she was insanely thirsty. She groaned and gulped the full glass of water she had set on the bedside table; OK, that was a bit better. Oh wait, no it wasn’t. She needed more.
Groaning again, she swung her legs over the side of the bed and tried to envision getting to her feet. The idea seemed laughable.
Swaying, tottering, holding on to the wall for support, Tammy carefully opened the door of Julie’s guest room. She stood in the hallway, listening. Julie’s door was partway open, and she heard her friend’s steady breathing. Still sleeping. Lucky duck.
Tammy snuck down the hall to the bathroom, her bare feet silent against the wooden floor. She poured herself another glass of water and gulped it down on the spot – God, the tap water out here is so fresh and cold – and then poured one more to take back to her room.
Once back in the guestroom, the door closed tight, Tammy wondered if she would risk looking out the window. She feared the sun would burn her eyes right out of her head. But the draw of the mountains was too much; she had come to love looking at them, much to her surprise, and knowing they were there, just behind the closed drapes, was as enticing as ever.
She screwed up her eyes as tight as she could while still being able to see, and pulled the drapes aside. The mountains appeared, snowy and cold, but somehow welcoming.
Tammy’s eyes drifted down, down to the bushes just under her window. The bright green was beautiful against the pure white snow, and she smiled. Then something caught her attention and she looked more closely, her brow furrowed. The snow next to the bushes was all broken up. What was that?
Tammy leaned forward, her forehead pressed against the cool window. As her eyes focused and her exhausted brain clicked in to gear, she saw what was there and she gasped. Footprints. Large paw prints, to be exact, and a large round spot. Oh, my God . The wolf was right there – sitting outside my window. During the night? It was there for a while, no doubt: that round patch is where it was sitting and not moving.
In her mind, Tammy imagined a large gray animal sitting under a cold, bright full moon, staring up at her window while she slept. She shivered.
Chapter Four
On Monday morning at ten o’clock, the entire staff of Open Skies Ranch and Tammy were sitting in the restaurant, sipping coffee and listening intently to Phil.
“OK, so. Jake and I went out yesterday and found the tracks down by the stables and up near the Big House, and they’re way bigger than coyote tracks. I’d say that Jake is right, and he saw a wolf.”
Everyone sighed and stirred in their chairs.
“Hold on, guys. On the whole, I think it’s fine. I did some research online yesterday, and wolves have been spotted in the Colorado Rockies a bit more over the past few years. Generally, they stay away from people, so I’d guess that Jake just saw an especially curious one.” He shrugged. “I’d be surprised if we saw it again, to be honest.”
“But don’t wolves attack people if they’re hungry?” Maria’s eyes were wide with fear.
“Maria, hon,” Phil said gently. “There are over 300,000 elk in this state, and the population is out of control and so any wolf around these parts has plenty to eat out there in the wild. I read how there’s actually a lot of support in Colorado for wolves to be integrated in to the natural order, to keep the elk population within reasonable limits. The majority of people here in Colorado want wolves reintroduced to the Rockies, but seeing as they’re killed in huge numbers up north – in Montana and Idaho and Wyoming – they rarely get this far south.”
“Why are they killed up there?” Tammy asked. “If they’re so important to the natural order and the animal food chain and all that?”
Phil shook his head. “Misinformation about them, mostly, and irrational fears about how they kill livestock and attack kids and pets. Predator removal programs, and
Groaning again, she swung her legs over the side of the bed and tried to envision getting to her feet. The idea seemed laughable.
Swaying, tottering, holding on to the wall for support, Tammy carefully opened the door of Julie’s guest room. She stood in the hallway, listening. Julie’s door was partway open, and she heard her friend’s steady breathing. Still sleeping. Lucky duck.
Tammy snuck down the hall to the bathroom, her bare feet silent against the wooden floor. She poured herself another glass of water and gulped it down on the spot – God, the tap water out here is so fresh and cold – and then poured one more to take back to her room.
Once back in the guestroom, the door closed tight, Tammy wondered if she would risk looking out the window. She feared the sun would burn her eyes right out of her head. But the draw of the mountains was too much; she had come to love looking at them, much to her surprise, and knowing they were there, just behind the closed drapes, was as enticing as ever.
She screwed up her eyes as tight as she could while still being able to see, and pulled the drapes aside. The mountains appeared, snowy and cold, but somehow welcoming.
Tammy’s eyes drifted down, down to the bushes just under her window. The bright green was beautiful against the pure white snow, and she smiled. Then something caught her attention and she looked more closely, her brow furrowed. The snow next to the bushes was all broken up. What was that?
Tammy leaned forward, her forehead pressed against the cool window. As her eyes focused and her exhausted brain clicked in to gear, she saw what was there and she gasped. Footprints. Large paw prints, to be exact, and a large round spot. Oh, my God . The wolf was right there – sitting outside my window. During the night? It was there for a while, no doubt: that round patch is where it was sitting and not moving.
In her mind, Tammy imagined a large gray animal sitting under a cold, bright full moon, staring up at her window while she slept. She shivered.
Chapter Four
On Monday morning at ten o’clock, the entire staff of Open Skies Ranch and Tammy were sitting in the restaurant, sipping coffee and listening intently to Phil.
“OK, so. Jake and I went out yesterday and found the tracks down by the stables and up near the Big House, and they’re way bigger than coyote tracks. I’d say that Jake is right, and he saw a wolf.”
Everyone sighed and stirred in their chairs.
“Hold on, guys. On the whole, I think it’s fine. I did some research online yesterday, and wolves have been spotted in the Colorado Rockies a bit more over the past few years. Generally, they stay away from people, so I’d guess that Jake just saw an especially curious one.” He shrugged. “I’d be surprised if we saw it again, to be honest.”
“But don’t wolves attack people if they’re hungry?” Maria’s eyes were wide with fear.
“Maria, hon,” Phil said gently. “There are over 300,000 elk in this state, and the population is out of control and so any wolf around these parts has plenty to eat out there in the wild. I read how there’s actually a lot of support in Colorado for wolves to be integrated in to the natural order, to keep the elk population within reasonable limits. The majority of people here in Colorado want wolves reintroduced to the Rockies, but seeing as they’re killed in huge numbers up north – in Montana and Idaho and Wyoming – they rarely get this far south.”
“Why are they killed up there?” Tammy asked. “If they’re so important to the natural order and the animal food chain and all that?”
Phil shook his head. “Misinformation about them, mostly, and irrational fears about how they kill livestock and attack kids and pets. Predator removal programs, and
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