The She Wolf

The She Wolf - chpt. 2

The She Wolf

Chapter two

 

            I kicked stones as I walked alongside the dirt road that lead to my house. My mother and I lived on the very edge of the forest. When I was about twenty yards away I heard a sharp bark and suddenly Nala was sprinting towards me. She jumped up on me, her weight enough to knock me backwards.

            I laughed as she licked my face and wagged her tail, “Get off you over grown puppy.” I pushed her away and laughed as she nudge my hand, wanting me to pet her. Nala nipped at my heels playfully as I ran towards my house. I dropped my new bag on the porch and ran around to the backyard.

            In a large pen sat a grey wolf with yellow eyes. It watched both Nala and I as we approached and stood as I got to the gate. “Hey, bud!” I called, “How are ya?” This wolf had got his leg stuck in a nasty trap three days ago. He was old and sour and not the most social wolf. Nala didn’t get along with him.

            I shrugged and let myself and Nala inside the pen. When the grey wolf stood Nala started to growl and crept in front of me, letting the old wolf know I was protected. I walked over to the water trough and dumped it out before refilling it with the hose. I walked over to the back shed and took out a slab of meat for the wolf.

            I dropped it in his food trough and watched as he limped towards it. He sniffed the lump of meat twice before trotting away. “Oh come on!” I yelled, “That’s better than half of the stuff you catch out there!” I pointed towards the forest and watched as the wolf trotted to the far side of the pen.

            Nala lunged forward and took the lump of meat between her jaws and started to chomp away happily. I gave her a flat look, “That was for him,” I told her.

            “Going to visit the wolves before your own mother?” I looked up to see my mom dressed in overalls and work boots. She was smiling at me from the back porch of our small cottage.

            “Sorry, mum. I had to check on him,” I apologized.

            My mother laughed, “There is so much of your father in you.”

            I smiled, “What can I say? He raised me well.”        

            My mother nodded sadly, “That he did. Where is Avery?”

            I frowned, “She had other plans.” My mother picked up on my disappointment and grinned.

            “More fried bread for us then, right?”

            I felt my smile drop as I suddenly remembered the boy from earlier. My stomach lurched and I looked down, “Actually, I’m not hungry at all. I was just going to go upstairs, I have homework.” My mother frowned, her tan skin wrinkling at the corners of her eyes as she squinted at me. Usually, I would head off into the forest with Nala after school. Me willingly offering to do schoolwork was a red flag.

            “Are you alright sweetie? You look pale,” my mother said.

            I smiled half heartedly, “Weird day,” I answered honestly. My mother nodded, knowing I liked to be left alone when I was troubled and returned back into our shabby house. I exited the pen with Nala and locked it behind me.

            I ran around the to front of the house and grabbed my bag, ready to go inside when I noticed that Nala was right on my heels. “You can’t come inside,” I told her, “Not with a muzzle stained red.”