Angie took this all in and blinked. She was just about to say something when the wolf moved. She was down next to his head before anyone else could move. “You hold still. Don’t you move,” she said in a stern voice. She petted his head and put her hand down on his head right behind his ears. He stopped moving. She looked up to find all of them smiling at her. “What? I’ve had dogs before,” she said. That started them all laughing.
“You know, she almost has the sub-vocals right. Good hand position too,” remarked Luc.
“You’ll do just fine,” said Jeff. “Now tell us where the bedding is so we can make him comfortable.”
Angie gave directions and in less than an hour, the mess was cleaned up, the floor blocked off where George had fallen through and the wolf was in a nest made up of pillows, and blankets. Angie had made up a pallet for herself as well. Every time she moved too far away, the wolf whimpered.
“I’ll check on you in the morning,” said Jeff.
“Me too. I’ll be by before work,” said Meg. “I’ll sit with him while you shower and get some breakfast.”
Angie smiled. “That would be nice. At least I have a bathroom down here. My keys are in my handbag. Take the front door key so you can lock up,” she said.
“We’ll do that. If you need us, call,” said Luc.
After hugs and goodbyes, the four left Angie and George for the night.
Angie made herself comfortable and then reached out to touch the furry head. “You know, this isn’t the way I had intended to spend the night with you,” she said. “Now I know how Meg felt when Luc got all chewed up by that bear. Makes me want to thump you and hold you all at the same time.”
That said, Angie pulled her blanket up around her shoulders and cuddled next to the wolf’s back.
The wolf hurt. Each breath poked and pulled. He could smell the little female next to him. She’d tried to help him and got the others. He wanted to thank her, but all he could do was whimper. “Little female sweet, warm.” he thought as he drifted off to sleep.
*
“Patrick, I can’t seem to raise anyone at the house,” said Ginny.
“Maybe no one is home,” he said.
“No answering machine either,” said Ginny.
“They probably have it disconnected in order to paint or clean,” said Patrick. “Just stop worrying. If something had gone wrong, they would have called us.”
“Or, maybe not figuring that I’d head home,” said Ginny. She felt something was wrong and couldn’t get a handle on what it was. Maybe the run tonight would make her feel better. They’d had two long days where they’d fallen asleep before they could go out for a bit. Their vacation was half over and while they hadn’t exactly kept to the schedule, they had gotten a lot done. Patrick had opted for a mellow day so they wouldn’t be so tired. After breakfast they took a short drive and came back to have lunch at the Dog Bar. It had been great to see all the people there and the dogs. Most of them stayed out on the patio, but a few of the dogs knew just how to sneak into the main dining room. She and Patrick figured that they must be regulars, as they knew right where the kitchen was and how close they could get before being hustled out of the area. Pizza and beer for lunch had been good.
Ginny tried the house once more. Still no answer. She changed her tack and called Meg. Meg picked up on the first ring. “I was beginning to wonder where you were,” Ginny said into the phone. “No, we’re okay. Just hadn’t heard from George in a few days and was a little worried.” Ginny paused for a few minutes listening to Meg. “Okay, Glad to hear things are going well. Talk to you later. Love you,” Ginny finished.
“So, do you feel better?” Patrick asked.
“Sorta. Apparently George and Angie really hit it off. Plus, Cal and Peter have been called in to do some of the work since George has been ‘busy’,” Ginny said with a smile.
“I guess I shouldn’t be surprised,” said Patrick. Angie is a sweet little armful and I bet George is keeping her close.”
“I just hope we don’t have to get another receptionist,” joked Ginny. That made them both laugh.
*
Four hours later, the two wolves slipped over the railing and down into the forest. There was plenty of game out tonight. The smaller of the two caught the first rabbit. The next rabbit was almost gone when it began to snow. The flakes were fat and heavy as they drifted to the ground. By the time the third rabbit was eaten, there was a good inch on the ground and the going was getting sloppy.
The larger of the two wolves nipped at the smaller one and then headed back to the village. They raced long and hard as they headed back. Once when going through a small meadow, they spooked a herd of elk. Neither wolf wanted to tackle such large prey tonight, so they plowed through the startled animals and burst out the other side of the meadow before the initial bugling had even died down. They were running hard now with snow and mud flying behind them.
The two wolves slowed as they passed behind the outer buildings. The big male jumped over the balcony railing first. He shook snow and mud from his coat. Mud and slush went everywhere. Nosing the handle, he entered the room and waited for the female before shifting.
She jumped with one paw landing on the rail. She hadn’t gotten enough of a push off and had to compensate. The mud on her paws greased the rail and instead of landing on all four paws, her back foot slipped and she came crashing down on her nose and head. She was out cold.