He turned back to me, his expression softening slightly now that we were alone. He lifted my hand to his lips and pressed a gentle kiss against my knuckles.
“How are you feeling, love?” he murmured against my skin.
“Better, thanks to the medication.” I watched his face, trying to figure out what he was thinking. “The cramps are mostly gone. Just tired now.”
“You should sleep.”
“I will. But first...” I hesitated, not sure how to phrase this without sounding accusatory. “Where were you tonight? I woke up and you were gone. You didn’t leave a note. You always leave a note, Knox. Even when you just go downstairs for water, you leave a note so I won’t worry.”
He swallowed visibly, his jaw tightening. The hand holding mine tensed slightly before he forced it to relax.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “There was a matter I needed to attend to. Pack business that couldn’t wait.”
“Pack business at three in the morning?”
“It was urgent.”
“What kind of pack business?”
He didn’t answer. His eyes slid away from mine, focusing on the wall behind my head.
“Knox.” My voice sharpened. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“It’s nothing you need to worry about right now, trust me. I’ll handle it. You heard the doctor. You need to rest, not stress about pack issues.”
“Not stress? Someone threatened our children tonight, Knox. Someone burned our baby’s blanket on our doorstep and left a note saying they were going to hurt our kids. I think I’m entitled to some stress. And I think I’m entitled to know where my mate was when all of this was happening.”
He flinched at that. Good. He should flinch.
But instead of answering my question, he changed the subject entirely. “Speaking of the threat, I need to get Hunt in here. We need to go over what happened tonight and figure out who’s behind this.”
Nice deflection. Real smooth. I wanted to push harder, wanted to demand he stop dodging and give me a straight answer for once. But I could see the stubborn set of his jaw, could feel his determination to avoid this conversation through the bond. And honestly, I was too tired and too worried about the baby to keep fighting right now.
Fine. I’d let it go. For now.
He walked to the door and opened it, exchanging quiet words with someone in the hallway. A moment later, Hunt slipped into the room, closing the door behind him. His red hair was disheveled and there were dark circles under his eyes, but his expression was alert and focused.
“How are you feeling, Lina?” Hunt asked, taking up a position at the foot of my bed.
“Like I got hit by a truck, but I’ll live.” I shifted slightly, trying to get more comfortable against the pillows. “The doctor says I need to reduce my stress. Which is hilarious, given everything that’s happened tonight.”
“We need to go over exactly what happened,” Hunt said. “Every detail you can remember.”
So I told them. I walked them through the whole nightmare from start to finish, from waking up alone to finding the burned blanket and the threatening note. Knox and Hunt stayed quiet while I talked, though I could see their expressions getting darker with every word.
“You said the blanket was from the baby’s nursery?” Hunt asked when I finished.
“Yes. I picked it out myself. White yarn with green ribbon woven through it. I don’t know how they got it. Someone must have been in the house at some point to take it.”
“But there was no intruder scent tonight,” Hunt said slowly. “Which means either they were smart enough to mask themselves, or they took the blanket earlier and waited for the right moment to use it.”
“Earlier when? We’ve had guards on the house constantly.”
Hunt and Knox exchanged a look. A quick glance that most people would have missed, but I wasn’t most people.
“Is this the first threat you’ve gotten?” Hunt asked, his tone carefully neutral.
I didn’t answer. Couldn’t answer. The words stuck in my throat because I knew the moment I admitted the truth, Knox was going to lose his mind.
