Tears stung her eyes at the thought. No. She could not lose her too. That would be the last straw. Kirsty knew if she lost Leia that she would just give up and wasn’t sure if she could go on. Not after everything else. Kirsty refused to think about that, she would do anything to protect herself and her loyal pet, anything.
And that included weighing herself down with her father’s shotgun.
As a farmer, he was one of the few people licensed to have a firearm in Scotland, and a shotgun to fend off predators was one of the few firearms permitted. He’d used it to scare off foxes in the past and she’d grown up knowing how to use the dang thing, even if it scared her to death. It was cumbersome, and heavy, but it was the only thing that she could think of that would possibly give her an edge over a freaking Wolf.
No silver bullets, unfortunately. But surely being shot with the large bore caliber would slow one down. Wouldn’t it? She hoped so because it was all she had. Well, that wasn’t strictly true. She did have several knives from her grandmother’s antique cutlery set, solid silver too. However, she’d have to be close to use those, and Kirsty definitely didn’t want to be that near to one of those bastards. Not after what they’d done to her parents.
She still could not figure out the why, even the police had said they were baffled. Although one had snorted and said, “Damn rogues don’t need a reason.”
Didn’t make any difference the why, her parents were still dead and she was still alone, apart from Leia.
Blowing a puff of air upwards to remove hair from her eyes, she sighed when it didn’t budge. Wet with sweat, it stuck like glue to her face, so she swiped it back with one arm, holding tight to the shotgun with the other, its strap over her shoulder, and the large double barrel across her chest. She prayed she didn’t need to use it. Although her father had taught her how to use the firearm when she was young, and she was confident in her proficiency, it was a whole other ballgame when her target was a fast moving, vicious killer.
Then the thought of a Wolf sinking its teeth into her Shepherd flashed into her head and she ground her jaws together. Not happening. If it meant she had to shoot the damn thing, then she would.
Leia slowed, whining and panting. “Soon, we’ll find you some water and rest up for a wee while.”
Leia’s tail wagged, her head cocking to the side as she looked up at her. Her dark eyes trusting and full of love. Damn. Kirsty could not allow her beloved animal to be hunted down by these filthy rogues.
Looking around she realized she had no clue where she was, miles from home, that was for sure. Hot, sticky with sweat, and exhausted, all she wanted was to find somewhere safe to rest. Ahead she saw what looked like an opening going into a glen, one she was not familiar with and she thought she knew them all. She wasn’t that far from the farm so she was a little confused that she didn’t recognize the area.
Anyway, where there was a glen there was usually a stream, so she headed in that direction, staying under cover of the trees as she rushed onward. Leia leading the way, her head swinging side to side, on high alert.
Kirsty’s red hair had long since broken free of her braid, flying around her head as she sped up, her face wet with sweat. Oh wait, not sweat. “We don’t sweat, dear, we glow,” her Nan used to say.
Yeah right. Kirsty laughed softly, she was glowing bright as the damn sun if the liquid running down her face was anything to go by.
Leia whined again, her tongue lolling out the side of her mouth. “Poor puppy, I’m sorry. We’ll stop soon.”
Kirsty patted Leia’s rump as she caught up, passing through some bushes to find a fence at the neck of the glen. Looking around she saw some signs of the “Keep Out” variety. “Sorry,” she said, as she slipped over and into the lush valley.
As soon as her feet touched the ground her body quivered, a strange sensation passing through her. Pausing, Kirsty tried to figure out what it was. Was her sixth sense trying to warn her of something? Her Nan always told her to listen to her intuition. She said that it was a gift, one that she should cherish and allow to grow. Aye, right. Just after that, her Nan had gone and died on her without further explaining. When she’d asked her mum about it, she’d been warned not to talk nonsense.
Didn’t matter now, she had to find water, for her and Leia. There must be water nearby, she was sure she could hear it, and when Leia rushed past her, she knew she was right. Her pup must have scented it and ran headlong toward the liquid, to quench her thirst. Kirsty followed, her head spinning around in search of any threats.
Keeping to the edge of the tree-line, Kirsty followed her Shepherd, knowing Leia would never lead her into danger. With an excited yip, Leia sped up, darting around a corner and out of view. Kirsty’s heart thudded in her chest, trying to keep up, speeding headlong to come skidding to a stop when she saw Leia at the edge of a stream, head down and lapping up water.
“Thank you,” Kirsty whispered, her eyes rising to the sky as she joined Leia.
Dropping the shotgun and her pack to the ground, she fell to her knees, using her hands to cup the cool water up to her mouth and quenching her raging thirst. Until those first drops of cool liquid ran down her parched throat, Kirsty hadn’t realized just how thirsty she’d been, her hands working double
