The Volk Advent by Kristen Joy Wilks Page A

The bad news, there were a lot of tunnels and Chobo and I had fled with such alacrity that once we finally slowed, I had absolutely no idea where we were. I tried a few commands on Chobo, wondering if she would lead me to freedom once again. “To the top, Chobo!”
    She sat and wagged.
    “Escape, Chobo!”
    She rolled over.
    “Upstairs, Chobo!” She woo wooo woooed.
    I clamped my mittens around her muzzle and shut off the vintage flashlight for several minutes. I decided to work on one she knew. “Snack time!”
    She immediately stood up, bared her teeth, and snarled. I gave her a bit of the moldy fish. At least she had that one down and it wasn’t too loud. One more try.
    “Go home, Chobo!”
    She woo wooo woooed again, but before I could snap my mittens over her nose, the dog took off down a side tunnel. Maybe she did know what she was doing? If only the fuzzball could be quiet enough to get us topside without attracting the wolves.
    Silent Night started playing in my head...
    Silent doggy
    Soundless doggy
    Muzzle glued
    Noise eschewed
    Through the tunnels so icy and dark
    I’ll use you for BBQ if you bark
    Let’s not be wolf snacks tonight
    We both know how well you fight
    It seemed to help. Chobo trotted on without so much as the tiniest of woo wooos.
    At first the way seemed to grow colder and more narrow. But eventually our tunnel widened and the way seemed familiar. After some time we jogged past a small alcove and I stopped and shined my light inside. The WWII chest was still pushed up against the wall, undisturbed.
    I ducked inside and knelt to examine the shiny new padlock. I really should have picked up some tools before running down here hunting for my only clue. Although the wolves hadn’t given me much choice. Yep, the lock was just as solid as the last time I’d looked at it. Now what?
    Chobo had flopped down in the main tunnel to wait for me. She leapt to her feet and let out the loudest woo wooo woooo of the night. I scrambled to my feet and made a dive for her. We were close to the surface. The wolves were sure to hear. She was faster than her girth suggested, but I managed to snag her by the tail.
    However, this did nothing to stop the wooing. I yanked back on her tail. She hurtled forward, dragging me off balance. I stumbled and took a few wobbly steps to right myself. I reached out to catch myself on the tunnel wall. Instead of frozen earth, I touched someone’s hand. I couldn’t help it. I screamed.
    A mitten clamped over my mouth.
    “Hush now, Faina. It’s just me.”
    I stood clinging to Liev’s coat. How mortifying.
    He put both hands on my shoulders to steady me. Even under the huge fur coat, he was incredibly handsome. Of course he was.
    I took a step back.
    “No, Faina. Now look. We must talk. The Volkovs left something with my father. You ran off and I couldn’t get it to you.”
    I took another step back. Why wasn’t Liev at the All Night Vigil with his family? Was my capture so important that the Volkovs would pull the priest’s son out of church to trick me? I knew exactly what Rasia Volkova wanted me to have. A lifetime stay in a Siberian prison.
    Despite his snotty behavior as a boy, I hadn’t thought that the lice issues of my youth would have driven Liev to want the same. How could he? I mean, prison was a long time and I hadn’t even killed anyone. Didn’t he know I wouldn’t kill anyone?
    He reached out and grabbed my arm. “Faina, wait.”
    I flinched back but he had a good grip. I braced myself against the tunnel wall, sucked in a steadying breath, then kneed him in the stomach, hard. I turned and scrambled back down the tunnel into the depths from whence we’d come.

10
    My Hallucinations Almost Make Sense
    My mortification was complete. I’d lost my best and only friend. He’d grown into a tall, handsome guy whose last childhood memory of me involved baldness and a plague of lice. I then crash into him several times while running for my life, and now he was