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Five.

"So, what is it you guys actually do up here?" Shane asked awkwardly, as he followed Sammy through the winding trails.

"Well, in short, we rescue and rehabilitate wild animals. Of course we also have a few permanent residents, where rehabilitation won't work." Sammy answered with relief, glad to be able to focus on work.

This was an area of her life,she could easily chat all day about.

"That's actually where we're headed now, it's breakfast time." She added, with a quick smile over her shoulder.

Shane smile back, silently admiring his soon to be Beta female's passion. This was clearly a role and a subject she felt strongly about, and he had to admit, it was good to see that Daniel's mate was a strong woman, with good values. He even thought his beta might learn something from her, he was pleased that they made a good match.

"And what exactly are we feeding?" He asked with a genuine smile, Sammy's mood becoming infectious.

"The wolves of course," Sammy smiled, raising her eyebrows, before stopping at a small hut and keying in the code on the lock box.

Shane watched as she grabbed the key from the open box and unlocked the door. Instantly he was hit with the smell of raw meat and kibble.

"Is that," he inhaled again, to double check, "Kibble? You feed them kibble?" He asked, slightly offended, on the behalf of the pack.

Sammy laughed, moving inside the small shed as she answered him.

"We do, yes it provides a nutritious base for their diet. But, they get that for dinner. Breakfast, is meat time. After all, it's the most important meal of the day," and with that she walked back out, and handed Shane a large bucket filled with raw chickens, and a pair of blue latex gloves. "Hang on, I will grab the other ones."

She returned a second later, with her own buckets, refusing to pass the larger load over.

"That's a lot of chicken." Shane commented, mildly amused at Sammy's determination

"Yeah, we try to vary their meat as much a possible, and Sundays are a bone day. Good for the teeth," she winked, before leading them further through the trees, where Shane could smell the wolves around them, getting closer.

"Now, first we have a couple of the residents I mentioned earlier," Sammy began as the approached the first enclosure. "Think of them as our VIPs, and you won't go wrong."

Shane sensed how fond she was of these 'VIPs' and he eagerly looked into a cleared area, trying to spot them. The enclosure was sparse, with a hut at the back, and Shane could clearly sense, they were being watched from within.

"The she wolf, here is blind," Sammy stated, gaining his attention, while creating some confusion. "Her name is Macy, she is about eight to ten years old. She was hit by a car and then dumped on our door. It was touch and go while I operated, but Macy is a fighter." Sammy explained, while opening a hatch in the side of the enclosure. "The Male she is with is Connor, he is about twelve we think. He was found in an illegal trap, there was so much tissue damage on his leg that we had to amputate," she stated solemnly, beginning to throw in some chickens with a whistle.

"Tissue damage?" Shane asked.

"Yeah, the trap had mutilated the skin and muscle, it destroyed all the blood vessels, and no blood flow means no limb." Sammy clarified.

Shane stood, concealing his anger as the two wolves slowly appeared.

"Normally, we would have put him to sleep, but at the time we had the space for another resident. Originally he was in another enclosure on his own, but wolves are pack animals, and as time went on, they began calling out to each other. So, we introduced them, by splitting this pen.  Now, they are inseparable, if you watch closely, Connor seems to guide Macy, while she will sometimes support his wobbles. Those are the reasons, this enclosure is also so bare. Whatever enrichment we provide has to be suitable for their capabilities."

Shame watched as the two wolves wandered down to the chickens, they eyed him curiously, and his own inner wolf yearned to fix them somehow. Even though there was nothing he could do, being an Alpha left him feeling responsible.

"We now have a sponsorship programme in place for our residents.  Members of the public can sign up online and offer their support. In return they get monthly updates on each wolf. It was slow to begin, but it has gained some decent traction, especially with those who were "Team Jacob" if you catch my drift," she laughed, "Now, it's the only reason we can afford to keep them going." Sammy explained, before closing the hatch and collecting her bucket to move along to the next enclosure.

Shane followed quietly, a frown marring his features, till they got to the next enclosure. This one was much larger, and there were slabs of rock, trees and shrubs, as well as a large wooden framed set of stairs, fenced off at the side. He couldn't see within the enclosure here, but the brief view he had got, looked interesting. Shane followed as Sammy led him straight up the stairs. At the top they, opened out to a large sheltered viewing deck. He could see most of the enclosure from here, but it seemed empty.

"This is the Blue Valley Pack, Mr. Andrews," Sammy stated, and he nearly choked.

Thankfully Sammy didn't notice, as she began tossing her raw chickens into the enclosure from above.

"Are these going in too?" Shane asked.

"Yes please, but try and throw them sporadically around, the harder they are to find the more points you get," she smiled playfully.

"What?" He asked confused.

"Well, in time we hope to release the main pack again. We aren't sure why, but they were pushed from their territory, possibly by hunters; but, the odd thing is they were pushed into local towns along the valley. We were called by animal control, no one wanted to euthanize a whole pack of thirty wolves, except a particular band of fur trappers, who are known to be illegally working in the area. But, as the area is protected, instead we rounded them up and brought them here." Sammy explained. "There is so much legislation involved in releasing them though, and finding a suitable area, away from people. I wont lie, it's tough," Sammy explained, "But, we are hopeful, which is why we feed from up here. Out of sight. We dont want them to associate people with food."

"And the spreading the chickens around?" Shane asked with a smirk as he watched Sammy toss the chickens randomly.

"Well, they're wild, so this way each wolf has to hunt out his food. Even if it's already dead when they find it." Sammy sighed, "It's not the same, but we can only do so much, you know?"

Shane nodded with a small smile, and began throwing, earning a small clap of appreciation when he got one carcass stuck in the low branch of a tree.

"Now what?" He asked when the enclosure still looked empty.

"Now we wait." Sammy responded, removing her blue latex gloves and putting them in a trash can at the side.

Shane did the same, then turned to watch. It was ten minutes later, when his hearing detected a rustling, then a black nose pushed out through the undergrowth. The sleek silver coat of the wolf that followed made him smile, as the animal followed its nose across to a nearby chicken.

"That's Kye, he is one of the stronger pack members. I've seen him almost boss the others around. It's funny to watch." She explained in a whisper.

"Funny how?" Shane responded.

"Just wait till Luna and the pups come out." Sammy smiled.

"Luna?" He asked, shocked by the name.

"Yeah, as in wolves and the moon, Luna." Sammy clarified, "Though, contrary to legends, "They don't actually howl at it."

Shane smiled, she wasn't wrong. While his pack prayed to the diety of the moon, they didn't howl at her either. They simply prayed,  and showed her their respect.

Another minute or two later, more bodies began to appear as if from no where.

"How will I know which is Luna?" He asked, enjoying himself immensely.

"Oh, you'll know." Sammy smirked.

As he watched, he noticed the tell tale signs of little ears.

There were youngsters in this pack, and it made his wolf's heart soar. His own mate was expecting and although their child wouldn't shift till they were a teenager, seeing the youngsters, still had a profound affect on his wolf, who was suddenly pushing to shift and go play.

He had regularly played with wild wolf packs. Despite him being a stranger, they had sensed no threat and normally let him run with them for a while. In return he helped them hunt. With his larger size it made it easier to find and take down a kill. But, come to think of it, it had been three years or so, since he had enjoyed the experience.

Shane stiffened with guilt. How did he not recognize they were in trouble, or even register their absence.

He was shaken from his thoughts, as Sammy tapped his arm pointing at the she wolf who had emerged.

Her teats were enlarged, and she was obviously the mother of the youngsters, who began clambering around her feet. Then, the youngsters tore away and began clambering across Kye, while one was chewing on his ear, and another tugging at his tail.

Kye took it without complaint, but when they went for his chicken, he let out a small snarl of warning. He received a sharp nip in the flank from their mother in retaliation. Kye yelped and ran off, abandoning his half eaten chicken to find another.

Shane then began to watch the maternal wolf; she had stopped what she was doing, distracted by doting briefly on one of her cubs, before she eyed the carcass stuck in the tree. She circled beneath it a few times before leaping to retrieve it.

It took her several attempts, but before long they were watching as she lay down and ate her meal, all while keeping a watchful eye on her six babes, as they happily terrorized the rest of the pack.

Shane eventually tore his eyes from the pack to see Sammy with a clip board filling out some paperwork.

"What are you doing?" He asked, curiously.

Sammy smiled, "I'm just recording how they are. They were wormed yesterday, and I am just recording how everyone is. It's a simple tick box exercise really. But, sometimes they go off their food, and I like to have a record of how and when. There are so many in here, I have to watch them eat, but when we head back, I will note what Macy and Connor have done as well."

"You really care about them, don't you?" Shane asked, as though he was seeing her for the first time.

"I wouldn't be here, being the lowest paid vet in the country if I didn't," Sammy laughed, going back to her paperwork.

Shane nodded, scrutinizing her thoughtfully. This woman, in fact this team that he thought nothing of before, had stepped up when he failed. He was the Alpha in this territory, and there were wolves in trouble and he missed it. He was annoyed at himself, but already planning to help. The Blue Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, was about to get a serious financial boost, as well as a lot more volunteers.

"So, what's next he asked, as Sammy put the clipboard back on the wall, and took his gloves to dispose of for him.

"Now, we go feed, Gomez." She smiled, "And, his den is needing a clean out."

"Another wolf?" Shane asked curiously.

"Nope," Sammy smiled, her eyes alight with mischief.  "Gomez, is a real life teady bear. You're going to love him."

"A what?" He asked, as Sammy led the way downstairs.

"He's a grizzly." Came Sammy's reply.

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