Page 97 of Monster. Me.

"Yeah, damn it, I let you talk me into taking over this program, and the idiots on the Welrun board let you convince them that the research data you stole from Blue Lowen actually had a future. Turns out it does, just in a completely different direction, while we've been pouring a fortune into something that was never going to work!"

Another minute of silence. Apparently, the person on the other end is offering an intense defense, while Doctor Lomax pants furiously.

"Stop it, Flanegin. Spare me. I'm already pushing them to approve a new program, and I've secured preliminary funding, because we need to abandon this sinking ship as fast as possible and jump to the next one!"

Another angry huff.

"Fine. You can explain yourself to the board. I'm going to get proof that whatever Drax is doing is simply a separate ability and can't be replicated! I need to save my own ass. You do whatever the hell you want!"

An angry crack echoes through the room as Lomax slams the phone down.

Wow.

So it looks like Blue Lowen’s research results were stolen by some Flanegin guy and sold to Welrun as the basis for their program, probably for a solid sum, but it turned out to be a dead end.

Go figure.

I can only hope Dr. Lomax’s bad mood won’t make him throw me under the bus and send me back to that damn prison as completely useless.

Still, there’s something worse.

I was supposed to meet Marlow for the trip, and I’m already several hours late.

With frustration tearing through my entire nervous system, I just wait for Dr. Lomax to give us his attention.

For a few minutes he walks around the lab seemingly aimlessly, his face tense and his eyes furious, then he goes to the chamber exit and presses the button to open it.

"You’re free. Next session in two days. Both of you better show up."

We step out in silence.

The alpha gets dressed; he looks rather restless. His cock is still fully hard; exposure to my pheromones in this tiny room must have done its job. He’s flushed red, and his pupils are dilated. I assume whoever he’s paired with is in for several hours of intense fucking now.

But it doesn't concern me.

I head for the exit. I move quickly through the corridors, but why am I even rushing?

Marlow won’t be standing outside my door waiting after all these hours. I’m not officially allowed in the promenade area, but I still have to apologize, tell him what happened. I turn uncertainly toward the AA sector, but before I actually cross the threshold, I notice Caspian and Tobias, two betas working in the participants’ section. Caspian is crying hard, sobbing uncontrollably.

They both freeze when they see me. They obviously know who I am; I’ve seen them in the corridors before.

"If you’re looking for Marlow, he’s not here anymore," Caspian says with trembling lips, tears rolling down his cheeks like translucent pearls.

I inhale sharply because there’s something strange in the air, an unusual scent, at least unusual for a beta. But I ignore it for now.

"I don’t understand. What do you mean? Did Marlow go to Rainbow Spring?"

"Why Rainbow Spring? Marlow and Rupert left about an hour ago for Franklin Airport. Marlow is pregnant. It’s Rupert’s child. They both walked away from the program and don’t plan to come back." Caspian says the last words in a strained voice.

Tobias adds bitterly,

"Marlow really played you… you probably thought you were the only one he was fucking with, right?"

As I hear his words, I feel like some demon from underground has drawn a line beneath my feet and an abyss is opening up beneath it, belching hellish fire. I feel like I’m about to pass out. I stagger and lean against the wall, struggling for breath.

"No, no, no…"

"Believe me, I know how it feels. Rupert, Juan, and I—" he trails off. "We had something good. Something that made us really happy."