As she neared the pen, she found the injured wolf lying on her side by the fence closest to the forest. When the wolf heard Phyllis approaching, she slowly got up onto all fours and limped over to the door, where Phyllis would be entering.

“Better, I see,” she said, opening the gate.

The wolf moved close to Phyllis, but still maintained some distance—perhaps out of respect, perhaps out of distrust. That suited Phyllis just fine. She put the large steel tray with food and water down onto the ground, then slowly exited the pen.

With the gate locked behind her, Phyllis stood there watching the wolf sniff at the food and eat it hungrily.

“Excellent,” she said, clapping her hands together. The wolf was doing much, much better and in another day or two, she would likely be strong enough to leave. And no matter what the doctor said, the wolf could leave whenever she wanted to, thanks to the werewolf, who could tear open the fence whenever it pleased.

Phyllis scanned the woods for a sign of it. She was surprised to find the werewolf not hiding amid the trees, but sitting comfortably on the grass at the edge of the backyard.

Caught off guard and without thinking, Phyllis waved to it.

Even more surprising, the werewolf waved back. It was little more than a raised hand with only the slightest sideways movement, but the wild animal was quickly learning to interact with humans.

That was good, thought Phyllis. Coexisting with humans might be just the thing that would save its life and the lives of the rest of the wolves in its pack.

Phyllis waved at the werewolf once more, then hurried inside to call Garrett and tell him the good news.

* * *

Argus was the first member of the cross-country team on the field after school. This was the moment he’d been thinking about all day long. Another run. A chance to redeem himself. He could win today. He could feel it.

“Hey, Argus Brock,” Coach Quinn said. “You came back?”

“What do you mean? I’m on the team, aren’t I?”

“Yes, of course, but a lot of people come out to run with the team…once. When they realize how hard it is, they quit. We have only a couple of competitions each season, so you really have to like running to stay on the team.”

“I love to run,” Argus said.

“I can see that,” replied the coach.

By now the rest of the team had arrived, including Shannon Boersma and Ronnie Camacho, the two who had beaten him the day before.

“Hey, Argus,” said Ronnie.

“Hi, Argus,” said Shannon.

They’re so friendly, Argus thought. I don’t want to be their friend. I want to beat them!

“All right,” said Coach Quinn. “I think that’s everyone. On your mark…” He blew his whistle and the runners headed out.