Burn

“So…from minute one of meeting Kendra, you knew she could be your half-sister?”

“No, I didn’t make the connection.” Harper crossed her legs beneath the table. “To be honest, I hadn’t really thought about her much over the years. It was Jolene who figured it out. When I called to tell her that you and I had formed the anchor bond, I mentioned my little encounter with Kendra in the restrooms. She asked me to describe her. When I did, Jolene told me it was possible her mother was Beatrice.”

“You never said anything.”

“Neither did you.”

Fair point. “I thought you would find it strange to be—”

“Yeah, I get it. For a few minutes, I did find it a little weird knowing I’d slept with a guy who had also fucked someone who could be my half-sister. But then I thought, ‘So, what? It doesn’t change anything.’ And if she and I are related, it’s not like we’re sisters in an emotional sense. We don’t know each other, and believe me when I say that Kendra hates me. I could see it in her eyes.”

“If she is your half-sister – and I think it’s probable that she is – her jealousy of you probably runs very, very deep. Lucian publically acknowledges that you’re his daughter, he did his own poor version of raising you, and even now he remains in contact with you. Kendra, however, has had none of that.”

Harper sighed, feeling bad for her. “It’s no wonder she’s pissed.”

“Don’t feel sorry for her. Being upset about her situation with Lucian doesn’t excuse her taking it out on you. It’s understandable if she wants his recognition and attention, but in that case it should be him that she expresses her anger on. Not you.”

“I guess her distaste for imps is more about her distaste for Lucian. But despite hating him, she’s jealous of me. I don’t understand that.”

“Why?”

“Carla has two sons. I’m not jealous that they had her and I didn’t.”

Knox leaned forward. “Because you and Kendra are totally different creatures. You’re not capable of bitterness.” Harper wasn’t what anyone would term pleasant or cheerful, and she could often be rude and aggressive. But he’d come to realize that beneath all that was a kind, loyal, accepting person who loved from the soul.

“You suspect she might be behind the attack earlier,” Harper deduced.

Knox shrugged. “It’s a possibility that I’m not willing to rule out. Look at the facts: she’s jealous of you and she resents you, which is enough. Add in that she’s probably embarrassed by how you reduced her to a puddle of misery in the restrooms, and she certainly has plenty of motive to hurt you.”

“Any other suspects?”

Her expression told Knox she had a good idea of who else he suspected. “Levi and I talked about it earlier. We came up with three possible suspects: Kendra, Isla, and Carla.” Shadows entered her unusual eyes that were currently a soft plum in color. “I’m sorry, baby, I know it has to hurt to know your own mother might wish you harm. I’m not convinced it is her, but I won’t take chances with your life. That means keeping an open mind. I agree with Levi that the person who hired the practitioners is the same person who sent Silas to test me.”

“I get why he might then suspect Kendra and Carla, but how could it be Isla? Silas came to my office before she…” Harper trailed off as understanding hit her. “You and Levi think it’s possible that she already knew about me before the meeting in New York.”

“Isla prides herself on ‘being in the know.’ I was very vocal about the fact that I’d found my anchor, and I ensured that you and I were seen together all over Vegas. The news could have reached her if it traveled outside of Vegas.”

“But she seemed genuinely surprised at the conference when I introduced myself as your anchor.”

“Maybe she was so surprised because, until that moment, she’d believed it couldn’t be true.”

“Yeah, but if she is the one who sent Silas, he would have reported back to her. You made it very clear to him that I’m your anchor. Wouldn’t she have accepted that?”

“Isla and I have known each other a very, very long time. In all that time, she’s fully believed that I’m her anchor; has convinced herself that one day I’ll finally see this and that I’ll then bond with her. It would take a lot to shake such a fixed deep-seated belief, especially for someone who thinks of herself as superior to most people. In Isla’s mind, others couldn’t possibly know better than she does.”

“You could be right. Devon told me that someone’s spreading rumors that I’m not really your anchor; just your newest side piece who’s claiming to be your anchor to protect myself. If that’s Isla, it’s clear she believes I’m simply a bed-buddy to you. It suits her to believe that.”

“Recall her departing words. She said, ‘You can’t change the truth, Knox, whether you choose to accept it or not.’”

Harper snorted. “We could say the same to her.”

“While I hope it isn’t Isla, considering how dangerous she is, I also don’t like the thought of how it would hurt you to know your own mother or half-sister was responsible.” She’d already been let down enough by her family. “I really do doubt that it’s Carla.”

“It’s all right, you don’t have to reassure me. Parents are just people, and people can be shitheads. I know that well. You’ve never talked about your parents.”