Page 1 of Running with Direwolves
Chapter One
Sienna peered through the bars of the dark cage. The latest arrival into her care was a direwolf, and she could hardly believe she was looking at it in the flesh. The huge canine had been considered extinct since the Ice Age. She’d learned that at college when studying zoology, yet now here was one right before her. Its glacial blue eyes were piercing and its shoulders were over a meter from the ground. Never had she seen such a big wolf, or one that exuded such strength.
“Where have you been hiding?” she murmured as the creature continued to stare at her. “How did you evade humans for millennia?”
The wolf blinked, stood, and turned away, showing her its long dark back and thick tail.
It had been picked up in Montana by a ranger checking on his cattle. How he’d done it without getting mauled was baffling, but she was grateful because now the beautiful, mysterious creature was here, in her zoo, in her canine compound.
The other wolves—the regular gray wolves—were howling from their enclosure next door. They had been since the direwolf had arrived. Clearly, they could sense it, smell it, and they wereon edge. With a bit of luck, they’d get used to it after a few days and quiet down. Because the direwolf was staying. This was his new home and his new life. He would be their star attraction with visitors from all over the world and from every scientific discipline.
“Try and get some sleep,” she said to the animal. “And I’ll see you in the morning ready for your big reveal.”
A huge press conference had been organized before the first visitors to Central Park Zoo were invited to see the famous new arrival. Sienna hoped the crowd wouldn’t upset the precious direwolf further. He hadn’t eaten since his capture three days ago and that worried her.
She once again checked the lock on the gate, secured the keys in her locker, then turned. A sense of remorse nipped at her. The majestic creature had been roaming free in the Rocky Mountains, minding its own business, and now it was locked up, and would be for the rest of its days. A team of zoologists were out in the mountains searching for more direwolves. There must be more, they said, a species had to breed. They’d also be locked up when captured. Perhaps her direwolf would be happier when he had company.
“Good night, Ted.” Sienna waved at the night guard who was sitting in his office by the staff entrance. The glow of screens lit his face. “Have a good one.”
“I will if your wolves pipe down.” He poked his finger in his ear.
“They will, hopefully.” She chuckled and slipped her purse strap over her head.
She took a well-lit path toward the main road and decided a drink would settle the uneasy feeling about the direwolf’s capture.
The Gin Room was her usual haunt after a long day. She slipped through the door illuminated by the neon pink signabove it, and made her way to the bar. “Bombay with elderflower tonic,” she said with a smile to the barman.
“Coming right up, Sienna.” He reached for a glass. “Good day?”
“Not bad, you?”
“New kid dropped a crate of glasses but other than that…” He tutted as he poured. “You got that direwolf at your place?”
“Yes.”
“Thought you would have, you work in the wolf bit, right?”
“Yes, I’m head keeper of the canines.”
“What’s it like? The dire?”
“Big. Bright blue eyes.”
“I can’t wait to see it.”
“You will soon.” She took her drink and set down a few bills. “Thanks for this, I need it.”
“No worries.” He smiled and moved on to another customer.
Sienna glanced around. The bar was half full. A mixture of couples and groups of friends. She found a seat in a booth and was glad to get the weight off her feet. It had been a long day.
Pulling out her phone, she checked her emails. Several journalists had reached out directly about the direwolf as well as a TV news channel. She ignored them, the zoo’s marketing department handled that stuff. Her priority was the welfare of her animals.
She sipped her drink and thought of the direwolf. His eyes brimmed with intelligence, as though he knew something she didn’t, as though he understood things she never could. His lack of appetite concerned her. Was it because he was scared? Maybe it was a protest hunger strike. How could she tempt him to eat? Had they presumed his natural diet was the same as other wolves, or did he have a different set of nutritionalrequirements?
“Can I sit here?”
Sienna looked up at the sound of a deep voice. A tall guy, early twenties, dressed all in black, nodded at the opposite side of her booth.
