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30. After the Storm
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2024-10-29 19:42:56The smell of coffee permeated the kitchen and the fire gave off some heat as the inhabitants of the house started to wake up. The sound of chain saws could be heard in the distance and morning brains started to seek coffee to function and face the aftermath of the storm.
Finn was already up with Billy, stoking the fires in the fireplaces and making the coffee using their generator. Now that the house was warming up, he went to wake his sleepy little Lili with the aroma of fresh brewed coffee.
He had kept her up way too late and she mumbled and tried to roll over and go back to sleep, but he was persistant and she finally opened her eyes and grumbled out a protest 'good morning'.
Finn was laughing at her grumpiness and offered to tickle her awake. Lili stuck her tongue out at him as she sat up and pouted. He handed her the coffee that he was holding and she smiled as she smelled the wonderful elixer that she was holding in hands.
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Protecting My Heart 31. Don’t You Dare Walk Away
"Don't you dare walk away from me TJ! What the hell is going on?"He just threw down his work gloves and walked back to the house and shrugged Lili off as she tried to grab his hand. Screaming at the top of her lungs, her words echoed through the valley, "Finn, just talk to me!" He didn't even look back or stop regardless of her protestations or tears. Anders and Stacey just watched the train wreck in stunned silence and looked from each other to Lili, who was now alone on her knees with her head bent down and her hair was touching the snow. Lili's entire body was trembling and she could hardly take a breath. She stammered, "I dont want him to leave. I just want to talk." Anders left Stacey to stay with Lili and he chased after Finn. Finn made his way into the kitchen and he was glaring at Billy with his fists curled and his teeth clenched.As Anders entered he heard Finn curse
Protecting My Heart 32. Attempts at Revenge
"My drug addled brain wanted revenge with the hope that I could break free of my addictions. I guess, I hoped that revenge would heal the pain," Finn started to say before his voice trailed off.He looked miserable and wanted to bury himself forever under the blankets. For the first time in ages, he longed for a high to hide these lows.When he looked into Lili's trusting eyes, his soul was crushed and he didn't know how to fix this. "You know, there were three of them. The first was easy, Martin. I knew he was forced into it that day. He whispered in my ear, how sorry he was. I didn't have the heart to do much to him. So I emptied all the air in his tires and left it at that.""Ok, that is understandable. Not good, but I get it," Lili offered as a way to encourage him to go on.He looked like he wanted to cry as he said, "It gets worse. A lot worse, Lili."Groaning as he started t
Protecting My Heart 33. What Does Forgiveness Look Like?
After their talk, Finn and Lili went downstairs to discuss the situation with everyone as they all sat around the kitchen table. He was still pissed at Billy but Lili explicitly told him, that he needed to let it go."Well, Anders and Billy, I know that you are both aware of what Rory told you. I didn't then and I don't now want to press charges against him for his actions towards me. I lied to Lili about what originally happened and I didn't tell her that he was one of the teenagers who violated me. For that I have asked for forgiveness."Billy stood up and slammed his fist on the table and swore profusely, "Damn it man, when are you going to start telling the truth. Have we had a snake in our midsts all along? Rory said that you were the one that violated him!"Finn couldn't believe what he was hearing. The abuser turned on the victim and the police are going to believe Rory now."What? What are you
Protecting My Heart 34. The Burden of Proof
The mood in the town was shifting as the winter settled in and the sun set early. Finn could never quite manage to stay warm enough while out in the fields doing his inspections. The fence repairs were mounting after the latest winter storm passed and he needed to head up to meet with Russel to start planning what to order. Dismounting Midnight he tied the horse to the post and headed into the ranch house to meet with Russel and grab a coffee. Just as he stepped into the kitchen, Reese popped her head in to say congratulations. "Thanks Reese. I am looking forward to marrying her as soon as possible. That house is too big for just the two of us," he smiled and winked at her. "If you need any help with planning, don't hesitate to reach out." "I will let my sweet little Lili know that you offered when I get home tonight," he replied as he walked down the hall. Russell was sitting at his desk with a p
Protecting My Heart 35. The Vultures are Calling
Upon Caleb's arrival, Anders was fired immediately the investigation into Finn turned against him. Billy's mob squad was hailed as local heroes saving the community from the rapist from the East. Enjoying the media attention, Caleb told the media just that, "We captured the rapist hiding in the shadows. When would he have attacked our boys and we all know it was just a matter of time. We captured the east coast rapist." The headlines read, 'local hero turned rapist' to 'East coast rapist caught!' Caleb pulled Lili in and questioned her for hours on end. He made her tell Finn's side over and over again until she couldn't think. She couldn't understand it. Caleb was a good detective but he was corrupted now too. How? Why? All she knew was that she feared for her life and she begged Caleb to let her see Finn. "Lili, Finn is a very dangerous man and he may not have visitors under any circumstances whi
Protecting My Heart 36. Checkmate
"Come and sit down! You are making me nervous!" Stacey ordered Anders as she watched him pace up and down the aisle. They were waiting for Detective Drake to arrive and help restore the community back to normalcy. Based on the information that Anders had supplied to Drake, the FBI was brought into the investigation. Drake had managed to quickly escalate the situation to the higher ups within the police force because of his connection to Finn and the corruption that Anders had presented. . As a result, Agent Mia Templeton would be traveling with Drake on the same flight and they would pull rank over Caleb. Not only would they pull rank, they would send him back to the Madison office, where he would face an internal investigation pertaining to his behaviour. Fortunately, Caleb wasn't aware of the change in organizational structure. Not yet! Anders desperately wanted to k
Protecting My Heart 37. Insanity Rising
Drake calmly held the phone to his ear and spoke with clarity to his wife, "I am safe but there is a situation here. There has been an unfortunate accident that I must attend to." "Be safe," she whispered as they got off of the phone. "I will," he said and then called Anders and told him to send the EMT and fire trucks to the station. He explained the situation and he just waited for help. He tried not to panic his wife but he needed to get out of the station as soon as possible. He kept his eyes on Caleb as he exited through the twisted door frame and headed to the back of the building. He escaped from there and ran around to the front. He prayed that the building wouldn't catch on fire from the sparks flying in the air, or they would never be able to save Caleb. Just as he made it outside, Anders was driving up and the rescue and fire were not far behind. From what he
Protecting My Heart 38. Handcuffs
The handcuffs fell to the bed an Finn let out a small sigh of relief. He felt Anders pick up his wrists and swear at the sores that had festered while Caleb forced Finn to wear them while in his hospital bed. "Finn, I am sorry for all of this but I have been working behind the scenes with Drake and Caleb has been sent home." He grinned at he saw Finn's eyes grow large with that announcement. "Yes, Caleb was sent home to Madison and will face an internal investigation. We also brought Detective Drake and an FBI Angent Mia in to review your case and find the corruption and where this all leads to." Finn still couldn't talk but he gave Anders a thumbs up. Anders laughed at his feable attempt to communicate but finally placed a hand on his shoulder and said, "Listen, I need to head back into the station, but Lili is on her way and she is no longer restricted to just one hour a day." Another thumbs up! "Oh, you
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Protecting My Heart 79. Epilogue
"Jordan and Stephen! Give that back to your sister right now!" Lili scolded as they walked through the amusement park. Morgan, who was just three years old, was crying because the boys took her stuffed bear that Finn just won for her at the cheesy boardwalk clown game. Finn scooped her up and calmed her tears as Lili talked to the boys for the fifth time this afternoon. Drake and Claire walked over with Gia and Max who were pinching each other when their parents were not looking. Drake asked, "Has anyone seen Anders and his crew?" "Yeah, they went to the first aid hut to get Leah's hand cleaned. She fell when Justin pushed her." "Well, I think that after three days of this, we just need a little R&R back at the house and maybe some time around the pool," Claire said matter of factly. "Oh, Claire! Yes, that is just what we all need!" Lili sighed at the thought of relaxing
Protecting My Heart 78. Accident or Sabotage
The guests all watched in horror as the crystal chandelier above the grand ballroom started to sway violently. A deafening crack filled the room as wires snapped one by one and sparks flew around the ceiling. Someone yelled, "Look out!" And another screamed, "Get out of the way!" as loud as they could over the music. The band realized what was going on and as calmly as possible told the guests to get off of the dance floor and move to safety. Chaos won the day as the chandelier suddenly fell about a foot closer to the ground. The snapping of the wires contunued until it finally let loose in a freefall crashing to the ground. Guests that had scurried to the sides of the room started to scream in fear as crystals projectiled around the room. The chandelier was one thing, but then they smelled a thick acrid smoke that permeated the room. Many of the guests started to panic an
Protecting My Heart 77. Down the Aisle
Lili rolled over and reached for Finn, but he wasn't there. His side of the bed was cold as she felt the sheets. She felt like a piece of her was missing since he was always there to snuggle in the morning before they started their day. But today was different. She would be in his arms tomorrow morning! After the rehersal dinner, he went to stay at Anders so that they would not see each other before the wedding and Stacy stayed in their guest bedroom. Lili just stayed still and let her mind run through all of the tasks of the day. So much to do before 2 pm. Would she get it all done? Oh the nerves of a bride. Her wedding day! She was so excited and couldn't believe that she was marrying this man, her Finn and then they were taking off to Europe for a few weeks. Praying to herself that this day would be filled with happy memories and no stress from family or foes prete
Protecting My Heart 76. Just One More Day Until Forever
"Come on! We are going to be late." Finn gripped as he stood in the doorway trying to get Lili to walk out the door. He sighed as she slipped past him and he teased, "Are you going to be late to your own wedding tomorrow or is this a plan to ease the tensions when you don't show up?" Lili smacked his arm and walked to the other side of the truck, refusing to answer his brazen foolishness. "Get in!" she yelled as she taunted him with a seductive kiss that she blew in his direction. "Caught it!" he laughed as he hopped in and started the truck. They drove in silence for a few minutes when he asked, "Are you nervous about tomorrow? Any regrets, because now is the time to bail on me when no one is around." "TJ! Are you trying to get rid of me?" she looked at him cross as she folded her arms across her chest. "No, I am serious Lili. I come with my own baggage and I just want to make sure that you
Protecting My Heart 74. Final Preparations
Lili heard the horn blaring and she grabbed her purse and rushed out the door.Stacey was laughing at her friend's frantic pace. She could see the worry all over Lili's sweet little face. Her red hair, flowing in the wind as she raced to the car and jumped into the passenger side.She looked at Stacey with wild eyes as she thought to herself, 'just two more weeks until the wedding and they we are off to the fitting. Always in a hurry these days!'"Calm down. Finn is already totally in love with you and your little one on the way.""Stacey, I know. It's just, well everything. The reading of the will, Claire and Drake, the wedding, my brother, and on and on and on." Lili exhaled as she l
Protecting My Heart 73. The Reading of the Will
All dressed in black. Lili hated wearing black but she was supposed to be in mourning to the rest of the outside world. So, she gave in to customs to pretend that she cared about her father and she was dressed in black from head to toe. Finn on the other hand, loved the dress that she was wearing. The way it showed off her figure and her legs. She had her hair up in a professional looking bun and he noticed her neck. Oh, it drove him insane to know that they were walking out of the house in less than 5 minutes to go the reading of the will and he had other things on his mind, like taking that dress off of her. Did she know what she was doing to him?
Protecting My Heart 72. Free
Waking up at 4 am, Lili got out of bed and crept downstairs and sat at her desk and started to write. The words flowed freely as she poured her heart out. She had just started a new book and she was free from worrying about ... well just about everything. For the first time in her life she was free of the torture that she endured on behalf of her family. She was free! No more demands on who she dated or where she lived. No more legal letters telling her to not write anymore. No more controlling parental guidance. Her father would not be missed and she knew that was an awful thought but her family really was very dysfunctional. Extremely. Lili was so intent on writing that she didn't hear Finn as he walked in and leaned against the doorway. Just watching. His eyes sparkled at he watched his little lilipad typing away as she was lost in her own lit
Protecting My Heart 71. The Art of Letting Go
Anders read the letter and the news shocked Finn. "You're pregnant?" Finn asked again. Lili looked up in to his eyes and softly replied, "Yes, but this isn't how I planned on telling you. I had plans, special plans. Not like this." All of that special nonsense didn't matter to Finn. That wasn't him anyways. Finn forgot Anders was their and kissed her sweet lips and whispered in her ear, "My beautiful little Lili James is going to give me a beautiful lille baby. What's better than that?" Finn felt the magic of the moment and was in his own world with Lili when Anders cleared his throat. Letting Lili go, he looked at Anders and sheepishly said, "Forgot you were here." "Let's grab some coffee in the kitchen and talk through the events of today." Lili looked from Anders to Finn with curiosity. She was so thrilled with Finn's reaction to the baby news that she forgot abo
Protecting My Heart 70. Almost
Two weeks had passed and Finn felt like a piece of him was missing. Drake had always been there, even when he arrested Finn, he supported him when he had been at his lowest. Lili was standing there in the kitchen and knew what was eating him alive and she decided that she needed to do something about it. She put down the dish towel and walked over to him and boldly stated, "I am going to see my father in jail and finish this, for good." "What? You can't do that!" Finn said as he voice cracked. He was not letting her go to see her creepy father. The guy was a miserable man with nothing but hatred flowing through his viens. No wait, even worse than that...vindictiveness ran so deep that he spewed nothing but hate. Lili gave him her puppy dog eyes and walked over to him and said, "Listen, he can't hurt me in jail but he can try to continuously surprise us with one hate filled plot after another and one of them mi
