Ashes(13)

Such cruelty was a perfect example of just how unstable a demon could become if they lost their mate. Still, Carla's pain was no excuse. If the things Roan told Harper right before he tried to kill her were true, Carla was still somewhat twisted. One thing that Harper knew for sure was that Carla – being self-centered, petty, and hurtful – would never play a positive part in her life, so what was the point of her being in it?



"I can't say it's unexpected." In fact, Harper was surprised they'd remained there this long. "I mean, who'd want to answer to the person who killed their son?" 



"You're also a person who was almost killed by their son," replied Knox. "Roan conspired against all the US Primes, not just you."



"But Carla and Bray don't want to believe that."



"No, they don't. They're leaving Vegas altogether." Knox was glad of that, but he kept his satisfaction out of his voice. "They've bought a house in Washington."



"I guess it makes sense that they'd want to be far away from me."



"I take it that Kellen still hasn't returned any of your calls," he said, referring to her other half-brother.



"Not a one." The teen had initially reached out to Harper, hoping to have a relationship with her, but he had a habit of shutting her out whenever things became strained between her and his immediate family. "I've kind of …  um …  given up."



"Because you're not a sucker for punishment." Knox didn't add that there wasn't a chance he'd let Kellen try to squeeze his way back into Harper's life. He'd warned the kid once before that him pulling away from Harper again wouldn't be tolerated; he wasn't fucking kidding. He wouldn't allow anyone to play with her feelings that way.



Knox curled a hand around her chin and turned her face to his. "Don't let them hurt you, baby." He rubbed his thumb over her lower lip. "You can't change that they resent you for Roan's death, but you can change that you're letting them make you feel bad about it."



"It's not that I feel bad about it," said Harper. She'd never liked Roan, and she'd never once thought there was a chance that they could have any kind of sibling relationship, but she also hadn't thought she'd ever have to kill him. Technically, it was her demon who'd done the deed, but the demon was part of her soul, and that meant Harper shared the responsibility.



Her demon hadn't simply killed him. She'd coldly toyed with him before tossing him into the flames of hell – flames she'd somehow been able to conjure since they had, for lack of a better word, "birthed" her wings.



Forced to simply watch as her demon raged and destroyed, high on that power …  Harper would never forget how that felt. The demon had wanted to avenge Harper. It had wanted to make Roan and his co-conspirator feel as helpless as they'd made her feel. What her demon hadn't realized was that its actions had left her feeling utterly powerless too.



She wasn't upset with her demon. The entity didn't think the way she did, didn't "feel" as she did. There was absolutely no point in expecting it to account for any emotional hurt its actions might have caused.



To the demon, it was all very simple: Roan had intended to kill her, therefore he had to die.



Harper understood that, but it still wasn't easy to accept that she was partly at fault for her half-brother's death because, dammit, she wasn't made of stone. So, yeah, maybe she hadn't slept so well for a while and maybe her appetite had suffered. But that was partly because …  "I don't feel guilty about his death. I feel guilty that I don't actually regret what me and my demon did that night. It was him or me – I value my life more than I did his. Still, he was my half-brother." She should feel bad about it.



"Only in a biological sense. He was never once a brother to you, Harper. He never had a kind word to say about you, he repeatedly did things to hurt you, and then he fucking tried to kill you. The imps are your family. He was never a part of it."


      ///
       
         
       
        



Her demon fully agreed. Harper sighed. "You're right."



"I'm always right, baby. You're just taking a while to realize that."



She chuckled. "Really?"



"Yes, really. Now finish your breakfast." He turned up the volume on the T.V., hoping it might distract her from her thoughts. He was about to grab his laptop and finish answering his emails, but the news reporter's words snatched his attention.