Chapter 415

Finnian pressed a few buttons, but nothing lit up. It was clearly a malfunction. He nodded grimly.

Amara couldn’t believe it. Her first thought was of work. She was supposed to be at the *Whispers of Winter* press conference, answering questions from reporters. Now, with the elevator stuck, there was no telling when she would get out. Would she miss the event entirely? And if it took a long time to fix, did that mean she would be trapped in this tiny space with Finnian? The thought made her skin crawl.

“Don’t worry,” Finnian said, mistaking her worried expression for fear. “I’ll get someone to fix it p>

He pulled out his phone but had no signal. He pressed the emergency call button on the wall. A voice crackled through the speaker. “How may I help you p>

Finnian explained the situation. The operator assured him that a maintenance crew was on its way and asked them to wait patiently before the line went dead.

He glanced at Amara. She was watching him warily, her body tensed. “You don’t have to be afraid,” he said softly. “I won’t do anything to you.” Now that they were trapped together, with no idea when they’d get out, he knew his words were little comfort. Not after what he had done.

Amara lowered her head and retreated to the corner of the elevator, silent. Just being in the same room with him made her anxious; being in a space this small was suffocating. The silence was so profound she could almost hear his breathing. She pressed herself into the corner, as if trying to disappear. Then she turned to look out the glass wall, her thoughts drifting back to the press conference.

It was scheduled to start in twenty minutes. If the elevator wasn’t fixed by then, she would be late. Would Keith and the others be worried when she didn’t show up? She checked her phone again. Still no signal. She sighed.

Up on the top floor of the hotel, reporters from major television networks and newspapers were taking their seats. The key members of the past and crew Cedric Zade Keith, Liliana-were all present But the seat reserved for the head writer, Amara, remained empty.

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Keith frowned, glancing at his phone again. He had sent Amara more than a dozen messages on WhatsApp, asking where she was, why she wasn’t answering her phone. She hadn’t replied to a single one. Amara was always punctual. If there had been an emergency, she would have called. He exchanged a worried look with Cedric, whe confirmed he hadn’t heard from her either. With the press conference about to begin, they had no idea what was going on.

The event started on time. Dozens of reporters sat in the audience microphones and notebooks hand, firing questions at the cast and crew on the stage.

“Ms. Porter, we heard Mr. Everly visited the set frequently during filming. Are things getting serious between you two p>

“Ms. Porter, are you and Mr. Everly dating? Do you have any wedding plans p>

“Ms. Porter, what’s the latest with you and Mr. Everly p>

“Ms. Porter p>