Wolv

27 - Dog Fight

Loose bits of granite skittered noisily under my feet as I charged forward, cutting through the brush as I made my way around Black lake. The sky above was clouding over once again, and the thick layer of humidity around me signaled that more rain was yet to come.

A dull, mechanical whine filtered into my ears from the distance, and I swiveled my neck around. Out across the lake, the yellow float plane that Hutch and I had found in Bloodvien swooped down low over the waters, skimming the waves with its pontoons. In a shower of white spray, the plane set down on the lake and began taxiing in the direction of the hunters' camp. That must've been how they found our den.

From the ground, the den was shrouded with trees; hidden within a tiny, granite clearing, it would be nearly impossible find if you didn't know exactly where to look. But from the air, it would be much easier to spot.

What if they use the plane to torch the woods, like they did back at the reserve? I shuddered at the thought of having to escape from yet another man-made forest fire. No, he wouldn't risk burning his daughter to death.

If only he knew that she's been dead for years already. My heart skipped a beat as I ran. Maybe I should've tried harder to tell him that she's gone. But what if that just set him off even more? He hadn't hesitated in the slightest when he'd told Mitchell to kill all of the male wolves. If he knew he daughter was dead, he might very well order that all the wolves, regardless of sex, be exterminated.

Too late to find out now.

The main trail opened up ahead, and I peeled down it, keeping my eyes squinted against my hazy vision. I wished that the drug would just wear off already, but my luck didn't seem to extend quite that far.

Almost there! My tongue lolled out in a pant, and my shoulders began to ache against me. A breeze picked up, washing over my face and nose, carrying an overwhelming amount of scent within it. It was enough to make me slow down to a trot.

I stuck my nose up in the air and sniffed a few times. From the smell of it, the entire pack was up ahead. I walked forward cautiously, an uneasy feeling settling in in the pit of my stomach. I thought all the Alphas were out on the hunt. I tested the air again, and relaxed just a bit. Nadie's scent was in the air as well, and it was recent. Thank goodness she's still alive!

If I hadn't been downwind of the den, the entire pack would no doubt be aware of my presence by now. I could already see the opening in the trees up ahead. Dozens of wolves stood in the clearing, and Kémé's voice sounded from their midst. Looks like all forty-five of them are here. I made that number forty-six, but still, no one had noticed me. I crept up to the edge of the circle and quietly sat down next to one of the Alphas, who was too focused on Kémé to bother with me.

I twitched my ears, and began to really listen to what was going on.

"...and now, we've been discovered. Every precaution we ever took was not enough. Somehow, our existence was made known, and now, it is threatened." Kémé was monologuing in front of everybody, no doubt explaining what was going on. I looked around the clearing--some of the Alphas had blood spattered on their paws and muzzles, and most of them reeked of caribou flesh. They must've been called back home right in the middle of their hunt. I craned my head around discreetly, searching for my friends.

I couldn't find them.

"Since the time of the First Howlings, our kind has been bonded to humanity; our continued existence has depended on theirs." Kémé paused for effect, and slowly looked at the wolves around him as he let his words sink in. "But as their civilization grew, ours shrank. The more their world became interconnected, the more threatened ours became." He looked down at the ground sadly, and lowered his voice ever so slightly. "For several generations already, our ancestors have tried to build a pack, one completely independent of mankind. And now, at long last, their efforts have begun to pay off. For the first time in a millennia, we've made progress. My existence is proof of that," he declared, no doubt referring to the fact that he was the first wolv to be born as a wolv. Kémé's face fell. "...as was Spike's existence."