The Lead Dog

CHAPTER 18

"What were you thinking?!" I exclaimed.

"I may have gotten a little bit caught up in the game." he said.

"Don't do that EVER again!" I shouted at him.

"Okay!" Kavik said, "Geez! You sound like my beta."

"I could've died! Do you not realize that?"

"But you didn't die. I saved you."

"It was your fault I was in danger in the first place!" I yelled, "I told you to put me down and you didn't!"

"I don't see what the big deal is." Kavik said.

"I'm done with this game." I said, and I took off my bandana and threw it at the ground.

"I'm going home." I said.

"So will I see you tomorrow?" he asked.

"I wouldn't count on it." I said. The next day, I didn't see Kavik. I was too mad at him, but at night I thought about it and decided to forgive him. I already missed him. The day was so bland without him. In the morning, Roger fed us breakfast and I was ready to pull the sled, but we didn't pull the sled that day. Instead, Roger had some sort of stick in his hand so I figured we would play fetch. He brought me (and only me) into the forest with him. No leash or anything. I felt honored.

"Do you know where any wolves are?" Roger asked me. I thought about Kavik. Roger was a really nice guy and I really wanted him to meet Kavik... or at least for Kavik to know what Roger looked like. I howled for Kavik and he howled back.

"Good boy!" Roger said, patting me on my head. I smiled and wagged my tail.

"I had no idea that Roger liked wolves." I thought. I suddenly saw a squirrel out of the corner of my eye so I HAD to chase after it. Once, it ran up the tree, I heard a loud BANG! It made me jump. At first I thought there was going to be a thunderstorm. I looked up at the sky, but it didn't look like there was going to be any type of storm except for maybe some snow. I heard another BANG so I decided to look for Roger. I kept on hearing banging noises and I never thought about going toward the deafening noise. I went back to the cabin.

"Have any of you seen Roger?" I asked Alaska, Shadow, and Hershey.

"No." they said.

"What's that loud noise?" Hershey asked.

"I don't know," I said, "but I hope Roger's okay."

"Did you lose him?" Alaska asked.

"In the forest?" Shadow asked.

"Well... um..." I said, "There was a squirrel, I couldn't help it!"

"Who's gonna protect him?" Hershey asked.

"I'm sorry. Would you like to go out there toward the loud noise, Hershey?" I asked.

"No!" she said.

"I'm sure he's fine..." Shadow said, trying to sound reassuring.

"But what if he's not fine?" Hershey asked.

"Then we wouldn't have a person to take care of us." Alaska said, "We'll be put in the animal shelter and get adopted by someone else."

"What happens if you don't get adopted?" Hershey asked.

"Then you get put down." Alaska said. Hershey squealed, hid behind Shadow, and covered her eyes.

"Don't freak out, Hershey, we're gonna be fine." Shadow said.

"I think the banging stopped." I said. After an hour or two of waiting, Roger finally came back. We were all very excited to see him. We barked and jumped up on him.

"Hey, guys!" Roger said, "I wasn't gone for that long." I didn't get a chance to see Kavik that day, but I was for sure going to see him the next day. I wanted to ask him if he knew anything about the banging noises.

Once the next day came and it was finally lunch time, I tricked Hershey into getting my collar off when no one was around. I ran into the forest and howled for Kavik. It didn't take him long at all to show up.

"Hey, Kavik!" I said. 

He growled. I knew it was Kavik because of his eyes. I didn't know anyone else with those eyes.

"Uh..." I said, taking a step back, "Kavik, we're friends, remember?"

"We were never friends!" he snarled.

He viciously attacked me. His teeth pierced through my skin in ten different places in a matter of seconds. I was in complete shock. My legs weren't working and neither was my mind. I could see my blood splatter onto the snow. Kavik tackled me to the ground and dug his teeth into my chest and created a huge gash deep into my flesh. I yiped loudly. Kavik grabbed onto my throat, but then he looked up and saw my team running toward me. He ran away a couple steps, but stopped and said, "Traitor!" and then he flew off.

"Are you okay?" Shadow asked.

"What happened?" Alaska asked.

"This is all my fault." Hershey said. I moaned.

"I'll get help." Shadow said, running off. Hershey and Alaska were talking, but their voices were faint. I blacked out and woke up in an animal emergency center. Roger was sitting right next to me. I had apparently got stitches. I whimpered in pain.

"It's okay, Nero." Roger said, petting me.

"No, it's not okay." I whimpered, "My best friend tried to kill me." I knew he couldn't understand me, but it made me feel better to tell someone. I didn't understand why Kavik attacked me like that. I was so confused.

"You ready to go home, bud?" You can sit in the front seat." Roger said. I managed to give my tail a wag, but there wasn't anything that could really make me happy at that point. Roger picked me up and I whimpered again. The huge gash across my chest really hurt.

Roger gently set me on the front seat in the car. I just laid there while Roger drove me home. Once we got to the cabin, Roger carried me inside and put me on my dog bed. He fed Shadow, Alaska, and Hershey. He set a bowl of food next to me, but I didn't eat it.

"Just because you have a couple scratches doesn't mean you can't eat." Roger said to me, but I still didn't move.

"Come on, buddy. Don't do this to yourself." he said. I just turned my head away and closed my eyes.

"Alright, I get it." Roger said, "You've had a stressful day." He took the bowl away and set it on the counter.

"See you tomorrow, puppies." Roger said, and he left.

"Nero, I was just wondering... What happened to you out there in the forest?" Alaska asked.

"I don't want to talk about it." I said.

"Did a wolf attack you?" she asked.

"I said I don't want to talk about it!" I snapped.

"Okay, geez!" Alaska said. She left me alone for the rest of the day, but that night before I went to sleep, Hershey came over to me.

"Nero, are you mad?" she asked.

"No, Hershey." I said with a sigh, "Why would I be mad?"

"I don't know..." she said, "It's just, I feel really bad for you."

"Don't be." I said, "I'll be fine." 

Hershey went to her dog bed and laid down. I closed my eyes and thought about Kavik. It really hurt to think about him. I tried to think of something else. I thought about my real family. I remembered my mom saying something about if you truly believed something, it would come true. I told her that if that were true, then I "truly believed" that twins weren't real. At the time, I only said that because I wanted to prove her wrong and I knew for a fact that twins were real. I wondered if what she said was true. I truly believed that I would become a lead sled dog and here I was.

"What if twins aren't real." I thought, "Maybe if I truly believed that Kavik was never my friend then it would come true." After that, I never thought about Kavik again... at least not directly. I still had dreams about him.