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THE WOLF RACED down the alley, still pursuing the other one, which had morphed, yet again, into human form and entered the back door of a building, apparently in an attempt to throw the wolf off its path.
The wolf would not be tricked from the chase, though, and managed to keep a bead on the other.
The only issue going through his canine mind was the concern over being so far away from the open freedom of the grass, trees and rocks it normally stalked in.
The concrete, metal, and glass towers he raced through made for a great deal of discomfort. And this area smelled quite a bit different than the normal scents that wafted in to the greenscape he thought of as home. There was a salty smell, a fishy smell to this area.
Pausing to sniff the air, listen for the heartbeat of the wolf-human, he heard a scream coming from an adjacent alleyway in a downwind direction.
He raced forward to find the other wolf tearing the flesh out from the stomach of a human lying in the alley. The human was no longer alive, smelling of fresh fecal matter and urine as well as stale urine and alcohol.
The other turned, its blood-covered snout obviously recognizing the presence of the wolf in the breeze. A cold, calculating glare in its eyes, the other bolted.
The wolf paused for a moment to nose the dead human, attempt to breath in more of the scent of the enemy, then he raced down the alley after it.
From behind the wolf came a slurred male voice. “Nice doggie.” The human uttering those words then stumbled across a row of metal garbage cans, making a god-awful clattering noise as he fell, knocking the cans over.
The wolf raced down the alley after the other, the taste and scent of the human’s blood thick in his nostrils along with the scent of the other.
A scent he would never forget.
As he turned the corner at the end of the alley, the other jumped out at him and they rolled over one another until they slammed against a wall. Without even attempting a kill strike, the other jumped off and raced down the alley.
The wolf then heard the piercing wail of an approaching siren. He had heard this sound many times before, but this time the sound was close and getting louder. It was accompanied by the sound of screeching tires near the mouth of the alley.
The wolf understood it was coming for the other. Or for both of them.
As the police-car screeched around the corner and into the alley, the wolf bolted toward the other, half-pursuing, half-running away from the vehicle bearing down on him.