Chapter 17

SEVENTEEN

L ucas rushed to the lab. Something was going on that was setting every shifter in the building on edge. Including himself. His first instinct was to seek out his mate to find out what exactly she was up to now.

He caught her scent before he reached the lab, now threaded with the sharp tang of scientific excitement and something else. Something ancient that made his beast pace restlessly.

“The energy resonance patterns are amazing.” Emma’s voice carried through the doorway, full of that infectious enthusiasm that made him want to simultaneously kiss her senseless and protect her from her own scientific curiosity.

“Look how the crystalline structure amplifies the genetic markers when interfaced with Bernard’s mate-bond readings. I think I’ve found a way to map the entire energetic framework of shifter pair bonding and... oh! Watch this!”

Lucas rounded the corner and froze. His mate, his fearless, chaos-inducing mate, had her grandmother’s crystal pendant hooked up to the genetic sequencer in ways that definitely violated several safety protocols. And possibly some laws of physics.

The entire array was glowing with power, casting shadows that seemed to move on their own. Emma stood in the middle of it all, hair wild, eyes bright with discovery, looking like some kind of modern scientific sorceress.

“Lucas, come see this.” She beamed at him, apparently oblivious to how the magic was making every shifter sensor in the surrounding radius go haywire. “I’ve been mapping the energy signature variations in your previous lab visits and the pattern recognition software is showing incredible correlations between mate-bond strength and genetic stability. Look at these readings from when you got all growly and possessive earlier...”

“Emma.” He kept his voice carefully controlled, though his beast wanted to drag her far away from the increasingly unstable-looking experiment. “What exactly are you doing?”

“Um… I should explain the methodology. See, I noticed that Bernard’s mate-bond detection protocols responded more strongly when combined with grandmother’s crystal. So I integrated the crystal array with the genetic sequencer’s baseline readings and...” She paused, finally registering his expression. “I probably should have cleared this with safety protocols first?”

“Probably,” he agreed, fighting both exasperation and intense attraction.

She was already pulling up more readings, unstoppable once she got going. “Look at how the crystal’s energy interfaces with shifter DNA. This could be the key to solving the fertility crisis if we can isolate?—”

The genetic sequencer sparked. Ancient magic crackled through the lab. Lucas moved without thinking, pulling Emma against his chest as equipment overloaded around them. Her grandmother’s crystal flared like a star.

“Oops?” She looked up at him, somehow managing to seem both sheepish and scientifically intrigued. “Though, this proves my theory about energy amplification effects. This deserves proper analysis once we deal with the minor equipment malfunctions that may or may not be my fault...”

“Emma.” He fought to keep his voice steady, when all his beast wanted to do was growl at the danger she’d put herself in. “Perhaps we should discuss proper safety procedures? Before you accidentally tear a hole in reality with your experiments?”

Her eyes widened as she looked up at him. “You’re doing that thing with your eyes again when you’re either about to kiss me or lecture me about lab safety. Possibly both.”

He cut her off with a kiss that was equal parts relief and possession. Let her feel exactly how worried he’d been, how much he needed her safe. His beast purred when she slid against him, her clever fingers sliding under his jacket.

When he pulled back, her eyes were slightly glazed but her scientific mind was clearly still running. “That’s... that’s not proper safety protocol?—”

Lucas smelled the unwelcome visitor and pulled back from his mate.

“Dr. Greene.” Malcolm’s cold voice cut through the moment. “How unfortunate to find you ignoring protocols. Again. Though I suppose we shouldn’t be surprised, given your... unconventional approach to pride secrets.”

Lucas felt Emma stiffen in his arms. But when she turned to face Malcolm, her voice was pure scientific precision wrapped in steel.

“Elder Malcolm! Your timing is impeccable. I was just documenting the interaction between shifter genetics and organic crystalline. Would you like to see the data? I have several fascinating charts on energy resonance patterns that directly correlate to your concerns about pride genetic purity and... oops!”

She clapped a hand over her mouth. “Was I not supposed to know about that yet? Sometimes I get overexcited and read ahead in restricted files when I’m running late-night experiments. Though technically, according to Section 7, Paragraph 3 of the pride charter, as a potential alpha mate, I have full access to historical records regarding bloodline stability and...”

Malcolm’s facade cracked slightly. “Potential alpha mate? We’re still considering this?”

“Well, obviously,” Emma was fully in lecture mode now, gesturing at her displays. “The genetic compatibility markers are quite clear, not to mention the energy signature synchronization that you can see right here in Bernard’s readings - Bernard is the genetic sequencer, by the way…”