Silence of the Wolves. Hannah Pole

just in time to see the wolf attempt to leap over a fallen tree.

      He didn’t make it though. As he began to jump, his front paws left the ground but his back legs gave out on him, the wounded one collapsing under his weight and sending him awkwardly spiralling towards the floor.

      Tam didn’t move, didn’t breathe. She couldn’t. She just watched as the wolf awkwardly righted himself, but stayed crouched on the ground, whimpering slightly as he tried to move his leg but couldn’t.

      Slowly, carefully, Tam moved. Only an inch as she lowered herself to the ground and, in one painstaking movement, she knelt before the wolf.

      Her knife was clipped to the side of her bra and her hands itched to reach for it, but she knew it was a bad idea. Currently the wolf was showing no signs of aggression and she didn’t want to spook him again.

      As she looked into those beautiful grey eyes, she saw no anger, no malice. She saw fatigue, pain and confusion. She could read the emotions behind them like a book.

      As she watched him, it seemed as though he was being as careful as she to move carefully. It was almost as if it were he who didn’t want to spook her rather than the other way around. He lowered his back end to the ground, shuffling a little awkwardly around his back leg. He then proceeded to lie down completely, resting his head on his paws, keeping his eyes still locked onto hers. It was as if he’d visibly given up.

      Tam slowly edged forward. She must be absolutely crazy, knowing this was a vicious wild animal and that it could tear her apart easily. Yet her gut told her the wolf wasn’t going to hurt her.

      She must be going mad. She was going to end up being that weird woman that was nearly killed by a wild wolf because she thought she could be friends with it.

      And yet, this moment, this intense, terrifying, incredibly special moment, was one she would treasure for the rest of her life; one she would write about and talk of over and over again to friends, family and, maybe, one day her children.

      The day mommy made friends with a wolf.

      Holding her breath, her heart beating so rapidly she felt as though it was going to jump out of her chest, Tam slowly lifted her trembling hand, watching the wolf intently. If the wolf so much as flinched, she was going to hightail it out of there. Carefully, she extended her arm. The damn limb shook so much she was sure it was going to vibrate right out of its socket.

      Reaching a little further, she gingerly let the very tips of her fingers brush the fur on his beautiful black and grey face.

      And he was oh so beautiful. From the tips of his ears, down his spine and through to the tip of his tail was black fur which blended gracefully into the grey fur that ran down his sides and across his face, running into the white fur that covered his underside and jaw. He was absolutely huge.

      Tam had always imagined wolves to be roughly the size of a large dog, but this wolf was practically as big as a full-grown man. Maybe even bigger. He was absolutely stunning; beautiful but deadly.

      Slowly, carefully, she let her hand dip a little lower until her fingers were running through his soft fur; it felt like velvet underneath her fingertips. She inhaled deeply, his dark, almost chesnutty scent filled her nostrils; a scent she recognised. Tam knew she had smelt this musky aroma before; it was so oddly familiar.

      Broken memories flooded her, but disappeared as quickly as they came; she hadn’t a hope in hell of trying to decipher them. In that moment, any fear washed away, to be replaced with the absolute certainty that this wolf wouldn’t hurt her; he was nothing to be afraid of and, if anything, he would undoubtedly protect her.

      Christ alive, she must be going crazy, this was a wild animal, not something to feel relaxed around, let alone safe with!

      Yet, even as fear prickled her spine, and images of what could happen to her flickered through her imagination, the wolf made her feel safe. He gently leant into her touch, allowing her to stroke the side of his head. He turned his muzzle slowly towards her, resting his chin briefly on her open hand before licking her palm and moving back to rest his head on her.

      Tam watched him almost in a daze, she had no idea how long the two of them sat there for, staring at each other. It was the most intensely surreal moment of her life. Her heart was thudding so sporadically, so harshly, she was almost sure the damn thing was going to break through her ribcage. The certainty that this wolf wasn’t going to hurt her, wasn’t going to attack her, did little to calm the instinctual fear riding her gut, but she would be damned if she was going to let that ruin this moment. The wolf moved his head, only an inch, yet even so, she flinched at the motion; she couldn’t help it. As if the wolf knew she was feeling particularly jumpy, he moved slowly; steady movements that seemed so gentle. It was almost as if he was doing everything he could to not spook her, to make sure she didn’t fear him.

      Any lingering fear she may have had was hastily stripped away as the wolf moved forward, positioned himself so he was lying directly in front of her, pawing at her feet, a motion that almost looked like he was making sure he had her attention. Looking up at her, his eyes could only be described as regretful as he let rip a howl that could crack windows. She watched in disbelief, terror freezing her to the ground, as the wolf’s arms and legs started to bow and distort, his entire body beginning to move and writhe. It looked for all the world like his body was breaking down and rebuilding itself. His face started collapsing in on itself, jaw cracking, tail shortening until it was no more, the beautiful black and grey fur that covered him in rippling waves disappearing into his skin until, finally, it was over.

      It took only seconds until what was left…

      …was a naked man lying on the cold forest floor.

      His eyes had stayed locked on hers the whole time.

      ‘Tamriel,’ he choked out. ‘I’m so sorry…’

      He carefully reached a hand out towards her, gingerly brushing a finger across her arm. She wanted to run, to shove his touch away, but she didn’t move. Didn’t blink. Didn’t breathe. She couldn’t do anything but stare at the man before her.

      ‘Wha…?’ She cleared her throat. ‘You…you were the wolf…’

      Chapter Four

      Leyth lay on the floor of the woodland, naked as the day he was born. The twigs and dead leaves beneath him dug into his now very human skin, but that was nothing in comparison to the fear Tamriel was clearly experiencing. Hell, he hadn’t known what to do. Try as he might, he just couldn’t outrun her. She was too goddamn stubborn for her own good, and would not give up the chase. Eventually he’d seen no other way out, so he’d shifted back into human form.

      He watched her carefully, his hand brushing her arm ever so lightly. Her wide green eyes tracked his every movement, her mouth hanging open.

      ‘What the hell?’ she struggled out, wild eyes darting from him to the surrounding trees. She almost looked as if she expected someone to jump out from the woodland and shout ‘April fools!’

      ‘Tamriel, I’m so sorry,’ he repeated, struggling for words. What the hell could he tell her? There was no other explanation for what she’d just witnessed, for what he was, other than the truth. ‘I’m a werewolf.’

      She openly gaped at him, and it broke his damn heart. That moment they’d just shared, when she believed him to be just a wolf, was so special; it was an emotionally raw moment where he’d put all his trust in her and she in him. And that was something he’d never done before; as wolf or human, he’d never trusted a female enough to get close to her.

      Now she had to trust him; she had to believe the words he had to tell her or it could kill her. But forcing them out of his mouth was the hardest thing he’d ever had to do. This was going to destroy her life and everything she knew about herself. It could ruin her.

      ‘Tamriel, I’m a werewolf.’ He hurt for her as he said the words. ‘And so are you.’

      For