Page 50 of Alpha's Hated Mate

This room is just . . . a room. Four cement brick walls and a tile floor with nothing in it but a chest full of clothes. “What is this place?” I ask her. “What are you doing in here?”

“Don’t worry.” She pulls a t-shirt over her head, then ties her long blonde hair back into a ponytail. “I’ll explain everything and it’ll all make sense.”

I feel like I’m being pranked. She’s acting like this is just another day and she’s eager to show me one of her nerd projects. Is it weird that Father had a secret lab that I know nothing about but she does? Absolutely. But I don’t have time for this right now.

I need to bring her back down to earth and fast. “Nadia, there’s a monster in these woods. It’s not safe for us to be here. Where’s Saffron? We need to—”

“Right, right. Come on.”

She opens a door and walks through, so I follow.

“Remember how I told you I was working on something out here,” she says, almost giddy, as we walk down a hallway leading to another door. “Well, I’m almost finished! Wait until you see it!”

“Nadia, we don’t have time right now to talk about your little extra credit project.”

“Oh, I disagree, Aydan. This is the perfect time.” We’ve reached the door at the end of the hall. She puts her hand on the knob and pauses, smiling up at me as if she’s about to reveal a surprise party. “Just wait. You’re about to be the first wolf to see the beginning of a new world order.”

She opens the door to what looks like a full lab. White counters with beakers filled with colored liquid, computer monitors with numerical numbers listed on blocks. At first, I’m just confused. But, then, I spot a bigger table with tufts of red fur in clear square containers and trays with surgical instruments gleaming under a large overhead light. A twist of fear rushes through me.

“What is all this?” I ask.

“It’s Father’s lab. He had one back in Claymore, but he realized that he needed to be closer to Scarlet wolves to work on his experiments. Thanks to Moonhelm’s inclusive policies, all wolves are welcome, which means this is one of the few places with a good number of Scarlets.”

My stomach turns. “Dad was experimenting on Scarlets at Moonhelm?”

“Noton them, per se,” she says. “He would never hurt them, of course. Just collected things from around campus, like a hairbrush with fur on it, DNA from a toothbrush, or a tossed drinking cup. As we learned from the other night, missing Scarlets would’ve drawn too much attention too early in the game.”

I stare at her. “What the hell are you talking about, Nadia? Too much attention to what?”

Nadia walks over to one of the computers and taps a few keys. A digital diagram of a wolf appears, with glowing red nodes scattered throughout its body.

“Father made an incredible discovery,” she explains with excitement. “Scarlets have these unique energy nodes throughout their bodies—see these points here?” She gestures to the red markers. “Normal wolves don’t have them. These nodes are what allow Scarlets to use powers no other wolves possess.”

Her explanations come at me in rapid fire. I’ve never been a science whiz and can’t even comprehend it fully. I shake my head, trying to focus. “That’s fascinating, but where is Saffron? Is she okay?”

Nadia waves her hand dismissively. “I’ll get to that. But first, you need to understand Father’s work.” She retrieves an old notebook from the desk, flipping to a specific page and pointing it out to me as if I would recognize it. “After years of research, he nearly perfected a serum that would unlock these natural abilities in any wolf. The formula worked, but . . . ” Her voice drops. “Father was unable to manage the beast he became.”

“I already know this,” I cut in, my patience evaporating. “Saffron had visions of it and told me everything. Dad isn’t the saint you think he is. He held Natasha of Hino against her will, experimented on her, and then on himself. He turned into a monster and killed her in cold blood.”

Nadia’s eyes widen momentarily before she composes herself. “You don’t understand the full picture, Aydan. Father had good intentions. The serum wasn’t just for him—it was for the benefit of all wolf-kind. He wanted to elevate our entire species.” She shakes her head. “Sometimes in the pursuit of greatness, things go wrong. Scientific progress isn’t without its casualties.”

Her cold dismissal of these atrocities makes my blood run hot. I clench my fists, trying to keep my wolf from surging forward. “Casualties? We’re talking about murder and kidnapping!”

Listening to her, I realize I have to restrain her somehow. As her Alpha, I should be able to overpower her. I just have to wait for the right moment. I can drag her back to Moonhelm and have the dean call the authorities. But I don’t think I can do that to both her and my father by myself. Speaking of father . . .

“Am I an acceptable casualty too? Father attacked me and Saffron last night. He could’ve killed me. Where is Dad now? I need to talk to him.”

Nadia’s expression shifts to confusion, then she lets out a sharp laugh that echoes through the lab.

“Don’t be silly, Aydan. Father is dead.” She says it slowly, as if explaining to a child. “You know that. We buried his body together last year after his heart attack.”

The memory hits me—standing at his grave, Nadia sobbing beside me while I remained stoic, the family pillar of strength.

“Then who—”

“I’ve been continuing his research for the past year. I will not let his legacy die with him.” Her bright, expectant eyes gleam with pride, like she’s waiting for me to congratulate her. “Oh, and I finally made a breakthrough.” Her lips curl into a smile. “Ironically, thanks to you sneaking around with your little Scarlet girlfriend.”

A chill runs through me. I don’t like where this is going. “What are you talking about?”

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