Page 109 of Unwilling Wolf

Lenny blasted up beside her and screamed in her language as she maneuvered the beasts to the side, creating a pocket for Eliza to go.

There was a flash of black in the trees. “Lenny! A wolf!” she screamed as the monster came barreling right for them. It was so fast!

“Haw!” Lenny yelled, slapping her horse on its flanks with the end of her reins. “Go, go, go!”

Terrified, Eliza gave Buck some rein and let him go. Her hat flew off behind her, but there was no time to worry over that now. The wolf was catching up to the horses at a dead sprint! How was that even possible?

Lenny yelled something she didn’t understand over the wind whipping past her.

“What?” she asked as loud as she could.

Lenny pointed to the trees. “Pull to a stop! Garret’s coming! Let him catch up!”

Lenny angled her pony through the last couple of cows and pulled her to a skidding stop by a tree. Eliza missed, and Buck bolted up the tree line.

“Buck, whoa!” she yelled and pulled his reins tightly around.

The horse locked his legs under them and turned back for Lenny just as the black wolf tackled Lenny right out of the saddle.

“No!” Eliza screamed as she kicked Buck to go back.

She thought Lenny would hit the dirt, but her white wolf exploded from her. The human side of her was gone before they hit the ground.

Eliza pulled her pistol from the tie and slid out of the saddle before Buck was even fully stopped.

She cocked it as she strode up to the wolf fight, but there wasn’t a good shot. Lenny was locked in war.

She aimed and tried to steady her straining, shaking breath—tried to steady her hand. She didn’t want to miss and hurt Lenny.

The animals were a blur as they bled each other.

Lenny’s coat was turning red.

“Lenny, push him off!” she screamed.

And Lenny’s back legs went out straight. That black wolf skidded backwards just enough. Eliza gritted her teeth and aimed, and just as that wolf looked up at her with realization, she pulled the trigger.

Boom!

The wolf dropped.

A shaking moan of shock escaped her, but something was running fast at her through the trees. Garret?

She looked up with such hope, but it was three wolves, and none had a dark gray coat.

“Oh my God,” she murmured in terror. She backed up a few feet, trying hard to cock the pistol again with her shaking hands.

She looked up, and they were so close. “Garret! Help!” she shrieked.

Lenny couldn’t take three.

She was hurt.

“Help us!” she screamed as the first light gray wolf bunched his muscles and leapt for her.

Garret came out of nowhere and halted that wolf’s trajectory. He hit him like a charging bull and right behind him, a light gray wolf joined in the fight, cutting off the next from Lenny.

The snarling battle roared in her head as she clenched her teeth with determination and pulled the hammer back on the pistol.

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