Ghost Wolf (Wattys2014)

Chapter Four

Chapter Four: Ghost Secrets

By the time I reached the swamp Hugo had slipped from my sight. But I decided to stay anyway. There was something almost magical about this part of Washington, something prehistoric, almost untouched by man.

Rain shifted to faint mist, thinly coating my skin in its cold residue. On the other side of the swamp, yellow caution tape twisted in the breeze, wrapped around four trees positioned in a diamond. Trees and ferns concealed the site from my view, even while standing on the fronts of my boots.  

Beneath the water, wedged between stones and pebbles, bright green plants swayed in the soft current. A small fish flicked its tail, scooting away within the moment it spotted my shadow. My eyes shifted to the water’s surface. My reflection stared back into my dark russet eyes before beginning to ripple with the falling rain. 

My long maroon hair had slowly begun fading to its natural colour of brunette. The waterproof mascara still lined my eyes. My chubby cheeks appeared chubbier in the water. The black coat clung to my curves, as did my jeans. 

Brushy clumps of moss thickly lined the swamp edges.  As I brushed my palm over its fuzziness my gaze landed on a large paw print. My brows shot up realising it was the size of my hand. I stood and spotted more tracks leading up the muddy road and around my tyre tracks from yesterday. If it wasn’t for a light and warm emotion wrapping itself cosily around me, I was sure I’d be panicking. But then, I questioned what I was feeling and why as a sudden pull took my attention across the murky water of the swamp. 

A large wolf lapped at the water’s surface, drinking, until hearing my gasp. His lips pulled back from his long glistening white teeth, giving a low warning snarl. A thick fog abruptly surrounded him.

“G-good wolf, I’m not going to h-hurt you…”

Through the fog, his glowing eyes shone a rich golden, full and wide like the moon in the midnight sky, contrasting against his cream and grey pelt. Around his eyes appeared marked like my own in mascara. His face and the bottom half of his body was cream. Black fur rings reached around his neck. He was the wolf I had seen yesterday—those eyes were unforgettable as was that unforgettable impression of presence I still didn’t quite understand. 

An abrupt screech echoed from over the trees. I levered my head to search the sky to find a raven swooping down before landing on a mossy green branch above the wolf’s head. 

“Hugo?” I murmured.

The raven crowed in answer. The wolf’s gaze went to the bird and tilted his large head to the side. His sight then fell questioningly over my features. Thicker fog gathered around him, leaving everything but his eyes invisible.

Inside my chest, my heart was racing. My pulse muffled the sound of my surroundings: the breeze and rain seeping through the trees and branches were now distance patters. My breath caught the back of my throat. My chest and head weighed heavy under pressure but still, something about that wolf kept my feet panted in the earth.  

I told my brain to move it and forget the wolf. I made the slightest swivel to run when the wolf leaped onto my path. I halted my step. My breath caught in a scream. 

His glowing yellow eyes held a subtle, warm and questioning sense while holding my own, no longer growling nor snarling. I screamed and fell back onto the palms of my hands. Hugo swooped overhead, landing on a log before calling out. 

“What the hell are you?” I yelled, trying to figure out what was going on. My brain was screaming run as my heart and body stayed put with the sensations of warm, protection and comfort encasing me. My eyes were wide, glaring at the wolf. His eyes continued holding mine before slowly, the wolfy gaze dulled from glowing golden to hazel brown. His facial structure shifted. His shoulders widened to a human crouching. If I wasn’t already flat on my arse, I would have fallen again. The comforting sensations and pull strengthened.