Escape to the Mesa

by StacyPlays

  She was going to that meeting.

  Five

  “I’M GOING TO the campground to look for more clothes,” Stacy announced on a particularly chilly afternoon about a week after she’d read the newspaper article. “And I think it’s best if I go alone. There will be a lot of tourists this time of year to see the fall leaves.”

  Stacy hated lying to her wolves. She almost never did it. But she knew they would never approve if they knew the real reason she wanted to sneak away for a few hours.

  Her excuse wasn’t a complete lie. She did need some new clothes. She’d grown two inches taller in the last year (Addison had helped her keep track of her height on the cave wall with chalk), and she’d outgrown the few winter clothes she had. It wasn’t a bad idea to head over to the campground in the taiga to check out the lost-and-found box or see if anyone had left a jacket or sweatshirt lying around under one of the picnic tables.

  But the real reason she wanted to leave the cave for a few hours alone was to go to the village council meeting. Stacy didn’t know what she would hear at the meeting, but she knew she had to be there to figure out how to best protect her wolves.

  “And don’t be alarmed if I’m not back before it gets dark,” she said, waving good-bye to the wolves and Page. “People might not get their coats out of their packs until the sun goes down.”

  Everest shot her a disapproving look.

  “Don’t worry, boy,” Stacy called back to him. “I’ll only swipe someone’s jacket if I see them littering!”

  As soon as Stacy was a few hundred feet away from the cave, she stopped and began furiously combing her hair with her fingers.

  “I’ve got to look civilized,” she muttered to herself, tying her hair into a neat side braid with a short piece of vine. She used her tongue to check if she had any blackberry seeds stuck in her teeth, then smoothed out her shirt and tucked it into her pants. I think this is as civilized as I get.

  It didn’t take Stacy long to reach the river that separated the taiga from the village outskirts. There was a bridge, farther to the south near the electrical substation, but Stacy knew of a crossing that was a straight shot to the center of the village. A few nimble jumps across some rocks and she’d crossed the river and set off toward the small town.

  She waited in an alley near the village council building while a steady stream of villagers walked past her and entered through the doors. A few minutes after the last villager had gone in, Stacy quietly walked in and took a seat at the back of the large assembly room.

  So far, so good, she thought to herself. I don’t think anyone paid me much attention. I can listen to what everyone has to say and then make a run for it when it’s over.

  Stacy sat in the uncomfortable metal folding chair for over an hour as villagers took turns talking to the council members about various topics such as crop irrigation, an upcoming election, and funding for new computers at the village library.

  It was interesting to Stacy to hear the villagers speaking passionately about the things they believed would make their community better. She didn’t know there were humans like this other than the ones she’d met in the woods last summer, Miriam and Jack, who also thought that developing the taiga into a golf course and resort was a terrible idea. The people at the village council reminded Stacy of Miriam as they spoke about different initiatives to improve life in the village, ranging from help for the homeless to better pay for the teachers at the village public school.

  Even though the subjects were fascinating to Stacy, the villagers all had rather monotonous voices. She started to catch herself nodding off a few times and looked around to see if anyone had seen her jerk her head up. Luckily, no one was watching her.

  “All right, we can now move on to the last topic on the agenda,” one of the female villagers seated at the table in the front of the room said in a dry tone. “Would anyone like to discuss the photograph of the Arctic wolf printed in the Village Gazette last week?”

  Stacy surveyed the room as villagers began whispering to one another in hushed tones.

  “I think the photo was a fake. Like the Loch Ness Monster.”

  “It could just be a white wolf, it doesn’t mean it’s an Arctic one.”

  “I take my kids out camping in that forest. It’s not safe now.”

  “They better not start eating my sheep again.”

  “Shouldn’t have ended the wolf bounty so soon.”

  “Maybe we should have let that forest fire burn a little longer.”

  Stacy couldn’t believe what she was hearing. These were the same villagers who ten minutes ago had been proposing thoughtful plans to improve their town and homes. How could they not understand that the taiga was the wolves’ home and they had every right to live there undisturbed?

  “I’d like to say something about it, Madam Councilwoman,” said a woman standing at the front of the room. Stacy let out a tiny gasp when she saw who was speaking.

  It was Miriam.

  “In light of the white wolf sighting over the summer, shouldn’t the construction company hold off on doing any more work in the forest until it’s determined if the forest is home to more of these wolves?”

  Stacy smiled. She was so happy to have an ally in the fight against the resort. Like her, Miriam viewed the taiga as a special place—a place that needed to be protected, not cleared to make way for a golf course.

  “I’m not convinced the photo is real,” a villager piped up from the back near Stacy. “Even if it was, how do we know that wasn’t a lone wolf, just passing through?”

  Stacy desperately wanted to speak up. To tell everyone that Wink wasn’t a lone wolf. That there were actually six Arctic wolves living in the taiga and they weren’t just passing through, it was their home. Not only was it their home, they were a vital part of the taiga’s ecosystem and they had humanlike intelligence and they went on rescue missions and . . . I can’t say anything. They probably won’t believe me, and if they did, it could put my wolves in danger.

  “Thank you, Ms. Locklear,” the councilwoman said to Miriam. “We’ll table the discussion until the next meeting.”

  Stacy snapped back from her thoughts to see that Miriam had sat back down and the meeting was wrapping up. Stacy’s plan had been to sneak out early and head back to the forest, but she had a question—and she knew she wouldn’t get another opportunity like this one again.

  Stacy walked up to Miriam and tapped her on the shoulder. Miriam turned around and a wave of recognition crept across her face.

  “Stacy!” she exclaimed, bringing Stacy close to her for a hug. Stacy had never experienced a hug from a person before. At least, not one that she could remember. Tucker gave amazing hugs, but this hug felt nice, too. And much less hairy.

  “It’s so nice to see you again,” Miriam continued. “Are your parents here?”

  Stacy hesitated. Would a normal human girl come to a council meeting alone? she wondered. “My family’s outside,” she said at last. That’s true, anyway. They’re all the way back in our cave.

  “Oh, okay,” Miriam said. Her eyes narrowed a little, as if she wasn’t quite sure Stacy was telling the truth. “I just thought I’d come and lend my voice to try to buy the forest a little more time from the developers.”

  “It’s a really good idea,” Stacy said. “I wondered, actually . . . if there was a way to prove that there was a pack of Arctic wolves living in the forest, do you think they would cancel the plans to tear it down?”

  “I think there’s a good chance they’d have to if that was the case,” Miriam said. “A pack of wolves like that would need to be studied. The local college would probably be able to secure government funding to do research. The National Park Service might even be interested in protecting the land.”

  “Protecting the land?” Stacy queried. “What does that mean?”

  “Sometimes the government will designate an area of land as a national park or forest because of its geology or historical significance
. . . or, in this case, because it’s home to a certain rare species of wildlife,” Miriam told her. “Arctic wolves aren’t endangered, luckily. But they’re not found this far south, so they would be considered rare for this part of the world and their habitat worth protecting. But that’s provided there really is a pack of Arctic wolves living in the forest here, which seems like a long shot.”

  Stacy looked down in disbelief. She knew her wolves were the protectors and guardians of the taiga, but it had never occurred to her that they could be the key to saving it altogether. If only there was a way to show everyone that the pack lived there, without all the attention that would follow.

  “You’ve never seen a white wolf while you were out . . . camping, have you?” Miriam asked her.

  “No, I haven’t,” Stacy lied, looking up to meet Miriam’s gaze. Wow, two lies in one day. This is a new low for me. “But I’ll keep an eye out if I do go camping again.”

  “That’s fine, but please be careful,” Miriam cautioned. “Wolves will usually keep their distance from humans, but remember they’re wild.”

  “Oh, I know they’re wild,” Stacy said.

  It was all she could do not to smile.

  Six

  THE FOLLOWING MORNING, Stacy was at the farm with Everest, Basil, and Tucker. Basil was doing her laps while Tucker groomed Droplet and Splat, much to their dismay. Stacy and Everest stood just out of earshot of the others (or at least, Stacy hoped it was out of earshot). They were supposed to be gathering kindling and mushrooms, but really Stacy was brainstorming ways they could get the taiga designated as protected land. She had confided to Everest her real motivation for leaving the cave the night before.

  “We need a camera,” Stacy said to Everest. “If I were to take pictures of the pack and give them to Miriam, then she could show them to whoever is in charge of national parks.”

  Everest gave a sharp yip. Stacy knew he was still mad at her for lying about where she was going last night, but she went on anyway.

  “The problem is,” Stacy continued, “what do I tell Miriam when she asks how I got the photos? Maybe I take them from really far away and I can say that I spotted you on a hike? Or maybe I give her the photos and run away before she has a chance to ask me, that could work.”

  Everest looked back at her again and huffed in frustration.

  “Yes, there’s still the issue of how I get a camera,” Stacy said excitedly. “I’ve had a few thoughts. From what I know about cameras, I can’t exactly ask to borrow one from a camper. I’d have to take the little memory chip thingy to give to Miriam, and that would mean stealing something really valuable from someone. We can’t do that. So, hear me out, Everest. What if I were to get a part-time job in the village? Washing dishes or something simple like that—only to make enough money to buy a cheap camera . . .”

  Everest let out a loud growl—more of a roar, really. He was definitely not a fan of her idea.

  “All right, boy, don’t worry,” Stacy said, patting his thick fur. “We’ll think of something else.”

  A few minutes later, Stacy waved good-bye to Droplet and Splat, who, thanks to Tucker, looked a hundred times cleaner than when they arrived. Stacy set off toward the cave with Basil, Everest, and Tucker walking beside her. Normally, Stacy stayed very alert when she was walking through the forest with her wolves. But with Basil getting stronger every day and Everest by her side, she allowed her mind to wander.

  We got enough mushrooms to make a stew for dinner. It’s not my favorite meal, and the wolves won’t touch it, but it’s better than fish porridge, that’s for sure. It can’t just be a mushroom stew, though; I’ll have to add something else to thicken it up. Beetroot, maybe? Or apples? Do apples go well with mushrooms?

  Stacy had just decided on adding wild leeks when Everest, Basil, and Tucker suddenly veered off course, ducking behind some large, mossy boulders.

  “What’s going—”

  “Stacy!” a male voice called out.

  Stacy spun around to see Jack, the man who had been camping with Miriam over the summer. Stacy recognized him instantly. She didn’t have many conversations with humans, so the ones she had were fairly memorable. But more important, she remembered him because Jack had told her what s’mores were.

  Ever since that conversation, Stacy couldn’t get the gooey dessert out of her mind. She’d even dreamt about them and how they would taste—marshmallow-filled, melty daydreams that she had while staring at her large bowl of fish porridge.

  “Hi, Jack,” Stacy answered as Jack jogged to meet her where she was standing. “What are you doing off-trail?”

  “Could ask you the same question,” Jack replied with a wink. “Miriam and I were on a hike, but I brought my good camera so I thought I’d head off-trail for a bit and see if I could snap a photo of one of those white wolves everyone’s talking about.”

  Stacy looked down at the sturdy camera that hung around Jack’s neck.

  “Had any luck?” Stacy asked nervously. Had Jack already seen us out walking?

  “Not yet,” Jack said, much to Stacy’s relief. “I was just about to get my binoculars out, though, to see if I could spot one.” Jack gently took the camera from around his neck and set it on a nearby boulder. Next, he took off the backpack he was wearing and brought it around to his stomach, balancing it on his bent knee so he could open it. He fished out a large pair of binoculars and set the backpack on the ground at the base of the boulder the camera was resting on.

  “I’m going to get a little higher—maybe I’ll see something,” he said, and began to scramble up a rock pile to where he had a decent vantage point over part of the taiga. He pressed the binoculars to his eyes and scanned the horizon. “Or at least see where Miriam wandered off to.”

  Without any warning, a flash of white encircled Stacy. Whatever it was, it grazed her, knocking her a little off-balance. She rocked back and forth on her feet and stumbled backward, catching herself on the boulder where the camera was. But the camera wasn’t there. It was gone.

  “JACK,” Stacy yelled. “Your camera!”

  Jack scrambled down the rock rubble to where Stacy was standing. She was still rattled from whatever had brushed by her on the trail a few moments ago.

  “What happened?” he asked when he’d reached the bottom. “Are you all right?”

  “I’m fine,” Stacy said. “But your camera . . . I saw something move in the bushes and then—it . . . it was gone. I don’t know what happened. I’m sorry!”

  “Probably a raccoon!” Jack said with disgust as he began looking around the boulder. “He couldn’t have dragged it far.”

  “It might have gone that way,” Stacy said, pointing in the opposite direction from where she knew Everest, Basil, and Tucker were crouching. “I’ll keep an eye out too, and come back here if I find it, but I’d better be going. Good luck!”

  Before Jack could ask her any more questions, Stacy slipped into the trees and zigzagged away from Jack, knowing the wolves would find a safe way to catch up to her without being seen.

  Sure enough, after about three minutes of walking silently through the forest, Everest suddenly appeared beside Stacy. Next, Tucker came bounding up behind her. And then Stacy saw Basil. Basil was in front of Stacy and holding something in her teeth. The camera.

  “Basil, you found it!” Stacy said eagerly, running up to her. Basil looked down in shame and Stacy remembered the white flash.

  “You . . . you stole it?” she said incredulously. “How?”

  Tucker walked up to Basil and looped his head through the camera strap Basil had clenched in her teeth. At the same time, Everest used his big body to back Stacy up against a tree. He nodded for her to stay still and then looked back to Basil expectantly.

  Suddenly, Basil was gone. Stacy blinked and looked around and noticed the same white blur weaving in and out through the trees. It was Basil. She was sprinting so quickly Stacy’s eyes could barely keep up with where she was going.

  And then
Basil was back standing in front of Stacy and the others, panting heavily and waiting for Stacy’s reaction.

  “You were never that fast before the lightning strike,” Stacy whispered as she took a step toward Basil and ran her hand down her back. She didn’t know what to think. Had the lightning given Basil some special ability?

  Tucker walked over and bowed his head, indicating that Stacy should take the camera that was around his neck.

  “Okay,” Stacy began, taking the camera from Tucker and trying to put together the pieces of what had just transpired. “Basil, you must have overheard Everest’s and my discussion of why we need a camera. And it was you who took the camera from the boulder, not a raccoon, thanks to your new . . . um, super speed?”

  Tucker nodded enthusiastically, while Everest beamed with pride. Basil gave Stacy one nod, still waiting to know if she was in trouble or not.

  “I’m not mad, Basil,” Stacy said. “I’m just . . . concerned. Let’s go home. We’ll take some pictures of you and the rest of the wolves tomorrow and figure out a way to get this back to Jack. But for now, I want you to rest.”

  Stacy and the wolves set off back toward the cave, taking a slightly longer route to avoid passing through any clearings. They could stay safe in the shadows of the towering spruce trees. Stacy felt a weight around her neck that wasn’t just the heavy camera. She was worried about what she’d seen Basil do. It worried her because, deep down, she knew it wasn’t supposed to be possible.

  The wolves had always been special. They took in a lost human girl—they could understand her commands and help to rescue small animals they’d usually hunt. But Basil’s swiftness was not the same as exceptional intelligence and an unusual diet. It was superhuman speed. Or in Basil’s case, superwolf speed. And Stacy didn’t know what to make of it.