Ghost Wolf

Stumbling through the darkness I hear it

Sound creeping ever closer as the light dims

Full moon rises casting shadows on the bark

I stop

Spin around

It’s still there

I hear it

And so I run

Deeper into the woods seeking shelter

Undergrowth snatching at my lengthening stride

As I move beyond the reaches of discovery

Further from the light, on into the darkness

I pause

Nothing

Perhaps a distant snap of a branch

Silence

Crouching

I rest

Sucking in lungfuls of air calms my breathing

No longer panting, now watchful, alert

And I await the fresh dawn, sated, refreshed

Free of the wolf, the ghost in my blood

© Fergus Martin

2012