Codename: SSP-57

Chapter 2 (Revised)

Our back yard is large, very large, about the size of a football field , or an acre. In that backyard is a six horse barn, corrals connecting to each horse stall that allows them to be inside or outside to the right side. In one of those stalls is our makeshift chicken coop, where we have 8 chickens of various breeds, two turkey hens, one a black Spanish turkey, and the other a royal palm, and a peacock we call Petey who has attitude issues. These are the horse's new roomies till I got the chicken pen finished. It was about 2 by the time we made it home , and we were exhausted, but things still needed to be done. I sent the boys in the house to rest and inform mom of our adventures and guest while I care for the horse, who the boys began calling Shadow.

First, I used the cross ties outside the barn doors to secure him, and bag to pick out the twigs from his mane and tail. The matts , were another story. They were not going to give up. So I bathed Shadow, first shampooing him with a wonderful smelling soap, then conditioning him, leaving it in while I tried to brush out some of the matts. I got most if them out, buried had to use a pair it orange handled scissors to clip some of the worst ones out before I hosed him off. I let him drip dry in the sunshine while I readied a stall for him.

Inside the barn, I turned on the lights, and moved to the first stall on my left. I threw shavings onto the barn floor to give Shadow some padding, and filled a trough with water, then got a salt block and put it out in the corral. I inspected to corral for holes and rocks, fixing the holes and throwing out the rocks, Shadow watching me the whole time from the other side of the fence and occasionally bobbing his head. I slipped through the bars if the fence and returned to shadow. I brushed him with two different brushes until his coat was glossy, then re brushed his mane and tail. I grabbed a hoof pick from the tack room and asked him for a foot. He was a perfect gentleman the whole time I picked gunk and pebbles from his feet.

"Ready for some food buddy?" He nickered in response, and I led him to his stall. I shut the door and went to the feed room and got a flake of hay and a scoop if grain and brought it back to him where he greedily consumed the sweet grain and hay. I left him to eat and went inside my house.

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My mom was starting diner by the time I got back inside. She had her long brown hair with blonde streaks up in a messy bun, and her tall 6 foot frame was by the stove over a pot of what seemed by the smell to be venison stew. Chris and Noah were at the counter still relaying their tales. Chris was tall for his age if 14, at 5'6" , with blue eyes like mom and I, her same brown hair that came to about the tops of his ears and a thin fame. Noah was almost opposite, being only an inch below Chris in height, he had deep brown eyes and dark brown hair, and was on the bigger side if the weight scale,while Chris was in the slimmer side.

"Hey mom," I said to her going up to see into the pot. "Venison stew? "

"Yep," she replied, and kissed me on the cheek. "You smell like a horse, go shower and change. "

Our house is two stories tall with 4 bedrooms and a guest room and a bathroom on the top floor, and the kitchen, large family room, an 'office' and another bathroom. My room is the first at they'll if the stairs to the right, housing a full sized bed in the far corner, a nightstand and dresser next to it, a desk with my laptop, paper files, and assorted writing utensils. A closet with sliding doors that were full length mirrors. I grabbed some comfy pj pants and a sports bra and went to take a shower.

After I showered in the upstairs bathroom that was directly next to my room, I dressed and brushed out my long honey blonde/brown hair that looked darker wet and braided it behind my head, I padded downstairs on bare feet. Our 3 year old dark blonde golden retriever Hudson sat in the doorway to the living room from the kitchen a smile on his face and his tail wagging, but not in the kitchen, he knew he wasn't allowed in there when there was food. Dinner wears almost done, my mom putting the finishing touches on her stew and the boys in the living room doing what they do. I talk with my mom for a bit, about her job, she was a 'receptionist' at a veterinarian clinic, thought she helped the techs, about shadow, about the beautiful lake, and then the wolf. We had this rule back at our old place that when we went to our private property in the mountains, nobody (mostly the boys) could go out by themselves past the cabin's yard, if they did, I had to go with them and we (I) always had to carry my rifle, even if we were not hunting. She wanted that rule to be again, and I didn't blame her.

We ate dinner, mom's awesome venison stew filled us up after our long trek in the woods. The boys went to bed after, I could tell they were exhausted by the way they dragged their feet on their way to give mom a by and a kiss goodnight and their heavy footfalls on the stairs. Mom and I put on some shoes to go check on Shadow, who greater us as we entered the barn and turned on the lights. Mom entered his stall and proceeded to give him a once over pat down. She worked at a horse ranch when she was young, and knew some tell tale signs that they were allergic to the food or had some kind of injury. She checked his feet, felt his ankles and legs, then his eyes, ears, nose and teeth, all things she had taught me to do, and Shadow stood still the whole time she was checking him.

"He seems healthy, besides being underweight, he doesn't have a rash from the feed. I'd say he's ok. " she stepped back to look at him, he gazed at her, still not moving, almost posing for her. "And a big handsome boy you are. She approached him again, and he lowered his head to receive a scratch behind the ears.

We were headed back inside when I heard a crunch of leaves behind me in the tree line. Mom, unaware of the sound, continued on the house. I turned around and gazed into the dark trees. Thought we had no light setup, I could see very well in the dark, and , as I looked into the trees, I could see a pair of glowing amber eyes from the brush. The creature didn't move, either thinking I didn't see it or it was trying to intimidate me. Neither was true. I stared into the eyes of whatever it was , and when i heard it shift its weight, I spoke.

"Go on. " I said in a low voice. The animal, after Moment, melted into the darkness, and I could hear its Paws padding away.

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I didn't smell them at the lake, and even them I couldn't really see them. I don't know how long they were watching me, but I knew they would not follow me. That's how I knew they didn't work for Helen. If they were her employees, they would have tried to run me down, despite knowing that, even though I don't know how to use my new keen senses very well, I can still run. I ran from people even before she changed me.

But that one, the girl, could easily run me down. After watching them, I realized a few things. 1) They must be related, the two boys being her younger brothers. 2) The two boys may not have been very good at creeping along the forest floor, but she must have taught them a little. I couldn't really hear her footfalls even with my heightened senses. I even realized that, after I had followed her and her brothers home (yes creepy I know) that she had heightened senses herself.

When night had fallen, I watched her and another older woman who must be her mother, go into the barn with "shadow" then emerge a few moments later. My pAw had fAllen asleep, and , when I had shifted my weight off it, she heard the twig crack under me from 50 feet away with all the crickets singing. She saw me, she held my gaze with her pretty blue eyes, thought she should not have been able to see me, and she said to go. Her voice wasn't loud, but she knew I could hear her.

I also knew that she didn't know I was a human in a wolf's body, and that she didn't know what she was getting into. That the old woman who "owned" that "horse" just wanted a new pet.