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“Is Mercy all filled in?” he asked Dorian, taking a seat next to him.

Dorian just nodded and tapped his fingers against the laminate table.

“Hi, Noah. Nice to see you, too,” I said.

Noah smirked at my remark and leaned back.

“How can we assist your coven?” Noah asked, holding his hands out and bowing.

I rolled my eyes and said, “If you could keep watching Maurice and report back to Caleb or me, I’d appreciate that.” I looked over at Dorian. “Do you have Caleb’s number? You don’t always have to call me.”

He snickered under his breath. “I’ll just call you.”

Noah shook his head at us and chuckled again. “Let’s go, Dorian,” he said, picking up his cell from the table. “I spotted Maurice about fifteen minutes ago in Salem.”

“You fly fast,” I said, remembering Noah in his eagle form the night he’d snatched me and taken me to the lair.

“I guess you would know,” Noah replied teasingly. I scrunched up my face at him. He had a flair for sarcasm and annoying the hell out of me.

I didn’t hate the guy for kidnapping me last year. He was just doing his job back then, and it was me who had sacrificed myself in the first place. He was always kind to me in the lair and was Dorian’s best friend. So, if Dorian trusted him, so did I.

Dorian reached out and placed his icy fingers over mine. “I’ll call you later.” He slid out toward the edge of the booth until he and Noah stood next to me and looked down.

“You look quite stunning today, Mercy,” Dorian said.

Those were the words Dorian left me with, and I won’t lie; those sweet words coming from his lips sounded nice.

CHAPTER 15

Mercy

I WAS NO stranger to being followed. That was how this all began in the first place; it became a familiar sensation. My skin prickled at the surface while my heart pounded heavily against my chest. Once again, my life was tethered by a rope, threatening me with death, and I was left unable to see the predator until it was too late. But things were different now.

I’m ready this time.

The leaves weren’t crackling beneath their feet, though. They were careful. Whoever was in the woods this time knew what they were doing. Maybe it was my Spirit senses and gifts that Tatyana had given me when I was born that allowed me to detect even the lightest of threats. Or it was just my human instinct.

I hurried into my house and secured the lock behind me, activating a secondary shield spell as well. According to her last text, Leah and the guys were out getting burgers and milkshakes. Unless they decided at the last minute to go somewhere else, I would be alone until ten tonight. I could have called Caleb, but did I really need him?

I locked all the windows and placed the box I had found on the doorstep on my kitchen counter. I stared at it for what felt like fifteen minutes before I grabbed a knife from the drawer and sliced through the tape.

After pulling up the flaps, I immediately stepped back.

Well, I didn’t expect this.

Inside the box was a tightly sealed glass mason jar of what appeared to be blood. Folded around the jar with a rubber band was a small note.

I’ve seen my share of blood, but this was different. I was being threatened in some sick fuck’s game. This was a message.

I should probably call Caleb now.

I rang his phone, but he didn’t pick up.

Okay, I guess I’m calling Dorian.

He, luckily, did pick up. I explained what I had seen to Dorian, and he agreed to come over to help me. When he arrived at my house twenty minutes later, my nerves had calmed enough to where I had finally stopped pacing the floor.

“I haven’t touched anything.” I gestured to the box and looked up to meet his eyes. “Is this human blood?”

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