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What followed was an occurrence so peculiar they were never able to agree on what had taken place.

Petyr claimed the earth shook as Shallah touched the wolf’s fur. Shallah’s hand then began to glow white and Petyr, fearing she would be burned, tried to pull her away, but could not. Each time he reached for her he was pushed back, as though invisible arms barred the way. Unable to intervene, he sat on his haunches and watched as her hair was blown free from its tie and her eyes snapped wide open, a look of astonishment on her face.

Liam saw something quite different. He felt no tremor, but noticed a warmth emanating from Shallah and the wolf. It got hotter and hotter until he could actually warm his hands by it, then it got hotter still. He took a step back. Then he heard a sound like the rushing of wind, and the heat vanished in a flash. Shallah and the wolf fell apart. The wolf returned to his place in the ring. Shallah lay for some moments with her arms flung over her head, unable to speak. When he touched her hand, she wasn’t hot at all.

Shallah’s own account was the least complete. She spoke of feeling as if her head had been shoved into a water trough, and of a great pressure on her ears. Images flashed through her mind: a wolf looking back through the trees; a multitude of caves with gaping mouths; jaws pulling at a rabbit’s flesh; a view of the forest from atop a high cliff. There was a woman’s voice in her ear, though she couldn’t make out what she said. And finally there was a wrenching feeling in her arms and her fingers began to tingle. She drew them away. When she came to she was panting roughly, her head on Petyr’s shoulder.

The wolves broke their formation, circling around their chief. In the same way, Petyr and Liam huddled around Shallah as she fought to catch her breath.

“Did he harm you?” Petyr asked as Shallah pressed a hand to her chest. “Are you not well?” He was holding her by the shoulders as though afraid she couldn’t support herself, his fingers tightening their grip with every word.

“I’m fine, Petyr,” she replied, loosening his fingers. “I’ve had the wind knocked out of me, that’s all.”

“I should never have allowed it,” Petyr said fiercely. Sweat stood out on Shallah’s brow and her eyes were feverishly bright. “I should have intervened.”

“Please Petyr, be calm,” she said as she put her arm about Liam. “It seems you’re the one who’s had the fright.”

“I won’t deny it,” he said. He realized his hands were shaking. “I feared … I don’t know what I feared. Only for a moment there, I thought you were lost.”

“Not lost,” Shallah said, “but found.” She raised her head. “He’s given me the third prophecy.”

Petyr nodded slowly. “Yes,” he said. He saw Liam watching him. “Perhaps Liam should –” he began, thinking the boy ought not to hear of such things.

Liam pulled at the ragged edge of Shallah’s cloak, looking at Petyr with that same curious expression.
Don’t you understand?

“No, let him stay,” she said. “I think he’s known all along.” She held the boy close. “He’s known it all.”

Although it was early morning, the wolves had settled down to sleep. It occurred to Petyr that they may have been sitting in formation for hours, waiting for he and his companions to wake. The chief lay curled a few feet away from the rest, watching over them. His eyes met Petyr’s.

He folded his hands in his lap to stop their shaking.

“Tell me,” he said.

Shallah needed little more encouragement.

“The third prophecy speaks of a time of great suffering for wolven kind,” she said. “The race will be threatened with death. Their only hope is a boy. The prophecy is this: shield the boy from harm and we shall be shielded. Protect him and our kind will continue.”

Petyr looked down at Liam.

“They wanted only to protect him, all along.”

“How wrong I was,” she said, shaking her head. “Though they’re by no means gentle creatures, these wolves would never harm us. They need Liam too greatly to take such a risk. I know that now, for the wolf chief gave me more than just the prophecy. When I touched him, he opened a door in his mind and allowed me to wander through the rooms of his memories. I’ve seen all they’ve suffered these past months. I’ve seen ourselves though his eyes. I’ve seen their homeland in the mountainous forest to the west.” Shallah held tightly to Liam’s hand. He looked up at her. “I’ve seen their first meeting with Liam.”

Petyr watched Liam curiously. As though against his will, the boy’s gaze slipped to the pack of wolves, his eyes illuminating their flicking tails, their drowsing faces. There his gaze remained, as though he couldn’t look away.

What are you holding back? Petyr wondered. What have you seen?

Petyr insisted that Shallah take some rest, for the exchange with the chief had left dark circles under her eyes. She was asleep within moments of laying down her head. Petyr played quiet games with Liam to pass the time, often nearly forgetting that others slept all around them. Liam’s eyes alone lit the wood, just as they had when the three of them were traveling alone, believing themselves followed.

But we’re still being followed, Petyr reminded himself. The threats of this wood don’t cease when you cease to think of them.

They have a mind of their own.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Shallah awoke to the sound of laughter.

Petyr had tried to stop Liam from waking the wolves, but he’d scampered out of his grasp and tumbled into the pack.

“Let him be,” Shallah said as she stretched. She heard the scrambling of legs and playful growls. “He’s charmed them.”

It had been a long while since Liam had had a day of fun.

“Eat this,” Petyr said. He handed her a battered apple. “How do you feel?”

“My head feels full,” she replied between bites.

She began to tell Petyr of all she’d learned from the wolf chief, all that Liam had known and never told.

“Was he raised among them?” Petyr asked, getting ahead of the tale. “Is he of the wolf clan?”

Shallah wished with all her heart that it were so. She shook her head.

“Listen,” she said.

Liam’s first encounter with the wolves had taken place the day before he’d been discovered in Trallee. The lands to the west were deteriorating, the trees losing their leaves earlier each year. Lead by the chief, a small band of wolves had set off in search of a new home for their clan. They travelled a long way, for everywhere they went it was the same. The wolf chief pressed his band on, snapping at their heels when they slowed, for the future of his people hung on this quest. In desperation, he led his band into the black wood, though their legends warned against the place.

When they came upon the small boy sitting alone in the wood, a ray of light falling on his shoulders, the younger wolves circled him, wild with hunger. They’d not seen fresh meat in days. They would surely have torn him limb from limb if the chief hadn’t intervened. Though much weakened by hunger himself, the chief recognized Liam for what he was: a sign he’d been waiting for all his life.

Later, Liam explained to the chief how he’d come into the wood looking for someone. He wouldn’t reveal who this person was, and the chief understood that some tragedy had occurred of which the boy didn’t want to speak. Once beneath the trees, Liam had sat down on a log, waiting for the person to appear. He’d been aware that the trees had closed in behind him, barring his escape, but it hadn’t worried him. He’d felt sure that everything would be all right when he and the person were together again.

It was only when he saw the wolves approaching that the child began to feel unsure. His body began to shake with fear, but the chief remembered best the expression on his face. He realized he’d made a terrible mistake. The person he’d come to meet wasn’t coming at all. He was devastated.

The chief ordered his kin not to harm the boy, commanding them to choose between their hunger and death. Liam’s protection was all that mattered now. He would gladly have killed his own to keep him safe. He had them take Liam on their backs and comforted the child himself as they left the black wood behind.

They brought him to Trallee, a place the chief knew held people of Liam’s kind. On the green, a ring of wolves stood guard around Liam, waiting for the dawn. During that long night the chief learned much from the boy. The child took instinctually to the wolven form of communication, in which two minds open to one another and thoughts flow freely between the two. The chief was surprised at the boy’s talent, for humans often couldn’t calm their minds enough to manage the wolven speech. As the hours passed, the chief found himself more and more impressed by this human child, and fell to talking with him as he would his own children.

As they exchanged stories, the chief learned that Liam’s home sat in a place away from the wood, unharmed by its deterioration. The chief resolved to collect his people and bring them to that place. He knew that his protection of the child had already set the wheels of the prophecy in motion. In gratitude for all he knew Liam would do for his kind, the chief bestowed a great gift upon the boy.

He gave him the wolven sight.

In the morning, before the village began to stir, the chief bid farewell to the boy, assuring him they would meet again soon. The chief would return home, rally his people, and come back for the child. Then, together, they would find their way to the promised lands of bright open spaces and lush greenery.

“Of course, all did not go as planned,” Shallah said. “Upon returning home, the wolves found the clan much changed. A strange sickness had taken many lives and the survivors were reluctant to take on a great journey. At the same time, I was agreeing to take Liam away. When the wolves finally made their way to Trallee, Liam and I were long gone. They settled into a pursuit.”

“But why didn’t they step in when the dark oaks captured Liam?” Petyr interrupted. “If they’re sworn to protect him, why did they hold back?”

“They lost us when we fled,” she replied. “Our scents were masked by those of the other animals. Then they were sidetracked by their own battle with the oaks, losing three of their kin in the process. Only when we halted after the buck’s death did they pick up the trail again. Only now have they caught up with us.”

Petyr watched Liam scampering about with the wolves, the child’s demeanour so much changed in the short interval they’d been together. They had healed him.

They had healed “They’ve come a long way to protect a child,” he said.

“They’ve come to survive,” she said. “These eleven are all that’s left of their kind.”

“There are none who do good deeds for their own sake anymore, I suppose.”

“Only you, my friend,” Shallah said.

“No,” Petyr replied, shaking his head knowingly. “Only you.”

The travellers ventured forth with a formidable escort. The wolves, loyal to the prophecy, would accompany Liam to safety, protecting him from all foes. They kept together by marching single file. Petyr and Shallah were at the centre of the line, with six wolves ahead and five behind. Liam was at the head with the chief.

Petyr estimated that their direction held true to that set upon by the animals who’d met such a terrible end. With any luck, they would reach the goal those creatures had so tragically missed.

They moved slowly. Petyr was still greatly weakened. His arm pained him less, it seemed to have set itself finally, but the lack of water was taking its toll on them all. He was suffering dizzy spells and often had to rest. Shallah complained of a constant throbbing in her head. The wolves themselves were not faring much better. One in particular looked slightly crazed and kept up a sickening whine, often darting off without warning after a fluttering leaf it mistook for a bird. It always returned salivating profusely, its jaw snapping at the air.

Shallah’s limp also appeared to be getting worse. Such an injury, Petyr knew, required that the foot be rested, not walked upon day after day. He feared she might be doing herself permanent damage and encouraged her to lean more heavily on him. And though Shallah did as he asked, Petyr often felt her weight lifting after only a few steps. Her courage didn’t uplift him, for the reason for it was clear: he no longer had the strength to carry her.

As they walked, Shallah tried to make sense of the many emotions coursing through her being. She was immensely relieved that the wolves weren’t a threat. It was also gratifying to have protection against possible attacks, and a guide through the wood. She felt genuine hope that their quest would reach its end.

But even as she held to this hope, she couldn’t deny that she was hoping the other way at the same time. For if this prophecy came true, didn’t the other two have to as well? If this prophecy came true, didn’t it mean death to them all? The contradiction in the prophecies was a nagging worry at the back of her mind, keeping company with her atrocious headache. Even the most delightful happenings couldn’t quite make her forget it.

When next they stopped Petyr sat down in a pile of cones, his head between his legs, waiting for the spell to pass. Shallah sat by his side, rubbing his back, as Liam chased the wolves through the spruce trees. She’d never known the boy happier than he was now.

“You were right,” Petyr said.

Shallah turned to him. “Right?”

“Liam does come from a place beyond the trees. Such a place does exist, just as you said.”

“Yes,” she said faintly. With all she had on her mind, she’d forgotten there’d been any doubt on the matter.

Petyr shifted his position with difficulty. He leaned toward her so he could whisper in her ear. “I believe again,” he said softly. “I believe we will find our way there, so you don’t have to worry about it. I relied on your dreams once, and your belief in them. Now, you can rely on mine.”

Shallah had never known what it was to rely completely on another. Even as a child, her father’s forgetful nature had forced her to depend on herself. The Shallah she’d been would have scorned the idea of relying on another’s conviction, of displaying such helplessness. But these past few days had changed her. Now, she felt only gratitude to Petyr for his kind sentiment, and wonder that he could care so much for her.