Alex Archer - Footprints (Rogue Angel Series #20)  

As Annja plummeted through the branches, time seemed to slow down long enough for her to feel every poke, prod and stab from the mighty tree's limbs. She kept her eyes closed and prayed that her body would relax enough to somehow survive the fall. As she waited for the inevitable thump, she kept her eyes firmly locked on the sword. If, as she suspected, something nasty was waiting down there for her, she'd need it as soon as she landed.
If she could move.
But instead of a hard impact and broken bones for her trouble, as Annja's body hit the ground she tucked and turned into a roll. She exhaled hard, rolling several feet before coming to her feet.
Underneath the canopy, something still lurked.
And now she heard a distinct growl.
Last I checked , the legend of big foot didn't include any growling. Howling maybe, but growling? No way.
Annja closed her eyes and summoned the sword. In the darkness, its blade glowed a dull silver.
A gust of wind nearly knocked her off her feet but she bent her knees and kept her balance. What was rustling through her backpack? A bear? Was it late enough for a bear to come out of its hibernation? Annja wondered if the bears around these parts were grizzlies and then decided that pretty much any animal would be dangerous.
She caught a sudden glimpse of yellow and realized that there were two eyes staring out from under the tree canopy at her.
It had to be a wolf.
Annja stepped forward, keeping the blade in front of her. The last thing she wanted to do was kill an animal but if she had to defend herself, she wouldn't hesitate. She knew it was highly unlikely the animal was maliciously trying to kill her. She had inadvertently stumbled onto its territory and the wolf was simply defending its home turf.
Still, a threat was a threat.
The wolf growled louder now, clearly threatened with Annja's advance. But she kept moving. There were things in the backpack she wanted, and letting the wolf tear it apart wasn't going to happen. Annja had already suffered through enough headaches thus far on the trip and she had no intention of giving in so easily for this.
"Get out of here! Scat!"
Annja thought it sounded ridiculous yelling into the night, but if she could scare the wolf off, that would be the best outcome.
The wolf, however, continued to growl, and it grew even louder. Annja took a glance around her and tried to recall if wolves hunted alone. As pack animals, she reasoned there could be others nearby. That would drastically reduce her chances of winning a confrontation.
She heard more rustling under the canopy and frowned. The wolf was probably tearing everything apart as punishment for Annja trespassing on his land. Great.
She stepped closer to the overhang and slashed the air in front of her with the sword. It cut several branches off with a dull singing sound that made the wolf stop and regard her again.
This time it didn't growl.
Annja paused.
Had the blade convinced it? Could it see that if Annja pressed forward, it would probably die on her sword? Maybe it didn't want any part of violence tonight. Maybe it was simply out hunting for something to eat after the terrible storm.
Annja looked around, but saw nothing else lurking in the night. It seemed likely that the wolf was alone. A lone hunter. Annja smiled. I know the feeling.
"You're not going to kill him, are you?"
Annja nearly fainted from fright, but recovered quickly enough to pivot and aim her sword into the darkness.
"Hey, whoa, be careful with that thing, lady. I don't want to be run through."
Annja squinted and could just make out the form of another person in the shadows nearby. The voice was familiar enough for her to guess who it belonged to.
"Joey?"
" Yep."
Annja exhaled. "Want to tell me what you're doing wandering around out here in the dark?"
"Isn't it obvious? I'm looking for you."
"Why? I can take care of myself, thank you."
Joey stepped out of the shadows, his eyes running along the length of the blade. "I can see that. Where did you ever get that thing? I didn't see you with it earlier today."
"It's a tool I carry around with me."
"Something that looks like that isn't what I'd call a tool, Annja. That thing has one purposeto kill."
Annja shook her head. "You'd be surprised what else it can do other than just take a life."
"Yeah, you'll have to explain it to me. So you got a wolf rummaging through your gear, huh?"
"You know it's a wolf?"
Joey pointed at the ground. "Tracks. Yep, it's a wolf."
Annja smirked. "One wolf under the canopy and one creeping wolf outside. I'm surrounded, I guess."
"At least you had the good sense to find some shelter. I smelled your fire a ways back, too. I would have come in sooner, but I picked up the wolf stalking you and couldn't interfere."
" Why not?"
Joey shrugged. "He's just doing what a wolf does. No sense interrupting him, you know?"
"Is it dangerous?"
"Sure. If he feels threatened. Most likely he's just checking out your stuff. We don't get a lot of humans out this way and the animals around here tend to be naturally suspicious, anyway. He's probably making sure he understands what your intentions are."
Annja raised her eyebrows and glanced back at the canopy. She couldn't tell what the wolf was doing right then. There wasn't any movement in the darkness under the canopy.
"You should probably put that away," Joey said.
"Why?"
Joey smiled. "He's not going to hurt you. Let him get on with what he's doing and he'll leave. He's got other things to be doing tonight, like finding dinner somewhere. He was tracking rabbits when he veered off to check you out. Probably found you the same way I didthe fire."
"I really needed it or else I would never have had one."
Joey nodded. "No sweat. With all that rain, it was a good thing you did build one. You must have been soaked."
"I was." Annja thought about Jenny. She would be soaked, too. "You didn't happen to find any sign of Jenny while you were out looking for me, did you?"
Joey shook his head. "No, but I thought I'd start with you first."
"You took the kids back to town?"
"Yeah, they're fine. I think they're leaving tomorrow. They couldn't stop talking about the guns and stuff the entire way back. I've never heard so much talking in my life. It got ridiculous and I had to tell them to shut up."
Annja smiled. "Thanks for taking care of them."
"They wouldn't have lasted without me. Guess you were right."
"Well, every once in a while I get something correct."
Joey pointed behind her. "You really should put that away. The wolf doesn't want to hurt you."
Annja turned her back to Joey and let the sword return to the otherwhere. She wasn't sure how to explain the sword's behavior to Joey. When she opened her eyes and looked at him, he didn't seem the slightest bit fazed by the sudden disappearance.
"I guess you don't want me telling anyone about that, huh?"
"I'd prefer that we kept it between us, yes."
"People find out, there'll be way too many questions. I can dig it."
" You sure?"
" Well, another fifty would help seal the deal."
Annja pointed at the tree overhang. "Tell you what. If you help me get my stuff back from the wolf it's a deal."
Joey smiled. "No sweat."
He knelt in the muddy ground and put his hands to his mouth. In a split second, he exhaled and made a strange sound that resembled a type of bark, but nothing like anything Annja had ever heard before.
The effect, however, was instantaneous. From under the tree, there was a rustle of movement. And then Annja saw a large shape dislodge itself from the branches and come through the darkness toward Joey.
Her heart raced but she stayed where she was. Joey must know what he was doing to tempt fate this way. She had to trust him.
The wolf trotted out and sniffed Joey's hand. He spoke to the wolf in a low voice and a different language. With a casual glance at Annja, the dark gray predator stood at Joey's feet and let himself be stroked.