CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER SEVEN

“Your bodyguard’s pretty intense, isn’t he?” commented Khloë as she, Harper, Devon, and Raini joined the long queue for the nightclub that led to the Underground. To the humans, it was simply a VIP queue. In truth, it was a line exclusive to demons that intended to head to the Underground.

“He’s also an asshole,” hissed Devon, adjusting her little red dress. Tanner did seem to enjoy taunting her by calling her ‘kitty.’ He’d also ogled her impressive cleavage when the hellcat wasn’t looking.

“I’m surprised he isn’t following us inside,” said Raini, looking as alluring as always. Despite that most of her body was covered by her black, chiffon catsuit that made her look like a jewel chief, the males stared more at her than the indecently dressed humans.

“He has to meet one of the other sentinels for something,” explained Harper. “I don’t know what, I don’t ask about sentinel business.” And they probably wouldn’t tell Harper anything without Knox’s permission anyway.

As memories of the previous night flickered through her mind, Harper’s body began to heat. He’d fucked her so hard and so many times that she’d fallen asleep. Then he just woke her up and took her from behind. She’d left his home early that morning with her inner demon curled up in a ball of satisfaction.

“Why isn’t Ciaran coming?” Devon asked Khloë, who looked quirky and cute in her neon pink dress. Harper was wearing a sleeveless dress that was so sleek it looked like liquid silver. Raini had picked it out.

“He’s spending time with his new girlfriend,” Khloë replied. She was close to her twin brother. “She doesn’t like me much. Says I’m too hyper. Personally, I don’t think that’s a fair assessment.”

Raini snorted. “I do.”

“It’s good then that I just don’t give a—”

“Harper Wallis?” interrupted a new, gruff voice.

She turned to see a dark guy built like a linebacker. One of the doormen. “Uh, yeah?”

He unclipped part of the red rope acting as a barrier and tipped his chin toward the entrance of the club. “Go on through.”

Harper blinked. “You mean skip the queue?”

Khloë elbowed her hard. “Obviously, Harper, jeez.”

“Don’t make me hit you, Khloë.” Giving the doorman a grateful smile, Harper led the three she-demons inside the club, ignoring the scowls of the other people waiting behind the ropes.

“He must have recognized you as Knox’s anchor,” Raini said.

“Well, Knox has been sure to parade me in front of as many demons as possible.” Descending the stairs on her right, Harper led the girls into the basement. At the rear of the dark room was a door that was manned by two burly demons. Each gave her a respectful nod.

“Miss Wallis,” one greeted as he led them through the door and over to an elevator. He punched in a code, and the elevator doors opened. “Enjoy your evening.”

“Okay, this getting-recognizing-by-everyone thing could get weird fast,” said Harper as the doors closed and the elevator descended.

Khloë snorted. “Who cares?”

Finally the elevator stopped and they entered what was essentially a demonic playground. The strip of bars, nightclubs, casinos, restaurants, shows, strip clubs, hotels, and many other things always heaved with people. Each building had no front wall, so that it was easy to see just by walking down the ‘road’ exactly what was going on inside each place.

As the girls headed to their favorite bar, people either greeted Harper like they knew her or nervously gave her a wide berth. It wasn’t all that unexpected when the bartender told her that their drinks were on the house.

“From now on, you come here with me at all times,” Khloë told her, delighted as they claimed their usual table.

It was then that Harper noticed the flyers on the table. She picked one up. “What’s this? ‘Vote Isla.’” She glanced around, noticing they adorned each table. “There are flyers everywhere.”

“And posters too.” Raini gestured to the walls as she drank some of her cocktail through her straw. “Dario and Malden have plastered some up as well.”

Khloë, bopping her head to the music, spoke to Harper, “Jolene said you had a little scuffle with Isla.”

“She told you this, or you overheard it?” Harper asked before taking a sip of her cocktail.

“Does it matter?”

“My demon and her demon had an extremely minor confrontation.”

“What did she do to piss off your demon?” asked Raini.

“Isla believes Knox is her anchor.” Harper gave them all a run-down of everything that had happened at the meeting.

“I’ll bet the rumors are coming from Isla,” said Devon.

Harper stirred her drink with her straw. “What rumors?”

“Some people are saying that they heard you’re not really Knox’s anchor; that you’re just his newest side piece and you’re spreading the anchor rumor to protect yourself.”

“Do people believe it?”

“No. A lot of people have heard him call you his anchor; they know he has no reason to lie.”

“I don’t think you need to worry about the rumors,” said Raini. “You wouldn’t be getting special treatment if they were having any effect.”

Devon gently elbowed Harper. “Hey, who’s that bitch glaring at us?”

Harper groaned at the sight she found. “That would be Kendra, Knox’s ex…bed-buddy, I guess is the best description. See the guy with her? I think his name is Brandt. Anyway, she’s using him to try to make Knox jealous.”

Raini rolled her eyes. “How very mature.” She tilted her head as she studied Harper. “You know, there’s something different about you tonight. You seem more…relaxed. Like you’ve…” Her eyes widened. “You’ve had sex.”

“No, I haven’t.”

Devon pointed at her when she blushed. “You so have.”

“Who was it? Tell me,” Raini pressed. “Wait, it wasn’t Royce, was it? Please say no.”

“It wasn’t Royce.”

“Who, then? You’ve been spending so much time with Knox that I don’t know how you could have…” Raini gaped. “You slept with Knox.”

“No, I didn’t.”

“You so did,” insisted Devon. “What happened to your ‘I don’t get involved with demons’ rule?”

Harper sighed. “I kind of broke it.”

Khloë hugged her tightly. “I’m so happy. It means you’re finally accepting that male demons aren’t so bad and you won’t make the fuck-ups that your primary blood relations made.”

It simply meant that Knox was too fucking hot to turn down.

“Honestly, I don’t know how you could get in his bed,” said Devon. “I mean, he’s seriously gorgeous. But he’s also incredibly intimidating. And so detached and reserved.”

“He’s not reserved in bed.”

Devon smiled. “I’ll bet it was good.”

Harper smiled back. “Oh, it was.”

Raini groaned. “Uh-oh, here comes Mona.”

Bracing herself, Harper twisted to see Mona approaching with her regular group of friends. She stopped in front of the table, her eyes on Harper. But she didn’t seem pissed or looking to cause shit. “Can I help you with something?” asked Harper.

Mona cocked her head. “That thing you did to me in the combat circle…it hurt like a bitch.”

“It was supposed to.”

Mona actually smiled. “If I’d known you could cause soul-deep pain, I’d have made sure I kept my distance.” She shrugged. “No hard feelings on my end. I respect power. You have plenty of it.”

She turned to leave, but stopped when Khloë called out, “Hey, hey, hey, what about me? Where’s my respect?” It was obvious Khloë didn’t particularly give a crap. Mona threw her a scowl but it lacked any hostility.

“Well that was unexpected.” Devon sipped her vodka and coke. “I mean, if she was going to call a truce, I would have thought she’d only do it because you’re Knox’s anchor.”

Khloë drained her cocktail and put her empty glass on the table. “I say we forget about anchors and bitches and just have fun. Shots! We need shots!”

Harper shook her head. “No shots for you, missy. Your system can’t handle them.” Khloë was one of those people who not only got wasted easily but thought it was fun to do crazy shit when they were wasted.

“Ye have so little faith in me. We need shots!”

So they had shots. And Khloë quickly got so wasted it took the combined strength of Harper, Devon, and Raini to keep her from dancing on the table.

“I’m hot.” Khloë fanned her face. “Isn’t it hot in here?” Then she tried to take her dress off.

“No, no, no,” said Harper firmly, who had deliberately drank less than the other she-demons so that she could keep a handle on her cousin. “Right, enough shots for you.”

“I’m not drunk.” Khloë seemed sincerely affronted. “I have a high alcohol tolerance level. God, I love this song!” She started bouncing in her seat. “You’re totally my favorite cousin. Did I ever tell you that?”

Harper smiled. “Yes, you’ve told me at least eight times since you had your first shot.”

“Well, it’s true. I love you. I feel like we’re bonding right now. Don’t you feel it?”

Raini and Devon were laughing so hard – at nothing, from what Harper could tell, they were just trapped in a fit of laughter – they couldn’t seem to sit upright.

Khloë grabbed Harper’s arm. “Listen, listen, are you listening to me? You’re not listening to me. This is important. I love you. Like for realsies.”

“That’s great, Khloë, I love you too.”

Her cousin groaned as the song changed. “I hate this one. It makes me think of my ex. He’s such a bastard. I should text him. Text him and tell him he’s a bastard.”

Raini managed to get out through peals of laughter, “Khloë, we never text our exes when we’re drunk.”

“But I’m not drunk. Just a little buzzed, that’s all.”

Raini wagged her finger. “No talking to exes when we’ve had shots.”

Khloë huffed. “Fine, I don’t want to speak to him anyway. I’ve moved on. So has he. But we’re friends. I can text a friend, right?”

“To tell him he’s a bastard?” chuckled Devon.

“Exactly.” Khloë suddenly frowned. “I need to go pee. Want to come pee with me?” she asked Harper.

“No,” replied Harper, “but I will, because I have to protect you from yourself and stop you from getting into shit.”

Of course, the moment Khloë stood, she almost fell on her ass. When Harper moved to help her, Khloë held up both hands and declared, “I got this, I got this.”

Unreal. Harper kept her hand on Khloë’s elbow as she led her to the restrooms.

“I’m sorry,” Khloë whined.

Harper frowned. “What are you sorry for?”

“I don’t know. Isn’t that weird?”

With a sigh, Harper shoved open the door and guided Khloë to a stall. “Do not try to wrap yourself in toilet paper so you look like a mummy.”

“Why would I do that?”

“I don’t know, I asked you that last time you did it, and youdidn’t know then either.”

With a haughty sniff, Khloë slammed the door shut. And burped.

It was only as Harper turned to check her face in the mirror, strongly – and correctly – suspecting that she had Khloë’s lipstick all over her face after the girl’s dramatic display of affection earlier, that she noticed the two she-demons by the hand dryers watching her warily. “Hey,” Harper said as she wiped off the lipstick.

They smiled shakily as they both greeted, “Hi.” One looked as if she’d say more, but then her eyes widened as the door opened.

Turning, Harper found none other than…Kendra. How fabulous. Dressed in a long emerald green dress, her hair up in some elaborate do, she slowly advanced on Harper wearing a wide, patronizing smile. Her inner demon rolled her eyes, finding the bitch pathetic. Harper asked, “Something you want?”

Kendra seemed taken aback by her bored tone. “I simply thought I’d say hello. How are things down your end? And by ‘end’ I mean the bottom of the social ladder.”

To people like Kendra, who clearly prized social status, that comment would probably be offensive. Harper found it nothing but petty. “I see someone got up on the wrong side of their pigpen this morning.”

Kendra ground her teeth. “I’d imagine you can’t believe your luck that Knox Thorne is your anchor.”

“You’re having a little trouble dealing with that, huh?”

“Trouble?” Kendra laughed. “Of course not. I pity him, having not only an imp but a Wallis for an anchor.”

Harper batted her eyelids. “Well, aren’t you sweet to care.”

That was when Khloë came striding out of the stall, fixing Kendra with a hard look. “I’ll never understand why people can’t just let their exes go.” This was coming from a girl who had only moments ago considered texting her own ex. “But I guess Knox doesn’t really count as an ex, since you two weren’t in an actual relationship. That’s gotta hurt.”

Harper’s inner demon didn’t at all like the reminder that Kendra knew Knox intimately.

“Kendra,” interrupted one of the she-demons by the hand dryers. “I really think you should leave. If Knox hears you’re bothering his anchor, he won’t take it well.”

Kendra looked at Harper speculatively. “Yes, I’ve heard he’s quite protective of you. Still, it won’t last long, because his demon simply doesn’t attach itself to people.”

Harper heard the bitterness in the latter words. “And that just eats at your pride, doesn’t it?” It also satisfied Harper’s demon.

“Does it bother me that I have to watch him with others? Yes. However, I’m used to it – Knox doesn’t believe in being exclusive. But the good thing for me is that I can move on. I can keep him out of my life and out of my thoughts. You can’t, can you? So you’d better hope you don’t come to care for him or your life won’t be fun watching the man you want flit from woman to woman.”

A hurt that was deep, concerning, rose in Harper as the prospect fluttered through her mind. “It’s true that I might find it hard on some level. I mean, anchors are possessive of each other, right? But that means Knox is in the same boat. He’ll get pissed watching me with other guys. Whereas you…well, he doesn’t give a shit what you do. Making him jealous isn’t working out so well, is it?” Harper pouted. “How sad for you.”

Just as she and Khloë moved to pass, Kendra gripped Harper’s arm tight and hissed, “You can’t possibly—”

“You should let go of me, Kendra.” The bitch really, really should…because her behavior had triggered a primal reaction in Harper that could mean very bad things for Kendra. Her familiar dark power had rushed to her hands, ready to protect and defend Harper. In addition, her demon was on high alert, raring to take control. Harper urged it to remain calm, assured it that she’d take care of this. “I’d like to say that I don’t want to hurt you, but I do. You make it really hard to like you.” She put her face close to Kendra’s. “So don’t tempt me.”

“What are you going to do, imp?”

Khloë grinned. “I love it when this happens.”

“I’ll probably just poke you in the forehead, which I’m fairly sure is pretty empty.”

Eyes glittering with malice, Kendra tightened her hold. Warmth shot up Harper’s arm and filled every part of her. But that was pretty much all that happened. Judging from Kendra’s dumbfounded expression, more should have happened. Whatever she’d tried to do hadn’t worked.

Harper sniffed. “That all you got?” Then she did exactly as she’d threatened: she poked Kendra’s forehead, and the power prickling the pad of her index finger forced its way inside Kendra; past skin and bone, attacking the soul within. Having a dualism to her soul meant that not only did it hurt Kendra, it hurt her demon.

Her eyes widened as she tangled her hands in her hair and cried out, dropping to her knees. Then, sobbing and moaning, she scrambled into the corner, eyeing Harper like she was Lucifer himself. Yeah, that wasn’t an uncommon reaction.

“We’ll be going now.” Taking a gleeful Khloë by the arm, Harper led her out of the restrooms…and slammed into a solid, familiar body that made her inner demon go from pissed to happy in a nanosecond. She frowned at Knox. “What are you doing here?”

“Are you all right?” he demanded. Levi, Devon, and Raini were behind him.

“Knox came and asked where you were,” explained Raini. “We were a little worried that you guys were taking a while.”

“Who’s crying?” Knox asked.

“I’m surprised you need to ask,” said Khloë, “since you’ve probably made her cry out a few times yourself. In bed, I mean.”

Knox pushed his way into the restrooms, causing Harper and Khloë to back up. That was when he saw Kendra huddled into a ball in the corner, whimpering and clearly in pain. It was easy enough to guess why, but it wasn’t clear what Kendra had done to provoke Harper. He arched a brow at his anchor. “What happened?”

She shrugged. “Kendra was just saying hello.”

Face hardening, he repeated, “What happened?”

Harper sighed. “It’s been dealt with.”

Knowing his anchor was so stubborn she could keep that up all night long, Knox turned to the she-demons from his lair that were standing off to the side. He didn’t even need to ask them what happened; the entire story spilled out of them in a rush. Hearing the things Kendra had said and done, it was really no wonder that Harper retaliated.

“Levi, get Kendra out of here.” Knox turned to his anchor. “You come with me.” Amber eyes glared at him for that order.

“Look, I get that you want to talk about this, but I’m here with my cousin and my friends – I don’t ditch people.”

He looked at the three she-demons lingering in the doorway. “Follow us to the VIP section. It’s where you should have been anyway, Harper.” Little squeals of delight came from her companions but, of course, his anchor didn’t look all that impressed.

Harper found it strange walking through a busy bar with Knox Thorne holding her wrist. He didn’t need to push through a crowd, it parted for him. Respect, fear, awe, and – in the case of some females – desire was in the eyes of many. The respect mostly extended to Harper but, unsurprisingly, the ogling females didn’t like her much.

When they reached the VIP section with its comfier furniture, and its separate bar and waiters, Knox gestured for Harper’s companions to sit in a booth before he then pulled her into a corner.

She raised a hand. “Before you say anything, let’s just be clear that you can’t be pissed at me for this. All I did was defend myself, and I’ll do it again.”

Knox shook his head. “I’m not pissed because you defended yourself. I’m pissed because you were put in a position where you had to defend yourself. It never should have happened. Kendra knows better.”

“I dealt with it.”

“You think it will end there because you fought back? I’m responsible for policing every single one of my demons. If they cross a line, they’re punished – it’s as simple as that.”

“Don’t kill her, Knox.” Harper could see that he wanted to. “Demons are known for crossing lines. We do it all the time. Kendra behaved stupidly, yes, but whatever she tried to do didn’t work and I dealt with it my way. You need to respect that and you need to be seen to respect it. Because if you don’t respect me and my ability to protect myself, neither will anyone else.”

He couldn’t deny that was true…which only served to piss him off even more.

“Besides, she didn’t try to kill me, she tried to hurt me. She was just picking a fight because she’s jealous.”

“I gathered that from the things she said.” What worried him was that those things might have taken him back a step with Harper. He’d made a lot of progress with her, and he’d thought she would agree to bond very soon. Kendra could have fucked it up. “If any of what she said bothers you, let’s discuss it now.” He knew Harper would tell him the truth.

“Was she right about you not being exclusive? Because I have to say, I’m not a girl who’s good with that whole ‘seeing other people’ thing. I don’t like the idea that I could be with someone who was fucking someone else only five minutes before. It’s just icky for me.”

“I don’t share. I always demand exclusivity.” He wasn’t sure why Kendra implied differently, unless she suspected that there was more to him and Harper than them being anchors.

“She made a good point when she said it’ll be hard for us not to interfere in each other’s sex life since prying into personal lives is what anchors do, and the possessiveness makes that harder. But I’m told it’s worse in the beginning and it gets better.”

She was talking as if it was a given that they would bond, and that relaxed him and his demon.

“When your demon withdraws and the sex comes to an end, we’ll both move on and you’ll be fine with it, because you’ve had your fill of me.”

Okay, neither he nor his demon were relaxed any longer. He gripped her jaw. “Don’t talk like you’re just a convenient body to me.”

“You know what I mean.”

Yes, he did. And she was right. They would move on. The problem was that just the thought of her with another male made him feel very dangerous. His demon was so enraged by the idea of it that Knox knew for a fact that if another male was to touch Harper, they’d very simply die. His demon was still too fixated on her.

Harper frowned. “What’s wrong?” He just seemed so…intense all of a sudden. In response, his hand fisted in the back of her hair, angled her head how he wanted it, and then Knox took her mouth with a ferocity that alarmed her. She tasted anger, possessiveness, and a dark greedy hunger.

His hands slid around to frame her face. “Give into me, Harper.” He needed to feel that she was his on some irrevocable level. It wasn’t enough to know she was his anchor. He needed to form the bond to solidify his claim on her.

“This isn’t exactly the time or the place.”

“If we go somewhere private, I’ll fuck you, Harper. We both know that’s exactly what will happen. Let’s do it here and now, where I can’t take you how I want to and then you’ll never one day wonder if I used sex to convince you.” She sighed, averting her eyes that were swirling from amber to forest green. “You’re ready for this. I know you are.” When she finally returned her gaze to his, she nodded. Satisfaction thrummed through his veins. “Good girl.”

From a little place inside Harper, a voice screamed not to do it; that she would be giving him the power to hurt her. But she ignored it, letting herself believe that just fucking maybe this was someone who wouldn’t let her down. And if he did, well, she’d ensure he regretted it.

Watching her shift nervously from foot to foot, Knox took her wrist and soothingly circled her skin with his thumb. He didn’t blame her for being nervous. It was a life-altering moment. There was absolutely no going back. “Let go. That’s all you have to do.”

He was right. She’d held firm against the magnetic pull, keeping a tight hold on her own psyche. Now all she had to do was let go. Hoping it wouldn’t turn out to be a big mistake, she did.

As their minds slammed together, Harper’s knees buckled. Their psyches fused together with a snap, not becoming one mind but intersecting just enough for her to feel Knox’s darkly sexual presence; to feel his strength and personal power. There was a psychic ‘taste’ to him: almonds, dark chocolate, and red wine. It all ‘fed’ her somehow, strengthening her. Her demon lapped it all up, stabilized in a way it never would have been without this bond.

Just as Jolene had assured Harper, having an anchor wasn’t an invasive feeling. Still, it was intimate and a little strange, and it would take some getting used to. She looked up at Knox, who was cupping her nape, looking concerned.

“You okay?” Knox asked, not knowing what to expect from his anchor. His anchor. She was finally officially, irreversibly his.

“Yeah, I’m okay.”

“Good.” He’d touched her mind many times, but this was so much more. He could now feel her psychic presence; it rang with her fire, her sensuality, her iron-will, and the gentle streak she tried to hide. And her psychic ‘taste’…honey, coffee, and truffles. All of it invigorated and steadied both Knox and his demon. This bond would stabilize his demon in a way that Knox never could have done, despite his strength and power. Only Harper could have given it this. There was one thing left for Knox to do.

Harper watched determination flash in his eyes as the hand cupping her nape slid around to collar her throat, placing his thumb at the hollow of her right ear. A hiss escaped her as the skin beneath his thumb suddenly began to burn and throb. It only lasted seconds, but she still scowled. “You could have warned me.”

Tilting her head to the side, Knox looked at the mark he’d left in the very place that every anchored demon was marked. Each mark was a tattoo of an infinity symbol with a slight, personal difference. Not much bigger than the pad of his thumb, the glistening infinity symbol was made of a thorn branch. And it told the world that she was anchored; that there was someone who would wreak vengeance on anyone who dared harm her.

“Your turn.” She pressed her thumb against the hollow beneath his right ear and imprinted her mark there, which seemed to satisfy him rather than pain him. Awkward fucker. The infinity symbol had a sphinx perched in the center of the loops. Her demon relaxed at the sight of it.

“It’s done.” He found that he couldn’t release her, and in fact had to resist tightening his possessive grip on her throat. “Now you can’t ever again deny you’re mine.” Every few seconds or so, her mind idly brushed against his – a psychic touch that could be for reassurance or to offer comfort or maybe it was both. He didn’t know. He just knew that he liked it. “Open your mouth for me.” The moment she parted her lips, he thrust his tongue inside to tangle with hers. He tasted, feasted, and breathed her into him. “Come home with me tonight.”

She swallowed hard. “Okay.”

Satisfied, Knox kissed her again. He’d have her as many times as he could before his demon began to get bored. It could take days, it could take weeks, but it would happen. It always did. Even so, Harper would always be his on some level.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Ready to lock up the studio, Harper was slipping on her jacket when Royce walked inside. Groan.

“Who is the guy who’s always hanging around outside the building?”

She blinked, startled at his brusqueness. Royce generally didn’t have the balls to speak to anyone like that.

“He takes you to work every morning and hangs around outside most of the day. Why?” he demanded.

“I’m confused by the fact that you believe this is your business.”

“He works for Knox Thorne, doesn’t he?” Royce stepped closer, pissing off her demon. It wanted to claw his face right off his skull. “I saw him come in here with Thorne once.” He spoke like there was some kind of conspiracy and he was onto it. “Are you fucking Thorne? Is he why you won’t come back to me?”

What a fucking asshole. “Royce, I won’t come back to you for a number of reasons – primarily because you seem to think that monogamy is a shade a brown.”

“I apologized for that. She meant nothing to me.”

“Which is exactly why it should have been easy to turn her down. But you didn’t.”

“So let’s shout this out so we can move forward. Slap me. Kick me. Call me a dog.”

“Why? Dogs are loyal.”

“Look, I know I did wrong. Believe me when I say I hate myself for it. We can work this out. I miss you, Harper.”

She grabbed her purse and keys. “Well, as you can see, I’m drowning in a river of tears.” She ushered him out of the studio. “Now if you’re done, I have things to do.”

Outside, he continued speaking even as she locked the front door. “I’ve told you over and over, I’m sorry and I hate that I’ve hurt you. What do you want me to do?”

She faced him. “Honestly? Stick your cock in a bees nest. Call me and let me know how that goes.” Flashing him a sweet, acidic smile, she then made her way to Tanner, who was holding the car door open. “Hey, Tanner.”

“Problem?” He flicked his gaze to Royce.

She sighed. “I just don’t understand your gender. Do you?”

Tanner held up his hands. “This isn’t a conversation that could go well for me.”

Smiling, she slid into the car. “So true.” Within seconds, they were driving on-route to her apartment. She hadn’t seen Knox for four days, since he’d been on a business trip. In that time, though, he’d contacted her telepathically every night.

The days apart had given her a little time to get used to their psychic bond. It was true that it was impossible to ever feel alone when you were anchored. His mind constantly stroked hers instinctively yet idly. It was comforting. She could feel him and was always aware of him on some level, yet she couldn’t sense him or his feelings as the bond wasn’t intrusive.

As he was returning from his trip today, they had made plans to see each other tomorrow. He wanted to talk about the gathering for the whole Monarch business that was occurring in one of his Underground hotels in just two days. The time running up to the gathering had flown over fast, and during that time Knox had taken her to his home every night, had fucked her hard and long with an urgency that told her he was taking advantage of what time they had before his demon withdrew from her on a sexual level. The demon would accept her as its anchor, but it wouldn’t wish to keep her as anything more.

Up to now, his demon wasn’t at all bored. She knew it because the brand on her breast hadn’t faded. She could admit that she checked it each morning and evening, wanting to be mentally prepared for the demon’s withdrawal. Considering how obsessed her own demon was with Knox and the predator that lived within him, Harper was pretty sure that her demon would want to burn shit down when his lost interest.

Forcing her mind off the matter, she spoke to Tanner. “I’m surprised you don’t sometimes give yourself a break and let either Keenan or Larkin take over.”

He glanced at her in the rearview mirror. “Surprised? Why?”

“You must get bored of babysitting me.” Her life wasn’t exactly exciting.

“You’re important to Knox, which makes you important to me.”

“This babysitting gig still has to gall you on some level. You’re a sentinel.” He was meant for more than this.

“Knox would never trust anyone but a sentinel with your safety. I volunteered for the position.”

“Dear God, why?”

He chuckled. “I knew I was the best choice. Levi has always been Knox’s personal guard and it would be better for it to remain that way. Keenan and Larkin wouldn’t have been good guards for you. Keenan would have flirted with you, and Larkin would have conspired with you to do crazy shit just because she’s weird like that. Both would have driven Knox insane, which is never a good thing.”

She nodded. “Got ya.”

“Sometimes I think—” He grunted as his whole body seemed to jolt. Then he slumped in his seat a mere second before the car flipped in the air once, twice, three times and landed upside down. Then it was sliding along the ground, making the metal hood screech. Eventually, it ground to a halt. What the fuck?

Coughing, she called out, “Tanner! Tanner!” Nothing. Her inner demon was at serious risk of freaking out.

Instinctively, she spoke to the one person she knew would come. Um, Knox, we’ve got a problem here. Okay, maybe that was understating things a little, but she didn’t want him to lose his shit.

What sort of problem? His voice was tense, hard.

Undoing her seatbelt, she awkwardly fell to the ground. Ow. Well, the car kind of flipped over a few times, like a huge wind caught it up and hurled it. That was after Tanner suddenly lost unconsciousness. And…oh shit.

What?

Well, a black SUV is heading right for us.

Where are you? It was a rumble of danger.

It’s hard to tell. Scanning her surroundings as best she could, she realized… We’re in an alley. Tanner had only been driving for maybe five minutes or so; the alley can’t be far from the studio. And as the alley was blocked off on one side, it meant there was no way out. But she wouldn’t have left without Tanner anyway.

I’ll come for you.

She knew he would. She also knew he was beyond pissed and there was a very good chance these people would die. Grabbing Tanner’s arm, she shook him. “Tanner, wake up!” she hissed. Noticing the blood trickling out of his ears and nose, she suspected he’d taken a psychic blow to the head.

Harper stilled at the sound of car doors swinging open. Then there were urgent footsteps crunching on the gravel. Two sets of footsteps, she sensed. The door on her right was abruptly yanked open. A hand closed tightly around her arm and snatched her out of the vehicle. That same hand shoved her toward the blond muscular asshole now rounding the Bentley; both males reeked of something which made both her and her inner demon tense: magick.

So she was up against dark practitioners. That wasn’t good.

She didn’t scream or fight. That would only tempt them to deal her a psychic blow to the mind that would render her defenseless. For them to have not already done so, they believed she would be easy to handle. How silly.

The blond smiled at her, looking cool and smug. It was the smugness that irritated her the most. It also irked her demon, who saw it as a challenge to prove what it could do – to demonstrate just how badly they had misjudged their target. Unfortunately, neither of the practitioners were close enough to touch; if she dived at one, the other would attack her.

“You’ll come with us,” the blond stated, scratching at his goatee.

“Um, actually I won’t.”

“You should—”

“You don’t want me to go with you,” she said in a compelling voice. He blinked repeatedly. “You don’t want to hurt me.” Sphinxes didn’t befuddle people with riddles as mythology stated, but they did have the natural ability to confuse people. She’d much rather stab them with her blade, but they couldn’t die until Knox had interrogated them.

“What are you doing to him?” demanded the other practitioner.

“You don’t care about that,” she told him in that same compelling voice. “You don’t remember who he is. You don’t remember why you’re here.”

The dark-skinned male stumbled. “What’s happening?”

Harper looked back at the other practitioner…only to see that he was doing some kind of silent chant. Something heavy and solid slammed into her head. She swayed and staggered, blinking repeatedly. Her vision began to darken around the edges as she fell back against the car and slid to the ground. But she fought the fog and the darkness closing in on her, and she somehow held onto consciousness.

His eyes widened as he struggled to his feet. “That’s not possible.”

A growl made everyone freeze. Then the Bentley shook as if something was struggling to get out. Tanner. By the sounds of it, he’d let out his inner demon.

A mere moment later, the demon was out; launching itself in the air and over the car to land in front of Harper, growling at the practitioners. Hellhounds were like wolves on steroids, yet they had a majestic air about them. They had fur as black as coal, eyes as red as blood, and they brought with them the scent of burning brimstone.

Gripping the hound’s fur, she struggled to her feet, her head still throbbing with pain. “Motherfucking motherfuckers need to motherfucking die.”

In full agreement with that, her demon barged its way to the surface just as it whipped out the stiletto blade and infused it with hellfire. Loving the fear that wafted from the practitioners, it spoke and as it petted the hellhound. “You cannot win this. Of course, you could try. You could attempt to take out myself or the hellhound. It might even work. But while you spend precious time doing a little chant, the other of us will be on you. That means that at least one of you will die.”

Harper retained control then with a hiss. “But I won’t.”

A roar split the air. A roar of fire, she realized a moment later. The fire hissed, cracked, and popped. The flames died away, revealing...

“Knox?” He could teleport using fire? Shit, no wonder he’d gotten to her so quickly when Silas paid her a visit.

His dark eyes roamed over her, absorbing every detail, noting the cut on her forehead. Then those eyes fixed on the practitioners, who were backing up. “I’m afraid I can’t let you leave.” Fire shot out of his palm like it was a flamethrower, enclosing the practitioners in a circle. It might have looked like a rope of fire…if it didn’t have the head of a dragon and wasn’t slithering along the ground, hissing and spitting at its prisoners. And that wasn’t weird at all.

He stalked toward the two males, the image of absolute composure. But he looked too composed, too calm – so much so that it was terrifying. “You deliberately targeted my anchor. Why?” The question was spoken very steadily, yet it was coated in menace.

The blond swallowed hard. “I didn’t know she’s your anchor.”

“I find that very difficult to believe. My anchor would be a prize for any dark practitioner. But such a practitioner would need to be either mindless or desperate for death. Which are you?” He sounded genuinely curious, but Harper knew he was playing with them – like a predator toyed with its prey.

“I’m telling the truth,” the blond vowed, “we didn’t know who she was to you. Someone wants her, but we weren’t told why or what for. Just that we’d be paid well.”

“And who is this someone?”

“We can’t tell you.”

Knox stuffed his hands in his pockets, seeming both casual and bored. “Ah, let me guess. You’re under a compulsion.”

Both practitioners nodded, flinching as the fire dragon hissed at them.

“I think I’ll see for myself if that’s true.”

The blond, groaning in agony through clenched teeth, probably would have fallen to his knees if his friend hadn’t caught him. After a moment, he calmed and it was clear that Knox had withdrew from his mind. Then it was the other practitioner that cried out in pain, knees shaking. He sagged when it was over.

“You’re telling me the truth. That’s good.” Knox nodded his head. “Very good. But…there’s something you weren’t planning to tell me. You didn’t know she was my anchor, that’s true. But you suspected it.” The blond shook his head wildly. “Yes, yes you did. You heard the rumors, and when you saw my sentinel with her you wondered if just maybe those rumors were true. And that made you excited.”

Shaking his head again, the blond blurted out, “No, we—”

“You thought draining my anchor of power would somehow drain me also. You decided to keep her for yourselves instead of handing her over to someone else. You planned to drain her using sex magick. She would have been a sexual sacrifice.”

Sick fucking bastards. Her inner demon was now pretty eager to watch Knox destroy them.

“That excitement died down when she fought back, however.” As the blond opened his mouth to speak, Knox shot him a hard look. “I don’t accept excuses. They mean nothing to me. You mean nothing to me.”

“We can show you where we were supposed to take her, you’ll be able to see who hired us! You can use us!”

“I’ve been in your mind. I already know where you were told to take her. There would be no sense in me going there, however. You were both psychically bugged.”

The blond exchanged a confused look with his friend. “What does that mean?”

“Someone has been listening to your every thought, watching your every move,” Knox told them. “They know you failed. I’ve destroyed the bugs, which means they won’t see what happens next. I think it will be better to let them guess.”

“Wait, we—” He cut himself off as Knox’s eyes bled to black and the demon glared out at them. Even from where Harper stood, she could feel the air chilling.

It bared its teeth. “Harper is mine. You hurt her. That means you don’t get to live.” Spoken like the matter was a mathematical equation.

The blond glanced at Harper. “Doesn’t it bother you that he’s just going to kill us?”

She tilted her head. “It did…for about two seconds. Then I remembered you’re a couple of pricks that knocked Tanner unconscious and would have raped me.”

“And now they die,” said the emotionless voice of Knox’s demon.

There was a sudden buzz in the air, like something was charging, building, gathering in power. The ground began subtly vibrating, making the car tremble and the litter flutter. A chill snaked down her spine, and every hair on her body rose.

There was so much power, she could feel it hum and purr against her skin; it slithered between her fingers, stroked over her face, burned her eyes, and made her teeth rattle. A slight ringing sound filled her ears, and her chest suddenly felt so tight it hurt a little to breathe. It was too much power. No one and nothing should harness that kind of power. No one should be expected to control it.

Then the practitioners screamed as flames erupted from the ground at their feet and swirled around them. The flames were at least ten-feet high and were a beautiful intricate mix of gold, red, and black. And they gave off a heat that burned so hot she wouldn’t have been surprised if her skin blistered. And she instinctively knew…the flames of hell.

They didn’t burn the practitioners, they swallowed them, leaving behind only ashes. Spotting the red residue in the ashes, Harper knew she’d been right. The flames of hell were said to leave behind such a residue. Which meant Knox really could call on them. He really was a threat to not only every demon, but every single thing that existed on the planet. Well, shit.

The buzz in the air died away as the power seemed to return to where it came from, and it no longer hurt to breathe. Knox held out his hand, and the fire dragon was sucked back into his palm. As Knox closed his hand tight, smoke puffed out of his fist.

That was when he turned to face her, and she saw that the demon was still in charge for the moment. It prowled toward her, its gaze unblinking. The hellhound moved aside, as if it didn’t dare try to come between her and the demon. Harper put away her blade, not wanting to seem a threat.

Coming to stand in front of her, Knox’s demon studied her closely. “Now you know the truth.”

“I won’t tell.”

“You fear me now.”

Kind of. It wasn’t necessarily Knox or his inner demon that she feared, it was the power they had…and what they could do with it. “You won’t hurt me.”

That answer seemed to please it, and it fluttered its fingertips along the cut on her forehead. How could something so dangerous, so capable of cruelty, be so gentle? “They made you bleed.”

She gave a casual shrug. “It will be healed within the hour.” As if satisfied, the demon retreated. Knox cupped her nape and pulled her flush against him; he held himself stiffly, and she got the feeling he was expecting her to pull away. So she relaxed into him.

“I’m proud of you for fighting back.”

“It was good that she did, since I was unconscious for most of that.”

She turned to see Tanner, having retained control over his demon, zipping up a pair of jeans. He obviously kept fresh clothes in the car in case he had to let his demon out. “You would have done what it took if Knox hadn’t turned up and stole the show.” She couldn’t help but be impressed as Tanner effortlessly righted the Bentley.

“It’ll be safe to drive, it’s just a little banged up.” Tanner was right. None of the windows had been smashed.

“Is it demonically protected?” she asked Knox.

“Yes,” he replied. Then he frowned. “You’re hurting.” How he’d sensed it, she didn’t know. “Where?”

“It’s just a headache.” Okay, that was understating things a little – it felt like someone was stabbing her in the eye while pounding a hammer on her skull. The pain was making her feel nauseous. “They tried to knock me out the way they did Tanner. But I fought it.”

“Bonding with me has made you stronger.”

She peered up at him, smiling despite herself. “By the way, the fact that you can travel using fire is really, really awesome.”

“I’m glad you feel that way, because that’s exactly how we’re getting home.”

Wait, what?

“Tanner, you can come with us or you can wait here for Larkin and Keenan. I’ve already spoken to them. They’re on their way.” By that, Harper guessed he’d called them telepathically.

“I’ll stay here and help them with the clean-up,” said Tanner.

Knox locked both arms around Harper. “Ready?”

Um, no. It sounded fun to pyroport, but as she remembered the raging fire, she wasn’t so eager to try it.

“The flames will cover you, but it’s just normal fire, it won’t hurt you,” Knox assured her. “Trust me.”

A fire suddenly roared to life around them and, fuck, it was one of the weirdest things she’d ever experienced. The heat was unbearable for a millisecond as the flames engulfed her entire body, licking every inch of exposed skin. Then the flames parted and the heat vanished, and she realized they were in his living room. “Well, fuck.”

Hearing a deep rumbly laugh, she turned to find Levi on the sofa. “That was my thought the first time he pyroported me somewhere.” His brow crinkled. “You okay?”

“Been better,” she mumbled tiredly as she flung herself on the sofa. “I’m seriously tired.”

“You used a lot of psychic energy fighting to stay conscious after the practitioner dealt you a psychic hit,” said Knox. “Of course you’re tired.”

Using too much psychic energy was like being given a sedative. Lethargy was creeping over her, making her sleepily curl up into a ball. Unfortunately, the pounding headache had the potential to keep her from resting peacefully. Something in her expression must have given away the amount of pain she was in, because Knox sat beside her and used the pads of his fingers and thumb to massage her temples and scalp. It felt so good, she pretty much melted into the soft leather. “I really wish I’d killed Frick and Frack myself.”

“Frick and Frack?” echoed Levi.

“Dark practitioners,” Knox explained. Levi listened quietly as he told the tale. Sensing Harper had fallen asleep, Knox ended his massage and brushed his fingers through her hair; it was like liquid silk and he loved the feel of it against his skin.

When he’d received her frantic telepathic call, he’d almost lost his fucking mind. It was a dangerous thing for someone like Knox to be without the control that kept his demon and his abilities in check. Knox knew without a doubt that if Harper had been killed tonight, his demon would have taken over and expressed its anger on the world. It cared for nothing other than its own survival and pleasure. But Harper belonged to it, and someone had tried to take her away. That wasn’t acceptable to it.

In the alley, Knox had stepped aside and given his demon supremacy, knowing it needed to be the one to punish the practitioners if it had any chance of calming. Its anger had already subsided. Although its rage was always cold, it was also always fleeting.

“The more I think about everything, the more I believe this isn’t a case of different camps of people targeting her,” said Levi. “I think the dark practitioners were put up to this by the same person that sent Silas.”

“You think it’s Isla,” sensed Knox.

“I think it’s very likely her,” confirmed Levi. “She’s got more reason to target Harper than anyone else. To her, Harper’s trying to take a place that rightfully belongs to Isla.”

“But she didn’t know about Harper until the Manhattan conference,” Knox pointed out. “Silas visited her studio before that.”

“How are we sure that she didn’t know before the conference? She looked shocked, but Isla’s always been a good actress. The news of Harper’s connection to you spread far and wide. It’s extremely possible that Isla heard. Maybe she believed it, maybe she didn’t. We know Silas was sent to test your reaction. But what if the real reason someone was interested in that reaction was because it would tell them whether the rumors were true? I think Isla heard and she sent Silas to confirm it.” Levi leaned back in his seat. “The only other enemies Harper has are Kendra and Carla.”

“The practitioners said that someone wanted rid of Harper. What reason would her mother have to do that?”

“Carla got rid of her once before,” Levi pointed out.

“Abandoning your child and killing your child are two different things.”

“Stop thinking of them as mother and daughter. From what I can tell, the only thing Carla Hayden ever did for Harper was give birth to her. She didn’t want her, she dumped her onto someone else, and she didn’t look back. Yes, there are many parents out there who’ve given up their children for one reason or another. But Carla did it coldly. She’s had no relationship at all with Harper since then, despite them not living all that far away from each other. And didn’t Harper tell you that whenever they’ve crossed paths Carla dismissed her?”

The more Knox considered Levi’s words, the more his theory sounded very, very plausible. “Carla got rid of a baby she viewed as a mistake and then built a new life in which she pretended Harper didn’t exist; then she could forget what a fool she’d been to believe she could trap Lucian,” he mused aloud. “But now she can’t pretend Harper doesn’t exist any longer. Harper now has a certain fame among our kind.”

“Yes. People are curious about her. Carla could worry that someone will find out she’s her mother. Other than for Kendra and Carla, our lair feels naturally protective toward Harper because of who she is to you. They were seriously pissed with Kendra for what she did. So imagine how they’d feel about Carla. I don’t think her mate and sons know about Harper. Bray loves kids; he has two from a previous relationship and he’s been a constant, steady presence in their lives.”

“It still seems farfetched for Carla to try to kill Harper. It’s not as if Harper wants Carla’s recognition, is it?”

“It doesn’t matter. Carla’s carefully constructed world could very well fall apart if people find out the truth. Bray might be unable to understand and forgive her. Carla might feel it’s a lot easier to get rid of the threat to her world than to risk it. She dumped Harper coldly. Why couldn’t she end her life just as coldly? Some people are just callous through and through.”

Knox knew that well. “The day Carla came to my office, she painted the picture of a woman who made a mistake, regrets it, and would love nothing more than to fix it. But it’s possible that what she was really doing was making herself seem the least likely person to cause Harper harm so that no one would suspect her.”

“Yes. And that’s why she needs monitoring closely.”

“Get some of the Force on it.”

“As for Harper’s other enemy…” Levi sighed. “I don’t think Kendra would put herself through all the trouble of compulsions and hiring practitioners. She’s too lazy.”

“But she’s jealous of Harper. And it’s not just because Harper’s my anchor.”

Levi narrowed his eyes. “What don’t I know?”

Glancing down at his anchor, he lowered his voice. “It’s possible that she and Kendra are sisters.”

Levi gaped. He wasn’t a man who was easily shocked. “Are you shitting me?”

“You know I always do a background check on demons who request to join my lair. So when Kendra joined two years ago, I had one done on her. She comes from a high profile family in a lair in Alabama, though she very quickly shed that accent when she came here. It turns out that there was a scandal many years ago; her mother, Beatrice, got pregnant with Kendra by a demon who later left her for a much younger female, a sphinx. That female sphinx turned out to be Carla. It would explain why Kendra seemed to dislike Carla on sight.”

“How can you be sure Lucian is the demon who got Beatrice pregnant?”

“I wasn’t sure, I hadn’t originally asked Tanner to dig that deep. But when I realized Harper’s father was Lucian, I had him do some more digging. He confirmed it was Lucian.” Knox paused as Levi cursed. “If Kendra knows Carla lured her father away, she knows who her father is – a father that also played no part in her life. Yet, in his way, he raised his other daughter and, in fact, Harper’s the only living being he seems to have any true regard for. That can’t make Kendra feel good.”

“It’s a shame you can’t punch your way into her mind to find out if she’s responsible.”

It was a shame. But Kendra was a breed of demon known as a ‘nightmare.’ There was only one thing he would find if he invaded her mind: his worst nightmare.

“You could still invade Carla’s mind. I mean, I get that if the lair thought you’ll happily go around forcing your way into people’s minds, you could lose their trust and loyalty. But you have good reason here. They would understand if you explained the situation.”

Knox curled a strand of Harper’s hair around his finger. “There would be no point. I lightly touched Carla’s mind when she came to my office. It seems that Harper inherited her unusual shields from her mother.”

“Unusual?”

“They have the psychic equivalent of steel barbs. No one could get through them without doing major damage to their own psyche.”

Levi winced. “Then I guess we’ll just have to keep an eye on both Kendra and Carla. Have you told Harper that Kendra could be her half-sister?”

“Not yet.”

“Why?”

“Because I know Harper. Maybe better than even she does. And she already had plenty of reasons in her pretty little head to not form the anchor bond. I didn’t want to give her another. Now, it could be that it wouldn’t have bothered Harper to know that her anchor had an extremely brief fling with a half-sister she doesn’t even know. But anchors can be very possessive of each other, and it does apply in our situation. So there was a chance it would have bothered her. In any case, she would have undoubtedly grasped onto it as another reason to avoid bonding.”

Levi gave him a knowing look. “And you didn’t want to give her a reason for it to maybe feel a little weird to get in your bed.”

“No, I didn’t.”

“When are you planning to tell her?” There was a hardness in Levi’s voice that told Knox the reaper fully expected Knox to do so and would be thoroughly pissed if he didn’t. Knox arched a brow at his sentinel’s tone.

Levi shrugged. “I like her. I don’t want her upset.”

Neither did Knox. “I’ll tell her tomorrow. Hopefully she won’t make me pay too harsh a price for keeping it from her.”

Levi grinned. “Oh, she’ll make you pay.”

He was probably right. As Harper’s body shifted restlessly, Knox sighed. “I better put her to bed before she rolls off the couch.” She didn’t fuss when he scooped her up and cradled her against his chest, but her mouth did settle into a cute pout that he wanted to kiss right off her face. Four hours. He’d give her four hours to recover, and then he’d take her the way he’d wanted to for the past four days. He’d developed an addiction for her hot little body, and he fully intended to indulge it.