Her mouth tilted with wry understanding. “I guess being born with my mark does come with a few unwritten benefits. What did the Order have to say about Travis’s death? Will they be able to help once law enforcement gets involved?”
“I haven’t told anyone about the killing yet. Only you.”
She frowned. “I don’t understand. If no one knows, then when did you arrange for us to come to this safe house?”
Knox cleared his throat. “This morning.”
“You mean before I told you that Travis threatened me in the diner?” Her frown deepened. “Before you went out and killed him, you had already made a call to the Order to arrange to move me away from my home?”
“I wanted to know I had an option to get you somewhere safe, Leni.”
Her head slowly shook back and forth. “You went behind my back to do it. You knew you had done that before we made love earlier tonight. Before you comforted me and said all those kind things about how you cared and didn’t want to hurt me.”
He couldn’t deny any of it, no matter how wrong or cowardly his actions seemed to him now. And as rightfully upset as she was to learn he’d arranged to take her out of Parrish Falls, he knew he had yet to explain what bringing the Order in truly meant for her and Riley.
For him too, when the time would come for him to let her go.
He cursed. “I needed to make plans for yours and Riley’s protection. I only did what I thought was best.”
“Right. And you didn’t say anything because you knew how I felt about leaving my home. About not being there for Shannon if and when she comes home.”
“Leni . . . about that.” There was so much she needed to know. He had nothing but unpleasant news for her tonight, but out of all of it, the truth about her sister was a pain he loathed to deliver. “I know what happened to Shannon. I saw what Travis did.”
Leni stared at him, her breath halting for a moment. Some of her anger gave way to her dread over her sister. “You read his sins. You saw how he brutalized her?”
He nodded. “She wasn’t the first. He’d made a habit of hurting women, even young girls. He wouldn’t have stopped. But he took it further with Shannon.”
Leni swallowed. “What do you mean? Tell me.”
“He arranged to get rid of her. You were right. She didn’t skip town and leave you to look after her son. Travis had her taken.”
“What?” Her hand came up to her lips, fingers trembling. “Where is she?”
“I don’t know. Travis didn’t know, either. He didn’t care to know. All I was able to read was that he arranged for her abduction across the border in Quebec. He got rid of her in retaliation for her pressing charges against him.”
“Oh, my God.” Leni’s face drained of color. “I knew he was behind her disappearance, but I didn’t want to believe it. All these years, everything she’s missed with Riley . . . all because of him.”
“He won’t be able to hurt anyone else now. And we’ll find Shannon.”
“How?” Leni lifted a bleak, imploring gaze at him. “She could be anywhere. By now, she’s almost certainly dead, Knox. Or worse, in some awful situation somewhere, wishing she were dead.”
“We’ll find out what happened and where she ended up. I won’t rest until we have those answers. And then, one way or another, I’ll bring her home to you, Leni.” He cleared his throat. “No matter where you are, I will bring the answers back to you.”
“What are you talking about? Where do you think I’ll be?”
He stepped toward her, each movement of his feet dragging like lead. “That’s going to be up to the Order. You’re a Breedmate. An unmated one who’s in grave danger now. They’ll want to move you to somewhere they can be sure you and Riley will be safe.”
“Safe from what? Travis is dead.”
“Yes. But you and I both know his family won’t let his killing go unmet. They’ll want blood now. If they were to realize you can’t be injured, they’ll want to harm you in any other way they can. You can’t go back to Parrish Falls again, Lenora. I’m sorry.”
She scoffed, her gaze turning brittle. “You’re sorry? This is the outcome you’ve been after ever since you saw that damn mark on my stomach.”
“All I’ve wanted is your safety. When I arranged for this safe house, I was only thinking of you and Riley. I only did what I felt was best.”
“For who—yourself?”
“Is that really what you think?”
