Alpha King’s Lost Luna by Aubrey Pepper

Chapter 61 Accident in the lab

CA SSANDRA

“Is there a way to open it?” I wondered as I stared at the box.

The librarian squatted down beside it and inspected it closely. Her round glasses
nearly fell off her nose as she leaned in closer and took the large lock into

her hands.

“Ah,” she remarked, and she pointed to the back of the lock. “See there? That's
the royal seal.”

“Oh,” I replied simply and then I frowned. “So that means...”

“You'd need permission from the Alpha King, most likely,” the librarian said and
she offered me an apologetic glance. “His Majesty is probably the only one with
the power to open it. I'm sorry I can't be of more help.”

“It's no problem,” I assured her, but it was quite the opposite. I was too afraid to
visit Asher and didn’t know how to face him after the events of last night.

“Is there anything else-"

I shook my head. “No, I think I'm going to grab my things and go back to my lab.
Thank you again for letting me in, I appreciate it greatly.”

“Of course, Healer Ca ssandra,” the librarian replied.

1 quickly returned my notebooks and pens to my backpack and once I had
everything, I walked out of the library and headed back toward the lab. I was
disappointed that I hadn't found anything helpful and also a little intrigued by that
strange box. Normally, I would let something like that go, but I had a strong
feeling that something interesting was in there and my mind wouldn’t dismiss it.
As I made my way down the hall, I heard loud voices in the distance. My
eyebrows creased together. What was going on?

The volume increased as I got closer and when I reached the doors, I noticed the
guard's face was bright red. Asher had appointed him to keep anyone who wasn’t
supposed to be in the lab out.

So who was Becky arguing with?

“What's going on?” I wondered, and the moment I asked, I heard Becky's voice
again.

“I'm going to have to ask you to leave.”

“Just who do you think you're speaking to?” the other voice demanded and my
heart began to race.

The voice belonged to Adalyn. And she sounded angry.

“I'm sorry, Healer Ca ssandra,” the guard apologized. “I didn’t mean to fail my
duties"

“I'll handle this,” I assured him, and after I took a short breath and centered
myself, I stepped through the doors and into the lab.

Adalyn was frantically walking around the place, checking devices and various
things on our desks. Meanwhile, Becky was following along, begging her to stop.
“Please, my lady,” she begged. “Don’t tamper with our things... it's important
research!”

My assistant’s voice was quite despaired and she seemed a little helpless. It was
as if Adalyn couldn’t hear her or something. Anger swelled within me. I needed to
put a stop to this.

to

“What's going on here?” I blurted out boldly, and both sets of eyes fell on me at
once. Adalyn’s were full of rage as they darted over to me and her full, red lips
drew

into a thin line. She looked as beautiful as ever but it was clear that she was
incredibly tired. Last night had apparently done a number on anyone, but I wasn't
going to let her continue on with her behavior.

“This lab is forbidden to anyone else but the King,” I emphasized.

Adalyn rolled her eyes and ignored me. She turned back to the desks and
continued to rifle through the papers. It was clear she was searching for
something,

but I had no idea what.

I

I approached her this time and blocked her view of the desk.

“What are you looking for?” I demanded in a much firmer tone as I stared her
down. She could intimidate me anywhere else but here... here was my place of
work. She was messing with my things, my research, and my assistant, and I
wasn’t going to let it fly.

Adalyn huffed. “Stand aside. I'm looking for the serum.”

“The serum?” I repeated back in confusion. “What serum?”

“You know what I'm talking about,” Adalyn hissed. “Goddess knows if the viper
will return again or not. I need the serum in case it comes after me or Marco
again.”

Even though her tone was angry and demanding, I almost wanted to laugh. My.
eyes glanced over at Becky and she had a similarly surprised expression. But
when I turned back to Adalyn, I remained calm.

“The serum is still being worked on,” I explained. “It's nowhere near being done.
But even if it was, only a royal healer would be allowed to handle it. You would
need their help.”

Adalyn’s beautiful face gréw angrier and her nostrils flared for a moment. She
was flustered.

“Of course,” she shot back. “In that instance, I suppose a royal healer would be
more helpful. So long as it isn’t you, of course. I wouldn't trust a village
commoner like you to administer it.”

I lost my patience immediately.

“Please leave,” I said, and I pointed toward the door. “Since you don't trust me to
do my job, you should never try to come back in here again.”

Adalyn’s body shook with anger and before I could stop her, she swept her arm
across the nearest desk and knocked a bunch of bottles and vials to the floor.
They shattered upon impact and various liquids spilled all over.

Asher’s

wife didn’t stop there. She sprang into action and began to destroy our things
while Becky and I stood there in horror.

Adalyn had always been like this. She would perform and pretend to be a sweet,
charming girl in public, but when she was alone with someone she didn't like, she
showed herself as the monster she really was.

I

When we were children, Asher and I had built a treehouse in the garden of the
Felix house. It was a secret place just for us. It wasn't long, though, before
Adalyn found it. She was angry to have been excluded and threw a fit. One day,
she snuck into the garden and destroyed the treehouse when I wasn’t home.
Devastated, I'd tried telling on her to my father, but there was nothing we could
do. She was the Beta’s daughter and could get away with anything.

Now, things felt like the same. Adalyn had probably wanted to destroy this lab. for
a long time.

As she threw her fit and continued to mess with our things, I rushed over to
Becky.

“Take the guard and go find the Alpha King right now,” I said. My assistant
nodded and rushed out of the room, leaving Adalyn and me alone.

“The Alpha King isn’t going to be pleased,” I called out to her and Adalyn.
laughed.

“I don't care,” she seethed, and then she raised a bottle high in the air. My heart
nearly stopped. It was a container of chemical acid.

“Adalyn, please put that down,” I advised her gently. When she noticed my panic,
her crazed look turned into a cruel smile. She took a step toward me, the

bottle still held high.

“I don't care what's i

this,” she said slowly. “But apparently it's something bad. So, I have a proposal...
leave Anemond for good. Or I'll pour this right on that pathetic face of yours.”
“Adalyn, please,” I pressed. “I didn’t come here of my own volition-"

“Shut up!” Adalyn blurted out, her amber eyes manic. “I don’t believe you!”
Before I could get a word in, she opened the bottle, and in one swift motion, she
shook it right toward me. As the liquid poured out, I flinched and stepped out of
the way. I closed my eyes.

Adalyn let out a scream. When I opened my eyes, I was shocked to see that the
acid had burnt the skin on her forearm.