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I ran down country roads that led back toward town, through neighborhoods and across grocery store parking lots until I was in don Silver City, dodging the occasional car and running after cats I spent hours with my nose to the street--it was like another world--when I sensed rather than heard the approach of another canine

My head lifted, my front paw ca aniainst his narrow body, loped down the road and stopped at my side A low, pitiful whine echoed fro back and forth

Where in the world did you coht at him I have no idea if he heard me, but he yelped and trotted off Before he was a block away, he turned and looked atfor h the town and back into the country It was easy to stay behind Shash because his scent, round, but every single twig, branch, rock, and blade of sagebrush he touched, not to mention the very air I could have followed hih the bushes in a steady direction--ho thatsky, I inhaled My fur bristled and a sudden, primitive instinct overtook all hu--ferocious, h the scraggly brush And that is when I spotted the gleaaps in the trees

Shash and I darted through the underbrush Fear lent fresh speed to s But whatever chased me was so unnatural, so round, frozen with terror, and let thes that they appeared to be They were soh Shash and I ran at top speed, I could feel them behind ed breathing

When one got so close I could hear its pounding heart, teeth snapped and pain seared round The ani-toothed h ave it a second thought as wet fur filled my mouth My teeth cale drop touched ue And then the creature was off me and Shash was at my side We tried to run, but my ankle was useless, my tendon severed

Side by side, my head by Shash’s tail, Shash’s head by like creatures crept out of the underbrush and circled us There were all sorts of breeds, all larger than us My lips pulled away fros, ready to spring When a solid Dober animal leaped at me, I leaped, too, and wethe other’s neck

We crashed down and I landed on top of the rock-hard creature, shaking its neck with allbeneath me, lent power to my jaws and deters pounced on my back

Hundreds of teeth sank into my flesh, from my shoulders to ht, the sound a dog ht after it is hit by a car, a split second before it dies When another yelp ripped through the night, torn fro about to die

With every ounce of strength I possessed, I bit and scratched theht of death pressedboo the ru Ti my head froain A dog yelped Teeth released my flesh and the creatures scattered so quickly, so silently, I al out, this time from the opposite direction, and Shash whined a low, pitiful sound

I whiet up but was too hurt to move A new scent enteredmy snout Duke He whined and pushed at th to stand Duke began trotting away Shash and I followed, though ht in one ten paces when I froze A rottweiler, eyes glazed,pool of blood I shuffled around the dead body and followed Shash and Duke

We passed the school bus stop and loped toward hohtly lit barn and house cas I hobbled toward the open barn door Inside, I fell onto a pile of straw, every inch of , and slid back into , naked ball and wondered hoas lucky enough to be alive

Beside hty, if you’re a Skinwalker, I’ll shoot you before I ask questions" It wasn’t until Mrs Carpenter spoke that I realized she was in the barn, too

Shocked and horrified, I looked up to see her standing over me with a rifle in hand

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"What’s a Skinwalker?" I asked, waiting for her to kill ainst his head, slunk in between Mrs Carpenter andsoft and rose scented drapedthe scrapes that covered et you inside, child, before you catch your death," Mrs Carpenter said, as if I had been out working in the garden on a rainy afternoon She pulled me to my feet and helped me slipbut an old, thin nightgown Without a word, she tied the pink terry cloth belt around my waist

Mrs Carpenter tilted her head to the side After a silent moment, she picked up the rifle and walked over to shut the barn doors