A darkness in my soul (read only)

Instead of going home once she left the hot springs, Koontz continued heading away from the plateau, attempting to stay busy and leave behind the thoughts that plagued her like a sickness. She had been meaning to visit the pack that lived on the mountain for a while and now seemed like the perfect time to pay a visit. As she made her approach, she noted the deserted look of the place and wondered if she had waited too long—were they even here anymore?—or if the pack was just particularly gifted at concealment.

She stopped in the shadow of the mountain and looked upward at the gunmetal gray sky. She smelled rain, yet none fell just yet. Licking her chops, she deliberated about how to present herself to the resident wolves. Eventually, Koontz decided to announce her presence with three short, sharp barks. She then fell back to a position about fifty yards outside their borders to wait, her pale eyes flicking over the mountainside every few minutes for any sign of movement among the rockery.

When no one approached after half an hour, a quizzical Koontz decided to go ahead and howl as a last-ditch effort to get someone's attention. The noise carried effectively, echoing off the crags, so she knew that it could not be ignored. Yet still no one came. Nobody's home, Koontz concluded with a slight touch of dismay. She knew they could all be away on a hunt or some other sort of expedition, yet she intuited that they were not only gone but that they weren't coming back.

Brow furrowed, Koontz swallowed her disappointment and turned to lope her way home.