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They sat on the back porch as morning
breathed a frosty zephyr across the weathered planking. The
cold air stung the man's work and time-worn hands, but he
didn't notice. He reached out and placed his hand on his
best friend's shoulder. Danni turned a smiling face to the
man.
They shared their breakfast here, watching the stars blink
out as the sun spread its amber mantle over the meadows and
hills. In the fields, sheep shuffled closer together. When
hungry ewes called out to their mothers their breaths puffed
out in misty plumes.
Danni had been a gift from Aaron's son, Frank. She was a
beautiful chestnut, red, and white coated Australian
Shepherd and so smart Aaron felt a great pride for her. And
he had grown to deeply love his ever-happy companion.
After he brought Danni to the ranch, Frank purchased a
handsome male Aussie and bred him to Danni. She was due to
deliver soon. And, Frank had promised to help with the pups
and see that they all went to good homes.
In the glow of dawn, he saw the wolf, low on the trail,
watching them. It was the same every morning. Aaron had lost
several sheep to wolves. It always unsettled him to find the
wolf surveying the ranch. Aaron began carrying a rifle
whenever he was out with the sheep. He was too old to react
fast enough to ward off a wolf attack and Danni was not as
quick to move out due to her pregnancy.
Her cumbersome weight notwithstanding, Danni was always
eager to make her daily trip to the mountains. She had grown
accustomed to being given the freedom to hunt and explore.
She would head out in the afternoons, but not until Aaron
gave her permission with a nod. Danni then trotted off with
a grin, her body wiggling excitedly as she neared the path
that took her up, into the forest.
Aaron was out with the flock. The sheep were contentedly
grazing and Aaron took a deep breath of the loamy scented
air. Over the backs of his sheep Aaron's gaze searched for
Danni. High up the trail he found her weaving around shrubs
and boulders. As she neared the crest Aaron noticed movement
below Danni, on the same path. Threading its way more
quickly than Danni was able, the wolf followed Danni into
the pines and undergrowth.
Not once did Danni turn around. She didn't know she was
being hunted. Aaron raised his rifle, and set his aim on the
gray animal closing in on Danni and squeezed the trigger.
The wolf cried out in pain and stumbled up and out of sight.
He could follow the animal's path by focussing on the
diminishing sound of its whimpering. He shot again and heard
the agony in its pained screams.
That night Aaron was wide awake. He looked down at the end
of the bed. Danni's blanket was empty and cold. She had not
returned. Danni had shared his bed every night. Her warm
body was comforting and he fell asleep listening to the
gentle soughing of her breath. Felt the reassurance of her
presence from the weight of her against his ankles and feet.
He stared out into the shadows of his bedroom. Moonlight
dropped a sheet of silver on the floor 'neath the bedroom
window. But Aaron didn't notice. Tears obscured his vision.
Grief and loneliness bruised his spirit.
The next morning he searched the hills for her. He found her
amidst tall grass. She had bled to death, slowly. He reached
out and touched her shoulder. All that had been embodied in
the broken body below him--was gone. He wanted to take her
home to bury her. As he bent down to gather her up a deep
wound caught his eye. Between her belly and flank, a gunshot
wound... That second cry had not come from the wolf.
Strength left him and he collapsed next to his beloved
friend. She had been ravaged, her belly torn open. He lifted
his hands up, clasped them at the back of his neck, dropped
his head and wept.
He carried her home. He then wrapped her in her blanket from
the bed and buried her out past the back porch.
Two months passed. One morning Aaron found a pup on the
porch's weathered planking. The sleepy pup tilted his head
and chuffed a welcome. As Aaron bent down to get a better
look he heard the rustling of an animal in the nearby brush.
A wolf, and close enough to discern its sex--a female. She
rocked back on her hind legs and pivoted to turn. Her right
front leg was withered and she held it up as she trotted
away. Back into the mountains. In the gray shadows of dawn
he watched as she ribboned her way up the hill. As she
passed a rocky ledge, two wolf pups sprang out from their
hiding place, fast on their mother's heels.
The pups looked to be the same age as the pup on his porch.
And while they displayed all the physical traits of a wolf,
the little one at his feet was pure Australian Shepherd and
looked just like his mother, Danni.
He had been wrong about the wolf. She hadn't studied them
from the hill with malice. She had not scanned the ranch to
scope out a meal, but to look for her friend. She had been
waiting for Danni to join her--to come and play. In the two
months following Danni's death, he had lost 3 adult sheep to
the wolves. But not from the female who had just left him,
for she was too crippled now to bring down a full grown
sheep.
He turned back to the pup. As the sun spread its shimmering
cloak, a golden ray alit in the pup's blue eyes. He opened
his mouth and smiled up at Aaron. Aaron cast one last look
in the direction of the hills and whispered, "A sheep..." He
turned back to the pup, pulled him up, and finished, "in
wolf's clothing."
In the not too distant future. When the pup had grown lanky
and frolicsome--the wolf would return to the mountainside.
She would look to see if a playmate awaited her there,
keeping company with the old man.
Copyright ?© 2005 by Kathy Anne Harris |
