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Bunny said protectively.
    “No!” he gasped. “I’m okay.” But he was definitely not okay. Dad was . . . captured?
    “Do you want me to go on, Spence?” Uncle Mark asked gently. Spencer nodded, setting the sandwich, half-eaten, in his lap.
    “He was taken from the mission site around ten o’clock this morning. Your mom wasn’t with him at the time, but she’s gone undercover so that she can stay close by.”
    “Where are they?” Spencer asked again.
    “We don’t know.” Uncle Mark ran a hand through his blond hair once more. That was the only way Spencer had ever been able to tell that his uncle was upset. Catching his eye, Uncle Mark dropped his hand, quickly regaining the air of total coolness that Spencer was so used to.
    “The rescue mission seemed to have been going fine. Then things went haywire. There’s no way of knowing when Jane will be able to send further communication. Obviously,the security surrounding whoever’s behind all of this is higher than any of us had expected.”
    “Behind all of what?” Spencer broke in, getting the feeling that they were talking about more than just his missing parents. Uncle Mark hesitated, and then seemed to decide against telling Spencer that he’d explain later.
    “For the past several years while your parents have been on rescue missions, they’ve also been working to uncover who’s behind a large network of bear abuse.” Years? All of this had been going on for years ?
    “We think they’ve gotten much closer, as of late,” Professor Weaver added, rising off the couch and starting to pace behind it. “We’re well equipped, Spencer. We’re going to bring your parents home safely.”
    “Of course we are!” Bunny assured him, as though any alternative wasn’t worth considering. But it was all of those alternatives that kept popping into Spencer’s head, bringing him closer and closer to really freaking out.
    “Spencer, you look absolutely exhausted,” Bunny said with concern. She stood and dropped to all fours. “It’s time we got you out of those filthy, wet clothes and into bed.”
    “But—” Spencer tried to protest. Uncle Mark had promised to tell him everything! Before he could say so, Bunny was beside him, using her strong muzzle to gently push him off the couch and onto his feet.
    “No buts, dear. I promised your parents that I’d look after you, and that’s exactly what I intend to do. Off we go.” Spencer felt himself being carefully navigated toward the stairs, but he wasn’t ready to leave Uncle Mark yet. Hewould never be able to sleep, not with so many questions unanswered. He tried again to make Bunny wait.
    “Bunny’s in charge, Spence,” Uncle Mark chimed in. “But we can talk before you go to bed. I’ll meet you in your room.”
    Before Spencer could say anything else, Bunny had him descending the stairs, which were almost more than his exhausted body could handle.
    Bear-sized, each step demanded four strides for Spencer to cross, and the drop from one to the next took him as far as three steps at home would. Patiently, Bunny followed along behind.
    When Spencer dropped down off the last step, he found himself in a long hallway. Beehive-shaped lights lined the walls, illuminating the cavernous space, and doors stood open along both sides. As he followed Bunny down the hall, she pointed out various things about each room they passed.
    Spencer kept hold of his jade bear and swiveled his head back and forth, trying to be polite. He could tell that Bunny wanted to make him feel at home or take his mind off his parents, or both, but Spencer didn’t need to feel at home here. He had a home, and nothing could distract him from the fact that he didn’t know when he’d see his parents again.
    Voices spilled out into the hallway from the family room as they passed. “It’ll take more than that to be the Salmon King!” someone taunted. Spencer was surprised to recognize the sounds of a video game being played.