Pride's Run Read Free Page B

think of Jace and Clover and I push harder.
They need me to win this. They need the nutrition I’ll receive as a
reward.
    I scale the first wall. Easy. Then bolt
toward the next obstacle, Jacob’s ladder. With instincts guiding
me, I begin my ascent, fully aware how the rungs get farther and
farther apart.
    I coach myself. Easy, Pride. Slowly.
Carefully. Don’t look down.
    When I reach the top platform, I clamp the
knotted rope with my sharp canines and bear down. My legs push off
the ledge and I swing low, my paws mere inches from the ground as I
cross the mud pit. An adjustment has been made and my light weight
causes me to overshoot the sand by a few inches and I land with a
thud onto the hard ground. I curse under my breath, determined not
to make that mistake again. Blinking back the pain, I climb to my
feet and shake it off. I don’t bother to check on Stone. I can hear
his pants and know he is closing the gap.
    Up ahead is the net and I know what
they’ve done, what Mario had been hinting at. This next obstacle
could very well decide the outcome. Logic assures me that since
Stone is big on strength and light on brains, he’s bound to miss
it.
    I catch a flash of black fur as Stone runs by
me. If he spots the flaw, I could end up going on scraps today. I
can go on scraps. I’ve done it numerous times before. The aging
Jace and Clover are another story and thoughts of them prompt me to
dig in harder.
    Stone bares sharp white teeth and glances at
me over his shoulder as he takes to the outside edge of the net,
where the netting hasn’t been tampered with. Shocked, I open my
mouth, but no sound comes.
    He’s already at the top of his net by the
time I reach mine. He looks down at me and using telepathy, the way
our kind communicates when in wolf form, barks out, “ What’s the
matter, Pride? Cat got your tongue ?”
    I briefly note the way his aging bunkmates,
Cruz and Star aren’t cheering him on. Why would they? Greedy boy
that Stone is, he never shares his victor’s reward with them. Not
that we’re allowed to share. But still, I don’t let that stop
me.
    Getting my head back into the game, I
scramble up quickly and drop to the ground on the other side of the
net. Stone’s inky black tail wags as he takes the lead.
Determination renewed, I look at the strategically placed orange
cones, not his tail.
    He hasn’t won yet.
    I move in and out of the zig-zags, my small
size and agility giving me an advantage over his larger, more
muscled frame. I catch up with Stone and rage flashes in his pewter
eyes as he angles his head to see me. That split second of
inattention gives me the advantage. Wanting to drive home the fact
that my brains have beaten his brawn, I grin and gesture toward the
soft ground seconds before Stone’s beefy paws sink into the trap,
seconds before it’s too late for him to do anything about it. When
he stumbles, collective cheers ring out behind me. I jump over the
man-made mud hole camouflaged by patches of green grass as the
sound of Stone’s teeth crashing together reverberates through the
air.
    I push forward, tackling the hurdles with
ease and a few minutes later I reach the end. With a swish of my
tail I turn to see Stone, now knee deep in mud. His nostrils flare,
his teeth flash, and his eyes darken when he looks at me. In a
swift movement that takes me by surprise, he leaps from the mud
pit.
    He exposes his fangs in challenge and
instantly the air charges. Just like the animal he is, he turns on
me. As I watch him, my mother’s familiar warning words come rushing
back.
    Trust no one but family.
    Despite our human halves, the wolves inside
us are still primal beings, ruled by instincts and survival of the
fittest. I can never let myself forget that.
    I can feel the rage unfurling inside him as
he lunges with lightning speed. I go up on my haunches in response
to his threat. He swipes at me, his long nails tearing past fur and
catching the fleshy part of my cheek. I strike back,