Phoenix Rising: From Heartache to Heroism

Chapter 26

Chapter 26 Taking Away the Little Wolf Cub

After another forty minutes, Violeta paused on a small hill, gazing into the distance where a red flag marked the finish line.

"See that? The finishing line is just over there. A mere two minutes, and we'll make it!

"That's a relief Kaylee plopped down on the ground, massaging her tired legs.

Meanwhile, Jezebel, seated nearby, heard a soft whimper. Turning, she spotted a furry little pup in the grass

"Look! A puppy!" Little did she know she mistook the wolf cub for a domestic pup.

Eagerly, she lured the cub with her food and water, cradling it in her arms.

The cub's whimpers caught Violeta's attention. "What's that sound? Did you guys hear it?"

Kaylee swiveled around and spotted Jezebel trying to stash the wolf cub in her bag.

"Hey, Jezebel! What on earth are you doing?"

Jezebel hesitated. "I don't know who left this little guy here. I felt sorry for it, so I considered taking it back with me."

Upon hearing Jezebel's harebrained idea, Violeta was on the brink of unleashing a torrent of

curses..

"Are you out of your mind? That's not a puppy! It's a wolf cub! Didn't I warn you? There are wild wolves in the mountains

During the hike, Violeta was on this wild wolf hunt, carefully looking for any traces of those

creatures in the area.

You'd see wild wolves in Mount Wilson from time to time, but not often. People would hike up the mountain regularly to scare them off, so the chances of bumping into them were pretty low for regular folks. But guess what? In Violeta's dream team, Jezebel turned out to be a bit of a scatterbrain. She mistook a wolf cub for a fluffy little puppy! Seriously?

territory upon catching a whiff of their distinctive scent.

dare sniff around where wolves

shaky dance, causing the wolf cub to hit the

and said, "Hurry

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13.09

Mama Wolf might show up following the scent trail later, the girls didn't dare to dawdle,

out a few whimpers

alarmed and hollered immediately, "Oh sh*t, Violeta, it's following us.

from Mama Wolf sent shivers down the other three girls' spines, making them pick up the

"What the heck were you doing back there? Hugging the wolf cub? Now, we're all gonna end up wolf

us down this path. It's on her! We wouldn't deal with wolves if

You can't even tell a wolf from a dog, and yet you're blaming Violeta? She already warned us about the

T..."

bickering, "Enough! Let's keep moving! We're almost there, and then we'll

by a wolf

herself to safety, but she couldn't guarantee the safety of

their mouths and followed Violeta, hustling to

normally take twenty minutes in a rush took them only ten, fueled by adrenaline. They

four emerge from the bushes like their lives depended on it and hit the stopwatch, "Wow! Two hours and seventeen minutes, we've got a new record! But why'd you

and Sonya were going to complain to the instructor about Violeta. Still, before they could say anything, the

you leading, but

record!"

Jezebel and Sonya exclaimed together, their excitement making

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right? An extra ten grand on top of the original

you're looking at sixty

spot"

but she wasn't as over-the-top as Jezebel

Sonya