Chapter One
"The city is dangerous." It was a coyote that spoke.
A second coyote nodded. "I hear others," she observed. The second was female, with a black-tipped bushy tail and tall ears. The first had gray-brown thick fur, and long legs. Both animals spoke wolvish, the common language between all canines. A loud wail rang out in the damp silence. The wiry coyote pricked his ears toward the sound.
"Doffle, let's go!" As if in one fluid movement, both coyotes bolted down the rocky cliffside like a waterfall. They were used to this kind of terrain; their paws hardened and muscles bulging. The one called Doffle was quicker. Suddenly the first coyote dug his claws into the ground and lurched to a stop. Doffle stumbled.
"Trey! What's the matter?" she snapped at her mate.
"It's near the city," his voice sounded far-off. His eyes drifted over the bright lights and he turned his gaze back to Doffle. He had only been in the city once before, but Doffle had grown up there. It was her first home, and she had nothing to fear.
"Come on, there's easy food," her fur rippled in the wind.
Trey looked up. Millions of dots poked through the dark blue sky. "It's getting late," he finally said and started off again.
They were very close to where the sound occurred when they two heard a pitiful whine coming from somewhere in front of them. Doffle padded around a large boulder, and gasped.
"Trey, come here!" she barked. Trey skirted the corner and blinked three times.
Before the pair lay a limp gray she-wolf. Blood pooled around her feet. Beside her a newborn wolf pup whined. It couldn't see or hear. Without thinking for a second longer, she pulled the wet pup to her belly.
"What are you doing? It's a wolf."
It nursed contentedly. The coyote looked up. "Nevertheless, we must care for it." Licking his white fur dry, she added, "and it's part of the canine code."
"He must have a name," Trey said.
"How about Solar?" she replied. By now, Solar, the small ball of fluff, had curled up, breathing calmly.
"We shouldn't take him," he argued, not answering the question.
Suddenly, Trey's fur stood on end. His hackles rose warningly.
"The others have come," he said dryly.