Rogue Angel - Footprints Part 7

Annja turned her back to Joey and let the sword return to the otherwhere. She wasn't sure how to explain the sword's behavior to Joey. When she opened her eyes and looked at him, he didn't seem the slightest bit fazed by the sudden disappearance.

"I guess you don't want me telling anyone about that, huh?"

"I'd prefer that we kept it between us, yes."

"People find out, there'll be way too many questions. I can dig it."

"You sure?"

"Well, another fifty would help seal the deal."

Annja pointed at the tree overhang. "Tell you what. If you help me get my stuff back from the wolf it's a deal."

Joey smiled. "No sweat."

He knelt in the muddy ground and put his hands to his mouth. In a split second, he exhaled and made a strange sound that resembled a type of bark, but nothing like anything Annja had ever heard before.

The effect, however, was instantaneous. From under the tree, there was a rustle of movement. And then Annja saw a large shape dislodge itself from the branches and come through the darkness toward Joey.

Her heart raced but she stayed where she was. Joey must know what he was doing to tempt fate this way. She had to trust him.

The wolf trotted out and sniffed Joey's hand. He spoke to the wolf in a low voice and a different language. With a casual glance at Annja, the dark gray predator stood at Joey's feet and let himself be stroked.

Joey looked up at Annja. "You want to pet him?"

Annja held up her hands. "Are you kidding?"

Joey smiled. "Humans spend too much time thinking that animals are different from them. The truth is, we're all just the same, made by the Creator. We're not different-we all belong to the earth. And the spirit that moves in all things moves in this guy just as much as it moves in you."

Annja watched the wolf loll its head back to better expose his ears to Joey's fingers. From its throat, Annja heard a low rumble come out, but it didn't sound remotely menacing. It almost reminded Annja of a cat purring. But somehow she thought maybe the wolf wouldn't appreciate the comparison.

Joey waved her over. "Trust me, okay? I wouldn't tell you it was safe if it wasn't. This guy is one of the protectors of his forest."

"You know him?"

Joey shrugged. "We've kind of grown up together. I've been coming here for years, ever since I was old enough to run around on my own. Cheehawk here has been around about the same time as me."

"It's got a name?"

Joey frowned. "Well, what's wrong with that? I've got a name-several, actually. And so do you. Why shouldn't this guy?"

"Cheehawk, huh?"

The wolf turned its head again to better see Annja as she started to approach. Joey held up his other hand.

"Take it nice and slow. Don't do anything to upset him and you'll be fine. Just like any other animal, you've got to give him time to scent you and get used to your smell. Once he does, he'll be fine. Just come to him without the intent to harm him."

Annja approached very cautiously. This was, without a doubt, one of the stranger things she'd done. Making friends with a wild predatory animal like a wolf wasn't what she'd expected to happen when she responded to Jenny's e-mail from her New York City loft.

Cheehawk continued to appraise her as Annja drew nearer. When she was within a few feet of the wolf, she sat down and extended her hand until it was under Cheehawk's snout.

She could feel the wolf's hot breath on the back of her hand as he sniffed her. And then she felt the curious sensation of his tongue lapping at it.

Joey chuckled. "I guess you pa.s.sed."

Annja let her hand wander up behind Cheehawk's ears and ran her fingers through his coa.r.s.e fur. It was almost like patting a big dog, but not quite. Even though Cheehawk seemed to have accepted her, Annja couldn't shake the idea that this animal could easily tear her throat out if it wanted to.

Joey shook his head. "Don't believe that."

Annja looked at him. "What?"

"Cheehawk would only attack if he felt threatened, just the same as you." He smiled at Annja. "Don't look so surprised. The expression on your face was enough for me to figure out what you were thinking."

"Oh. Well, this is a bit new for me."

Joey nodded. "For Cheehawk, too. You're only the second human he's let pet him."

"Really?"

"I'm the first," Joey said proudly.

"I'm honored, then," Annja said. She looked into Cheehawk's eyes. "Thank you."

Cheehawk rose without making a sound, looked once at Annja and then at Joey, before turning and stalking off into the night.

"Where's he going?"

Joey got to his feet. "I told you. He's looking for his dinner."

Annja stood, awed by what had just happened. Then she thought about why she was even in the Oregon woods in the first place. "We need to find Jenny. If she wasn't able to make a fire, she might die of exposure out here."

Joey frowned. "All right, but we've got to be careful. Those lunatics with the guns are probably still around. And I don't feel like running into them."

Annja got her gear from under the canopy. Despite the awful sounds, very little of her stuff was damaged at all. She emerged and saw Joey standing on the trail.

"Ready?" the young man asked.

Annja nodded. It was still terribly dark and she had no idea how they were going to find their way. But Joey didn't seem to notice and before she knew what was happening, they were headed down the trail.

Chapter 5.

"How long have your people lived here?"

Joey picked his way along the path without making a sound. Annja marveled at his ability to stay quiet. He was very much every bit his namesake.

"Hundreds of years. We're a splinter group of Apache."

"Apache? I thought that tribe was from the Southwest," Annja said.