But it turned out that was too much to ask for. There were too many people at the school who lashed out at the idea of Cassidy making a research trip by herself. They made arguments about legal and financial liability, but she knew their real concerns—that a woman shouldn't be alone in the Boundarylands.
Even if that woman's beta nature had been proven a dozen times over and was only a couple months away from earning a whole slew of letters after her name.
Cassidy tried not to blame them. After all, very few betas had ever set foot in the Boundarylands. Everything the typical beta knew about alpha laws and culture came from outdated school books and biased television reports.
They pictured them as snarling, primitive giants, only content when they were fighting or fucking.
But that wasn't the case. They were big, sure—stronger, faster, and far more powerful than any beta, male or female—but they were still people.
But beta society didn't want to focus on commonalities. They just wanted to fear the differences in their natures—an alpha's heightened senses, his territorial instincts, his predatory drive.
It was up to researchers like her to change that narrative. To highlight the shared humanity between the Boundaryland and the beta world.
That was Cassidy's passion in life. That was what she'd been working for all these years. It was why she had made more trips to the same Boundaryland community than any other researcher besides Dr. Cheung. It was why she was going again tonight.
"I just don't understand why you would willingly put yourself at risk," Ian said. "Do you get off on the danger?"
"I don't know what you hope to gain by continuing to berate me," she told him, suddenly sick to death of playing nice. "We're already over the boundary and only a few miles from Evander's Bar. Nothing you say is going to change anything at this point."
Cassidy knew that wasn't entirely true. His words would continue to wriggle under her skin and piss her off. Which was probably exactly what Ian was hoping they would do.
Throw her off her game right before she headed her first solo research trip.
"Apparently, I can't turn my conscience on and off like you can," Ian said, sounding like the injured party instead of the thorn in her side. "You've made some questionable life choices, but you're still a young and somewhat decent-looking girl. It's not too late for you to go into any other field."
Cassidy bit the inside of her cheek. She'd been hearing this same crappy argument from Ian, from her peers, from her family for the last four years now.
"I'm good at what I do. Damn good."
Better than you.
She swallowed down that last dig along with the rage that bubbled up like bile in her throat.
There was nothing to gain by fighting with Ian. She'd learned that a long time ago.
"Okay," Ian said, sounding like he was nowhere near dropping the subject. "So explain to me why you fought so hard to make your first unsupervised research trip on a Friday of all nights."
"Because I'm a sociologist about to document what no one else ever has," she said. "And if you don't understand that, then you're not really a scientist, Ian."
Cassidy crossed her arms, and leaned back in her faux-leather seat. That was all the explanation she was going to give. She didn't owe the little prick anything else.
She'd already argued her reasons to half the department. Friday night was a special night in Evander's Bar. It was when a local madam who ran a brothel in a small community just over the boundary brought in a group of women to service the alphas.
No sociologist had ever been in Evander's Bar on a Friday night. No one had documented the interactions between beta prostitutes and their alpha clients. Not even Dr. Cheung. It was new ground.
Of course, she'd had to convince everyone she wasn't going for salacious reasons. She wanted to witness their social interactions. Not their sexual ones.
And she was the best researcher for the job.
Over the last sixteen months, Cassidy has successfully developed a handful of friendly relationships within the Boundaryland community, including the omega mate of the alpha who owned and operated Evander's Bar.
She was the one who had given Cassidy the invitation to come back on a Friday night. She hoped that it would help dispel some of the myths about alpha sexuality that were widespread in beta culture. She'd even offered to set up a few interviews with a few of the working girls and a couple of their frequent customers.
This was groundbreaking research.
Cassidy's groundbreaking research. She'd been the one to do the legwork. She'd taken the time and the effort to create the relationships. She'd been the one brave enough to take those first steps.
Not Ian.
Cassidy held back her sigh of relief as they rounded the curve in the road, and the old, weathered sign for Evander's came into view. She didn't wait for Ian to finish pulling the keys out of the ignition before throwing her door open and starting toward the massive door.
She drew a few stares as she marched up the wooden steps and on to the porch. Some from alphas that she'd met before, and some from new faces. Even though she'd been to this bar over a half-dozen times now, she still hadn't mastered the jitters that sprung up every time she walked inside.
Her hands still tingled. The hair along her arms and the back of her neck still stood on end. The pit of her stomach still dropped.
There was no help for it.
No matter how many times Cassidy found herself in the presence of alphas, she couldn't help but feel like an outsider.
A weak, fragile outsider.
Maybe all betas felt that way. Perhaps they couldn't help it.
It was probably a hormonal reaction. A survival response. A reminder to keep her head down and her reactions submissive.
The sound of Ian's footsteps behind her was all the
