Chapter 262
When Noelle arrived at the lab, she gave Bennett a quick call to let him know she was there. He said he’d come out to meet her. But to her st
surprise, when Bennett emerged, he wasn’t alone
“Brandon?” Noelle blinked in shock “What are you doing here with Bennett?”
Brandon gave her a warm smile. “I’ve been very interested in Bennett’s research project, so I asked if I could come by for a look.” He turned to Bennett and added, all charm and courtesy, “Bennett was
It was kind enough to agree–very generous of him, I must say.”
Bennett’s smile was stiff, barely concealing his irritation. “Happy to help,” he said flatly.
In truth, when Brandon first approached him about visiting the lab, Bennett had been ready to say no. This project was sensitive, and Brandon was from the Atoraka–Nowedon Lab. Letting him near anything important was a security risk.
But before Bennen could even voice his refusal, the lab’s director had rushed out in person to welcome Brandon. Clearly, Brandon had already gone over his head and secured the necessary permissions in advance–just for show, he’d pretended to ask Bennett afterward.
The whole act made Bennett want to roll his eyes.
He thought he was a master of polite façades. But after seeing Brandon operate? He realized he still had much to learn.
“I see…” Noelle was still out of the loop, completely unaware of the undercurrents between the two men. She walked up and looked to Bennett. “So, can we start the test right away?”
“Huh?” Bennett blinked, pulled from his thoughts.
“I want to get the experiment over with quickly, Noelle said
She didn’t mention her real reason–that she was worried about Nicolas. With the Sawyer family likely to retaliate, she hated being away from his side.
But she kept quiet because Brandon was there
She already knew he wasn’t fond of Nicolas, so
avoided mentioning him whenever possible.
That didn’t mean Brandon didn’t see right through her.
He narrowed his eyes slightly, then casually placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled at Bennett. “Since Noelle’s eager to get started, maybe we should stop wasting tumei“
“Fine,” Bennett muttered, his gaze briefly flicking to the hand Brandon had so naturally placed on Noelle. His frown deepened, And from the way she seemed to be holding back… Bennett’s unease only grew.
Brandon was more dangerous than he’d imagined.
Upstairs
he tral room, Noelle sat calmly in the chair, dozens of electrodes being carefully attached to her head.
of testing was designed to determine the upper limits of Noelle’s tolerance for neural resonance, in preparation for more experimenta later un.
crvation room. Brandon stood next to Renbelt
Several asearchers glanced curiously at the stranger.
o is this guy! they wondered. He’s not one of us, so how did he get access here? And seriously, how
Up un
Bennett a
anyone look lik
Tacility But with Brandon in the room.
e at the female miranden zouktu i larly the p
hearts. A few even considered trying to strike up a conversation.
But before they could move, they noticed something that made them freeze in place. Brandon hadn’t taken his eyes off the test room
e be entered
224 PM c c
Chapter 262
His gaze was fixed entirely on Noelle, in
intense and unblinking. It was like no one else even existed to him.
The sharp line he drew between himself and everyone else was obvious–so much so that it was intimidating. Even those who wanted to talk to him backed off instinctively
“We’re ready to begin. Bennen told the operator.
Yes, sir” the technician began, only to be interrupted by Brandon.
He tilted his head slightly and asked. “Are you starting with the lowest setting and scaling up gradually?”
““Uh… yes,” the operator replied, surprised to be addressed directly.
Brandon’s lips curled into a slow smile. “Don’t bother. Just set it to the maximum load from the start.”
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