Page 18 of The Merciless

“Noway,”he was saying when Noah whirled in his direction smoothly,

“Yes–”

“Close the door.”

Myra snapped from the floor before he could continue, and the smoke finally dissipated with the wind. Ray coughed at the smell but still saw Noah glare down at Myra,

“Hi Noah, it’s so nice to see you, Noah,”he said in a fake pitch as he whirled on his feet to shut the doors loudly. Ray flinched at the sound, but Noah continued, “Thank you for getting fake shot Noah,”

Myra waved a hand in the air and looked back down at Akash’s sleeping figure. Noah followed her line of sight and snorted,

“And that asshole,” he remarked, back to his original voice, “Did he have to shoot me thrice? That shithurtsyou know?”

Akash grumbled something incoherent in his sleep in response.

Noah rolled his eyes but looked over his shoulder at Sorin, his eyes softening into something familiar. Ray smiled at the expression as Angel let out a choked sound beside her.I guess he figured it out,Ray thought as Sorin took a few steps forward and pulled Noah into a tight embrace.

It took a moment for the rest of them to piece it together.

“You’re telling me,” Angel started from beside her, “That Ardelean was planted by you?” he asked and Ray rolled her eyes.So, he still hadn’t figured it out.

“I knew you were going to frame someone from the Lions to gain their trust, so I planted one of my men.” she said, her eyes bored, “And his name isn’t Ardelean, you moron.”

His brow rose in question, and she sighed, “It’s Hassan. Sorin Hassan.”

“Hassan?!”Jack screeched from across the room and looked at them both. The twins grinned back at him, “Like Hassan–”

“Yes him. Sorin is Noah’s twin,” she said, and Angel looked at her once before looking away. She didn’t know how none of them had figured it out earlier. When you looked at the two together now, standing side by side, their resemblance seemed obvious. They didn’t have the same face structure, because while Sorin’s was round and subtly beautiful, Noah was cut throat and edgy. Their eyes however were the sameblackthat glittered against the purple hues that were now cast on them.

Angel breathed out next to her, attracting her attention. But being this close to him,realizingthat what she had donewithhim…she didn’t know what to do. He must’ve noticed the soft change in her features or her single step away from him because Angel simply rolled his shoulders and slunk closer like a fox.

Ray resisted the urge to shoot him a glare as he deadpanned,

“Shit.”

“Shit is right.”

And things couldn’t probably get worse for them, but this was her. This washerhouse,herplan.Of course,things were going to get worse.

As if on cue the doorbell rang out of nowhere, the loudringsurprising them all. Ray saw all their postures shift and felt Angel lurk even closer as his hand hovered over her elbow as if he would grab her and run. The sudden image of him jumping in the way slipped into the back of her mind long enough to startle her. Ray flinched and she barely saw Angel’s concerned glance when Noah turned on his heels and opened the door again.

The relief that blew through her lungs wasnothingcompared to the sheer joy she felt when Ira ran in through the doors and threw her hands around Ray’s shoulders.

Her actions were surprising but not unwanted.

Enough for her to shake once before returning the gesture with enough power. Ira laughed into her shoulder, looking vibrant like she never had before when she pulled back an inch and opened her mouth to say something. But her eyes cut to Ray’s side, widening as she caught Angel standing beside her.

Ray arched a brow as Ira jumped away from her and right into Angel’s arms. Ray saw Angel’s surprise, saw his arms flail around her when his eyes rose to her in question. She crossed her arms and gave him a subtle nod, not knowing if she should be jealous or happy. Angel grinned at her actions though, and simply wrapped both his hands around Ira’s head in a brotherly embrace, crushing her to his chest.

“Good to see you kid,” Angel said with that grin and looked up to Ray when he continued, “Guess you have a family now, huh?”

She gritted her teeth and turned away, unable to hide that sheen in her eyes when she saw the rest of them pour in.

“Oh,come on,”Jack groaned when Cameron and a very uninjured Neera Griffin strode through the doors with the little kid at their back.

Ray let him be, for now, noting how he seemed to blend further in the shadows behind Sorin. He must be afraid of her still because his grey eyes seemed to shutter when he saw her, his frizzy hair ruffling as he shifted to stand behind Sorin. Ray let out a sigh and was about to say something when the change in the atmosphere prickled the back of her neck.

Her head snapped back ahead, noticing how everyone was now standing in a huge circle, all looking at her with the same look in their eyes. Luke and Jack had shifted backward on cue, but Ray didn’t spare them a glance.

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