Scent of Salvation

Epilogue

The sounds of birds singing vanished as Susan stalked through the forest. She raised her muzzle to the wind and caught the scent she’d been searching for.

Sorin.

Her ears came forward and she quickened her walking pace. After six months, she still had trouble running on all fours, and she didn’t want to risk tripping. The cargo she carried was too precious.

Howls flooded the forest air. The hunters were successful. It would be a good night in the Apisi den.

She followed their song over a hill until she reached the meadow.

Sorin and his hunters gathered in the center with their kills. He raised his head in her direction and raced at full speed, coming to a sudden halt when he reached her. “Is everything all right? Are the pups well?” He touched her swollen belly with reverence, and worry tinged his cinnamon scent.

“Everything is fine.” She placed her hands on his. The dark brown of her fur contrasted with his silver. “I miss hunting.”

He sighed and rolled his eyes. “You’re too swollen to run.”

“You mean too clumsy.”

“I worry.”

She shifted to her civil form, not concerned with her nudity like she used to be. Ever since she learned to shift, her world had changed for the better. She’d never been so happy.

The forest wasn’t a fearful place anymore. She welcomed nature now and loved the land. A new connection existed between her and the world— something humans were missing. She wished she could share it with them.

Settling on a patch of moss, she watched the hunters carry their kills home.

Sorin shifted and joined her. He laid his head upon her belly, caressing her roundness. “I can’t wait.”

Born of Earth, she’d been lost in the world of technology. Susan didn’t miss any of it. She was a daughter of Eorthe now, female alpha of the loving Apisi, and mate to her Sorin. She’d bear his pups with pride and hopefully lead their people into a new age.