CHAPTER SIX

As his mate slumped over him, quivering with aftershocks, Knox kissed her temple. “Fuck, baby, I needed that.”

Eyes closed, Harper hummed against his neck. “So did I.” Hot, silky flames rose around them and licked at her skin, but she didn’t stir. Knew they’d never burn her. Moments later, the fire eased away, and she opened her eyes to see that they were standing near the bed.

Knox toppled her onto the deluxe mattress, positioning them both on their sides with their heads on the super soft pillows that his mate adored. Usually, a look of pure contentment crossed her face when her head first sank into them, but not tonight. Lines of strain had settled there, and it didn’t look as if they’d disappear any time soon.

The same anger and agitation lingered in Knox, twisting his stomach and riding his demon. Asher was just a baby. He hadn’t done a damn thing to anyone. Knox wanted him happy, safe, secure. Not the target of a fucking incorporeal.

The fact that the Horseman would send one after a baby said he clearly had no conscience at all. To him, anyone was expendable. Even people like Alethea, who had aided him. All the bastard cared about was achieving his goal.

Knox wondered if behind the Horseman’s determination to succeed lay a hint of desperation. So far, his plans had failed. Those failures were surely hits to his ego. Now he had something to prove—both to himself and to others. But he decided not to say as much to Harper. He wanted her to relax.

Combing his fingers through her hair, he whispered, “Sleep, baby.”

“Can’t. It’s hard to sleep when you know there’s a threat to your son at large. You know, I hate it say it, but sending an incorporeal after Asher was a smart move. We’re now on edge, distracted, and need to be so alert for signs of the incorporeal that we can’t concentrate on finding the Horseman. He was probably counting on that.”

Knox skimmed his fingers over the curve of her shoulder. “I’d say so. It is imperative that we destroy the incorporeal. It won’t stop. Not for anything. Ever seen a dog sitting near a store with its leash tied to something, keeping it from running off? That’s the incorporeal’s situation. It’s stuck until it’s fulfilled its end of the bargain, whether the person it made the bargain with is dead or alive.”

“Everything in me itches to hunt the fucking Horseman and his pet incorporeal.”

It was the sphinx in her, thought Knox. Her kind, like lions, would single-mindedly track, hunt, and run down their prey. That inborn instinct would no doubt taunt her until the incorporeal was caught. “I’ll get them.”

“We’ll get them. You’re not pushing me out of this fight, Knox. This isn’t just about revenge for me. I need to be part of this. I need to be proactive in ensuring you and our son are safe. I know you would love it if me and Asher were here at all times because you’re ridiculously overprotective of us both—”

“That’s not something I can change.”

“And it’s probably something else that the Horseman is counting on. If I’m here all the time, I’m not searching for him. And it will look to others like either I’m hiding from him out of fear or that you’re making me stay on the estate out of fear for me. If demonkind think we fear him, they’ll fear him even more than they already do. People are easier to manipulate and control if they’re afraid.”

Knox wished to fuck that he could argue with that, but he truly couldn’t.

“You know me, Knox. You know I couldn’t stay home until this is all over even if I wanted to—it would only be a matter of time before I snapped.” She’d never been good at staying indoors, even as a kid. And as much as she loved being with Asher, she’d miss adult company. Meg and Dan were great, but they were also busy people. “I don’t want to leave Asher’s side, but the best way to ensure his safety is to get the bastards who are threats to him.”

Resting his forehead against hers, Knox sighed. “I need you safe.”

“I know. But don’t ask me to hole up here. I can’t do it, Knox. Not even for you. Please don’t ask me to.”

Knox silently swore. He’d seen this coming, because he knew her so well. He’d long ago learned that Harper would never ignore the urge to protect those who mattered to her. She was protective right down to her core, much like her grandmother.

“Imagine if I asked you to stay home with me and Asher. Could you?”

He sifted his fingers through her hair. “No,” he reluctantly admitted. “I couldn’t.”

She curled her fingers around his wrist. “We work together on this. I might not be as powerful as you, but I’m not weak.”

“You’re definitely not weak—I’ve never once thought you were anything but strong.” Her expression dared him to prove it, and Knox sighed inwardly. He wasn’t going to be able to talk her out of this. If their situations were reversed, she’d have no more success talking him out of it. So, going against every protective instinct he had, Knox said, “All right, we work together.” His demon snarled, though it also understood and respected her need to hunt the fuckers presenting a threat to their family.

Letting out a long breath, she said, “Good. So what’s the plan?”

“I have the feeling that the best chance we have of identifying the Horseman is if we find out what Alethea was up to before she disappeared. Larkin’s working on that. We also need to find out where Alethea got the incorporeal. I’ll write to Dion tomorrow and request a meeting with him. If he’s not the collector we’re looking for, he may know who is. While we wait for Larkin to gather information and for Dion to contact me, I plan to do the very thing that the Horseman won’t expect—continue as normal and go about my daily business as if he’s not on my radar.”

“You’d be delivering the ultimate insult to him.” Which Harper liked a fuck of a lot. “I’ll do the same.” She chewed the inside of her cheek. “But we need to leave Asher at home whenever either of us leaves the house. People would understand that—they’d see it as us being protective parents, not as us being afraid of the Horseman.”

“You’re only suggesting that Asher remain at home because you don’t feel confident that you can fully protect him,” Knox accused. She didn’t deny it. He framed her face with his hands. “You didn’t fail him the other day, Harper. You protected him.” Knox needed her to believe that. Needed her to let go of her senseless guilt and remember just how strong she truly was. If his faith in her didn’t do that, he wasn’t sure what would.

“He protected himself.”

“He shielded himself,” Knox corrected. “He didn’t get rid of the incorporeal. You did that. And I am absolutely certain that you could do it again if need be. You’re strong. Powerful. You can call on the flames of hell, which means you can destroy the incorporeal. It doesn’t know that, which gives you a major advantage.”

Harper swallowed. “That incorporeal is damn powerful.”

“But not invincible,” Knox reminded her.

“If I’m forced to call on the flames in front of other demons, it could cause us a whole other set of problems, couldn’t it?”

“Potentially, yes. We’ll deal with that bridge if and when we come to it. There’s no sense dwelling on something that may never happen—that’s just borrowing trouble.”

Harper inhaled deeply, taking in the comforting scents of clean linen, fragrant oils, and Knox’s dark sensual cologne. “Can we talk about something else now? My head feels close to exploding.”

“How about we go spend some time on the balcony and get some air?” His mate didn’t do well with being cooped up indoors when stressed.

“That is not a balcony. It has a pool. An infinity pool, to be more precise.”