Luminari

Chapter nine

"They were probably just too lazy to take it back down the mountain and thought what the heck we have more stuff at home."

"I don't know, this is giving me the creeps I think we should leave."

"Alright but put some of this food in your backpack."

I put all the beef jerky, dried fruit, crackers and everything else that wasn't spoiled in my backpack, but I absolutely refused to carry the moldy cheese in there and made Seth take that in his mouth. Before we left, I grabbed a large wool sweater and a pair of gloves from the tent and put them on. I didn't feel comfortable stealing, but I promised myself that if I ran into these people, I would give everything back.

.  .  .

The path started to get narrow again and soon the air was filled with the rotten stench of Seth's cheese, I threw a fit over the smell and threatened to smash it to bits if he didn't eat the stinky garbage. He only rolled his eyes and mumbled something about humans and our weak stomachs then ate the entire thing in two bites. How much moldy cheese did it take to get a dog sick.

I pulled a water bottle out from my backpack and took a small sip I closed my eyes and heard a strange howling sound. I looked to Seth to see if he had made the noise, Seth was standing still with fear, his eyes small and his ears pointed straight up, his mouth was closed and his tail stiff as a board.

"Did you hear that?" he asked me in a low whisper.

"Yeah, was it the wind?"

Seth shook his head slowly and I could hear the terrified thumps of my heart from inside my chest. Beating against the bars of my rib cage. 

"That was a snow wolf, they're just like dogs except they have bigger teeth and thicker coats, with a very keen sense of hearing," Seth whispered so quietly I almost didn't hear him.

"Do you think you can fight it off," I asked, I could feel I was about to start coughing.

"No, I don't, those things are crazy vicious," Seth mumbled and of course I started to have a cough attack.

"Shut up," Seth said knocking me over and pressing my mouth shut with his large, padded paw.

"It's possible it doesn't know we're here, if we walk really slow and stay super quiet, we might be able to escape with our lives, now I'm going to take my foot off and I want you to promise me you won't cough, okay?"

I could feel the coughs fighting at my throat to get out, but I turned my thumbs up to show Seth I wouldn't, he lifted his foot off my mouth. I quickly grabbed my blanket and pressed it to my mouth. I coughed into the wad of blanket harder than ever until I was finally finished then followed Seth through the cave. I walked as slow as I could on the tips of my toes every time my foot touched the ground the sound echoed off the walls and I could swear I heard the wolf.

"Turn the flashlight off if it sees light then it's sure to attack!" Seth ordered.

"But how will I see it coming?"

"I'll be able to smell the wolf way before you could ever see it, now turn it off!" Seth growled.

I turned the flashlight off and put it in my coat pocket, the tunnel was pitch black darker than any darkness I had ever been in before, it was like my eyes were closed I couldn't see my hand in front of my face. I walked super slow and checked to make sure the ground was even before I took a step. I followed Seth listening to the quiet sound of his breathing, his padded footsteps too quiet to actually hear.

"Stop breathing," Seth mumbled and I covered my mouth with my hands.

I strained my ears and heard a low growl from right in front of us. I quickly pulled out my flashlight and turned it on I shined the flashlight in front of us and saw an animal crouching in the distance it's brown hide sticking out from behind a large stalagmite.