Joe dug at his ear. “You need to tone it down before you make us all deaf.”
The bear gave him an irritated look.
“Are you sure he can understand us? That he knows who we are?” Garret asked.
“He knows.” At least Joe hoped he did. Or they were all in b
ig trouble. “Our parents always did.”
“Yeah, but they had their parents to guide them. We have no one.”
Like Joe needed the reminder. He was supposed to be the leader, the one to guide them, and he felt like he was floundering in the dark.
“What do we do?” Garret asked him.
Worry stirred through him. The bear looked down at himself. Then he made a low noise.
“Does he know how to turn back?” Garret asked.
He had no idea. But he was guessing no.
“And what about the girl? I can follow her scent through the tunnel and capture her.”
And then what? Their unease grew. “How come Sawyer was able to change?” He looked over at Garret, who looked to be having the same “oh shit” thought he was.
“Could she really be our mate?” Garret whispered.
If she was, wouldn’t they all have changed? And she was human, so what did that mean?
“I don’t know. You and I haven’t changed.” Obviously.
Garret looked thoughtful. “Sawyer was furious before he changed. Maybe that’s what helped the bear gain control? Because he lost it?”
Joe had no idea. And he hated not having the answers. His parents hadn’t told him any of this.
“So, what do we do?”
He studied the bear. “Sawyer, nod if you understand us.”
The bear nodded, giving him a disgruntled look.
“You don’t know how to get back to human form, do you?”
He shook his head.
Joe sighed and looked at Garret. “One of us needs to stay here and help Sawyer change back and one of us needs to go after the girl.” Not just because they had no idea who she was or what she wanted, but also because it was looking very possible she was their mate.
And they’d managed not to just lose her, but to completely alienate her as well.
“I’ll go after the girl,” Garret said.
Joe chewed his bottom lip for a moment. “She’s not going to welcome you with open arms.”
Garret snorted. “Don’t worry about that. Out of the three of us, I got all the charm.”
“She could be our mate, and we just locked her in a dungeon and terrorized her.” Just thinking about it tied his gut in knots. Their mate was supposed to be cherished and protected. Not terrified.
“We didn’t know who she was,” Garret defended.