Reed grabbed his messenger bag he’d dropped onto the seat next to him and hooked it around his neck.He got to his feet, holding his breath as he waited for something to happen.
“You said you didn’t want anything to do with this,” Moore said.“Are you sure you don’t want to be there when we raid the lab?I would have thought that you’d want to see the results of so much hard work.”
“I do.The most important thing is that you save these people, though, and considering what happened with Franklin earlier, I think he’d be more comfortable if I wasn’t there.He probably holds me responsible for what happened to his brother, and he’s not wrong.I did have a hand in hurting Garrett.I didn’t do it willingly, and I tried to help where I could, but I still did it.”And Reed was tired of justifying himself.He knew that he wasn’t a good person, but he was trying to atone for it.Surely that had to mean something?
“What do you think will happen with Franklin?”Rikar asked.
Reed glanced outside.Night had fallen, which meant they’d been at this for hours.He desperately needed to shower, and maybe something to eat and drink that didn’t have caffeine in it.He could tell that Moore and Rikar wouldn’t let him go easily, though.He didn’t know why, but it seemed like they wanted to continue talking to him.Maybe they had more questions, or maybe there was something else there.After all, they knew that Reed was Franklin’s mate.
“Nothing,” Reed told Rikar.“He left when he realized I was his mate.I think he made what he thinks of the situation pretty obvious.”
“He was probably in shock.We don’t ever expect to meet our mates, so when we do, it’s a surprise.It was for me when I met my mate.”
The way Rikar smiled told Reed how much he loved his mate.Rikar didn’t look at Moore as he said it, which made Reed wonder if maybe he’d misread them.He didn’t ask, though.It was none of his business.
“I’d like you to reconsider not being involved,” Moore interrupted.“I understand why you want to put space between yourself and Franklin, and I won’t force you to interact with him, but I think that you should stay with us until we have Garrett back.We need someone who knows the company and the lab, and you do.”
“I do, but I’ve already told you everything.I promise you that I’m not hiding any details, and if you need anything else, you can email me.Hell, I’ll even give you my phone number if you prefer that.”Reed wanted to say yes, but he didn’t see how he could.It wasn’t his place, and he didn’t want to make Franklin uncomfortable.Franklin had to focus on Garrett, and having Reed there would make it harder, if not impossible.
“We’re not sure how to approach this yet.Usually, we raid the labs, but that’s because we don’t have much information about what’s going on inside and the people who work there.That means that the people we catch there usually find the time and opportunity to destroy documents and even hurt some of their prisoners.We’d rather avoid that happening this time.I don’t know if you’re aware of this, but we have contact with the owner of the Glass Research Company.He’s furious because he’s been trying to change the company he inherited from his father since it happened decades ago, and he thought he’d succeeded.Finding out the labs were still a reality has made him angry.He wants this to stop, but we’re trying to do this the smart way.If we’re going to put an end to the labs, it needs to beallthe labs.”
It was good to hear that the owner was on their side, but Reed still wasn’t sure he should say yes.He wanted to.He wanted to see the scientists who’d hurt him pay.He wanted to see Garrett and the other prisoners freed.Hell, he wanted to help them heal.It wouldn’t be easy for them to go back to a normal life—if they ever could.Reed certainly hadn’t, although that was partially because he hadn’t tried.
“I’m going to be honest,” he told Moore and Rikar.“I do want to be involved.I want to help where I can.I’m just not sure any of the prisoners will want to see me, and I know that Franklin won’t.”
“What about Garrett?”Rikar asked.“Couldn’t he use a familiar face?You told us that it looked like he understood that you didn’t have a choice.He knew you were a prisoner, just like he was.”
“Maybe, but even if he did understand, I still hurt him.Besides, he’ll have a familiar face there.Who better than his brother?”
“Just stay for the planning,” Moore offered.“That’s it.You don’t have to be there when we raid the lab, and you don’t have to see Garrett if you don’t want to.I do believe that planning this, whatever we decide to do, is going to be easier with you around, though.”
Which meant that if Reed really wanted to atone for everything like he’d been saying, he’d agree.Moore really had him there, didn’t he?
Reed huffed quietly.“Fine.I’ll help you plan whatever you want to do.That’s it, though.I won’t be involved in any other way.”Because Reed was pretty sure that if he was, he’d make things worse for a lot of people, and that was the last thing he wanted.
* * * *
BY THE TIME FRANKLINmanaged to close his eyes and fall asleep, the sky outside his window had already started turning lighter.That meant that when he woke up a few hours later, he was still exhausted, and he looked like it.He almost scared himself when he got a good look in the mirror when he went to the bathroom, and he was torn between going back to bed or heading straight to Moore’s house to find out what had happened with Reed after he’d left.
Finding out was more important than sleeping.Franklin could always take a nap later, but he wouldn’t be able to rest until he and his lion knew for sure.
Taking a shower made him feel a little better, as did drinking two cups of coffee.He was tempted to go for a third, but he was already getting jittery, and he didn’t want to be bouncing off the walls when he reached Moore’s house.The last thing he needed was for the mutant to kick him out because he couldn’t stay still.
Franklin was sure that Moore would understand, but that didn’t mean he’d tolerate it.Franklin wasn’t one of the mutants, and he wasn’t a tribe member, even though Rikar had welcomed him into the tribe.He felt like he didn’t belong, even though he lived there.He was sure that a lot of people felt the same way.He needed to be careful so he wouldn’t get himself kicked out before he could get both of his siblings back.
He sighed as he took another sip of coffee.He wouldn’t be able to afford to get kicked out even after he found them.He needed to give them a safe place, a new home.The best place to do that was here because the tribe was protected.Nothing would ever happen to them again.The tribe and the mutants would protect them in a way that Franklin hadn’t been able to.That was why Franklin needed to keep the tribe on his side, even though he suspected that they would never kick Garrett and Leah out.They wouldn’t have to, though.Franklin thought his siblings would follow him if he was kicked out, which was why he wanted to avoid that.
Of course, he couldn’t know that for sure, either.He hadn’t seen his siblings in a long time.He didn’t even know if they were aware of the fact that their mother had died.He wasn’t looking forward to telling them about it if they weren’t.Franklin had already done his mourning.They hadn’t, not if they didn’t know.It would be something else they’d have to live through, and Franklin hated that for them.
But maybe he had no reason to worry about that.He had no idea what they knew or didn’t know, but he couldn’t start planning for things that might never happen.It was a waste of energy, and he had better things to focus that energy on, like finding his siblings and bringing them home.
He felt slightly more awake when he left his house.The air outside was warm already, but he took a deep breath, which helped clear his head.He was going to Moore’s place to find out what had happened with Reed, and that was that.He didn’t need to make plans or decisions.He just needed more information.
He hoped Moore would give that information without him having to ask.He was pretty sure that Moore would want to know what the fuck was going on, though.Franklin had told him that Reed was his mate, but that was as far as it went.He didn’t know anything else.Hell, Moore had spoken with Reed more than Franklin had.He probably knew him better by now.
That made Franklin’s lion unhappy.It wanted them to go out there and find Reed, but Franklin wasn’t going to allow that to happen.
The village was still quiet, but Franklin could see it waking up.Maybe he should’ve waited to visit Moore.The man would probably still be in bed with his mate right now, and Franklin didn’t want to bother him, but at the same time, his skin felt like there were ants crawling all over it.He was itchy.He needed to do something, and right now, the only thing he could think of doing was talking to Moore.If the man was still asleep, Franklin would leave and come back later, but he knew that Moore was an early riser.Hopefully, today was no different.
