This was the truth, so she knew her voice wouldn't detract from her excuse. They both stared at her a few seconds; and then at each other, they shared a look together before they turned back to her. Marcy was the first to break the silence."I'm sorry to hear that. Again, I didn't mean to embarrass you."Gab was looking at her, and she could see that he was mulling something over in his mind; finally he shrugged and grinned."Well, I guess if you're willing to forgive our lapse in manners, then I'm willing to forget about it and just enjoy the weekend with a new friend."Elena smiled and let out a big sigh of relief."Thank you. I'm sorry too, I should have warned you, but it slipped my mind in all the excitement and rush to get out here."They all smiled their relief at the averted social faux paux. They started chatting about the next day's plans and Gab reassured Elena that she would be just fine around the horses. Eventually they all yawned, Marcy first and then the other two in s
"I forgot to eat dinner last night and camping always gives me a huge appetite. I'll burn it all off before the day is over. Well, maybe. You have brought some horses but when I go camping, I'm always on foot. So I normally hike ten miles in one day when I go out.""Oh, okay. Yeah, I'd eat that much too if I was going to hike ten miles."Gab just sat there and grinned as he sipped his coffee. Marcy and Elena finished their breakfasts almost simultaneously. They washed their plates and cleaned out the skillets. Gab doused the fire while Elena and Marcy drank their coffee. She watched Gab as he saddled the horses. She was still nervous about this exercise. She didn't know if the horse they would try to get her on would stand still enough for her to do so. She went through her calming exercises in her head, trying to still her nervousness. She figured that if she didn't feel nervous, the horse would be calm as well.They finished their coffee and went over to where Gab was waiting for th
The large gray wolf's nostrils produced plumes of steam that stood out in the sunlight due to the Front Range's chilly, crisp morning air. As he gazed out over the undulating hills in front of him, the early morning sun glinted in the treetops. His prey, cows, were scattered across this frosted-tan countryside. Early in the morning, they were gathered together for warmth, but as the day's meal approached, they were beginning to spread apart. He planned on eating properly today. He thought he could make a quick kill and feast before the humans returned because they hadn't been around here in a few days.Damien had observed their daily routine as they rode their horses along the edge of their property for several days. The cattle were left to graze the hills while the horses were loaded into a trailer and hauled away last night. He and his group of cousins had to be extremely cautious about how many cows they kidnapped.If they frequented a certain ranch too frequently, the residents wo
"We did, didn't we boys, show those jerks something!""They won't attempt to steal one of our cows again, you can be sure of that""Have you seen that opening shot? I adore my new rifle!"The final voice was heard to his left. Damien shifted his gaze carefully in order to get a better look at the person who had shot his second-in-command. The tall person held his weapon up for the other people to see while also pulling back his grass cover.He committed every feature of that face to memory, imprinting it on his enraged psyche. He saw them group up and then circle about to celebrate their victories. Squatting over the body of his former second when they turned their backs, he realized that this was his last chance to go.He emerged from the grass like one of the rifle shots and sprinted headlong for the tree line. The humans behind him were audibly cursing and shouting in shock as they realized their mistake. He was about to reach the top of the hill when he heard the piercing crack of
He had stumbled into several trees on his route as a result of his depth perception being seriously impaired by the absence of that eye. He anticipated it would get worse when the sun set and the light vanished. He still wished to continue. He would feel safer as he ventured further into the woodlandFive more kilometers had been covered when he heard a disturbance off to his left. There was something in the trees here, something bigger than a rabbit. He couldn't smell anything peculiar because the wind had died down. He paused and listened in search of another cue as to what might be out there.From a copse of undergrowth, the sound of liquid striking pine needles could be heard.As the sound faded, Damien turned his gaze toward the bushes. More rustling followed by a big object shifting against the branches. A tall human female emerged from the underbrush before he could move to conceal, still looking down as she fastened the top button of her jeans. They established eye contac
She carefully turned and unzipped the tent flap. She cautiously unlocked the top of a large backpack after removing it from the tent with her hand. She took some beef jerky out of the bag and threw each piece at him one at a time. By the third piece, he was within throwing distance and was successfully grabbing the pieces before they landed.He glanced at her and swung his head back and forth to indicate that he didn't want any more when the bag was halfway empty. After a few period of continued staring, he licked his chops and started to scan the campsite. He failed to spot any nearby water source. Suddenly, recognition appeared on their faces"Oh shit! I bet you are really thirsty after eating all that salted beef. Let me get you a bowl and I'll get you some water."Her voice was normal now, with no trace of fear. She opened another pocket on the backpack and pulled out a small silver oblong container. She flipped open the lid and removed all the other items from inside it and
When she didn't immediately pick up the gauze pad and her eyes glazed over like she was going into shock, he nudged her hand again and pushed the gauze pad towards her. She shuddered and looked down at her hand, picked up the gauze and then met his gaze."What ARE you? You're not real, this is some sort of fucked up dream I'm having."After this last statement, the wolf just looked at her and chuffed, blowing little flecks of blood all over her hand and arm. He carefully opened his mouth just enough to grab the edge of the gauze packet and tore the corner open. Looking down at the packet, she shuddered again and removed the gauze from the wrapper."Alright, alright! I get it. I'll cover the wound with the gauze. Now stop blowing blood all over my clothes."She unrolled the gauze, folded it into a square patch large enough to cover the entire wound, and taped it into place."I don't know if this tape will hold with all that fur, but it'll stay there as long as you don't try to get up."
As for the other, HAH! She had seized up too tight for a fart. Damn! This thing was HUGE! It must weigh 250 pounds, at least, maybe more. Its head was twice the size of hers and when it had been standing there it almost looked her straight in the eyes, and she was tall, 5' 10" without boots on. The color of the fur was strange too. At first she thought it was a solid steel gray, but the more she studied it, the more she noticed that there were several different shades of gray mixed in, and they shimmered as she shifted position. No dog or wolf breed she ever read about had that kind of coloring.After watching the wolf sleep for an hour, she realized she hadn't had anything to eat yet. As quietly as possible, she opened up her backpack and pulled out a food bar. As she sat back down on her camp stool and started to open the package, the wolf opened one eye, looked at her, then closed it again and went back to sleep. So, it doesn't trust me either, she thought. Well, I can't blame it,