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Only Knox and the sentinels dished out physical punishments. No one else had that right. To take such a liberty came close to challenging Knox’s authority—another thing that wouldn’t be tolerated.
“I locked the asshole in the Chamber so you can deal with him at your leisure,” said Keenan, referring to the basement beneath Knox’s prison filled with dozens of torturous implements.
People who wronged Knox—whether they be members of their lair or outsiders—were taken there to endure punishment. Depending on the severity of the felony, some were then released; others were incarcerated.
“Good,” said Knox. “This is the second time he’s crossed a line. I warned him that he’d lose his position on the Force if he abused his authority again. Replace him.”
“It’ll be done.” Keenan twisted his mouth. “I wanted to pick your brain about something. How long does a Lazarus demon take to fully regenerate?”
Knox pursed his lips. “Three or four days, depending on how powerful they are.” He narrowed his eyes. “You think Enoch might make a reappearance?”
“Maybe. He wasn’t ready to accept that his daughter’s gone. In doing whatever they did, Jolene and Khloé forced him to accept it.”
“And you’re worried for Khloé.”
“She doesn’t have any sense of self-preservation. Nor does she have an anchor who watches out for her well enough.”
“Khloé won’t accept you acting as a bodyguard, Keenan, if that’s what you’re hoping.”
“Tanner guarded Devon when she had people looking to kidnap her.”
“That was different. Jolene’s lair was up against outsiders, so our lairs banded together to deal with it; we were presenting a united front to others. This problem exists within Jolene’s lair. She has to deal with this herself. If she doesn’t, she’ll look weak to her lair members and then someone might challenge her for her position.”
Keenan snorted. “I can’t see anyone being stupid enough to try to steal Jolene’s position from her.”
“Perhaps not. But Harper already tried to convince Jolene to involve us; she refused. She did, however, promise to keep us in the loop and to ask for aid if she felt she truly needed it. Of course, Harper and I will quietly do what we can to locate Enoch, much as Jolene often quietly tries to contribute to our lair issues. But that’s all we can do. Anyway, you could be wrong. Enoch might not have any intention of seeking revenge on them.”
Keenan wished he could agree with that, but his gut told him different. Or maybe his concern for Khloé clouded his judgement—he couldn’t be sure. “What would it take to permanently kill a Lazarus demon?”
“The flames of hell could destroy them. Nothing is impervious to them.”
Keenan had witnessed their destructive nature for himself. The rumors that Knox possessed the exceedingly rare ability to conjure them was in fact true, which only very few people knew. The Prime kept a lot of secrets, including the dark truth of just what type of demon he was.
“But, unlike you, Khloé can’t call on the flames,” said Keenan. “What can she do to kill him?”
Idly tapping his pen on the papers in front of him, Knox replied, “Steel forged in the pit of hell is fatal to any demon. If she can get her hands on a blade made of such steel, she could certainly kill Enoch. But weapons like that aren’t easy to come by.”
“Where would she find one?”
“The black market would be her best bet,” Larkin cut in. “You can get pretty much anything there. Leave it with me. If there’s such a blade for sale, I’ll find one.”
Keenan gave her a nod of thanks, confident that Larkin would come through for him. He pushed out of his chair. “I’ll let Khloé know about the blade. She’ll no doubt pass the info on to Jolene.”
“All right. But it probably won’t be anything Jolene hasn’t already learned for herself—she has many, many sources.”
Keenan turned and headed for the door just as Knox’s office phone began to ring.
“Yes?” Knox answered. “Gavril, it’s a surprise to hear from you.”
Keenan halted in his tracks. Another US Prime, Gavril was a complete prick who Knox had butted heads with more than once. He was also Thea’s Prime.
Keenan slowly turned just as Knox pressed a button that put the call on speakerphone.
“It has been many years since we last spoke,” said Gavril. “It’s regrettable that our alliance crumbled the way it did.”
Knox leaned back in his chair. “Is it?”
Gavril chuckled. “I suppose you’d think not.”
“What is it you want?”
“I’m sure you remember Thea Whitman well enough.”
Knox’s eyes flicked to Keenan. “I remember.”
“She killed her ex-mate last night.”
Keenan stilled. The fuck?
“Killed her ex-mate?” echoed Knox.
“Killed him and then fled with their son. I have my demons tracking her, of course. It won’t be easy, since she can use glamor to change the appearance of herself and others, but she can’t evade us for long.”
