Heart of a Wolf

Whenever they were going, it wasn’t anywhere close to the manor.

“They’re going around,” I realized, pausing beside Ash when she stopped to scent the air again. “Why?” According to Fallen, Coren and his lot lived on the other side of the mountains, which was on the other side of pack territory. So if they came all the way out here, they were either lost or something else was going on.

Ash shook her head, looking back the way we came. “I’d say I’m surprised but they’ve been reckless before.”

“The night you lost Dani,” I said softly. “About what I said earlier…”

“Let’s focus on saving the wolves that are still alive.” Her words were short and quick, and when I went to say something else, a low growl made its way up her chest.

“Right. Let’s go.”

Over the next several minutes, we walked in silence, staying downwind from those we tracked. Bit by bit, I started to recognize one wolf from another, counting their individual scents until I found Fallen’s again.

“This way,” I said, heading to our right.

“Clever as always,” Ash said with admiration.

“How do you mean?” Had we gotten turned around? With so many smells in the air, it was hard to tell.

“She’s walking them right into Rosewood territory. They can be nice when they want and we call them our allies more than anything else, but they don’t take kindly to strangers, especially those who decide to trespass on their property.”

“And Fallen?”

“Is smart,” Ash assured me, pausing once we crested the top of a hill overlooking yet another forest. “She has a way of hiding herself when she doesn’t want to be found,” Ash said, calmly sitting back on her haunches.

“Back at the manor, it looked as though you weren’t going to help,” I said.

“I wasn’t,” she admitted with a long breath, “but losing a lifelong friend is far worse than going through the loss of a mate. I loved Dani and miss her every single day, but Fallen was the one who got me through. If I lost her…” Ash trailed off, averting her gaze before I could say anything else.

“I’m sorry for everything I said.”

“I know. It’s just so hard to let things go because you smell like her.”

I nodded gently, my eyes focused on the trees far below.

“What now?”

“What did Fallen tell you before you came to see me?”

Thinking back, there was one thing she’d said that I couldn’t understand. “She said you’d know where to find her.”

Ash grinned at that, her ears pointed forward as though the threat of an attack didn’t bother her at all. “She’s circling back.

She probably chased them until they lost sight of her, and now they’re trying to find a shadow.”

“She can just disappear like that?”

“She slips in and out of existence all the time,” Ash explained, “or have you not noticed that?” There was a hint of amusement in her voice.

“I have,” I admitted, “but I could always sense her.” I couldn’t sense her now, her scent and even her presence gone from my mind.

“She’ll show up soon enough,” Ash promised, rising to her paws as more of the pack appeared under the trees. “They’ve headed south,” she said to the other wolves. “We needn’t worry about an attack tonight.” She sounded so sure of herself I almost believed her.

“You aren’t going to go after them?”

“After their pack, no. Besides, they’ve already left our territory. If we go after them now, we’ll be trespassing, and the pack below us isn’t nearly as inviting or as understanding as ours. The fight over territory is rare these days, but it can still happen. That said, I’d rather not invite another, larger pack into my territory if I can help it.”

“And you’re sure Fallen isn’t down there?”