Adeline POV
The centrifuge beeped once. It’s sound was usually sharp, routine and predictable. I logged the readings and handed the tray to Evelyn. Both of us worked in silence, our masks put on, auras locked away. The lab smelled faintly of alcohol and sterile filters that made the area safe and contained.
Then the message came. The Alpha King has arrived. My hand paused over the next vial. I finished labeling before I turned. No one entered the ward quietly when it was him. The air seemed to tighten before his footsteps even reached the hall.
Evelyn’s eyes flicked toward me, nervous beneath her mask. “Do you think he’s here for…”
“Keep working,” I cut in, lowering my voice. “We don’t know why he’s here yet.”
The door opened. The director swept in first, smiling like the visit was
