Julie of the Wolves Read Online Free PDF

caribou was passing through. She held her breath as the hunters sped toward a large buck. The animal opened his stride and gracefully gained ground. He could so easily outrun the wolves that Amaroq let him go and trotted toward another. This one, too, outdistanced the pack and Amaroq swerved and tested another. Just as Miyax was wondering how the wolves ever caught anything, Amaroq put on full speed and bore down on a third.
    This animal could not outrun him, and when Amaroq attacked he turned and struck with his powerful hoofs. Like a bouncing ball the leader sprang away. Nails and Silver fanned out to either side of the beast, then veered and closed in. The caribou bellowed, pressed back his ears, zigzagged over a frost heave, and disappeared from sight.
    “They’re chasing the weakest,” Miyax said in astonishment. “It’s just like Kapugen said—wolves take the old and sick.”
    She looked from the empty tundra to the busy den site. Kapu was staring at her, his eyes narrowed, his ears thrown forward aggressively.
    “Now why are you so hostile?” she asked, then looked at her feet and legs. “Ee-lie, Ee-lie.” She dropped to all fours and smiled apologetically.
    “ Ayi , Kapu. You’ve never seen a man in all your life. What is it that tells you to beware? Some spirit of your ancestors that still dwells in your body?”
    She gave the grunt-whine and Kapu pressed down his ears, snatched up a bone and brought it over to her. She grabbed it, he tugged, she pulled, he growled, she giggled, and Jello called Kapu home. He cocked an ear, rolled his eyes, and ignored the baby-sitter.
    “You’re naughty,” she said and covered a grin with her hand. “Martha would scold me for that.”
    Kapu dropped the bone. She leaned down, picked it up in her teeth, and tried to run on all fours. She had barely begun to move away when Kapu leaped on her back and took her bare neck in his teeth. She started to scream, checked herself and, closing her eyes, waited for the teeth to pierce her skin. They did not even bruise, so controlled was this grip that said “Drop the bone.” She let it go, and in one swish Kapu leaped to the ground and snatched it.
    As she started after him something struck her boot and she looked around to see Zit, Zat, and Sister at her heels. Zing charged up the knoll, hit her arm with great force, and knocked her to the ground. She growled, flashed her teeth, and narrowed her eyes. Kapu dropped the bone and lay down. Zing backed up, and for a moment not a puppy moved.
    “Phew.” She smiled. “That did it.”
    Too late she remembered that such a smile was an apology, a sort of “I didn’t mean it,” and before she could growl all five little wolves jumped on her again.
    “Stop!” She was angry. They sensed it and backed away. “Shoo! Go!” She waved her arm above her head and the threatening pose spoke louder than all her words. Drooping their tails, glancing warily at her, they trotted away—all but Kapu. He licked her cheek.
    “Dear Kapu.” She was about to stroke his head, when he picked up the bone and carried it back to the den. But he was not done with play. He never was. Kapu was tireless. Diving into a tunnel, he came out on the other side and landed on Jello’s tail.
    When Miyax saw this she sat back on her heels. Open-ended tunnels reminded her of something. In the spring, wolf packs stay at a nursery den where the pups are born deep in the earth at the end of long tunnels. When the pups are about six weeks old and big enough to walk and run, the leaders move the entire group to a summer den. These are mere shelters for the pups and are open at two ends. For a few weeks the packs stay at this den; then they leave and take up the nomadic winter life of the wolf.
    The cold chill of fear ran up Miyax’s spine—the wolves would soon depart! Then what would she do? She could not follow them; they often ran fifty miles in a night and slept in different spots each day.
    Her hands trembled