Wolves (English)

Chapter 4

With my bicycle in hand, I am standing by the side of the road. I constantly peer from left to right, and every now and then I glance back into the dark forest. It has started to drizzle again. The cold droplets splash in my face, which has become numb from the cold.

Where's Finn? It has been 15 minutes since I arrived here, and 20 minutes since our phone call.

I jumped on my bike as fast as I could, but not without saying goodbye to the beautiful she-wolf. She looked at me pitifully. She must have thought I was abandoning her. I tried to explain that I would come back, but chances are she didn't understand a word. Ah, you stupid! Of course she didn't understand. It is an animal; they do not understand human language! Still, I felt her sad eyes on me as I cycled back onto the forest path.

Suddenly, I realize that I haven't given her a name at all. It doesn't look like she'll recover from that wound anytime soon. If she has to stay with us for a while, I can hardly call her "she-wolf" all the time.

I have completely devised the plan in the past ten minutes. When Finn is here, I'll show him where the injured animal is. Then we can free her together. The wound is so deep that it will take a long time to recover. Until then, she can stay with us. My parents will be okay with that. If I promise them that I will do all the household chores in the coming weeks, and take care of the she-wolf ... They just have to agree; otherwise the hunters will pick her up, and she will be shot. Maybe they have already found her ...

The moment I think that, there is a shrill scream through the forest. I am shocked by the sound. It sounds like a scared animal. Immediately after that scream, I hear shots. It will not ... ?

'Hey, little sister! What's going on?'

Finally, there is Finn! When he sees my face, he quickly jumps off his bike and comes to me.

'Why are you crying?'

Surprised, I swipe my hand over my face. My cheeks are wet. I didn't even notice I started crying after those shots. Still, I try to be strong. I have to.

I admonish myself and answer lightly, 'I'm not crying, Finn. It must be the drizzle.'

He looks at me knowingly, as if he doesn't quite believe me. Then, he crosses his arms and asks, 'Well, why did you ask me to come here as soon as possible with a first aid kit? I really thought something bad had happened.'

I've never seen him look so worried. What is the matter with him lately? He's been so stupid for the past few weeks, like I'm a little kid who can't be released alone.

'No, Dad,' I reply lightly. 'There is absolutely nothing wrong.'

Finn sighs his head. Still, I see a slight smile on his face. 'Sorry, Ester. It's just ... well, never mind. Will you lead me the way?'

He doesn't have to ask me twice. I immediately jump on my bike, and tear up the sandy path. 'This way.'

After five minutes of racing through the puddles, we finally arrive at the place where I left the she-wolf. It was difficult for Finn to follow me, with that heavy first aid kit on his carrier. Fortunately, he thought of taking it with him.

I jump off my bicycle, put it on the stand against an old oak tree, and run back to the she-wolf, as if my life depended on it.

'Ester, wait a minute!'

I hear my brother panting behind me, with the first aid kit in his hand, but I don't care about that now. I need to know if they shot her.

When I see a gray coat appear between the bushes, I hold my breath and walk over to it. Fortunately, she is still breathing. Her belly slowly goes up and down, and it doesn't look like the hunters have discovered her in the meantime. I slowly walk over to her. The moment I stand right in front of her, her beautiful head turns in my direction and emits a soft squeak. She still recognizes me! I am so happy! Hopefully she trusts us enough when we start bandaging the wound.

'Jesus!' I hear my brother's voice behind me. 'What is that?'

I turn to him and stare at him laughing. 'Yeah, duh! A she-wolf, of course, you fool!'

Finn drops the first-aid kit in surprise. His voice is hoarse when he replies, 'Yeah, yeah, of course. I understand that. But ...' He is slowly approaching.

I expected the she-wolf to look at him with a suspicious look, but she's just starting to squeak excitedly. Her tail wags with joy, and I am flabbergasted. Does my brother have the hidden talent for talking to animals or something? Suddenly, I think about that program with Cesar Millan: Dog Whisperer. Would this be something similar, but with wolves instead of dogs?

Finn has now come to stand next to me, and kneels by the she-wolf. 'Hey, girl. What have you been up to?' He holds out his hand to her. The animal sniffs it gently. 'It will be all right, though. We are going to help you, Ester and I.'

The she-wolf gives him a sweet lick over his hand. He smiles.

I've never seen my brother like this. He seems enchanted by her.

'Ester,' he whispers, 'we need to get Dyre out of here. This is not a safe place for her.'

'Dyre?' I stare at him with my mouth open.

'Yes, her name is Dyre. That's a Scandinavian name. It means "dear heart".'

Huh? How does he know all that? And how does he know this she-wolf?

Apparently he sees my bewildered face, because he says, 'I'll explain it all to you later. We must first ensure that we can smuggle her home safely.' He points to the trap. 'And that can also be difficult problem.'