Ashes (Dark in You 3)

“No one. We were just being opportunists.”

Knox sighed. “It’s always so disappointing when people lie to me. I don’t like to be disappointed.”

“It’s the truth.”

“And that’s yet another lie, which you will pay for. You went after my mate – that’s a hell of a risk to take, considering she’s powerful and that you’d have known exactly what I’d do to you if you were caught. Besides, most of the demon world believes that Harper’s wings never came to her. I don’t see why hunters would randomly target Harper unless they believed differently. Very few know the truth, and I’m quite sure that the only way hunters would hear about it was if they were told by someone.”

His Adam’s apple bobbed as he stared at Knox, eyes fairly glowing with fear now.

“I can understand why you’d be so determined to hold back information. Personally, I wouldn’t have any interest in spilling everything I knew to the person who was about to kill me. But you really, really should spill it all.”

“I already told you, we were just being —”

“For every lie you tell, I’ll hurt you that much worse.”

“I can say we were hired if that’s what you want to hear, but it won’t be the truth.”

As his cell phone chimed, Knox said, “Hold that thought.” He pulled the cell out of the inside pocket of his jacket and saw “Jolene” flashing on the screen. Jolene Wallis was Harper’s grandmother, a shrewd and strong Prime, and a woman who would obliterate anyone who threatened her family. He wondered if she’d heard that Harper was attacked. No one had announced anything, but Jolene had sources everywhere.

“I need to take this.” Letting the hunter sweat a little would add to his demon’s fun anyway. Knox moved a few feet away and answered, “Hello.”

“I heard something happened in Harper’s office,” clipped Jolene, all business. “Is she all right? She’s not answering her phone.”

“She’s sleeping,” said Knox. “To put it briefly, she was attacked by hunters who were hired to steal her wings. They didn’t succeed and she’s healing well.”

A hiss. “Tell me they’re dead.”

“One is. The other will be once he’s given me the answers I want.”

“I need to see her.”

“Not now. Let her sleep. She needs it.” Especially since she hadn’t been sleeping well recently.

There was a resigned but long, suffering sigh. “Keep me updated. I want to know everything that bastard tells you. Make him pay.” The line went dead.

Tucking his phone in his pocket, Knox overheard Levi speaking to the hunter. “Don’t think that lying will help you. Knox wants answers, true, but he’ll happily torture them out of you. This is nothing but foreplay.”

It was true that Knox and his demon liked to toy with their prey. Moving back to stand before the hunter, he asked, “Where were we?”

“The more he lies, the more he’ll hurt,” said Levi helpfully.

“That’s right.” Knox sighed at the hunter. “And you lied again, as I recall it. Some people are masochistic that way. I suppose it’s good for you that you appear to like pain. It’ll help you get through the next few hours.” Knox conjured a ball of hellfire and bounced it on his hand. “Have you ever eaten one of these?”

The chair creaked as the hunter jerked back, looking shocked by the question.

“It’s a standard punishment within our lair, isn’t it, Levi?”

“It is,” the reaper verified. “I’ve heard it hurts like a son of a bitch. It burns your tongue, mouth, throat, esophagus, lungs, stomach, and finally your intestines before it sizzles away. Of course, it hurts a hell of a lot worse when it’s a high-powered, lethal orb. That will burn a person from the inside out, leaving their corpse a melting, blistering mess until it finally vaporizes.”

The hunter’s panicked gaze darted from Knox to the blazing orb in his hand.

Knox tilted his head. “You look surprised that anyone would use such a punishment. It’s no secret that I’m cruel and ruthless.” He looked at Levi. “Maybe some think I’ve gone soft now that I’m mated.”

“You soft?” Levi snorted.

“If anything, it’s made me harder,” Knox told the hunter, “because my drive to protect my mate is so intense and primal. Many have already died for harming her, so it truly does confuse me that anyone would assume that they could do so and not pay with their life. And yet, you hurt her.”

“It wasn’t me, I just —”

“Held her down so that she couldn’t defend herself while another sawed at her wings; yes, I know.” His eyes bled to black for just a moment, and the hunter nervously licked his lips.

“It was nothing personal. Just business.”

“Business?” Knox rumbled.

Levi gave a dramatic wince. “Damn, hunter, you’re just digging a deeper hole for yourself here.”

“I just mean that —”

“There’s really nothing you could say that would excuse what you did.” Knox took a step closer to him. “As I said earlier, I won’t be making any deals with you. You won’t die faster if you tell me the truth straight away. I won’t spare you any pain – not after what you did to my mate. But it is in your best interests to be truthful.”

He swallowed. “Why?”

“Because my demon wants to play with you too,” Knox said softly, “and I’ve decided to let it.”

The hunter’s face went devoid of all color. Well, who’d want to deal with an entity as dark and psychopathic as Knox’s?

“It often gets carried away when it comes to torture,” Knox went on. “But there’s a possibility that it will get bored quicker if it has the answers it needs. I say ‘possibility’ because there’s really no knowing for sure. If you’d prefer to take your chances, that’s fine too. Either way, you’ll be in pain and you’ll die – this is a win-win situation for me. So, you can tell me what I wish to know immediately, suffer horribly for a little while and then die… or you can tell me what I wish to know eventually, suffer horribly a hell of a lot longer, and then die.” Knox twirled the ball of hellfire. “Now, I’ll ask again. Who hired you?”

The hunter opened his mouth and talked.

CHAPTER THREE

Harper woke to the smells of coffee, bagel, and cream cheese. She didn’t move or open her eyes, but Knox must have sensed that she was awake because the tapping on his laptop keyboard stopped. Fingers then brushed her hair aside and he pressed a kiss to her temple.

“Morning, baby.”

“Morning,” she mumbled into the plump pillow. “What time is it?”

“Seven. You had a good, long sleep. It was a relief. You haven’t been sleeping well lately.”

Taking stock of herself, she realized that her wings had melted into her back, which meant they were healed. She also realized that someone – most likely Knox – had slipped a T-shirt on her while she slept.

Opening her eyes, she found him propped up against his pillows on his side of the massive bed, laptop resting on the legs that were stretched out in front of him. “What did the hunter have to say?”

“I’ll tell you all about it while you eat. Sit up.”

But she was just so comfortable. The deluxe mattress and super-soft bedding made her feel like she was wrapped in a cloud. The hedonistic luxury wasn’t confined to the bed. The whole room was lavish with the high-quality furnishings, rare imported flooring, a huge-ass closet, and the balcony, which was more like a patio with a small pool. Knox did like his comforts.

His finger traced the shell of her ear. “Up.”

“Do I really have to?” she whined.

His lips twitched. “Yes, or your breakfast will go cold.” He closed his laptop and set it on the nightstand. “Then Meg will lecture you again for not eating well.”

It was understandable, Knox thought, that her sleep cycle and appetite was off. Almost dying at the hands of dark practitioners and then again at the hands of a near-rogue demon would shake up anyone. To be responsible for your half-brother’s death, even if he did completely deserve to die, would tug on the strings of a heart that felt as deeply as Harper’s did. “Come on, baby, sit up.”