by Trisha Linde
“Hey! What do you think you’re doing? You can’t just go injecting sedatives into an animal that’s done nothing wrong.”
Wolf warmed as the meaning of the words began to form in his mind. This man was protecting Wolf.
“He’s a wild animal, not a pet! You can’t just take him home and nurse him back to health. Animal control will come and pick him up, and then it’s up to them what they do with it.”
“But what about his injuries? I hit him with my car! I need to know he’s going to be okay.” There was an undertone of something darker beneath his words, not just concern for Wolf.
Though an animal by nature, born and raised in the wild far away from humans, Wolf was slowly beginning to understand language, and in this moment, he realized he also understood what this man was feeling. It was guilt, though the emotion was foreign and uncomfortable.
An exhalation of breath. “Okay, look, his injuries aren’t that bad. He’s way more sturdy than your average dog, that’s for damn sure. But, if it’ll make you feel better, I’ll splint the right leg—there’s a hairline fracture—but I’ll only do it if you let me sedate him. I don’t need him taking a chunk out of my arm when he decides he doesn’t like me poking at him.”
“Okay, fair enough,” the man said softly, reluctantly.
There was a tiny prick of pain, and then the voices drifted away, and blackness enveloped him once again.
5
Noel
A frown tugged at my lips. “Do you have to be so rough?” I asked, watching Dr. Burch bind the wolf’s leg.
The vet just looked up at me, eyebrows raised. “You just hit this animal with your car, and now you’re worried about how I’m wrapping a bandage around his leg?”
Ugh. He had a point.
I buttoned my lips shut and went back to pacing the length of the small room.
I was wound tight with pent-up energy in this building filled with caged animals. I was suddenly struck with the urge to run up and down the halls, opening all the cages and shouting, “You’re free!” That kind of behavior was probably frowned upon. I wasn’t sure what had gotten into me.
There was a tingling across my skin, but I didn’t think it was still adrenaline from the crash.
“Are you on something?” the vet asked me, pausing in his wrapping.
I swiveled towards him, shocked. “What?”
He shrugged. “You’re so fidgety and clenched up, and you can’t stand still. My patients may not be human, but I can tell when something’s wrong. Were you hurt in the crash? Do you need me to call anyone for you?”
For a brief moment, I was touched that he was asking about my well-being, but then I saw the irritated tilt to his head and his furrowed eyebrows. He was just getting annoyed at my pacing. Could I blame him? I had woken him up with my late-night emergency call to the vet clinic.
“No, I’m fine. Thanks for asking,” I said acidly. I plunked myself down into the small plastic chair and clamped my hands between my knees to keep them still.
And then my knee started to jiggle.
Dr. Burch let out a frustrated sigh. “That’s it,” he said putting down the roll of bandage. “Out you go. You can wait in the waiting room until I’m finished. It should just be a few minutes, and then we’ll settle the matter of the bill.”
He almost physically removed me from my chair, tugging me by my arm, and then nudged me out the door into the hallway. The door closed behind me with a click. I stood there for a moment, reluctant to leave the wolf in his care. It wasn’t that I didn’t trust Dr. Burch, except… no, that was exactly it. I didn’t trust him one bit, but I’m not sure I would have trusted anyone in that moment. I wanted the wolf to open his eyes so I could be certain he wasn’t seriously injured.
I needed to be sure that he was okay.
Maybe then I could release the tension that was coiled tight in my chest.
Although, then I would just get all tense over the bill Dr. Burch mentioned. How was I supposed to scrounge together enough money to both pay for the vet and repair my car? There was no question of which came first priority for me. I would just have to get a bus pass, I guess.
“Noel?” I heard my name called from the end of the hall. “What are you doing here? I didn’t know you had a pet.”
I turned back in the direction of the waiting room. “Ella? I didn’t know you had any pets either.”
Ella Stewart, my co-worker at the law firm and Finn’s youngest sister, was a tiny thing, almost like a pixie. She had long dark hair, a narrow face with delicate features, and eyes as black as coal.
“I don’t have any pets of my own, but I happen to have a temporary guest in the house.” She gestured to the pet carrier sitting on the floor. I leaned down and found the angriest cat I’d ever seen, clearly disgruntled at his current situation. “Finn and Pierce are headed out on their honeymoon in the wee hours of the morning, so they dropped Daniel off at my house before the wedding.”
“You’ve had the cat for less than a day, and you’re already at the vet…?”
“I know, I know,” she said, exasperated. “The damn cat ate some tinsel. I swear, he did it just to spite me. He’s pissed Finn’s leaving him, so I’m sure I’m in for two weeks of constant punishment. I’m the worst alpha ever. I can’t even watch a cat for a day, how am I ever supposed to raise children?”
“Well, to be fair, your children wouldn’t likely be walking around, spitefully eating tinsel.”
Ella narrowed her eyes at me. “While you’re probably right, I wouldn’t rule anything out at this point.”
“Are you thinking of having kids?” The words popped out of my mouth before I had a chance to consider that maybe I shouldn’t have said them. I backpedaled as quickly as I could. “Sorry, is that too personal? You don’t have to tell me. In fact, please don’t tell me. I’m not seeing anyone, and I’m actually pretty desperate for kids, so whenever anyone else starts talking about how perfect their lives are, I kinda want to throat punch them.” I stopped talking at the expression on Ella’s face. “Sorry, I’ll stop babbling now.”
She giggled her tinkling little laugh. “First off, nothing you ask me is too personal. Have you met my family? We have no boundaries. Not to mention the fact that you and I have worked together for ages, so I think it’s perfectly normal to ask personal questions at this point. And secondly, no need to throat punch me, my love life is absolute shit, with no chance of it changing any time soon.”
Ella’s shoulders were squared off, her chin tilted at an angle that said, I am the queen of alphas. But I also saw the faint tremble of her lip and tightening of her eyes.
I threw all caution into the wind and spontaneously pulled Ella in for a hug; Ella wasn’t the touchy-feely type, but we all needed a hug sometimes. And since I was already digging into her personal life, it couldn’t hurt to take it just one step further.
Ella was rigid as a board against my chest, but I held on when I realized that I needed this just as much as she did. Slowly, she relaxed inside my embrace and her arms cautiously wrapped around my middle.
“If you even want to talk about having kids, or about not having kids, I’m here for you,” I told her, my words muffled against her hair. “Not that I’m offering to carry them to term for you. You’re considerably too female for my taste.”
“Thanks, Noel,” she whispered back, barely loud enough for me to hear.
We were still wrapped up in the hug when Dr. Burch came out of the exam room. We reluctantly pulled away from the comforting warmth, and I turned to find out what he had to say.
“How is he?” I asked.
“The wolf will be totally fine,” he said. “Animal control should be here within the hour to pick it up.”
“Did you say wolf?” Ella asked, her eyes widening. “How the hell did you end up with a wolf as a pet? That’s badass.” She sounded almost impressed.
“I’m sorry, who are you?” Dr. Burch asked, finally turning his attention to Ella.
Dr. Burch’s eyes turned to the cat carrier and he started shaking his head. “Nope. No no no, that monster does not belong here.” He was backing away, holding his hands up as if warding off a demon. “I told your brother to find himself another vet.”
“What?” I asked, confused. “You just bandaged up a wolf, why are you refusing to help a tiny, defenseless cat?”
“Defenseless?” he scoffed. “That cat is a menace.”
“He doesn’t look that dangerous to me,” I said, looking in at Daniel again. For a brief second, it almost looked as if his eyes glowed red, but I’m sure it was just a trick of the light.
When it looked as if the vet was going to bolt into the back room and lock the door, I asked quickly, “So, what will animal control do with the wolf?” I imagined they would take him back home to the wild where he belonged. He certainly didn’t belong here in town.
“Huh?” he said, seemingly surprised by the fact that I was still here. He answered, his eyes continuously darting back to the cat carrier, “Oh, I guess they would probably take him back to the woods. Or if they decide he’s too familiar with people, they might put him down. It’s really dangerous when a wild animal like that starts coming into town.”
“Put him down?” I spat out. A sickening dread struck suddenly, running hot through my veins. They couldn’t do that, I wouldn’t let them.
Dr. Burch’s attention turned back to Ella and Daniel. “What are you doing?” he gasped.
“What does it look like I’m doing?” Ella said calmly. “I’m taking my cat out of the carrier. You have to be able to get a good look at him, don’t you? In order to give him the appropriate care a beautiful cat like him deserves?”
Ella scooped Daniel out of his carrier and held him aloft in the direction of the vet. As if taking a cue from Ella, Daniel arched his back and began to spit. With all limbs pointed in the good doctor’s direction, the claws appeared to glint in the fluorescent hall lighting like a blade in a knife fight.
And the chase was on. Dr. Burch turned tail and ran, with Ella and Daniel in hot pursuit. On the way past, Ella whispered, “I’ll keep him busy. Hurry up!” She gave a quick wink before the parade of squeals and yowls rounded the corner and moved out of sight.
I had no clue how Ella knew exactly what I needed, but I would have believed she was psychic in that exact moment. I threw myself back into the examination room to find the wolf lying on the steel table exactly where I left him. My heart broke to see the beast weak and defenseless. He was clearly such a majestic creature, with his coarse coat and lean muscles. He didn’t deserve to be put down. If I had to drive him across the country and deposit him in the middle of the mountains myself, then that’s what I would do, dammit.
I pulled the wolf up into my arms. He was completely limp in my embrace, still under the effects of the sedative. There was certainly no risk of the jostling waking him up, and I didn’t have time to be delicate, so I jogged as quickly as I could out of the room. We ran down the hallway and past the bathroom, where Daniel and Ella had a sobbing Dr. Burch cornered.
“Wow, you weren’t kidding,” Ella said in awe. “That’s a real wolf.” Even Daniel paused in his fit to size up the competition.
“Thanks for the diversion,” I said as I pushed my way out the rear door.
“I’ll expect a full explanation tomorrow,” she called before the door closed shut behind me.
Oh god, what the hell was I thinking?
I had one hell of a time trying to juggle the wolf while getting the door open, but finally managed to slide him once again into the back seat. I buckled him in and draped a blanket across him—as much for warmth as to hide him from prying eyes—before climbing behind the wheel.
“This is probably the worst of worst ideas, wolfie,” I said, despairingly. I drove the whole way home going 20 under the speed limit, eyes peeled for any movement along the roadside. I didn’t think I could stand the guilt if I were to hurt another creature today. As it was, I felt tethered to this animal in my back seat. I owed it to him to bring him home, to do whatever it took to save his life.
And past the guilt, past the sick feeling burning a hole in my stomach, there was something else. I felt drawn to him; I felt more of a connection with him than I had with anyone human in my life. It unsettled me, so I pushed the feeling aside and focused on the facts. I just stole this wolf, and I was fairly certain I was breaking the law.
What the hell was I thinking?
6
Wolf
The world came back into focus slowly, in dull shades of grey. I struggled to open my eyes, but the world didn’t look the same. It was as if I were looking through feathers, wispy and with less detail. Normally, even in the darkest night, my vision would be finely attuned to the world around me, connecting me with my environment. But now, I felt strangely disjointed, out of place. Dimly, I wondered if the scared man did something to me, but I wasn’t sure what made me think of him.
My hackles raised at the thought of him, but the ripple that usually ran the length of my back fell flat.
I rolled to my side, but the movement didn’t feel right either. My own body felt clumsy and heavy, and there was a sharp pain in one of my forelimbs.
It was dark in the space around me, but I could feel that it was enclosed, like a cave, though it didn’t echo or smell like stone. It smelled like… the strangest flowers I’d ever scented. Like they were diseased, maybe.
Beneath me, the ground was soft, cushioned. When I finally managed to sit up, I found that I was lying in some kind of basin. I could smell water nearby, but it too, like the flowers, smelled infected with something.
Where was I? I had no memory of how I got here. The last thing I remembered was...
Suddenly, my body went rigid. The kind human. He was there with the scared one, protecting me. But where was he now? Had I managed to lose him so quickly?
I scampered out of the basin and found that the edge of it was cold and slippery, hard but definitely not rock. My right forelimb gave a jolt of pain and buckled under my weight. I tumbled down to the ground, rolling straight into a hard surface that smelled like sick-wood.
Lying there on the ground, I caught a whiff of the delicious human. I pushed myself forward on my belly until I found a small sliver of cool air wafting along the ground. It was coming from a small crack low to the ground. I pawed at the crack to see if I could split it open wider, but there was something wrong with my paws. The claws had been almost stretched out, and their sharpness dulled. They were bald, as well.
They looked almost human.
I followed the bald patch of my hands up to my arms, only to discover that they too were devoid of fur. And the more I searched, the more bare skin I found.
A whimper escaped from my lips, and that was when I discovered that I had lips! No muzzle, no sharp teeth.
What the hell is going on?!
A new sense of urgency had my heart pumping. If all of this was happening to me, then what was happening to the delicious human? I wobbled up onto my hind legs so that I could use my forelegs to batter at the barricade before me, but I soon discovered it wasn’t working.
So, if I look like a human, what would a human do? I thought to myself. I looked down at my long-fingered paws. How did humans manage to use tools and open doors? Doors, I gaped in amazement. This was a door! I flexed my fingers, experimenting with opening and closing my fists. Then I reached down and closed my hand around the metal bulb protruding from the door.
Now what? They made it look so easy.
I tried pushing the door and nothing happened. Pulling? Nothing. Maybe I needed to shake it? I rattled the door, harder and faster, rocking left and right, and then—
A splintering sound cracked through the enclosed space, and the door was suddenly free from its frame. This didn’t s
eem to be quite the same as when humans did it, but I didn’t have much experience with them, so maybe I had missed some of the finer points of their dexterity.
I pushed the loose door out of the way and stepped through the gap. I now found myself in a longer narrow space. How many caves did humans need? It extended in both directions, disappearing into shadows, and I growled at my decreased eyesight. I took a deep breath, trying to scent the man I knew to be here somewhere. Though my sense of smell was far weaker than my wolf muzzle had been as well, I could still taste a lick of his delicious aroma. I followed the scent to the left, farther down the cave until I reached another door. Luckily, this one was slightly ajar, making it a simple matter of nudging it open in order to pass into yet another cave.
I found this one to be much more inviting. Though it wasn’t much larger than the first cave I’d found myself in, this one had a large mound of soft bedding heaped onto a raised platform. And wrapped into the middle of the bedding was the man I’d been searching for.
I crept closer, checking him over for any sign of injury, but it seemed that the scared man had not done any harm. His face was relaxed in sleep, his skin smooth and his expression peaceful. The top of his chest was peeking from beneath the bedding, and I felt an odd stirring within myself. It was certainly an odd reaction to have to a human. I yearned to lift the blanket and see if my body would respond in full, but I would never move forward with the urge without his explicit consent.
Regardless of how calm he seemed, there was still something that kept my body on full alert. I remained tense, every muscle coiled in preparation for a fight, even though I had verified his safety. Why was that not enough?
I scanned the room for danger, for any reason that I could still feel this sense of urgency. There was an opening in the cave wall, covered with what looked like a sheet of ice, allowing me to see outside. I hated this human cave, with its close walls keeping the wild natural odors out. I could see the woods in the distance, and I felt a longing to run beneath the branches, the crisp snow breaking apart beneath my paws, hunting down a nice juicy rabbit, or maybe a fox.
