“I see one,” Jack shouted a moment later, as a gray form bounded into view not more than twenty feet away.
His words were followed by the sharp crack of the rifle and the wolf leaped high in the air with a sharp yelp of pain and fell back. Almost instantly the deep throated howls changed to sharp yelps and snarls as the pack fought over the body of the dead wolf. Bob quickly fired three more shots at the writhing mass, which he could see but dimly through the falling snow. Whether or not any of the shots took effect he was unable to tell, as the incessant yelping made it impossible to distinguish any separate cry of pain.
For perhaps ten minutes the battle raged, then, almost as suddenly as it had started, it was ended, and the gray forms slunk back among the trees.
“Didn’t take ’em long to finish him,” Jack declared, as he gave the fire a poking causing it to blaze up afresh. “Think they’ve quit?”
“I doubt it,” Bob replied. “They’re pretty wise fellows and they’ve had a lesson; but if they’re very hungry, and I guess there’s no doubt about that, they won’t give up so easy. If we only had plenty of wood we’d be all right,” he added, giving the fire another poke.
But now the wood was nearly all consumed and the poking had but slight effect. The howls had ceased entirely and had it not been for the occasional glimpse of a shadowy form dimly seen in the darkness, they might have concluded that the wolves had given it up as a bad job.
“Guess they’re waiting for the fire to go out,” Jack suggested as he again tried to coax a blaze from the dying embers.
Bang! A shaggy form, more bold than the rest, had crept forward until he offered a fair shot, but he paid for his temerity with his life, and quickly furnished material for a second cannibalistic feast.
Fortunately he had plenty of cartridges and he again fired shot after shot into the fighting crowd. Some of the shots he knew must be hitting the mark and, after a short time, the wolves again withdrew into the shelter of the trees leaving, as they could see, three or four bodies lying in the snow.
“We’ve got ’em on the run now,” Jack shouted joyfully, but Bob was not so confident.