foolish she felt. Sniffling from the cold, she turned around and tried to pick her way back home.
It was harder trying to find her way out. She had gone further in to the woods than she had thought. And with her feet so frozen, she was having a harder time gaining proper footing over the exposed tree roots and large rocks.
As she lifted her foot over what looked like a fallen branch, she felt her other foot catch in a tree root. With a cry, Natalie fell forward with a hard thud. She winced as she tried to roll to her side, the wind completely knocked out of her. This is probably why shoes are so handy , Natalie thought with a twitch of self-deprecating humor. She gave herself a few seconds to gather her wits before she heaved herself up into a seated position.
Right into the face of a wolf.
Natalie’s body instinctively broke out into a cold sweat before she had even mentally grasped the situation. Right in front of her, just a step behind the sneaky tree root, stood the most enormous wolf Natalie had ever seen. She’d been to museums and had seen stuffed ones but even those were no comparison to the one that stood before her now. Its head probably stood close to her shoulder and its chest was as broad as her entire body. It was a light gray wolf with a streak of black fur down its head and snout. Natalie’s breathing became shallow and rapid. She gulped as she looked into the large dark eyes of the wolf. They were brown, almost black, yet they had an eerie glow to them. They seemed to radiate some kind of mysterious force that seemed beyond animal, beyond even human.
What was it you were supposed to do when confronted with a wolf? She had grown up with skyscrapers and traffic. The most strenuous hike she had ever done was through the Hollywood Hills.
Feeling her heart beating in her throat, Natalie quickly rifled through her mind for any survival tips. Didn’t they say to play dead? Wait, no, that was for bears. Natalie looked at the hulking wolf before her. She felt like she could safely bet that this wolf was probably close to the size of most bears. So is that what she should do? Play dead?
The wolf gazed at her steadily, not blinking. He wasn’t growling but he certainly didn’t seem like a passive animal. Natalie had a sneaking suspicion this wolf might be too smart to fall for the old possum trick. God, what was she supposed to do?
Natalie could feel her blood racing through her veins, pumping her muscles full of adrenaline. Run . It was a dumb idea. A wolf as large as this would have no problem catching up with her and yet the instinct to flee and run was deep and alluring. Slowly, Natalie brought herself up into a squat. The wolf stood still, not taking its eyes off her yet making no other movements than a swish of his bushy tail.
Closing her eyes and taking in a deep breath, Natalie threw out a prayer to the heavens. Then without another moment of hesitation, she jumped up and ran as fast as she could back towards the house.
The air ripped through her lungs as she ran as fast as she’d ever run before. She could hardly feel the ground beneath her feet as she tried to navigate her way through hanging branches or clinging bushes without losing speed.
There! Less than fifty feet away was the little opening between two bent trees that Natalie had taken to follow Eric. Maybe she could make it. Her lungs burned from the exertion. She was so close. Before she could stop herself, Natalie turned around, unable to quench her curiosity. The wolf surely coul d’ ve caught up to her by now. But instead of seeing a large wolf chasing after her, she saw a…form.
The form looked like the wolf
It was harder trying to find her way out. She had gone further in to the woods than she had thought. And with her feet so frozen, she was having a harder time gaining proper footing over the exposed tree roots and large rocks.
As she lifted her foot over what looked like a fallen branch, she felt her other foot catch in a tree root. With a cry, Natalie fell forward with a hard thud. She winced as she tried to roll to her side, the wind completely knocked out of her. This is probably why shoes are so handy , Natalie thought with a twitch of self-deprecating humor. She gave herself a few seconds to gather her wits before she heaved herself up into a seated position.
Right into the face of a wolf.
Natalie’s body instinctively broke out into a cold sweat before she had even mentally grasped the situation. Right in front of her, just a step behind the sneaky tree root, stood the most enormous wolf Natalie had ever seen. She’d been to museums and had seen stuffed ones but even those were no comparison to the one that stood before her now. Its head probably stood close to her shoulder and its chest was as broad as her entire body. It was a light gray wolf with a streak of black fur down its head and snout. Natalie’s breathing became shallow and rapid. She gulped as she looked into the large dark eyes of the wolf. They were brown, almost black, yet they had an eerie glow to them. They seemed to radiate some kind of mysterious force that seemed beyond animal, beyond even human.
What was it you were supposed to do when confronted with a wolf? She had grown up with skyscrapers and traffic. The most strenuous hike she had ever done was through the Hollywood Hills.
Feeling her heart beating in her throat, Natalie quickly rifled through her mind for any survival tips. Didn’t they say to play dead? Wait, no, that was for bears. Natalie looked at the hulking wolf before her. She felt like she could safely bet that this wolf was probably close to the size of most bears. So is that what she should do? Play dead?
The wolf gazed at her steadily, not blinking. He wasn’t growling but he certainly didn’t seem like a passive animal. Natalie had a sneaking suspicion this wolf might be too smart to fall for the old possum trick. God, what was she supposed to do?
Natalie could feel her blood racing through her veins, pumping her muscles full of adrenaline. Run . It was a dumb idea. A wolf as large as this would have no problem catching up with her and yet the instinct to flee and run was deep and alluring. Slowly, Natalie brought herself up into a squat. The wolf stood still, not taking its eyes off her yet making no other movements than a swish of his bushy tail.
Closing her eyes and taking in a deep breath, Natalie threw out a prayer to the heavens. Then without another moment of hesitation, she jumped up and ran as fast as she could back towards the house.
The air ripped through her lungs as she ran as fast as she’d ever run before. She could hardly feel the ground beneath her feet as she tried to navigate her way through hanging branches or clinging bushes without losing speed.
There! Less than fifty feet away was the little opening between two bent trees that Natalie had taken to follow Eric. Maybe she could make it. Her lungs burned from the exertion. She was so close. Before she could stop herself, Natalie turned around, unable to quench her curiosity. The wolf surely coul d’ ve caught up to her by now. But instead of seeing a large wolf chasing after her, she saw a…form.
The form looked like the wolf
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