Page 166 of Mad As Hell

His gaze hardened. “You’d have to use the key. But there’s also a failsafe measure, and that depends on what your sister signed up for.”

“Meaning?” I pressed.

“If she opted for a DNA sample, you’re good,” Ash explained. “Identical twins have the same genetic makeup. But if she selected a biometric scan—fingerprinting—you won’t be able to pass yourself off as her. They’ll know you’re the wrong person.”

“It’s a gamble,” Ryan finished, shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “I don’t think it’s one worth taking. None of us would be able to go in with you. They take your phone and check you for wires and recording devices before you go in. You’d have to shower and wear clothes they provide so they can make sure you’re not going in to record anything, and the location is a veritable black hole. If you get into trouble in there, we’d never know. You’d be completely on your own.”

I let that sink in. “Okay. And if I’m willing to take the risk?”

“It’s not just Ryan,” Linc spoke up. “None of us think you should take the risk. We’ll keep going with Phoenix and handle it the way we’ve been planning. Madelaine’s secret changes nothing.”

“Or it could change everything,” I argued, turning to Ryan. “Do you know what Gary wanted? He gave me this.” I pulled the bug out of my pocket and held it up. “I’m supposed to record shit between you guys and your grandfather when we go there.”

Ryan folded his arms over his chest. “That’s not a surprise. We can even use it to feed him the information we need to send him on a wild goose chase.”

I planted my hands on my hips and stared at him. “He’s also making an appointment to have my IUD removed so you can knock me up.”

Bex gasped beside me. “What the hell?”

Ryan, however, didn’t blink. “So we use condoms. Or you have another put in when you come back from having it removed. We can find a doctor who won’t tell your father.”

Like it was that fucking simple. Clearly he didn’t know about the pain and process that was associated with having a piece of metal inserted into your cervix. I’d had mine put in last year, and I didn’t plan on going through that again until it needed to be replaced.

“We’re not having this conversation right now,” I informed him, and something in my tone must have resonated, because he ducked his head with a short nod.

Bex touched my arm. “I asked my mom if I could go with you guys for Thanksgiving. I don’t know what’s going on with her, but she said yes.”

Relief surged through me. “Really?” I hadn’t realized just how much I needed my best friend close by until now.

She nodded. “Yeah. Apparently my grandparents are planning to go to my cousin’s in New York, and my mom was just going to do something with us. But since I can go with my friends, she’s going to Paris for the week instead to visit friends.”

My gaze cut to Court, who was still sitting on the sofa, before darting back to her. “You’re good with that?”

She smiled brightly, but I saw the unease lurking in her eyes even as she happily announced, “Absolutely. It’s been a while since I’ve seen Court’s brothers. Knight is a riot—you’ll love him.”

In my periphery, I saw Court’s jaw clench.

“I need to finish studying for my midterms tomorrow.” She gave me another quick hug and left.

“She’s gonna be the fucking death of me,” Court muttered, dropping his head back and covering his face with his arms.

I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from telling him—again—that this could’ve been avoided if they’d been honest with her.

“I’m excited to meet your brothers,” I said, trying to change the subject.

Court nodded. “Yeah. Knight, Royal, and Bishop all confirmed they’ll be there. They just finished a job for us, so it’ll be a good chance to catch up. Plus, we love Grandpa.”

My eyebrow quirked up.

“They all call him Grandpa,” Ryan explained with a shrug. “They have since we were kids.”

“Because he’s the only decent grandparent we have between us,” Linc mumbled.

“I never knew my grandparents,” I added. “My mom’s parents died in a car accident when she was eighteen, and obviously I didn’t know Gary’s.”

“We’ll leave after breakfast on Wednesday,” Ryan decided before giving each of his friends a pointed look. “Good night.”

Linc smirked and saluted him as he and Court stood up. Ash flashed me a small smile. Within seconds they were gone, and I was alone with Ryan.

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