“I’m not either.” She took a deep breath. “Noelle’s going to talk to her sister and brother-in-law. If it works, they’ll tell her, and she’ll tell us.” Frankie gestured to the boys. “We’re on babysitting duty until she comes back.”
“Babysitting?” he asked, his tone incredulous. It wasn’t that he objected to it. Hell, he’d watched his niece and nephew a few times when his sister was in a jam, and he’d really enjoyed it. But the city was in crisis. How could he just sit out the problem for a few hours because—
“You want to find the serum? This is the way we do it.” Frankie came around the kitchen counter to look him in the eye. “Sometimes you have to trust your friends to do their jobs. No one can do it alone. Lone wolves get picked off…” Her voice slowed down, cutting off the rest of the typical saying. But Ryan had heard it before and knew what she was covering up.
“Lone wolves get picked off by bears. That’s what you meant to say, isn’t it?”
She shrugged. “We’re stronger together.”
It was true. Especially since the bear side of the saying went “Bears get taken down by wolf packs all the time.”
“Besides,” she continued, “I know you feel good right now, but you’ve been through a lot in the last twenty-four hours. I’d feel better if you took some time to rest and regroup.”
“And what about the city of Detroit?”
She snorted as she passed him her phone. It was open to a news app. “Quarantine’s lifted. CDC has identified that the Detroit Flu isnota virus and is not contagious. It’s caused by an unknown contaminant in the water. Residents are advised to drink bottled water only until the source of the problem can be eliminated.”
He frowned as he scanned more news articles. “They’re bringing in the National Guard to help law enforcement.” He breathed out a sigh of relief at the next headline. “Looting ended. That’s good.”
She grinned. “The city is well on its way back to normal.”
His gaze dropped heavy on her face. He didn’t speak, but just watched her. She saw his expression and sobered as well.
“This is good news,” she pressed.
“It will be when we find the source of the contamination and end it. Then we’ll make those responsible face justice.”
“I agree.”
“But you still want me to sit and wait while I trust your people to do my job.”
“You mean trust wolves.”
He arched a brow. They both believed the wolves were responsible, so why should he trust her? She was the alpha wolf’s daughter. She answered before he voiced the question.
“Don’t trust wolves, then. Trust me. I want this over as much as you do.”
And there was the crux of the issue. He was trusting her to do what needed to be done. He was trusting her people, her methods, even that her serum wasn’t going to turn him into a drug-addicted crazy hybrid. That was a lot to ask of a bear. It was even more to ask of him because he’d been betrayed by everyone in his life including his former alpha Nanook.
“I don’t trust anyone.”
“Which is how you ended up in the sewer alone. Work with me, Kennedy. We’re stronger together.”
She had a point. And the uncomfortable truth was that he did trust her. He’d known her before as a smart woman who cared for her community and nothing in the last few hours had changed that. She’d saved his life in the sewers and probably again in Hazel’s upstairs bedroom. So, he did trust her. He was just uncomfortable with the feeling.
“I’ve been betrayed by people who I had more reason to trust than you,” he said. But to soften the words, he settled down at the kitchen table and accepted a bottled water from her.
“Who? Nanook? Can’t you bears recognize a narcissistic asshole when he bites you? Nanook was always out for himself, so of course he betrayed you. That’s what narcissistic assholes do.”
Ryan looked away, his guts twisting at the thought. Yes, Nanook had had his faults. He was greedy and had a temper, but he was sworn to protect them and if the clan got richer, then it benefited everyone, right? That’s what they told each other until the day Nanook went too far. Until he used his mind control ability to force people like Hank to obey his will. And then he’d sent four hybrids to attack Ryan because Ryan had found out he’d been selling drugs and guns.
Betrayal, and it burned that the bears had been naïve enough to think they could counter the worst of Nanook’s faults. It made everyone more wary of Simon, but so far the new alpha had proven himself both capable and loyal. Everything an alpha was supposed to be.
“What about Raoul?” Ryan countered. “Can’t you wolves smell a psychopath when he poisons you?”
Frankie dipped her chin at the true hit. “I did see it,” she whispered. “I just didn’t want to believe it. He’s my little brother. I grew up protecting him.”
“When did you see the truth?”
