The Wolf You Feed Arc (8 page)

The girls wandered down a corridor that led to two bedrooms and a narrow bathroom.

“Look it’s got a claw-foot tub!” Annike clapped her hands as she turned the taps on and off, repeatedly.

Nea popped her head around the door. “Um, and a horrendous green sink.” She wrinkled her nose at the rust marks beneath the faucets.

“I’m gonna change that,” Tore said.

The girls nodded and went into the small bedrooms. They tried out the beds, opened and closed the pine chests, and peered into a tiny closet.

When they’d seen everything, Annike stood on tiptoe and kissed Tore on the cheek. “This is amazing. It’s even bigger than the cabins we had at the clan. It’s perfect.”
 

“How much will it cost?” Nea asked, cradling Rune in her arms.

Tore rocked Kjell. He started to explain the arrangement he’d made with their landlord. A knock at the door interrupted him. Nea laid Rune on the sofa and hurried into a bedroom to shift. Moments later, she lay down by the stove and kept a watchful eye on her son.
 

Tore answered the door.
 

A round-faced woman carrying a large plastic bin stood on the stoop. Behind her, was their red-faced landlord. “Hello, dearies, welcome to our neighborhood.” She bustled in, uninvited.

Max smiled an apology and wiped his feet on an invisible doormat. “It’s not what I’d call a neighborhood,” he grumbled at his wife’s back. “There isn’t another house in sight, Eliza.”

She waved him off. “Go and get the other boxes.”

Eliza noticed Kjell in Annike’s arms. She put down the container she was carrying and rushed over to see the baby.

“I’m Eliza.” She shook Annike’s hand and then pushed her finger into Kjell’s tiny fist.

“The grumpy guy is Max… And who are you, little fella?”

Annike introduced Kjell.

“Oh my, you are such a sweetie. What an unusual name, dear.”
 

“Swedish, a family tradition,” Annike explained.

“Would you like to hold him?” She handed the baby to Eliza, who cooed with delight. Annike picked Rune up off the sofa. Nea narrowed her eyes at her.
Be careful with him!

Eliza’s eyes widened at the sight of the second baby.

“Twins? Oh how adorable. Now that must be hard work. Now, if you ever need a babysitter, you just call me. I’m dying to play grandma and, since our Billy hasn’t given me any kiddies yet, I’m just about as eager as they come.”

Max lugged several more boxes over the threshold and plunked them in a neat pile by the door.

“Sorry ‘bout Eliza and me busting in so soon, she can be kind of determined. These are a few things, she thought would help y’all get settled.”

Eliza handed Kjell to Tore and dragged Annike over to look at the boxes.

“Max told me you had bad luck. Lost everything in a fire? It must have been terrible. As soon as I heard, I said, we just have to help out the poor dears! It’s the
Christian
thing to do.” Eliza glared at Max.

Fire?
Annike questioned Tore.

I had to tell them something. I’ll explain later.
He replied
.

Max rolled his eyes at his wife. “Here, Tore come give me a hand with something on the truck.”

Tore followed Max outside. “Now, I hope you don’t mind that Eliza barged in as if she owned the place, which she does of course, but that don’t excuse her behavior. And please don’t think y’all need to be polite. You do not need to accept any of this crap she’s offloading. If it’ll help you get on your feet, then that’s fine, but give me the word and I’ll haul it all outta here, y’all hear!”

Tore felt bad lying about the fire, but he’d needed some way of explaining why they had nothing. He slapped Max on the back. “We’re grateful for everything.” He meant it too. They only had two backpacks worth of possessions and no money to buy the things they needed. “Max, that’s beautiful.”
 

A handmade wooden crib stood on the back of Max’s truck. Amazed at the Albright’s generosity, Tore shook his hand. “I don’t know how we can ever repay you.”

Max waved him off. “It was Billy’s, his grandfather made it for him. I’d hoped to get more use outta it, than we did. I reckon your boys will outgrow it, before Billy even thinks about having kids. You might as well put it to good use. I’ll pick it up when you’re done.”

An hour later, the Albright’s got up to leave. On their way out, Max spotted Nea lying by the stove.

“Jeez, look at that thing!” he said. “Looks more wolf than dog.”

Tore called Nea to come to him. She sat obediently at his feet, while he placed his hand on her head in reassurance. He hoped she didn’t take offense.
 

Max and Eliza fussed over her. “She sure is a well behaved dog,” Eliza said as she made her way to their truck.

Nea walked at Tore’s heel but she made her feelings known, muttering her complaints inside his head.

“You just watch out for them babes o’ yours though. Dogs can be unpredictable. You might wanna think about chaining her up outside at night, just to be safe,” Eliza said.

Nea tensed at his feet, uttering a tirade of expletives. Trying not to smirk, Tore said, “Oh, she’s fine.” He Petted Nea and held on to her scruff, fearing she might take a chunk out of Eliza’s ankle.

“Nea’s an old dog, she’s been with my family for years, soft as butter,” he reassured them.

As soon as Max and Eliza’s truck disappeared around the bend, Nea shifted. With her arms folded across her chest and her hip hitched, she glared at Tore.

“Old dog!” She spat, prodding him hard in the chest. He pulled off his shirt and handed it to her. “You’d better watch it, Tore! Plenty of old dogs learn new tricks and plenty more can turn on their masters!” she said, pulling on the tee and flouncing back to the house.
 

Tore chuckled to himself and followed her in.

The lounge was in chaos. Surrounded by the contents of opened boxes, Annike was examining everything.

“Tore, Nea, look at this baby stuff!”

She held up clothes in different sizes. Nea grabbed a handful of tiny sheets and blankets. “They’re so soft.”

Tore picked up a couple of baby toys.

“You’d better be careful
the dog
doesn’t get hold of these!” He grinned as Nea scowled at him. Annike didn’t notice his comment. She was too busy ferrying dishes, mugs, cutlery and goodness knows what else into the kitchen. Nea snatched up the third box. It contained an assortment of mismatched towels, blankets and other linens. She stomped off in the direction of one of the bedrooms. He’d no doubt pay for his teasing later.

“Huhhh,” Annike said, disappointed as she looked into the final box. “I guess these are for you?” She thrust a box of tools towards Tore.

***

Max pulled up in his truck a few weekends later. He’d come to help create a list of supplies and devise a work plan for the cabin’s alterations.

Tore had just returned from hunting and was busy gutting and cleaning a small wild pig he’d caught.

Max looked over Tore’s shoulder and whistled.

“You’re a hunter, I see.”

“Took my first trip when I was seven,” Tore said.

“Like a bit of hunting myself. Maybe we could head out together. See if we could catch us a deer one day,” Max said.

“I tracked a buck this morning,” Tore told him. “He was by the river. We could go out tomorrow, see if we can pick up its trail.”

“You know, Marston, down at Gray Wolf Hunting Lodge, is looking for staff. He runs this purdy little hotel and cabin rental place where New Yorkers and other big city types come in to hunt. He’s always looking for men who can take them out. If you’re any good at tracking, you might wanna swing by there. They pay more than the warehouse and the guests give good tips.”

Tore thanked Max for the information. It sounded promising, and he could do with the extra cash. Monday, he’d pay Marston a visit.
 

Max went to talk to Annike while Tore rinsed the familiar hunting knife under the faucet. Memories of the first hunting trip with his brothers filled his head. He turned the knife over in his hand, tracing his thumb across the bone handle. It was funny, he hadn’t thought about that trip in years.

Thin wisps of gray smoke from the commune fires, guided them down the ridge. Tore had been camping with three of his brothers. They’d hunted all weekend, letting off steam.
 

Erik strode out in front. He was more eager than the others, to be home. Already through his transition, he was no longer a boy. At eighteen years old, he was already following in his father’s footsteps.

Erik’s resemblance to Isak, was striking. They shared the same collar length, dirty blonde hair and had identical piercing blue eyes framed by dark eyebrows. They both had a similar neat mustache and beard that traced a line around their jaws.

Erik called to Tore to hurry.

“He wants to get home to his girl,” Liam said, chuckling.

Even though he was the baby of the family, Tore had no trouble keeping pace with his brothers. As they quickened their speed, he fell into a jog without whining.

Rounding a rocky outcrop, they began the steep decent into the commune. A large gray wolf waited for them, blocking the path five hundred feet away. The hairs on his neck and shoulders bristled, his mouth panting. The wolf stared at them as they picked their way down the hillside.

Tore caught sight of the wolf and broke into a run. Zigzagging his way past Björn, Liam, and Erik, he came face to face with the wolf, threw his arms around the huge gray head, and rubbed his small hands into the coarse fur.

“Hi, Father, guess what I caught!” Excited, Tore brandished three rabbits.

In the blink of an eye, his father transitioned in front of them. He grabbed Tore around the waist and hoisted him, dead rabbits and all, onto his broad shoulders
.
He slapped the backs of Erik and Liam and lightheartedly cuffed Björn’s head. Admiring their kills, Isak grinned.

“Looks like a good trip. This should keep us for a while.”

The boys nodded, their breasts swelling at their father’s praise. They’d been reluctant to take Tore with them, but he’d impressed them with his conduct.

“I caught these all by myself, Father,” Tore swung the rabbits back and forth in front of Isak’s eyes. “Erik showed me how to set the snares, and Liam taught me how to gut them. Björn says I can use his best knife to skin them when we get home. Do you think Mother will show me how to cook them too?”

“I’m sure she will, Tore. The sooner you know how to cook the meat, the better. Then, your mother won’t have to work so hard. You can help her out.”

As the entrance to the commune came in sight, a young, dark haired girl appeared. Erik smiled and waved at her.

“There’s your girlfriend,” Liam chided.

Erik looked at his father.
 

Isak sighed. “Give me your kill,” he said to Erik, placing Tore back onto the ground.

Erik beamed and flung his wild boar carcass onto Isak’s back. Then, he dug into his pack and threw a pair of athletic shorts at him.

“Put these on, Father, I don’t want you to frighten her away,” he said, before running along the path.

The brothers jeered at him when he ran up to Louisa and kissed her.

“That’s the last we’ll see of him tonight,” Liam muttered.

 
“Oh, he’ll be back when he smells the stew,” Björn said.

At the cabin, Georg, Otto, and Henrik unloaded the meat into the storage and prep room. True to his word, Björn lent Tore his best knife.

Dad showed his youngest how to perfectly angle the blade to remove the skin and keep the pelt intact. Tore watched his father demonstrate and then attempted the second rabbit himself. With his tongue poking out of the side of his mouth in deep concentration, he tried to copy his dad.

With just a little help, Tore removed the skin. The pelt was in pieces, though, by the time he finished. After skinning, he watched and then emulated his father, filleting and slicing the meat into thin strips. After they finished they laid the meat strips in salt to let them sit overnight. Tomorrow they’d smoke and dry the meat.

Tired and ravenous, they went to find Mother. She was in the communal kitchen, chatting with the other women as they prepared their meals. Tore’s excited squeal interrupted her gossip, and she swung around to see him barreling towards her. She caught her son as he leaped into her arms.

“Well, how did it go, Tore? Did you catch anything?”

He held up three fingers for emphasis.

“I got three rabbits, Mother, three! Erik says I was so good at it, I can be in charge of setting the snares next time.”

Mother planted a huge kiss on his cheek.
 

“Well, I never. Three? That’s even better than Erik’s first time. You’re going to make a fine hunter, Tore.”