Leah ran like the wind, as if something were chasing her. She smiled inwardly at that thought - there was nothing in the forest that her wolf was afraid of. Actually, there wasn't much that could catch her either, including her packmates. The leaf litter from the forest floor flew up under her paws, leaves and pine needles fluttering back to the ground as she passed. She slowed, listening, as the sound of quickly running water interrupted her thoughts.
The water was cool and refreshing, and she lapped up her fill, then found a sunny spot to lie down and rest. Her sides rose and fell with her panting, her body cooling down in the way of wolves everywhere. Her thoughts strayed, as usual, to Sam Uley - the reason she was running. She loved and hated him in pretty much equal measure since he'd tossed her aside for her cousin. The love part was irksome, and she had tried to bury that facet of her fascination with him. So far, she had been spectacularly unsuccessful.
Sam had been her first love. Being constantly exposed to his half-naked self as part of the same pack was torture - a continual reminder of his infidelity. Against her will, she conjured up the image of his lazy, self-satisfied smile. In this eternally looping mental home movie, his russet skin was flushed with the exertion - and satisfaction - of their recent lovemaking. She knew every inch of his muscular body intimately - his scent, his touch, his taste. He reached out to touch her cheek…
ENOUGH! The grey wolf sprang to her feet and resumed her run. She no longer cared where she was headed, as long as it was away from the reservation. And Sam.
The ground was colder this far north. The dirt under her feet crunched, off and on, with a thin coating of ice. Leah slowed, sniffing the air carefully. Something was not quite right.
She followed her nose to the half-frozen carcass of a female wolf. Her body was held in a cruel bear trap, and she appeared to have bled to death, which would have taken some time. Those damn traps were a danger to all the forest animals, Leah included. As long as her front paws were free, she could phase and use her hands if she stepped in one, but she hated the things. The wolf had apparently been nursing, and Leah scanned the area for cubs.
The black fur was barely noticeable among the rocks and dried leaves, and Leah's heart sank as her delicate nose again picked up the scent of decomposing flesh. She nudged the dead cub with her nose and detected a flicker of movement. Half hidden under the dead wolf cub was a second cub, barely alive, too weak even to cry out. She picked him up carefully in her mouth, tugging his little body out from under his brother's, and laid him on the ground.
The poor little thing was cold, and Leah curled her body around him protectively. He recognized her warmth and started weakly rooting around, looking for milk. Leah shook her head. "Sorry, little guy. No milk here. But if you live long enough, I'll find you something. I promise." She picked him up again the way his mother would, careful not to injure him with her razor sharp teeth, and headed back the way she had come.
Several times along the way, Leah stopped and set the weak cub on the ground, warming him again and again with her body. "Hang on, Waya," she whispered, unconsciously calling him by the Indian word for wolf. "Just a little while, and I'll find you some warm milk."
Amazingly, the pup was still alive when she trotted into the Clearwaters' back yard. Seth looked up from his work and dropped the wrench he was holding as he worked on an old motorcycle Jake had given him. "Leah! What the heck…" He caught the baby wolf in his outstretched hands as she ran around the corner of the house to phase and dress quickly.
"He's starving, Seth. Mother was killed in a bear trap, and his twin apparently starved to death. Let's try to get something warm inside him. Should we try milk?"
Seth shrugged. "It's all we've got, Leah. We'll give it a shot." He handed the pup to Leah, who cradled it against her chest.
"Come on, Waya, let's get some warm food into that little tummy.* She followed Seth into the house, and they poured some milk in a shallow bowl and put it in the microwave just long enough to take the chill off. "Here, baby, see if you can figure out how to get it." She set him on wobbly legs and he stuck his nose into the bowl, coughing and sneezing weakly. His tiny tongue flicked out and licked the warm liquid from his nose. He tried again, with limited success, but at least he was getting a little nourishment.
"Do you think he'll make it, Leah?" Seth's eyes were wide.
"Depends on whether we can figure out how to feed him, I guess," Leah replied. "Maybe a baby bottle would work. I think Mom has one somewhere around here." She ran down the cellar stairs and came up a few minutes later with a glass bottle. She carefully heated a needle and poked a larger hole in the nipple, then poured the milk in the bottle.
"Okay, little wolf, let's see if you can get the hang of this." She held him cradled in her arm and squeezed a few drops at a time into his mouth until he was sucking hungrily on the nipple. Leah smiled at Seth. "I think his chances just took a big jump in the right direction."
Charlie tapped on the back door and walked in. "Hey, Seth...Leah. Is your mom here?" He did a double-take when he saw the baby wolf in Leah's arms. "What the heck is that?"
Leah rolled her eyes. "It's a wolf cub, Charlie." She laughed at his expression. "And no, it's not mine! Its mother was killed and I'm hoping to rescue it. Mom hasn't seen it yet." She turned her attention back to the pup. "I think that's enough for now, little fella. I'll give you more in a little while."
"Can I hold him, Leah?" Seth reached for the tiny animal.
"Okay, but let's keep him away from humans for now - as much as we can," Leah replied, gently depositing him in Seth's hands. "I don't know if we'll be able to return him to the wild." She already knew she didn't want to, but she also knew that wolves are wild animals and would probably not make ideal pets.
The pup thrived under Leah's care. Every day, when she came home from work, he was waiting patiently just inside the back door. He wagged his tail and nipped at her feet until she picked him up and petted him. His fur was black with an undertone of brown in the sunlight. She continued to call him Waya, and it seemed to suit him. By this time, Leah had stopped talking about returning him to the forest. He thought he was a dog.
Waya was about eight weeks old when Jacob stopped by unexpectedly. A low warning growl stopped Jake's hand on the door knob. Leah spoke sharply. "Down, Waya!" The wolf obediently settled on the floor, watching the door closely, his tail twitching. "Come on in, Jake. Slowly," Leah called.
The wolf remained on the floor as the door opened, but the growl started again. Jacob snapped, taking Leah's cue. "No, Waya!" He quieted but continued to watch Jacob as he approached cautiously. "Good boy," he said softly, letting the wolf sniff his hands.
There was no further trouble with Jacob. If Leah was on patrol and Waya needed a walk, Jacob took over. His control was just as firm as Leah's, and the two male wolves bonded surprisingly well. Somewhere along the way, Jacob and Leah bonded as well.
By the time Waya was a year old, he was Leah's constant companion. He was large for a natural wolf (as opposed to the shifter wolves, who all dwarfed him in size). He accepted the others for the most part and seemed to accede to their superior size and intellect. Leah found it disconcerting that he was the only wolf she couldn't communicate with when she was in wolf form. She kept him on a leash when they left her yard, where Seth had erected a six foot stockade fence. Washington state's laws were very strict regarding what they considered exotic pets.
Waya had been subjected to intense obedience training, and he had learned to recognize Leah as his Alpha. He was generally well behaved, but if a rabbit crossed his path it was only her superior strength that kept him in check. Sue was still skittish in his presence, and she never let him in the house when neither of her children was home. At this point, he was way too big to be a house pet anyway.
Jacob had gradually become a member of the family. He and Leah were spending a lot of time together, and Waya no longer reacted at all when he came to the door. He was not, however, ready to share Leah's affection - with anyone. Jake walked in and closed the door behind him, crossing the room to where Leah was standing. He slipped his arm around her waist and bent to kiss her, and Waya barked a warning.
Leah looked surprised. "I don't think Waya liked that, Jake," she teased. I, on the other hand, thought it was very nice." She grinned and, shooting the wolf a warning glance, stretched up on her toes to kiss him back.
"You might as well get used to this, Waya," Jacob grinned. "I'm not going anywhere."