The Cynic and the Wolf by Julie Steimle (ebook voice reader TXT) 📕

He hung up.

But Audry kept singing, more to herself as she realized that everyone had been right. Harlin was a heartless player who just wanted to get laid. "You don't own me. Don't turn me down, I'll never stay…" But she was crying. More than angry at him, she was angry at herself for believing him, for almost compromising what she valued just so she could believe they were having something real.

And worse, when she eventually went to school, she'd have to see him. Harlin went to the same clubs as she did. She would bump into him all the time… And would he try to get back with her? Or would he finally just give up and move on to an easier girl?

And as she slogged along, Audry went over their dragged on relationship, thinking about that. What if Harlin was always one hundred percent a player? What if he had stalked her out? What if he had seen her as a naïve homeschooled girl with whom he could lead along until he had conquered her? There were men like that—those that loved the hunt up until conquest, and then they abandoned their girlfriends and moved along to the next prey. Her mother had warned her once. She had said that liking dangerous boys was a very bad character flaw of hers. And Harlin had been a bad boy. She just didn’t see it until now.

Finishing off her circuit, taking more pictures as the weight of that heart wrenching moment bore her deeply across the snow, Audry sighed heavily, wiping her eyes. It wasn't fair. She had to look harder for the good men. Perhaps that Avril Levine song was right. She was better off alone anyway. And now she really wanted to talk to her older brother. Once she was done with this, her visit to her brother's will be much needed.

After a few more pictures, Audry headed back to the lodge.

As she was rounding the corner, she saw Rick go outside. He wasn't wearing his coat, though. His arms were wrapped around himself and he was trudging in toward the wind, looking to the wooded areas as the snow was falling.

What was wrong with him? He had an expensive warm coat hanging in the kitchen. Why didn't he just put it on?

Audry trudged to the kitchen door. Rick didn't see her, which she preferred. Going inside, Audry looked around. Basic food chopping was under way, the clacking and snapping of knives through crisp vegetables resonating in the room like a tribal beat. The kitchen gossip was mostly silent, this crew a little different than the other one, mostly part-timers there for extra seasonal help. The full timers must have been out in the lodge decorating for the New Year's celebrations. Mrs. Gruber was the only real official staff in the room, and she was happily assembling an apple crumble.

"Where is Rick Deacon going without his coat?" Audry asked, pointing at the closed door.

Lifting her head, Mrs. Gruber said offhandedly, "Oh… he won't be out for long."

"A guy with his weak constitution should not be going outside without a coat—especially mid-winter," Audry said, approaching her. "It is a bad idea."

Mrs. Gruber chuckled thinking to herself on that. "I assure you, his constitution is not weak. It is as strong as a wolf's."

"Say that to his allergies," Audry muttered, shaking her head while taking off her winter stuff. "I mean… who in the world is allergic to garlic? I get honey. But garlic boosts your immune system."

Chuckling more, Mrs. Gruber just shrugged.

Audry removed the rest of her winter things then went back upstairs and uploaded her data.

Sorting and filing took a bit, but she was almost done. She had one more trip that night—her final trip, and she intended to do it before the sun entirely set. So she had to grab dinner early. By the time the staff started cooking and had quit chopping, Audry snatched up some leftover soup, bread and hummus. She sat on the bench and watched the door, waiting for Rick to return sneezing and shaking.

But he never did.

In fact, he didn't come down for dinner either.

"Is he still out there?" Audry murmured.

Mrs. Gruber wasn't in the room to answer. Someone in the temporary staff shrugged and said, "I wasn't watching."

Another shook his head. "Nobody came in that I know of."

Audry nodded. His coat was still on the hook.

Then Mrs. Gruber came in. A couple of the other staff were with her carrying empty boxes. "…to here. We have a few light bulbs out in the strings which need replacing."

"Fine." Mrs. Gruber then looked to dinner. "Once you have put that away, I need you to set the chicken out into the yard."

"Again?" that staff member complained. "Honestly, why bother? They keep getting killed by that wolf. It is such a waste."

Turning hard to face that worker, Mrs. Gruber said briskly, "If you don't like it, you can take another job somewhere else."

That staff member paled.

Then Mrs. Gruber added, "Look, the Deacons bring live chicken for the wolves. We set it out so the wolf does not starve."

The cook's helper gasped in disgust. "What?"

"You heard me," Mrs. Gruber said. "The chicken is for the wolf. Hunting out there is not very good right now. The wolf is only passing through."

"Don't you think the wolf would stay because we leave out the chickens?" that staff member demanded.

Shrugging, Mrs. Gruber said, "Honestly, I was hoping he'd be able to find enough game on his own. The chicken is a last resort."

This amazed Audry. The Deacons really did love those wolves. No wonder those chickens had felt like a sacrifice. It didn't make sense to leave an animal out in the snow like that for no reason. The reason was that it was food. And no wonder Rick had whispered for the staff to lock the doors.

But where was he now? Rick. Not the wolf.

He had not come back for dinner. And Audry needed to go out soon. She was actually worried. 

"What is troubling you, dear?" Mrs. Gruber asked, seeing the expression on Audry's face.

Audry cringed. Yet she said, "I know this is silly, but his coat is right there and no one saw him come in. I have been out in that snow day in and day out, and I know how cold it gets, especially at night. Shouldn't a ranger be sent to find Rick Deacon?"

The woman raised her eyebrows then looked to the coat on the hook. Chuckling, she shook her head. "Ah… Well, maybe Howie came in another way."

Audry stared at her.

Seeing her look, Mrs. Gruber said, "You are such a sweetheart for caring about his health—especially since I know you two have been getting on like oil and water. But I assure you, he's fine. You will see him tomorrow, right as rain—or at least in one piece."

That made no sense. Colds attacked you whole. Death overtook you completely. He could be lying face down in the snow for all she knew.

"He keeps skipping dinner," one of the staff said.

"He goes out for dinner," Mrs. Gruber sharply replied. And she went back to work.

Audry looked to the door once more, clenched her teeth and sighed. She hoped Mrs. Gruber was right. Even rich idiots didn't deserve to die of hypothermia in the snow.

She cleaned up the rest of her meal, washed up, then took care of things before going out for the final time on her project. This time, she would collect everything. And she could put it all past her.

Chapter Eight

It was darker than usual because of the cloud cover, waning Gibbous right after the full moon or not. As it was her final trip, Audry borrowed the lodge’s toboggan to carry all the equipment she was lugging back. Her backpack was fuller of other things as well. She had her emergency space blankets in case it got too cold. Her thermal warmer and flares, and all the bungee cords to keep her equipment on the sled as she went along.

Because this was her last trip, Audry visited all the stations and took photographs of each one. She collected her cameras and sim cards from around the cabins first. She wanted to go downhill with her load rather than haul it uphill, so she had a long hike. Along the way down, she stopped at the large manmade den near the fallen tree. She had to get the motion sensor equipment out and take the time lapse cameras also. Checking the entrance first with a flashlight, just in case there was an animal already inside, Audry saw no tracks in or out. She then peered in to make doubly sure something wasn't hiding inside.

It was empty.

Climbing in, as the camera was set deep inside the den, Audry crawled on her hands and knees to get through. But inside was spacious. And being out of the wind, Audry drew in a breath and decided to thaw for a bit. Though it was dirty and the ceiling was low with tree roots holding up the frozen soil, it was surprisingly warm.

Something loud, like a gunshot, cracked over the air outside. Audry turned, listening.

It wasn't far.

Audry stiffened. Had the hunters come back on the lot? Had they seen her? Had they seen her sled?

Crawling out, Audry could hardly see very far. The moonlight broke through the cloud cover in spots, but it was still snowing… like a whiteout. The wind whistled about her head. And it was getting colder. Pulling up her cellphone, Audry tried to call the main office of the lodge. But looking at the screen, she had no bars. Looking around more, the snowstorm was just getting worse. It had been a bad idea to do this at night, Audry quickly realized. She should have just saved it for the morning.

Thinking on that, Audry recognized what she had to do.

She went back into the den after her equipment, thinking over a quick escape plan. The toboggan was hardly full. She could strap down what she had, pull her sled to the ski run and then climb on to slide the rest of the way down. Then she could go back for the rest of the equipment in the morning.

Yet just as she turned to go out, the wolf ran into the den.

Falling back against the heavy roots, Audry slapped her gloved hand over her mouth to keep from screaming as she retreated to the side wall. Her other hand went directly to her tranquilizer gun.

The wolf staggered to the other side of the den, rabbit in mouth, chest heaving as it breathed. It stared at her once it saw her, keeping its distance. As it shifted around the den, Audry noticed that it was limping.

Putting down the rabbit, the wolf peered at her in the dark. For a moment the moonlight reflecting off the snow shone into the den, illuminating the wolf. Almost on instinct, Audry picked up her lowlight camera and took a picture of him. It was a he.

His face was mesmerizing, his fur an unusual reddish color.