into the hallway.

“Lights, please, Casper. We’ve been waiting for you.”

We’ve?

I flip the switch.

Renzo is in the armchair across from my bed. He’s casually sitting there wearing the biggest I’ve got you now smirk I’ve ever seen. Leo is here too, standing by the window. And there’s the guy who performed Hugo and Care’s wedding ceremony—what the hell? He’s comfortably perched on the edge of my bed, reading a newspaper. I can only imagine what the three of them are up to.

“Nice to see you again, Renz,” I say, making my way to the closet.

Whatever this is, I’m not participating. Not reacting. Not giving him one goddamn thing to screw up tonight. I’m just getting out of here. I dig out my duffel bag, going about my business as if this were a normal situation.

“Nice, huh? You won’t be saying that in a moment, you ungrateful little shit.”

Tensing, I shove my clothes into the bag, pretending to be unaffected. It takes every ounce of self-control I have. Ungrateful—seriously? Well, fuck him. Yeah, he helped me with Evie’s case. He personally gave his own money and recommended his own private investigators; and because of him, they were able to link Nicholas to the murder. And I’ve thanked him a million times since then.

But every time he’s asked for help, I’ve been there, willing to do whatever he wanted. Odd jobs. Favors. Sometimes bordering on illegal. I’m there when he needs me.

He’s taking this thing with Amelia too far.

“For starters, I’d like to remind you that I have something on you.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Vinny Jones. Ring a bell?”

I swallow. It does ring a bell—several in fact. Vinny Jones is at the core of my one big dirty secret.

“He’ll talk if I ask him to,” he says, plastering on a slick grin.

“Is that what you want, Renz? To turn me in and watch me go to prison for the rest of my life? My dad would never forgive you.”

“While I have great respect for your father, cutting ties won’t be difficult. I’ve lost many relationships over the course of my life.”

“Sounds like a lonely life.”

“It’s a purposeful one.”

His arrogance is starting to piss me off. “What do you want?”

“Ah, now we’re getting somewhere.” He leans forward in his seat, grinning from ear to ear. “Thankfully, for your sake, you actually do have something of value.”

What he could possibly want from me? The sizable amount of poker winnings I’ve been saving over the years wouldn’t be of value to him. It’s a fortune to me, but to Renzo, it’s pocket change. No possessions to my name either. Just my body, my duffel bag, and my passport. Unless there’s another seedy favor he needs, there’s nothing else I can think of that he would want.

“Leo said you came up with the idea.” He stands, straightening his suit jacket. “So our being here is all thanks to you.”

“I’m lost, Renz. Mind getting to the point?”

“Think about it, Casper. We’ve got Thomas, our officiant, with us.” He nods to the desk, to a stack of documents. “I’ve had the license drawn up for you.”

“License?”

“Marriage license. Making any sense now, kid?”

I stare at those papers, feeling my shoulders sag. Oh, God. “You want me to marry her.”

“Ding. Ding. Ding. He’s got it.”

Over his shoulder, Leo snaps at Renzo. “Stop it with the theatrics, Dad.”

I can’t believe what I’m seeing and hearing. Leo is in on this. One of my best friends, and he’s fucking in on this. I curl my hands into fists, taking a deep breath. Renzo, I can understand. His heart turned to ice a long time ago. But even for as much shit as Leo gave me about Amelia, I never would have thought he would stoop to something so low.

“Your valuable asset is your last name,” Renzo continues without a trace of emotion in his voice. “You’re going to give it to Mila.”

I stare at him blankly for several, long seconds. Then I burst out laughing. Because this has to be a joke, and I’m losing my goddamn mind. The longer I laugh, the longer Renzo stands there, frowning. Thomas, the officiant, clears his throat and shifts uncomfortably. “Should I come back later?” he says, eyeing the door.

“Stay right there,” Renzo orders the man without humor. “This won’t take long.”

“You’re all insane,” I say, zipping my duffel. God knows I need to get out of this stifling room. I glance once at Leo, “And you most of all, for coming up with this plan.”

“I only mentioned it once in passing,” Leo says, never tearing his gaze away from the window. Guilty bastard can’t even look me in the eye. “I never told him to do this; this was all his idea. And if I remember correctly, I did warn you. I told you I wouldn’t be able to help you when shit hit the fan. Well guess what, mate. This is the part where the shit hits the bloody fan.”

“You wouldn’t be here if you didn’t support it.”

“You’re right, I wouldn’t be.” He finally turns around to face me. I don’t see a trace of guilt. “It’s worth trying, especially if it will save her life. You wouldn’t back off, even after I asked you to repeatedly. You obviously care for her, which means you and I have the same objective. It’s just your name, Cas. You don’t have to live with her. Fuck, we’d prefer it if you didn’t. We just want it known everywhere that she’s married. Through your American courts. On social media. Everywhere. We want it known she is no longer a Serra. None of this really affects you that much.”

Wonderful. The guy has turned to the dark side, joining his Darth fucking Vader daddy in a mission to freeze hell over. I can’t believe I was ever close to either of them. Or that I ever took pity on them. Cold-hearted motherfuckers.

“Have either of you considered the fact that Mila hasn’t been a Serra in years? She’s been using the last name De Palma since she was three. That hasn’t stopped the killer from coming after her.”

“It might not stop him,” Renzo says, stepping in for his son. “But this is too easily remedied not to at least try. You, yourself, pointed out that the married women in this family are still alive. Alessandra practically has no fear because her immediate family has never been ravaged by tragedy.”

God, I wished I never mentioned those women. Marriage is probably no more of a saving grace than a coincidence. And after talking to Judith’s sisters, I have a gut feeling the Serra killer is going after the bloodline, which would mean the women who married into other families were only spared out of pure luck. Roll of the dice. He simply hasn’t gotten around to killing them yet.

“You will do this, Casper,” Renzo says in a slow, calm voice. “Try not to think of it as revenge. It’s more of a last-ditch effort to save my daughter. You’re just…collateral damage.”

They have tunnel vision. They’re not seeing the repercussions or considering how Amelia will feel about this. I’m about to tell all three of them to go fuck themselves when the door to my room opens and closes.

“I won’t do it,” she says softly.

I wince.

Amelia obviously overheard us. How much did she hear?

Slowly turning around, I brave a look at her, but all her attention is focused on her father.

“You will,” Renzo says confidently. “Once you know what I have planned for Casper if you don’t, you’ll change your mind.”

“If I were even considering this madness, this isn’t the way I’d want him,” she says tightly. “Do you think I’d enjoy having you shove an unwilling groom down my throat just to appease your misplaced sense of vengeance?”

“You need his last name, Mila,” he replies, as if he were ordering a burger instead of a marriage. Amelia glares at him, but he shows her about as much regret as he showed me.

She cuts into Leo next. “And you,” she says. “How dare you go along with this.”

Leo swallows, unable to respond. I’d probably choke too if she were staring at me with that much fury. Good for her.

He clears his throat. “I’m trying to save your life.”

“Yeah? Well, I never asked you to save it!” She leans forward, like she’s angling to smack him, and looks about two seconds from losing it.

Grabbing Amelia by the crook of her elbow, I pull her aside. I can’t believe what I’m about to say, but we’re out of options. “We have to do this.”

She crinkles her nose. “You’re not that noble, Casper.”

“No, I’m not.”

“Then why? What do they have on you?”

I rub the back of my neck. “I didn’t tell you the whole story about Nicholas.”

“Nicholas? The guy who killed Evie?”

I nod. She’s staring at me expectantly, and I don’t know where to begin. I look up at the ceiling, trying to find the right words. I never wanted to admit it to anyone, especially not her. I don’t want her to look at me any differently. Because she will judge me for it.

“Do you remember how I told you I kept getting into fights after Evie was killed?”

She slowly nods.

“It wasn’t good enough for me, her murderer being in jail. He was young enough that he would eventually walk as free man one day, while she would never take another breath. Every time I’d get in one of those fights, I would picture his face. I wanted to hurt him, like he hurt her.” I pause to take a breath. “Your dad gave me that opportunity.”

She shakes her head. “I don’t like where this is going.”

“He had a connection in prison. A big, muscly lifer who would do anything for five grand. I paid him to beat up Nicholas. He was just supposed to rough him up, maybe break a few bones…” I swallow. “But he took it too far. He accidentally killed him.”

“Oh, God, Casper.” She closes her eyes. “Tell me this isn’t real.”

“I never meant to kill him. I just wanted him to pay for what he did to Evie.”

“So what does all this mean? How is my dad using this against you?”

“The guy will talk if I don’t do this. Renzo will back him up. It means they can send me to prison.”

She shakes her head. “No. He’s just as linked to this as you.”

“No, he’s not. I did everything myself. He simply gave me the right contact.”

“This is blackmail.”

I nod, sighing. “Yes, it is.”

“That’s right,” Renzo says, his voice agitated. “If you don’t want him to wind up in jail, I suggest you get this over with. None of us have all night.”

Tears glitter Amelia’s eyes. From the moment I picked her up in Tampa, and through everything, she hasn’t once cried. Finding out she has a family, nothing. Learning she’s being stalked by a killer, still nothing. But this she cries over?

The tears spill, and she turns away, wiping the corners of her eyes. It makes me want to slam my fist into the wall. Just a few hours ago, she said she loved me. It’s not like they’re forcing her to marry a stranger.

“Are we all in agreement?” Renzo asks.

Amelia sniffs and turns around, facing her father. “You do realize I’ll hate you for this, don’t you? You’re killing any chance we had at a relationship.”

“If you don’t want to speak to me after this, that’s your choice. Whether you believe me or not, I’m doing this for your own good.”

“I believe you think you’re doing this for my own good, but it won’t matter. I’ll still hate you.”

He sighs, shrugging. “So be it. Your life is worth more to me than your respect.”

She steers her focus to Leo. “Is that how you feel, too?”

“I’ve already lost a brother. I refuse to lose you.”

She laughs once, bitterly. “If you help him force my hand, you are no longer my brother. Make no mistake about that.”

For a second, I think I see Leo falter. It’s clear he doesn’t want to hurt her, but of course, sticking to true Leo fashion, he stands bullheadedly firm on his decision. “I’m sorry you feel that way.”

“You’re both despicable,” she says, crossing her arms over her chest. “I’m ashamed to say I’m related to either one of you.”

Renzo waves the officiant over. “Thomas, we’re ready to begin.”

Amelia squeezes her eyes shut, shaking her head. She lets out an unsteady breath, looking over at me. “I’m so, so, sorry about this, Casper. We’ll get it annulled as soon as we can.”

I clench my jaw. “Let’s just get it over with.”

She winces and bites her lower lip the whole time. Every time she does, it feels like a blow to the gut. Does being married to me sound that unappealing? I’m not happy about this either, but damn. She doesn’t have to make it out to be the end of the world.

“Stop it,” I say, without looking at her. “This is happening, whether we want it to or not.”

“I know,” she says, with the audacity to sound hurt. “This is all my fault.”

“We’re both getting something out of this,” I remind her. “I’m staying out of prison, and you’re getting my last name. Let’s just deal with it.”

“Fine,” she says, stiffly, and turns to face Thomas as he finishes up. “If that’s what you want.”

We wrap things up by signing the marriage license Renzo produced. He and Leo sign as witnesses.

Renzo slips the paperwork into an addressed envelope. Looks official, unfortunately. “Congratulations, and thank you both for your cooperation,” he says with a pleased smirk.

“Fuck off, Renz.” I’m about to ram my fist through his teeth.

“Is that any way to speak to your new father-in-law?” He seals the envelope and places it carefully under his arm. “Remember to change your social media accounts.”

He and the others exit the room, leaving Amelia and I standing there in a state of cold, hard shock. When I finally do get the sense to move, I look at her, and goddammit. She’s still fucking crying.

I reach for my duffel. “Let’s go.”

“Go?” she says, shocked. “You just want to leave—like nothing happened?”

“Do you just want to stay and remember what did happen?”

She glances at the floor, nodding. “Good point. Get me out of here, please.”