Chapter 27 - And Then There Was One

The little mop panted behind his mother and siblings with growing dismay as he realized that he was not going to catch up with them until they stopped. Every step was hindered by his long, matted hair. The dirty dreadlocks tangled in his short legs and caught on his too-long claws. Their length hurting his little paws with each step even when they didn’t get caught on his own long hair.

The pup’s steps slowed, and he stared sadly after his family and herd as they left him behind. In another area of the High Passes, this might have been a death sentence. His mother would have huddled her pups close to her and the herd would have surrounded the mothers and young protectively. But here it was ‘safe’.