"Probably."
Zeke moved across to the bar and poured himself a drink, then raised the bottle in query. Duncan shook his head.
"I suspect Iyona or her bastard are probably responsible for the attack on René, but what about the murders? Do you think they're related?"
Though he'd never seen Betise's alternate shape, she certainly had both the height and the wide shoulders to suggest she'd be big in wolf form. But having the right body type didn't make her a murderer. "The biggest problem is the fact that the murderer is a male — "
"That's only being presumed," Zeke cut in. "No one knows for sure."
"Savannah might." After all, she'd survived an attack by the killer, and she'd obviously seen something, or the killer would not have gone after her in the hospital.
"Our head ranger isn't likely to tell us anything, especially when she considers our pack the main suspects." Zeke paused, black eyes glimmering with sudden amusement. "Of course, she has a twin, and the golden tribe share an extremely powerful psychic connection. It's very possible your Neva experienced her sister's attack and saw what her sister saw."
Your Neva. The words seemed to echo through Duncan, and he had to curb a smile, because in reality, there was no reason to smile. She was his nothing until she looked deep into her heart and acknowledged what lay between them. And right now, she was too scared of his reputation to even dare try.
"I hadn't thought of that," he admitted. "I'll talk to her when I see her again."
Zeke took a drink, then said, "If your connection with her is strong enough, you might be able to touch her mind and share her memories."
"That takes trust."
Zeke's half-smile was sympathetic. "Many bridges to mend, huh?"
"Maybe a lifetime's worth." There was no bitterness in his voice. With the benefit of hindsight, he did regret his actions. And yet he knew, given the same circumstances, the same information, and the chance to do it all again, he'd probably make the same choices.
"What do you intend to do?"
He knew his father was talking about Neva rather than the murders. He shrugged and moved away from the chill of the windows. "I really don't know. I'm committed for at least another two months in Eagle. I can't walk out on Dave without giving him time to find and train a replacement, and I need to find myself another job."
"You have the ski lodge your mother left you. You could always return and manage that. And I've heard that they're thinking about setting up a search and rescue team here in Ripple Creek."
He nodded. He'd heard the same from Dave. "I'll worry about it when I have our current problem solved. I'm heading over to the hospital to talk to our head ranger, then I'll see if Neva remembers anything. I'll let you know if I get anywhere."
"I gather Neva didn't warn you about the rangers' raid tonight?"
"No." Nor was he surprised. Her allegiance lay with her sister, not with him. Maybe one day that would change, but not today, or tomorrow or even next week.
Zeke took a long drink, then said, "I don't know why Savannah's so damn convinced it's one of us."
"Because they found black hairs on several victims. It wasn't a human who killed those women. It was a wolf, and we're the only pack with black hair."
"And silver coats. If the murderer was in wolf form when he attacked, how could the rangers find black hair?"
"Why didn't they find prints? Why were there no scents to track?" Duncan shrugged. "Who knows. Maybe they changed shape to gloat."
"The bastard behind this is certainly sick enough to do that."
"That they are." He frowned. Why had he said they rather than he or she? "Are you arranging a guard for René at the hospital?"
"Tye, Kane and I will be taking it in shifts. Right now, we don't dare trust anyone else. Just in case."
Duncan nodded. "I don't think you'll have to do it for long. I have a feeling this thing will be over with in the next day or so."
"I hope you're right. And I hope we can avoid any more damn killings."
"Amen to that," Duncan said and headed back to the tunnels.
* * * *