Iwasn’tthe type who gave up, but it had been ten minutes, and I was still in skin. Why the others hadn’t rounded the building to find me yet was beyond me. I reached for my underwear just as a howl pierced the buzzingair.
And then another wolfhowled.
Andanother.
The base of my spine tingled, and then my bones began to shift underneath my skin. Tears of relief coursed down my cheeks as my ears migrated to the top of my head and my mouth elongated into a muzzle filled with teeth that could scissor through bark and bone. The dusting of hair on my body thickened to summer fur. I fell onto my forepaws as my hind legs shortened and readjusted, as the wolf in me replaced thehuman.
In my four-legged form, I jogged around thehouse.
A large gray wolf with sharp blue eyes—Lucas, I imagined—howled, and this time I understood him.Did you have to take a shit orwhat?
I snarled athim.
Matt was more bear than wolf, butter-colored with vivid-green eyes. Next to him, I looked like a scrawny pup. Liam was much larger up close than he’d seemed in the woods. His glowing yellow-amber eyes raked over my unimpressive body before settling back on Frank. The elder crouched beside us, a strip of crimson fabric gripped in hishands.
“You’re going to head south.” He pointed toward the thick forest coating the side of the mountain. “We’ve spread pieces of this throughout the woods. Follow the trail until you find Eric. The rest of this shirt is tied to him. He’s your finishing line.” He passed the piece of fabric around so we could soak in the smell—sweet cigar smoke and cedar. “Now, the quickest way is straight down the hill, but it’s also the most hazardous. If you get stuck in a trap, we will free you at the end of the race. Remember: do not turn back to skin. I will feel it if you do.” He tapped his wrist as he straightened and rolled the cloth up into hispalm.
I was glad for the blood oath then, glad someone could track my whereabouts and vitals. I rotated my withers then crouched low, the tall grass tickling my thumpingchest.
“Ready. Set.” Frank’s voice rang out like a starting pistol. “Go!”
We sprang intoaction.
Lucas’s hind paws sprayed dirt into my eyes. I blinked wildly, slowed, then switched course. Frank had mentioned the shortest path was the most treacherous. Was it true or atrick?
Lucas dashed through the tree line, vanishing into the forest that spilled down the flank of the mountain. He was apparently not worried about the traps, or maybe he’d change course at a later point. Soon Matt and Liam were lost to the trees, too. Although I could hear the soft thuds of their paws and sense the hectic beats of their faraway hearts, I could no longer see them. Which was better. I needed to funnel my awareness onto theground.
I ran almost leisurely, stepping lightly through the underbrush. Spooked raccoons scampered out in front of me, and birds flapped out of trees, wings dark against the dazzlingsky.
At some point, I forgot this was a race and flew heedlessly down woodchip-covered trails. The distant rumble of a car reminded me to melt back into the forest. I cut across a billow of spiky ferns and came out crowned with a cloud of frisky black flies. I flicked my ears and swiped my tail, then growled until they buzzedoff.
Dense brushwood raked over my chest and leaf litter snagged in my silky white fur as I jogged toward a stretch of glittering water. My muscles became greedy for speed, so I ran faster. When my paws hit the chilly stream, I halted and lapped my fill. And then I pounced inside to cool my flushed limbs. I bounded down the riverbank, hopping over rotting trees and smoothrocks.
I thought I saw a blur of black fur to my left, but when I looked, there was nothing but a giant boulder. If I hadn’t drunk water, I could’ve blamed my delusion on thirst, but my mind was clear. I was making up company to comfort myself into thinking I wasn’t lagging behind.WasI laggingbehind?
I raised my face and sniffed the air, caught the musky scent of another wolf. I looked for him but didn’t see him. I sped up, slaloming through the trees, sliding over patches of dry dirt. I sniffed the air again. This time, it was the blend of tobacco and cedar that netted my senses. Sure enough, tied to a low branch, flapped a piece of red fabric. At least I was heading in the rightdirection.
I ducked past the branch but stumbled when my paws tangled on something. I backed up. Transparent fishing line glinted in the sunlight. Was this one of their traps or a vestige of a fishing expedition at the nearby creek? I bucked to unravel the plastic filament, but the knot tightened around mypastern.
I growled at the increasing jumble of thread, slid my fangs between it and my skin, and tugged. The fishing line sliced through my skin before finally ripping on my serratedteeth.
I moaned with relief then backed up to change routes. Another thread, this time taut, pressed against my hocks. I bounded forward, but not before hearing somethingclick.
The ground rumbled as though a herd of Mustangs were stampeding down the hill. I twisted myneck.
No wild horsesgalloped.
The noise was coming fromrocks.
Hugerocks.
They smashed against each other as they rolled. Sharp debris rained down on me, whipping my back. I sprang into action just as a large rock skimmed my hind paw. I faltered but recovered my footing fast. Desperation converted to pure adrenaline. As the stones thundered closer, I sprinted, the world blurring green, brown, gray. Thorns and rough bark frayed the pads of my paws, but I keptrunning.
I tried to change course, but a small boulder arced through the blue air and pounded into my spine, shredding my breath. I went down, down…down, rolling over and over. As the world spun out of focus, as up became down and down became up, I thought of the elders and the cruelty of their little game. Were they watching? Were they enjoying my grievousfall?
My mom’s face swam through my mind, eyes as blue as cornflowers, hair fluttering around her face like stalks of wheat caught in a breeze. I drifted in the beauty of the memory, finding comfort in her bright smile, in the low timber of her voice as she spoke my name. As my name transformed and distorted into something elseentirely.
Aroar.
