Ice -- Wolv book II

6 - Stupid, stupid idea

The landscape raced by in the night, and the tracks slowly began to get more and more bumpy; in turn, the suspension seemed to be doing less and less to smooth the ride.

The truck rounded the bend, and raced over the hundreds of mostoswehk plants growing from beneath it. I closed my eyes, detecting a faint, lemony scent as several plants were pulverized by the wheels. The field ended before the scent became unbearable, yet my canine friends all were wracked with coughing fits, long after the field had passed by.

Nadie sneezed, spraying my arm. "Oh, I do no envy what you did," she moaned to me. She stood up and sat down on my lap, resting her head on the steering wheel. Her dark, brown fur filled my vision, and I inhaled her heavenly scent deeply. I leaned forward, wrapping my arms around her and pulling her back against my chest, scratching circles behind her ears and under her chin. She let out a happy whine, and nudged my hands when I stopped.

"Don't stop," she whispered. I looked down at her; her eyes were half-closed, as if she was near sleep. She let me roll her over onto her back, and I began petting her belly slowly. In no time, her eyes were tightly shut, and her warm breath was pulsing from her nose along my arms.

Hutch and Tara, on the other hand, were not being so cooperative.

"I can't see," Hutch growled, turning around in rapid circles on the floor. Even with his impressive height, his nose just barely saw over the dash from the floor. The more he tried to get a better view, the more cramped he became.

"Tara, move over. It's my turn on the chair." He crawled up onto the seat, earning a nip on the ear.

"Don't even think about it, buddy. I ain't movin.'" She dug her claws into the upholstery, resisting Hutch's attempts to shove her down.

"Darn it woman, let someone else have a turn!"

"Don't you 'darn it woman' me, Hutch. I was here first, fair and square!"

"No, Nadie was!"

"And she's smooching with Humfrey now! I was second in line!"

"Hey, nobody's kissin' anybody," I snapped. Neither of them calmed down.

"C'mon, move it, Tara!"

"Screw off, Hutch."

"Oh?" Hutch cocked an eyebrow coyly. Tara smacked him across the face.

"Shut up and sit still."

"I've been cramped down here for two hours! I have to pee, and I'm going to pee right here if you don't let me get some air!"

"I've been holding it just as long as you have, Hutch. Stop complaining."

"Fine." Hutch fell silent and stared at Tara, unblinking, his legs spread slightly apart. My eyes widened as a pungent scent filled the cabin.

"No, Hutch, you did not just piss in the truck!" I looked down, and sure enough, a dark stain was spreading along the carpet underneath him. I slammed my hand down on the wheel, making Nadie sit up with a start. "You're supposed to the the mature one here, stupid!"

I kicked on the breaks, and the wheels locked up, screeching along the tracks as we ground to a halt. Tara lost her footing on the seat and careened forward, allowing Hutch to leap onto the chair triumphantly.

"What the heck is wrong with you two?" I yelled. "You're fighting like a bunch of children over nothing!"

"She had the window seat for hours."

"I don't care who had the window seat! We're supposed to be beyond...this! I don't even know what this is!!" I reached across Hutch and opened the passenger side door, than grabbed a handful of his fur and tossed him out. I looked down at Tara, who had a mortified look plastered on her face as she realized she'd landed right in Hutch's urine.