To Grandma's House

Procrastination = Walking*

{* chapter edited}

It was after 8pm and the sky was already dark. Xael began cursing herself for not taking care of the serpentine belt on her Jeep before she left town. It had started to squeal 10 miles into the trip. She thought she had an extra one in her Jeep kit but forgot she loaned it to a stranded motorist 2 weeks ago and never bought a new one to replace it. So now she would have to walk the rest of the way.

At this time of night, the stretch of road she was on was usually deserted or had very little traffic after dark. She probably would have been able to thumb a ride if she had made it earlier. Getting onto tribal land had taken longer that it should have. There was a tourist bus that was trying to gain entrance, they didn't know the area wasn't part of any tour. 2 hours later the tribal police got the bus turned around and headed back to the resort it had come from. Saying that the passengers were upset was an understatement. They had heard that there were Native-American Wolfen in the area and they had hoped to see some and get a few pictures.  If they had just been out to visit the town and sight see that may have been allowed, but not to gawk or be disrespectful.  The town was not a zoo.

Wolfen weren't anything new, they were known since the 70s but choose to keep to their tight-knit communities, especially the older ones. The younger members integrated into the outside world almost without notice. Unless you knew what to look for, you couldn't tell Wolfen from human, unless you pissed one off. The tale-tale red eyes, a trait of an Alpha, was a sure sign. Omegas on the other hand, were unnaturally beautiful and thought to be less aggressive. The status was not gender specific, men and women could be either one.

Walking to the back of the jeep, Xael grabbed her backpack and the safety hoody she usually wore when on her motorcycle. It was neon yellow with huge reflective stripes. She wanted to make sure cars would see her in case one passed by. She also dug out the safety vests for her two companions, Gunner and Moose. They were Shepard/Wolf hybrid puppies she had found abandoned outside the firehouse she worked at as an EMT.   The two were more wolf than Shepard.  They were scraggly and nothing but skin and bones but the three connected with each other almost immediately. She took them home and gave them each a flea bath and a good meal. The next day she dropped them off at the vet to be checked out and get their shots. The pups were the closest thing she had to a family while living in the city, but now she was on her way home to help her grandma with the diner she owned.

Safety vests secured, she put their hiking booties on to protect their paws. It was an 8 mile walk just to reach the dirt road her grandma lived on, then another 2 miles to her house. She also attached bike flashers to their pup rucksacks which contained enough food for 3 days and mini med kits. The last step was putting their dog collars on, Moose was prone to chasing small game so it was just a precaution.

She was deep inside tribal land and the area was heavily wooded. Knowing that wild animals roamed freely, she also grabbed her buck knife and a couple large bottles of water for her and the pups. The knife was a gift from her cousin Kai. Most women wanted jewelry, while Xael preferred practical and useful gifts.

Activating the flashing bike lights on all the packs they were all set for the unplanned hike and started up the road. Being Wolfen she could see just fine in the dark and didn't need light. But she turned her head lamp on all the same to warn oncoming cars, if there even were any at this time of night.

The walk would take about 2 hours as she was a fast walker. Luckily she messaged her grams when she stopped at the gas station in town to get water and snacks. Once you got this far into the woods, cell signals were hit and miss. She pulled her phone from her back pocket to check and sure enough, no signal. Xael had her pups walked along the shoulder, blocking them from traffic as they protected her from anything that dared come out of the woods. It wasn't uncommon to see wild wolves in the area. But they never caused Wolfen any issues.

She was forty minutes into the walk when off in the distance she heard a car. Xael leashed the pups and they immediately took up their spots. The pups were Schutzhund trained, with a single word they would carry out her command. They would even attack with a hand gesture; so against the 3 of them nothing stood a chance. But the leash was to protect her pups against unbiased claims of aggression; being leashed protected them against the law.

// Back in town //

"Sheriff Skylar? You got a call from Ms. Red Wolf."

"Thanks Beau."

"Hey Em, what's going on?"

"Hi Sheriff Skylar, I'm sorry to bother you, but my grandkid was on their way to visit. I think they might have run into some trouble. Will you guys check Cutler's Pass, I'm getting kinda worried."

"Sure thing Em, You got a description of the vehicle?"

"Silver jeep, there should be two pups with them."

"Ok, I'll have Deputy Shado head out to take a look, he's already out that way."

"Oh thank you Sherriff, you guys stop by the diner for breakfast!"

"Now Ms. Emma? Are you trying to bribe an officer of the law?"

"You know it!"

"We'll be there then! I'll let you know if we find anything out. You have a good night Em."

"Thank you again Sherrif."

"Beau? Get ahold of Shado and tell him to check out Cutler's pass for a silver Jeep."

"Yes, Sir."

"Deputy Shado come in."

"Shado here..."

"We need you to check out Cutler's Pass. Ms. Red Wolf called, her grandkid hasn't shown up yet and she thinks they might have ran into trouble."

"Ok, I'll check it out."

//End Back in Town//

"Sheriff Skylar this is Shado, come in - over."

"Skylar here, what you got Shado?"

"Found the Jeep, the hoods up. Looks like they ran into car trouble and probably took off on foot. I'm going to head up to Ms. Emma's and see if I run into him."

"Took off on foot? Out there at night?"

"I know. You got a name?"

"Yeah, Xael Thunder Wolf. About 5'10, long black hair, muscular, grey eyes, there should be two large dogs also."

"Thunder Wolf? That's a weird name, wait, what color eyes?"

"Grey"

"All right, copy that."

'Who the hell would walk out here at night?'

Not even Shado dared walk alone this deep inside tribal land and he was an Alpha. This is where the wild wolves roamed and encounters with them were not uncommon.   Being protected, no one was allowed to harm them.