CHAPTER FOUR

The Wolves

The she-wolf heard the men and the dogs arrive. She was the first to leave the man in the fire. The other wolves did not want to leave. They had waited for a long time to kill and eat the man. They did not want to waste their effort. Finally, because the men and their dogs were close, the other wolves left, too.

The wolves ran. There were many of them. A large gray male ran in front of the others. He was the leader. When they saw the she-wolf, they ran to meet her. She joined the group. She stayed next to the large leader. The leader liked the she-wolf very much.

Another wolf also liked the she-wolf very much. He also ran next to her. He was an old wolf. He had fought many times during his life. In fact, he lost his right eye during a fight.

There were many wolves in the group. The strong wolves ran in the front of the group. The weak and old wolves ran in the back. They were all very thin and hungry. They ran all day and night looking for food. When they arrived at a river, they saw a large moose (an animal that looks like a very large deer) standing near the river. Because the wolves needed food, they attacked the moose. It was dangerous, and many wolves died during the fight, but they were successful. The moose was dead. The moose was huge, so they had plenty of meat to eat. The wolves ate the entire moose.

Because there was now food, many wolves left the group. Pairs of males and females left the group together. They went to find a new home. The she-wolf stayed with the two male wolves. One day, the old wolf with one eye suddenly attacked and killed the gray leader. Now he could be with the she-wolf. After the fight, One Eye and the she-wolf ran and played together in the forest. For many days, they traveled and hunted together.

One night, One Eye was running through the forest. He suddenly stopped and smelled the air. The she-wolf also smelled the air. They followed the smell to the edge of the forest. They heard people. The smell was of the food that people were cooking. There was an Indian camp nearby. (Here, the word Indian is used to mean North American Indian. These are the original people of North America). The she-wolf knew about Indian camps.

The she-wolf was happy and excited. She wanted to go to the camp. One Eye, however, did not want to go. He walked into the forest. The she-wolf followed him. Soon they found footprints in the snow. They were very new and made by a small animal. They followed the footprints. It was a rabbit. Together, they killed and ate the rabbit.

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