disappear

They'd returned. Their trek away had gone on for far longer than he desired, but there was a part of him that believed that time away had been worth it. Back now, he busied himself with reacquainting his senses with the status of their borders, replenishing their caches, and checking in on each of their wolves in turn. It seemed Tonravik was doing much the same. She'd called for Ivitaruk. Kero hadn't seen him since they'd been back.

Not long after a second howl went up, this one for Ivitaruk again. His ears flattened as his paws immediately shifted direction to join his mate. Something wasn't right. Ivitaruk hadn't howled back and as far as he knew, Kroc hadn't said anything about his venturing away. Had something happened? He pressed closer still. A third howl. This one for the pack. Something was definitely amiss.

He came across the scene and found his mate with her nose to the ground. Blood. He could smell it on the air. And mountain lion. That, he discovered when he lowered his nose. Putting two and two together, his mind leapt towards a conclusion, but didn't settle there. He was hopeful, but in the back of his mind, he was realistic. Blood, a mountain lion, and a missing wolf were three coincidences too many.