A horse's howl: The enemy returns

Alex

Alex had no idea what to do. Her first boyfriend only started hanging out with her because he wanted her friends, her pet, and her! And not for romance, just so his grandfather's boss could torture her. The start of their relationship was a lie. Now what would she do? "Listen, that's not me! Before, I- I was a confused teenager, you can't blame me for trying to help my family!" He pleaded, just to have his words evaporate, when they reached Alex's ears. Mable glared at him, and Alex had never seen her so serious. "I was raised like that!"
Alex stated at the ground, thinking about every kiss they shared. Every lie he shared with her. "Alex I promise, I'd never do anything like that ever again!"
"And how am I supposed to trust you!?" She interrupted. "How can I know you'll choose some random girl you met, over your own family? How can I know that you didn't just lead us here, all for your little plan? You knew where Adam and Julie were. You just hoped we'd be dumb enough to actually follow your plan. So, now that I know that half our relationship was a lie, how can I trust you ever again?" She asked, trying her best not to cry.
"Because I love you, Alex." He confessed. Alex stared at the ground, trying not to fall for it. "Leave, Josh." Mable advised. "You've done enough."
"Alex-"
"Leave!" Mable interrupted. Josh stood up, with a heart broken expression, and grabbed his phone for directions. "Can I at least take the horse?" He asked.
"Fine." Mable muttered. Josh got on the horse and trotted away, leaving Alex as a heartbroken mess. "It's over.." Alex muttered, in disbelief. "He's really gone."
Mable rushed over and hugged her. No matter how much she tried comforting her, Alex was heart broken. For all she knew, her sister could be dead. And now she had this. "Let's just go home. If they escaped, they'll be trying to get home." Mable suggested. Alex nodded, and stood up.
Just as they began walking, a rustle came from the bushes. "Go away, Josh!" Mable growled. The rustle continued and a low whimper followed it. "You don't think it could be..." Mable muttered. Alex looked into the bushes, and was shocked to see two green eyes look back at her. "Junie? Is that you, girl?" Mable squeaked. A soft white snout poked out of the bushes followed by a soft cream wolf head, at horse's hight. "Juniper.." Mable breathed. The creature came out of the bushes and nuzzled Mable. "Oh, girl, it's so great to see you!" Mable gasped. Alex's heart ached thinking about how happy this would make Julie. "Okay, I'm back to my bubbly self! This is freaking awesome! Now we have a ride home!" Mable giggled, with a huge smile. Alex nodded, happy that Mable was back to her old self. If only Alex could go back.
Juniper trotted over, and Alex gave her a hug. "Nice to see you, girl." She smiled. Juniper let out a small whinny, and lowered a bit for Mable and Alex to get on.
Mable hopped on, without hesitation, and Alex followed. "Let's go home, Junie!" Mable directed. Juniper pushed off of her back legs, and galloped in the direction of home.
Alex loved riding Juniper. She and Julie would always talk about horses, and each summer they'd go to horse camp and bond over the horses. Last summer, they decided different and that's why they were here. Alex suddenly lost interest in horse camp, and chose something different. Now they were here. With her sister most likely dead. "Thinking about Julie?" Mable asked, interrupting her thoughts.
"Yeah...why do you ask?"
"You have an expression that says: 'I'm sad. Please ask." Mable said, in a deep, gloomy voice. Alex smiled, and shared her thoughts about Julie. "This isn't your fault! Life is super weird but.. it has a mind of its own. Everything happens for a reason. Like how I interrupted Julie's kiss, and now they've probably kissed, like, a million times every time they were thinking, 'we're gonna die!'" She giggled. Every time Alex was upset, she could count on Mable to cheer her up. "If they don't make it home... it's going to lead to something greater in life. I promise. And if they do make it home, it'll still lead to something greater." She promised. Alex nodded, and knew she was right. She still couldn't stand the idea of losing her sister.