บท 50: Chapter -49-

It was quiet in the truck. Joe idled it along while Jim prayed that they stayed on the road. He and Marie had their radios turned down to a whisper. Carol had met Staff and John and had sent them on their way. Rob had been called in to respond to an incident in the reserve, but Carol would be back at the detachment in minutes. Everything is going to be OK.

He wished he believed it.

Someone else had been down this road ahead of them. The weak moonlight lit tire tracks and footprints both. Only one set of footprints. Maybe the wolves always used the back trails Tom had followed.

Joe stopped the truck.

"If I remember right, this is the last curve before the clearing where the mine is."

"The others are closing in," Marie whispered. "But they aren't sure. The coordinates are only a guess."

"We'll move up to where we can watch the mine, but we won't move in unless we have to."