Finding Her Way Back

Chapter 10

People were stopping to scream as we ran by them, I watched as parents grabbed their children and held them close, as if they thought Nyla was going to snatch them out of their arms. We could see the end of the road, so clear we could make out where the grass overlapped the pavement, our path was finally clear enough that Nyla was able to dig in and give it her all without worrying about running into anyone.

Just as her paws hit the dirt, we heard the sirens behind us and my heart dropped. "We cannot let them catch us" I told Nyla even though I knew she already knew this. She scoffed and made a sharp turn to the left, "what are you doing? We need to head for the trees ?!" I asked her as dread, and panic took hold, she is going to get us caught I thought. "They are probably expecting us to try to hide, we need to divert their attention a little bit" Nyla responded and I had to admit, it did make some sense.

We ran for about 2 more kilometers and now that we were off the road, the police vehicles were having a hard time keeping up. As we came to the top of the small hill we were on, a helicopter flew over us and all hope we had of getting away was gone, Nyla stood frozen for a second, as if not knowing what to do, almost as if she was going to give up. Suddenly she let out the loudest, most ear piercing howl I had ever heard, and then she took off down the hill, kicking up chunks of grass as she ran.

We had no idea where we were going, Nyla was about to cut it into the woods when there was a chorus of howls in the distance. I couldn't tell where they came from because they sounded like they came from all around us. Nyla came to a dead stop as we tried to assess the situation. "Rouges?" Nyla said, but it was more of a question, "I hope not, by the sounds of it we are fa--" I was cut off by another round of howls as the wolves drew closer. "SARAH!" a familiar voice echoed through my head.

Nyla's ears perked up and she began running in the direction of the wolves, just as they came into sight, something hit her tail, and then again in her hind leg. She spun around just as another shot was taken from the helicopter. "is that..." I said as Nyla began to sway and lose her footing, "Not again.. " she whispered as she fell to the ground. A howl full of rage boomed so close to us but neither of us could pull ourselves up to greet it, as I heard the wolves draw closer and to a stop around me, everything faded out and I slipped into the darkness.

****

I was pulled from the dark by voices whispering around me, though I could not really make out what they were saying. My head was still to foggy to make out the words but I could tell that I was on something soft, the smell that surrounded me, reminded me of my room. "How would we have gotten back home?" Nyla echoed my thoughts, I tried to open my eyes but my head was throbbing and making me eyelids feel like concrete. I groaned a little and realized I must no longer be shifted because my groan was heard by those in the room and they came rushing to my bed. I felt hands go to my arm and head.

"Oh, Sarah! I am so sorry, I shouldn't have let you run off like that" Luna Cecile was next to me and I could hear the trembling in her voice, she had been crying. I tried to tell her it was ok, it wasn't her fault, but all I got was another groan. "It was foolish of you to stay in the field girl. I told you to go for the woods" A voiced scolded and my eyes shot open, regret immediately hitting me as I threw the blanket over my face. "You were hit with some pretty powerful tranq darts, don't go trying to move to much, the effects have not fully worn off yet" the voice said.

I pulled the blanket down and squinted around the room, it was indeed my room and as I looked over at Luna Cecile, a sad smile covered her face, but what really caught my attention was the old woman was standing beside her. In my room. In the pack house. The confusion I was feeling was overwhelming, all the questions, how did I get here? Why was she here? What happened to the humans? Where are all the other wolves? It all swam in the fore front of my mind and I groaned again.

Nyla was still groggy but her focus had shifted to brooding, upset she couldn't outrun the earlier situation. As if anyone could outrun the chopper that got us. I turned my attention from her, back to Luna Cecile and the old woman, I figure, I will let her settle with herself before I try to reason with the unrealistic thoughts of hers. Looking at Cecile and the woman, confusion is all I felt. The fogginess was clearing and in the moment there was only one question I needed to ask, I carefully pushed myself up, ignoring the protest of my sluggish body and rested my back against the headboard. "How?" I looked between Cecile and the woman again and they understood what I was asking.

"This is my sister, Stella" Luna Cecile beamed as she gripped the woman. Her eyes filled with tears as she wrapped her arm around the woman and leaned her head against Stella's arm. With them side by side, you could see the resemblance, but I was even more confused now. " Don't worry, we will explain it all after you rest" Luna Cecile smiled softly and rubbed my forehead. I doubted I would be able to sleep after everything, but my body was exhausted, my mind felt like it was about to shut down from an overload of questions and I had to deal with Nyla, so I didn't argue it. Instead, I nodded and slide back down into my bed, as the two women stood to walk out, I realized someone was missing.

"Where is Alpha Fredrick?" I asked as they made it to the door. Luna Cecile turned around to look at me, poorly trying to hide the tears in her eyes, "He is dealing with a situation at the moment, but I promise, he wanted to be here when you woke up." The look on her face told me something was wrong and immediately my mind went to all the wolves in the field, had there been a fight between the humans and the wolves? Did someone get caught, or worst, die! The panic on my face prompted her to step forward, "everything is fine, everyone is fine, just some unsettled visitors," she assured me, and with that she came over, kissed my head and then her and Stella were gone.