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“No, it doesn’t,” Jolene agreed. “Which was why I sent Ciaran to teleport you here. That comment about you not being someone who keeps their word was a shitty thing to say.”
Martina nodded, painting her long acrylic nails red. “People say things they don’t mean when they’re angry, but that’s no excuse.”
“It pisses me off that he said that,” Ciaran told Harper, his eyes glued to the TV as he lounged on the reclining chair; beer in hand, remote controls on his lap. “But I don’t believe he really thinks that of you.”
“Neither do I,” said Jolene.
Harper tightened her hold on the cushion. “Maybe. Maybe not. But if he can’t accept that I’ll do what I have to do to protect him, consequences be damned, then he doesn’t accept me.”
Jolene sipped at her coffee. “He accepts you, Harper. He just doesn’t know what to do with you. He’s used to things and people being under his control.”
Yeah, she knew that. “I warned him over and over that he’d never control me.”
“Maybe some really, really dumb part of him thought it wasn’t true,” suggested Ciaran.
“Men,” scoffed Martina. “You’re attacked, but does he hug you? Kiss you? Reassure you that you’re fine? No, he behaves like a dick.”
Ciaran tore his eyes away from the wall-mounted TV. “That’s not because he’s a man,” he said, offended on behalf of his gender. “It’s because he isn’t good at handling fear.”
Whatever. Harper sighed. “Let’s just talk about something else.”
Jolene patted her hand. “Of course.”
Harper leaned her head on the cushion, listening to the kids laughing as they jumped in the puddles in the front yard. Each time she heard a car approaching, she panicked; wondering if Knox had come for her. But then the car would drive by, and her heart rate would slow down.
“I’m glad they’ve caught Crow,” said Jolene.
That had Harper thinking. “Something he said bothered me.”
“Knox or Crow?” asked Martina.
“Crow,” Harper replied.
Martina blew on her nails to dry the paint. “You mean the demon baby thing?” She said it with no concern whatsoever.
“No. He said he was on a mission; that someone told him to do this.”
“He’s suffering from delusions, sweetheart,” said Jolene.
“I know.” Harper lifted her mug and took a sip of her tea. “It was just something about the way he said it. What if he didn’t have a true vision? What if someone manipulated his mental state and put the idea in his head?”
“Crow isn’t even close to a real match for Knox,” said Ciaran, frowning. “It doesn’t make sense that someone would try to kill Knox using a mentally unstable demon who’s not powerful enough to really be a threat.”
Martina nodded. “It does seem like a rather bad plan.”
“So poor it wouldn’t be worth trying,” added Jolene. “Believing he was ‘given’ the mission is part of his delusion.”
That made sense. And yet, Harper wasn’t convinced.
She tensed as she heard another car approaching. Not just approaching, slowing down. Please, no, don’t be him. It could just be a neighbor’s car, she thought as it came to a stop. Or it could be someone visiting one of the neighbors. There was really no need to panic… even though the sound of a door slamming shut was followed by footsteps coming up the gravelly path. It could be Beck. Or one of her cousins. Or —
The doorbell peeled.
“That’s probably Knox,” said Jolene. “I take it you don’t wish to see him.”
Harper shook her head. “I’m too tired for him, Grams.” A girl needed to be at her sharpest when dealing with someone like Knox Thorne. Right then, she was emotionally drained and way too angry to have an actual conversation with him.
“Sending him away won’t be easy,” Ciaran warned.
Jolene rose from the couch, determination etched into every line of her face. “No, but it will be done.” Her heels click-clacked on the hardwood floor as she strode out into the hallway and to the front door. “Well, hello, Knox.”
Even from the living area, Harper could hear his response perfectly.
“Jolene,” he greeted. “I’ve come for Harper.”
“Yes,” said Jolene, “I gathered that.”
A sigh. “If you’re not going to invite me in, send her out.”
“She said she’d follow me to the door, but it seems she hasn’t. Maybe we shouldn’t be surprised, since she’s not a woman of her word.”
Harper’s mouth quirked, in spite of her dull mood.
Jolene spoke again. “It might be a good idea if you give her some space.” It wasn’t a suggestion; it was an instruction. And it no doubt made him bristle.
“I’m not leaving without her, Jolene.”
“Well, I can assure you right now that you won’t leave with her,” stated Jolene, voice hardening. “You promised me she would be safe with you. You promised that you wouldn’t hurt her.”
“I’d never hurt her,” Knox immediately responded. Harper, come to me.
Harper snorted. He couldn’t be serious.
“There are different types of pain, Knox,” said Jolene. “You didn’t hurt her physically, which is the only reason you’re breathing. But you hurt her heart – something you should have protected with everything in you.”
