While gathering firewood in the forest, the woman made an effort to avoid going too far into the undergrowth. She had froze in place a couple of times when she saw a wolf with the same light cream mark on its chest, startled. Emma recognized it right away, so she made an effort to appear composed but wary—it was still a wild animal, after all.

He might have been friendly with her neighbor, but the young nurse was still terrified of him and he didn’t know Emma. Emma went out as usual one day in January, in the dead of winter, to gather small branches. When she had accumulated enough, the gray wolf suddenly materialized in front of her.

Emma said softly, “Oh hey, fluffy tail,” and paused, assuming the wolf would simply keep moving forward. However, he didn’t. Instead, he began running toward her in quick bursts and then retreated.

He seemed to want Emma to go with him.
She said, “You want me to accompany you?” and the wolf eagerly dropped to his front paws, seemingly responding, “Yes.”
Emma muttered, “Well, all right, your call,” and started to move cautiously through the deep snow.

The nurse had to pull her old padded coat tighter around herself because of the extreme cold. She continued to follow the wolf into the forest until they came to a large clearing. Emma was initially unable to comprehend what she was seeing.

Equipment and metal fragments were all over the place. She saw what appeared to be a portion of a rotor blade and the oval cockpit of a helicopter close to one chunk. The helicopter had crashed.

Emma exclaimed, “Oh my God,” and bolted for the cockpit. She froze as she peered inside.

There was a man in the cockpit, wrapped in a rough military blanket, standing still. There was a deep cut above his left eyebrow, and his scruffy beard partially obscured his pale face. Emma initially believed he was dead, but then she noticed a faint rise and fall in his chest. He was inhaling. Breathing, barely.

Heart racing, she cried out, “You’re alive!”

The man struggled to open his eyes. His pale skin and lips, which were tinted blue from the cold, contrasted sharply with their deep blue hue.

His voice was so weak that Emma could hardly hear him whisper, “Help.”

Her nurse instincts took over right away. She quickly inspected the cockpit, finding no obvious fuel leaks, no danger of an explosion, and, based on the snow partially covering it, it appeared that the helicopter had been there for some time.

She firmly stated, “I’m going to get you out of here.” But I need your assistance. Are your legs able to move?

The man shifted both legs a little, but he winced in agony. His spine was probably unharmed, so that was encouraging.

“Your arms?”
The left hand remained limp as he raised the right.
“Consider it broken,” he whispered.

The cockpit door, wedged beneath a mound of snow, was difficult for Emma to open. As she did, cold air surged in, and the man’s shivering intensified.

“We must transport you to a warm location. It’s not far from my house. Can you keep me here?

He gave a slight nod. Emma worked so hard to help pull him out. The man was heavier than she was, taller, and obviously weak. He staggered dangerously as she helped him stand.

As they started their leisurely walk through the snow, she asked, “What’s your name?” in an attempt to keep him awake.

After a long pause, as if he was having trouble remembering, he finally responded, “Andrew.” “Vaughn, Andrew.”
“My name is Emma. Emma Reed. Since I work as a nurse, you’re in capable hands.

Andrew’s attempt at a smile turned into more of a grimace.

“I’m lucky.”

From the edge of the clearing, the gray wolf trailed behind them, remaining a few yards to their right. He would occasionally vanish between trees and then reappear up ahead, seemingly to check the route.

“It looks like your friend is very protective,” Andrew remarked, gesturing to the wolf.
Emma grinned. He isn’t truly a friend of mine. Miss Anna, my neighbor, owns him. The only person within ten kilometers is my neighbor. She is a lonely elderly woman with a unique talent for animals, but people believe she is insane for taming a wolf.
“Yet he guided you to me.”
Emma glanced at the wolf once more and saw that it was accurate.

Indeed. He seemed to have known.

Silently they went on, the snow growing harder with each step. Emma felt her strength ebbing away as Andrew leaned more on her. The cold was getting intolerable, and her house was still far away. Then Andrew tripped and fell, dragging Emma down with him into the snow.

“I can’t continue,” he muttered. “Go away from me. Keep yourself safe.

“Never,” she said, attempting to raise him. “I didn’t come across you only to let you perish in the snow.”

The wolf was closer than ever at that point. As though attempting to lead them once more, he gazed straight into Emma’s eyes before turning to face the woods.

Emma raised Andrew to his feet and remarked, “I believe he wants us to follow him.”

They followed the wolf through the trees and off the path. They arrived at a small clearing with a rustic cabin after fifteen minutes or so.

“It is the cabin of the ranger!” Emma cried out. “I had no idea it was so close.”

She pulled Andrew inside with her remaining strength. Although the cabin was simple, it had a bed, a wood stove, water, canned food, and a first aid kit. Emma helped Andrew onto the bed and started the fire.

As she began tending to his wounds, she remarked, “Let’s see what we have here.”

Andrew had several bruises, a deep cut on his head, and the first signs of frostbite in addition to his broken arm. He had a dangerously low body temperature.

As she cleaned the wound on her head, she inquired, “How long were you out there?”
I’m not sure. Two days? Three, perhaps?
“Why haven’t you been discovered?”
For a moment, Andrew closed his eyes. “They’re most likely searching in the wrong area. I didn’t follow my intended path.

Emma wrapped the bandage and arched an eyebrow.

“How did you find yourself in this remote location?”
“The story is lengthy.”
She looked out the window where the snow was falling more heavily and said, “We have time.”

Andrew let out a sigh. “I fly for the military. I happened upon something I wasn’t supposed to see while on a recon mission. A transmission that is coded. Transport information and coordinates. I initially disregarded it, but then I realized it was White Wolf, the name of an operation that is only discussed in whispers.

“White Wolf: What is it?”

“A program of experimentation.” For special missions, they use wild animals. genetic alterations. Manage chips.

Emma thought of the cream-patched gray wolf right away.

“Do you believe he is one of them?”
“Perhaps. However, I don’t believe he’s under control anymore if he is. If he was, he wouldn’t assist someone like me.

“A person similar to you?”
“I took off running. I learned too much. I was summoned for a “debriefing” by my superiors. However, I’ve witnessed “accidents” and disappearances—what happens to people who know too much. So I grabbed the helicopter and took off. Westward. Then I went down.

Emma created a temporary sling for his arm and completed bandaging his head.

“Now what?”
“I have no idea. They’re most likely observing. If they discover me—

“They won’t,” Emma firmly stated. Nobody enters this area. And nobody can at the moment. You’re secure.

After finishing, she used dried herbs in the cabin to make hot tea. She sat next to him and gave him a cup.

“What brought you out here?” Andrew inquired. “To a location this remote. By themselves.
Emma took a sip of her tea. “I had to run after my divorce, too. Not from the armed forces. Simply… from everything.

“What took place?”
“A timeless tale. My spouse had a different family. in a different city. Children. Everything fell apart when I learned. I therefore accepted the first position I could find, that of a clinic nurse at a rural post thirty kilometers away. The job included the house. Nobody else desired it.

Andrew touched her hand tenderly. “I apologize.”
“Avoid being. This is the better option. I’ve learned to value the quiet. And now, here I am. A nurse caught up in a plot by the military. with a genetically modified wolf and a runaway pilot.

They both genuinely, but briefly, laughed.

Outside, the cabin was enveloped in snow and silence as the blizzard grew stronger. Emma fanned the flames once more. The gray wolf stood guard somewhere in the shadows, protecting them from whatever was out there.

Are you certain that he has a name? Observing the shadow of the wolf by the window, Andrew inquired.
“Miss Anna refers to him as Gray.” She claims that although they keep it a secret, he told her his true name.
Andrew grinned. “Miss Anna seems like someone I like.”

If the storm clears up tomorrow, I’ll take you to see her. Her herbal remedies are numerous. Something for your arm, perhaps. And she needs to know if Gray is indeed a part of that program.

“What makes her trust me?”

Emma met his gaze directly.

“Because you made the correct decision. Moreover, you were chosen by Gray. He came for me after protecting you for days. That has some significance.

Emma stayed by Andrew’s side that night, taking his temperature and ensuring he was stable despite the howling storm and the mounds of snow. She kept asking herself, “Who was this man really?” White Wolf: What was it? Perhaps most importantly, what part was she supposed to play in this bizarre new tale?

Emma finally dozed off with her head resting on Andrew’s bed’s edge just before dawn as the blizzard subsided. The wolf approached the window and watched them with eyes that were too human for her to see. Furthermore, she failed to notice the subtle, heartbeat-like glow that emanated from the cream mark on his chest.

Emma’s life would be forever altered by the truth that came with the dawn of a new day.