After a moment, Finn’s shoulders sagged, his face relaxed, and his jaw unclenched. He knew that it wasn’t me lying there—that it was Jillian instead. I waited for my foster brother to turn and whisper the news to the others, but he didn’t.

“See something you like?” Dixon called out, noticing Finn’s interest in Jillian. “You one of those freaks who likes to get down and dirty with bodies?”

Finn slowly straightened up and looked at the giant. “Hardly,” he drawled. “Although it’s interesting that was the first thing you thought about me doing. Maybe that says something about your sexual preferences. Why, I bet that you’re the one who likes to get his freak on with corpses. Who knows what you did with her before you so gallantly carried her in here?”

Dixon charged forward, his hand already dropping to the gun holstered on his belt. At the last second, Clementine held out her hand, stopping him. He looked at her, a clear plea in his eyes, but she slowly shook her head. It took him a moment, but Dixon swallowed his anger. She might be his aunt, but he didn’t want to cross her.

Clementine gestured for one of her men to come over to her and whispered something in his ear. Dixon glared at Finn and slowly drew his finger across his throat in threat.

Finn, being Finn, puckered his lips and blew the giant a big, fat, sloppy kiss.

More anger stained Dixon’s cheeks, breaking through his orange fake bake, but he didn’t draw his gun. Instead, he just stared at Finn with murder in his eyes. After a few seconds, Clementine finished her conversation with the other giant and crooked her finger at her nephew. Dixon stepped closer to her. I let out a breath. If Finn didn’t play nice, he was going to get himself shot before I could rescue him and the others.

Too bad I had no idea how I was going to do that.

I couldn’t just leap over the balcony and start taking on giants. Not with only two knives. There were too many of them and too much of a chance of people getting hurt in the confusion and crossfire. Plus, I had no doubt that Clementine would have no qualms about killing as many of the hostages as it took in order to take me out.

I was mildly surprised that she hadn’t let Dixon go ahead and shoot Finn for mouthing off, but at this point, she probably wanted to keep everyone calm for as long as possible. As long as folks thought they had a chance of going free, they’d behave like good little boys and girls and play by her rules.