into the bushes.

The team rolled, and the sled came to a sliding stop at the bottom.

“What are you doing!?” Herash yelled.

The other dogs grumbled a bit, as they climbed to their feet.

“Is everyone up?” Kodi asked.

He reached back, undid the clasps that held his harness to the guideline and stood in front of the team.

The Musher groaned and stood up.

“Kodi, that was not the way to take that.” He said, shaking snow out of his clothes.

Kodi realized that Dusty wasn’t with the team.

“Where’s Dusty?” Kodi yelled over the wind.

“I don’t know, she’s probably dead after that fiasco,” Herash said.

Kodi was at Herash’s throat before he even realized what he was doing.

The dog was extremely surprised at this attack, and stared up at him from his newly acquired position on the snow.

“Hey Kodi, take it easy,’ Cookie said, as she pulled him off of Herash. “I’m sure she’s alright.”

Kodi glared at Herash, and walked over to where Dusty should still be harnessed to the team.

He found a broken harness hooked to the guideline.

Kodi hung his head.

“This is my fault, if I hadn’t…”

The Musher had righted the sled, and stood on it.

“Come on Kodi, let’s go.”

Kodi knew that the best thing to do would be to hook himself back to the sled, and take off it would be dark soon, and the temperature would plummet then, the team could freeze to death out here at night… and yet… he couldn’t just leave Dusty out here, especially if she was hurt.

He felt a strange tugging at his heart that he didn’t expect, she was part of the team, but she was also…

“I’ve got to go find Dusty.”

“What?” Herash asked. “It’s going to be dark soon, and then…”

“And then she will freeze to death.” Kodi said, “I’ll never leave a dog behind.”

“Better her than us.” Herash said.

Kodi turned and growled at Herash, who shrunk back.

“Or not.”

Kodi looked at Cookie.

“I’ve go to.” He said.

Cookie nodded.

“But if you can’t find her… Herash is right.”

“I know.” Kodi said.

“Kodi let’s go, Hike!” The Musher called out.

Kodi looked at him, and then took off running.

“What the.. Where are you…” the musher started. “Well dang.”

He got off of the sled, and began to set up camp, ready to ride out the night.

Kodi struggled up the almost shear face of the canyon wall.

He was following the trail left by the careening sled.

“Dusty?!” he yelled.

He took another few steps forward.

Then he saw it, a bush that was broken off at the ground.

“Dusty.” He thought.

He walked over to the bush and caught her scent.

“”Hang on I’m coming.”

Kodi started back down the canyon, following Dusty’s scent.

Dusty opened her eyes, and shivered.

The wind was blowing harder now, and she was very cold.

“What happened?” She thought. “Where’s the team?”

Then she realized she wasn’t wearing her harness.

Suddenly her memory returned with a rush, and she remembered crashing through the trees after the sled had hit her.

She stood up.. and fell on her face.

A steady throb began in her leg, and grew until she could hardly stand it.

“How am I going to get home?” She thought.

Then out of the wall of blowing snow in front of her, Kodi appeared.

“Dusty!” he yelled.

He ran over to her.

“Are you okay?”

Dusty shook her head.

“I think my leg is broken.”

Kodi looked at it and frowned.

“Yeah, looks like it to me too.”

Dusty winced.

“Where’s the team?”

“They’re fine.” Kodi said.

“The team is still out here, they’ve got to get home, now.” Dusty thought.

“Kodi, you’ve got to leave me here.” Dusty said.

“No,” Kodi said, “I can’t do that.”

“Kodi,” Dusty said, “the team is more important than me, you’ve got to get them home. Sometimes..”

She winced again.

“…sometimes being leader means you’ve got to make some hard choices, this is one of them, the team is more important than one dog, you know that.”

Kodi shook his head.

“Not you.” He said.

She smiled.

“Kodi, that’s sweet, but wrong, you’ve got to go.”

“Kodi looked behind him, down the canyon and sighed.

He slipped off his harness.

“What are you doing?” Dusty asked.

“Put this on,” Kodi said.

“But..” Dusty started.

“No buts,” Kodi said, “just do it Dusty.”

Dusty slipped the harness over her shoulders.

Kodi looked down the canyon again.

“I figure that the team is about a mile that way.” He said.

Then he took the short lead that led from the harness in his mouth.

“I’m sorry if this hurts your leg,” he said.

Then he started dragging her toward where he hoped the team was.

“Is he coming back?” Dix asked.

“Yes, he’ll be back,” Cookie said. “I’ve known Kodi for a long time.”

Herash stood up.

“Well I’ve known him for week, and I say he’ll stay out there searching for her until he freezes to death.”

“And is that such a bad thing?” Cookie asked.

“It is if we freeze to death too.”

“He’ll come, I’m sure of it.” Cookie said.

She looked at the team,

“I know he will,” she said.

At that time, they all barely heard a howl.

“What was that?” Dix said.

“It was a wolf,” Herash said, “we’re not going to freeze to death, we’re going to get eaten first.”

Cookie shook her head.

“No, that wasn’t a wolf, That was Kodi. He’s trying to find us.”

Cookie howled back.

“Stop that,” Herash said, “you’re just going to attract more of them.”

“It’s not a wolf,” Cookie said, turning to look out at the blowing snow, “it’s…. Kodi!”

Kodi stumbled out of the snow, and toward the sled, dragging the harness and Dusty.

“Hey he came back.” Dix said.

“Yeah,” Herash said, “he did, but he found her too.”

They all walked over and helped Kodi pull Dusty to the sled.

She wasn’t moving.

“Is she…” Cookie began.

“No,” Kodi said, “she’s alright, she just passed out a little while ago.”

He fell on the ground panting.

“Well?” Cookie said.

“What happened?” Asked Dix.

“I don’t know,” Kodi said, “I guess that her harness broke when the sled fell, and she rolled down the canyon, I think her leg is broken.

The musher looked out then.

“Hey Kodi, there you are boy, I’ve a mind to…”

He stopped when he saw Dusty.

“Dusty?” He said.

He got off of the sled and walked over to her.

He looked at the broken harness still attached to the guideline.

“You found her, didn’t ya boy?”

Kodi barked.

“Well,” the musher said, “looks like she isn’t going to be running out of here.”

He lifted Dusty and sat her on the sled.

Then he took off the harness that was around her, put it back around Kodi and hooked him to the guideline

He knelt and patted his head.

“Good Boy.”

Then he climbed on the back of the sled.

“Now let’s go Kodi, Hike! Hike!”

The team surged forward, headed toward town.

Chapter 4

“Oh,” Jenna said worriedly, “What could be taking them so long?”

“Relax Jenna,” Balto said, “Kodi will be home soon.”

“But they’re almost two hours late.”

Balto laughed.

“Jenna will you just take it easy? Kodi will be just fine, I know he will be, after all, he’s my son.”

Jenna smiled at him.

“I know, that’s what worries me.”

“Jenna, he’s made this run four times this week, and he’s come back every time.

“Yeah but,” Jenna protested, it hasn’t been snowing like this every time either.

“Hey do you hear that?” Jenna said.

“Hear what?” Balto asked.

“Kodi,” she yelled as he team came shooting over the hill in front of the old mill.

The sled slid to a stop on main street, and the musher got off of the sled.

He walked over and unhooked the dogs.

Jenna ran over to Kodi.

“You’re alright?” She yelled.

“Well yeah,” Kodi said.

“You’re almost two hours late.” She continued. “I thought that you were trying to beat your other time?”

“Well we were and then we hit this storm, and…”

He turned as the Musher picked up a dog that was wrapped in a blanket.

“..look mom, dad, I need to go, Dusty was hurt in an accident we had..”

Kodi was interrupted by Jenna.

“Accident, what happened? Are you okay?”

Kodi