Xanthe continues to revel in Finn's attention, she is blind to his manipulative behaviour. He manages to convince her that everyone is out to get him. However, Ben starts to realise that Finn is not a good man and tries to find evidence. After Xanthe visits Finn at his motel room, she realises that she does not love Ben anymore and breaks up with him. Finn switches Susan's vitamins for Piper's pain medication, resulting in her hospitalisation. Finn is appointed acting principal in her place. When Xanthe realises what he has done, he manages to convince her to keep it to herself using "inappropriate flattery". Johnathon Hughes of Radio Times pointed out that Finn is "borderline grooming" Xanthe with his behaviour. Mills was worried about how far Finn was willing to go with Xanthe, saying "I spoke to the writers early on and they explained it wasn't going to be that kind of relationship. Xanthe has fallen for Finn, but it's not reciprocated romantically by him at all. She lacks a positive male role model in her life and Finn is the first person in her life who has really nurtured her." Finn is eventually investigated by the police for the medication swap, leading him to flee town for Hong Kong. Xanthe decides to go with him, but they are soon found and escorted from the plane. When Xanthe chooses to run away with Finn, she focuses on the fact that she needs to keep him safe. Van der Meer explained that Xanthe will go to "any length" to make sure Finn is care for, as she is the only one who knows the full extent of his condition. Finn tells the police that Xanthe was responsible for poisoning Susan, but she refuses to believe that he is framing her and keeps quiet about what she knows. But when Xanthe visits Finn at his new hiding place, she realises that he has been manipulating her. Finn threatens Xanthe, but she records his confession and he collapses. Van der Meer stated that Finn's actions would have "a massive impact" on Xanthe's life in the future. She continued, "The people in her life despise Finn but she has had an overwhelming love for him that no one else understood. She has eliminated a lot of people from her life during the Finn saga." The storyline was revisited in May 2018 when Mills