The Killer Queen by Noella Briony

Chapter 71

The lab crew were all whiz kids Noella plucked from the brink of the international warzones. Their IQs had been cranked up to the maximum humans could handle. They rattled off the experimental data Noella needed in under five minutes.

“Boss, I’m gonna run a control experiment on Mirage Grass, see what ailments it really kicks. butt against.

Noella skimmed the data and quickly zeroed in on the vital clue. “Highly likely it’s brain cancer. Half an hour later, the control experiment results were in, and Mirage Grass was a

game–changer for brain cancer but only had side effects like an anesthetic or hallucinogen for other diseases.

It was a godsend for patients with screwy minds, or who had been under mental duress for ages, but for those with their heads screwed on right, it was pure poison.

“Boss, how the heck did you figure that out? That’s just nuts; you’re even smarter than us!”

“Set up the new experiment. I need five hundred slides.”

Five hundred slides meant Phecda and Megrez were in for hours of hustle, but they didn’t utter a peep and got cracking, seamlessly working in sync with Noella to carry out the experiment methodically.

After finishing up in the lab, Noella stepped out to find night had fallen–it wasn’t early by any stretch.

She then remembered she had promised Ulrich she would swing by his lab that afternoon. She had blown it off, and Ulrich must’ve been blowing up her phone.

She pulled out her phone, and sure enough, there were twenty missed calls and a barrage of over fifty messages.

[Sis, where you at?]

[Got caught up in something? Hit me back when you see this!]

Noella quickly dialed back, chatting with Ulrich as she made her way to a car parked at the curb and hopped in.

“Ulrich, I got tied up this afternoon; it totally slipped my mind to tell you. I’m with Palmer now, be home in a jiff.”

Hearing her voice nearly brought Ulrich to tears!

“Alright, as long as you’re safe. I was scared you got nabbed by aliens or something! Next time, give me a heads up, okay?”

11:14

“Got it.”

thought the surgeries went well, he was so distracted he nearly stitched up Noella’s name.

car, only putting them aside when

out? I’ll take you to

by Palmer’s hand. “Why are you working in the car? Your company went belly up? Or did the Pollack Group

but both the company and the Pollack Group building are A–OK. Just wanted to make sure you had a ride when you got out, so I came

you.”

couldn’t be bothered to get her driver’s license, even though driving was a cinch for her. But things are different in Imperial City than in the international warzones, and Noella didn’t want to be a hassle for the Schnabel family, so she either got a lift from them or hailed a cab.

I was at the

her hand in his, and played with it. “Since you agreed to Thorpe’s request, you’d definitely be researching Mirage Grass. If

tweaked it all over again. Partly because the geniuses didn’t trust anyone but Noella,

were so frequent that regular machines just couldn’t take

perfect for Lunar

into the city center and

to?”

to him, draped in his suit jacket, her head tilted slightly, fast asleep. In the dim night, her sleeping face was exceptionally

high–frequency experiments were brain–draining and tough on the heart; she must’ve been beat to fall asleep next to him.

could only mean she truly trusted him now! Palmer’s heart

“No need, straight back to

“Roger that.”

11:14

Chapter 71

the snoozing

and Sienna were still being lovey–dovey at her folks, leaving only Stirling in the living. room, supposedly reading

kept darting to the door, the same spot in the script stared at all night, without

Palmer carry in Noella, Stirling leaped up from

up with

I’ll take her up.”

trouble you, Mr. Pollack. Hand her over; I’ll

might wake up.”

signs of handing Noella over, a faint smile on his face as he faced Stirling.

backed down but warned, “Alright, I’ll show you. But don’t

his arms, strode upstairs.

that was totally Noella’s jam, but the place was still chock–full of gifts from the four Schnabel brothers and a ton of plushies that Elara snagged – the girly vibes were off the charts!