for...”

“Supporting Sergey?” she asked  with irony. “I believe NOW you are sorry.”

“Ow, cease that.” Whispered Cris to her ear. “He got his payback.” He added pointing on broken paw.

“But what you will do with me?” asked Amber.

“We’ll try to feed you, until you are disable.” Replied wolfdog. “But don’t hope for fat meals. It’s not easy to hung for additional jaw. Especially, when Sergey’s pack is around. And...” he smiled and ordered with indifferent voice. “You have to tell us everything you heard about theirs plans. Where they go, what they intend and if they want to fight.”

“For what?” amazed Natalya. “That is not our case anymore.”

“Well...” replied dog. “We must learn as much as we can to avoid them. That’s all I mean.”

“Right.” Natalya nodded her head. “You are totally right, Cris. I have to remember to trust your wit.” Dog smiled with a bit ashamed smile, but his nervousness wasn’t caused exactly by what she expected to.

“Good, I can tell you what Sergey intended two days ago, before I challenged him. I just disagreed with his crazy plan of sudden attack on nearest pack and driving it off from shore...”

Cris raised his ears and tried to remember every word of that speech. And miles away, deeper in forests of peninsula, Niju’s scouts were howling the first report to the haven. Peninsula Coalition was also preparing for war.

“Ow, that’s good.” Smiled Steele, standing on hill next to Niju and Dymitr.

“Good?” surprised his former teacher. “I though you don’t want to fight.”

“I mean: good that Cris is transmitting. that means he is all right.” And added quieter, clenching his jaws with unrest. “Yet.”

VII. An Outcast

Two days passed for Natalya and Cris in very weird way. For most of time they were hunting to provide food to themselves and Amber. They couldn’t afford to guard wounded wolf, but black-furred ensured them he can defend himself. So silver-furred and wolfdog were running alone in forests of cape, looking for game. But after successful hunting, until weariness got them, they were just wandering around, laughing and chatting airily. Or at least she was airy.

Cris was driving theirs trips deeper in land to search for more tracks of Conquerors Pack. It wasn’t too hard to do it, because vast group left many clear traces. Brownish-furred was more concerned not to show Natalya what he was doing. “I can’t let her know what I’m up to.” He thought. “security of whole operations depends on it.” But actually he was some others reasons. She-wolf was seeing all his actions from completely different perspective and her interpretation was very flattering.

“You are very special, Cris.” She said, when they were resting on hill, few miles from shore. It was about midnight, so they were slowly going back to Amber, but made some short break. “You are just stray dog, but you’re acting like pack leader. Ow...” she looked on his face. “I’m sorry, that I called you...”

“Dog?” surprised Cris. “I am dog and I’m not ashamed by that. Call it as it is.”

“Right..” nodded she-wolf. “But I mean you are so protective... for me and for Amber. Actually he is not your friend nor relative, but you take care about him unselfishly.” Cris gulped, hearing then, but she didn’t notice it. “It’s very noble...”

“Maybe... Maybe not.” Replied dog. “I just have some great time with you... Or maybe I saved Amber just to impress you, huh?” smiled with gallant smile, hiding his confusion.

“Well, it that it true, you succeeded!” replied Natalya and burst in laughter. She laid in snow more comfortable, getting a bit closer to brownish-furred. “So Cris... tell me something about you.”

“E...” murmured dog. “I’d better not. Sorry, I just wish not to speak about it.”

“Hard memories?”

“Some sort.” Nodded Cris. “Just let me say I’m here and now without sled nor pack. I guess it’s the most important thing in my life now.”

“Sorry, Cris.” Whispered Natalya and licked his forehead. He nodded, saying that’s all right, but in the same movement he sniffed a distant scent of Sergey’s pack. “So let’s go back, to Amber...”

“No... I mean...” replied dog. “Go back, I will stay here for a while...” seeing amazed stare of Natalya, he added. “I’ll try to hunt something. I see you are tired, so I’ll do it myself...” It sounded quite sordid, but brownish-furred prayed in mind she would agree. “She can’t notice I’m looking for pack!” he thought with despair. With surprise he saw he succeeded.

“All right, I’m going back.” Said Natalya. Cris felt a nauseating bolt in his heart, fearing she took it as rude behaviour, but he was wrong. “You even hunt for me... Thank you, Cris.” She smiled and set of in shore’s direction. Dog sat on snow, sighing with relief. His cover was still intact.

“But when it all will be over...” yelled dog in mind. “What she would think about me! I’m a spy and I’m cheating her too!” In the same moment a picture of father came to his mind. “I know!” whispered brownish-furred. “We are the family and I should care about you all in the first place... But dad... it’s so hard. And it’s getting even harder!” But when vision didn’t replied, he set off to east.

*

Sergey was furious. Wounded ear was aching him like hell and also wolf was enraged because his new appearance was quite funny – a giant and strong wolf with shattered auricle, like some stray mutt from town. So to secure his authority, brown-furred was clearly showing who was leading there.

“How it could be, you know nothing?!” shouted on Sasha. “You’re the scout and you have to get the information!” Grey-furred bitch rolled up her tail, as well as three scouts next to her. “We are going on war with those pack and I want know everything about them. IS THAT CLEAR?”

“YES SIR!” replied scouting team. When Sergey turned back, Sasha sighed with relief. “You don’t deserved to be feed.” Added alpha with venomous voice. “This is the last time I give you meat for nothing. I hope tomorrow you will succeed.” Then he left his charged and got back to cave in Slope of Bears Mountain. It wasn’t the same cavern that Steele had used for shelter for him and Dymitr four years earlier – that place was on eastern slope – however it looked very similar. It was too well placed in spot shielded from wind and snow. A comfortable keep for strong leader. But Sergey wanted to make sure that no other pack would endanger his reign.

Meanwhile on square before cave Olga was disciplining scout team. Beta was still second in charge, after Alexander’s death. Once she planned to mate with Sergey, if old leader would have allowed on that, but whole situation changed. Brown-furred become a chief and she-wolf dropped her dreams of relationship with him, although she still wanted to be as close to power as she could. So she became a loyal Sergey’s supporter, along with Crack – the second dark-furred wolf, who had come with Amber to Drift Pack. Since Amber was no more, both betas – Olga and Crack took theirs duties with agreement. And then they both were scolding lazy charges.

“What do you think?!” gasped Olga. “We are going to war! And without Amber and after Natalya escape we have just thirty-eight jaws! We can’t afford for errors in reconnaissance!”

“If Sergey wouldn’t killed Amber, we would have thirty-nine...” whispered Sasha, but Olga heard that.

“Go ahead!” she smiled maliciously. “Tell it to the boss!”

“You will go tomorrow on that range of hills.” Ordered Crack, pointing with paw on east. “There you sniff  for every scent. And I want you to bring some traces to me...”

“Yes, sir!” called scouts, although Sasha do it the quieter. For two days she managed to regret Natalya’s escape. Whole old Drift Pack had turned to be <b-class> wolves. Sergey trusted only in new-joined ones and used old companions to all dirty-works.

“Remember it, sweetheart.” Hissed Crack to Sasha’s ear. “Don’t you dare to return without results.” Olga wagged her tail with anger, calling dark-furred to the cave. So once again scouts could sight with relief.

“I wouldn’t have come to this, if Natalya was on the lead.” Whispered Sasha to Martha, she-wolf standing next to her.

“But now it’s too late.” she replied. “We don’t know where she is and even...”

“Right, too late.” agreed Sasha and went to her snowy bedding before cave’s entrance.

Cris heard it all perfectly. He was hidden in snow just several meters from ledge, where cave and square were. He saw Conquerors Pack and got know they recent plans. Dog crawled out from his hiding and started to run down the slope. He stopped about two miles on south, where he left some marks on the tree-bark of pine, hoping that some of scouts of his pack would find it. “And it they won’t, I’ll tell all to Kitty.” He thought. “But now I must get back, before Natalya find out what I’m doing.”

It was a unexpectedly shine of luck, but Cris incidentally found some hare, running to the shore. He caught the prey, smiling that his cover turned out to be quite believable.

*

About ten miles east from there Steele was listening to wolves howls. Some reports came from Buckland: that Aleu and Ami successfully established friendly contacts with Ice team. If Steele hadn’t on mind so many troubles he wished to go to old home, so see brother-in-law and old owner.

“But no...” he whispered into quiet night. “I swore I left humans world for good. And if I ever break this oath... first of all...” he smiled to that absurd thought. “I should go to Nome and kick Balto’s fur.” But I guess I have something different to do on my retirement...”

When sounded howl of scouts on west. Cris report was forwarded and Steele was wondering for a while. Then replied with ask to son to careful try of slowing aggressive pack. He hoped that Dymitr would make some alliance with additional pack and thanks to that they would gain more strength against invaders. But they need